He produced Adam Cohen’s new record.

That’s where I was tonight, at the Hotel Cafe, listening to Adam and his cohorts play for not only his father, but his producer, who came up on stage and tickled the ivories on a couple of numbers.

And after the gig was over, we’re standing outside the venue and I say to Patrick, "You did "Live To Tell", right?"

Then he told me the story. He was trying to break into scoring, the notes of the track were the theme for a film entitled "Fire With Fire". He phoned Madonna to ask her to write the lyrics, but on her way to his house, he got fired.

But Madonna figured she’d do the work anyway. And that rough tape made it into James Foley’s hands, and that’s how it ended up in "At Close Range" (in its original demo form, that was the final record…magic is captured and it’s hard to improve).

I love "Live To Tell". It’s my favorite Madonna record. It’s got all the heaviness of the movie.

And then I asked Patrick how he got the gig, how he hooked up with Madonna.

It all came down to the Victory Tour. You remember, the Jackson 5 juggernaut after Michael became a superstar, he did it for his brothers, it was a financial fiasco, but it played to huge audiences.

Patrick Leonard was the musical director.

How’d he get the gig?

He called his buddy Hawk Wolinski, told him he had to get out of Chicago, where he was working for three years doing jingles. This was after his major label deal with Epic for his band Trillion. Patrick was making a living.

Hawk told him about the Jackson 5 gig.

Patrick beat out thirty other competitors, even though no one knew he was, because the guys in the band said HE WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO COULD KEEP TIME!

And you think it’s about tweeting and Facebooking, image, everything but the music.

You’re wrong.

You can fake it to make it, but it won’t last long. Keep every dime you earn, because there probably won’t be any more.

But if you’re a real musician, chances are what looks like your one big break is not gonna be, and if you persevere, you’ll get your chance, if you do the work.

That’s the part that everybody wants to avoid, seeing Snooki on MTV. They think that’s the gig they want. Why is everybody shooting so low?

So, Madonna calls Patrick’s manager, he’s got no desire to talk to her, she’s only done the first album. But his manager insists, and she says she’s a newbie, she’ll give him complete control, she wants him to do for her what she did for the Jackson 5.

You got it? SHE COLD-CALLED HIM!

She wanted Patrick because of the work.

And then Patrick ended up writing not only "Live To Tell" with Madonna, but "Cherish" and "La Isla Bonita" (the music which was originally written for Michael Jackson, who passed!), even stuff years later on "Ray Of Light", the last great thing she did in my book.

And don’t get the idea Patrick was boasting. I pulled the story out of him. Because a fan knows so much, and is eager to hear even more. He’s probably horrified I revealed so much.

But I just had to tell you.

Because it all comes down to the work.