"Bernie Pershey is the man."
- Jimmy Chamberlin, Smashing Pumpkins.
6-1-2022
Hello again and what a wild and strange world we see before us!
The whole planet of music has been interrupted, started, stopped again, and gone through endless fits lately. Things are finally starting to open up and I am glad to be seeing myself and my friends returning to live music.
For myself, I have enjoyed the few gigs I did over the last year with Uncle Zeek and Iron Butterfly. I am still doing some electronic music writing with my partner Davyd Johnson, and doing local gigs with Bobby Gray, Cabin Fever, Keston Barker, and Eric Turner. Some great music recorded decades ago is about to get released by the band This Oneness from my days in Minnesota, Details forthcoming. A re-release of some material I recorded a few years back with Eddie St. James for the CD “Streets Cry Freedom”; is out now through Rivet / Sony-Orchard on all major streaming platforms.
I have some ongoing recording happening with Arlene Bose-Kaminsky out of Tampa, and am about to start another project with Bryan Fleming here in Los Angeles.
The world is still changing daily, I wish all my musician friends and music supporters health and happiness as we enter our new world of adventure. I pray for all of your happiness and health, and hope to see you all soon, Best of luck to all.
3-11-2019
Well its been a long time since I added anything on my website but I’m back in action with a long overdue update. My last few escapades have all been in Los Angeles playing and recording with my friends and associates.
I have continued my ongoing recording project with Mike Albert, and completed some tracks with singer par excellence Billy Trudel, for Billy’s project "Billy T and the Lost Souls". I recently completed work on ten tracks for Zippy Caplan’s Mpls outfit "The Surf Dawgs" They are on the C D "Beyond The Horizon".
On the live side, I am working with my good friend Martin Gerschwitz in his outfit; "Martin Gerschwitz and Friends". Martin and I are longtime friends, we’ve worked together with Walter Trout and "Eric Burdon and The Animals". From that band I have hooked up with former Busboys guitarist Keston Barker and his band "Keston Barker and the Rhythm Killers", playing dates in South Orange County. I am continuing my work with "Cabin Fever", with Jimmy Volpe, Gary Putman, and Allen Chavis at the First Cabin in Monrovia. Filling in some work with Mercy Powell in "Mercy and the Markettes" keeps me busy as well.
Coming up I have some work back in the Midwest where I will be doing concerts and playing for the band “Uncle Zeek” at their induction into the South Dakota hall of Fame. On the same trip I will be performing with "40 White Peppers" re-uniting with Greg Inhofer and Dale Strength from The "Braniac" and "This Oneness" days. We will be playing with Minnesota legend Larry Weigand on bass.
And last but not least I am beginning a new electronic music project with accomplished saxophonist Davyd Johnson. Davyd has played with Buddy Guy, Junior Wells, Luther Allison and others and we will be mixing acoustic and electronic music together. I had seen Davyds performances overseas and am excited to be working with him here in America.
1-19-2012
A lot has changed since I last updated my news! I have been working locally in the Los Angeles area on a number of projects: The Analog All Stars, in the San Gabriel valley, Ray Aguilar, Danny Johnson, and Jeff Waldon, as well as doing live work and more recording with long-time associates The Mustang Brothers, Dean Restum, Bobby Gianetti, and Kevin Mac Kelvie. I am also recording in Chicago with Maid of Mettle, a project featuring vocalist Deanna Whalen, Dave Uhrich on guitar and Wally Hustin on bass. My longtime friend Tim Whalen who has hired me many times to work with his organization, The Chicago Producers Circle, is producing this.
On the Bad Jack Studio front, I have finished the drums for a CD by Eddie St. James for release in Germany. Add to that some recording for a project by Mike Thompson and Billy Trudel that features some of the best songwriting I have ever been involved with. Studio equipment upgrades? Glad you asked. I have invested in a Pro Tools HD system, new mic pres by API and Mackie, and stacks of new software to keep me busy forever. My daughter Teresa says that if I build a tunnel from the house to the studio I’ll never have to see the sun again!
On the horizon is a great new project with guitarist Mike Albert. Mike has played with Megadeth, El Chicano and Ruben and the Jets among others. This music features some of the most powerful riffs around! Mike is a tremendous player and writer and the project is a welcome challenge structurally. The coming year promises an all time high in terms of creativity and I extend my wishes of artistic success to all my musical friends in their endeavors!
