Lisa Germano
Encyclopedia
Lisa Germano is an American
singer/songwriter
and multi-instrumentalist
who has released seven albums featuring her often-hushed vocal style, confessional lyrics, and distinctive violin
. Her 1994 album Geek the Girl
received widespread critical acclaim, including being featured as a top album of the 1990s by the music magazine Spin
. She is also known as a guest performer and/or session musician
on over sixty records by a variety of artists, including John Mellencamp
, Simple Minds
, David Bowie
, Yann Tiersen
, Neil Finn
, Sheryl Crow
, Iggy Pop
, Jewel
and Eels
.
, Indiana
. Her parents encouraged their children to learn instruments from an early age. Germano's first attempt at writing music was a 15-minute opera for the piano written at age 7. Later she took up the violin, the instrument that led her to a career in music.
She became a member of John Mellencamp
's band during the recording of his 1987 album The Lonesome Jubilee
, and continued to work and tour with him for the following seven years. During this time, she also toured and recorded with bands such as Simple Minds
and the Indigo Girls
, which prompted her to pursue her own music.
Germano issued her first solo album, the lo-fi On the Way Down From the Moon Palace
, in 1991 on her own label
, Major Bill Records. Without major distribution and promotion, sales were low, but the album helped bring Germano to the attention of Capitol Records
, with whom she signed
in 1992. Her major-label debut, Happiness
, was released in July 1993, but just prior to its release, a personnel shake-up had occurred at Capitol, which resulted in the departure of most of her benefactors at the label. Once it became clear to her that the album was not going to receive the level of promotion that she had expected, Germano lobbied successfully to have the rights to the album returned to her, and later that year, she signed with the influential British independent label 4AD Records, who, at that time, had a manufacturing and distribution deal with Warner Bros. Records
in the US.
4AD founder/president Ivo Watts-Russell
was a big fan of Germano's work, and took an unusually active role in her first releases for the label, remixing some of the tracks from Happiness with John Fryer
, who had produced and/or engineered several other of the label's acts and had been involved in Watts-Russell's This Mortal Coil
project. In early 1994, 4AD issued a limited-edition EP
, Inconsiderate Bitch, which contained five of the remixed tracks; and in April of that year, Happiness was reissued in a radically different form. The new version had very different artwork, and the songs, some of which were remixed, had been completely resequenced (two tracks, including her cover of "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'
", were omitted, and replaced by two others that had been recorded around the same time, including "Destroy the Flower"). Her third album, Geek the Girl
, was also released later in 1994. The album earned Germano the most praise she'd yet received from the press, becoming a critical favorite and a noted album from the 1990s. Much attention was given to the track "...A Psychopath," which contains audio taken from an actual 911
emergency phone call placed by a woman who was being terrorized by an intruder in her home. In 1995, Germano contributed the song "The Mirror Is Gone" to the AIDS
benefit album Red Hot + Bothered
produced by the Red Hot Organization
.
Her next album, Excerpts From a Love Circus
, arrived in 1996, and received a fair amount of acclaim in publications ranging from music related magazines including Spin
and Rolling Stone
. Earlier that same year, Watts-Russell approached all of 4AD's artists with the idea that each act would find another artist or band to collaborate with on three songs, and the resulting recordings would be released by the label as a monthly series of EPs. Germano chose to work with the Tucson
-based rock band Giant Sand
, but after their tracks had been recorded, 4AD decided that the series would be unfeasible, and scrapped the idea. Germano and the members of Giant Sand liked the results and enjoyed collaborating, and despite the labels' lack of interest in the recordings, recorded a studio album of new material together in less than a week. The managers for Germano and Giant Sand worked together and struck a deal with Thirsty Ear Recordings to release the album as a one-off project under the name OP8
, and the album, Slush
, was released in February 1997. In April 1997, 4AD began servicing "I Love a Snot" (remixed by Tchad Blake
) to radio and retail in America, but sales of the album remained static at best. Another Germano collaboration of sorts was released later that year, when another Excerpts From a Love Circus track, "Lovesick", was remixed by drum & bass
producer The Underdog (aka Trevor Jackson, later of Playgroup
), and released as a single on his Output Recordings
label.
