Pat Benatar | |
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.jpg) Benatar performing in 2007 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Patricia Mae Andrzejewski (1953-01-10)January 10, 1953 (age 72) New York City, U.S. |
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| Years active | 1972–present |
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| Children | 2 |
| Website | benatargiraldo |
Patricia Mae Giraldo (néeAndrzejewski; formerly and still professionallyBenatar/ˈbɛnətɑːr/;[1] born January 10, 1953) is an American singer and songwriter. In the US, she has two multi-platinum albums, five platinum albums, and 15 USBillboard top 40singles,[2] while in Canada she had eight straight platinum albums, and has sold over 36 million albums worldwide.[3] She is a four-timeGrammy Award winner. She was inducted into theRock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2022.
Benatar's debut album,In the Heat of the Night (1979), was her breakthrough in North America, especially Canada, where it reached No. 3 on the album chart. Two hit singles from the album were: "Heartbreaker"; and "We Live for Love", the latter written by her lead guitarist and future husband,Neil Giraldo. Her second album,Crimes of Passion (1980), was her most successful work, peaking at No. 2 in North America and France, being certified 4× and 5× platinum in the US and Canada, respectively. The single "Hit Me with Your Best Shot" reached the top 10 in the US and Canada, and is her signature song. Her third album,Precious Time (1981) topped the US Album Chart, and became her first top 10 album in Australia. Its single "Fire and Ice" charted highly in the US and Canada. Benatar's fourth album,Get Nervous (1982), sold less well than her previous two albums, but included the North American hit "Shadows of the Night".
Benatar's sound moved towards more atmospheric pop. The single "Love Is a Battlefield" (1983) was her biggest hit in most countries, reaching No. 1 in the Netherlands, Australia, the US Rock Tracks chart, and No. 5 on the US Hot 100. The live album it came from,Live from Earth (1983), was her biggest seller in Australia, Germany, and the Netherlands. Her fifth album wasTropico (1984), and its lead single "We Belong" reached the top 10 in several countries, including No. 5 on the US Hot 100. Benatar's sixth album,Seven the Hard Way (1985), sold less well, but yielded two singles harking back to the rock vein: "Invincible", a top 10 hit in North America; and "Sex as a Weapon". Her follow-up seventh album,Wide Awake in Dreamland (1988), marked a resurgence in sales in Canada and Australia, and was her highest charting album in the UK. Its rocker, "All Fired Up", was a significant hit in Canada, Australia and the US. Benatar released four additional albums between 1991 and 2003:True Love (1991);Gravity's Rainbow (1993);Innamorata (1997); andGo (2003).
Patricia Mae Andrzejewski was born on January 10, 1953, inGreenpoint, Brooklyn, New York City.[4] Her mother, Mildred (née Knapp; 1928–2016), was abeautician, and her father, Andrew (Andrzej) Andrzejewski (1926–2009), was asheet metal worker.[5] Andrew was ofPolish descent and Mildred was ofGerman,English, andIrish ancestry.[6] Her family moved to North Hamilton Avenue inLindenhurst, New York, a village in theLong Island town ofBabylon.[7]
Andrzejewski trained as acoloratura with plans to attend theJuilliard School, but decided instead to pursue health education atStony Brook University. At 19, after one year at Stony Brook, she dropped out to marry her first husband, high school sweetheart Dennis Benatar, aU.S. Army draftee who trained atFort Jackson, South Carolina, then served with the Army Security Agency atFort Devens, Massachusetts, before being stationed atFort Lee, Virginia, starting in 1973. Pat worked as a bank teller nearRichmond, Virginia.[8][9]
Benatar quit her job to pursue a singing career after being inspired by aLiza Minnelli concert she saw inRichmond,Virginia. Benatar had a gig at a Holiday Inn and got a job as a singing waitress at a nightclub named the Roaring Twenties.[9] At the Roaring Twenties, she met and formed a duo with pianist Phil Coxon, which soon expanded to a ten-person lounge band called Coxon's Army, a regular at Sam Miller's basement club.[9] The band gained in popularity and was the subject of a never-airedPBS special; its bassist Roger Capps was later the original bass player for the Pat Benatar Band. The period also yielded Benatar's first single: "Day Gig" (1974), written and produced by Coxon and given a limited local release. Her last significant gig in Richmond was a two-hour performance at Thomas Jefferson High School.[9]
Dennis was discharged from the Army and the couple moved to New York in May 1975 so Benatar could pursue a singing career.[9] She performed at an amateur night at thecomedy clubCatch a Rising Star in New York. Benatar's rendition ofJudy Garland's "Rock-a-Bye Your Baby With a Dixie Melody" earned her a callback by club owner Rick Newman, who then became her manager; Benatar became a regular performer at Catch a Rising Star for the next three years. In late 1975, she landed the part of Zephyr inHarry Chapin's futuristic rock musical,The Zinger, which ran for a month in 1976 at the Performing Arts Foundation's (PAF) Playhouse inHuntington Station,Long Island.
