Eric Barrett, who served as a road manager and confidante for Jimi Hendrix, has broken a 55-year silence to detail the behind-the-scenes behavior of several prominent musicians in his new book, "Experienced." Barrett worked with Hendrix during iconic moments, including his performance at Woodstock, and described him as a sensitive, insecure genius. However, his experiences with other artists revealed a different side to stardom.
Barrett recounts his initial impressions of Madonna, noting her drive and determination despite a volatile interaction upon their first meeting. He overheard her expressing frustration with her team before he met her, stating, "For f***'s sake, Freddy, do I have to meet him?" Barrett also noted her tendency to loudly call out to him during rehearsals for the Virgin tour, demanding fixes for a wobbly stage ramp, sound issues, and a man smoking too close to her. Despite the demanding nature, Barrett was proud of her performance on her first live gig, and later received a bottle of champagne, flowers, and a card from her thanking him for his competence.
When Barrett first met Luther Vandross, he was a backup singer for David Bowie and exhibited a polite demeanor, even expressing a fear of flying and requesting to travel by Greyhound bus for a 16-hour journey to avoid flights. However, when Barrett worked with Vandross again in 1997, the singer had become a "completely different person." Barrett described Vandross as a spoiled prima donna who would berate staff over minor issues, such as a wrinkle in a dress or the perceived cleanliness of his tour bus sheets. Vandross also demanded the tour bus driver be fired after accusing him of not changing the sheets, despite evidence to the contrary. The environment became so difficult that the production manager quit, and Barrett declined future offers to work with Vandross.
Barrett found George Michael to be aloof and detached, rarely speaking directly to him and maintaining distance through assistants. His only notable memory of the tour involved Michael's extraordinary demands for comfort. While the band and crew stayed in subpar hotels, Michael insisted on sleeping in his own king-size bed. This led to a unique arrangement where a "bed roadie" was hired to transport his bed from city to city via truck, although it was reportedly never used. Michael also flew back to England on his private jet after each show and then flew to the next European city the following day, with a hotel suite booked as a backup in case of weather delays grounding his plane.