Pat Benatar's polished mainstream pop/rock made her one of the more popular
female vocalists of the early '80s. Although she came on like an arena rocker
with her power
chords, tough sexuality, and powerful vocals, her music was straight pop/rock
underneath all the bluster. Born
Patricia Andrzejewski on January 10, 1953, in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, the
singer was raised in the nearby town of Lindenhurst on Long Island, NY.
Pat Benatar began singing regularly in the New York City area by the '70s, where
she was discovered at the Catch a Rising Star club and signed by Chrysalis
Records. Backed by a stellar band led by guitarist Neil Geraldo (who the singer
would later marry) that provided the perfect accompaniment that was able to
effortlessly alternate between rockers and ballads.
Pat Benatar quickly established herself as one of rock's top vocalists, scoring
a hit right of the bat with her debut album, 1979's In the Heat of the Night,
which spawned such radio favorites as "Heartbreaker" and "I Need a Lover" (the
latter of which was written by a then-unknown
John Mellencamp).
Pat Benatar's sophomore effort, 1980's Crimes of Passion, more than delivered on
the debut's promise and it's often considered to be the finest recording of her
career. Spurred on by such classic rock radio standards as "Hit Me With Your
Best Shot," "Treat Me Right," and "You Better Run," the album was certified
platinum shortly after its release and
Pat Benatar became a certified arena headliner in the U.S.
Pat Benatar also became one of the most-played artists during MTV's early days,
received several Grammy Awards around this time, and continued to enjoy massive
hits and sold-out tours throughout the early to mid-'80s, including such albums
as 1981's Precious Time, 1982's Get Nervous, 1983's Live from Earth, 1984's
Tropico, 1985's Seven the Hard Way, and 1988's Wide Awake in Dreamland, plus the
singles "Fire & Ice," "Promises in the Dark," "Shadows of the Night," "Love Is a
Battlefield," "We Belong," and "Invincible." But by the end of the decade, it
appeared as though
Pat Benatar had fallen of the face of the Earth as the hits seemed to dry up.
Pat Benatar opted to shift musical gears and issue an album of blues and R&B,
1991's True Love, which failed to return the singer back to the top of the
charts.
Pat Benatar returned back to her patented arena rock sound with such further
studio releases as 1993's Gravity's Rainbow and 1997's Innamorata (although the
latter of which was largely acoustic-based) and while the albums didn't exactly
measure up to her earlier releases, both were solid efforts. The late '90s saw a
pair of live archival releases hit record store shelves, 1998's 8-15-80 and
1999's The King Biscuit Flower Hour Live, in addition to countless hits
collections (although the best of the bunch proved to be 1989's Best Shots,
which remains a steady seller to this day). The singer began touring again by
the middle of the decade (after taking a five-year hiatus from the road),
co-headlining shows with
REO Speedwagon,
Fleetwood Mac,
the Steve Miller Band, and
Styx. She also continued to dabble in acting, appearing in the ABC
Afterschool Special Torn Between Two Fathers and on various sitcoms. In August
2003,
Pat Benatar returned to recording with Go (Vanguard), her first studio LP since
1997's Innamorata. The LP revisited the arena rock/MOR sound that had defined
Pat Benatar's career, and was accompanied by an extensive tour. ~ Greg Prato &
Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Contact Grabow for more information or to book
Pat Benatar for your next corporate or private event.
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