I had the insane pleasure of speaking with Jazz and R&B LEGEND, Patti Austin. We spoke about her love of touring, Judy Garland, and she even gave me a little scoop about her classic duet, “Baby Come To Me.”
Q: When did you start professionally in the entertainment industry?
I started when I was five. This will be my 60th anniversary in the biz!
Q: What is your favorite song to perform live?
I have so many. I have a Ella Fitzgerald show, a Duke Ellington show, and a Gershwin show. I also do a big band show and a R&B/Pop/Jazz show. Like my life, my favorite song is all over the place! ::laughs::
Q: “Baby Come To Me” is a classic. Do you remember the first time you heard it on the radio?
I remember the first time I heard it on TV. It was the love them for Luke and Laura from “General Hospital.” Prior to that, it was released, and died the death of a dog on the charts. A radio station in Miami used it during their soap recap one weekend, and they began receiving phone calls asking what the sang was called and such. 20,000 copies were sold in Miami that weekend! The public wanted it. Warner Bros wouldn’t re-release it however. So, in the end I had to pay to keep it alive. My manager at the time, who also managed Michael Jackson, Lionel Ritchie, and Madonna before she was ‘Madonna’, went dutch and had more copies made. Then it became the hit it was. It was my baptism into the pop world. James Ingram didn’t know until a few years. He freaked out! ::laughs::
Q: How did Judy Garland inspire you?
That’s an odd story, actually. Quincy Jones, who is my Godfather, invited my parents and I to the Newport Jazz Fest. Judy was in the show. I was 13 or 14 at the time. I loved her, but at the time her career was really tanking. She was trying to commit suicide every few months. Her voice was a wreck. She beat Britney Spears to the breakdown bandwagon. Everyone knew about it. I was in my “Led Zeppelin” phase, but I loved all kinds of music at the time. I would go to the Apollo every weekend, and got to see everyone imaginable. But Judy blew me away. As I said before, her voice wasn’t all there, but she was an amazing entertainer. A brilliant actress. During “Over The Rainbow”, you could see some of the audience members wincing, like they were saying “hit that note girl! hit that note girl!” ::laughs:: I learned from her how important it is to tell a story, and not just do tons of runs. That’s how you get inside people’s heads. I don’t care how beautiful you are, if you’re not connecting, it just won’t work. Quincy knew I was going to get that from her show. I changed the way I thought about what I do when I perform live.
Q: What is your favorite part of performing in front of an audience?
I’m an old school performer. There’s something MARVELOUS about instant feedback. You know right away if the audience is against you. I peek out behind the curtain to see if they’re happy or sad. It’s totally different from making a record. I’ve doing a lot of recording with WDR in Germany the past few years. I had to put on a different hat because I haven’t done that in a long time. My manager said I’m picky ::laughs:: I love both, but going into the studio is more daunting. You’re going for perfection. Once it’s out, it ain’t gonna change. You want to be as fabulous as you can be.
Q: Are you excited to be a part of the Capital Jazz Fest?
I’m thrilled to be coming back! I haven’t done it in a long time. I hope we don’t burn to death. Every time I’m there, it’s hotter than hell. The last few times I’ve been there, people have passed out due to bad air quality and heat exhaustion. Just let me get through my ballads, then you can faint. Actually, if anyone’s going to be fainting, it’s going to be me!
Patti will be performing at this weekends Capital Jazz Fest at Merriweather Post Pavilion. Ticket info
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