Barney Ales....The Master Of Motown!

During my career in the music industry, I have had the opportunity of meeting some great people; both men and women. However; it was not until I met Barney Ales, that I really had the chance to see one of the most powerful men in the music industry in action. Since I was promoting product for Motown Records at the time (1964), I had an excellent insider's view.

He sat in a humble office located upstairs at Hitsville on West Grand Boulevard in the Motor City....Detroit, Michigan. From there Barney controlled the flow of Motown Records' product all over the world.

For years, many people speculated that Barney owned Motown, not Berry Gordy. Berry was an astute businessman and knew he needed a white man to front Motown in order to collect monies from the (mostly white) distributors and rack jobbers. Berry could have made no better choice than Barney Ales.

Knowing the potential of the Motown machine; discerning the machine's many talents (including his own) and knowing how to collect the rewards....was Barney's talent.

This interview with Mr. Ales was recorded at his home in Malibu several months ago on a mini-cassette recorder. I have been holding back the interview because I couldn't figure how I wanted to produce it. I have decided to run the interview alone (sans music cuts) as the discussion is quite informative (and humorous) by itself. The interview is totally un-edited.

There are four parts to this interview. BluePower will run one part per week. Anyone remotely interested in the music business of the Motown era and of that time period will want to tune in to a talk with one of the most fascinating men to ever work the music industry.

Let's put it this way....Barney Ales has an incredible sense of business acumen and used it to grow one of the most prestigious and profitable entertainment companies of all time; Motown Records.

John Rhys/BluePower.com

Listen to Barney Ales....The Master Of Motown
Listen To Barney Ales....The Master Of Motown (Part Two)

A Sad Day For The Blues!

Jimmy Trapp was my friend. We go back almost 30 years together. The first time I met him, he came to Costa Mesa to audition for a band called "Midnight Angel". We all hung out, sat around. We loved him immediately and hired him on the spot without even hearing him play. Needless to say, when he showed up to the gig and was a great player, we were all very happy!

He started the Walter Trout Band with me and was there from day one. He was the best man at my wedding, and I was the best man at his wedding. He was my brother. He was a great musician and musical partner for me.

His humor, his intelligence, his friendship will all be missed more than I can find words to say.

God Bless you, my brother Jim. You are at peace now.

Walter Trout

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Jimmy Trapp had a stroke followed by a ruptured aorta on Tuesday the 23rd.
After fifteen hours of surgery and intensive hospital care, he died Wednesday,
August 24th at 7:15 PM PST.