With her latest album, Love Someone Like Me, Patty Cabrera combines soaring lyricism with a lush and exciting sound. Although Patty has two previous albums to her credit, Love Someone Like Me is the first release from Patty’s company, LA based Patrona Productions. The album is a pop
record with a Latin flair, with a hint of R&B, poetic folk sensibility, the touch of crunchy metal
guitar, and a dash of jazz. A recurring lyrical motif is the celebration
of God’s love through our relationships with each other. “It’s time to
realize that God is interested in our happiness,” Patty explains. “We
should spend more time breathing in the joy around us, not just shouldering
the pain.”
For all its diverse influences and its unprecedented style, the music
demonstrates the rich vocal versatility that allows Patty to ease from R&B
to pop in the blink of an eye. Her compositions combine an
exciting Latin sound with the soulfulness of folk. As a bilingual
artist of Cuban and Puerto Rican descent, Patty says she “grew up speaking Spanglish.” Although Patty did not begin singing in public until her teens, her earliest memories are
inextricably tied to the music that filled her home. Whether it was dancing
to the irresistible strains of Salsa and Cumbia, or listening to early
Motown and R&B, Patty’s musical influences have been varied and unexpected. Her brother had a rock band with a James Taylor sound, but Patty cites Pat Benetar and Michael Jackson among her own influences. “My music is a reflection of what I grew up listening to,” Patty says. “I wanted to make music that reflected my culture and yet represented who I am — a Latina born in the States,” Patty explains.
Throughout the up-tempo songs on Love Someone Like Me, there is an underlying playfulness that tugs
at the listener. The Latin piano hits rhythmic cues out of thin air, the
conga retorts back, and the music is permeated with an irresistible sense of
humor and delight at the abundant generosity of God. “We’re fortunate,”
Patty says, “that God’s creativity doesn’t stop where our appreciation does.
I try not to forget that life is a gift. I don’t want to miss any of it.”
This excitement is evident in “The Cure,” a tantalizing concoction that
captures the explosive change that takes place when we realize the
unconditional love of God.
Completing the musical array are the ballads, stories of love that possess a
touching poignancy. Whether captured in the sweet innocence of first love
in “Love is Just for Two,” or the longing for God in “Love Someone Like Me,”
Patty takes the listener on a journey of incredible height and moving depth.
As the title track illustrates, the heart of the album is centered on the
unfailing, unfathomable love of God. “You can’t do anything to make God
love you more,” Patty explains. “And you can’t do anything to make God love
you less. You’re stuck with God’s love.”
Although Patty has two previous albums to her credit, this current release
is truly her own creation. “I remember calling labels in 1992 that we need to make music that the Latino people can relate to. I represent millions of people whose parents were born outside of this country and the kids were born in the States. I tried to make labels aware of the need for pop Latin. It was a novelty in the early 90’s,” Patty shares. “My goal with my company is to make this style as available as any other music out there where is is common, accessible and embraced.”
Co-produced by Patty and Paul Dexter, who also
engineered the album, Love Someone Like Me is the first release from Patty’s Patrona Productions. “I wanted to create an album piece by piece
from the ground up, by handpicking the musicians for the project and
bringing in some old friends as well as meeting some new ones.” Just a
glance at the musical lineup reveals Vinnie Colaiuta on drums, Michael
Landau on electric guitar, Rafael Padilla on percussion, and Jerry Hey
leading the horns, with numerous stellar musicians rounding out the album.
Taking a hands off approach to the musicians, Patty allowed their creativity
to flourish. “I wanted a free and open environment,” she explains.
“Instead of outlining exactly what I wanted, I would write a song, map it
out with some initial programming and then ask each musician to play what
they felt. I think that’s what made this album blossom.”
Featured by People magazine as one of their “50 Most Beautiful People in the
World,” Patty feels most at home when she is performing her music as she
brings a sizzling energy to her live concerts that leave audiences
breathless. Included in her list of favorite concerts is the Billy Graham
Latin International Crusade, where a song she had authored was chosen as the
crusade’s theme song. Also a part of that list is an impromptu concert for
three down-and-outers in the back of a Greyhound bus during a cross-country
college trip. “Please don’t make me pick my favorite,” Patty says with a
smile.
In addition to her musical achievements , Patty is also spokesperson for Metro Ministries, a progressive mission in the heart of New York City reaching each week more than 20,000 urban youth through special camps and nationwide events that seek to help children that are ensnared in a battleground of drugs, violence and abuse. “I
love being a part of Metro Ministries because they touch lives on a street
level,” Patty explains. “Metro gives people hope by showing them God’s love
through the acts of one person to another. It’s clear that God gave us arms
to hug and to shoot hoop with,” she says with a laugh.
Patty just wrapped up shooting an EPK in New York City for Love Someone Like Me.
None of this overwhelming activity should come as a surprise to those who
know Patty’s life philosophy. With a serene sigh she says, “Enjoying our
humanity is a gift back to God.”
