Liz Phair will perform "Winter Wonderland" on NBC's televised lighting of the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree on Wednesday, December 3rd. The event will be televised for Tri-State area residents (NY/NJ/CT) only. [Thanks to the folks at LizPhair.com for the info.] |
You are invited to a Rolling Stone Private Concert Series show with Liz Phair! The event is Monday, December 15th at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City. Call 212.265.1191 to RSVP. (RSVP does not guarantee your admission, winners will be notified via phone.) Must be 21 or over to attend. CLICK HERE to view invite.
[Thanks to Brett Marlow and the folks at LizPhair.com for the info.]
Ken: How was the European tour?
Liz: Awesome. I saw my brother in Cologne for the first time in nearly a decade. He traveled with us to Amsterdam, where we ran into Dave Navarro and Jane's [Addiction]. We saw a private warm-up session in their trailor outside the venue and it freaked me out to see them play 'Been Caught Stealing' two feet away. Paris was the best for me, with my highschool French, I did interviews in half and half. My band called me the French Daredevil. Perfume. Duck. Cafe Marlee, with half my band in John Deer hats and Tats. Dino and I got lost on the way back in Place de la Bastille and nearly missed show. The audience smoking was so bad, I lost a whole vocal chord on song #3. Brussell's was hilarious. A "Federal Country" my ass was scandalous. The way I dressed had journalists telling me that if I walked around outside like that, people would think I was a whore. We had a blast one night in a fishery for dinner, along this semi-enclosed, cobblestone path that hawked to tourists and we got chocolate boxes at the hotel that the boys wolfed down and I had most of mine leftover, with little bites taken out from checking the flavor.
Amsterdam was fun, of course, but that night we spent in the hooka bar left Derek spacing from a cupcake he shouldn't have eaten, and the best joke Brett made was that the exit signs in green were really directions to the fourth dimension. Phil bought me a personal-sized lady bong, from which I smoked scooch of hash and drank a beer, following Mike's lofty example. The twins tried pot, which was a big deal at the time. Nothing happened of
course because they both dropped off into teenager sleep. We had fun at the airports. (At the gate, waiting for a flight, John McEnroe next to me. Giant front-of-house Mark in a kiddies rocket ride, bucking around, not fifteen feet from us. McEnroe didn't lift an eye.) I watched the guys push five carts of flight cases and gear through the airports like some kind of shopping cart race or MTV Real World 'how the stars fly.'
Ken: I just heard "Don't Apologize" from the Trampoline Records Greatest Hits Vol. 2. Are there any plans for more outtakes from the "Liz Phair" sessions to appear on more compilations?
Liz: I think for sure they'll come out, but I always get busier than I think and ideas get sidelined. Had a blast on stage at the L.A. Trampoline thing at the Knitting Factory. Saw Pete. Everybody was pushing the drinks. Mark Seliger and I had just shot together for Capitol campaign and we both felt giddy and peaked to be part of the scene. Romy was fabulous, as always. Doc, too.
Ken: Speaking of compilations, I just heard your rendition of "Winter Wonderland" on a Christmas CD. When did you record that and who did you work with (e.g. producer, musicians)?
Liz: Dino Meneghin conceived, arranged and inititially recorded in his hotel room, using change in his jeans pocket for high-hat, chest thump for bass drum and his own heavenly voice as a temporary 'mine'. Mike Buzzby came in later and professionally recorded the thing with Dino as musician and executive producer. All natural, intimate tones. Like a caroler at your door kind of thing. Vocals were me, in my house, the two knuckleheads out in the livingroom, behind closed doors, listening through headphones. Then we all three walked up and picked Nick up from school in the blinding California sunshine. Mike picked up an orange safety cone and started bellowing through it to Nick, like some Tom Green sketch, the lyrics to 'Why Can't I' and two dozen moms' heads whipped around and stared at us like who the fuck is this?
Ken: How was the Radio Music Awards? I saw your presentation with the actress from "Bend It Like Beckham".
Liz: Can I tell you how heartbroken I am not to remember her name? [NOTE: The actress's name in question is Parminder Nagra.] I feel like an ugly American. She was so spectacular. She had all the crew backstage bumping into each other. I love doing TV. For some reason I feel really comfortable out there. Talked business with Jewel. Michelle Branch rocked at soundcheck. P diddy's, Nelly's? Fitty cents? Chingy's? Dancers were amazing. Those women had me up in my seat, unable to stop moving.
Ken: Are you happy with how the new album has done / is doing?
Liz: I'm really happy with the slow, steady climb. It's just my pace. Things are going according to plan, and it feels great. The fans are amazing. Really heartwarming. I'm so lucky. Although, somebody tried to break off our bus license plate Friday night in Albequerque and it got caught later under the tires and could have killed us. Not really, but it got pretty serious in the morning when the tire locked and the friction caused the wheel well to crack in half along its entire axle ring. Hello!?! Keep your fuckin' hands off my bus!
