News/Thoughts

Big Blue Sky In The Morning

Barbara Jo Kammer knows first hand the journey of addiction recovery, and the fruits of life on the other side of it. After struggling for years, she’s poured her new lease on life and her love for performing music into a career as a music therapist. Not long ago, her group The Hippie Buckaroos, was named among the Best 10 Cover Bands in Colorado, by Westword magazine. And at 62, she recorded her first CD, One Song At A Time. “That CD was a celebration of 10 years in recovery, and the songs are really a reflection of that journey,” Barbara Jo said.

And now, just two years later, Barbara Jo is excited to have another CD project to her credit – her sophomore CD – Big Blue Sky In The Morning. Although she doesn’t fancy herself as a songwriter per se, she did write one for this project, and even got to work with guest artists Greg Blake (see ReverbNation article) and Darrell Scott (see cover story). “I was so happy with having the opportunity to do my first album, but I knew that if it went well, I really would like to do another one,” she recalled. “Having the opportunity to go into the recording studio, again, with all of these amazing players from Colorado was a dream come true.”

“My goal is to offer any kind of hope or comfort with my music that I can,” Barbara Jo said. Barbara Jo earned her Masters in music therapy in 2000, and said she figured out when she was in school what population she wanted to work with. “It was elders,” she said. “I’ve been going to the retirement communities and offering up my music.”

The pandemic has altered her approach however. Where she used to take her band mates along for inside performances, now she performs solo, outside their windows and in their courtyards. “It’s not ideal, but I’m really glad that I can still at least do it that way,” she said.

Find out more about Barbara here https://www.barbarajokammer.com. Listen to the Profiles interview here.