The year was 1983, and Sacred Blade's first two demos were having an impact on the burgening underground metal scene. Accolades were pouring in from around the world, and the serious prospects of recording contracts were on the horizon. The band decided that proper management was in order, in order to strengthen the creative team that was developing. After numerous calls to the leading management agencies in Vancouver, (none of whom had the slightest idea about heavy metal), the number for a prospective candidate was passed along by Bruce Allen's agency (then managing Loverboy, Brian Adams, Red Rider formerly managing BTO). The band placed a call to the unsuspecting gentleman, who arranged an appointment. What followed was a relationship that has grown for the past 16 years. Brian Barry tells his side of the story.

I started my management/agency career in 1981 with Vancouver's Axis Entertainment and learned the business with Nick Gilder's manager, Barry Samuels (1978 world wide number 1 hit "Hot Child In The City"). I always had the notion that I wasn't really a manager until I had moved an act "from the cellar to the stellar". This idea was confirmed by "uber" manager Bruce Allen. I was dealing with him on my Canadian Top 30 recording act Body Electric (Frank Ludwig from Trooper, Bob Buckley and David Sinclair of Straight Lines, the single "Out Of The Blue"). He said "Find yourself some sharp new talent and work like hell".

With that comment in the back of my mind and a couple of successful acts following my direction, the phone rings in my office to set up a meeting with a new act. At the appointed time, in walks a ghetto blaster with tunes, two roadies and the members of Sacred Blade. What I saw was purpose, product and talent. The interview indicated a fine sense of humour and an important dedication to detail. After seeing the band live, I knew that this act rocked, both on stage and recorded, and had the attitude to make it. Every performance, every track produced, every joke exchanged continued to validate my initial impression. The longer we worked together, the more I came to appreciate the general depth of talent, the dedication to the music and larger development, coupled with strong ambition and the vision to carry on to the highest reaches of the worldwide entertainment business. It was forcefully evident that the only thing these guys didn't do was sew their own clothes! (well, do stage clothes count? - ed) But... put an artistic or production problem to them and it soon found itself solved.

A big thrill for me was the release of the first L.P. in Europe and the following international response. I was always pleased to receive mail and reviews from overseas and every little bit of support increased my promotional efforts. We were soon headlining local shows and dreaming big dreams. I was impatient to break the U.S. market with a major label deal, and I felt the time was perfect when I got the call from Epic/Sony in New York. I had returned from a western Canadian tour with another act to find phone messages and mail from director of A&R, Bob Fieniegle in N.Y to "call me now!!!" We were invited to New York for discussions, and if Sony wanted to spend their money on us, we were there!

We really enjoyed the week in the "Big Apple". Saw the sights, made some good friends, saw some shows, but didn't like the deal we were offered. We wanted much more money and support, and in hindsight I'm glad we didn't come to terms. We would have been stuck with a shifting label and still owe them records. However, we did get encouragement in the form of a comment from Don Grierson (then Vice President of Artist and Repertoire at Epic):
"I can see you guys becoming the next "dyolfknip" (I hate comparisons - BB). You remind me of when I was at EMI and this band owed us one more album, but no one knew what to do with them because they sure didn't sound like anything else. They were going to be dropped from the label. Their final album with us went on to become one of the biggest sellers of all time." This band is still recording top selling albums and producing the biggest shows. Thanks for the pat on the back Don, and I agree that Sacred Blade is that strong.

Since then we've been regenerating and preparing for the big push (more waiting - be patient, Brian). We have developed production, art and communication capability and solidified the songs, and the new and improved Of the Sun + Moon should be along any time now!

I know now that unconsciously I develop my personal and business relationships on the strength of talent. I thrive on surrounding myself daily with that indefinable thing that results in creative, unpredictable, exciting work. The byproducts of this focus is sometimes money, fame, or both. I count amongst my associates the famous, formerly famous and about to be famous, but the common thing is talent and quality. Sacred Blade is a great band. The guys live together, they've played together for years as headliners, make great rock albums, have a growing worldwide fan base and they know how to have fun! All the ingredients that spell a long rock and roll career.

I have always viewed Sacred Blade as a long term project (how long?!!), a retirement fund investment as it were. Sacred Blade has always been in step with its own vision. Trends have come and gone and yet Of the Sun + Moon still stands as a terrific rock record. Sacred Blade is poised to break new musical and technological ground as we jump into the new century.

When not waiting for Sacred Blade, Brian can be found acting on the sets of many movie and television productions alongside artists including Gillian Anderson, Sean Connery, David Duchovney, Gene Hackman, Jerry Lewis, and Sharon Stone. In 1991 Brian cofounded FredaVision Communications, a talent driven, international multimedia production co-venture.