Sales began to sag noticeably with the release of Slide
(produced by Tchad Blake) in July 1998. 4AD's distribution deal with Warner Bros. had come to an end, returning the label to its independent status; for Germano, that meant that Slide received less promotion, since her label no longer had Warner Bros.' resources to draw upon. That summer, just before the album's release, she was invited to join The Smashing Pumpkins
(whose fourth album, Adore, was released just weeks before Slide) on tour as backing vocalist. Initially, she turned them down, but Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan
convinced her that her role would be somewhat collaborative in nature, and she agreed to the tour. She joined the band in Chicago for four weeks of rehearsals in preparation for a four-month tour, but then, the night before the tour was to begin, she was dismissed by Corgan (via their tour manager) with no explanation, and the Pumpkins embarked on the tour without her. That fall, intent on resuming the promotion of Slide, she went out on tour, first opening up for Eels
, and then later headlining smaller clubs; but while on tour, she was notified by 4AD that they were dropping her from the roster. By the end of 1998, she announced that she was done with the music business, and dispensed with her management.
Germano moved to Hollywood, and began working at an independent bookstore
. Songwriting, however, remained an integral part of her life, and she kept connected musically by collaborating with other artists, such as Yann Tiersen
, David Bowie
, Neil Finn
, and Joey Waronker
, on various projects. She returned to her solo career in 2002 with a flurry of releases. Independently, she released two compilations of songs from her back catalog: Concentrated is a selection of "greatest hits" with a few oddities (such as the Underdog remix of "Lovesick"); Rare, Unusual or Just Bad Songs, however, is composed entirely of rarities (like "Breathe Acrost Texas", which was omitted from the reissue of Happiness) and tracks that had never been available before, and each copy came with an insert painted by Germano herself. Later that year, she began gathering songs she had been writing and recording (mostly by herself at home) over the previous two years, and sent CDs of these tracks to a few labels and various friends in the music industry; the first to respond was her longtime acquaintance, producer/label executive Tony Berg. After the relative success of the ARTISTdirect
family of music-related websites, co-founder and then-CEO Marc Geiger decided to start an actual record label, leading to the creation of the Ineffable imprint with Berg in 2002, with Germano as the label's first signing. Her sixth album, Lullaby for Liquid Pig
, released in April 2003, features performances by guitarist
Johnny Marr
(formerly of The Smiths
, currently of Modest Mouse
), Neil Finn, and Wendy Melvoin
. As before, the album met with critical acclaim, but the label itself was not successful enough for its owners, who shut it down shortly thereafter.
In 2006, Germano was invited by former Swans
leader Michael Gira
to join the roster of his label, Young God Records
. Young God released her sixth solo album, In the Maybe World
, in July of that year, and then reissued Lullaby for Liquid Pig in June 2007 with a bonus disc of unreleased live recordings and demos.
Although she has received waves in popularity in the US & UK, her solo music is most successful in Russia, Germany, Israel, Slovakia, Italy, Portugal, Poland and Peru.
Germano released many singles in the 1990s, most all have music videos as well.
1993 - You Make Me Want To Wear Dresses
1994 - Puppet (Radio Promo Only)
1995 - Cry Wolf
1996 - Small Heads
1997 - I Love A Snot
1997 - Lovesick
1997 - Sand (With OP8)
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
singer/songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
and multi-instrumentalist
Multi-instrumentalist
A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays a number of different instruments.The Bachelor of Music degree usually requires a second instrument to be learned , but people who double on another instrument are not usually seen as multi-instrumentalists.-Classical music:Music written for Symphony...
who has released seven albums featuring her often-hushed vocal style, confessional lyrics, and distinctive violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
. Her 1994 album Geek the Girl
Geek the Girl
Geek the Girl is the third album by Lisa Germano. A breakthrough of sorts for her, it was released in 1994 on 4AD, just six months after the re-release of her previous album, Happiness. The album earned Germano the most praise she'd yet received from the press, becoming a critical favorite,...
received widespread critical acclaim, including being featured as a top album of the 1990s by the music magazine Spin
Spin (magazine)
Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
. She is also known as a guest performer and/or session musician
Session musician
Session musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...
on over sixty records by a variety of artists, including John Mellencamp
John Mellencamp
John Mellencamp, previously known by the stage names Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American rock singer-songwriter, musician, painter and occasional actor known for his catchy, populist brand of heartland rock that eschews synthesizers and other artificial sounds...
, Simple Minds
Simple Minds
Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...
, David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
, Yann Tiersen
Yann Tiersen
Yann Tiersen is a musician from France. His musical career is split between studio albums, collaborations and film soundtracks with a distinctive sound that is always involved...
, Neil Finn
Neil Finn
Neil Mullane Finn, OBE is a New Zealand Pop recording artist. Along with his brother Tim Finn, he was the co-frontman for Split Enz and is now frontman for Crowded House...
, Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Suzanne Crow is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, musician, and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, folk, hip hop, country and pop...
, Iggy Pop
Iggy Pop
Iggy Pop is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Though considered an innovator of punk rock, Pop's music has encompassed a number of styles over the years, including pop, metal, jazz and blues...
