The Day the Music Died: Barry Fey Was the Ultimate ‘Unconventional’ Entrepreneur

In his classic hit, American Pie, released in 1971, songwriter Don McLean intones:  “I went down to the sacred store where I’d heard the music years before but the man there said the music wouldn’t play.”

Every time host and award-winning journalist Dean Rotbart hears that verse, he’s reminded of rock ‘n roll concert promoter Barry Fey, who over the course of his three-decade career organized mega-shows featuring Jimi Hendrix, The Who, U2, Rolling Stones, Three Dog Night, and many other music legends.

Fey died eight years ago, age 74, but the story of his unconventional path to success lives on. This week, Dean plays highlights of his two interviews with Fey and demonstrates why the rocker was an entrepreneurial and marketing genius.

[Pick up a copy of Barry Fay’s 2011 book, Backstage Past, featuring forewards by Pete Townshend and Ozzy & Sharon Osbourne.]

Photo: Barry Fay, Feyline
Originally Posted: May 6, 2013
Best of Monday Morning Radio Update: March 8, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 1 hour, 13 minutes