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Clare Teal: Meeting the down-to-earth diva with worldwide appeal
Having told Michael Buble I was the cleaner at Ronnie Scott's and having asked Harry Connick Jr if he'd ever put up a shelf, I was surprised and thrilled that Radio 2 asked me to interview another big famous Jazzer in concert. "I'd love to – who is it?" "Diana Krall". Yikes.
I have watched Ms Krall's career develop with interest over the years. From a very early age, this Canadian artist knew what she wanted to do.
Having sought out the greatest teachers, Ray Brown, Jimmy Rowles and Rosemary Clooney, she studied her art tirelessly, undeterred by the harsh realities of life on the road. We have a lot in common, a deep love of music, Tony Hancock and Fred Astaire, and both made our first records at the age of 28 – actually if I'm honest, that's probably where the similarities end.
Diana has sold gazillions of records, is a global superstar, is married to one of the finest singer-songwriters on the planet (Elvis Costello), oh, and she's just finished producing Queen Barbra of Streisand's latest record.
A great ambassador for women in music, Diana's mainstream success as a jazz artist is to be applauded.
At the start of my career, the venues I played were perhaps not quite as salubrious as one could have hoped. I'd be getting changed in the toilets or staying in some terrible B&B. Muddy and I would often turn to each other and say: "Diana Krall wouldn't stand for this".
We turned up at Maida Vale around 1pm in time to hear a bit of the soundcheck, the band sounded superb. DK was at the piano wearing sunglasses. The room was very dark except for the stage lighting and I suddenly felt nervous. What if she didn't fancy a chat? What if my questions were stupid?
By the time we were introduced, I was a nervous wreck. "Diana, this is Clare T…." "I know who Clare Teal is. It's great to meet you, I have a lot of your records. This must be Muddy, you guys write songs together don't you?"
Suffice to say, the interview went very well. The programme will be broadcast on July 6 and our new best friend will return to the UK at the end of October to play two nights at the Albert Hall.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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