In this business, I have met some amazing people- talented to a high degree, and some of them actually great people. Very seldom both of them in the same package.
Last night I spent the evening with one of the latter.
In 1989, I went out on my first Rolling Stones tour. The second day, Lisa Fisher, the Stones backup singer, came up to me backstage and introduced herself to me, and we soon became great friends. She is one of the greatest singers that I have ever heard. During a long career, she has sung with Luther Vandross, the Stones, Sting, and even Nine Inch Nails. Along the way she won a Grammy in 1992 for Best Soul-R&B song (she shared it with Patti Labelle). Every tour I go on with them, one of the highlights is reconnecting with Lisa.
Last night, she was in town playing a show with her band. I arranged for passes and went down to the show. When she walked out on stage and started singing, the audience erupted into spontaneous applause that continued for the entire show. Her singing is a combination of jazz influences and rock and roll dynamics. She covered a bunch of Stones songs, but remade them in her style. She even covered Led Zeppelin.
After the show, I waited outside the backstage door with about 20 other people. When she came out, she came over, hugged me and we talked for about 5 minutes, I said my goodbyes, and left knowing that I had just seen and heard a monster talent and one of the nicest people in the music business.
