Who was Barry Goldberg? Keyboardist and producer who worked with Bob Dylan and others dies at 83

Barry Goldberg, the keyboardist and producer who worked with Bob Dylan, passed away on January 22, 2025, from non-Hodgkin lymphoma, as per People's article on January 23.

Barry Goldberg performed with Bob Dylan at the famous Newport Folk Festival in 1965. He has also worked as a producer and keyboardist with multiple artists, including Leonard Cohen, Rod Stewart, Steve Miller, the Ramones, and Stephen Stills. He appeared in the 2013 documentary Born in Chicago.

Goldberg passed away at the age of 83. He is survived by his wife, Gail, and son, Aram.

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Barry Goldberg's career explored

Barry Goldberg. [Image via Instagram/@barrygoldberg_music]

Goldberg was born on December 25, 1942, in Chicago. His uncle was the US Supreme Court Justice Arthur Goldberg. As per Rolling Stone, his mother influenced him toward music as she was a boogie-woogie pianist.

In the 1960s, he formed the Bobby Blue Band with Mike Bloomfield, Buddy Miles, and Harvey Brooks. During his decades-long career, he worked with artists such as Steve Miller, the Ramones, Leonard Cohen, the Flying Burrito Brothers, Mitch Ryder, Stephen Stills, Rod Stewart, Bobby Blue Bland, Percy Sledge, and Kenny Wayne Shepherd.

In 1965, he played the organ in Bob Dylan's iconic Newport Folk Festival performance. The performance was controversial at the time, as fans expected Dylan to play acoustic folk songs. However, the singer played an electric guitar. This upset the crowd.

The controversial Newport Folk Festival performance inspired the 2015 book Dylan Goes Electric! by Elijah Wald. The book was adapted into the movie A Complete Unknown, directed by James Mangold in 2024. It stars Timothée Chalamet, Edward Norton, Elle Fanning, Monica Barbaro etc.

In 2013, Barry Goldberg told Rolling Stone about the audience's reaction on that day. He said,

"Bob said, 'You want to play with me tonight?' I wasn’t a folkie or knew how serious those people were. We started doing our thing, playing that song. At the end, there were boos but also cheers. They felt betrayed by him. But Bob was creating a new kind of music, and after we were done, everyone knew how special it was."

According to a report in Rolling Stone on January 23, 2025, Goldberg also formed the band Electric Flag in 1967. The band's music combined blues, rock and roll, pop, and horns.

He appeared in the 2013 documentary Born in Chicago, which was about Dan Aykroyd's concert with the Chicago Blues Reunion in the late 2000s. The Chicago Blues Reunion consisted of industry veterans like Goldberg, Corky Siegel, Harvey Mandel, and Nick Gravenites.

Bob Dylan produced Goldberg's self-titled solo album, which was released in 1974. He also worked on Dylan's People Get Ready album, which was released in 1990.

According to Variety's report on January 23, 2025, Goldberg's friend and former band member Mike Bloomfield introduced him to artist Gail Fliashnick. The two married in 1971 at the Chelsea Hotel. They have one son, Aram, who is a management executive.

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According to The Sun, Barry Goldberg's family is asking his fans to donate to The Bear League in his honor.