Pat Benatar Biography

It is not surprising that Pat Benatar was born in Brooklyn on January 10, 1953 and raised in Long Island. She has the New York attitude down pat and shows it with her take-no-prisoners approach to rock and roll. She was born with the name Patricia Andrzejewski but took the name Benatar after marrying Dennis Benatar after completion from high school. They later divorced.By the 1970s, Benatar was performing at clubs in New York City. She signed with Chrysalis Records after they found her at one of the clubs. She assembled a great band behind her, including future husband Neil Geraldo, and released her debut album in 1979, Head of the Night. The album featured instant hits like "Heartbreaker" and "I Need a Lover." She had almost the best follow up a hit artist can have in 1980 with Crimes of Passion. She found even bigger success with "Hit Me with Your Best Shot" off of that album.Next came Precious Time in 1981, which featured another great hit, "Fire and Ice." She released an album every year through 1985 with Get Nervous (1982), Live From Earth (1983), Tropico (1984) and Seven the Hard Way (1985). Her personal life was also at a zenith when she and Giraldo had their first daughter, Haley Egeana on February 16, 1985. Hana Juliana was born almost 10 years later on March 12, 1994. Benatar had a heavy touring schedule until Hana was born. She has continued to release albums like 1988's Wide Awake in Dreamland. Pat Benatar is a powerful and high-spirited rocker who has paved the way for other rocker chicks like Avril Lavigne and Pink. She has won four Grammy Awards for her effort and continues to be an incredible singer and songwriter. She is still performing to this day.