Let's begin with your new show, TAPESTRY REWOVEN, a reworking of Carole King's classic 70s album "Tapestry." What was it about this album in particular, and King's music in general, that spoke to you artistically?

I grew up, literally, listening to Carole King and, in particular, "Tapestry." The recording came out when I was in college. It was at a time when we were all coming of age as young women in so many new and exciting ways and "Tapestry" became somewhat of a rallying cry as we transformed from girls to women. As a singer/songwriter Carole was so raw and honest. The music was involving and the lyrics were pure poetry. We played that album over and over and over. The 70's were a very powerful time for women and this iconic recording was so much a part of that time for us.

Laurie in concert. Photo by Anthony Barboza

As an artist I had actually never thought about revisiting this recording for my own work. It kind of happened "to" me. I was at the gym one day listening to "You've Got a Friend" on my iPod and all of a sudden the phrase "Tapestry Rewoven" came to me. It was kind of odd and funny really. I had never considered singing "You've Got a Friend" – it was too important to me as is. This was my song with my college roommate – "wherever we would go in life, we'd always be there for each other" (VERY dramatic, we young girls). But as I continued my workout, I realized that the idea I was having was greater than the one song. I realized I was being "visited" with the idea of doing the entire thing. Crazy! But I was very juiced about it and brought the idea to my long-time pianist and arranger, Daryl Kojak. With a little research I was able to learn that, although there have been two anthologies recorded by a wide variety of artists, the recording has never been re-done by any individual group or artist of any genre. So, we kept our deep dark secret for around 4 years while we went through the music from all different angles to see if we could breathe the kind of life into this we were seeking. Most of all, we wanted to be reverent to what was created originally while still pushing the envelope of what we might want to say with it.

Once we felt ready we announced the project. And now, on August 7th at the Metropolitan Room, we'll be presenting our work-in-progress in its entirety for the first time. We're SO excited for people to hear it! And we have an amazing lineup that night with Daryl Kojak on piano, Sean Conly on bass, Gene Lewin on drums, "Sweet" Sue Terry on alto sax, Jamie Fox on guitar, and backup vocals by the amazing Emily Bindiger, Margaret Dorn, and Kathryn Raio.

Some of the TAPESTRY tunes are so obviously pop-flavored. Did you have difficulties finding a jazz hook for any of the songs?

Yes, this was somewhat of a challenge but we loved the challenge and, in some cases, we actually came up with all kinds of ideas. This is where Daryl as an arranger is an absolute genius. His arrangements on this project are jazz-infused, textured and daring while still enabling the singer to express the lyrics in a way that has meaning. Of course we have our Swing and Latin tunes, but we also have Funk, R&B and New Age influences. One of the tunes we like to characterize as a "Samba Poem." I won't say which one, folks will have to come on the 7th to find out!

Listen to clips from CATCH ME IF YOU CAN at cdbaby.com.

Your debut CD, CATCH ME IF YOU CAN, contains some wonderful renditions of traditional showtunes and jazz favorites. What was your concept for the CD?

Thank you! This was my first recording. I wanted to share with people some of my favorite things that I had been performing live for years.

You began your career in musical theatre. What are some of your musical theatre credits?

I spent a great deal of time traveling around the country as Aldonza in "Man of LaMancha" and Julie in "Show Boat." I never did Broadway – I realized in my last production of "LaMancha" that there weren't a lot of roles out there that really spoke to me as an artist and I came home to study to try to "find my voice" as an artist.

What inspired you to turn to your "true calling" -- jazz?

It was really a series of coincidences. I had come home to study. I was very frustrated because I felt that there was something I wanted to use my voice for that I hadn't found yet. One day, after quite some time, I saw an ad in Back Stage for a four-part Swing ensemble – they were looking for a Soprano. The right person had to be able to do all sorts of things and this ad really excited me. Because I was more of a character type, I didn't really get to use my full range in musical theatre. I called to audition but they couldn't see me and I told them I was sure they were looking for me and I offered to pay for a studio to audition. I NEVER said stuff like that! It was like I was possessed. Turned out I actually was the person they were looking for. One day we were working on a new Ellington duet and I asked the arranger to arrange the backup voices during my lead vocal to leave enough room for me to do other stuff. I didn't even know what I was asking or talking about. It was just an instinct. Ultimately, this enabled me to play with the phrasing and melody in a way I had never done before. I was hooked and I started exploring the world of jazz.

Will TAPESTRY REWOVEN be released on CD?

Absolutely! I'm actually producing the recording myself (as is the case with most jazz artists today). I'm proud to say that "Tapestry Rewoven" is a sponsored project of the New York Foundation for the Arts which means I can accept fully tax-deductible donations. Much like PBS, NPR, or the Metropolitan Opera, this project is being funded by the listener. Obviously, if anyone is interested in learning more, I'd love it if they'd visit my website at www.lauriekrauz.com for more info.