Ann Hampton Callaway talks revamping 'Nanny' theme for Kamala Harris, more ahead of Pittsburgh show
For jazz singer Ann Hampton Callaway, there's a sure sign that it's been a good show.
"One of the things I love is that people will be laughing and crying with their laughter, and then the straight men tell me that they cry during some of my ballads. So if I can make straight men cry, then I've done my job," Callaway said with a laugh.
That'll be the goal on Oct. 13 when Callaway brings her Finding Beauty tour to City Winery Pittsburgh. In what she describes as a "very warm hug of a show" and "chicken soup for the soul," Callaway will celebrate the 1970s songwriters who inspired her, like Carole King, James Taylor, Paul Simon, Joni Mitchell and more.
Callaway, who was inducted into the Women Songwriters Hall of Fame last year, will also present songs from her latest album, "Finding Beauty: Originals, Volume 1," which debuted at No. 1 on the iTunes jazz charts. Although she estimated she's written around 500 songs in her career, Callaway had never done an entire album of only her songs until this one.
"So this seems like a perfect timing to unveil my vision as an artist and a person of what matters to me with the incredible musical company that I got to keep on the record," she said, "and I'm so happy that it's been so well received all over the world."
Volume 2 is already in the works, with the first single "I Believe in America" — which was written after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks — expected to be released in October.
Callaway, in a call Friday from St. Louis, discussed updating the theme song for "The Nanny," which she wrote and sang, to honor Kamala Harris, finding beauty in the world, cover songs and more:
You recently did a cover of "The Nanny" theme song paying tribute to Kamala Harris. What sparked that idea?
This seems like an extremely important election in terms of us keeping a democracy. And there doesn't seem to be any intelligent choice but Kamala Harris to anyone who wants to keep the fabric of this nation alive. And so I feel very, very inspired as an artist to contribute my civic duty and to try to write something that would be fun and compelling and maybe perhaps get out the vote a little bit more, especially with young people who enjoy the playfulness of some of the memes and some of the more entertaining aspects of the Kamala Harris campaign, which is a stark contrast to her opponent. So I teamed up with my sister, who sang the backups on the original. And I also got Lissa Forehan involved who did the art, which is sort of "Nanny"-reminiscent of the original art. And then Jessica Fishenfeld did a wonderful video of it for us. And Fran Drescher, the last minute, decided to join and announce her endorsement of Kamala, which reached almost 3 million people. And I'm really happy to be able to make an impact with this. And I hope that it contributes in a small part to her becoming president.
As an artist, do you feel like it's your responsibility to speak up on certain topics like that?
To me, it's not a political statement. It's a human statement. There's so much more at stake than a party, and I feel reluctant sometimes to speak about politics, but in this instance it seems morally necessary to be outspoken and to to celebrate somebody who I think is bringing hope and new ideas and incredible energy and positive outlook on things, as opposed to the — I mean, I don't want to go on about somebody who to me has done a tremendous amount of damage to a tremendous amount of people. The thought of a presidency of her opponent is extremely depressing to me, so I'm doing what I think is the right thing to do for the betterment of all people, not just Democrats.
Speaking of "Finding Beauty," how important is it for you to find and take note of the beauty in your life and in the world around you?
It's very important, and in my shows, I talk about the person who first made this idea clear to me that this is a lifestyle, a choice, a way of living and that was the great Anne Frank, who during the Holocaust wrote her extraordinary autobiography. And I was struck as a kid by how somebody could be going through such an unimaginable pain and devastation around her and loss and could still find beauty. And I thought to myself, this is the way to live and this is the way I want to be. And this is how I want as an artist to share a perspective, to remind people of the beauty that is around us at all times, no matter how challenging. And it was a particular strong image for what I wanted to share as I was making this album during the pandemic. It was a time of a lot of uncertainty and fear and loss. And so it seemed like a very well-appreciated intention to hold. And I try to do that every single day of my life and look for the silver linings and look for the good in people when I don't always see it right away. And I find that life is very meaningful and beautiful when you do take that perspective.
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Do you still do improvised songs every night?
It depends on the time. I will be doing an improv in the show if it doesn't run over too late and it is one of my favorite things to do and audiences enjoy the craziness of it all. So there's a good chance ... that yes, they will be receiving one of my wild improvs, and I will be calling it a song for Volume Two of my new CD. I want them to help me write a hit for not only Volume Two, but for Barbra Streisand, because I really need to get on one of her next albums. (laughs)
When it comes to the cover songs that you do, how do you pick them? And then how do you make them your own?
The cover songs I'm doing in this show are songs from incredibly important albums that changed my life. And I make them my own from looking to the lyric first. And I think about what does this song mean to me? And how do I want to express the energy of it? And how do I want to make it fresh and make it be something that has my own perspective and will help people listen to it in a new way? Sometimes we listen to songs and we just don't even hear them anymore because they're such a part of our lives. And it's like looking at the weather but not really seeing it and experiencing it. So I try to, thank goodness I'm a pianist and a serious musician. And I try to explore the different faces of songs. And sometimes, for instance, in my arrangement of Paul Simon's "Bridge Over Troubled Water," I also looked at the story of how things were created. And he was really inspired by some important gospel music that he was listening to before the song came to him. And I think that the arrangement really didn't hold the gospel energy of what he was inspired by. So my version is gospel, and it's very, very soulful and powerful. And it has a little bit more of a sense of urgency to it. And that's how I feel about life. So I enjoy the creative challenges of making a song my own and still honoring the songwriter who wrote it.
