Richard Berman

"This man has the gift." So said Utah Phillips, legendary figure in American folk music, after hearing Richard Berman sing at the Kerrville Folk Festival's Ballad Tree in 1992. And Richard has used that gift to write many songs that tell moving, true stories and humorous ones as well.

Richard received national recognition in folk circles for his work by winning the 1992 Napa Valley Folk Festival's Emerging Songwriters Contest. He was selected to take part in the Troubadour contest for singer/ songwriters at the 1994 Telluride Blue Grass Festival in Colorado and won the 1995 South Florida Folk Festival's songwriting contest. He was also chosen to showcase at the 1997 Falcon Ridge Folk Festival.

Drawing on his experiences as a husband, therapist, teacher, father and son, he has written songs that impart his understandings of people and their situations in direct and compelling ways; "Sweet songs that hurt" as reviewer John Stifler put it in The Daily Hampshire Gazette of Northampton, MA.

Richard has two tapes/CDs; his first, "Bittersweet", a collection of 10 of his songs performed with just voice and guitar, and "Love, Work andPlay a more produced album that was selected "One of the10 best folk albums of 1996" by Rich Warren, host of WFMT's "The Midnight Special" out of Chicago, the longest continuously running folk music show on radio.

"Richard Berman is one of the most gifted songwriters I have ever met. With a wry sense of humor, and topics most writers don't dare approach, he weaves through musical genres with a master's touch. Richard's songs defy labels like folk or pop-- they are simply songs you must hear for yourself." -- Tom Prasada-Rao

Note: This information was posted to the web site when Richard appeared at our showcase in January, 1998.