Jan Berry Tribute

ENCOMIUM IN MEMORAM VOL. 1
Jan Berry of Jan & Dean
Produced by Cameron Michael Parkes and Mark A. Moore
Cover Image © Jill Gibson
Buy the Album: AMAZON | CD BABY

1. The Anaheim, Azusa & Cucamonga Sewing Circle, Book Review and Timing Association — Tripsitter with Parkes & Moore, and Probyn Gregory on horns

2. It’s As Easy As 1, 2, 3 — Lisa Mychols with Probyn Gregory on horns

3. Dead Man’s Curve — Parkes & Moore with Probyn Gregory on horns; Vocal recitation by Ken Berry

4. Ace of Hearts — Vic Diaz (of the Matadors) with Parkes & Moore

5. She’s My Summer Girl — Parkes & Moore

6. ‘B’ Gas Rickshaw — Paul Johnson (with Moore on temple blocks)

7. When It’s Over — Parkes & Moore with Jill Gibson

8. I Found A Girl — Parkes & Moore with Alan Boyd and P. F. Sloan, and Probyn Gregory on horns

9. Filet of Droll Pt. 1 — Stuff and Nonsense

10. Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) — Charles Pett of Box o’ Clox with Parkes & Moore

11. Bat No. 4 — Parkes

12. Filet of Droll Pt. 2 — Stuff and Nonsense

13. Bat No. 1 — David Marks (of the Beach Boys), with Moore on Percussion

14. Carnival of Sound — Tom Bahler with Parkes & Moore

15. Blowin’ My Mind — Parkes & Moore

16. Fan Tan — Don Grady (My Three Sons, The Yellow Balloon) and Michael Carey Schneider (Sneaker)

17. Love and Hate — Parkes & Moore with Mike Deasy (of the Wrecking Crew)

18. I Know My Mind — Parkes & Moore with Laurie Biagini

19. Mulholland — Parkes & Moore with Gina Longo

20. Laurel & Hardy — Parkes & Moore with Alan Boyd (C. Tidewater Finlayson)

21. Flight No. 9 (Cheyenne) — Parkes & Moore

22. California Sunshine — Robbin Thompson

23. Continuous Eternal (A Prose Poem) — Stephen Kalinich, featuring an unpublished melody by Jan Berry

24. The Anaheim, Azusa & Cucamonga Sewing Circle, Book Review and Timing Association – (A Capella Vocals)  — Tripsitter

25. Fan Tan –  (A Capella Vocals) — Don Grady and Michael Carey Schneider

26. Audio Montage 1 (KJAN) — Jan Berry, 1958

27. Audio Montage 2 — Jan & Arnie, 1958

28. Audio Montage 3 — Jan & Dean, 1964

29. Audio Montage 4 — Jan Berry, early 1980s, talking about Brian Wilson and “Surf City”

30. Surf City — Christa Collins (“The X Factor”) and the Woolly Bandits, with Billy Berry

 

Mastered by: Earle Mankey

Associate Producers: Alan Boyd and David M. Beard

Engineers: Matt Bennett, Billy Berry, Mattia Borrani, Alan Boyd, Mike “Doc” Buckley, Jeff Carroll, Mike Deasy, John Dickson, Steve Folta, Don Grady, Adam Harding, Greg Hauge, Paul Johnson, Jeff Lampson, Mark Linett, David Marks, Mark A. Moore, Cameron Michael Parkes, Tom Richards, and Julia Wolff

Recorded in: Los Angeles, CA;  Thousand Oaks, CA; Camarillo, CA, Burbank, CA, Goleta, CA; North Salem, NY; Nederland, TX; Las Vegas, NV; St. Paul, MN; Richmond, VA; Raleigh, NC, and Charlotte, NC

Cover Portrait: Jill Gibson — (Buy a copy here)

Liner Notes: Mark A. Moore and David M. Beard

Album Design: David M. Beard

 

REVIEWS & COMMENTARY:

Without Jan & Dean, there would be no Beach Boys.”

Sky Saxon
The Seeds

 

Jan & Dean are the greatest.”

Marky Ramone
The Ramones

 

This loving tribute was originally dreamed of as a collaboration between Berry and enough strings and brass and musical geniuses to give his complex arrangements of classic Jan & Dean hits, many that Berry based on classical music, the full orchestral treatment they deserved.

Berry’s passing and budgetary restraints reigned that in, but using humbler, but incredibly talented and motivated performers (with a few ringers, P. F. Sloan included) Jan & Dean gems are redone in lush, loving, and excellent performances.