Halloween 1977 proved a pivotal night in Benatar's early,spandexed stage persona. She entered a Halloween contest at the Cafe Figaro inGreenwich Village dressed as a character from the filmCat-Women of the Moon. Later that evening, Benatar went onstage atCatch a Rising Star still in costume.[10] Between appearances at Catch a Rising Star, she recorded commercial jingles forPepsi-Cola and a number of regional brands. Benatar headlined New York City's Tramps nightclub over four days in spring 1978, where her performance was heard by representatives from several record companies. Benatar was signed toChrysalis Records by co-founderTerry Ellis the following week.[11] She and Dennis divorced shortly after, although Benatar kept his surname.
Benatar's debut album,In the Heat of the Night, was released in August 1979, but only debuted on the USBillboard 200 album chart in October, eventually peaking at number 12 in the US in March 1980.Mike Chapman produced three tracks on the album, while engineer Peter Coleman oversaw the rest. In addition, Chapman and his songwriting partner,Nicky Chinn, wrote three songs that appear on the LP: "In the Heat of the Night" and "If You Think You Know How to Love Me" which were previously recorded by Smokie, and a rearranged version of a song they wrote forSweet, "No You Don't". The album also featured two songs written by Roger Capps and her; "I Need a Lover", written byJohn Mellencamp; and "Don't Let It Show", written byAlan Parsons andEric Woolfson.
The album was certifiedPlatinum by theRecording Industry Association of America in December 1980.[12] Canada became the album's most successful market as it certified 4× Platinum there with chart peak of number 3 on the RPM albums chart.[13] While it was a moderate success in Australia, reaching number 25, and very successful in New Zealand, reaching number 8, it barely made the Top 100 in the UK. Unusual for an English-language album, its most successful European market was France where it went to number 20.
"If You Think You Know How to Love Me" was the first single to be released on September 14, 1979. However, it was unsuccessful. Her second single "Heartbreaker" was released on October 26, 1979, and became asleeper hit, eventually climbing to number 23 in the US, number 16 in Canada and number 14 in New Zealand. It was later listed at No. 72 on VH1's list of the Greatest Hard Rock songs of all time.[14] A third single "We Live for Love", which was written by her future husbandNeil Giraldo, was released in February 1980, and became her first Top 10 hit anywhere by reaching number 8 in Canada, while reaching number 27 in the US, number 26 in New Zealand, and number 28 in Australia, her first hit there.[15]
In August 1980, she released her second LP,Crimes of Passion, featuring her signature song "Hit Me with Your Best Shot" along with the controversial song "Hell Is for Children." The lyrics of the song discuss things that child abusers tell their victims, such as, "Tell Grandma you fell off the swing." Benatar was inspired by reading a series of articles inThe New York Times about child abuse in America.[16] "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" (US number 9) was her first single to break the US Top 10 and sold more than one million copies (Gold status) in the United States. It was also a Top 10 hit in Canada and a moderate hit in Australia, where it reached number 33. The album peaked for five consecutive weeks at number 2 in the US in January 1981 (behindJohn Lennon's andYoko Ono'sDouble Fantasy) and a month later, she won her firstGrammy Award for "Best Female Rock Vocal Performance" of 1980 for the album.[17]
Other singles released fromCrimes of Passion were "Treat Me Right" (US number 18 and Canada number 12) and the Rascals' cover, "You Better Run" (US number 42 but did not chart in Canada), which was the second music video ever played onMTV, afterthe Buggles' "Video Killed the Radio Star".[11][18] The album also featured a changed-tempo cover ofKate Bush's "Wuthering Heights". Produced byKeith Olsen,Crimes of Passion remained on the US album charts for 93 weeks and in the top 10 for more than six months, becoming her first Platinum certification by the RIAA, and was later certified as being 4× Platinum, Benatar's biggest selling album in the US. In October 1980, she (along with future husband Neil Giraldo) appeared on the cover ofRolling Stone magazine. The album was certified 5× Platinum in Canada, and was Benatar's best selling album in that country, where it peaked at number 2 on the album charts.[19] It was also successful in New Zealand (number 6), France (number 2) and Australia (number 16) but did not chart in the UK.