, Jewel
Jewel (singer)
Jewel Kilcher , professionally known as Jewel, is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, actress and poet...
and Eels
Eels (band)
Eels is an American indie rock band formed by singer/songwriter Mark Oliver Everett, better known as E...
.
Biography
Lisa Ruth Germano was one of six children born into an Italian-American Catholic family in MishawakaMishawaka, Indiana
Mishawaka is a city on the St. Joseph River and a Twin city of South Bend in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States. The population was 48,252 as of the 2010 Census...
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
. Her parents encouraged their children to learn instruments from an early age. Germano's first attempt at writing music was a 15-minute opera for the piano written at age 7. Later she took up the violin, the instrument that led her to a career in music.
She became a member of John Mellencamp
John Mellencamp
John Mellencamp, previously known by the stage names Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American rock singer-songwriter, musician, painter and occasional actor known for his catchy, populist brand of heartland rock that eschews synthesizers and other artificial sounds...
's band during the recording of his 1987 album The Lonesome Jubilee
The Lonesome Jubilee
The Lonesome Jubilee is the ninth album by American singer-songwriter John Mellencamp, credited as John Cougar Mellencamp. The album was released by Mercury Records on August 24, 1987 . Four singles were released from the album, the first two in 1987 and the last two in 1988.The album was one of...
, and continued to work and tour with him for the following seven years. During this time, she also toured and recorded with bands such as Simple Minds
Simple Minds
Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...
and the Indigo Girls
Indigo Girls
The Indigo Girls are an American folk rock music duo, consisting of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers. They met in elementary school and began performing together as high school students in Decatur, Georgia, part of the Atlanta metropolitan area...
, which prompted her to pursue her own music.
Germano issued her first solo album, the lo-fi On the Way Down From the Moon Palace
On the Way Down From the Moon Palace
On the Way Down from the Moon Palace is the debut solo album by Lisa Germano. It was originally released in 1991 on Germano's own label, Major Bill Records. In 1992, after she signed with Capitol Records, it was released in Japan by Capitol's parent company, EMI...
, in 1991 on her own label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
, Major Bill Records. Without major distribution and promotion, sales were low, but the album helped bring Germano to the attention of Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
, with whom she signed
Recording contract
A recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...
in 1992. Her major-label debut, Happiness
Happiness (Lisa Germano album)
Happiness is the second album by Lisa Germano. It was originally released by Capitol Records in 1993, and re-released by 4AD Records the next year.-Track list :# "Around the World"# "You Make Me Want To Wear Dresses"...
, was released in July 1993, but just prior to its release, a personnel shake-up had occurred at Capitol, which resulted in the departure of most of her benefactors at the label. Once it became clear to her that the album was not going to receive the level of promotion that she had expected, Germano lobbied successfully to have the rights to the album returned to her, and later that year, she signed with the influential British independent label 4AD Records, who, at that time, had a manufacturing and distribution deal with Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
in the US.
4AD founder/president Ivo Watts-Russell
Ivo Watts-Russell
Ivo Watts-Russell was joint-founder with Peter Kent of the English indie record label 4AD. He has also produced several records, himself preferring to use the term "musical director" to explain his role in the creation....
was a big fan of Germano's work, and took an unusually active role in her first releases for the label, remixing some of the tracks from Happiness with John Fryer
John Fryer (music)
John Fryer is an English record producer. Best known for his production work, he also branched out as a musician as one of only two constant members of This Mortal Coil , providing keyboards, strings and synthesizer sequencing for the band, and its offshoot, The Hope Blister.- Career :Starting out...
, who had produced and/or engineered several other of the label's acts and had been involved in Watts-Russell's This Mortal Coil
This Mortal Coil
This Mortal Coil was a gothic dream pop supergroup led by Ivo Watts-Russell, founder of the British record label 4AD. Although Watts-Russell and John Fryer were technically the only two official members, the band's recorded output featured a large rotating cast of supporting artists, many of whom...
project. In early 1994, 4AD issued a limited-edition EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
, Inconsiderate Bitch, which contained five of the remixed tracks; and in April of that year, Happiness was reissued in a radically different form. The new version had very different artwork, and the songs, some of which were remixed, had been completely resequenced (two tracks, including her cover of "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'
These Boots Are Made for Walkin'
Jessica Simpson recorded her own version of "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" for the soundtrack to the film The Dukes of Hazzard . Simpson's cover was co-produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, and was released as the soundtrack's first single in 2005)...