But for fans of Jan the absolute selling point is the bonus tracks. [Jan] as a young man used to make tapes for a friend and some of his faux DJ patter is included, as is a tape of an older [Jan] telling tales. But the lowest common demoninator selling point of this is an audio montage of Jan & Dean cursing like sailors between takes at recording sessions. I would drop some f-bombs to demonstrate how awesome this is, but I’m intimidated by these professional profaniteers so I’ll just say it’s freaking great!

Flamin’ Waymon Timbsdayle
Roctober Magazine #47
Fall 2009

 

I am still one of the many ‘Presidents’ of the Jan Berry Fan Club!!!! I hope this album reaches out to everyone.”

Bruce Johnston
Jan’s fellow Linda Flora Garage Studio Musician
The Rip Chords
Bruce & Terry
The Beach Boys

 

How strange it is that it takes a tribute album, of all things, to reveal the true artistry of Jan Berry, a primary architect of the West Coast sound who just may have been Brian Wilson’s equal as a songwriter and arranger.

The funny little ditties about little old ladies, cars, girls and superheroes that Jan & Dean spun into “beach music” gold were undeniably catchy, but perhaps they prevented some from taking Berry seriously as an artist. However, beneath the goofy humor was a complex, rich sonic environment — the product of Berry’s sublime arrangements and production.

Conceived while Berry was still alive — and the detailed liner notes say he was excited about the project’s possibilities — this lush, fully realized 23-track tribute was put together by producers Cameron Michael Parks and Mark A. Moore, as well as associate producers Alan Boyd and David Beard, using Berry’s personal archive of musical scores. And all involved — including guests like P.F. Sloan, Jill Gibson and David Marks among others — take great pains not to trample over Berry’s legacy, their orchestral flair and great reverence for the source material ensuring this was done right.

Swaddled in mellifluous harmonies and warm horns, “Dead Man’s Curve” and “I Found A Girl” — with its snappy, uptempo gait — are simply magical reworkings, while the instrumental “‘B’ Gas Rickshaw,’ ignited by a drag-racing intro, surprises with its cinematic scope, sweeping strings and charming playfulness. “Ace of Hearts” and “When It’s Over” swoon with heavy, delicious melodrama, without feeling insincere or heavy-handed, and “Carnival Of Sound” is vibrant and exotic, fulfilling Berry’s original psychedelic vision and offering ample evidence of his ability to change with the times.

With most tribute albums, it’s hard to tell if the artists are participating only to further their own careers. Or, rather, it’s painfully apparent that that’s exactly what they’re there for. On Encomium In Memoriam: Vol. 1 — Jan Berry of Jan & Dean, there is no room for such vanity. Each piece is meticulously crafted and gorgeously fleshed out; even the incidental scraps — from the harpsichord musings of “Bat No. 4” and “Bat No. 1” to the parade of found sounds that is “Filet Of Droll (Part 2)” — seem to be carefully thought out to reveal Berry’s entertaining court-jester personality. Truly, this was somebody’s labor of love.

Peter Lindblad
Goldmine Magazine
April 10, 2009 Issue
PDF Version From Magazine

 

I will probably call 32 times today. The Jan Tribute made a tear or two come to these eyes that have seen soooo much.

Jan Berry was a great friend and a wonderful man to share an apartment with. My first hit [“I Adore Him” by the Angels] was written with Jan . . . many more. He was without a doubt a prince among men. I miss him greatly. He was one of the important points in my life that led, by example, to my creating Woodstock in 1969. I dedicate all my platinum albums to my dear friend forever, JAN BERRY. PEACE JAN.”

Artie Kornfeld
Jan Berry’s former roommate
and fellow Screen Gems songwriting partner.
Co-Writer of “Dead Man’s Curve,”
“Hot Stocker,” and “Drag Strip Girl.”
Co-writer of “The Pied Piper.”
Producer of the Cowsills and many others.
Co-Creator and Promoter of the
Woodstock Music & Arts Fair, 1969

 

Produced by Jan Berry’s biographer Mark A. Moore and Cameron Michael Parkes and featuring a plethora of Jan and Dean cohorts like PF Sloan, Vic Diaz (Matadors), Jill Gibson, Mike Deasy, David Marks, Don Grady (Yellow Balloon) and Probyn Gregory (Brian Wilson band) and Lisa Mychols this is a wonderful tribute to the late singer.

Based on the original versions arranged and produced by Jan and transcribed from his personal music scores the intention is to illustrate how good Jan’s arrangements were and to inspire listeners to re-examine the original recordings.

