Born in Dover, and raised in Keansburg and Middletown, CJ Barna started playing guitar and getting into music in nearby Red Bank. “At the time, the Middletown/Red Bank area was a mini-mecca of places to play,” he says. Over the years the Plainsboro resident has played in duos, trios, a six-piece all-original rock band, and all by himself. From clubs to coffeehouses, brushes with fame and total obscurity, to Barna it has been a “wild ride.”##M:[more]##
“I took some time off recently, so I’m doing open mics to put my foot back in the pool,” he says. His first gig in more than two years is Saturday, July 25, at It’s a Grind coffee house in Plainsboro’s Village Center.
His music is acoustic, rhythm & blues, rock, some original, and some covers. “My own music is a sort of cross between Jason Mraz, Paul Rogers, Edwin McCain, with a bit of Rob Thomas,” he says.
His two CDs include “The Returning,” a blend of symphonic and new age; and “Elements,” which is much more ambient. He is currently working on his third symphony, tentatively called “Ascention,” along with a rock/vocal CD called “Circle.”
“When we give up all of our ideas of how it was supposed to be, how it had to be. and accept how it is, we return to our true selves, we begin to accept ourselves — and then we can begin to accept each other,” he says in liner notes. “Music has always been my path. But there are as many possible paths as there are people to walk them. Choose yours. Create yours. In this time of global unrest, let the returning begin.”
In 1988 he began working at Total Research (since purchased by Harris Interactive), and he has been a programmer for more than 20 years. “Outside of music, it’s probably the best thing I could be doing for a living,” he says. He moved to Plainsboro in 1988 for work and never left.
“I chose Plainsboro to be close to my job — but I’ve fallen in love with the area,” he says. “I love Princeton, I love the shore, I love being able to ride my bicycle around, and I love the feel of this area.”
CJ Barna, It’s a Grind Coffee House, 7 Schalks Crossing Road, Plainsboro. Saturday, July 25, 8 to 10 p.m.. 609-275-2919. www.itsagrind.com.