Ken: Will you be recording any time soon?
Liz: We're recording now. Dino is fast mastering pro-tools skills and we've recorded 'Baby, it's Cold' with Wheat, and a new song of mine, called 'You' for the film Jersey Girl on the bus while we were touring.
Ken: Are you planning on trick or treating with your son? [NOTE: These questions were asked prior to Halloween, and I forgot that Liz was about to begin another tour.]
Liz: Wow. It's three days before Thanksgiving. I guess this is a little out of date. But he was Jango Fett and I was Padme Amidala in a hideous white suit that looked more like Albino La La from Teletubbies and was humiliating but Nick really wanted me to wear it. The things I'll do....
[A gracious "thank you" to Liz Phair for these answers / responses.]
"A studio expansion of Phair's homemade Girlysound cassettes, Exile's frank sex talk caused a stir. But it's the lacerating honesty of tracks such as "Divorce Song" that sticks, and "Fuck and Run" is one of the saddest songs ever written about dreaming of romance and settling for less."
[Thanks to Rolling Stone for the information.]
[Thanks to Brett Marlow for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to Jim and Brett Marlow for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to Jim for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to the folks at LizPhair.com for passing along this information.]
Liz Phair with Dino Meneghin at Sunrise Records in Toronto |
11-18-03: LIZ TORONTO IN-STORE REPORT
From ChartAttack: Liz Phair Mesmerizes Adoring Fanboys Indie rock lust object/emerging mainstream pop superstar Liz Phair treated her most loyal fans to a brief acoustic in-store performance at Toronto's Sunrise Records on Saturday, November 15, before playing at the Guvernment later that night. Phair played a bunch of songs off of her new self-titled album as well as old faves like "Fuck And Run" and "Polyester Bride". For the most part, it was a civilized affair, until Phair's bra strap began to slide down her shoulder and she cried out "I need someone to tighten my bra strap." Several dudes raised their hands and yelped "I'll do it!" Dream on, fellas, dream on. Photo and text by Elizabeth Chorney-Booth [Thanks to Elizabeth Chorney-Booth / ChartAttack for the report.] |
[Thanks to Kathy Boate for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to lizphair.com for passing along this information.]
To see pictures of Liz's appearance on BUZZ Sessions at Sun Studios, click here.
[Thanks to WMBZ-FM 94.1 The Buzz for passing along this information.]
The address:
TOWER RECORDS
15301 Ventura Blvd. P-16
Sherman Oaks, CA 91403
[Thanks to lizphair.com for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to lizphair.com for passing along this information.]
Tickets for the show go on sale Saturday (10/18) at 10AM through Ticketmaster and the Chicago Theatre Box Office.
A portion of the proceeds will benefit LaRabida Children’s Hospital.
For more information, visit the WTMX The Mix website.
[Thanks to Brett Marlow for passing along this information.]
The CD features Liz's live-on-the-radio performance of "Why Can't I". For more information, visit the Star 98.7 website.
[Thanks to Al Madrid for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to LizPhair.com for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to hk56 for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to a member of the Support System mailing list for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to atomick for the site and Steve Kisko for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to Fabrice for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to lizphair.com for passing along this information.]
For more information, visit the Rock Bodies website.
[Thanks to lizphair.com for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to Jason Long, Phillip Morton, and Liz Phair for passing along the info in their own way.]
[Thanks to lizphair.com for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to lizphair.com for passing along this information.]
Phair party sounds good
Singer Liz Phair is inviting 200 of her favorite Angelenos to a bash at the sound check Wednesday before her show at the Avalon Hollywood -- formerly the Palace. The swanky new nightclub boasts a $250,000, custom-designed, EAW sound system.
[Thanks to the Los Angeles Times for the info.]
[Thanks to Al Madrid for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to MagicAleX and Elizabeth Trevino for passing along this information.]
"'Extraordinary' speaks to me because I feel like in my life I've always struggled against being kind of the girl-next-door to people, and always wanting people to see me as maybe having more depth," Phair explained. "And fans are like, 'What are you talking about? We think you're extraordinary.' But in my life, I don't walk around as 'Liz Phair', I walk around as myself. And you know, people either respect me or they don't, but I'm looking for recognition for being able to be pleasant, nice, cute, and yet still deep, intelligent, whatever."
[Thanks to Corey Moss / Ritesh Gupta / MTV.com for the article and Brett Marlow for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to "surrender16" for the link.]
Here's the setlist from this exclusive performance:
The performance was similiar to the Good Morning, America appearance: Liz accompanied by guitarist Dino Menighen. And for those who care, Liz wore a green blousey tank top and a big belt and a very short mini denim skirt. Liz had son Nick with her.
[A tremendous thanks to William Rees for the detailed report.]
