PressQuotes

The new CD - Ignoring All The Warning Signs ...
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"One of the best roots rock bands in America" - Western Beat

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"... As good a country rock record as you will hear this year!"
Ignoring All The Warning Signs is as good a country-rock record as you will hear this year. Berardo & his buddies stir it up plenty on this slab of hillbilly propulsion, punctuated with wailing harmonica and churning electric guitar, not to mention the leader's impassioned vocal. A shouted "Woo-hoo" from this corner"

- Robert K. Oermann, Music Row Magazine
July, 2007
Robert K. Oermann served as a judge during season 1 of Nashville Star, on the USA Network. Dubbed "The Dean of Nashville's music writers," Oermann is a multimedia figure in Music City. Already a TV personality, he is seen regularly on the CMT series Inside Fame and on A&E's Biography. He is the Editor-at-Large of Country Music magazine, a weekly columnist for the trade publication Music Row, and has been published in more than 100 other national magazines. Oermann's seven books to date include the award- winning Finding Her Voice (Crown, 1993/Henry Holt, 1995), A Century of Country (TV Books/Harper Collins, 1999) and Little Miss Dynamite (Hyperion, 2002), the autobiography of Brenda Lee. More than 75 record albums contain liner notes penned by Oermann, including the current multi-million selling soundtrack to O Brother, Where Art Thou?

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" ... better than 90 percent of the music on today’s country radio."
   "Chris Berardo embodies everything I love about popular music - a pleasing voice, beautiful melodies and hooks, well crafted lyrics. Shades of The Eagles and Poco combine with a Southern rock sensibility, creating a fresh sound unlike the usual cookie cutter country-rock of today.
   The rocking “Everybody Swings Around Here” is an immediate pick for my favorite track, but truth be told, I love the whole album, from the melodic “The One", to the top 40 country “hit waiting to happen,” “So Good So Far,” it’s all good. Chris Berardo is a very good songwriter with an obvious gift for crafting melody lines and home-spun lyrics and his vocal reminds me at times of a more controlled Drive By Truckers sound - familiar, but less garage band/Stones thrash. “Never The Same” is another memorable track, as is the infectious ”I Will Love Again", and the bluesy “Barstool", complete with a very cool a capella opening verse from Berardo.
   Pedal steel, mandolin, banjo, fiddle and harp co-exist with acoustic and electric guitar in a beautiful tapestry of sound. Nowhere is it more evident than in the album’s final track, “September Prayer,” a beautiful new point of view on the 9/11 tragedy. Berardo and his band have crafted a fine album that should garner lots of attention. We can only hope. It’s better than 90 percent of the music on today’s country radio."

"An album that you can't ignore!"
"CT - based Chris Berardo & The DesBerardos are on an upward trajectory. One listen to "Ignoring All The Warning Signs" and you'll understand what the fuss is all about. Berardo craftes catchy, roots-rock tunes about small towns, barstools and hope. Blues- flavored guitar leads are prevalent, as are hooky mandolin lines and stomping drum beats. And if the music doesn't catch your attention, Berardo's lyrics surely will. "I guess if you're counting, I have lost more than I've found / But I still hold my head up in this town," he sings in the poignant "Forty Years." Berardo & The DesBerardos follow all the right signs with an album that you can't ignore."
- Performing Songwriter Magazine 6/07

"West coast rock heaven ..."
"Riding straight out of a tequila sunrise and into the arms of an adoring crowd of barroom regulars, this band hits all the right notes to appeal to Jackson Browne and Eagles fans everywhere ... There is a pervasive feel of West Coast rock heaven here, kicked up a notch or two with sizzling guitars and Berardo's winning voice."

