John Berry Releases New Christian Album, Find My Joy
The title song to John Berry’s latest project, “Find My Joy,” was a song that John didn’t want to listen to when he first saw the title. “Steve Dorff and Jack Cassidy wrote that song in September of 2020, and at that time I was physically, emotionally, spiritually depleted from cancer treatments,” John explains. “It’s such a devastating thing to go through; the treatments are horrible. When I saw the title to that song, I didn’t want to listen to it. I just didn’t have any joy in my life.”
Dorff left the song with Berry and he finally did take the time to listen to it. When he heard the opening verse and chorus …. “Though the shadows may surround me, sometimes more than I can bear, still I feel you all around me, and I know you’re always there; Though the seasons change, still your love remains, guides me at times I’ve lost my way; you forgive the past, when my dreams are fading fast, you pick me up to find my joy again” Berry says, “The song spoke to me. God is always with us. He is always there. So it really leant itself to being the perfect title for the record.”
Though the two may seem an unlikely pairing … Dorff has written songs for multiple movies and television shows as well as songs for Barbra Streisand, Kenny Rogers, Celine Dion, Whitney Houston, Anne Murray, George Strait, Garth Brooks, Johnny Mathis, Tom Jones, Andy Williams, Dottie West, the Carpenters and numerous others. Berry has made a name for himself by picking songs fans immediately love, including “You’re Love Amazes Me,” the Grammy nominated “Standing On The Edge Of Goodbye” and the Christmas classic “O Holy Night,” and delivering them with one of the most beautiful voices in country music. In 2012 Berry published a book, Songs & Stories, which featured essays on his best-known songs, as well as a CD with new versions of his classic hits.
“I actually met Steve, oddly enough, at a University of Georgia football game,” says the South Carolina native. “He was a guest of Vince and Barbara Dooley (Dooley was former head football coach and athletic director at the University of Georgia). We had gone by to say hello to Vince and Barbara, and they introduced us to Steve. A few months later my manager, Brian Smith, took Steve on as a client.”
When Dorff heard that Berry was getting ready to record a new album, he was interested in producing it. “He called me, and he listened to some of the songs I was going to record, and he said, ‘These melodies are so beautiful, I can’t believe I’ve never heard them.’ I said ‘Well, they have been sung in the Baptist church for years, but you have been in the synagogue, so you didn’t cross paths with them’.”
Berry chose standards including “How Great Thou Art,” “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” and “I Surrender All” for the album and says Dorff “brought something new to the recording sessions. He didn’t have the attitude of ‘they’ve always been done this way.’ He took those beautiful melodies that were written, and he brought something to them and gave them a fresh sound. The string parts are just beautiful.”
Berry also recorded several new songs on the album, among them “Live Like You” and “Something Bigger Than Me,” with the latter track recorded with the 60-piece Utah Symphony along with pianist George Mote. “Unfortunately, they did the tracks in Utah so I didn’t get to go in the studio with them,” Berry says regretfully. “It is just an awesome arrangement.”
The arrangements for the songs on the album are so beautiful yet so simple. According to Berry, that is a credit to Steve’s string arrangements, which let Berry’s voice shine yet are very elaborate at the same time. “We worked together, spent a lot of time talking about the songs and making them flow. We had the basic arrangements. Steve brought the orchestration. I don’t have any knowledge or expertise in the string arrangements, so Steve was the one that embellished the string parts that made the songs sound so marvelous.”
“We started recording the album in February ‘21, but we started talking about it before that and it started coming together,” Berry says. “We decided to go in and cut a few songs and it got off to a good start, so we knew we were onto something good. Steve had moved to Nashville and the house he bought had a great studio already in it. Steve walked in on a great set up, a great deal studio to work in. We recorded everything there, except we went to Sound Stage to record the strings. That is where I recorded my debut album John Berry, as well as part of my first Christmas album, O Holy Night, so it was really cool to be back there again, kind of full circle.”
Berry found that picking the songs for the album was easy because, “Almost all are songs I have loved and I sang in church,” he points out. “I became a Christian at a very young age, followed Christ. These songs really resonate with me. I wanted to record a faith album like some of my Christmas albums. I had never really achieved that vibe outside of the Christmas albums, with the arrangements being simplistic but really beautiful.”
Berry has had a couple rounds with cancer, so it is only logical that he would have something that helps him get through those times as well as reach for music to comfort him. “It’s just faith, family and friends,” he acknowledges. “That’s the biggest component right there … I have a sweet wife who is there for me every step of the way, friends who are always checking in, and just knowing we have a Savior right there with us all the way.
“There is a song off this record that makes me feel good all over. It’s the last song on the project, “Live Like You.” It’s an up tempo, makes you feel better kind of song. I really love getting to sing that one.”
One of the relatively current songs on the album, “Blessings,” was found by John’s wife, Robin, who thought it would be a great song for him to record. “I had not heard it but after listening to it, it was amazing to me,” Berry says. “I felt like (songwriter) Laura Story wrote that song for me. So many things happen in your life that seem difficult, but they may turn out to be the greatest blessings in your life.”
While he has not been on a full touring schedule for a while, Berry is back on a schedule that takes him to Norwood, MA for “An Evening of Songs & Stories with John Berry” on April 2; “An Intimate Evening With John Berry” on April 9 in Tomball, TX; and playing on the Opry Country Classics show at The Ryman on April 21. From there he goes to Florida, Illinois and Georgia, as well as other dates throughout the country.
“I hope folks will invite us to come share this album with them,” Berry says. “I love a lot of praise and worship that is out there, but there is something about the old hymns that is incredible.”
Also it’s never too early to think of Christmas! “We’ll do our 26th anniversary Christmas tour this year, and we’re already working to get that locked down before it gets too late in the year,” Berry says of his very popular Christmas concerts. “We want to be moving forward for Christmas, we want it to be successful. We’ll play 20-24 cities this year. We’re excited about it, it’s so much fun and the audiences are delightful. We’re really looking forward to it.”
Find My Joy was released March 25 through Gaither Music Group.
Tracklist – Find My Joy
“Great Is Thy Faithfulness” - Traditional arrangement by Steve Dorff / John Berry
“I Surrender All” - Traditional arrangement by Steve Dorff / John Berry
“Find My Joy” - Steve Dorff / Jack Cassidy
“Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus” - Traditional arrangement by Steve Dorff / John Berry
“It Is Well With My Soul” - Traditional arrangement by Steve Dorff / John Berry
“Something Bigger Than Me” - Steve Dorff / Marty Panzer
“How Great Thou Art” - Stuart K. Hine
“Blessings” - Laura Story
“Blessed Assurance” - Traditional arrangement by Steve Dorff / John Berry“Live Like You” - Steve Dorff / Jack Cassidy
