Barbarella -

Barbarella was a Danish art-pop band behind a 1975 self-titled album, alternately issued as First Love, on Artist Records.

Members: Gerner Bresson (vocals, flute), Henning Pold (bass, vocals), Terje Barnholdt (drums, percussion), Kaare Barkou (keyboards, vocals), Kenneth Carter (guitar, vocals)

Background

Barbarella formed in Denmark in the early 1970s when guitarist-vocalist Kenneth Carter assembled singer-flutist Gerner Bresson, bassist-vocalist Henning Pold, drummer Terje Barnholdt, and organist Kurt “Pastor” Ziegler Simonsen.

Ziegler played in the Sixties beat groups Beauty Fools and The Stomps, then joined Alrune Rod for their 1969 self-titled album. Barnholdt recorded with Terje, Jesper & Joachim, a rock trio that emerged from the beat group The Unknown and released a 1970 album on Spectator Records. Pold took up electric bass as a teenager after hearing records by The Beatles and Rolling Stones.

On May 12, 1973, Barbarella played Gladsaxe Beatforum alongside Gasolin’ and Walkers. The group appeared at Nørrebrohallen in Copenhagen on May 26 and returned to the Gladsaxe concert circuit on August 25, 1974, with Culpeper’s Orchard and Turf at Bagsværd Sø. Pold later identified irregular meters, complex arrangements, and extended instrumental passages among the musical ideas that shaped the group. Barbarella subsequently replaced Ziegler with keyboardist-vocalist Kaare Barkou. The five-piece recorded a self-titled album for Artist Records with producer Claes Cornelius and engineer Sven “Volume” Christiansen.

Discography:

Barbarella [First Love] (1975)

Research notes

Henning Pold — 70th-birthday interview. Per Wium, July 7, 2021. Firsthand account of Pold’s musical upbringing, early instrumental interests, and Barbarella influences. Includes a career chronology that dates his Barbarella involvement to 1971–76. (Allthat.dk)
En alrune taler ud – 50 år efter. Jakob Lambertsen, December 24, 2019. Interview with former Alrune Rod guitarist Flemming Giese. Establishes Kurt Ziegler’s associations with Beauty Fools and The Stomps, his role in Alrune Rod, and the original lineup changes around 1970. (Allthat.dk)
Terje, Jesper & Joachim — Spectator SL 1023. Record-label archive identifying Terje Bandholdt as drummer, with guitarist Jesper Schmidt and bassist Joachim Ussing. Traces the trio to The Unknown and confirms the 1968 formation. (Spectator Records)
Gladsaxe Beatforum, 1970–1974. Concert archive compiled by Peter Berghard and Claus Rasmussen from original posters, programs, newspaper advertisements, and archival interviews. Lists Barbarella on May 12, 1973, and August 25, 1974. (Koncertplakater.dk)
Index til koncertplakater i Danmark. Additional poster listings for Barbarella at Nørrebrohallen on May 26, 1973, and Bagsværd Sø Rostadion on August 25, 1974. (Koncertplakater.dk)
Barbarella — Barbarella (1975). September 2022 retrospective. Identifies Carter as founder, names Ziegler among the initial members, and describes the replacement by Kaare Barkou ahead of the debut recording. Its 1973 formation date conflicts with Pold’s chronology. (Rockliquias)
Barbarella — First Love, Artist ALP 515. Original-release catalog information confirming the 1975 Artist label issue. A separately reproduced discographic credit listing identifies Claes Cornelius as producer and Sven Christiansen as engineer. (Record Palace; Reproduced personnel credits)