", were omitted, and replaced by two others that had been recorded around the same time, including "Destroy the Flower"). Her third album, Geek the Girl
Geek the Girl
Geek the Girl is the third album by Lisa Germano. A breakthrough of sorts for her, it was released in 1994 on 4AD, just six months after the re-release of her previous album, Happiness. The album earned Germano the most praise she'd yet received from the press, becoming a critical favorite,...
, was also released later in 1994. The album earned Germano the most praise she'd yet received from the press, becoming a critical favorite and a noted album from the 1990s. Much attention was given to the track "...A Psychopath," which contains audio taken from an actual 911
911
Year 911 was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar.-Africa:* Rebellion of the Kutama Berbers against the Fatimid Caliphate...
emergency phone call placed by a woman who was being terrorized by an intruder in her home. In 1995, Germano contributed the song "The Mirror Is Gone" to the AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
benefit album Red Hot + Bothered
Red Hot + Bothered
Red Hot + Bothered is an anthology of the indie rock scene from the 1990s produced by Paul Heck. It was released as part of the Red Hot AIDS Benefit Series....
produced by the Red Hot Organization
Red Hot Organization
Red Hot Organization is a not-for-profit, 501 3, international organization dedicated to fighting AIDS through pop culture.Since its inception in 1989, over 400 artists, producers and directors have contributed to over 15 compilation albums, related television programs and media events to raise...
.
Her next album, Excerpts From a Love Circus
Excerpts From a Love Circus
Excerpts from a Love Circus is the fourth album by Lisa Germano. It was released in 1996 by the 4AD label.In the United Kingdom, "Small Heads" was released as a single in August 1996, just prior to the album...
, arrived in 1996, and received a fair amount of acclaim in publications ranging from music related magazines including Spin
Spin (magazine)
Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
and Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
. Earlier that same year, Watts-Russell approached all of 4AD's artists with the idea that each act would find another artist or band to collaborate with on three songs, and the resulting recordings would be released by the label as a monthly series of EPs. Germano chose to work with the Tucson
Tucson, Arizona
Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
-based rock band Giant Sand
Giant Sand
Giant Sand is an American rock band, based in Tucson, Arizona, USA. The name is shortened from the original Giant Sandworms, a reference to the creatures in the Dune books. Overseen by singer-songwriter Howe Gelb, its membership has shifted over the years—at times with each album...
, but after their tracks had been recorded, 4AD decided that the series would be unfeasible, and scrapped the idea. Germano and the members of Giant Sand liked the results and enjoyed collaborating, and despite the labels' lack of interest in the recordings, recorded a studio album of new material together in less than a week. The managers for Germano and Giant Sand worked together and struck a deal with Thirsty Ear Recordings to release the album as a one-off project under the name OP8
OP8
OP8 is the musical collaboration of the multi-instrumentalist Lisa Germano; Howe Gelb, the man behind the rock band Giant Sand; Joey Burns and John Convertino, who form the band Calexico together and have both been members of Giant Sand....
, and the album, Slush
Slush (album)
Slush is the 1997 debut album by OP8, a band formed from Lisa Germano, Howe Gelb of Giant Sand, and Joey Burns and John Convertino of Calexico and Giant Sand. The album was released on Thirsty Ear and features covers of "Sand" by Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood as well as "Round and Round" by Neil...
, was released in February 1997. In April 1997, 4AD began servicing "I Love a Snot" (remixed by Tchad Blake
Tchad Blake
Tchad Blake is an American record producer, audio engineer, mixer and musician.He has worked with numerous artists and musicians, including State Radio, Apartment 26, Elvis Costello, Peter Gabriel, Pearl Jam, Tom Waits, Richard Thompson, Brazilian Girls, Sheryl Crow, November 2nd, Travis, Marike...
) to radio and retail in America, but sales of the album remained static at best. Another Germano collaboration of sorts was released later that year, when another Excerpts From a Love Circus track, "Lovesick", was remixed by drum & bass
Drum and bass
Drum and bass is a type of electronic music which emerged in the late 1980s. The genre is characterized by fast breakbeats , with heavy bass and sub-bass lines...
producer The Underdog (aka Trevor Jackson, later of Playgroup
Playgroup (band)
Playgroup is a British dance act. Basically the project of musician and designer Trevor Jackson, they were associated with the electroclash movement.Jackson has also performed under the names Underdog and Skull.-Albums:...
), and released as a single on his Output Recordings
Output Recordings
Output Recordings was a British independent record label run by Trevor Jackson, between 1996 and 2006. Output released 100 records over the ten year period, and several bands first appeared on this label, including Fridge, Lisa Germano, Four Tet, Black Strobe, Colder, LCD Soundsystem, and Jackson's...
label.
