Patty Smyth
- Actress
- Composer
- Soundtrack
Sultry-voiced singer/songwriter Patty Smyth was born on June 26, 1957
in New York City. She's of Irish descent. Her show business enthusiast
mother not only worked as a trapeze artist and onetime manager for
legendary rock'n'roll guitarist Link Wray, but also ran and/or owned
several prominent nightclubs in Greenwich Village. Patty performed her
first stage music gig at age fifteen at New York's Folk City and honed
her craft by playing musical sets at the club Catch A Rising Star.
Smyth supported herself by working as a waitress in a steak house prior
to landing her breakthrough gig as the lead singer of the rock band
Scandal in 1981. Scandal released their self-titled debut EP in 1982;
said EP beget the moderately successful hit songs "Goodbye to You,"
"Love's Got a Line on You," and "Hands Tied." This was followed by the
full-length album "The Warrior" in 1984. The rousing titular track
soared to #7 on the Billboard pop charts and the album sold over a
million copies. Patty embarked on a solo career after Scandal broke up
in the mid 80s. She released her first solo album "Never Enough" in
1987. Her self-titled second album came out in 1992 and went gold that
same year. Smyth scored a substantial hit with "Sometimes Love Just
Ain't Enough," a poignant duet with Don Henley which peaked at #2 on
the Billboard pop charts. Patty sang and co-wrote the song "Look What
Love Has Done" for the comedy "Junior;" this song was nominated for
Grammy, Golden Globe, and Academy Awards. Smyth went on to co-write and
sing the song "Wish I Were You" for the soundtrack of the blockbuster
movie "Armageddon." In 2004 Scandal got back together; the group
subsequently embarked on a small reunion tour in 2005. The former wife
of punk rock icon Richard Hell, Patty has been married to actor husband
John McEnroe since 1997 and is the mother of three children.