10-29-10
Eric Sardinas and Big Motor are entering the eighth week of an eleven week world tour. We have hit the United States, Spain, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and Switzerland; more Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Croatia, Serbia and a lot more Spain to go. Eddie St. James has heard the some of the drum tracks recorded for his next release and was excited to get on with the project.
10-01-10
Eric Sardinas and Big Motor are starting our European leg of fall touring tonight in Barcelona, Spain. We just finished a run across the U. S. of A. and are anxious to begin our overseas adventure. We will be hitting nine countries over eight weeks and the shows will be slammin! Also some rockin' drum tracks have been delivered to Germany for the Eddie St. James Band and they are matching Eddie's high-powered delivery.
08-29-10
The Eric Sardinas Band has been rehearsing a bunch of new originals for an upcoming recording and they are sounding great! You may get a peek on our upcoming tour. Recording has begun on drum tracks for Eddie St. James from Germany and they are smoking. We are preparing to mix a song for Bryan Fleming's project featuring singer Matt Tryggestad. There is a live Mustang Brothers gig that will feature Martin Gerschwitz, my partner from Walter Trout and Eric Burdon and the Animals. It will be fun if I survive the sun, it's a beach gig.
06-22-10:
Bernie has recently finished a full tour of the United States and Europe with Eric Sardinas and Big Motor. Some of the highlights were concerts in Transylvania , in the birthplace of Vlad Dracula, a trip to Bulgaria, and tour dates in Italy on the Guitarslinger tour, featuring Johnny Winter and Eric Sardinas and Big Motor.
The tour also included some dates in England where Bernie ran into old friends from his Walter Trout and Eric Burdon and The Animals days. British promoter and reviewer Pete Feenstra saw it this way: "The phrase 'he came, he saw and he conquered,' was never more apt than at this all too rare London club show by the larger than life Eric Sardinas. Eric growled, he grunted and all but added a banshee wail so that his coarse singing came close to the raw gut tone that sometimes emanated from his battered Dobro. Drummer Bernard Pershey manfully filled the gaps with a succession of thunderous rolls and impeccable powerhouse time-keeping while bassist Levell Price nailed things down in between periodically reminding the audience that it was Eric Sardinas we were listening to!"
Upon returning home, Bernie fired up Bad Jack for some more recording with The Mustang Brothers, a top flight project including Dean Restum, Bobby Gianetti, and Bill Mason, old friends from the days spent touring with Edgar Winter, Eric Burdon and Walter Trout. Once completed, Bernie is looking forward to sinking his teeth into a new batch of Eric Sardinas originals to be learned for upcoming American and European dates.
Spain and Italy are on tap next, for some red-hot Eric Sardinas concerts before L.A heats up again with drum tracking for The Eddie St. James band, from Germany. Peace, BP.
01-13-10:
Finishing some local dates in California and Vegas. Will be doing some new material on the upcoming Eric Sardinas And Big Motor tour. See you all soon!
12-21-09:
The Eric Sardinas Band has just finished a 13 country tour on 3 continents and is taking a holiday break before hitting the road in America and Europe early next year. Eric is from the south but the shows are strictly Wild Wild West!
At Bad Jack Studios, we have installed all new mics for the drum kit, upgrading to AKG 414s for overheads, and Sennheiser 421s for the toms. Pre-production for "6 Degrees," featuring vocalist Deanna Whalen, is to be recorded at the Chicago Producers Circle in Chicagoland over the holidays. It will be a rocker! "Chainsaw Diaries" is still in the mix with my partner in crime John Cheney.
The " Warrior Song," which was produced for our Armed Forces friends by Sean Householder at Echosonic Productions, which features an overlay of Rudimental snare drumming courtesy of yours truly, is being very well received by our troops. Here is a sampling of e-mails Sean has received from our fine soldiers serving our country from around Afghanistan and worldwide: "...Outstanding! God Bless you and our mighty troops." "Words cannot begin to describe the depths "Warrior Song" has reached within me. Thank you so much for creating a song that speaks to all of us."
I will be returning to L.A. after the new year to do some west coast shows with Eric Sardinas and Big Motor, and some tracking with my friends "The Mustang Brothers" before hitting the road again in February.
11-30-09:
What have Eric Sardinas, Levelle Price, and Bernie Pershey been doing? We have been burning up the miles with the Eric Sardinas Band. In the last month, we have been to Australia, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Lithuania, Latvia, Germany, Austria and tonight the 30th of October, we find ourselves in Rubingen, Switzerland at the Muhle Hunziken, one of the most interesting places that I have ever seen.
