Here's the story.....Morning Glory.

Blackberry Winter: 50-plus Years, Thousands of Gigs, Millions of Miles… And Still Rockin’  

Considering the odds, Blackberry Winter shouldn’t have survived for over half a century. Seriously, let’s face it. Most small-town, Midwestern rock bands starting out in the early ‘70s had the lifespan of a July 4th bottle rocket. An igniting spark of inspiration, a rush of enthusiasm, a momentary flare of local notoriety – and a puff of smoke, followed by silence. So, what was the unlikely alchemy that transformed the rock-and-roll fantasies of eight Nebraska teenagers into a regional rock powerhouse that saw a total of 46 different members* perform under its banner during a 50-plus-year history? Whatever the formula, this unique, rotating cast of musicians would go from prom dances and dive bar one-night stands to the recording studio and Billboard-worthy hits; from a brush with death on an icy Colorado mountain pass, to recovery and a return to the road and performing as the opening act for some of the most legendary (and legendary-adjacent) hit-makers in rock music. Attracting loyal fans from the windswept Nebraska plains to sun-struck Southern California and back again, Blackberry Winter had that indefinable quality that kept audiences flocking to see them play, year after year, even as the band changed, grew and almost vanished from the scene, only to rise again and re-invent itself more musically dynamic than ever. 

The early architect behind the band’s formation was Lincoln-based booking agent Bob Codr**, whose CID Productions kept numerous area bands on the road and working throughout the Midwest. As a former member of Nebraska’s popular dance band The Chancellors, Bob had a road-tested sense of what young audiences wanted most from live music. Inspired by the fresh, blues-rock sounds coming out of Southern bands in 1972, Codr would create a new musical entity by bringing together key members of two well-known Nebraska groups: The Fabulous Suns and Mother Rush. From the 50 or so names considered, Codr called the new group Blackberry Winter, and promptly sent the boys on a shake-down tour of Arkansas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. On their return, he began booking BBW as “the new breakout stars of Southern rock!” The concept proved instantly successful, and the band soon established itself throughout the region as a tight, high-energy, horn-backed rock act. Touring in a converted school bus from their home base in Lincoln, Blackberry Winter would play from Idaho to the Dakotas, from Colorado to Iowa, Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri,Texas and New Mexico, in venues from civic centers to rodeo arenas to National Guard Armories, college theater stages, city auditoriums and street dances.

By 1974, the band had been crafting a new albums-worth of original music, with songs fueled by infectious hooks, great vocals and harmonies and a rock solid brass section. With funding secured and studio time booked, the group drove out to Los Angeles and laid down tracks at Devonshire Studios, where the project was produced and engineered by Sye Mitchell***, the industry mixing-board veteran with clients including The Supremes, The Four Tops, Chicago and others. After the album’s final remix at LA’s Sunwest Studios, the self-titled “Blackberry Winter” was released in September1975. The single “Answers” shot to #56 in the Billboard Top 100, and the album received glowing reviews in the national music press. The future was looking bright. But just as momentum began to grow for the band, things took a near-fatal turn for the ‘Berries. Shortly after beginning a series of gigs in Colorado, the band bus careened off a black-ice-slick section of road in Wolf Creek Pass, elevation 10,857 feet. The vehicle, all nine members and all their equipment plunged over a hundred-and-fifty feet down into a steep ravine right next to the raging Colorado river. Remarkably, the only injury was a fractured keyboard player’s pinky and a broken guitar neck. But the bus was totaled, and the accident sidetracked everything for the band and the newly cut album, including time-critical promotion and equally vital touring support for the record. This brought a time of deep reflection for the band...should they regroup and keep on keeping on? Or was it time to call it quits? Not this band...No way. The band played on as a seven piece for another 12 months until......

