PAUL BARRERE,
1948-2019

Little Feat guitarist Paul Barrere died Saturday at UCLA Medical Center from side effects related to his ongoing treatment for liver disease. He was 71.

Barrere had been touring with the band as part of the Little Feat’s 50th anniversary tour, but skipped the October leg after doctors ordered him to rest. He had missed a tour in 2013 when he was being treated for liver cancer, but otherwise was a consistent member of the band for nearly all of its existence.

Barrere auditioned for Little Feat founder Lowell George as a bassist when the first edition of the band was being formed in 1969, having attended high school with George in Burbank.

In 1972, the original edition of the band broke up after two albums and Barrere joined the band as a guitarist along with new bassist Kenny Gradney and percussionist Sam Clayton. A strong slide guitarist, he was with Little Feat for 47 years.

“As the song he sang so many times put it, he was always ‘Willin’,’ but it was not meant to be,” band members Bill Payne, Clayton, Fred Tackett, Gradney and Gabe Ford wrote on the Little Feat web page. “Paul, sail on to the next place in your journey with our abiding love for a life always dedicated to the muse and the music. We are grateful for the time we have shared.”

Barrere co-wrote Little Feat classics such as “All That You Dream,” “Time Loves a Hero” and “Feats Don’t Fail Me Now.” The group split up after George’s death in 1979, reuniting in 1988 and scoring a hit with the a Barrere co-write, “Let It Roll.” They have steadily toured and recorded ever since.

Barrere also toured with Phil Lesh & Friends and recorded with Bonnie Raitt, Taj Mahal, Robert Palmer, Carly Simon, Nicolette Larson and others.

(1/2) Oh my God. I just heard about the passing of another dear friend, Little Feat's Paul Barrere. A brilliant guitarist, singer and songwriter---a cornerstone of one of the greatest bands of all time. #PaulBarrere pic.twitter.com/vS4rqXhD4J

— Bonnie Raitt (@TheBonnieRaitt) October 27, 2019

Rest In Peace my friend. You’ve Blessed us all with a lifetime of inspired, soulful music. #Paul Barrere pic.twitter.com/5jHJxO9ge0

— Nils Lofgren (@nilslofgren) October 27, 2019