With 20 songs in the Top 40, including six Top 5 hits, John Berry's musical career spans four decades.
His first hit, Your Love Amazes Me, soared to #1 on Billboard and Radio & Records Country Charts in 1994. 34 years later, Berry landed on the Top 30 Billboard Country Chart with Beautifully Broken.
He and his wife Robin have hosted a television show. He released a Christian music CD in 2011, and reached #1 on the Christian Music Weekly Country Chart in 2020 with Don't Think I Ain't Country, a song he co-wrote with Bill Anderson.
Berry will host An Evening of Love Songs and Stories with John Berry on Thursday, February 2, at Decatur's Princess Theatre. Tickets are $40, $35 and $30, and may be purchased through the theatre's website, www.princesstheatre.org.
But Berry's life over the past 42 years hasn't been all wine and roses. He's been through a different life crisis in each decade since the 1980s. Each one tested his faith and created unique challenges. And the 63-year-old Berry weathered each storm through faith and family.
Last year, Berry released a faith-based album, Find My Joy, on the Gaither Music Label, a project that was on his 'To Do' list for a while.
“I've wanted to cut this record for years, but the opportunity was never there,” Berry said. “So I went through cancer, came out on the other side of that in good health, with a grateful heart, and decided to cut the record.”
Berry continues to keep a busy tour schedule that includes dates in churches as well as solo and band dates, along with his popular Christmas tour and the special Valentine's Day show he'll do in Decatur. The night will include some of Berry's favorite love songs, including his releases and those of other artists.
“I'll have the band with me and we're going to do a mix of songs that are mine and some by others,” Berry said. “It will feature the greatest love songs we can come up with. We're going on a Grand Ole Opry cruise next week and the band and I will figure out what songs we'll do for the Decatur show.”
In 1981, Berry was two years into his recording career when he was involved in a serious accident on his motorcycle. Left with two broken legs and a broken hip, there was no certainty he'd walk again. All of this shortly after his mother had passed away.
Berry accepted the challenge life presented him, worked hard in physical therapy and spent months doing the only thing his body allowed—sitting on a stool playing guitar.
In 1994, on the very same day Your Love Amazes Me reached #1, Berry had surgery to remove a tumor in his brain. Although it was benign, the growth markedly impacted Berry's personality and brain function before it was removed.
Three years later, Berry underwent surgery to remove nodes on his vocal cords, a dicey surgery for someone whose livelihood depends on his voice.
The 2000s saw Berry incur serious injuries in a horseback riding accident. His broken shoulder required extensive therapy causing another lapse in his music career.
In 2018, Berry was on tour celebrating the 25th anniversary of signing his major record deal. His television show, Songs and Stories with John Berry, was in its second year, and he returned to the country charts with Beautifully Broken.
As the calendar turned to 2019, Berry was diagnosed with cancer of the tonsils and he underwent surgery to remove them. Chemotherapy and 35 rounds of radiation replaced concerts and television shows. Incredibly, by summer 2019, Berry returned to the road and resumed his busy schedule.
“When I got the cancer diagnosis, I was like, come on, how much more is there? I'd been through the motorcycle wreck, vocal cord surgery, etc. We were laying in bed when told my wife I had been diagnosed with cancer. I said God's trying to get my attention for something,” Berry said.
“Robin turned over and said 'would you please listen this time?,' so I tried to do just that,” he added.
With his latest health crisis behind him, Berry's career would again be interrupted, this time by a worldwide pandemic in 2020.
“I was ready to get back to it but COVID shut everything down. We had to get creative and continue our connection with people, so we thought about all the children out of school and started Sunday Songs and Stories with Papa Bear,” Berry said.
The free internet show was geared for children ages 3-6. Berry asked the kids how their weeks were going, encouraged them to be safe and keep their hands washed, and he read a different story each week. While Berry read, Robin showed the images of the pages. The Papa Bear videos are available on You Tube.
At his son's urging, Berry re-recorded one of his early songs, The Graduation Song, originally released in 1981. He posted on Facebook about the project and asked people to send in photos of their graduating seniors during the COVID-19 pandemic to honor the Class of 2020, most of whom didn't get to enjoy a real graduation ceremony.
His video for the song was shot at Gallatin High School, using its empty hallways and gymnasium for scenery. The result was a touching tribute to the Class of 2020 and yet another way Berry found to reach out to his fans.
For more information on John Berry, visit www.johnberry.com.
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