In July 1981, Benatar released her third album,Precious Time, which became her first album to hit number one on the Billboard 200. In Canada, it was certified double Platinum and peaked at number 2 on the album chart.[20] It was also Benatar's first to chart in the UK, reaching number 30, and became her biggest success in Australia and New Zealand, reaching number 8 and number 2, respectively, while once again being highly successful in France, peaking at number 3. The album's lead single, "Fire and Ice" (co-written by band memberScott Sheets), was another hit (US number 17 and number 2 on the new Rock Tracks chart, Canada number 4, Top 30 Australia and New Zealand) and won Benatar her secondGrammy Award for "Best Female Rock Vocal Performance" and her third consecutive RIAA certified Platinum album, eventually being certified double Platinum. "Promises in the Dark" (US number 38 and Canada number 31) was also released as a single.
Get Nervous was released in 1982, led by a hit single and MTV video, "Shadows of the Night", which sold well: US Hot 100 number 13 and Rock Tracks chart number 3, Canada number 12, and AUS number 19. The album was another success, reaching number 4 in the US, although it sold less well in most other countries, generally only reaching the Top 20 (Canada number 16), and only reached number 73 in the UK. It was her fourth consecutive RIAA and CRIA Platinum certification, and "Shadows of the Night" garnered Benatar her third Grammy, again for "Best Female Rock Vocal Performance". The follow-up singles, "Little Too Late" and "Looking for a Stranger", were also successful in the US, hitting number 20 and number 39 (plus number 4 on the Rock Tracks chart) but did not chart outside the US, even in Canada. TheWWII-themed music video for "Shadows of the Night" featured then-unknown actorsJudge Reinhold as an American fighter copilot andBill Paxton as a German radio operator.
By 1983, Benatar had established a reputation for singing about "tough" subject matters, best exemplified by one of the biggest hits of her career, "Love Is a Battlefield" (penned by noted hit songwriterHolly Knight withMike Chapman), released in December 1983. By then, Benatar's sound had mellowed from hard rock to more atmospheric pop and the story-based video clip for "Love Is a Battlefield" was aimed squarely at MTV, even featuring Benatar in aMichael Jackson-inspired group dance number, using Jackson'sBeat It directorBob Giraldi and choreographerMichael Peters. This new pop/rock direction was a huge commercial success, with the single remaining today as her biggest hit in most countries. This included it peaking at number 5 on the US Hot 100, number 1 for four weeks on the US Rock Tracks chart, number 2 in Canada, number 1 in the Netherlands (for four weeks ending as the number 2 song for the year), her first Top 30 hit there, and at number 1 in Australia for seven consecutive weeks, her first Top 25 hit there, number 3 in West Germany, number 5 in Switzerland, number 6 in New Zealand, and number 17 in the UK, her first Top 50 song there. It was her first song to chart in Switzerland, reaching number 11 there. The song also netted Benatar her fourth consecutive Grammy Award for "Best Female Rock Vocal Performance".
"Love Is a Battlefield" was one of two studio tracks included on the live album,Live from Earth, which was recorded during her sold-out 'Get Nervous' world tour of America and Europe in 1982 and 1983, the other being "Lipstick Lies". The album had mixed success in different countries: it peaked at number 2 in Australia, number 12 in New Zealand, number 13 in the US, and became her first hit album in Germany (number 7) and the Netherlands (number 4), but only made the Top 25 in Canada and France, and number 60 in the UK. It became her fifth consecutive RIAA and CRIA Platinum album.[12]
In 1984, Benatar released her fifth album,Tropico, which, aside from reaching number 7 in New Zealand and number 31 in the UK, was generally a step back in most other countries (US number 14, Canada number 21, AUS number 9, France number 16, Germany number 26, Netherlands number 23). The single "We Belong", a slow-tempo pop song, released in October 1984, a month prior to the album's release, became another top 10 hit in the US peaking at number 5, reaching the Top 10 in several other countries, including number 7 in Australia, number 9 in West Germany, and number 5 in Switzerland, her most successful but last hit single there. It also peaked at number 22 in the UK. A second single release, "Ooh Ooh Song",[21] reached number 36 in the US, but fared poorly in other countries. Benatar and Giraldo said that this album was the first where they moved away from her famed "hard rock" sound and started experimenting with new, sometimes "gentler", styles and sounds. Despite not making the US Top 10, the album immediately earned her a sixth consecutive RIAA and CRIA Platinum-certified album.
After the chart success of "We Belong" in the UK, "Love is a Battlefield" was re-released in the UK early 1985 and became Benatar's highest chart hit there, reaching number 17. "We Belong" was also nominated for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in 1986, her first nomination in that category.
