[Dixielandjazz] Catherine Russell interviewed

[Robert Ringwald]

Cat Russell Takes Center Stage
by Paul Freeman
Palo Alto Daily News, September 6, 2012
Before ascending as a much lauded jazz-blues solo artist, Catherine Russell built
a reputation as one of the world's top backup singers. The New Yorker has performed,
toured or recorded with such luminaries as David Bowie, Madonna, Steely Dan, Al Green,
Cyndi Lauper, Paul Simon, Jackson Browne, Rosanne Cash, Isaac Hayes and Michael Feinstein.
Russell says, "All of these experiences are great, because these artists are great.
That's why they've been around so long."
Both aspects of her performing career are satisfying, in their own ways. "When I'm
singing backup, I'm very happy to be doing that. And when I'm singing lead, I'm very
happy to be doing that. It's two different jobs, two different skills, two different
lives, really."
Russell's first exposure to music greats came at the moment of birth. Her father
(who passed away when she was 7) was Luis Russell, renowned pianist-bandleader-arranger
and Louis Armstrong's music director during Satchmo's creative prime. Her mother,
Carline Ray, played guitar with The International Sweethearts of Rhythm. The swing
ensemble was the first integrated all-women's band in the U.S. Ray was also Mercer
Ellington's bassist-vocalist and worked with Mary Lou Williams.
On her latest album, "Strictly Romancin'," Russell includes Williams' "Satchel Mouth
Baby," an homage to Armstrong. She also recalls her dad's arrangements for Armstrong
with a wistfully wonderful rendition of "I'm in the Mood for Love."
"My father's music was some of the first music I ever heard in my life. I've always
felt very connected to his sense of swing and his sense of fun. I'm always trying
to connect more with his music and his arrangements, particularly that period in
which he worked with Louis Armstrong so closely.
"I like different types of material, so I like to have a mix of some swing stuff,
old blues stuff. And then I pick songs that I think have great stories, great melodies
and fun harmonic structures. I like finding hidden gems."
She chose the stirring gospel classic, "He's All I Need." Her mother harmonized with
her on that one. "I love the simplicity of the lyric," Russell says. "And my mother
is a woman of strong faith, so I thought she would really like that. And we love
singing together."
Her mother gave her an education in classical music, as well as in the American Songbook.
When Russell wanted to listen to rock and soul in her teens, her mother was fine
with that. In fact, she took her daughter to a Janis Joplin concert.
"She never said, 'Don't listen to this. Shut that off. I hate it.' She let me listen
to everything. So I grew up with 'American Bandstand,' 'Soul Train,' Led Zeppelin,
everything. Thank goodness, because all of that influences what I do. She was very
tolerant. So I'm very thankful for that. If I had a kid listening to stuff I didn't
like, I don't know what I'd do," Russell says, laughing.
Already adept at piano, in junior high, Russell learned guitar from a friend. "We
used to play for assemblies. We grew up in a rough neighborhood in the Bronx, and
music saved us from getting beaten up after school," Russell says with a chuckle.
Choral singing was a passion. "I always loved harmony. And it was a way not to be
the center of attention."
While attending college in Oakland, Russell joined a gospel choir. "In the '70s,
Northern California was a hotbed for this new, emerging modern gospel, with the Hawkins
singers and the Winans and all of these groups. And Daryl Coley, who was my choir
director at that point -- he later became a star in the gospel world -- he said,
'OK, sing this lead sing.' And I was scared to death my first time. But he was so
encouraging to me."
Attending New York's American Academy of Dramatic Arts enhanced her singing, as well.
"It helped with being comfortable with myself on stage, getting into the story of
something without being self-conscious and really being comfortable with an audience."
Recording songwriters' demos led to a tour with comedian Robert Klein. Russell landed
a steady gig at Catch a Rising Star, singing between comics' sets. Tough crowd.
"That was the best training. As soon as they announced the singer, everybody would
turn away from the stage and start talking. I'd have three tunes. So, hopefully,
by the second tune, I would have done well enough that they would listen to me. Then
I started to get encores. So it actually turned out great."
Russell's reputation grew and she began getting calls for tours and recording dates
with superstars. There have also been numerous TV appearances, backing such greats
as Darlene Love on her annual, epic Christmas number on David Letterman's show.
"It's rewarding, working with all these great people, and hopefully making them feel
really comfortable. That's part of the job. We are there for them, so they can do
their thing, because they know that they're well supported. They get very nervous,
if they don't have that. These stars, they're not all secure. They're trying, just
like everybody else. They're continually working at their craft, working at being
the best they can be. So the more comfortable that we can make them, the better for
everybody."
After decades of honing her craft, developing a sublimely smart, sophisticated and
soulful vocal style, Russell finally pondered moving to center stage. As she approached
her 50th birthday, her husband-manager was among those encouraging her to take the
plunge. In 2006, she released her album debut, "Cat."
"It was very nerve-wracking, the first few gigs. I thought, 'Oh, no! What am I going
to do in between the songs? Now I've got to talk to people.' But once again, I got
a lot of support. Once I started doing it, people were like, 'Well, what took you
so long?' I just really hadn't seen myself being a bandleader, pursuing that, having
all the attention.
"But from doing it and doing it, I became comfortable," says Russell, who'll be joined
by a quartet of top jazz musicians when she plays at Woodside's Jazz at Filoli on
Sept. 23. "When people start to come to see you, that's really encouraging. The first
shows that sold out, I thought, 'Really? They came to see me? They could have done
anything with their evening.' That made me think, 'You'd better take the bull by
the horns. You can't get up there not confident, not owning the situation. These
people bought tickets, spent the gas money and planned their evening around you.'
And, for me, that's a real honor."

-30

-Bob Ringwald
www.ringwald.com
Amateur (ham) Radio Operator K6YBV
916/ 806-9551

The crime of taxation is not in the taking of it. It's in the way it's spent.
--Will Rogers March 20, 1932