INTERVIEW: Liza Minelli: Brecht, Weill album might be good idea

By Chris Melzer Nov 4, 2010, 2:06 GMT

New York - Singer Liza Minelli of Cabaret fame, who has had to cancel some of her ongoing concert tour due to illness, recently toyed with the idea of an album of German stage music from the 1920s and '30s.

In an interview with The German Press Agency dpa, Minelli talked about her ups and downs in life, growing up with music as the daughter of Hollywood legend Judy Garland (The Wizard of Oz) and her affection for German culture, particularly the musical theatre of Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill.

Germany's music tradition left a huge impression on her, especially after making her most famous movie, Cabaret (1972). The story is set in Berlin in 1931 as the Nazis are rising to power. Minelli won an Oscar as best actress for her performance as the nightclub singer Sally Bowles.

'I connect two things with this country: music and food. I love this kind of food,' the 64-year-old star said of Germany in the interview in New York.

'And for example, what Brecht and Weill did was great. Probably it would be a good idea to sing these songs in an album. In German, of course,' she said.

Minelli said she was shy as a child growing up with a mother with such a famous voice and father Vincente Minelli, a well-known American film director (An American in Paris, Gigi).

'I was unbelievably shy. And there were so many adults, people who were famous all over the country, who came to visit,' she said.

Entertainer Sammy Davis Jr for example once spoke to her and asked her a question.

'He was very, very friendly and simply wanted to say something nice to me. But all I could think of was: 'Somebody's talking to me! Why doesn't someone help me!' I could not say a word,' she said.

Minelli soon became a star in her own right, playing Sally Bowles at age 26 in Cabaret, which rocketed her to world fame but also sent her down a road of alcohol and drug addiction and scandal interwoven with triumphs on the screen and stage, such as Tony, Emmy and Grammy awards in addition to the Oscar.

But she has no regrets: 'I guess I would make all my mistakes again,' she said.

Despite Minelli's popularity and international success, her life has not been easy. 'But it was interesting and exciting. And life is like a Cabaret: You never know what's next and whether it will be good.'

She considers her newest CD, Confessions - one of her rarely- issued collections of music, to be her most personal work yet. The new CD has pleased reviewers with her rich, intimate vibrato as she fronts a jazz combo with many old favourites.

Minelli's penchant for music came not just from her mother. Her godfather was Ira Gershwin, the lyricist who collaborated with his brother George Gershwin to produce more than a dozen Broadway shows (with songs like I Got Rhythm) and the opera Porgy and Bess.

'Music was always my best friend. I collected words and music as a child, the way other kids collected stamps,' she said.

'A lot of songs I learned at one of the favourite places of my childhood: Sitting under my father's piano,' she said.

Minelli plans to resume her concert tour showcasing Confessions on November 20 in Staten Island, New York, after more than a month of cancellations due to bronchial pneumonia, according to her website.

'Performing live is my passion and I'm greatly disappointed that I will not be able to continue my tour,' she said in a statement.

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