Eschewing the big hits in favour of more complex tracks like ‘Anaheim Azusa’ etc., and ‘When It’s Over’ and post crash tracks from the unreleased ‘Carnival Of Sound’ this is a wonderful album. Containing three previously unreleased songs and audio snippets of Jan with Arnie in the garage and in the studio, this is essential for all fans of Jan and Dean.

The choice of material is first rate, the little snippets, the audio soundbites, the unreleased songs, the missing string and vocal parts, the poem to music. It is just so good . . . continuously on repeat on my cd player.”

Pat Curran
Shindig! Magazine
Vol. 2, No. 8 — January-February 2009
London, England

 

I spent hours and hours listening to your masterpiece [Encomium] . . . and want you to be certain that I really appreciated what you’ve done to honor Jan. Hearing those songs really took me back to the days . . . and you should be really proud of the excellent job that you’ve done. Thank you so much for bringing Jan back . . . or more precisely ‘re-invigorating’ Jan and his tremendous contribution to music.”

Dr. Don Altfeld
Jan Berry’s former roommate, fellow medical student, and songwriting partner.
Co-writer of “The Little Old Lady (from Pasadena)”

 

He knew how to produce records very well. He had a very strong spirit for recording music. He was a great producer.”

When no less an authority on making records as Brian Wilson spoke those words, he was paying tribute not only to a dear friend and respected contemporary, but to a man whose contributions to the creation of American West Coast music is somehow seldom ever given [its] rightful place alongside the achievements of, say, Phil Spector or Wilson himself.

Wilson was speaking, as he often does, of Jan Berry, whom as half of Jan and Dean (with Dean Torrence) was churning out hits back when those Beach Boys were still learning to blend voices in their parents’ Hawthorne, Calif., garage.

Tragically, however, at the absolute peak of his powers and fame in 1966 – just as he was poised to create even more ambitious sounds that very year of Pet Sounds and Spector’s “River Deep, Mountain High” – Berry, like the protagonist of his own song “Dead Man’s Curve,” suffered severe injuries in a horrific car accident that left him in various stages of debilitation for the remainder of his life.

Now, thanks to the Berry-knowledgeable team of producers Cameron Michael Parkes and Mark A. Moore, those sounds are finally being exhumed, replenished, and lovingly created anew across Encomium In Memoriam Vol. 1, a collection of fresh recordings mixed with vintage Jan and Dean session snippets that far transcends the slapdash retread ethos of your typical neighborhood-indie-band “tribute” album.

Absolutely won-won-wonderful.

Gary Pig Gold
Medleyville: Music Coverage For Eclectic Tastes

 

This tribute shatters the myth that Jan Berry merely recorded Brian Wilson songs to score a few hits after Jan & Dean’s early ballad or doo-wop period had run out of gas. The scope and depth of the unreleased (and some not even bootlegged) tunes have never been heard by most listeners. Utilizing the original charts Jan used in the studio, the producers have done so much more than merely cover hits we’ve heard hundreds of times. They have produced a listening experience that chronicles Jan Berry’s progress as a writer and producer. They take us from scenes of the surf and streets of summer to themes of love and hate, depression and drugs, psychedelic and spiritual enlightenment . . . Listening to this CD gets me wondering what might have happened had Jan completed and Warner Brothers had released the Carnival of Sound album as originally scheduled for 1968. These full length, full sound, versions of “Carnival of Sound” and “Fan Tan” and “Blowin’ My Mind” will bring joy to those who have only heard studio snippets . . . The a capella excerpt from “The Anaheim, Azusa …” is a unique example of what a Jan & Dean with a Beach Boys’ vocal would have sounded like. Hard to improve any J&D hit but this comes close. And who among us wouldn’t give their right arm to have been in the studio for a J&D or BB recording session! The Audio Montage cuts do just that. Hearing Jan talk with Arnie [Ginsburg] as they get set to record, listening to him interact with Brian Wilson, and role play as a radio DJ broadcasting from KJAN — great musical history.

Phil Miglioratti
Endless Summer Quarterly

 

This is a WONDERFUL thing you are doing.”

Nancy Sinatra
Jan Berry’s old friend and schoolmate.
Singer of “These Boots Were Made For Walkin'”

 

30 tracks on this CD are in tribute to Jan Berry, half the Jan & Dean hit making team. Reverb Central is all about instrumentals, and there are two here, one from David Marks (David Marks & the Marksmen, Beach Boys), and one from Paul Johnson (Belairs, PJ & the Galaxies, Packards, Duo-Tones, Surfaris, Good Guys, Everpresent Fullness, etc.). Jan & Dean recorded a large number of tracks, some of which rank among the best of the beach genre. Musicians on the disc include many a familiar name, like P. F. Sloan and Mike Deasy.

