San Diego Troubadour – June 2007
Lisa Sanders
Last Night in Roseburg
by Chuck Schiele

"The range of sound goes from a few solo songs to full productions, ranging in style from honky tonk, to R&B, to a hint of gospel, a bit o' blues all the while piggy-backing on the folky sound of Lisa-pop. By looking at the roster of talent (too many to list) I kind of expected this to be kinda loud. But actually, it remains rather quiet. Gentle without trying to be. Casual and understated as opposed to trying to take over the world through over-arrangement. It feels good. 'Gold' is one of the highlights in this collection of groovy tunes. It's the sexy tonk that makes you down a whole beer in a two-second swig, slam it on the bar, grab the first girl in sight, and start diggin' a hole on the sultry dance floor. Lisa sounds marvelously urgent on this track. Of all the tracks, this one courses her vocal talent through an ambitious slalom of melodic themes.

'Daddy' is also a serious highlight. Here's Lisa alone with her song, her guitar, and her voice, which has proved over time to be a very comfortable place for Lisa as well as her fans. This solemn take finds the lonesome road into your heart as she recalls things that will, in turn, resonate within you as a listener, recalling certain moments in your own life. It takes about two minutes to notice the lump in your throat, and then it's over. Her ability to do this is like your ability to drink water. Last Night in Roseburg, co-written with Jenny Yates (Garth Brooks, Keb' Mo', and more) is an introspective ballad, stripped naked to the production bone. It is a simple, no fuss, mix.

San Diego Troubadour – April 2007
Deadline Friday
Days Gone
by Chuck Schiele

Here's a CD that'll make you plan a road trip for the sake of driving lost highways, listening to your favorite CDs.

Loyal rock and rollers will dig this scary good CD. It's rock and roll, baby... it's got some 'tuff twang' to it, but for the most part, this is straight ahead, no bullshit, testosterone-driven rock and roll, written and performed by seasoned pros Jim Diez, Mike Spurgat, Earl Schreyer, and Bill Coomes, all of whom are way above the usual curve as individual players but who fully exercise the ol' 'sum of the parts being greater than the whole' adage. Everything is here: stinging sweet guitars, a rockin' rhythm section, great singing. It possesses authority without trying to prove it - that is, it kicks ass, but it also remains as casual and unpretentious as your drinking buddies next door. It doesn't sound like they wanna conquer the world. It sounds like they wanna rock. Getting down is so much more fun.

Think one part Allman Brothers, one part Cream, one part Meters. The jam-ability of the group also reminds me of the Fillmore days, in they often take psychedelic, existentialist rides, bouncing over grooves of Americana and southern rock. 'Broken Man' is the most striking case, with a creepy John Lee Hooker-esque swamp strut that feels like it's coming to get you. 'Get Out' is the tune that actually hunted me down, driving hard in 4/4 telecaster funk, while lyrically kicking some girl to the door. The enlisted help of Jeff Berkley as producer proves to be an excellent chemistry, with the sonic approach that remains loyal to old-school '70s-era tonality while seamlessly blending their acoustic side with their electric side. The guitars are gritty-smooth. The vocals are warm. Minus the scratches, it sounds like vinyl.

Among of the most impressive hallmarks of Deadline Friday is their facility for vocals. With three lead vocalists who've been singing together for a long time, their knack for three-part harmony is ridiculous. 'Days Gone' opens with a very 'Pink' guitar with an 'Eaglesque' harmony, which also demonstrates the range of style that's factored into the deadline while offering sage, downhome advice to 'get busy livin', stop wasting time...' 'Backyard Moon' is easily the sweet repose to an otherwise chunky collection of tunes. If you like songs like 'Sweet Melissa,' you'll go nuts over Deadline Friday when they go here. 'St. Cecilia' will also have you singing along.

While the CD stands firm in its commitment to an American sound, it also collects odd nuggets of interesting ideas now and then. For instance they take a solo over the top of the band and bail out of the mix for a few moments, which I found to be rather ballsy. My ears stood at attention much like a dog that hears all the stuff that's out of human range. 'Stick Figure' hardly begins before it goes off, so-to-speak, entering the beach-bar-jam-band quality that has earned this band many a fan. I think something truly special happens when you give these guys 10 loose minutes and a lot of electricity. If Woodstock happened on a beach, this could be one of its instrumental anthems.

Hometown CD Reviews by Ollie - San Diego Reader – January 2007

Desert Music is a great album. It's tight and professional. The album has a cohesive motif without all the songs being too similar.

Beeks's voice is a mixture of Bonnie Raitt and Jewel, whose music can also be compared to Beeks's. Some of the songs lean toward acoustic and folky; others use more electric guitar and pedal steel to drive home a rockin' country sound.

