Christy Baron

Raised in Pittsburgh, jazz and pop singer and actress Christy Baron began her singing career as a cabaret vocalist and piano player while majoring in music at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh. After moving to New York in 1984, she began working as a piano player in smaller jazz clubs. Her work in that realm was interrupted by increasingly frequent calls for acting and to sing in TV commercial jingles. Through the years in New York City and elsewhere, Baron has performed with Natalie Cole, Phoebe Snow, Melba Moore, Carly Simon, Dr. John, and David Sanborn, among others. Baron's albums for New York City-based Chesky Records include her 1997 debut for the label, I Thought About You. Later releases include Steppin', Take This Journey, and Retrospective. Her second release for Chesky, Steppin', includes tunes by Peter Gabriel, the Beatles, Prince, and the Atlanta Rhythm Section. It wouldn't be fair to characterize Baron as a straight-ahead jazz singer, but rather, she proudly calls herself an interpreter of music, and she fuses many different styles -- funk, world music, and even electronica influences -- into her approach to recording. Prior to her signing with Chesky Records in 1997, Baron acted as Julie Hammer in the film Pants on Fire and the lead role of Fantine in a Broadway production of Les Miserables, among others. Baron continues to act, record, and tour, and lives in suburban New York City with her husband and daughter. ~ Richard Skelly, All Music Guide