Joey Baron

Joey Baron
Baron with John Zorn at Barbican Centre on June 18, 2006
Background information
Birth name	Bernard Josesph Baron
Born	(1955-06-26) June 26, 1955 (age 61) Richmond, Virginia, U.S.
Genres	Jazz, avant garde jazz
Occupation(s)	Musician
Instruments	Drums
Years active	1975–present
Labels	JMT, Intuition, ECM, Tzadik, Elektra Nonesuch, CAM Jazz, DIW
Associated acts	Bill Frisell, John Zorn, Masada, Baron Down, Down Home Band

Joey Baron (born June 26, 1955 in Richmond, Virginia) is an American avant-garde jazz drummer who plays frequently with Bill Frisell and John Zorn.

Bernard Joseph Baron was born on June 26, 1955, in Richmond Virginia. When he was nine, he taught himself how to play the drums. As a teenager, he played in rock bands and dixieland jazz groups. After high school, he spent a year at the Berklee College of Music. He moved to Los Angeles in the early 1970s and embarked on a professional career, playing with Carmen McRae and Al Jarreau. He worked as a freelance drummer and session musician with Chet Baker, Stan Getz, Dizzy Gillespie, and Hampton Hawes.

In 1982 he moved to New York City and joined guitarist Bill Frisell, with whom he would play often throughout his career. He also played in groups with Red Rodney, Fred Hersch, Enrico Pieranunzi, and Marc Johnson. Starting in the late 1980s, he became a bigger part of the avant-garde jazz scene when he played regularly at the Knitting Factory, recorded with singer Laurie Anderson, and began a long association with John Zorn. For several years he participated in Zorn's projects Naked City and Masada.

Baron contributed to David Bowie's Outside (1995). Bowie would later praise Baron, stating: "Metronomes shake in fear, he's so steady."