Roadhouse rockin', shot and a beer slammin' country rock and americana storytelling from the hardened pen of an alternative country pioneer who has survived to tell about it.

11 MP3 Songs
ROCK: Americana, COUNTRY: Country Rock



Details:
Nashville and Chicago based renegade Pete Berwick's music suggests hard livin', honkytonks, endless highways and lost love. Berwick's Jack Daniels soaked vocals are raw and rough-edged, as he sings songs from a discerning and familiar point of view. Berwick weaves his early cowpunk influences with contemporary and traditional styles to create a musical mosaic, which is diverse, yet comprehensive and extremely individual, and deeply rooted in American music.--Tony Engelhart, Crud Magazine

"Fans of Bruce Springsteen, Steve Earle, Jason And the Scorchers and The Georgia Satellites are going to love the Hell out of Pete Berwick."--Tom Lounges, Midwest Beat Magazine

"For Those who like their whiskey raw and their bars smokey--Canada Music Journal

A veteran of both the Nashville and Chicago music scenes, Pete Berwick's music showcases all of his various influences and incarnations, the songs mixing rock, country, Americana and blues in the creation of a heady musical elixir. Think Steve Earle and Johnny Cash trading shots with Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan.


"Like Steve Earle on crack."--garageband.com

"Hereâs a guy whoâs been writing, performing, and recording for 28 years, and you can hear the battle scars."--
Jennifer Laton, Indie-Music.com.

"There's a noble aspect to the career of artists like Pete Berwick, who's been kicking around the midwest since the late 70s.
If you're looking for the scars of living in the American indie rock underground, Berwick's your man" . . . .
(Luke Torn) Pop culture Press.

"Berwick is a true rock ânâ roll survivor and he should continue to survive for many years to come".---
KRIS GRIFFITHS © 2002 PHASE9 ENTERTAINMENT.


"Berwick is a true rock & roll survivor, an artist of integrity and vision."--Rev. Keith A Gordon, mondogordo.com and the
author of "The Other Side Of Nashville."

"Fans of Steve Earle, Jason & The Scorchers, The Georgia Satellites and Bruce Springsteen are going to love the hell out of Pete Berwick."--
Tom Lounges, Midwest Beat Magazine and Northwest Indiana Herald.
******

BIO:


âBetter late than never, so they say...â says 48 year old Northern Illinois native Pete Berwick, when asked why heâs decided to release a new album after a self imposed five year sabbatical. Truth be known, Berwickâs been âon the vergeâ for his entire career and now with the release of âAinât No Train Outta Nashville,â he's poised for a hard earned breakthough.

Pete Berwickâs songs are whiskey-soaked, ragged and weathered, with a mix of hardcore heartbreak and rock-edged attitude that dares to go unnoticed. Berwickâs been making music for three decades, and the trials and tribulations bleed through in his latest album which serves as a soundtrack to his life story. He believes that now is the time for his music to finally reach a larger audience. âMy goal as a songwriter has always been to reach the listener emotionally" says Berwick.

One reviewer refers to the renegade sound as akin to âSteve Earle on crackâ and that isnât far off the mark. The songs are poignant with the perspective depth that comes only from living the words first. The vocals are raw, edgy with a distinctiveness thatâs been missing from radio airwaves for many years. The music is urgent and rebellious, not much unlike the man himself.

Berwickâs been in it long enough to know that the only thing that comes easy in this business are the hard knocks and tough breaks. Heâs battled through and survived more than his fair share of them.

Beginning in 1981 as the founder and frontman of the Chicago cult favorites âThe Genericsâ he found his way to college radio with the bandâs two year, high octane run, playing hundreds of dates throughout the Midwest. In 1983 - 1986 he found himself as a guitarist for the punk/metal band âThe Endâ and then in 1986 he took a solid mix of all of his roots based musical influences, from rock and blues to punk and country and the result was âPete Berwick and Interstateâ. The resulting cowpunk sound sizzled and caught fire quickly as the band toured heavily. During this timeframe Pete released two self produced records. One of the projects, âDecisionsâ was an accumulation of ten years of songwriting and ranked second of all 1987 indie releases by Illinois Entertainer magazine.

With momentum and hope on his side he followed his dreams on a road that took him to Nashville in 1990 where he wasted no time in securing a record and songwriting deal with Bitter Creek Records. While churning out songs during the day, Berwick was soon heating up stages at night in Nashville and throughout the south, opening up shows for legendary artists such as Charlie Daniels, Joe Sun, Doug Kershaw and Red Steagall.

In 1993 Berwick went back into the studio and recorded what would eventually be âAinât No Train Outta Nashville." Bankrupcy with the record company forced the album to be shelved and Berwick moved on to other projects, including an EP with Steve Earle/Billy Joe Shaver drummer Craig Wright. Berwick also made cameo appearances in several country music videos, and appeared on a commercial for Monday Night football with Hank Williams Junior.

In 1996, after over 15 years of non-stop performing, recording and writing, Berwick made the decision to relocate back to his hometown of Chicago. There he started an entertainment and publishing company and record label and in 2002 he recorded and released "Only Bleeding" on his label Shotgun Records. The album is a hard rocking yet haunting collection of real life tales of hard living, addiction, self destructive renegades and salvation,which received rave reviews.

Berwick gathered local music veterans Rick Devries, Nick Verbic and Rob Surrey and assembled the roadhouse rockin' band âPete Berwick and the Renegadesâ in 2002 and has since put hundreds of live performances under his belt touring the Midwest ceaselessly in support of "Only Bleeding." The album was and remains a criticâs favorite, garnering a top ten of best indie releases in 2002 by renowned music critic Reverend Keith A Gordon, and the album also received top ten indie release honors by Tom Lounges of The Northwest Indiana Herald and Midwest Beat Magazine. The title track which also appears on his new album currently maintains in the top ten on the Americana charts for over a year on garageband.com, while the albumâs opening track âMust Think She Loves Meâ was featured in the cult movie âTowniesâ.

Fast forward to 2007. Pete Berwick's Nashville recording âAinât No Train Outta Nashvilleâ is being released to Americana and Roots-Rock radio. The album is a rollicking and sauntering country-rock/Americana collection of hard lived songs, which includes the title track which was featured in Paramount Picture's âA Thing Called Loveâ. The project is an Americana snapshot of dusty roads, outlaws, small towns and late night honky-tonks. First recorded in 1993 and shelved after his record deal turned sour, Berwickâs faith in the album never faded nor faltered.
"I took the thing off the damn shelf and listened" said Berwick. "After thirteen years the songs still sounded good. I realised it was senseless to bury the album with the ill fated record deal, so releasing it on my own label seemed the obvious thing to do."

Berwick most recently appeared at Nashville's Spirit Of The Outlaws Show, performing with Willie Nelson Bassist Bee Spears and Former Waylon Jennings drummer Richie Albright.Berwick and the Renegades will tour the Midwest and the Nashville area in support of the album while appearing weekly at Sweetwaterâs in Naperville, Illinois.