A World Without Heroes: Lisa Loeb

When I was growing up, I had a hard life. I don’t know if I can necessarily say that it was better or worse than anyone else’s. It was very hard for me, personally. It was very traumatic. There were not a lot of beautiful things in my life growing up. I had things that distracted me from the problems, chief among them were video games. As I started to get a little older, I began to get into music. One fateful day, I encountered this beautiful woman on the front cover of this very pink record, and it seriously changed my life.

Thank you, Lisa

I just wanted to take the opportunity to show off my autographs from Lisa Loeb and to tell her thanks again.

Review: Lisa Loeb: The Way It Really Is

The Way It Really Is is Lisa Loeb’s fifth studio album, not counting The Purple Tape. It felt like a particularly long wait for me, personally, between the last two records and this one, although it was only two or three years. For whatever reason, I remember that being a really long time. I remember really looking forward to this one, and wanting it really badly. It didn’t disappoint

Review: Lisa Loeb: Cake and Pie and Hello Lisa

Cake and Pie and Hello Lisa are often treated as if they are the same record. Lisa even mentions that Hello Lisa is a re-release of Cake and Pie in the line notes in her greatest hits record. They almost are. The two records only have a few unique tracks between the two, and were both released in the same year, 2002. I’m not entirely sure as to exactly why, but from what I understand, Cake and Pie wasn’t being promoted, and not selling like the label expected it to, so apparently, Lisa hopped labels and re-branded it as Hello Lisa making minor changes and additions.

The Tracks that appear on both records are identical to one another, in that they are the exact same versions, the exact same takes of the songs. There was originally an EP for Hello Lisa released that only had the new songs on it, but it seems to be so rare that I can’t even find any information about it.

As always Lisa’s lyric and vocal work is top notch. These two records really punch it up with the rock aspects of Lisa’s songwriting, too. They have fewer strings and less prevalent acoustics. You can tell as you listen to Lisa’s catalog that she continues to become more and more electric and straight rock; these records continue to support that fact.

They are both very good records. Each one has a little something that the other one doesn’t. The track lists are almost identical, though. In fact, if you aren’t a serious collector, since the EP either was never made, or is simply that rare, I may recommend skipping Hello Lisa in favor of Cake and Pie, and just download the additional tracks from the former. It’s similar to The Purple Tape if you own Tails and Firecracker. However in this case, the songs that appear on The Purple Tape are at least different versions of those that appear on the other two records.

Track List-Cake and Pie:

1. The Way it Really Is
2. Bring Me Up
3. Underdog
4. Everyday
5. Someone You Should Know
6. Drops Me Down
7. We Could Still Belong Together*
8. Kick Start*
9. You Don’t Know Me
10. Payback
11. Too Fast Driving*
12. She’s Falling Apart*

Track List-HelloLisa:

1. Did That*
2. Underdog
3. You Don’t Know Me
4. Drops Me Down
5. The Way It Really Is
6. Bring Me Up
7. What Am I Supposed To Say*
8. Everyday
9. Someone You Should Know
10. Payback
11. Take Me Back*

*Unique track

Review: Lisa Loeb: Firecracker

Firecracker Happens to be the first Lisa Loeb record that I was exposed to. To give a little background on this, I discovered Lisa Loeb accidentally. My cousin had this CD book that had a bunch of crappy bands in it. The only thing that looked interesting to me was this one by Lisa Loeb. It was because I thought that she looked good, and I had seen her in a magazine recently that she caught my attention. I listened to the record and instantly fell in love, I got him to make me a tape that day, and I damn near wore that tape out before I was able to go out and buy the record myself.

Review: Lisa Loeb: Tails

Tails was, after Stay, the world’s first look at Lisa Loeb as a musician. She had already been established for a little while, but Tails was really her entry into the world of mainstream musicians.

Review: The Purple Tape

The Purple Tape, was originally released in 1992 as an independently recorded and distributed by Lisa Loeb. It was originally only available as a cassette that you could purchase directly from her from her shows before she was signed. While technically a self titled album, the Purple Tape got it’s nickname from the very purple cover art.