"Berardo establishes his place in the lexicon of roots rock"
"Chris Berardo’s music sits to the mellow side of Reckless Kelly and the Gourds, but with more of an edge than John Mellancamp or Jackson Browne. On Ignoring All The Warning Signs, Berardo establishes his place in the lexicon of roots rock. With only one non-original tune (Jeff Tweedy’s “Passenger Side”) Berardo’s songwriting talents vie with his smoky voice as the star of the CD. Anyone who favors roots rock will immediately resonate with Ignoring All The Warning Signs.
Berardo delivers all the goods."
- Steven Stone

“Berardo can get by on the strength of his gritty voice alone, as he proves at the start of 'Barstool.'… (he) performs Jeff Tweedy’s ‘Passenger Side’ with scruffy soulfulness, delivering the song like the fellow roots-rock traveler he is … ‘Everybody Swings Around Here’ is a boisterous portrait of ‘wild-eyed schemers and barroom dreamers,’ while ‘Forty Years’ and ‘One Silver Rider,’ both laced with resonating pedal steel guitar tones, colorfully conjure the birth of country rock.”
'September Prayer', Berardo'smost ambitious ballad, is also a keeper, and may outlast most musings inspired by 9/11."

"Connecticut is not the first place you’d associate with classic American music, but it’s where you’d find Chris Berardo and his rather fine band playing exactly that. This, their third album, takes bits of folk, bits of country, bits of bluegrass and bits of rock, puts them into a blender and what comes out is pureed essence of all of that, but with enough gritty bits to keep it interesting.
Berardo, who writes most of the songs, is a romantic of the road, where beer, cars and girls are the staging posts of life’s journey. He also writes a beautiful melody and chorus line (“Forty Years” is sublime”, “So Good, So Far” almost as good), and the entire album oozes hooks and singalongs.
“…Warning Signs” is Americana in its truest sense. It embodies the heart and soul of the country ... Berardo does as good a job as anyone of both keeping the flame alive and moving it forward."
Date review added: Sunday, January 28, 2007
Reviewer: Jeremy Searle
Reviewers Rating: 7 of 10

****1/2 stars
"I loaned out my copy and never got it back, which furthers my resolve to never lend out my favorite CDs. Ever again. This is the kind of record with what I call “reference” songs - songs that you want to hear over and over again. Should have never taken it out of my CD player. Someday I’ll learn. Berardo’s voice and songwriting is right out of the country rock scene that evolved at LA’s Troubador during the ‘70’s, an era that spawned Jackson Brown, the Eagles, Gram Parsons, and more. Berardo has taken that collective era, and done them all one better on this album of singer/songwriter crafted gems."
- Michael Tiernan
NBC SanDiego.com

"It is rejuvenation on a huge scale for me. Huge. Just call me a desberardo waiting for a train."

   "For those who loved the early days of country rock, allow me to introduce Chris Berardo and the DesBerardos. Evidently schooled in the art of what country rock should really be, they have taken the best of the early days and brewed the stew that satisfies. Throughout this twelve song album, these guys spread the joy like it was the early seventies all over again, echoing the soul of the very early Eagles (before Bernie Leadon left, not wanting to sell his soul to the devil) and Cowboy and early Pure Prairie League and Mason Proffit and Heartsfield and a handful of others who were not mimicking the music but who actually felt it.
   The overriding feel on the whole is similar to the first Eagles album, light and bouncy with the touches of country over solid easy-going rock. And it doesn't hurt that Berardo has the touch when it comes to such songs, writing the ten solid originals included here (the only non-original is Passenger Side by Jeff Tweedy and the band nails it like it does the others). Berardo's voice amplifies the similarity, having that combination of Glenn Frey and Don Henley, depending upon track, and the backing vocals on some songs, especially One Silver Rider, could have been lifted from that band as well.
    I do a disservice to the DesBerardos if I make it sound like they are nothing more than a tribute band because they are not. Maybe what I am trying to convey is a feeling. I lived those days in the early seventies and dove into country rock head first. This album takes me back to those days of mustaches and long hair and vests and a time when back to the country meant something. I get the same rush from this album that I get every time I put on Robert Thomas Velline's Nothing Like a Sunny Day or the first Uncle Jim's Music album. It is rejuvenation on a huge scale for me. Huge. Just call me a desberardo waiting for a train."