Track By Track Review:
Paul Johnson – B Gas Rickshaw (4 stars)
Darn close to the original backtrack and instro, but with Paul Johnson’s silky guitar. This solo project is a very reverent and unexpectedly cool tribute to the Original. Also called “Quasimoto,” the song is poppy and infectious and fun. This is a really nice track. “B-Gas Rickshaw” has been covered by a number of bands in the last 25 years since the birth of the surf revival, yet this is the only one that is really close to the original arrangement. Writing credit for the song is Jan Berry.

David Marks – Bat No. 1 (3 stars)
This lovely guitar number is a brief 37 seconds, and is almost classical in nature. David Marks’ playing is really good, and the sound soothing and pristine.

Phil Dirt
Reverbcentral.com

 

You’ve managed to capture the sound of that time perfectly. Great lead vocal sound.”

Alex Valdez
The Yellow Balloon

 

Ajoint production by Cameron Michael Parkes (vocals, piano, guitar, bass, percussion) of Box o’ Clox and producer Mark A. Moore, Encomium In Memoriam Vol. 1 celebrates the music of early ‘60s surf-rock pioneer Jan Berry of Jan & Dean. On par with Brian Wilson as a singer / composer / producer, Berry never quite got the same amount of respect in the music world and Parkes and Moore go the distance to correct that oversight with this 2008 tribute CD. Following his near fatal car crash in 1966, Berry carried on with partner Dean Torrence though sadly Berry passed away in 2006 [2004]. Famous for his Box o’ Clox tributes to Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys, Parkes and Moore have crafted a modern surf-rock inspired masterpiece with this Jan Berry tribute. Focusing on Berry’s original arrangements based on his personal archive of music charts and scores, the CD studio sound is enhanced by an incredible lineup of seasoned L.A. studio hands and voices including early Beach Boys’ guitarist David Marks and pop icon P.F. Sloan. The CD book is encyclopedic, filled with rare b&w photos and amazing details about Berry’s career and the making of this tribute.

Music Web Express 3000

 

Jan Berry was a genius and started the whole thing. I’m a huge fan. I even mention Jan & Dean in my new CD. First cut on the album.”

Ron Dante
The Archies
Producer, Barry Manilow, Cher,
Dionne Warwick, Pat Benatar, Irene Cara,
Ray Charles, John Denver, etc.

 

A young historian who lives in Raleigh has been researching a biography of Jan Berry of the early ’60s pop surf vocal duo Jan & Dean for nearly a decade. Gaining Berry’s confidence, Mark A. Moore secured a vast collection of the musician’s personal and professional files, including handwritten scores of fully orchestrated songs. He also set out to produce a tribute album — believing, like many, that Berry never received the credit he was due as an arranger and producer . . . Now Moore’s tribute CD has been completed [with] Cameron Michael Parkes, a versatile California musician who worked with Berry . . . The result is an important archive that presents an overview of Berry’s career, both his hits and his later, largely unknown works. As an album, it stands on its own as deceptively complex pop orchestration that is just plain fun . . . There are gems that you almost certainly haven’t heard.

Craig Jarvis
The News & Observer

 

A great project . . . I love both Jan and Dean . . . I was weened on them. I worked with them, emulated them.”

Eddy Medora
The Sunrays

 

Sounds like a hit to me.”

Peter Noone
Herman’s Hermits
Solo artist

 

Sounds very sweet and I think it’s an approach that is faithful to Jan & Dean.”

Gary Olson
The Ladybug Transistor

 

I was one of the 2 drummers on the Inner City Unit version of [Jan & Arnie’s] “Gas Money” (the out of time one) . . . Well done for putting this together for 2 legends.”

Mick Stupp
Inner City Unit
Geno Washington, Chatshow,
Grand Drive, Songwriter, Producer

 

Very cool project.”

Darian Sahanaja
The Wondermints
Brian Wilson’s Band

 

Very clean and crisp ‘sunshiney’ lead vocals and nice background harmonies as well . . . Sounds fantastic.”

Nick Walusko
“Nicky Wonder”
The Wondermints
Brian Wilson’s Band

 

Thanks for keeping the memory of my friend, Jan Berry, alive.”

Don Zirilli
Papa Doo Run Run

 

Excellent !!! . . . Jan was real good, wasn’t he?”