The first three songs explore the topics of traveling, aging, and becoming successful. "Drive America" is a good road-trip song. "Special Words" and "Good to Be" are uplifting, inspirational tunes without being schmaltzy or saccharine. "Special Words" features hand-clapping and a chorus of voices lifting to a sentimental tone without being overdone. The only thing I wanted more of from the Ordeal is a faster, get-up-and-kick-some-ass saloon song. I'd like to hear the band in a beer bar with the High Rolling Loners.

"Marcia Claire is Everywhere" - San Diego Troubadour – April 2007
"Jeff Berkley is a phenom, plain and simple. He has a better ear for music than anyone I know. It is absolutely wonderful to work with someone who is so accomplished on their instruments but who is also just a natural. Plus, he's hilarious." – Marcia Claire

Acousticmusic.com

Highway Song opens with Son Of A Coal Minin' Man, which begins with a haunting combination of acoustic guitar, fiddle, and Uilleann Pipes, and swells into a rollicking bluegrass hoedown tribute to the coal miners in his family and its Kentucky homeland.

The vocals on this album are mixed a little bit more out front than on "Pieces" and, although the instrumental accompaniment still contains plenty of hot licks, the effect is a slightly more subdued overall sound. The upside is that the lyrics are easy to understand, and Flannery's pleasant voice never gets lost in the mix.

It's a very good album, filled with very good songs of comparable quality and appeal. Highway Song is "very highly recommended."

"A Guide to the Local Music Insdustry: Where to Begin and How to Excel in the Scene" - San Diego Troubadour - October, 2006
Analog vs. digital?

This one question could spark hours of debate between the two schools of audio thinking and hearing. What I've found is that high-resolution digital will record whatever you plug into it exactly as it sounds. It all starts with the player, instrument, and recording environment. But, if an engineer has a decent microphone, a decent pre-amp, and a great A-D converter for converting the signal from analog to digital, then digital is the way to go. However, every one of those things costs money. It is the fusing of both worlds within the same signal chain that seems to work the best at Miracle Recording.
- Jeff Berkley, Miracle Recording
Saving time in the studio
Be prepared! Be prepared! Be prepared!
- Jeff Berkley, Aaron Bowen, Sven-Erik Seaholm

You can't really. Get yourself prepared and the recording will go as quickly as it can go. The truth is that your record deserves your full attention while you're in session. Sometimes that takes some time. Get someone with a lot of recording experience to help.
- Jeff Berkley

What about instrumentation? As far as choosing instrumentation, just make sure you choose instruments that complement each other sonically. Don't overload on one sonic color or another. Have balance wherever possible.
- Jeff Berkley

Influential producers
It depends on who you ask. I like T-Bone Burnett, Rick Rubin, Daniel Lanois, Mark Howard, Ethan Johns, Glyn Johns, Paul Dieter, Sven Eric-Seaholm, George Martin, Ben Moore, Cindy Lee Berryhill, Marti Amado, John Katchur, Steve Lillywhite, Gregory Page, and myself because I can produce one hell of a turkey freakin' sandwich. That's an old joke: 'You're the producer, right? Why don't you produce me a turkey f##kin' sandwich!' I love that one.
- Jeff Berkley

What are the common challenges for you when you record first-timers?

The recording process is weird and a little unnatural, so bridging that gap can be difficult sometimes. The main thing is to just make them feel at ease so they can deliver the performance that both of you want.
- Jeff Berkley

Just talk it all out and then play it all out before you roll the tape. Prepare them for the weirdness to come.
- Jeff Berkley

Jeff Berkley, Miracle Recording
Jeff Berkley has been involved in the process of recording for nearly 20 years. His studio, Miracle Recording, established in 2003, has produced many local artists, including Lisa Sanders, the Grams, Tim Flannery, Eve Selis, the Shambles, and A.J. Croce. As half of the popular duo Berkley Hart, Berkley produced their third album, Twelve, which was awarded Best Americana Album at the 2003 San Diego Music Awards.

"Ring Around the Sun by Tim Flannery"
Old Number 11 comes through with number 7
by Keith Miller - Madison KPRI Morning Show Host

Assisting with the heavy lifting in the album is veteran multi-instrumentalist Doug Pettibone who had just finished a tour with Lucinda Williams when he hooked up with Flannery to do a little surfing. It's a great collaboration rounded out by the always-organic production wizardry of Jeff Berkley as assisted by Jon Edwards.

