![]() Key mentor: “The singer in Marilyn Manor, Mark Thiessen, was the first one to sit me down and show me about songwriting. It got to the point where our flyers said: ‘Marilyn Manor live! Brought to you by the LOSBFTPIC!’ That stood for the League of Serious Bands Forced to Play in Churches!” We played at a lot of churches, church fairs and things like that. ![]() We all went to Vista High School and played all sorts of weird places all over town. My mom and dad showed me the ropes!”įirst performance: “When I was 17, I was in a band called Marilyn Manor. I would set up cardboard boxes by the stereo and ‘play drums’ along with my mom‘s Beatles’ records. She would sing along to the radio in the car and I remember those things being the very first time I noticed the magic of music. My mom sang in the choir and loved harmonies. ![]() He also was the preacher at church and took me to recording sessions. He had a degree in music and theology and was the worship leader at church. He played trumpet and bass and piano and guitar and all sorts of instruments. What drew you to music? “My dad was a musician. Next gig: Berkley Hart 25th anniversary concert, Nov. Alfred/The San Diego Union-Tribune) Jeff Berkley, singer-songwriter, band leader, producer, audio engineer If I wasn’t a musician, I would be: “A better surfer!” Music is: “An enduring gift that has given me a life of joy, a life with a musical family, and a life with amazing friendships.” Had anyone told you when you were 20 or 30 that - in 2023 - you would be inducted into the San Diego Music Hall of Fame, how would you have reacted? “I would have said: ‘Ha! Yeah, right!’ - in a very sarcastic tone - but, silently, wished it could be possible. ![]() By 18, I was playing with a professional guitar quartet and a duo performing local concerts and playing regularly at The Prophet vegetarian restaurant - that sealed the deal.” I started formal classical guitar lessons and was busking on a regular basis in Balboa Park. Many things were happening musically for me at the time. When did you realize you would devote yourself to music? “It must have been the age of 16 when I thought that being a musician could be a real vocation. The sound of the instrument always caught my attention as a kid, and to this day I never tire of playing it.”įirst band: “The Aluminum Byrds in 1970, but we never performed publicly.” Although I played drums first, I gave that up for the guitar. Why the guitar? “What drew me to the guitar was hearing my father play it and the recordings of Segovia and Sabicas that he would play constantly. What was the first record you bought and the first concert you attended? “ ‘Revolver’ by The Beatles, in 1966, in Oahu, Hawaii and Andres Segovia, around 1977, at the San Diego Civic Theatre.” I do have proof, though, because my dad, who played the guitar, made reel to reel recordings of it!” My parents told me I used to do that when I was even younger, singing in Japanese, but I didn’t remember that. What drew you to music? “I remember making up songs -without a guitar - and singing them when I was around 5 or 6, after we moved to the U.S. 4 with Camarada at Bread & Salt in Logan Heightsįirst and most recent recordings: “The Orion Quartet Performs” by The Orion Guitar Quartet (1978) “My Favorite Pieces” by Fred Benedetti (2021). Alfred/The San Diego Union-Tribune) Fred Benedetti, guitarist, music educator
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