A review written for the Folk and Acoustic Music Exchange
by Frank Gutch Jr. 2007

"Clean, real music that harks back to the 1970's golden era ..."
   "Blend Firefall's organic melodies and harmonies with The Marshall Tucker Band's brand of Southern rock and throw in a bit of bluesy, soulful flair and you come up with Connecticut's Chris Berardo & The DesBerardos.The band fronted by Mr. Berardo boasts two CDs (2003's "Pure Faith" and 2006's "Ignoring All The Warning Signs" ... ) and a road ethic that's put it in venues playing with MTB, Little Feat, Reckless Kelly and others. These guys make clean, real music that harks back to the 1970's golden era when The Eagles and Jackson Brown attracted fans of pop, rock and country. Ah, the good old days.
           -Mario Tarradell
              Dallas, TX
              The Dallas Observer, 2007

"Chris Berardo and his friends concoct a catchy, retro sound on Ignoring All the Warning Signs, harking back to the jingly pop/rock of the '80s. At the beginning of 2007, however, Ignoring All the Warning Signs is close enough to roots to file under "No Depression." This is probably too bad, in that the album is much more upbeat and tuneful than the angst that pervades alternative country. Both "The One" and "So Good, So Far" are driven forth by a small, guitar-based band and augmented by harmonica, fiddle, and, on occasion, banjo, mandolin, and steel guitar. Most of these songs have been written by Berardo who also handles lead vocals. His gruff, soulful style brings the right feeling to these songs, and, along with the rough-around-the-edges harmony on the choruses, keeps them from sounding too pretty. For No Depression fans sick and tired of being depressed by scruffy, college educated singers, Chris Berardo & the DesBerados will be welcome therapy."
Ronnie D. Lankford

9 Rating! (out of 10)
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   "News Flash -- Hippies found living in Silvermine, Connecticut!
   Can it be true? Yes indeed. They call themselves Chris Berardo & The DesBerardos and they spend their days touring up and down this great country playing "Americana" -- an amalgam that includes pop, rock, and country. Chris Berardo pulls on his influences (Jackson Browne, Mellancamp, The Eagles, Dylan, Springsteen) to create something fresh and exciting -- touching vignettes of growing up in small-town Connecticut.
   The decidedly country feel to this record separates it from the normal singer-songwriter record and makes it perfect for dancing. So go ahead, down that shot of Tequila, and slip on your party shoes."
©2006 Roger-Z

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"It wasn't that long ago that you didn't have to go out of your way to find hard working, roots rocking crews like this that knew how to turn it up loud and proud and let the good times roll. Now that the industry has a bad case of "all-or-nothing-itis", when you find what used to be thought of as a solid mid-level act, it's cause for celebration. Berardo and his gang know how to lead the charge for helping you let off steam. With some real talent going for them at all levels of the game, this bunch is a real party on a platter. They know how to work an audience and they know how to get you worked up. This is how it was before everyone was an arena rocker, whether they were or not."

   "Ignoring All the Warning Signs clearly defines the roots/rock/soul-filled sound that Chris is becoming known for.
   In the tradition of all music that is good, Berardo has a voice that is pleasing to listen to and songs that are hopeful and cause you to embrace the moment and live life to its fullest. (It is) music for people who love boundary-less music. "
   - John Shelton Ivany's Top 21

John Shelton Ivany is the current Internet content provider for Hardrock.com. Mr. Ivany is the former editor of Hit Parader, Country Song Roundup, Revolution and Rock & Soul (all national magazines). Formerly editor of On Radio, Electric Village and Riffage.com websites. Mr. Ivany was the President of Titanium Records, a subsidiary of Atlantic Record Company.

"A terriffic cover of Wilco's Passenger Side!" - Positively Yeah Yeah Yeah
The Cincinati City Beat, The River City Reader (Davenport, Iowa), The Anchorage Press, The Chatanooga Press, Yes Weekly (Greensboro, NC),
The Wildcat Weekly (Lexington, KY) and Brick Weekly (Richmmond, VA)
Combined circulation of 155,000

The CD -Pure Faith
LR-10327-2
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"One of America's brightest new Roots / Rock bands!"
... sparkling harmonies, rootsy picking and jangly electric guitars. More than a hint of twang seeps through Chris' songs of lost love and stand-your-ground refusal to go quietly into the night. They continue to tour the country to support PURE FAITH (as well as a pretty healthy beer habit) while their converts and number of dark adventures continue to grow. Is it Country, Rock, Pop, Roots? Hell Yeah!"

