Barry "The Fish" Melton (born June 14, 1947 in Brooklyn, New York City) was the co-founder (1965) and original lead guitarist of Country Joe and The Fish. Barry appears on all the Country Joe and The Fish recordings and he also wrote some of the songs that the band recorded. He appeared in the films made at Monterey Pop and Woodstock, and also appeared as an outlaw in the neo-Western film, 'Zachariah,' and other films in which Country Joe and the Fish appear. Melton is also a founding member of The Dinosaurs, the Bay Area's only psychedelic music "supergroup." He has been a criminal defense lawyer for over 20 years, and he currently serves as the Public Defender of Yolo County, California. Barry also continues to be active in music. Since 2001 he has performed in Italy, England, France and Russia (he appeared with the Russian band, Crossroadz, in Moscow). He often appears with his own band, mainly around Northern California, and generally tours Europe briefly in the summer. Peter Albin of Big Brother and The Holding Company has continued to play with Barry for over 35 years.
External links
- Barry "The Fish" Melton homepage
- CJFishlegacy.com
- Barry Melton Band collection at the Internet Archive's live music archive
