In New Orleans music, the song forms can be very complicated. How good were you at that point?Īs good as I could have been, playing with guys way out of my league.
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When you were 14, you played your first professional jazz gig. The musicians got to know me and they’d have me come up and play traditional jazz. Over the years, my parents took me down there as much as they could. It wasn’t uncommon to see young people in the clubs, and it’s not uncommon for older musicians in New Orleans to invite young musicians up to play. You played in New Orleans jazz clubs on Bourbon Street as a child?
He was wearing a baseball cap emblazoned with a golden fleur-de-lis, which has long been a symbol for New Orleans and Louisiana and has recently been used to signify support for Hurricane Katrina recovery. We talked with Connick at the Four Seasons Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles, while he was in town for an American Idol taping. His big break came when Rob Reiner chose him to perform the soundtrack for 1989’s When Harry Met Sally, which went double platinum and earned Connick his first Grammy at age 22.Īfter Hurricane Katrina, the New Orleans native wanted to make sure that music continued to be the city’s lifeblood, so he teamed with fellow recording artist Branford Marsalis to create Musicians’ Village, a community in the Upper Ninth Ward that provides homes for musicians and has a community center, performance hall, recording studio and after-school kids’ facility. (It was produced by his father, an amateur singer who served as district attorney of the parish that includes New Orleans from 1973 to 2003.)Ĭonnick, who played Tanglewood at 16, left Loyola University in New Orleans after one semester and headed for New York City in search of a record contract. At 9, he performed as a classical pianist with the New Orleans Symphony Orchestra and, at 10, he made his first record, Dixieland Plus. At 5, he sang “The Star-Spangled Banner” and accompanied himself on piano in his first public performance.
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He had a recurring TV role on Will & Grace and was one of the three judges on the latest season of American Idol.Ī child prodigy, Connick learned to play piano when he was 3. On Broadway, Connick received Tony Award nominations as composer/lyricist of Thou Shalt Not and as lead actor in The Pajama Game. A winner of three Grammys and two Emmys, this composer/pianist/silky-voiced singer is also an actor whose films include Little Man Tate, Independence Day and Dolphin Tale. ranks among America’s bestselling recording artists. With sales of more than 28 million albums, Harry Connick, Jr. The album features 13 duets for piano and saxophone, most of them written by Connick, such as "Chanson du Vieux Carre" and "I Like Love More." Marsalis contributed both the title track and "Steve Lacy.The multifaceted entertainer discusses his career, his business jet travel and his efforts to aid New Orleans musicians in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. It's an effort that, once again, Branford Marsalis has joined him in supporting, as he is the honorary chair of the New Orleans effort.Įarlier this year, the pair teamed up for Connick's CD Occasion: Connick on Piano, Vol. Some of his experiences there became stories he submitted to NBC's Today show.Īs the extent of the disaster became evident, Connick signed on with Habitat for Humanity to serve as honorary chair of "Operation Home Delivery," an effort to rebuild housing for families along the Gulf Coast. And Branford's label, Marsalis Music, is releasing a benefit CD, Celebration of New Orleans Music to Benefit the Musicares Hurricane Relief.Ĭonnick returned to the city in early September, navigating its streets by boat and offering help where he could. Marsalis' brother Wynton organized a benefit concert in New York. were each born and raised in New Orleans.Īnd when their hometown was devastated by Hurricane Katrina, Marsalis and Connick sought to help any way they could. Branford Marsalis, left, and Harry Connick Jr.