Patti Scialfa shares sweet memories during her tour kickoff

Published in the Asbury Park Press 9/17/04
By By CHRIS JORDAN
GANNETT NEW JERSEY

Singer Patti Scialfa had sold sweets at the Paramount Theatre before.

During her tour kickoff Wednesday night at the Asbury Park stage, Scialfa, who grew up in Deal, told an endearing little story about her first job, selling Turkish taffy at the Paramount and the adjacent Convention Hall.

Scialfa was fired, the denim-clad redhead told the receptive crowd, when she showed up for work with a sunburn.

That's so Jersey Shore, and Scialfa is the quintessential Jersey Shore Girl, who despite a wealth of musical talent, does not try the patience of the listener by showing it off. Instead, like the former candy girl she was, Scialfa offered sweet memories and warm feelings Wednesday night.

The memories came courtesy of her new album, "23rd Street Lullaby," which recalls Scialfa's time in New York City as a struggling musician. The new songs are midtempo ballads and jangly rockers, and along with numbers from her 1993 debut album, "Rumble Doll," the combined effect echoed the music of the 1960s and '70s. There were plenty of '60s era girl group "sha la las" throughout the set, and Scialfa's voice evoked the jazzy sass of '70s star Rickie Lee Jones on the song "23rd Street Lullaby," and Ronnie Spector's vocal coquettishness on "Baby Don't."

Speaking of Scialfa's voice, it's truly an instrument to behold. She uniquely combines a warm, velvety high-end with a expansive vibrato, over which she demonstrates remarkable control.

But those in the audience of the not-quite-sold-out show at the Paramount knew this. Scialfa's the local kid who had gigs like singing backup with the Shore's Cats on the Smooth Surface before she hooked up with the fabled E Street Band in 1984. Eventually, Scialfa hooked up with the E Street Band's lead singer, Bruce Springsteen, and now they are married with three children.

Wednesday night, Springsteen did make a short appearance on two songs late in the set, playing guitar. Scialfa wanted to dispel potential Internet postings that Springsteen will be a part of her tour.

"I've got kids to watch!" Springsteen barked into the microphone.

It wasn't the E Street Band playing behind Scialfa. But it was a crisp, soulful and very able group backing her that included "23rd Street Lullaby" producer Steve Jordan on drums, E Street Band member Nils Lofgren on guitar and E Street Band touring member Soozie Tyrell on violin and backing vocals. The sound mix was impeccable.

Besides Scialfa, it also was Tyrell's time to shine, as the two played off each other throughout the night, much like Springsteen and fellow E Street Band member Steven Van Zandt. Tyrell's full vocals richly complemented Scialfa's voice and her violin added a mournful and resonant tone.

Mind you, there were one or two misses along the way. "In My Imagination" from "Rumble Doll" was a mishmash of a Bo Diddley beat and neo-Middle Eastern rhythms with a clunker of a guitar solo by Lofgren thrown in. Lofgren was seemingly trying to mimic the reverse tape-loop solo of the album version. He shouldn't have tried.

Oh well. If you want the Turkish Taffy, you have to get a little sunburn, too.