Cassandra and Brett Berns with Keith Richards at Germano Studios in New York City, After Interviewing Him for the Film “BANG!”
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Bert Berns and Jerry Wexler on the Long Island Sound in the ’60s Cassandra and Brett Berns with Keith Richards at Germano Studios in New York City, after interviewing him for the film “BANG!” 38 | MALIBU TIMES MAGAZINE | #MALIBUTIMESMAG Bang! The Untold Story of a Rock ‘n’ Roll Legend The late Bert Berns’ lyrics realize their father’s untold story. “The first revelation for me,” Brett said, “was how are legendary. forgotten he was ... he had really fallen into complete and utter obscurity.” BY LAURIE HARTT Bert’s widow, Ilene, a music business legend in her own right PHOTOGRAPHY BY ROXANNE MC CANN after taking over the Bang label upon Bert’s death, eventually sold the record company, leaving the publishing business in the hands of her children. It didn’t take long for Brett and Cassandra e’s the man who penned and produced some of to realize the potential of their father’s legacy. the most well-known hits of the ‘60s: “Twist and “One day,” Cassandra said, “Brett and I realized we had to Shout,” Solomon Burke’s “Cry to Me,” The McCoys’ do something with this.” “Hang On Sloopy,” and Them’s “Here Comes the Bert’s work ethic certainly passed on to his children, HNight.” By all accounts, Bert Berns was one of the greatest because the two created a stage musical as well as a songwriters and music producers of all time—and also one documentary to tell their father’s story. of the most forgotten. Using their own painstaking research and Joel Selvin’s He also co-wrote “Piece of My Heart” and The 2014 biography “Here Comes the Night: The Dark Soul of Strangeloves’ “I Want Candy,” and produced The Drifters’ Bert Berns and the Dirty Business of Rhythm and Blues,” “Under the Boardwalk.” His music label Bang Records Brett and Cassandra holed up in their office night after night, was responsible for launching Van Morrison’s and Neil writing lines, crafting the story for the stage and bringing Diamond’s careers with early songs like “Cherry, Cherry” history back to life. and “Brown Eyed Girl.” “We would put the song titles on the wall and turn the His children, Brett and Cassandra (Cassie) Berns, phones off at night and conceived the musical,” Cassandra said. who currently live in Malibu, have spent the last 15 years “Piece of My Heart” debuted Off-Broadway in 2014 in a resurrecting the legacy of a man and father who had until limited run to great success. recently been lost to time and industry drama. “We took the greatest gamble of our lives,” Brett said. Their father, born to Jewish immigrants in 1929 in the [But] we brought him back to life on the living stage. The Bronx, contracted rheumatic fever as a child, irreparably musical is the crown jewel of our efforts.” scarring his heart. Doctors gave him a life expectancy of only 21, but Bert defied all odds, making history with every hen it came time to put together the documentary, many minute possible until his heart gave out in 1967 at the age Wstepped up to take part. The story is told primarily of 38. His son, Brett, was not quite three, and his daughter, through interviews of many of the people he worked with Cassandra, was 10 months old. Their brother Mark was only throughout the years. two weeks old when their father died. Brett directed the film and conducted the interviews, an It wasn’t until their mid-to-late 20s when the experience he said was an extraordinary heart-pull. With copyrights to their father’s songs started reverting back the likes of wiseguy Carmine “Wassel” DeNoia (Bert’s story to the original heirs that Brett and Cassandra began to is also infamous for its mob ties) and music industry icons FALL 2018 | 39 Brett and Cassandra reviewed work in their office on the beach in Malibu, where they continue to bring the “gloriously tuneful” “Piece of My Heart,” their father’s story, to stage and screen. Brett suitd up with his children Max, 18, Marcus, 16, and Olivia, 11, before they took their well-worn boards out surfing in Malibu. 40 | MALIBU TIMES MAGAZINE | #MALIBUTIMESMAG Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich, Phil Spector and Bert at the BMI Awards in New York City Artwork from the film “BANG!” and the Broadway- bound musical, “Piece of My Heart” Bert died of of heart failure at the age of 38, before his son Brett (shown here with the family cat, Keetch) was 3 years old. Ronald Isley, Solomon Burke, Ben E. King, Paul McCartney, Keith Richards, Betty Harris, Cissy Houston, Brenda Reid, Ilene Berns, and many others, the cast of the film is legendary in itself. Even notoriously interview-shy Van Morrison makes an appearance. “It was really a testament to my dad that they even agreed to sit down with us. They really poured their hearts and souls out to us,” Brett said. E Street Band guitarist and cast member of “The Sopranos” Steven Van Zandt narrated the story, bringing humor and a pace that emulates the breakneck speed of Bert’s own life and work. The documentary debuted at the 2016 South by I Southwest Film Festival and was released both theatrically mages and on Apple Music in 2017, just a year after Bert was co U inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Interesting note: rtesy Bert is the only songwriter who is in the Rock & Roll Hall of O Fame but not in the Songwriters Hall of Fame. F THE B ERNS he Berns siblings are just getting started, with plans F T for future broadcasts of the documentary, a biopic amily or televised series and a tribute concert, they are also FALLFALL 2018 2018 | 41 | 41 LOVING MALIBU Bert, pictured here in his New York studio, penned many classic songs including “Twist and Shout” and “Piece of My Heart.” Cassandra Berns: Favorite spot? The Backbone Trail in the Santa Monica Mountains, starting at the top of Kanan. Favorite memory? P hotos Stand-up paddling with a group of neighbors to the Malibu Pier. I live among some of the most co U amazing people. I’ve never lived in a place where rtesy people are happy to see each other, it’s kind of O extraordinary. F THE B ERNS F amily Bert heads to his yacht at the 79th Street Boat Basin on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. planning a full Broadway reboot of “Piece of My Heart” in the 2019-20 season. Although Bert’s story is straight out of New York, the siblings now call Malibu home. As children, they spent a summer in the Colony on vacation with their mother and it just “filled us with a love for Malibu,” Brett said. He’s now lived in the area for nearly a decade with his family, while Cassie has recently returned to Malibu after temporarily moving back to New York for Brett Berns: work on the musical and documentary. All three of Brett’s Favorite spot? children—Max, 18; Marcus, 16; and Olivia, 11—attended Point Dume Marine Science School, and are accomplished The Bluffs [where I coached baseball]. It’s just one of my favorite places in all of Malibu. I also musicians like their grandfather. loved surfing at Little Dume with my kids and all “[When I was young],” Brett said of Malibu, “it felt those hardcore locals. Now I surf a secret spot. like a place that only other people could live. Malibu was an enchanted place. The fact that we became part of the Favorite memory? community really was a dream come true.” Watching my three children go through Malibu baseball. I used to ride a bicycle up to the Bluffs Alive with the promise of their father’s legacy, Brett and when I was young and would think what a dream Cassandra feel that despite losing him at a very young age, it would be to watch my kids play ball there. I they do in fact know the legend who is Bert Berns. And they was an assistant coach for a couple of years. They feel he would have loved the story they are rebirthing. were some of the greatest years of my life. “He would have been so tickled,” Cassandra said. “I just think I could hear him laugh.” n 42 | MALIBU TIMES MAGAZINE | #MALIBUTIMESMAG.