The year 1977, the music scene shifted yet again, and the band’s sensibilities shifted with it. The brass section departed, new members joined, and the Blackberry Winter song list took on a more guitar-and-synth, progressive/hard rock feel. This version of the group toured across the Midwest, in venues from Lincoln’s fabled Royal Grove and venerable Cornhusker Hotel, to countless school and college dances, to serving as opening act for a number of nationally known groups. Describing the ‘Berries performance warming up the crowd for Santana at the City Auditorium Arena in Omaha,1978, the Omaha World-Herald music critic cited BBW’s music as “funky and driving… basically a flashy hard-rock outfit with a touch of soul…”   

1978 found this Blackberry Winter lineup also headed to Los Angeles, where a new slate of freshly written tunes was recorded at Quad Tech, United Western and Hollywood Central Studios. While various labels offered encouraging comments that the songwriting and production were both solid,  in their minds there was no radio-play “hit” standing out. Several producers remarked that the band was at a point in its evolution where the next logical step was a move to LA or New York to position the group “closer to the action.” Band members had made a few sojourns to New York to investigate and most everyone was familiar with the advantages of the Southern California music scene and lifestyle, so shortly after being selected to represent Lincoln’s local rock music scene in “The 33rd Street Sessions” on Nebraska TV, the band made the decision to transition to Southern California. That was in June of 19 and 81. For the next two years,  personnel changes would rotate through the group as the band became a staple of the club scene in LA, Orange County, the San Fernando Valley and San Diego, playing a danceable mix of Top 40 and original music. This was a grueling schedule and the band had been burning the candle at both ends for several years. Everyone was tired. New music had just been recorded with great anticipation but their vocalist had just jumped ship and the band was back to square one. So it was decided to go on hiatus for awhile.

So, between 1983 and 1996, Blackberry Winter “went dark,” with no one performing under the moniker. At least two band members still residing in Southern California assembled respectable 24-track home studios and continued to record new songs, tweak, transfer and remix existing material and submit songs to various labels.

In 1996, a pair of BBW alumni in Nebraska teamed up with a new assortment of players to re-animate the name, and the band took to the area’s stages once again, reviving that “Brass Kickin’ Classic Rock” Blackberry Winter sound. This version of the group toured successfully across the region until 2007, when they played a pair of “final farewell” performances. One at the Rococo theatre in Lincoln and the last at the Adams County Fairgrounds in Hastings, Nebraska. They marked the occasion with the release of a two-disc DVD set, “Kiss Our Brass Goodbye.” The liner notes commented: “This DVD documents the final performance of the brass kickin’ classic horn rock band Blackberry Winter…thanks to all who attended that evening and to all of our faithful fans over the years. And special thanks to our families and loved ones who allowed us to indulge in this mid-life crisis as we relived our misspent youth. It was a hoot.” 

Was this the moment the BBW story finally reached its final chapter and exited the stage for good? 

Not this band....No way! 

After another hiatus lasting from 2008 to 2013, a whole new roster of players rebooted Blackberry Winter yet again. This “saxy” new classic rock incarnation lives on today, playing to devoted fans across Nebraska with a cast of musicians who’ve honed their chops to a keen professional edge over the years. Combining intricate vocal harmonies with a heavy-caliber rhythm section, their playlist features an irresistible assortment of iconic ‘60s and ‘70s horn-powered hits. 

And so, this band plays on. From its formative days in Nebraska as a classic horn group to a harder edged, progressive rock act that was shooting for the stars, to a return to its classic brass-backed roots, to the current “Sax Kickin" line up, Blackberry Winter has proven it has the kind of creative mojo to keep this particular bottle rocket fueled and flying high. It’s been fifty years and counting – from the young musicians who started it all, to seasoned players who made gigging and touring their career, to musicians who play for the sheer exuberance of making music. Through it all, Blackberry Winter has kept the dream alive, electrifying generations of audiences with the kind of experience that only live, in-person, full-tilt rock ‘n roll music can deliver. 

* Still doing the math/may include sound and light techs

***See Mix magazine article dated 05/04/2006 (mixonline.com)

**Actual pronunciation debatable  So-Der for some...Co-der for others.