A world traveling Australian who has appeared everywhere from Lincoln Center and the Sydney Opera House, to the Davenport, Iowa Bix Fest, Leigh Barker recently set up permanent residence with his family in France. He already had two albums recorded, though not edited, before the pandemic set in. One was intended for a tour with his Australian band before those plans were nixed, the other was recorded in November 2019 with his European band. The albums can now be had, together or separately, under the titles Melbourne and Paris. Fortunately for continuity the singer/violinist remains the same on both sets; Heather Stewart, Barker’s wife, joined him on the move.
Paris was recorded around a vintage microphone and has a nice tone to it. Melbourne was a live set they recorded before a small number of students studying to be recording engineers, occasional applause can be heard. Both have a good balance of tempo and pacing, and try as I might I couldn’t think of something that might help you prefer one over the other. Barker has collected great bands on two continents and you should acquire both.
Heather Stewart is a remarkable vocalist. “Indian Summer,” on the Paris set, rises above, a moving rendition worthy of the timeless lyric. Across the two discs she enriches the presentation of “He Ain’t Got Rhythm,” “The Song Has Ended,” “Lonely One in the Town,” “Chinatow