- Americana Tonight!
Nashville, TN (11/05)

"Connecticut’s Chris Berardo conjures bracing roots-rock from the elements used by John Mellencamp and Bruce Springsteen before him: the open road, the broken heart, the dream of escape."
- The Nashville Scene, Nashville, TN (11/12/05)

"We had already heard a lot of great things about this CD, but we were truly astonished when we heard it come banging through the speakers for the first time! If this singer/songwriter is not soon world famous, we simply can't explain it. "
- Roots Time, Belgium

"Pure Faith is a surprisingly accessible piece of work. Everyone can sympathize with the touching lyrics contained in these songs, like the pining Look In Her Eyes and the free flowing of Still Waters. If you enjoy good music, then you will enjoy The DesBerardos. It's really as simple as that. Go see them!"

                          - The Music Scene
                  Houston, TX
              March 2004

"Chris Berardo's new CD is one of the best to come out in a long time! I've had a copy in my truck CD player for months and it's a phone-lighter at the radio station. JD says play it, play it over and over!"

                                                             - JD Rose, Program Director
                KFAN 107.9
                                 Fredericksburg, TX

"These guys are great! The country rock of PURE FAITH evokes a real Flying Burrito Brothers vibe, and Chris' voice is really eaasy on the ears. A highly enjoyable disc and one that begs for repeat listenings. "

" American Roots / Rock akin to John Mellencamp - twang with a pop sensibility. As a crooner, Berardo favors mid-tempo numbers that provide ample opportunity to tap his inner diva for a bit of CMT worthy drama. His bandmates keep things grounded with strummy acoustic guitar rhythms, plucky banjos wailing harmonicas and the occasional sighing fiddle. Prepare to be won over by Berardo's charisma ..."

"They play with a lot of heart. Berardo's voice leads the melodic offerings ... where he proves to be suprisingly soulful and un-testosterone. Songs focus on wandering and getting lost, on losing women, drinking, and finding something to believe in. Pure Faith is a nice addtion to the record collection of a fan of The Allman Bros, The Marshall Tucker Band, or almost any genre between bluegrass and acoustic music"

   "Pure Faith is a nicely polished collection of working-class pop tunes with soaring harmonies and optimistic feel-good lyrics about perseverance (the title track), lost love (New York Moon), and living for the moment (Done Is Done). Even if you don't like country, you may like this."
                                                                                    - The Weekly
                                                                                                        Faifield County, CT, March 2005

"The DesBerardo's sound is country rock with small glimpses of what Jon Bon Jovi may have sounded like had he grown up south of the Mason-Dixon. Out of Birmingham should find radio listeners in both rock and country formats while Pass The Bottle has such a hook for a chorus that it will undoubtedly become a sing-along at live performances."

   "Very good. A real pleaser! "
                                    - John Roths, Music Director
                                     KEOS 89.1 FM
                                         Bryan/College Station, TX

"I bet this guy is awesome live! Like The Refreshments if their buddy hadn't killed hisself." (?)
- Hybrid Magazine

"Chris Berardo's an urban cowboy. American Dust definitely has its roots in good ol' US terra firma, blending country and pop sounds in with a singer/songwriter acoustic base. ...Singing with some real feel and restraint, with a real understanding of country - tough, but pretty. American Dust is a solidly crafted work."

"A top notch recording featuring a solid collection of songs. Much like the Eagles in texture and execution...strong hooks and powerful lyrics. One of the best releases to cross my desk in a long, long time."

( Out of Five)

"The DesBerardos rode into the Texas Hill Country airwaves and won the hearts of the men, women and children with lyrics they could feel on music as smooth as the wind."

                                                                                      - "Dr." John Scott, KFAN 107.9 FM
                                                                                         Fredericksburg/Johnson City, Texas
                                                                                         Texas Rebel Radio Network

"... loaded with bright and sunny harmonies and country lyricism. Berardo takes on social issues with sincerity and soul."

"Rootsy sounds reminicent of John Mellencamp. Fine playing and clean production...the songs are well written."

"Killer three part harmonies and country tinged contemporary rock. The kind of band you remember. "

"Chris Berardo and the DesBerardos have brought a warm, fresh sound to the tri-state music scene. Their talent appeals to a large demographic, with potential to cross over in many formats. "