Biography of Bert Berns

One of the real greats of the old school, Bert Berns was a talented songwriter whose compositions included "Cry Baby, " "Twist and Shout, " and "Piece of My Heart, " and a producer extraordiaire who worked with the Drifters, Van Morrison and the Isley Brothers, among others. Bronx-born, as a child Berns took classical piano lessons and it helped him later in his youth when, as a teen, he earned a living playing sessions and as a music copyist. After spending time in pre-Castro Cuba, Berns gravitated back to New York and worked as a song plugger for Robert Mellin Music. Not long after he was hired by the Jerry Wexler-Ahmet Ertugen run Atlantic Records where he became a staff producer, cutting sides for the cream of the R&B talent at the time such as Ben E. King and Solomon Burke. Known for his outrageous appearance and hipster slang, Berns was, nevertheless, a tremendously gifted producer and is generally credited as the first man to openly inject Latin rhythms into pop music. After several years spent working under the Atlantic umbrella he branched out in the mid-60s, running the subsidiaries Bang and Shout and acting as an A&R man and staff producer. It was at Bang that Berns produced "Brown Eyed Girl" for Van morrison, a track which has endured as one of the singer's greatest moments on record. Unfortunately, Berns had a fascination for the seemier side of life and it's alleged that his friendships with members of organized crime caused a rift between him and the Atlantic heads. Berns died shortly after filing a breach of contract suit against Wexler over more control of Bang records. ~ Steve Kurutz

Biography of Freddie Scott

Though he was born in Providence, RI, Freddie Scott had the inflections, delivery, and sound of a classic Southern soul vocalist. Scott attended high school in New York City and later became a songwriter for Columbia Music. He was working there in 1963 when he recorded "Hey, Girl" for Colpix, which became a Top Ten pop and R&B hit. Scott continued on Colpix until the mid-'60s, when he joined Shout. He had his greatest hit there in 1966, the chart-topping R&B wailer "Are You Lonely for Me." Scott continued on Shout until 1970, then recorded for Probe. ~ Ron Wynn