Don Barnes Tells I-95: 38 Special Made Rock History Right Here in Connecticut

Don Barnes—co-founder, vocalist, and guitarist for legendary Southern rock band .38 Special—joined us on Wednesday, October 1 to talk about the band’s brand-new album Milestone, released September 19.

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The album marks a major moment for the group, celebrating their 50th anniversary with their first release of new music in over two decades. Milestone features collaborations with Pat Monahan of Train, Randy Bachman (Bachman-Turner Overdrive, The Guess Who), and longtime friend and co-writer Jim Peterik (Survivor, Sammy Hagar, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Cheap Trick).

With a legacy that includes arena-packing tours and timeless rock anthems, Barnes and .38 Special are back in the spotlight—bringing both nostalgia and fresh energy to fans, old and new. This was our favorite moment from the Don Barnes chat.

Dave: Don, you’ve played hundreds, if not thousands, of shows in Connecticut and the Northeast in general, and you’re coming back to Foxwoods on December 12th for another show. What are some of your most memorable shows here in Connecticut?

Don: “New Haven Coliseum, we always rumbled the walls. We’d raise the roof on that place. That was always a great, great venue. Is that still there? I guess they probably tore it down.”

Dave: Yeah, they took it down about 10–15 years ago.

Don: “Yeah, but we did our first two albums in Westport. Yeah, the southern guys up there in the snow, the grey melted snow. Yeah, Dan Hartman from the Edgar Winter Group years ago, he was from Harrisburg, PA, but he lived in Westport. So, he had a studio in his house, and it was interesting because every room in the house, over in the corner, had a little mic input. You could record from a bathtub if you wanted. Put that amp in the bathtub just for the echo, you know. It was interesting putting that kind of stuff together. But yeah, we played, of course, the Meadowlands Arena many years ago. We were told, you know, it’s 24,000 people. You know, every band has handlers, managers, and accountants and all that, and they were advising us not to go into a venue that large because you might embarrass yourself. You might, you know, not sell it out or whatever. And we’d been up to the Northeast so many times—manic fans, big fan base up there—and we felt like, no, we feel like we can go in there and do this. And they were like, OK, well it’s your funeral. And we went in there and, buddy, let me tell you, 24,000 people came out and sold that place out. So that was a big pivotal moment in our career. You feel like you finally did make it. So there was a lot of filming going on and all that stuff, but that was a big, big moment for our band. We had several pivotal moments like that.”

Lou: Don, now that we’re friends I feel comfortable telling you that you need to back off the coffee. WOW!

Don: “Yeah, hey, like I said, we woke up this morning and found out that the album was a Top 10 rock album in America. We were like, wow, that’s great. Fifty years later, we’re happening.”

You can listen to the complete interview below. 

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