Patti Scialfa is a Singer/Songwriter

Not to be obsessed with Bruce or anything but…

Patti Scialfa performed this morning on The Today Show in support of her new release, “Play It As It Lays.” With every introduction it was emphasized that she was, of course, the wife of Bruce Springsteen. Not once did they add that she was a member of the E Street Band well before she and Bruce tied the knot. They did mention her other albums and comment that the new songs were good. But, it was almost as if the announcers felt that they had to justify her being on the program, “Really, it’s a legitimate CD – not simply the vanity project of a bored housewife.”

Patti is not Linda McCartney, Paul’s wife and professional photographer, who showed up in his later band Wings after the dissolution of the Beatles. When she tours (as she did with the Seeger Session Band), Patti is a contributing member of the ensemble. She has been a musician since her earliest days and was in Springsteen’s band for 7 years before they married. If anything, the marriage has probably stalled her solo career as a talented singer/songwriter whose 1993 release, “Rumble Doll,” received rave reviews.

So, let’s judge musicians married to musicians on their own merit. Win or lose, they deserve to be treated as freestanding artists and not curiosities.