CD Review – San Diego Troubadour, July 2007
Barbara Nesbitt
A Million Stories
by Craig Yerkes

A Million Stories, the debut CD from Barbara Nesbitt, is some downright heavenly music. What you have here is simply a girl with a tremendous, angelic voice singing wonderfully crafted songs while backed by a band that never once strays from the goal of selflessly supporting the music. The artists that come to mind as I listen are Suzy Boggus, Gretchen Wilson, Emmylou Harris, and Shawn Colvin. The opening title track hits you between the eyes and let's you know what you're in for. The lead and harmony vocals are so powerful, pristine, and alive that you might start looking around the room to see if Nesbitt herself and her band have somehow beamed themselves into your personal space. The drums and the bass (played by San Diego over-achievers Marcia Claire and Billy Coomes) provide a thundering bottom end to anchor it all and Mike Spurgat peppers the musical landscape with guitar work that can only be described as, well - perfect.

'Many Miles' is a perky, ear pleasing country/pop joint that started my toes happily tapping, but then the track turned around and sucker punched me with a bridge that goes full throttle with syncopated harmony vocals so amazing that I literally found my jaw open when it was all over. Speaking of notching up the intensity with mind blowing harmony vocals, 'Three Between Us' delivers the same brand of shock and awe when this cleverly catchy break up song ('two reasons to be alone, that's all this is') changes key toward the end and the already biblical vocals shoot straight into outer space. 'Flicker' struck me as the track that probably has the widest, dare I say, commercial appeal, and I love the way that the fluffy pop format adds the perfect punctuation mark to the comically tragic subject matter. Speaking of subject matter, the lyrics that Nesbitt spins are fantastic and not to be missed. Here is a woman who sees life and love through a very balanced set of eyes, understanding the fine lines between drama and silliness, between youthful hope and the limitations brought by human frailty. The good news is that the stellar lyrics are matched up with wonderfully effective melodic hooks throughout the entire disc.

'Broken Girl,' the beautiful closing ballad, takes producer Jeff Berkley from behind the control board to the role of harmonizer and backup musician with predictably amazing results. Nesbitt and Berkley effortlessly blend their voices together like tequila and lime juice with Berkley's resonator guitar work slowly pouring some Grand Marnier over the mix. What an exquisite way to end this A+ effort from a remarkable artist and her top notch cast of supporting players.   A Million Stories will be released on July 19 at the Belly Up Tavern. More info at www.barbaranesbitt.com.

July 19, 2007
There's a million stories out there, and her's is a good one
By George Varga
San Diego Union Tribune, July 19, 2007

If Emmylou Harris, Patty Loveless or the Dixie Chicks are looking for new material for their upcoming albums, they'd be wise to check out "A Million Stories," the superb solo debut by Barbara Nesbitt. Impeccably produced by local music guru Jeff Berkley, it features an all-star lineup that includes multi-instrumental wiz Dennis Caplinger and ex-Bonnie Raitt bassist Freebo. Each song showcases Nesbitt's warm, evocative vocals, which make no secret of her admiration for Harris' luminous delivery and Loveless' backwoods grit.

But Nesbitt, who also cites Jeff Buckley and Patty Griffin among her favorites, seems to be honing her own style. And its refreshing to hear a debut that boasts so many accomplished songs with such a keen sense of purpose and personality, be it the aching torch balladry of "Horrible Moon" or the pop-rock charm of "Everything I See." On "A Million Stories," Nesbitt sings: The sun shines all the time here / And that's good for breeding fair weather friends. This smart couplet takes on far greater resonance with the next two lines: But I need rain and conversation / And I need to see you believe in me when the day ends.

Then, there's the blues-tinged "Fly." It chronicles how she overcame a broken heart, without letting on that Nesbitt did so in large part by earning a commercial pilot's license and a degree in aeronautical science: Now I behave as the wind behaves / I'm free, lucky me.

She moved here from Virginia in late-2005 and quickly became an in-demand collaborator for such ace local musicians as Gregory Page, Cathryn Beeks, Michael Tiernan and Tim Flannery, who features her on his latest album, "The Wayward Wind."

Nesbitt and her crack band perform a CD release gig tonight at the Belly Up Tavern, followed by a Saturday afternoon show as part of the LISTENLOCALSD.COM-sponsored "Company Picnic" at the Mission Bay Boat and Ski Club. You'd do well to attend both.

San Francisco-Bound Flannery Leaves Fans with a Gem
— excerpted from the San Diego Troubadour, April 2007

Last November, local sports fans were shocked to learn that longtime San Diego Padres' player, coach, and broadcaster Tim Flannery was headed north to join his old buddy Bruce Bochy on the coaching staff of the San Francisco Giants. It was not an easy decision for Flannery who over the last 28 years has become a highly popular San Diego sports celebrity. While Flannery enjoyed his two-year stint as a Padres broadcaster and turned out to be very good at it, he knew the clock of opportunity was running out on his lifelong dream of one day becoming a major league manager. "I wanted one more chance to get down on the field. I knew I wasn't going to get that opportunity with the Padres," Flannery said before performing cuts from his latest CD, The Wayward Wind, to an enthusiastic audience at the Lemon Grove Christian Church in January. Fortunately for local music fans, Flannery's decision to join the Giants won't affect his off-season passion for making music. Once again Flannery will simply put his musical career on hold until next October. Then, just as he has over the last several years, he will recharge his baseball batteries by redirecting his off-season focus to the Celtic-bluegrass-California folk-rock-inspired music that he has played since his youth. He expects to do another series of concerts here in San Diego in the fall and pick up right where he left off. And that was on a high note.

