My Week With Greta Panettieri, in New York City!

...it's been exactly one month since my week with Greta Panettieri, in New York City.
...it was her first trip back in two years, and I needed a month to come down from the high of it all.
...we shot some footage of her for my documentary film, 'StreetcredMusic'  and introduced her to her costars Clara Lofaro and Yula Beeri.

Air Train from JFK!

Sometimes when you meet someone, like Greta, like I did three years ago, you know from the jump this is a special lady!

To say that I am charmed to death by her smile, her positive personality, and her talent would be an understatement.

The week had so many extraordinary moments...but I'll try to relate some and the feeling of all involved.
Just walking the streets of the East Village every day with her was a story in itself.
How she would...
navigate the city when she first came from Italy, not speaking the language and being broke, they seem funny to some....BUT, the story there is her desire to sing jazz, was as she put it, not a career, it was a matter of life and death. Nothing else was on her mind!
...being a jazz freak she was thrilled when her first subway ride was "THE A TRAIN"!

With her adorable accent she said Pete, name a job, I did it...delivered blinds, baby sat!!
Speaking of the baby sitting gig, she told me she sat for a family with $$$ and the kids would not eat their dinner, so she would wrap it up and take the kids to a homeless shelter and make them give it to the homeless!!

Me and Greta on the sidewalk outside Rockwood Music Hall

Later that night of her arrival, we filmed a chat we had on the sidewalk outside Rockwood Music Hall, the place we met three years previous. We filmed with all the noise of the street the fire engines and the people walking by, it was New York as it's natural self, as were, me and Greta, as if she never left! See those smiles, they lasted all week!

We could not walk more than a block without running into someone who knew her and was amazed to see her back in New York City, I marveled at how many people we ran into that love her.

The wonderful week that I anticipated, went totally off the charts because we spent four of the five nights with Yula, and Clara. But back to night one...we were joined by my life long friend Tony Papa
and someone I was just getting to know, Sonia Montez a brilliant Indie Artist in New York City.

We celebrated at Da Marino ( Sarah McClennan plays there) it was Pasquale, the owners birthday, and we had to eat!!
What a fun filled night. Greta uttered one of her favorite quotes of the week, after some food and lots of Vino, she said Pete, "I need a beer".

Sonia Montez, Greta, me!!

Two nights at The Hive
...with Yula and all the BEEs and the Killkenny Cats was remarkable.
...A show, Dinner and lunch with Clara, was a special treat.

But the Crown Jewel of the week for me and Great was Sunday night.
We filmed her reunion with the "Brazilian Nights" band at the Zinc Bar! I can tell you Greta was like a kid on Christmas morning all week waiting for this. We captured it ALL for the film!

Here's some of the footage we shot at the Zinc Bar::Greta sings!

I could write ten more pages on this lady, her talent and all the fun we had, but the thing I left New York City with was a warm heart.

Yula and Greta sang a capella and got along like sisters, and to stand on the street in Brooklyn with them and listen to Greta and Clara speak Italian, and get to know each other, and the fact that they all showed up to support each other all week, and we acted as one unit, was for me the reward that comes with helping them and doing what I do!

Greta will be back and we will do this again....and it will be cold, she will have to bring her hats!!
I asked her this week when would you like to come back, she said, "anytime as long as there is a Sunday involved!"

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