Gary Griffin
The Bel-Air Bandits (Jan & Dean)
The Beach Boys Band
The Surf City All-Stars
Brian Wilson’s Band

 

Congratulations . . . I know it was a labor of love . . . and it looks like it turned out great.”

Chris Farmer
The Bel-Air Bandits (Jan & Dean)
The Surf City All-Stars
Timothy B. Schmitt

 

You’ve really captured the spirit and energy of the times . . . nice and open sounding.”

Sterling Smith
Jan & Dean Band
Beach Boys Band
Harpsichord on “Lady Lynda,” Beach Boys’ LA – Light Album

 

This is a great CD . . . The tracks are beautiful and honestly I didn’t expect to hear so many great songs – wonderfully performed by some very talented artists. Harmonies are great — my favorite track this minute is “I Found A Girl.” It’s a CD you won’t get tired of. Good job, Mark, Cameron and everyone else involved!”

Michael DeMartin
Administrator, Brianwilson.com

 

I join Brian [Wilson] in wishing you great success . . . as Jan was not only a friend to both of us but a good guy.”

Jeffrey Foskett
Papa Doo Run Run
The Beach Boys Band

 

Great job on ‘Anaheim, Azuza’ . . . This song is insane !”

Julia Wolff
Riviera

 

Blowin’ My Mind’ . . . I remember the song well . . . On some newer & greater level, I know that Jan is still ‘arranging!'”

Pam MacGregor
Jan Berry’s longtime friend and former housemate

 

If he was alive, which he is through his music, memory, energy and legend, Jan would, and does — love this. Gotta Keeee-e-e-e-e-e-ep It Goin’.”

Stan Oliver
Writer, friend, and former manager

 

You should be so proud . . . I know how much work this took with just ‘Fan Tan,’ so the whole thing is quite an achievement. Jan must be chewing his Fan Tan gum and rocking out in heaven.”

Debra Gussin
Award-winning Songwriter

 

How pure [Tripsitter’s] vocals sounded . . . Almost Four Freshmen-esque . . . Great work!”

Brian Chidester
Historian
Editor of Dumb Angel No. 4: All Summer Long
Co-author of Pop Surf Culture

 

Jan & Dean’s influence on my own songs is astronomical! Thank you for the music!”

Jonathan Scott
Doleful Lions

 

Wow . . . You’re takin’ me back . . . great work.”

Gypsy Carnes
The Tasmanians
Blues Messenger

 

Anaheim’ is a great piece of work!!!!! Particularly relevant for me. Many many years ago (’60s) I tried to work out these harmonies to play this song ‘live’ I can’t remember for sure, but I think I got close, but never got around to doing it onstage. We played the ‘Marquee Club’ many times around 1967-68 London and we would open with ‘The Little Old Lady From Pasadena’ . . . but I wanted to try to open with ‘Anaheim’ one week. In the audience would be John Bonham, maybe Phil Collins, members of the Birds (Ronnie Wood’s band) / the Action, etc. Can you imagine a time when you could play this sort of stuff at a major ‘jazz’/blues club? Harmony nights ‘a la’ Brian Wilson, Jan and Dean, Association, Critters, Four Seasons, Strawberry Alarm Clock, sandwiched between John Mayal / Eric Clapton / Long John Baldry / Time Box / Mike Patto nights!!!!! I think those nights, sadly have long gone. Keep up the good work.”

Tony Rivers
The Castaways
Harmony Grass, Cliff Richard,
Shakin’ Stevens, Live Aid 1985
with Elton John and George Michael, etc.

 

Jan & Dean have been “blowin’ my mind” for a long time now. Nice to see.”

Steve Stanley
Now Sounds Records
The Now People
Graphic Designer

 

The World could use some Jan & Dean right about now!”

Cosmo Topper

 

This is a very worthy project and one which, given the Dennis/Carl Wilson set we’ve devoted a lot of arranging time to, we can relate to as well . . . Intriguing to hear the Carnival of Sound stuff.”

Adam Marsland
Cockeyed Ghost
Chaos Band
Solo Artists

 

Love the tracks, so good Jan is getting the recognition he deserves! . . . Love the Tripsitter vocals for ‘Anaheim,’ great blend! . . . So good you’re doing this. Jan’s productions always made me stop and listen with wonder! Big influence on me.”

Michael Clark
Producer

 

What a great project . . . did not realize how multi-faceted Jan was in the music biz.”

Mike Zuko
Singer-Songwriter

 

I love Jan & Dean !”

Billy Sheehan
Solo Artist
Bassist for David Lee Roth and Steve Vai

 

© 2008 Cincecam Music Productions

 

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