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Hothouse Flowers pay tribute to sax player Leo Barnes

Updated / Thursday, 21 Apr 2022 11:25
Hothouse Flowers pictured in 1988 with Leo on the top left
Hothouse Flowers pictured in 1988 with Leo on the top left

Hothouse Flowers have paid tribute to their former saxophonist Leo Barnes who has died.

The musician played with the Dublin-based folk-rock band between 1985 and 1998 and also performed with musicians including Michelle Shocked and Gavin Friday.

In a post on the band's official Twitter account, Hothouse Flowers wrote: "Every note he played blew us all away... Play on Leo Barnes RIP."

Mr Barnes also played on records by Two Way Street, and Shane Howard.

The late musician was brought up in the Artane Industrial School and became a prominent member of the Artane Boys Band.

Leo on RTÉ show Borderline in March 1988

He then joined the Irish armed forces and became a member of the Army Band while also playing on the Dublin music scene.

He was given a £2,000 grant by the Arts Council and travelled to France, where he studied with renowned French saxophonist Jean-Marie Londeix.

Fiachna Ó Braonáin of Hothouse Flowers also paid tribute to his former bandmate, sharing a photo of the pair performing. "Every note he played took my breath away…. Codladh sámh Leo Barnes…" he said.

Speaking to RTÉ Entertainment, Fiachna added, "From the first time we heard Leo add his saxophone to our early songs it was if he had injected the music with transcendence.

"His emotional range on the sax was limitless. He was able to tune into the emotional core of any song and lift it even higher than initially imagined. He was riveting to watch - both standing beside him on the same stage or in the studio.

"He was also smart, funny and caring, his sense of humour and humanity enhanced our lives together back in the day. I used to dream in recent years what we would all sound like with the original line-up again sadly that will now remain a dream. But we still have the music... "

Fans of the band have also taken to social media following Mr Barnes' death, with one tweeting, "My teenage years were all about Hothouse Flowers.

"I first saw them in '88 at RDS, bought all the records, went to the gigs, joined the fan club, talked about them A LOT.

"I still have two scrapbooks filled with newspaper articles and interviews. RIP Leo Barnes."

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