The new year is now almost a month old. As the saying goes, “time flies when you’re having fun.” This is the case of the Fiddlers Crossing room, which has been resuming its activities for almost a year after several years of dormancy. The venue aims, once again, to deliver high quality concerts, featuring nationally and internationally touring musicians, singers and songwriters, all in a warm and intimate ‘listening room’ environment.
On Saturday, February 8 at 7 p.m., the downtown venue will present singer-songwriter and storyteller Jeffery Alan Berkley. Fiddlers Crossing regulars may recognize the name as he is the Berkley of the Berkley Hart duo, along with fellow singer-songwriter Calman Hart. The duo has performed several times for the venue’s concert series since 2013, always receiving an enthusiastic response from the audience. This time around, Berkley appears solo, bringing back to Tehachapi his laid-back, humorous performance style, warm, melodic vocals, masterful guitar work, and well-crafted songs.
Berkley is a native San Diegan who has made music his life. He has spent over 40 years in the music business. Winner of the Kerrville “New Folk” festival, he was nominated for 10 best album awards for his production. The San Diego Music Awards named him Entertainer of the Year and awarded his Album of the Year “I Can Reach the Stars” in 2023. The same year, he was inducted into the San Diego Music Hall of Fame.
He has toured the United States, United Kingdom and Australia as a solo artist as well as with Berkley Hart. He has also provided live guitar and percussion support for artists such as Jackson Browne, David Crosby, Ben Harper, The Indigo Girls and many others.
As a producer, songwriter and performer, he wears many hats, but maintains there is no favorite aspect of his career. “They all feed off each other. The truth is, I would go crazy just doing either one,” he says. Between his time in the studio and his live shows, there’s really no time when he’s not making music. “I really don’t know any other way to live.”
A Jeffery Alan Berkley Show is full of laughter, love and life, with clever, well-written songs, funny and heartwarming stories about real life and people, and just plain loads of fun!
To learn more about him, visit www.jeffberkley.com.
Fiddlers Crossing is located at 206 E. F St. in downtown Tehachapi. Tickets can be purchased next door at Mountain Music as well as at House of Wax Records, 122 South Green St. To reserve seats with a credit card, call 661-823-9994. A Venmo link to purchase tickets is on www.fiddlerscrosing.com. Please specify “Berkley” when purchasing. Tickets for the concert are $25 and, as always, refreshments are included. The concert starts at 7 p.m., doors open at 6:30 p.m.
On the horizon are The Weeds (Irish music), singer-songwriter Dana Hubbard and progressive Bluegrass band Water Tower.
Peter Cutler is with Fiddlers Crossing.