biography

Scott Berry
Songwriter ~ Producer ~ Performer

Pianist ~ Singer ~ Songwriter ~ Producer ~ Arranger
~ Musical Director ~ (and other odd jobs)

Biography

"Music is it's own reward" - Sting, songwriter/musician

Scott Berry has an extensive background as an entertainer which includes rock and roll with a touring band, jazz and blues solo engagements on Bourbon Street in New Orleans and musical theater, cabarets and piano lounges in New York City. Performing in the Orlando, FL area since 1986, he plays, sings and composes music in various styles, including JAZZ, BROADWAY, LATIN, POP, COUNTRY, ROCK, BLUES, CLASSICAL, NEW AGE and RAGTIME.

Scott began singing in the church choir at age 7 and taking piano lessons at age 8, in Hopewell, Virginia, where he was born. After a year and a half of lessons, he quickly began picking tunes out by ear from the popular songs on the radio and exploring his mother's vast sheet music library, which included Gershwin, Richard Rodgers, Hoagy Carmichael, etc . At 15, Scott began writing songs and joined several rock and soul bands, traveling around Virginia to gigs before he graduated high school. His major influences...The Beatles, Ray Charles, Beethoven, Gershwin, James Taylor, Nat King Cole, Santana, Joni Mitchell, Al Kooper, Vince Guaraldi, Paul Simon, Sam Cooke, Jobim, Tony Bennett, Sergio Mendes, Neil Diamond, Elton John, Bob Dylan, Burt Bacharach and all the Atlantic and Motown groups...to name a few! At 17, he became a full-time professional musician and went on the road singing and playing keyboards and percussion with his 8-piece band, TOUCH.

In 1974, after touring with his band for over 2 years, he left his life on the road and settled in New Orleans, where he quickly landed work on Bourbon Street and the surrounding French Quarter, playing rock, soul, blues and jazz in several piano bars. In 1976 Scott re-recorded the local jukebox favorite "DOWN AT PAPA JOE'S" backed with his own song "THE DRIFTER AND THE LADY" on side "b". He was heavily influenced by Billy Joel, Leon Russell, The Eagles, Steely Dan, Earth, Wind & Fire and the New Orleans sounds of Blues, R&B and Jazz, especially Loius Armstrong.

New Orleans
in the 70s

His New York experience (1977 -1985) includes working as the musical director
(as well as singing and acting) for the off-Broadway show "I'M GETTING MY ACT TOGETHER AND TAKING IT ON THE ROAD" by Gretchen Cryer and Nancy Ford (produced by Joseph Papp), working with such leading actresses as Betty Buckley, Phyllis Newman, Betty Aberlin and Connie Stevens and leading men Steven Keats, George Hosmer, Joel Fabiani and Orson Bean. Scott was lead actor and musical director for the productions "VINYL" (by J. King and E. Epstein), "HOLDING PATTERNS" (by Jeffrey Sweet). Scott is the composer and co-creator of the American folk-inspired musical "THE FIRST GREAT AMERICAN TRAVELING CARNIVAL" (with Lila Levant) and the sophisticated urban pop musical "BEING IN LOVE" (with Ralph Tropf). Scott also underscored the country-meets-Big City comedy production "OPTIONS" (by Andrew Foster) and dark and brooding drama "THE WAILING MIST" (by Greg Brennan). He developed a deep affection for Duke Ellington, Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Copland and Stephen Sondheim as well as music
as diverse as The Police and the new Windham Hill artists.

He honed his perfoming skills while singing and playing his original songs solo and with the rock/pop/blues/country/soulful sounds of the Scott Berry Band all around Manhattan at various night clubs and piano bars during the eight years he spent there. He was also musical director and accompanist for numerous cabaret artists. Scott appears (very briefly) in Billy Joel's "Piano Man" video,
which was filmed in New York.

New York City
in the 80s

Read some REVIEWS

Since coming to Orlando, Scott, along with his wife Paula Stevens, has written and/or produced original underscoring, songs and jingles for the Disney theme parks, Orlando's Theater Downtown, The Fringe Festival, The Orlando Magic basketball team, the Philadelphia Phillies baseball team, a local Florida cable children's tv show, and other local businesses. In 2001, he scored the music for the film short, THE CHALLENGE by director Jason Liquori.

In the early 90s, Scott became a member and later president of the Casements Songwriters in Ormond Beach and won honors in their annual Casements Songwriters Showcase for several years (the songs are judged by an independent body of professional Nashville songwriters each year.) He also lectured in Musical History for 2 years at Full Sail Center For The Recording Arts, teaching the new engineering students about the different genres of music they were likely to encounter--
Scott's mantra: "Know your client's wishes by understanding your client's language".
He served up American popular forms, including Gospel (and Negro Spirituals), Rock and Roll (the 50s and 60s), American Folk (a pretty huge basket) and others...

As part of his wide range of live and recording studio experience here in Orlando, Scott is equally at home working with country and folk artists--like singer/songwriters CONNIE BLACKWOOD and Kim Perry--or local jazz vocalists--such as Lydia Hay, Suzanne Lukather and Laura Yager--as well as New Age pianist/composer Mark Andrew. He co-produced "AFTER THE STORM", the first solo album by MARK ANDREW in 1993. He went in the studio again in 1996 to produce his popular SCOTT BERRY TRIO and their only CD titled "SWINGSHIFT". In 2002 Scott produced and performed on the first CD by female jazz singer "DETROIT SAM".

In the spring of 2002 he performed and produced his own "MORE THAN LOVE" CD (singing and playing a collection of romantic favorites, the title song written by Scott himself). Then in late summer, Scott released his "SERENITY" CD, a full hour of instrumental meditation music, all original compositions. In 2004, he released his New Age CD, "NATIVE SPIRIT". To learn more about my CDs, click any of the titles to link to my CDs page.

Back to the present:
Performing in the Orlando area since 1986, Scott is a working musician, currently appearing often at the PEABODY HOTEL and elsewhere around town.
(For Current Schedule and Updates...see PERFORMANCES page)

Call at (407) 297-6886 or e-mail at berrysongs@gmail.com
for bookings, the purchase of CDs or more information.