Flannery closed out his fall-winter music tour in February with a CD release party at the historic La Paloma Theater in Encinitas. There he treated those in attendance to a free copy of The Wayward Wind, possibly his best CD. "By this time, after eight records, we kind of know what we are doing," Flannery said of his latest release. "If anything, you learn how to make a recording. And I think I've learned to sing a little bit better and with pain in my voice. It is not about being pretty and perfect, it's about being real. This is a California country album." At this point in the interview, singer/songwriter and Wayward Wind producer Jeff Berkley appeared and jokingly suggested that Flannery owed all his success to him. The two are longtime friends and collaborators and tend to bring out the best in each other. "Jeff is the kind of guy that convinces you to make an album when you are not even planning to make one," Flannery said. "I went over to his house to just have a nice day with him and I came away with an album that was almost done. It's comfortable at his house. I've done records where the record label paid a lot of money to put us in a comfortable studio with $30,000 mics, but I get the same thing doing a record at his house. He's my friend and it's very comfortable there, so he gets the most out of me. He calls it like it is. If a song needs to be done again, he'll tell me."

This time Berkley helped him to capture a particular sound he was looking for. "With this one I tried to make a 1970s-style California country record. There is even a photo of me from 1975 inside the album," Flannery said. "I was influenced by songs like these when I was in high school and I have always loved this music. That's why I wanted to record it."

Those who have followed his career have seen Flannery grow as a singer and as musician. His voice has deepened, mellowed, and matured with age. He has also benefited from the help of a professional vocal coach. His songwriting has grown stronger as well. Humbly, he never fails to credit the people around him. "If you're playing on a baseball team and you surround yourself with stronger players, you tend to become a better baseball player." According to Flannery, the same holds true for music. "In the last ten years I have been playing with guys like Dennis Caplinger, Doug Pettibone, Jeff Berkley, and Dean Smith. These guys are as good as it gets. I just picked up a copy of Road to Escondido on which Dennis plays with Eric Clapton. So I feel that when I play with these guys, I have to come prepared. They also know that I have the same expectations of them. We emand that everybody comes in ready and prepared. We take everybody to the next level and have a whole lot of fun doing it."

In the past, Flannery, the son of a Christian minister, has made no secret of his spiritual background. He has even included a few praise songs such as "Foot of the Cross" and "By the Mark" on his albums. This time, however, his spirituality comes out in a completely different way. "A lot of these songs won't be played on Christian radio. There is even a cuss word on one of them, but Steve Poltz sings it." That song, "Cover Me," talks about the road of life.

"It can be a great road, but it can also be one that destroys families and lives. Sometimes it is a road on which God will cover you if you walk with his grace. That's what that song is about. I won't be playing it in church and it won't be played on Christian radio. A lot of people won't like it. [Some] people want only the beautiful Christian praise songs, but if that's what you're looking for, this album is not for you. If you're in pain and know what it's like to be a real person out in the world and what it's like to have had your heart ripped out, I think you will connect with this music."

Some of Flannery's best songs have been his duets with such gifted vocalists as Randi Driscoll and Eve Selis. On his new CD he teams up on a cover of the early 1950s' hit "The Wayward Wind" with recent San Diego arrival Barbara Nesbitt. He liked the results so much that he made it the title song. "I told her flat out that I didn't want to put any pressure on her, but if it wasn't perfect I was probably not going to do this record. She nailed it! She sounds like Emmylou Harris. She is the real deal, so we had her sing on a couple more and she was great." Flannery has never had any trouble attracting topnotch musicians to perform on his albums and The Wayward Wind is no exception. There is a lot to like about this 11-song offering. It features the wizardry of Caplinger on banjo, fiddle, and dobro, and Doug Pettibone's distinctive sound on the pedal steel guitar. Flannery in fact recruited a virtual who's who of local artists to join him — everyone from A.J. Croce to Peter Bolland either play or sing on it, 16-top-flight musicians in all, which is quite a tribute to Flannery's charismatic personality and growing reputation as a solid musician. San Diego music fans will really like this CD, but San Diego Padres fans may be a different story, at least initially.

This new San Francisco Giants third-base coach may need the benefit of time and a little of that old Flannery charm to win back his jilted Padres following.