Sidney Barnes is now in his seventh decade in the music industry. Over that time he has worked with many of the all-time greats, as well as being involved in many of the landmark periods in the evolution of soul music. In the run up to The Sidney Barnes weekender with The Signatures, in Coventry, we caught up with the man himself for an exclusive chat and a look back at some of the many high points of his career.
Born in 1941, Sidney grew up in West Virginia, before moving to Washington DC where, when still at high school, he was a member of several doo-wop groups, basically made up of school friends. One of these saw a young Sidney team up with the equally young Van McCoy, Marvin Gaye and Herb Feemster (one half of duo Peaches and Herb). All four would go on to find fame and fortune some years later.
When asked what he remembered of those early years Sidney replied: “There was no music industry to speak of at that
