She is a singer-songwriter born in Harlem, New York. Her father was a jazz trombonist and Dinah Washington and Quincy Jones are her godparents.
Starting out her long and varied career when she was four, she debuted at the Apollo Theater, and by the time she was five had a recording contract with RCA and became the protege of Dinah Washington and Sammy Davis Jr. By the time she was in her late teens she was singing commercial jingles and a busy session musician.
Iin 1976 she cut her debut LP End of the Rainbow, by the early 1980s she was working on Quincy Jones’ label Qwest, and by the time 1991 had been reached she had 20 chart R&B songs under her belt. Her biggest Billboard hit was with James Ingram on “Baby, Come To Me” where it reached the No. 1 spot in February 1983 in a chart re-entry after becoming the love theme for the TV soap opera General Hospital. Other duets she sang were with artists that include Michael Jackson, Luther Vandross, Tom Browne, Johnny Mathis and George Benson. Singing her nominated songs on the Grammy Awards and the Oscar ceremonies, she has released 19 solo albums up until 2017.
Still currently performing, her busy schedule has seen her lead the new Raelettes in the recording studio, co-create the musical shows Beboparella and Oh Freedom, create her one-woman show, perform in many charity and AIDS organisation concerts, and continue to tour and record.
Linda Ronstadt recordings
Get Closer (Jonathan Carroll )
Sources:
- http://rendezvousmusic.com/v2/page.php?redir=artistHome&vars=ID=33&page=albums
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patti_Austin
- http://music.yahoo.com/ar-254102-bio–Patti-Austin