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“Barry G just loved radio.” That’s how Michael Chambers, a lifelong friend of the late broadcaster Barrington ‘Barry G’ Gordon, summed up the legendary announcer’s dedication to the medium that defined his career. Barry G, who had been experiencing health challenges, died at the Savanna-la-Mar Hospital on Wednesday at age 70.
“He was on the microphone, but he was so into radio that he also did the technical side ... and that’s where I came in,” Chambers told THE WEEKEND STAR in an article published on Friday. “I was the technical operator over at JBC while he was the announcer. Any little production thing we were doing, he would still come around and try to learn the board as well because he was so into radio.”
Chambers recalled that Barry G had “a soapbox programme to do where he went out and would talk to people and then he would come back and edit it himself in the studio”.
He said that level of dedication helped shape the course of local broadcasting and opened the door for some of radio’s most iconic moments.
“Because of that commitment, he revolutionised radio,” Chambers said, adding, “That thing with [British DJ David] Rodigan came about because Rodigan came to Jamaica, came to the studio, and the Saturday night they just started playing music together ... one from him, one from David. That grew to the point where David recorded it and took it back to England, played it on his show, and then Barry started going to England to be on David’s programme. They eventually took it into the dancehall and had a clash between the both of them.”
The two first met while attending Kingston College and later reunited at JBC in 1978, where they developed a close working relationship that cemented their friendship. Even after Chambers migrated to the United States, they remained in touch and kept their bond strong over the decades.
Chambers said that he would be sure to call Barry G or his wife when fictitious stories of his demise circulated in the public space. He explained that there was a selector who went by the name Barry G, and when he passed, some persons started saying that it was his friend. There was speculation again when Barry G had a stroke.
“But I always had a direct line,” said Chambers. The last time he saw Barry G was three years ago when the two met up for lunch at Pier One in Montego Bay.
“After that, all my communication was through his wife because he had stopped using the phone. And then he had another stroke in December of last year and that just complicated things,” Chambers explained. He heard of his friend’s passing on Thursday morning after developing pneumonia.
In a release on Thursday, Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport Olivia Grange described Barry G’s impact on Jamaican radio as “immeasurable”, noting that he “excelled at his craft for more than 45 years, starting at the Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation in the 1970s... Barry G played a significant role in promoting reggae and dancehall music and in launching the careers of iconic artistes such as King Yellowman and Beenie Man. He inspired generations of broadcasters and will remain a beloved figure in Jamaican entertainment," Grange further stated.
In 2010, Barry G, who was affectionately called 'The Boogie Man', was conferred with the Order of Distinction for his services to broadcasting.
English (US) ·