The Barrier

Formed in Fulham, south London, England during the 1960s, the blues and psych rock outfit Barrier featured Alan Brooks on drums, Alan Francis on bass, Eric Francis handling vocals and organ, and Del Dwyer on guitar. Their debut single, ‘Georgie Brown’/‘Dawn Breaks Through’, appeared on the independent blues label Eyemark Records in 1968. The b-side was also cut by the Purple Barrier, the group’s psychedelic alter ego, for the same imprint. That release earned them a contract with Philips Records and yielded two more 1968 singles. Both ‘Tide Is Turning’ and ‘Spot The Lights’ offered strong examples of garage pop, though neither gained traction beyond south London. After the band dissolved, its modest output drew steady interest from psychedelic and garage collectors and surfaced on compilations such as Freakbeat Vol. 3 and A Trip In A Painted World. Alan Brooks later joined Punching Judy.