Matraca Berg

Before establishing herself as a performer, Matraca Berg built a songwriting career bolstered by deep family ties to the industry. Her mother, the songwriter and session vocalist Icee Berg, leveraged publishing connections to launch her teenage daughter’s professional path. In 1983 Berg achieved her first major placement by collaborating with Bobby Braddock on “Faking Love,” which reached the top of the charts for T.G. Sheppard and Karen Brooks. She then spent two years playing keyboards with the Kevin Stewart Band before resuming her Nashville writing work, eventually placing songs with Suzy Bogguss, Patty Loveless, Trisha Yearwood, Reba McEntire, Pam Tillis, Deana Carter, Martina McBride, and numerous other artists.

Berg next explored recording her own material, releasing the debut album Lying to the Moon on RCA in 1990. Reviewers praised its eclectic musical approach, incisive lyrics, and earthy acoustic textures, though commercial results remained modest. The label pressed for a more mainstream sound and ultimately shelved her planned follow-up, prompting Berg to move from the Nashville division to RCA’s pop roster. The subsequent releases—Bittersweet Surrender in 1991 and The Speed of Grace in 1993—were widely viewed by critics as falling short of the debut’s distinctive qualities.

Disillusioned by ongoing label meddling, she departed for the independent imprint Rising Tide. Her 1997 album Sunday Morning to Saturday Night reclaimed the intimate style of Lying to the Moon and earned strong critical approval. Berg maintained her songwriting output while also working as a background vocalist; RCA later reissued her first album with additional tracks under the title Lying to the Moon & Other Stories. She resumed recording in 2010, composing or co-composing every song on The Dreaming Fields, which Dualtone issued in spring 2011.