Sales began to sag noticeably with the release of Slide
Slide (album)
Slide is the fifth album by Lisa Germano. It was released in 1998 by 4AD, and was her last album for the label.-Track listing:# Way Below the Radio# No Color Here# Tomorrowing# Electrified# Slide# If I Think of Love# Crash# Wood Floors...
(produced by Tchad Blake) in July 1998. 4AD's distribution deal with Warner Bros. had come to an end, returning the label to its independent status; for Germano, that meant that Slide received less promotion, since her label no longer had Warner Bros.' resources to draw upon. That summer, just before the album's release, she was invited to join The Smashing Pumpkins
The Smashing Pumpkins
The Smashing Pumpkins are an American alternative rock band that formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1988. Formed by Billy Corgan frontman and James Iha , the band has included Jimmy Chamberlin , D'arcy Wretzky , and currently includes Jeff Schroeder Mike Byrne , and Nicole Fiorentino The Smashing...
(whose fourth album, Adore, was released just weeks before Slide) on tour as backing vocalist. Initially, she turned them down, but Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan
Billy Corgan
William Patrick "Billy" Corgan, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional poet best known as the frontman and sole permanent member of The Smashing Pumpkins. Formed by Corgan and guitarist James Iha in Chicago, Illinois in 1987, the band quickly gained steam with the...
convinced her that her role would be somewhat collaborative in nature, and she agreed to the tour. She joined the band in Chicago for four weeks of rehearsals in preparation for a four-month tour, but then, the night before the tour was to begin, she was dismissed by Corgan (via their tour manager) with no explanation, and the Pumpkins embarked on the tour without her. That fall, intent on resuming the promotion of Slide, she went out on tour, first opening up for Eels
Eels (band)
Eels is an American indie rock band formed by singer/songwriter Mark Oliver Everett, better known as E...
, and then later headlining smaller clubs; but while on tour, she was notified by 4AD that they were dropping her from the roster. By the end of 1998, she announced that she was done with the music business, and dispensed with her management.
Germano moved to Hollywood, and began working at an independent bookstore
Independent bookstore
An independent bookstore is a retail bookstore which is independently owned.-Literary and countercultural history:Author events at independent bookstores sometimes take the role of literary salons. The bookstores themselves, "have historically supported and cultivated the work of independent...
. Songwriting, however, remained an integral part of her life, and she kept connected musically by collaborating with other artists, such as Yann Tiersen
Yann Tiersen
Yann Tiersen is a musician from France. His musical career is split between studio albums, collaborations and film soundtracks with a distinctive sound that is always involved...
, David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
, Neil Finn
Neil Finn
Neil Mullane Finn, OBE is a New Zealand Pop recording artist. Along with his brother Tim Finn, he was the co-frontman for Split Enz and is now frontman for Crowded House...
, and Joey Waronker
Joey Waronker
Joseph "Joey" Waronker is an American drummer and music producer. He is the son of record producer Lenny Waronker and singer/actress Donna Loren; his younger sister is musician Anna Waronker; and his grandfather is record executive and professional violinist Simon Waronker. He has three other...
, on various projects. She returned to her solo career in 2002 with a flurry of releases. Independently, she released two compilations of songs from her back catalog: Concentrated is a selection of "greatest hits" with a few oddities (such as the Underdog remix of "Lovesick"); Rare, Unusual or Just Bad Songs, however, is composed entirely of rarities (like "Breathe Acrost Texas", which was omitted from the reissue of Happiness) and tracks that had never been available before, and each copy came with an insert painted by Germano herself. Later that year, she began gathering songs she had been writing and recording (mostly by herself at home) over the previous two years, and sent CDs of these tracks to a few labels and various friends in the music industry; the first to respond was her longtime acquaintance, producer/label executive Tony Berg. After the relative success of the ARTISTdirect
ARTISTdirect
Founded in 1994, Artistdirect, Inc. is an online digital media entertainment company. It owns several websites including Artistdirect.com, UBL.com and the Artistdirect Network...
family of music-related websites, co-founder and then-CEO Marc Geiger decided to start an actual record label, leading to the creation of the Ineffable imprint with Berg in 2002, with Germano as the label's first signing. Her sixth album, Lullaby for Liquid Pig
Lullaby for Liquid Pig
Lullaby for Liquid Pig is the eighth release by Lisa Germano, and her first proper studio album since 1998's Slide. It was released on the ARTISTdirect imprint in 2003, and later re-released on Young God Records in 2007...
, released in April 2003, features performances by guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
Johnny Marr
Johnny Marr
Johnny Marr is an English musician and songwriter. Marr rose to fame in the 1980s as the guitarist in The Smiths, with whom he formed a prolific songwriting partnership with Morrissey. Marr has been a member of Electronic, The The, and Modest Mouse...
