Patti Scialfa
Vivienne "Patti" Scialfa ("Skal-fa") (born
July 29 1953 in
Deal, New Jersey) is an
American singer,
songwriter, and
guitarist, best known for being a bandmate, and later wife, of rock star
Bruce Springsteen.
Scialfa was born in
Monmouth County, a relatively wealthy section of the state. She was the middle child to Joseph Scialfa and Patricia (nee Morris) Scialfa. She has two brothers, and two half siblings from her father's second marriage. Unlike her future husband, her family was well provided for, her father and mother were successful local entrepreneurs, starting from a single
television store and entering into real estate development. She was writing songs from an early age, and first worked professionally as a back-up singer in New Jersey bar bands after completing high school. She stated in a
Lear's magazine interview in 1994 that she had little talent in life for anything but music, and went to college as a way to further her ambitions as a
singer and performer while also satisfying parental expectations. She has a music degree from
New York University, which she earned after transferring from the
University of Miami's
jazz conservatory.
While still in university she was submitting original material for other artists to record; however, none of her songs were recorded and she worked as a
busker and
waitress in
Greenwich Village after graduating. Together with
Soozie Tyrell and
Lisa Lowell, she formed a street group known as Trickster. She struggled to make her way in the songwriting and recording industry in New York and New Jersey for many years before playing at
Kenny's Castaway in Greenwich Village, as well as
Asbury Park's
The Stone Pony, which got her notice and eventually recording work with
Southside Johnny and
David Johansen.
|
Rumbledoll (1994) was her first record . |
In 1984, she joined the
E Street Band three or four days before the opening show of the
Born in the U.S.A. Tour, either because Springsteen wanted to expand the emotional range of the band (
Marsh,
Glory Days) or because
Nils Lofgren contracted
mononucleosis, which made it impossible for him to sing his backing vocals (Scialfa, [
1]). In 1986, she appeared on the
Rolling Stones'
Dirty Work album, leaving her unique vocal mark on "One Hit (To the Body)" as well as other tracks. She worked with
Keith Richards on his first solo disc
Talk is Cheap.
Steve Jordan, who co-produced the Richards' record, was a friend of Scialfa's from her Greenwich Village days.
Scialfa has made two solo albums, 1993's
Rumble Doll and 2004's
23rd Street Lullaby, both of which received four-star reviews from
Rolling Stone, but failed to produce successful radio singles. Each record is a mix of confessional songwriting, impressive vocal range, and traditional country, folk and rock music. Springsteen and fellow E Street bandmates like Lofgren and
Roy Bittan contributed backing work. Following the release of her second album, Scialfa played a series of club dates along the
East Coast and she was also the opening act of the post-final night of the
Vote for Change tour. Criticism of her performances was sometimes along the lines that, while she had some good songs and interesting arrangements, her voice was more suited to backing than lead vocals and she lacked stage presence.
During the 1987
Tunnel of Love Express tour she fell in love with Springsteen and took a center role in the sexually-oriented stage performances, such as for "You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch)", thereby displacing Springsteen's traditional on-stage foil,
saxophonist Clarence Clemons. Springsteen and Scialfa were later shown in
tabloid photographs on a hotel balcony. Springsteen was married at the time to model
Julianne Phillips. The initial scandal of the affair surprised some long-time fans who considered Springsteen to be nearly infallible, and relieved some fans who liked the idea of his settling down with a Jersey girl like the ones he'd sang about for years.
Springsteen's divorce was finalized in 1990.On
June 8,
1991 Springsteen and Scialfa married. They have three children: Evan James (born 1990), Jessica Rae (1991), and Samuel Ryan (1994).
When Springsteen decided to officially retire the E Street Band in 1990, and record and tour with a new
session band that included his wife in 1992, Scialfa suffered the fallout. Clarence Clemons, for one, not so inconspicuously suggested that bands "shouldn't let girls join" when asked by
Rolling Stone magazine for an explanation behind Springsteen's decision. This remark seemed directed at Scialfa's influence over Springsteen, à la
Yoko Ono's over
John Lennon or
Linda McCartney's over
Paul McCartney. Yet when Springsteen temporarily reformed the band in 1995 to record new material for his
Greatest Hits album, and then reunited the band again from 1999 through 2004, any lasting bitterness faded.
The Springsteen-Scialfa union weathered the initial media attention and their partnership in music and life is seen as one of the strongest in the entertainment world. Nevertheless, Scialfa has been forced to tolerate, if not overcome, the impression that her own career as a lead singer is a result of her marriage to Springsteen and not a result of her own talent. She might be best known as the women who inspired Springsteen to write (the bawdy) "Red Headed Woman". He also dedicates his famous cover of
Tom Waits' "Jersey Girl" to her in concert (although his initial performances of the song pre-date his relationship with her). .
Scialfa, Springsteen, and their children live in
Rumson and
Colts Neck in
New Jersey. Scialfa is most recently a member of Springsteen's Seeger Sessions Band (where she is reunited with Lisa Lowell). On that
Seeger Sessions Band Tour, as on tours since 1999-2000's
Reunion Tour, she sometimes misses shows or stretches of shows to return home and take care of the couple's children. As Springsteen once told a
Rotterdam audience in 2003 during
The Rising Tour, when she began a five-show absence, "Patti sends her regards, she couldn't be here. The kids need her more right now than the band." [
2]
*
Patti at CBS Records*
A Fan Site for Patti*
Patti Scialfa Lyrics
