“We are excited to be playing the Paramount this week,” he said. “I never really broke into the New York market. We have had a few gigs in upstate this last year and have played areas like Boston but really looking forward to being there in Huntington.”
“People can expect to see a full Johnny Cash tribute,” he said. “We cover all of Cash’s hits from the early days at Sun Records with songs like ‘Walk The Line’ and follow his career up through the end of his life with songs like ‘Hurt.’ We will sing all the hits such as ‘Ring Of Fire’ and even cover the duets such as ‘Jackson’ with June Carter.”
On his admiration for Johnny Cash’s music, Barker responded, “For me, my love of Johnny Cash music came from childhood. My fathers family was actually from the are of Arkansas that Johnny was from. My dad and his dad knew what it was like to work a cotton veils and on farms so they related to his music. My grandfather was a big fan and probably where I first heard Johnny Cash’s music.”
He listed “Sunday Morning Coming Down” as his favorite Johnny Cash song to play live. “I just love the vibe and picture it paints of a musician’s life. Kris Kristofferson just knew how to write a song,” he said.
On being a tribute artist in the digital age, he said, “It is always a challenge at any time. I started doing this almost 20 years ago and have been doing ‘The Man In Black’ tribute for over 15 years and it’s always a challenge to imitate a celebrity and do a respectable job at it. It’s always a work in progress no matter how good you get.”
Regarding his future plans, he said, “We hope to just continue touring and expanding our fan-base and demographic in 2020. We would love to get back over to Europe and Australia and we would like to tour Asia.”
For more information on the upcoming “Man In Black” tribute show at The Paramount in Huntington, check out the venue’s official homepage.
“I would like to invite everyone out to The Paramount to see this show. Even if you’re not a Johnny Cash fan there is something for everyone and just great live music and a lot of fun. You won’t be disappointed. We promise,” he concluded.
