Terry Gross

So you were born in Australia and lived there for the first four or five years of your life.

Mm-hmm.

When you were around four, your family moved to New York where your father got a job.

And he sounds like he was a very briefcase, follow the rules, working man, dinner at the same time every night kind of guy, except for when he drank.

And he loved you, but he also gave you the belt when you stepped out of line.

They divorced when you were seven, and your mother wanted to live a more bohemian life.

So she married your stepfather, the jazz bass player, Walter Urban Jr.

Yep.

And...

What was he like as a man?

You describe him as sad.

And he was also addicted to heroin.

And he was very moody.

Can you describe what it was like for you as a child to grow up with somebody whose music you loved, who introduced you to great people and great sounds, but who also could be like a scary person?

He could be an irresponsible person and an inattentive parent.

Did you feel like you were supposed to be responsible and stop him?

I'm not saying you should have been responsible.

Kind of like a performance.

Were the neighbors complaining?

Did your mother call them?