In 1985, Benatar released her sixth album,Seven the Hard Way. She hit the US Top 10 (and number 4 on the US Rock Tracks chart) with the Grammy-nominated rock single "Invincible" (the theme from the movieThe Legend of Billie Jean), which was written byHolly Knight (Love Is a Battlefield) andSimon Climie, three full months before the album was released. The track also reached number 6 in Canada. Benatar's other Grammy-nominated single from the album, the guitar-driven "Sex As a Weapon", climbed as high as number 28 on the US Hot 100 in January 1986, number 5 on the US Rock Tracks chart, and reached the Top 30 in Canada. Both theSeven and the Hard Way singles were less successful outside North America than the previous two "gentler" singles, generally reaching the Top 30 in Australia, West Germany, the Netherlands, and New Zealand (althoughInvincible went Top 15 there), but missing the Top 50 in the UK. A third single, the mellow "Le Bel Age", made it to number 54 on the US Hot 100.
Seven the Hard Way peaked at number 26 in the US, earning an RIAA Gold certification (import CD). In Canada, it was Benatar's seventh consecutive Platinum certified album, even though it only peaked at number 35[22] on the albums sales chart. It also reached number 19 in Australia and was a big success in New Zealand reaching number 2, but did not reach the Top 50 in West Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland or the UK, and for the first time, an album of hers failed to chart in France. In her autobiography,Between a Heart and a Rock Place, she said, "Out of all the albums,Seven the Hard Way cost the most to make and sold the least." The album sold approximately 600,000 US copies.[citation needed]
In July 1988, Benatar released her seventh album,Wide Awake in Dreamland, which generally improved on the success ofSeven the Hard Way, such as peaking at number 11 in the UK and Canada,[23] earning her eighth consecutive Platinum certified album in Canada, and number 13 in Australia. It peaked at number 26 in the US, but stalled at number 15 in New Zealand, usually one of her most successful markets. The Grammy-nominated lead single, "All Fired Up" (written byKerryn Tolhurst, ex-The Dingoes) reached number 19 in both the U.S. and the UK (plus number 2 on the US Rock Tracks chart), number 8 in Canada, number 20 in New Zealand, and was a number 2 smash in Australia, becoming one of the biggest hits of 1988 in that country. Other singles released from the LP are "Don't Walk Away" (UK number 42), the Grammy nominated "Let's Stay Together", and "One Love" (UK number 59).
True Love was ajump blues record, released in late April 1991, and featured the blues bandRoomful of Blues, backing up Pat Benatar,Neil Giraldo, and Myron Grombacher. The album sold over 339,000[24] copies without significant radio airplay and limited exposure on VH-1. "Payin' the Cost to Be the Boss", "So Long", and the title cut were released as singles, with the first reaching number 17 on the US Rock Tracks chart, but not charting anywhere else. The album reached number 40 in the UK and number 37 in the US. It was certified Gold in Canada for sales of 50,000 units, Benatar's first to not achieve Platinum status and her last certified album for that country where it peaked at 22 on the albums sales chart.[25] It reached the Top 40 in several other countries.
Gravity's Rainbow was released in 1993 and was a return to the AOR genre. "Everybody Lay Down" was picked up by Album Rock radio and went all the way to number 3 on the Rock Tracks chart. The single was never released to Top 40/Contemporary Hit Radio and a music video was never produced. The only other country where it charted was Canada where it reached number 50. "Somebody's Baby" was instead released as the single to Top 40 radio and a music video produced, but it did not chart in the US and was only a minor success in some other countries, including peaking at number 41 in Canada.
A third track, "Everytime I Fall Back", was scheduled for release and a video was filmed, but the single was never released and the music video was lost whenChrysalis was sold toEMI Records. She had become pregnant again and it may have had an effect on her label's support of the album. The tour for this album was only seven dates, cut short due to the pregnancy. It was Benatar's last album recorded for Chrysalis. With very little promotion from Chrysalis,Gravity's Rainbow failed to have the same commercial success as her previous work. According to SoundScan, the album sold approximately 160,000 copies in the United States and it reached number 85 on the album chart. It is currently[when?] available in a two-in-one release withTrue Love (import[where?]). The album only charted in one other market – that being Canada – where it reached number 44.[26]
Innamorata (US number 171) was released in 1997 on the CMC International record label. A single video was produced for "Strawberry Wine (Life is Sweet)". According toSoundScan, the album sold close to 65,000 copies.
