Patti Steel: What's unique about me is that I'm a multi-instrumentalist that doesn't play normal or what I would claim normal instruments because I came from the side person world and then jumped into the front person position. I came into music wanting to just be a part of something, you know, more than myself, and now have had to switch gears due to Covid. Covid kind of forced that to happen, which is not a bad thing, it just never really was my thought process. When I first started playing music, I never thought about being a songwriter.
Jess Balisle: Give me a little brief background about your work as a collaborator in the past in this pre-Covid time period. What kind of stuff were you doing? Who were you playing with?
Steel: You know, from my childhood, I started out wanting to be a drummer because my brother was a drummer, my dad played guitar and I wanted to embrace, you know, this percussion. The funny thing is, that's not what happened. I ended up playing clarinet because they'd already had all their drummers for the drumline, you know, in band and school. So I played in band and was a clarinet player. So then many years later, I started meeting people that were going to open mics in the Joplin area. And so they would have get togethers at the like local little creeks and campfire jams and stuff. And so that's really where I got my start – was as a collaborator because my friend was like, “Well, bring a clarinet, maybe you can jam with us.” And then I just started meeting people, you know, I moved around. Moved to Fayetteville with my ex-husband, and started meeting people down here, playing with Randall Shreve and Chucky Waggs, who I still play with both of those. And then because of those connections, started meeting more bands and more people.
Balisle: How does this lend itself to you as a solo artist because like, how did you decide this is the path you want to take and then go about that process of teaching yourself to be a frontwoman?
Steel: Well, that's a great question because it was not, you know, at all in my forethought going into starting out as a solo artist. Honestly, playing solo scared me to death.
Balisle 2: I find that hard to believe, like knowing your presence now.
Steel: People do not understand that, because you're vulnerable.
Balisle: Absolutely.
Steel: You’re more vulnerable when you're by yourself than when you're on a stage with a lot of people. And when you're just making extra noises on top of what already sounds beautiful, it’s a different experience.
Balisle: Well, Patty, thank you so much for joining us here on soundcheck today, and we cannot wait to hear you this Friday on Studio Live.
Steel 1: I'm so excited to be coming to Springfield. It's like a second home, so it's always nice to come back home.
