Chris Berardo Releases New Single 'Somebody Like Me'

“Sometimes two hearts meet up and fill in each other’s empty spots,” says Connecticut-based singer/songwriter CHRIS BERARDO about his new single “Somebody Like Me” which has just been released via Blue Élan Records. 

The instantly infectious powerpop track finds the rootsy pop/rock vocalist with a skip in his step. That’s not to say he’s a dour fella… the opposite is true. “The idea that ‘I’m the kind of person who you would do very well to listen to’ sometimes makes me laugh out loud,” he says with a smile. “But when you get under the hood and look into the lyrics, the guy in the song is telling someone that they have more value than they realize and that he’s not going to let them forget that.”

Taken from his new album Wilder All The Time, which will be released on October 4, 2024, “Somebody Like Me” captures Berardo in a sunny mood, with harmonies in the chorus that soar to epic heights, highlighting his distinctive vocals that have just enough grit to hint at his time spent in Austin, Texas, where the album was recorded. “I wrote this one on the piano like I usually do, but I knew right away that I wanted it to be a fun, guitar-driven power-pop song,” he explains, reflecting on how his whole band added to the feel-good nature of the song.

Produced by his longtime music collaborator David Abeyta of Reckless Kelly fame and accompanied by Handsome Bill Kelly and brother Marc Douglas Berardo on guitars and backing vocals, the single also features Austin City Limit Hall of Famer and legend Lloyd Maines (Wilco, The Chicks, Jerry Jeff Walker) on pedal steel. “The guitar work from David, Bill, and Brother Marc is fantastic, and the pedal steel that the great Lloyd Maines laid on it makes it feel a little like an early Steely Dan record to me,” he reflects. Reckless Kelly bandmates Jay Nazz (drums) and Joe “Bass” Miller (bass) help to round out this all-star ensemble. “We were also lucky to get one of the best anywhere, Austin’s Bukka Allen, who has played with Joe Walsh and Robert Earl Keen, to come down and lay his Hammond B3 on us …it sounds really good up loud with the top down!"

Coined as “one of rock's greatest performers” by Goldmine Magazine, Berardo has proven to be, as Texas legendary singer/songwriter Walt Wilkins proclaims, “a consummate showman, singer, and force of nature.” Berardo’s smoky voice and lived-in tales have charmed audiences from intimate acoustic shows to full-blown theater concerts, often opening for some of his idols, including The Doobie Brothers, The Marshall Tucker Band, Dickey Betts & Great Southern, and America. Berardo’s lovingly crafted compositions explore love, life, hard knocks, and the indefatigable human spirit. While wry and worldly-wise, his message is ultimately inspiring and optimistic—if anything, even more so since the health challenges that stalled his career after his breakthrough album Ignoring All The Warning Signs (which spent two months in the Top Ten at Sirius Radio’s Outlaw channel and hit #49 on the Billboard Americana Chart).  Returning stronger than ever with several successful singles (“Somewhere Blue,” “Baby Blue,” “This Year,” "Something’s Gonna Happen”) and now his imminent fourth album Wilder All The Time (all produced by David Abeyta), Chris Berardo has finally captured his intoxicating live sound and spirit on record and is poised to catapult well beyond where he left off. “Somebody Like Me” is released today, August 7, 2024 via Blue Élan Records. It was produced by David Abeyta (also electric guitar) and features Lloyd Maines (pedal steel), Marc Douglas Berardo (acoustic guitar, background vocals), Bill Kelly (electric guitar, background vocals), Jay Nazz (drums), Joe Miller (bass) and Bukka Allen (Hammond B3). Wilder All The Time will be released on October 4, 2024.

TOUR DATES:

Aug 24        The Boulton Center for the Arts     Bay Shore, NY

                        Special guest of Richie Furay Trio

Aug 25        Rhode Island Folk Festival (FREE)       East Providence, RI

Sept. 18       AmericanaFest / Brown’s Diner     Nashville, TN

Photo Credit: Tod V. Wolfson

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