HARRY’S GAME

He’s one of the bestselling artists of all time in America, and has appeared in blockbusters like Independence Day and When Harry Met Sally, but Harry Connick Jr’s latest project sees him celebrate the music of ‘the complete entertainer’, Cole Porter. He talks singing, acting, performing and more.

INTERVIEW PETER M c G O R A N

Harry Connick Jr lounges back in the room of his south Dublin hotel. He’s just gotten in from Paris, will be performing on The Late Late Show a few hours after our interview, and will spend most of his brief time in Dublin fielding questions from journalists. Yet, the 52-yearold jazz singer is as pleasant an interviewee as you could ask for.

There’s no mention of a time limit for our chat, and, as we get into his latest album True Love: A Celebration Of Cole Porter, Harry seems to relish the opportunity to talk for as long as possible about his passion project. As he explains, talking in his deep, commanding Louisiana drawl, the album sees Connick Jr selecting some classic compositions from The Great American Songbook and rearranging them to suit his own unique voice.

“I was signed with Columbia Records for a long time,” he says. “I figured it was time to sign a new deal, so I went to Verve because they were a group I’d admired for a while, and it just seemed a really good fit. I was talking to them early on in the process about what kind of album they thought I should make, and one of the things we kept talking about was a Cole Porter Songbook. I’d never done a Songbook album which is just one composer. I’d also done a few Cole Porter songs, but I’d obviously never done a full album. They said they loved that idea, so that’s how we all settled on that.” He’s known for his voice and his chiselled good looks, but it’s not widely known that Harry writes all the parts for all the music he makes…

“It’s funny, because when I was about 23, I did my first orchestral arranging and orchestrating. And I’ve done every album since, writing all the string parts… It’s just what I do. But I never really talked about it because I thought, ‘People don’t really care, they just want to hear the music and they’ll like it or not. They don’t care who’s writing the notes down.’ Then my wife turned to me one day and said, ‘Why don’t you tell people that you’re the guy that conducts the orchestra? Tell people.’ So I’ve told people on this one and I think some people have been surprised by that. But I go out on every record. It’s a lot of work, but it’s my passion.”

With legendary songs like ‘Paris’, ‘Night And Day’ and ‘I Get A Kick

Out Of You’, as well as his success on Broadway and film, Cole Porter is often considered as ‘the complete songwriter’. Does Harry see himself as something similar?

“I see us as having similar skillsets,” he reflects. “I would by no means compare myself to him, other than that we both write music and lyrics and know about orchestration. But I have to draw the line there, because he’s a legend, and it would be presumptuous and inaccurate of me to place myself anywhere near his level.”

Harry Connick Jr doesn’t tend to talk about his politics, but I put it to him that Cole Porter was particularly revered because he provided people

with entertainment during a difficult juncture in American history – notably during the Depression Era and in the lead-up to World War II. What does it mean to be an entertainer during times of national difficulty?

“Man that’s such a great question,” Harry nods fervently. “And you’re absolutely right, he did write music like that – he probably got people through really difficult times. I think that’s something I have in common with him too.” He pauses to think. “You know, it is a particularly difficult time in the United States right now and all over the world. And I take the idea that I’m an entertainer very seriously. I thought it was maybe arrogant to think about that, but I’ve had enough time to digest that fact. If people are going to come and see me play, the bottom line is – my entertainment will hopefully make them feel better than they did when they came in. That’s a big responsibility.” Connick Jr has previously been part of events of national unity in his country, such the Concert For Hurricane Relief, in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in his hometown of New Orleans. Has this persuaded him against talking about politics?

“Here’s how I see it. When I’m on stage, I see – for example in the United States – that half of those people might fall on one side on the political fence, and the other half might fall on the other side. But yet, they’re all laughing or enjoying something together. And me being a performer, you almost by default celebrate something to do with our common humanity, which is really important. We’re in a very divisive time in our culture, especially in the United States. So that’s something we can’t take lightly. The person you’re sitting next to at a show might have a different set of beliefs to you, yet we’re still breaking bread together with this entertainment.” As well as his new album, Harry Connick Jr is still as busy as ever on the filming front. He’s set to star alongside Katherine Heigl in upcoming crime thriller Fear Of Rain. How does he keep on top of it all? He laughs. “Man, it’s exactly the same as what you’re doing right now. You came to this interview clearly very prepared, seemingly interested, and you’re taking each thing you do today as it comes. When I do a film? The last thing I’m thinking about is playing piano or writing an orchestration, it’s all about that film, that moment. That obviously comes as a result of really complex scheduling on the part of my management. I’ll be honest, if it were left to me I wouldn’t have a career. They keep me on track and keep me focused. I love it all. I have a short attention span. It’s almost like, when I’m in that movie – I’ve forgotten how to play piano. Or when I’m on Broadway, it’s like experiencing everything again for the first time.”