MUSIC

'80s diva Taylor Dayne: Fab, unfiltered and playing Phoenix on Jan. 20

Randy Cordova
The Republic | azcentral.com
“Ultimately, you stand around long enough, you get to sit down again," Taylor Dayne says of her career.

Taylor Dayne doesn’t come off particularly well in Clive Davis’ bestselling memoir “The Soundtrack of My Life.” In the book, Davis says the diva’s songwriting ambitions essentially sabotaged her recording career.

Dayne, delightfully unfiltered, holds no grudges against the record mogul.

“Clive has Clive’s vision of how things should go,” she says, in a voice that retains an appealing Noo Yawk edge. “He was a visionary and an entrepreneur. How do you balance listening to the artist and taking the artist in a direction (to make money)? I wanted to express myself as an artist.”

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And when it worked, man, it really worked. Her first two albums, 1988’s “Tell It to My Heart” and the following year’s “Can’t Fight Fate,” were double-platinum sellers thanks to a steady stream of radio smashes that showcased her roof-rattling voice. “Prove Your Love,” “Love Will Lead You Back,” “With Every Beat of My Heart” and ‘“I’ll Be Your Shelter” were among the tunes that made her such a familiar presence.

Unique sound

Dayne sounded unlike anyone else on pop radio. She attributes that to a childhood spent listening to everything from show tunes and the Carpenters to the Rolling Stones, the Ohio Players and Aerosmith. That diversity is one reason she thinks her fan base is equally wide.

“I don’t think I have one audience,” she says. “Look: I was on the adult contemporary charts, the pop charts, the R&B charts — it was unusual. And now as I have matured, I can do the Newport Jazz Festival or get on a freestyle tour. I do a lot of pride events, and I do casinos or corporate shows — it’s a wide group of people you’re talking about.”

Even though you have to go back to a 1993 remake of Barry White’s “Can’t Get Enough of Your Love” for her last big mainstream hit, Dayne has never strayed too far off the show-biz radar. She has done theater, starring in Elton John’s “Aida” on Broadway and in a 2013 regional production of “Cats.” She’s no stranger to reality TV, making the rounds on shows like “Celebrity Duets” and “Rachael vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off.” She even was hooked up by Patti Stanger on a 2015 episode of “Millionaire Matchmaker.”

Taylor Dayne is in the midst of writing her autobiography.

“Oh, good old Patti, let me tell you,” she says. “I was dating somebody I met on that show for a good year. He was a bit younger, but a really good man. But now I’m dating a really wonderful man. I truly have a deep heart connection right now. That’s where my head is at. It’s a real love connection, a real partnership.”

'I’m from New York, where we’re raised to be more realists'

Is it tough dating an ‘80s icon? The never-married Dayne laughs.

“I don’t go in the room and think of myself that way,” says the 54-year-old mom of teenage twins. “Maybe that’s a good thing, maybe a bad thing, I don’t know. I do know I don’t have a tolerance for the nonsense. I’m from New York, where we’re raised to be more realists. People say about me, ‘Oh, she’s so real,’ and I take that as a compliment. I’m sure it can be abrasive, but it’s my code of honor and I mean it in a good way.”

If you remember the '80s, this is how you probably think of Taylor Dayne. Cherry Red Records released a deluxe two-disc version of Dayne's 1998 debut album two years ago.

Besides her TV work, she seems to drift back to the mainstream in odd, unpredictable ways. Buzzy comedian Tig Notaro has a weirdly hilarious routine involving several run-ins with the singer. In Notaro’s telling, Dayne comes off a bit, shall we say, clueless. "I just have to tell you, I love your voice," the comic says. "My speaking voice?" Dayne replies.

“She’s a hoot,” Dayne says. “I’m sure it’s the absolute truth. I’m sure she met me, and I said all that nonsense. It’s just one of those fun things.”

Also fun: Cheetos is using “Tell It to My Heart” in a series of commercials, exposing the song to a new generation. That’s why she released a karaoke version of the song on iTunes in December.

New music on the way

And in the works: “Momma is gonna drop a new record in 2017!," she announces, plus she’s working on an autobiography (take that, Clive Davis!). She also gave her first TED talk in October, opening yet another door.

“These kinds of things happen to longevity artists,” she says. “Ultimately, you stand around long enough, you get to sit down again.”

Reach the reporter at randy.cordova@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8849. Twitter.com/randy_cordova.

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Taylor Dayne

When: 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 20. 

Where: Talking Stick Resort, 9800 E. Talking Stick Way, Salt River Reservation.

Admission: $25-$65

Details: 480-850-7777, talkingstickresort.com