Benatar has released only one album of new material since 1997'sInnamorata, which is 2003'sGo (US number 187). The album included the 9/11 charity single "Christmas in America" as a bonus track. A video was produced for the single "Have It All", but was never released until it was leaked on YouTube in 2012; the only video from this album is for the bonus track. They reunited withHolly Knight with Neil and Holly cowriting the tune "Girl". The hard rock title track "Go!" became a popular performance song for Benatar's future concerts. According to SoundScan, the album has now sold nearly 34,000 copies.
In November 2015, Benatar recorded and released a holiday song called "One December Night".
In January 2017, Benatar recorded the song "Shine" to support the Women's March on January 21, 2017, which was her first original non-holiday recording in over 10 years. That September, Benatar again teamed with songwriter and producer Linda Perry for the song "Dancing Through the Wreckage", which was the lead single from the soundtrack for the documentaryServed Like a Girl. In October 2017, the song entered the Billboard Adult Contemporary Chart, eventually peaking at number 22 in November. The song also received a nomination for Best Song from a Documentary from the Critics' Choice Awards.
In 2020, Benatar was co-nominated with her husband for induction in theRock and Roll Hall of Fame alongside fifteen other artists but despite coming in second in the fan vote was not among the inductees.[27] She and Giraldo were co-nominated for a second time in 2022.[28] On May 4, 2022, the Hall of Fame announced Benatar and Giraldo would be included in the 2022 class of inductees.[29]
On July 22, 2022, Benatar announced that she would stop performing "Hit Me with Your Best Shot" on her current tour "in deference to the victims of the families of these [recent] mass shootings".[30]
In 1972, at age 19, Benatar married her high school sweetheart, Dennis Benatar. The couple divorced in 1979. She has been married to her second husband, guitaristNeil Giraldo, since 1982. They live inMalibu, California.[31] They have two daughters,[32] Haley (born February 1985) and Hana (born March 1994).[33] Both her daughters appeared on theE! reality television seriesFilthy Rich: Cattle Drive andRelatively Famous: Ranch Rules, in late 2005 and early 2022, respectively.[34][35]
While Benatar and Giraldo are bothRoman Catholic, the two did not marry within the Church, owing to the former's divorce. The two were married inHana, Hawaii, by Rev. Henry Kahula of the nondenominationalWainanalua Church on February 20, 1982, just days before the24th Grammy Awards.[36]
In June 2010, Benatar's memoir,Between a Heart and a Rock Place, was released.[37] The book was published byHarperCollins and was acquired by Lisa Sharkey. Benatar's memoir touches on her battles with her record company Chrysalis, the difficulties that her career caused in her personal life, and feminism. In the memoir, she is quoted as saying, "For every day since I was old enough to think, I've considered myself a feminist … It's empowering to watch and to know that, perhaps in some way, I made the hard path [women] have to walk just a little bit easier."[38] The book went on to become aNew York Times bestseller. Initially reluctant to undertake the project, she found the actual writing process so enjoyable that it inspired her with plans to write a novel.[39] In summer 2011, Benatar announced she was working on a Christmas album and a novel about thesecond coming of Christ.[40]
Although billed as a solo artist, Benatar recorded and toured with a consistent set of band members over most of her career:
| Award | Year | Nominated work | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Music Awards | 1982 | Herself | Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist | Won | [47] |
| 1984 | Won | [48] | |||
| 1986 | Favorite Pop/Rock Female Video Artist | Won | [49] | ||
| Critics' Choice Documentary Awards | 2017 | "Served Like a Girl" | Best Song in a Documentary | Nominated | [50] |
| Grammy Awards | 1981 | Crimes of Passion | Best Female Rock Vocal Performance | Won | [51] |
| 1982 | "Fire and Ice" | Won | |||
| 1983 | "Shadows of the Night" | Won | |||
| 1984 | "Love Is a Battlefield" | Won | |||
| 1986 | "Invincible" | Nominated | |||
| "We Belong" | Best Female Pop Vocal Performance | Nominated | |||
| 1987 | "Sex as a Weapon" | Best Female Rock Vocal Performance | Nominated | ||
| 1989 | "All Fired Up" | Nominated | |||
| 1990 | "Let's Stay Together" | Nominated | |||
| MTV Video Music Awards | 1984 | "Love Is a Battlefield" | Best Female Video | Nominated | [52] |
| 1986 | "Sex as a Weapon" | Most Experimental Video | Nominated | [53] | |
| Rock and Roll Hall of Fame | 2020 | Herself andNeil Giraldo | Inductee | Nominated | [54] |
| 2022 | Won | [55] |
