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Following her recent performance at The Metropolitan Room in Manhattan, singer/recording artist Marieann Meringolo shared some thoughts on her work and what inspires her. The show was full of songs plucked from her albums and past shows, such as Here’s to the Ladies, also on DVD, featuring songs associated with female stars she especially admires. She also included several songs with melodies by Michel Legrand and a nod to her Italian background . Here is part of a conversation with NiteLife Exchange.
A: I say cabaret as an art form is no different than it ever was. But it's more difficult now to maintain a career. I say it takes “stick-to-it-ive-ness,” talent and dedication. I have a message to convey.
Q: You seem to honor, and have a reverence for, the same divas I do.
A: Yes. Dionne Warwick and Rosemary Clooney touch me.
Q: Do you feel you might be somewhat similar to Julie Budd or Lana Cantrell?
A: I know Julie Budd, but don't know anything about Lana Cantrell.
Q: Do you feel you channel these great ladies of song?
A: I have a reverence for the words. Michel Legrand is known for film composing, but his songs knock me over. I enjoy getting to the center of the emotions. I feel I have a mission to entertain and get the message across.
Q: You relish being on stage and sharing. You embody the word “emotion,” which comes from the Greek word "emo," meaning "move out." I feel you are better than Streisand now. Her voice is compromised by , sounding too computer-fixed into a business-like perfection.
A: Well, Funny Girl rearranged the cellular level of my body. Also, it helped put me and my life together. With Funny Girl, it is like those songs were coming out of, or responding to, my very marrow. Seeing Streisand's Yentl was turned into a family outing. We went to the huge Cineplex on Long Island and I couldn't imagine anyone had anything better to do with their lives on that opening of night of Yentl, than being there. Many people think I'm Jewish, which is nice, but I am very much Italian and influenced by that phenomenon.
Q: Was it your mother's side of the family which influenced your singing career?
A: We are Italian and into food, family, music and celebration. Enjoying our blood and heritage. My mother and family and friends continue to inspire me. Long ago, I got away from bad, wrong relationships.
Q: Tell me about your Dad.
A: My father was reminiscing about the luncheon stand he had in Brooklyn from 1948 to 1957. This inspired my (choosing a) song on that subject. (“Luncheonette” by Francesca Blumenthal)
Q: You open with "Wild is the Wind." I imagine your playing the daughter's role in Tennessee Williams's The Rose Tattoo with Anna Magnani.
A: I never ever studied any acting.
Q: What New Age books are you reading that influenced your “connection” to the other, unseen world?
A: I know you and I are reading the same books. You told me you had read The Shift and the 1928 book, The Game of Life and How to Play It.
For more info, see. www/MarieannMeringolo.com
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