The venue is covered inside and out with works of art ranging from angels to life size Blues Brothers, to stuffed animals, to skulls to flying pigs, and everything in between. Open since 1976, the former millhouse has three levels from which to view the stage. Each one is filled with one of a kind curios and antiques and avant garde creations. Peter Burkhart, the owner and proprieter, has poured his life into bringing art from locals as well as pieces from his journeys to Paris. If you ever get to Switzerland, catch a concert at his unique and fascinating nightclub.
7-04-09:
Resettled at the home front and excited about my newest collaboration with renowned film composer Chris Field, who recently hired me to record drum tracks for his upcoming solo album! I'm thrilled to be creating with such a gifted and accomplished artist and composer. This project also features Tom Lilly, a longtime associate and monster bass player.
Eric Sardinas News: Eric is still honing his fire-breathing blues performance on stages across the world, and exotic dates have been added in Australia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Duluth (the one in Minnesota not Egypt).
5-01-09:
Back home in the studio again. Recording some more tracks for Chainsaw Diaries to be finished in Chi-town with the infamous Steve Weeder producing. Steve is the owner and chief engineer of the Sound Bank in Northfield, Illinois. He has been a staff engineer at Chicago Recording Company and has been involved with recording and producing music since 1988. I am also recording some tracks for Sean Householder of Echosonic Productions in Pasadena California. Some further tracks for Michael Billet from Minneapolis and further planning and tracking on a solo project should be squeezed in just in time to go to Europe and do some dates with Eric Sardinas, including the Swedenrock Festival with Z.Z. Top (we will be shooting a DVD for later release).
Also just in: Bernie's Drumming will be featured on some select cuts from the forthcoming Walter Trout C.D. "Unspoiled By Progress, 20 Years Of Hardcore Blues," which will feature Bernie soloing and trading off with the infamous Jimmy Trapp on bass guitar, while backing Walter in a live performance recorded years ago at the Bonn Blues Festival. Should be a barnburner.
3-21-09:
Hey everybody. Thought I'd check in with an update from the road. I'm filling you in from Ljubljana, Slovenia. Tonite's show with Eric Sardinas and Big Motor was filmed and recorded live for airing on National Radio in Slovenia on March 21st while we played yet another concert in Zagreb, Croatia! Then it was on to Bucharest, Romania and Basle, Switzerland; then another three short weeks in Germany and the U.S.A. before returning to sunny California (that's right California has ceded from my union).
I have been meeting interesting musicians from all over the world, and they say that the tough economic circumstances are making people want to enjoy music with a lot of feeling. Good for us. Can't wait to get home and hit the studio to reflect on what I've been feeling. I'll be laying some new tracks with my partner Dean Restum from our days with Eric Burdon, and it should be loads of fun. Tim Whalen's C.D. is almost finished, and there will be some new stuff from Chainsaw Diaries. I'll try to get clearance to throw some live Eric Sardinas on the website too. Hope to finish some technical stuff for the Rude Mental Music page as well. Everybody stay safe and happy and creative and I'll see you soon.
1-15-09:
Welcome everyone to my spankin' new site! Much is left to complete, but I'm really quite amazed by just how much has come together in such a short time... check back; we'll knock it all out.
The past year was been filled with tours, live dates, recordings, mixing and production. Multiple circuits of the United States, Canada, and Europe with Eric Sardinas and Big Motor, eventualy led to the band headlining the Moscow International Blues Festival, as well as playing sold-out festivals in Croatia, Italy, Spain, and Germany.
Dates supporting blues legend Johnny Winter were defnintely a highlight, as we endeavored (methinks successfully) to entertain blues enthusiasts worldwide.
Dean Restum - my partner from my days as touring drummer with Eric Burdon and the Animals - and I have been happliy pursuing live and and studio work with our band The Mustang Brothers, and handling production chores with the Chicago Producers Circle: putting finishing touches on music for our children's educational DVDs and working on the CD "Whale Tales," a collection of songs written by tunesmith Tim Whalen of the aforementioned Chicago Producers Circle.
Who knew being Music Director of the rhythm section would be so much fun and so very rewarding...
I should mention I'm just wrapping up drumming on a new CD by Chainsaw Diaries, a Chicago based group led by singer-songwriter John Cheney. We recorded the drums at my own spot: Bad Jack Studios, and sent them to Chicago where John put the crowning touches on the tunes with his inspired production team.
The new year will continue with tours of America, England and Europe in February, March and April in support of Eric's latest CD: "Eric Sardinas and Big Motor," among other exciting projects.
Bye bye for now and thanks for the visit!
B. P. 1-15-09