(formerly of The Smiths
The Smiths
The Smiths were an English alternative rock band, formed in Manchester in 1982. Based on the song writing partnership of Morrissey and Johnny Marr , the band also included Andy Rourke and Mike Joyce...
, currently of Modest Mouse
Modest Mouse
Modest Mouse is an American indie rock band formed in 1993 in Issaquah, Washington, by singer/lyricist/guitarist Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green, and bassist Eric Judy. They are based in Portland, Oregon. Since their 1996 debut album, This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think...
), Neil Finn, and Wendy Melvoin
Wendy Melvoin
Wendy Melvoin is an American guitarist and singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Prince as part of his backing band The Revolution, and for her collaboration with Lisa Coleman as one half of the duo Wendy & Lisa....
. As before, the album met with critical acclaim, but the label itself was not successful enough for its owners, who shut it down shortly thereafter.
In 2006, Germano was invited by former Swans
Swans (band)
Swans are an influential American post-punk band initially active from 1982 to 1997, led by singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Michael Gira. The band was one of the few groups to emerge from the early 1980s New York No Wave scene and stay intact into the next decade. Formed by Gira in...
leader Michael Gira
Michael Gira
Michael Rolfe Gira is an American musician, author, and artist. He is the main force behind the recently reformed New York City musical group Swans and fronts the Angels of Light...
to join the roster of his label, Young God Records
Young God Records
Young God Records is an independent record label formed by Michael Gira in 1990 that specializes in experimental, avant-garde and often non genre-specific releases...
. Young God released her sixth solo album, In the Maybe World
In the Maybe World
In the Maybe World is the ninth release by folk musician Lisa Germano. It was released in 2006 through Young God Records.-Track listing:All songs written by Lisa Germano.# The Day# Too Much Space# Moon in Hell# Golden Cities# Into Oblivion...
, in July of that year, and then reissued Lullaby for Liquid Pig in June 2007 with a bonus disc of unreleased live recordings and demos.
Although she has received waves in popularity in the US & UK, her solo music is most successful in Russia, Germany, Israel, Slovakia, Italy, Portugal, Poland and Peru.
Solo releases
- On the Way Down From the Moon PalaceOn the Way Down From the Moon PalaceOn the Way Down from the Moon Palace is the debut solo album by Lisa Germano. It was originally released in 1991 on Germano's own label, Major Bill Records. In 1992, after she signed with Capitol Records, it was released in Japan by Capitol's parent company, EMI...
- Major Bill Records, 1991 - HappinessHappiness (Lisa Germano album)Happiness is the second album by Lisa Germano. It was originally released by Capitol Records in 1993, and re-released by 4AD Records the next year.-Track list :# "Around the World"# "You Make Me Want To Wear Dresses"...
(CD) - Capitol RecordsCapitol RecordsCapitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
, 1993/4AD Records, 1994 - Inconsiderate Bitch (EP) - 4AD, 1994
- Geek the GirlGeek the GirlGeek the Girl is the third album by Lisa Germano. A breakthrough of sorts for her, it was released in 1994 on 4AD, just six months after the re-release of her previous album, Happiness. The album earned Germano the most praise she'd yet received from the press, becoming a critical favorite,...
(CD) - 4AD, 1994 - Excerpts From a Love CircusExcerpts From a Love CircusExcerpts from a Love Circus is the fourth album by Lisa Germano. It was released in 1996 by the 4AD label.In the United Kingdom, "Small Heads" was released as a single in August 1996, just prior to the album...
(CD) - 4AD, 1996 - SlushSlush (album)Slush is the 1997 debut album by OP8, a band formed from Lisa Germano, Howe Gelb of Giant Sand, and Joey Burns and John Convertino of Calexico and Giant Sand. The album was released on Thirsty Ear and features covers of "Sand" by Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood as well as "Round and Round" by Neil...
(with OP8OP8OP8 is the musical collaboration of the multi-instrumentalist Lisa Germano; Howe Gelb, the man behind the rock band Giant Sand; Joey Burns and John Convertino, who form the band Calexico together and have both been members of Giant Sand....
) - Thirsty Ear Recordings, 1997 - SlideSlide (album)Slide is the fifth album by Lisa Germano. It was released in 1998 by 4AD, and was her last album for the label.-Track listing:# Way Below the Radio# No Color Here# Tomorrowing# Electrified# Slide# If I Think of Love# Crash# Wood Floors...
(CD) - 4AD, 1998 - Concentrated (CD) - self-released, 2002
- Rare, Unusual or Just Bad Songs (CD) - self released, 2002
- Lullaby for Liquid PigLullaby for Liquid PigLullaby for Liquid Pig is the eighth release by Lisa Germano, and her first proper studio album since 1998's Slide. It was released on the ARTISTdirect imprint in 2003, and later re-released on Young God Records in 2007...
