Keith Urban photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

It’s doubtful that too many music fans would confuse Keith Urban with Liza Minnelli, but his background certainly intersects with the setting of one of her biggest roles.

During his teen years, Keith worked as the music director for a cabaret in Australia. Broadway songs are quite different than country music, and yet, the job eventually paid off after he became a star.

“The whole thing was pretty odd,” he told Newsday. “I mean, I was 16, with hair down past my shoulders, and I had to perform in a tuxedo. We’d play a song — ‘The Twelfth Of Never’ — [and] in some ways it’s a bit like learning algebra or something: ‘When am I ever going to need this later in life?’ Some years later, I was in the studio with Dolly Parton doing, of all things, ‘The Twelfth of Never.’ She said, ‘You probably won’t know this song.’ But I said, ‘Strangely enough, I do!’”

That duet — a cover of an old Johnny Mathis hit — was featured on Dolly’s 2005 album Those Were The Days, which included collaborations with Kris Kristofferson, Alison Krauss, Cat Stevens and Norah Jones, among others.

Keith meanwhile is likely to present some on-stage collaborations during his Oct. 13 fundraiser for the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville. Among the artists slated to appear with him are Taylor Swift, Brad Paisley, Vince Gill, Jason Aldean, Faith Hill, Lady Antebellum and Little Big Town.

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