Bert Berns

Bertrand Russell Bernstein was one of the 1960s' most successful songwriters and producers. By the time his career took off in the early sixties he was already a veteran of the music business, having penned the Les Paul and Mary Ford hit, "Vaya Con Dios" in 1953. Writing with partners such as Jerry Ragavoy (also known as "Norman Meade"), Phil Medley or Wes Farrell, and sometimes using the pseudonym "Bert Russell", he wrote numerous Pop-soul classics, for artists as diverse as The Beatles, Solomon Burke, Them and Otis Redding. In addition to his writing credits, Berns produced some of the most memorable records of the 1960s including Van Morrison's "Brown Eyed Girl", Barbara Lewis' "Baby, I'm Yours" and The Drifters' "Under The Boardwalk", before his untimely death in 1967 from a heart attack.

Selected writing credits

• "Vaya Con Dios" Les Paul and Mary Ford (1953)
• "Cry To Me" Solomon Burke (1961)
• "A Little Bit Of Soap" The Jarmels (1961)
• "Tell Him" The Exciters (1962)
• "Twist And Shout" The Isley Brothers (1962)/The Beatles (1963)
• "Cry Baby" Garnet Mimms (1963)
• "One Way Love" The Drifters (1963)/Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers (1964)
• "Everybody Needs Somebody To Love" Solomon Burke (1964)/Wilson Pickett (1967)
• "Baby Let Me Take You Home" The Animals (1964)
• "Here Comes The Night" Them (1965)
• "Hang On, Sloopy" The McCoys (1965)
• "Down In The Valley" Otis Redding (1965)
• "I'll Take Good Care Of You" Garnet Mimms (1967)
• "Piece Of My Heart" Erma Franklin (1967)