An Introduction
Few artists have captivated me the way the music of Lisa Germano has. I discovered her sometime in the early 90s, around the time Happiness was released. Her name had come up at least once or twice in the articles I had read at the time, but I knew next to nothing about her.
Although I can’t quite remember for certain, I want to say that the Capitol version of Happiness was my first real exposure to Lisa’s music. “Bad Attitude” was certainly the first song I remember listening to and I was immediately struck by the mood the music created and Lisa’s distinctive vocals. The song was hazy, dreamy, and a little eerie. But there was this pinch of lyrical sarcasm that really caught me off guard. It was unexpected, but became one of my favorites things about her songwriting. It was such a great song to be introduced to and I feel its a solid representation of her unique approach to music.
After Happiness, I slowly began building my Lisa Germano collection, but it took awhile. I didn’t immediately gravitate to Geek the Girl the way the critics seemed to. It’s often hailed as her masterpiece, but considering the breadth of her work, and there were some beautiful songs to be found, but I didn’t necessarily find it easy end-to-end listening experience. But when Excerpts From a Love Circus came out, I was immediately sucked back in.
Lisa’s catalog is rather substantial for someone who has largely remained on the periphery of more mainstream recognition. Music critics have lauded nearly all of her releases even if they’ve not been commercially successful. When I think about why she hasn’t had the same level of commercial success as other artists, I pinpoint it to two things: the first is that her beginnings as a touring musician with John Mellencamp created an assumption and unfortunate comparison to his brand of rootsy rock, setting an expectation that Lisa’s music must be a natural spin-off. That is one of the reasons Capitol Records and Lisa weren’t the best pairing when releasing the first version of Happiness.
The second, and perhaps more relevant reason is, that her music is unabashedly honest. Lisa’s songs are unflinchingly vulnerable, often dark, and well, sometimes just plain strange. In the mid-90s, when there was an undeniable surge of female artists getting signed by every record company out there, and the Lilith Fair onslaught was impending, Lisa was likely a very challenging artist to market appropriately to the right audience. Even within 4AD’s roster and penchant for cultivating unique artists, she sort of fell under most people’s radar.
But the irony of Lisa’s consistent and unapologetic approach to her music is that her connection with Mellencamp and her near-endless contributions to other artist’s music has created a dual career for her that many musicians only dream about. After the release of Slide and parting ways with 4AD, it allowed her to write and record without the traditional pressures of the music industry, all while still regularly touring or playing for others to earn a paycheck. I’d even argue that some of her best music has been released since that period (Lullaby for Liquid Pig is a personal favorite).
It’s been 13 years since Lisa’s last album, No Elephants, with no signals of new music on the horizon. Her official site is gone and she doesn’t really have a public social presence. After years of living in Los Angeles, she relocated back to Indiana to care for her late mother, where she now resides today.
Last year, she surprised fans by reuniting with John Mellencamp on his latest tour, but hasn’t made any announcements about her own music career going forward.
My aim for this site is to not only have it serve as an archive of her impressive career, but also to introduce Lisa’s music to new listeners who might be discovering her for the first time.
I hope you enjoy.
Robbie
