Bob Jones (1959-2024): The soft-hearted punk at Ottawa’s legendary Barrymore’s

Article content

It wasn’t unusual to receive a 4 a.m. message from Bob Jones looking for support for his idea to create an Ottawa Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame. Or to see a racy new “Bobservation” posted to his Facebook page in the wee hours of the night.

Article content

Article content

Jones was a night owl, a habit formed when he served as the right-hand man at Barrymore’s during the heyday of the legendary Bank Street nightclub in the 1980s. He was hired by the late co-owner Gord Rhodes as promotions manager, but did whatever was necessary to run Ottawa’s most famous live-music venue at a time when international touring wasn’t the precise operation it is now. 

Article content

“He was hired to make sure the world knew who was coming to Barrymore’s,” said Eugene Haslam, who occasionally booked bands into the venue before opening his own long-running club, Zaphod Beeblebrox. “He had many other roles, too, like hefting equipment, stage managing, ticketing, all of the things a small operation needs an all-round go-to guy for. He did pretty much everything.” 

Among the acts that played the grand old club were U2, REM, James Brown, Tina Turner, B.B. King, The Pogues, Meat Loaf and many more. Jones made lasting connections with everyone from DOA’s Joey Shithead to Sinead O’Connor and had a seemingly endless supply of colourful stories.

In recent years, Bob was working on compiling the Barrymore’s stories into a book. He also wanted to pay tribute to the pioneers of the Ottawa music scene, such as Rhodes, his wife, Sherry, and Haslam, by launching the Ottawa Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame.

But in 2023, Bob’s life was disrupted when one of his roommates died, and another got sick and needed care, which Bob arranged. He was forced to move out of the  Centretown home they had shared for years. It took months for his CPP and OAS to come through, and he had a hard time finding an affordable place. It was a tough time, his sister Karen said.

Article content

Article content

Jones died Dec. 6 of a sudden heart attack. He was 65. 

Bob was born into a military family in Comox, B.C. He and his older sister spent several formative years in Germany when their father did two tours of duty at the Canadian air-force base Baden-Baden. Between the German postings, the Jones family lived in Ottawa.

As teenagers, Bob and Karen listened to the rock music that was popular at the time, and started going to shows at a cave-like bar in Germany’s Black Forest hills. 

“Even though he was a couple of years younger, by 13 or 14 he was much taller and became my big little brother,” Karen recalled. “He was very protective of me.”

Bob loved all kinds of music, but when punk hit, he never looked back. He shaved his hair into a mohawk, and completed his signature look with a bullet belt. 

Despite his imposing appearance, Bob was a creative and soft-hearted character who loved working with people and often helped out the community by organizing fundraisers. 

“He was one of those extroverts who got his energy and recharged his batteries by being with people. He took a real interest in people and he was really good at engaging them,” Karen said, noting the “irreverent” sense of humour that inspired his frequent Bobservations on Facebook. 

Article content

“Everything was up for ridicule but he wasn’t cruel. He had a big heart.”

Haslam said Jones was a wiz at promotions, and they had a great time designing posters with Letraset, glue and scissors. “He was gentle in his style and serious about promotion but he made it fun,” Haslam recalled. 

“He also had this don’t-mess-with-me presence,” Haslam added. “If he thought you were scared or someone was scaring you, he’d be a funny, nice, protective guy that people felt safe with. That sticks with me.”

Jones was often the first person to greet the bands when they arrived at Barrymore’s. Haslam remembers how stressful it was when the Pogues arrived late to their first (and only) show in Ottawa. The door of the tour bus opened and band members Shane McGowan and Spider Stacy tumbled out, getting a warm welcome from Bob, who pointed out the pub across the street and the strip joint next door. 

“It was that kind of chaos that must have been life for Bob every day,” Haslam said. “These bands were coming from all over the place and some were grumpy by the time they got there. And then there was Bob with his mohawk and bullet belt being Mr. Nice Guy, smoothing everything over.”

Article content

Another tale included in the Citizen when Barrymore’s celebrated its 10th anniversary (around 1989), described Bob as the club’s “handyman and hairstyle consultant,” and asked him to relate his “wackiest” moment at the club. 

He referred to a 1982 gig with The Stranglers. “They brought with them the largest sound system known to man. The two stacks on each side of the stage were piled so high, they began to teeter when the music blasted through them,” Bob said.

“Me and (former employee) Steve Brin D’Amour climbed up to the top of each stack, and held on to a lighting bar across the ceiling with our legs wrapped around the PA to keep it from falling down.”

Bob is survived by his mother, sister, ex-wife, daughter and two grandchildren. 

To recognize the housing insecurity he faced, the family requests donations to PAL Ottawa in lieu of flowers. The charitable organization works to provide aging arts-sector workers in the National Capital Region with affordable housing and a supportive community. Make a donation and find out more at https://palottawa.org/blog/news-events/Bob-Jones-Donations

lsaxberg@postmedia.com

Article content