Dick Barrie's
Country Music Website

History of "It's Barrie Country"

[ Read about the CMA Award Dick won. ]

It must be a burning ambition of so many music-mad teenagers to get on radio, propound their thoughts and play their music to the masses.

Not for DICK BARRIE. While someone who collected, and hugely enjoyed, a wide selection of - mostly American - music of rock'n'roll and beyond, talking about and broadcasting that same music was never a dream to Dick.

But when, in late 1978, he was offered a chance to sit down in a studio at Radio Forth, his first thought was "why?"

His next was "why not?"

Dick had been broadcasting airport reports and speedway commentaries, on several radio and TV stations, during the '70's, but presenting a music show was far from his thoughts when Tom Steele, who was taking over as Head of Programmes at the Edinburgh station, called him in November, 1978.

"It was a time of change in Scottish local radio" Dick can recall. "Scared stiff by the massive success of commercial ILR stations such a Clyde in Glasgow as well as Forth, the BBC had rushed into 'local radio' by announcing and launching BBC Radio Scotland, and head-hunting - I hesitate to use the word 'poaching' - some of the recognised broadcasters who had created the new market in regional radio."

"Although the BBC has never succeeded in even scratching the surface of the loyal audience of listeners commanded by the ILR stations, nobody knew this at the time - and quite a few presenters were lured away by the thought of Auntie's gold!"

Among those who flew the coop from Forth was Gerry Ford, who had hosted a couple of excellent, easy-listening, country-style lunchtime programmes on Forth at weekends. When Gerry announced he was for the off, Tom Steele had a problem. Who could replace the likeable Irishman at a moment's notice?

The very next morning, Tom heard Dick - on the line from Glasgow Airport, with the "Flightwatch" report on Forth's breakfast programme - bantering with morning man Mike Scott, and sounding as if he knew what he was talking about!

"A lucky accident" claims Dick, all these years later.

Steele called Dick as soon as he got to his office, and asked if he had ever thought about "doing a music programme" - which, although he hadn't, sounded as if a "nice little earner" might be in the offing to Dick, who agreed to drive through to Edinburgh for a try-out.

"I was totally relaxed" he recalls. "After all, I knew I wouldn't get the job, so what should I worry about?"

"Tom and Andy Park, who was just finishing up at Forth to go to STV, I think" interviewed me and took me into a studio - the first real radio studio I'd ever been in!" he can remember.

"We played a few records, I talked a bit - and they asked if I could do a two-hour show that Sunday!"

"It was to be for 'a few weeks. 'til we get someone permanent' - and that was in 1978!" he laughs. "Now, over a thousand shows down the track, and I'm still looking over my shoulder, wondering when the 'real' guy is going to turn up!"

From the very beginning, Dick insisted on being his own producer, choosing every record played himself.

"That way, if the public don't like what I'm doing, I fall on my own face - it's better that way".

For the earliest editions of "It's Barrie Country!", while Dick was still learning the game, the desk was 'driven' by studio engineer Sandy Wilkie, but it was only a few weeks before Dick was alone in the studio, doing everything himself.

"Sandy was superb in these early days, a fantastic teacher" affirms Barrie. "But of course, I have to say that - he is now Managing Director of the station!"

As the weeks rolled into months, then into years, Dick found the hard work involved in producing and presenting his two-hour programme an enthralling challenge.

A string of stars found their way to his studio - Dick had George Hamilton IV as a superb early guest, and later found visits from Phil Every and the boys from Dr Hook particularly enjoyable. "Phil Everly was absorbing" he recalls. "I have never known two hours flash by so quickly".

A brief break in broadcasting the show - during which he took time out to launch Scotland's most-successful new speedway circuit in decades, at Shawfield in 1988 - allowed Dick to return to Forth-AM early in 1990, refreshed and ready to take his Sunday-afternoon audience figures to new heights with the still-running three-hour sessions.

In the second decade of "It's Barrie Country" the stars have continued to drop in, from Daniel O'Donnell to Reba McEntire, with every point covered in between!

Trips to Nashville and other American cities have deepened his knowledge, as well as his love, of country music - and of course, his rapport with his audience has allowed what Dick terms his "Country Music Fraternity" - the listeners, and the organisers of the country-music clubs and line-dance groups in East Central Scotland - to help him raise considerably more than £100,000 for the benefit of the area's disadvantaged kids, through the stations "Help-a-Child Appeal".

Aye, it's "Barrie" country!

[ Read about the CMA Award Dick won. ]