(CD) - Ineffable/ARTISTdirectARTISTdirectFounded in 1994, Artistdirect, Inc. is an online digital media entertainment company. It owns several websites including Artistdirect.com, UBL.com and the Artistdirect Network...
, 2003 - In the Maybe WorldIn the Maybe WorldIn the Maybe World is the ninth release by folk musician Lisa Germano. It was released in 2006 through Young God Records.-Track listing:All songs written by Lisa Germano.# The Day# Too Much Space# Moon in Hell# Golden Cities# Into Oblivion...
(CD) - Young God RecordsYoung God RecordsYoung God Records is an independent record label formed by Michael Gira in 1990 that specializes in experimental, avant-garde and often non genre-specific releases...
- 2006 - Magic NeighborMagic NeighborMagic Neighbor is the tenth release by musician Lisa Germano. It was released in 2009 through Young God Records.-Track listing:All tracks composed by Lisa Germano; except where indicated# "Marypan"# "To the Mighty One"# "Simple"# "Kitty Train"...
(CD) - Young God RecordsYoung God RecordsYoung God Records is an independent record label formed by Michael Gira in 1990 that specializes in experimental, avant-garde and often non genre-specific releases...
- 2009
Germano released many singles in the 1990s, most all have music videos as well.
1993 - You Make Me Want To Wear Dresses
1994 - Puppet (Radio Promo Only)
1995 - Cry Wolf
1996 - Small Heads
1997 - I Love A Snot
1997 - Lovesick
1997 - Sand (With OP8)
Guest appearances
- The Lonesome JubileeThe Lonesome JubileeThe Lonesome Jubilee is the ninth album by American singer-songwriter John Mellencamp, credited as John Cougar Mellencamp. The album was released by Mercury Records on August 24, 1987 . Four singles were released from the album, the first two in 1987 and the last two in 1988.The album was one of...
- John MellencampJohn MellencampJohn Mellencamp, previously known by the stage names Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American rock singer-songwriter, musician, painter and occasional actor known for his catchy, populist brand of heartland rock that eschews synthesizers and other artificial sounds...
(1987) - Big DaddyBig Daddy (album)Big Daddy is the tenth studio album by American singer-songwriter and musician John Mellencamp, released in 1989 by Mercury Records. It was his last album to be released under the name John Cougar Mellencamp, a combination of his real name and his original stage name of Johnny Cougar...
- John MellencampJohn MellencampJohn Mellencamp, previously known by the stage names Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American rock singer-songwriter, musician, painter and occasional actor known for his catchy, populist brand of heartland rock that eschews synthesizers and other artificial sounds...
(1989) - Nomads Indians SaintsNomads Indians SaintsNomads Indians Saints is the third studio album by Indigo Girls. Originally released in 1990, it was remastered and re-released in 2000 with three additional tracks.-Track listing:#"Hammer and a Nail" – 3:50...
- Indigo GirlsIndigo GirlsThe Indigo Girls are an American folk rock music duo, consisting of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers. They met in elementary school and began performing together as high school students in Decatur, Georgia, part of the Atlanta metropolitan area...
(1990) - 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration - Bob DylanBob DylanBob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
(1993) - Beside You - Iggy PopIggy PopIggy Pop is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Though considered an innovator of punk rock, Pop's music has encompassed a number of styles over the years, including pop, metal, jazz and blues...
(1993) - In Flight - Linda PerryLinda PerryLinda Perry is an American rock musician, songwriter, and record producer. Once best known as the lead singer and primary songwriter of 4 Non Blondes, Perry has founded two record labels and has become a major songwriter and producer...
(1996) - Time and Love: The Music of Laura NyroTime and Love: The Music of Laura NyroTime and Love: The Music of Laura Nyro is a 1997 tribute album to Laura Nyro, recorded shortly after the singer-songwriter's death of ovarian cancer.Almost all of the artists recorded Nyro's songs...
- Various Artists (1997) - The Globe SessionsThe Globe SessionsThe Globe Sessions is the third studio album by American singer/songwriter Sheryl Crow, released in 1998 . It was nominated for Album of the Year, Best Rock Album and Best Engineered Non-Classical Album at the 1999 Grammys, winning the latter two awards...
- Sheryl CrowSheryl CrowSheryl Suzanne Crow is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, musician, and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, folk, hip hop, country and pop...
(1998) - Electro-Shock BluesElectro-Shock BluesElectro-Shock Blues is the second studio album by the band Eels, released on September 21, 1998 in the United Kingdom and October 20, 1998 in the United States.-Background and inspiration:...
