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"One way to think of (Bill's playing) is to imagine that Toots Thielmans had a brilliant evil twin locked away in the attic, listening to Little Walter 78s and having only Toots' worn out chromatics to practice on"
--Tom Townsley, "Blues Revue"
"Bill Barrett plays the harmonica. Simply stated, he is one of the most cogent and arresting soloists ON ANY INSTRUMENT playing today. I kid you not. Listen to this shit! He goes from classic blues harp to fucking campfire memories to ghostly shakuhachi rushes without ever losing the moan and shriek of the blues. His playing is consistently haunted. It haunts the music like a spectre, imbuing each moment it inhabits with what David Briggs called “The Spook."" - Nels Cline
Since moving to L.A. in 1984 Bill Barrett has performed with a wide range of sonic luminaries, from Anthony Wilson & Greg Ginn to the USC Orchestra & L.A. Philharmonic. Barrett has also performed & recorded with such new music innovators as Vinny Golia, Eugene Chadbourne & Oliver Lake. As a bandleader Barrett has released several genre bending records, ranging from soul-jazz aberrations and high octane blues to modal chamber jazz on the Los Angeles Punk label SST and the renowned Ninewinds jazz label. Barrett has been a featured performer and clinician at several international harmonica festivals including SPAH in Columbus Ohio in 2002 and Harmonica Sur Cher in France in 2005. In addition to Gutpuppet, Barrett currently plays in several innovative music groups including Jefferson Steelflex and his Neptune Society, Hazmat Modine and Steuart Liebig's Mentones.