- eelsEels (band)Eels is an American indie rock band formed by singer/songwriter Mark Oliver Everett, better known as E...
(1998) - Oh, What a Beautiful MorningOh, What a Beautiful MorningOh What a Beautiful Morning is a 2000 live album from Eels. It features highlights from the band's Daisies of the Galaxy tour, as well as several acoustic solo tracks recorded live at several concerts where E opened for Fiona Apple.-Track listing:...
- eelsEels (band)Eels is an American indie rock band formed by singer/songwriter Mark Oliver Everett, better known as E...
(2000) - Shootenanny!Shootenanny!Shootenanny! is a 2003 studio album by Eels. The name comes from a neologism coined by Eels front-man, Mark Oliver Everett, for "a social gathering at which participants engage in folk singing and sometimes dancing [a hootenanny], but mostly the shooting of guns.""Saturday Morning" was released...
- eelsEels (band)Eels is an American indie rock band formed by singer/songwriter Mark Oliver Everett, better known as E...
(2003) - 7 Worlds Collide7 Worlds Collide7 Worlds Collide is a musical project by New Zealand singer/songwriter, Neil Finn. The project brings together Finn and other musicians in support of charity....
- Neil FinnNeil FinnNeil Mullane Finn, OBE is a New Zealand Pop recording artist. Along with his brother Tim Finn, he was the co-frontman for Split Enz and is now frontman for Crowded House...
(2001) - Small Town City - Michael B. White (2001)
- L'Absente - Yann TiersenYann TiersenYann Tiersen is a musician from France. His musical career is split between studio albums, collaborations and film soundtracks with a distinctive sound that is always involved...
(2001) - Anna - Anna WaronkerAnna WaronkerAnna Jeanette Waronker is a singer/songwriter, composer, and producer best known as the former frontwoman of That Dog. She is the daughter of producer Lenny Waronker and actress/musician Donna Loren, the sister of session drummer Joey Waronker, and is married to Steven Shane McDonald of Redd...
(2002) - Heathen - David BowieDavid BowieDavid Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
(2002) - 0304 - JewelJewel (singer)Jewel Kilcher , professionally known as Jewel, is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, actress and poet...
(2003) - Strong Currents - Hector ZazouHector ZazouHector Zazou was a prolific French composer and record producer who worked with, produced, and collaborated with an international array of recording artists...
(2003) - "From a Shell" - from Underworld (soundtrack) (2003)
- Impossible DreamImpossible DreamImpossible Dream is Patty Griffin's fifth commercially released album, and fourth studio album. It was released on April 20, 2004. The album features an unlisted song - Griffin's mother and father singing "The Impossible Dream" - at the end of "Top of the World."Impossible Dream reached a peak of...
- Patty GriffinPatty GriffinPatty Griffin, born Patricia Jean Griffin, March 16, 1964, is an American Grammy award-winning singer-songwriter and musician. She is especially known for her down-home crafting of songs and her connection to musicians including Emmylou Harris, Ellis Paul, and the Dixie Chicks, who have played with...
(2004) - Want - Michael BrookMichael BrookMichael Brook is a Canadian guitarist, inventor, producer, and film music composer. He plays in many genres, including rock, electronica, world music, minimalism and film scores....
(2006) - Columbus Day film soundtrack - Michael A. LevineMichael A. LevineMichael A. Levine is an American composer born on 20 February 1964 in Tokyo, Japan, and currently based in Los Angeles.-Biography:His Concerto for Pedal Steel Guitar and Orchestra is believed to be the first concerto ever written for the pedal steel guitar...
(2008) - Magic - from The Bigtop (soundtrack) (2008)
- FamilialFamilial (album)Familial is the debut solo studio album by English musician Philip Selway, best known as the drummer of alternative rock band Radiohead. It was released on 30 August 2010 in the United Kingdom...
- Philip Selway (2010)
Covered
- Slide - by Adem "TakesTakesTakes is the third studio album by British singer/songwriter Adem. It is a covers album, consisting primarily of covers of 90s pop/alternative tracks.-Track listing:...
"(2008) - If I Think of Love - by LD & the New CriticismLD & the New CriticismLD & the New Criticism was an American experimental pop bandformed by songwriter/producer LD Beghtol. Designed by Beghtol to showcase his less dour songwriting efforts—and to be a highly portable, essentially 'live band,' unlike his other studio-based projects Flare and moth wranglers—the outfit...
, AMORAL CERTITUDES (Acuarela, 2007) - "Reptile" by El Nino, Galaxy Class (Ignition, 1999)