[Thanks to lizphair.com for the info.]
back to Liz Phair. just by rearranging two letters her name could be Lipz Hair. or Hiz Plair. either way. she has the hottest mouth in music. whether she's actually sticking her tongue down your throat or shoving her poetic anthems into your heart, or simply standing silently still with that top lip raised somewhat displaying those teeth that churn out ideas like some kind of mechanical crusher machine from a tim burton movie. maybe that cookie cutter from edward scissorhands. what a sexy film she is... i should go now. soundcheck is coming up and i've got to get rid of some h.w.c. all of a sudden. i'm making a mess in texas aren't i?
[Thanks to Phillip Morton for passing along this info.]
[Thanks to "Lizphairfan" for the link.]
Check your local listings or visit VH1's website for times/dates.
The concert will be held in New York City's Bryant Park (located on 42nd Street and Sixth Avenue) at 7 AM and is ABSOLUTELY FREE and NO RESERVATIONS ARE NEEDED. If you are in the area, drop by and support Liz!
[Thanks to Jeremy Bennington of Good Morning America for passing along this information.]
From Evan Katz:
I had the pleasure of catching Liz's Manhattan gig last night at the Bowery Ballroom.
Not surprisingly, the show was excellent! Liz really “mixed it up” with a variety of great songs from all of her albums. And her singing voice definitely is better and has more range since the last time that I saw her perform (about five years ago), and she sounded really great on a wide range of quiet and loud songs with both high and low ranges. For instance, her "Little Digger" was sung just beautifully. And Liz and the band really rocked on many songs (e.g., "Supernova"), and also had a few excellent semi-extended musical jams (e.g., "Divorce Song", "Johnny Feelgood"), which I and others really appreciated.
Also, it was fascinating to watch the very diverse crowd – which ranged from 20’s to 40’s, male and female, singles and couples – as many in the audience knew all or many of the words, and otherwise really related/connected to the songs and Liz. And, for her part, Liz definitely seemed more at ease with performing life and chatting with the audience. Particularly funny were her comments about having written a song about having a child before she had a child, having written a song about getting divorced before she got divorced, and how she therefore was going to now write a song about winning the lottery. It also was pretty cool when she pulled a girl out of the audience to do the second voice for “Flower”.
All in all, Liz's concert was very moving, both musically and lyrically, and clearly was enjoyed by a very diverse audience that shares a common bond for Liz and her music.
From James:
The crowd here was sufficiently older than at the concerts described by other list members (probably b/c it was sans Jason Mraz and 21+). Lots of preppy couples and pretty indie boys.
The opening act was Patrick Park from Denver, CO and was a great opener for Liz. Just some good, solid songwriting and an acoustic guitar.
When he left there was about forty-five minutes worth of guitar checking and rechecking and then the lights came down on us and up on the stage and suddenly there was Liz. Now let's say I was not prepared to fall under her spell. But my God, Liz holds an audience captive. She has turned into a true rock star in the best sense of the term. She was wearing black boots and a black see-through dress, with black panties underneath. She was also wearing a silver bracelet.
You cannot take your eyes off her! Mostly b/c she does not take her eyes off you. She made direct eye contact with me multiple times and winked once. But she was doing it to everyone. Just absolutely amazing how she manages to be so giving when performing. She did not seem nervous at all and was having the time of her life. But the most impressive part was her guitar playing. She extended many of the songs past their album ending point and simply jammed with the band. This was something I've never seen her do.
She played a decent mix of her four albums (though I hate that Whip-Smart always gets the shaft with only a one song representation).
When she first came out she mentioned that playing the Bowery was a "dream come true" b/c when she was writing Guyville she would often go there to listen to bands."
Before "Glory" she said "this is a song I wrote about Steve Albini"
She played a few notes of "Flower" and then invited a girl to sing backup with her. It was fun to watch. But I don't like that this has become a sing-a-long song. And this is the only bone of contention I had with the concert. All of Liz's songs are now sung with this giant smile and with such enthusiasm it's easy to forget this is not how the songs were originally written. "Flower" and "Fuck and Run" really are angry, funny, and rather grotesque and have to be heard with a certain level of intensity to get the full effect. But it's a small quibble.
She told the "lottery" intro again, which is just as stupid now as it was when I first heard it. Only this time someone yelled out. "You've already won the lottery" and she responded "The Happiness lottery, maybe."
For the encore she came out all by herself and played "Explain it to Me". She forgot a chord change at one part and everyone started to laugh. But this was a very moving rendition of the song. Probably the greatest moment of the evening. The band then came out but everyone in the audience started screaming for "Stratford-on-guy". She turned to the band and then turned back and said "okay, but this could prove disastrous" and she played it by herself.
After "Little Digger" she talked a little about her son and how much she misses him and how she spends her time on the bus reading Harry Potter.
So, anyway, I didn't have a problem with her backup band. They were very inconspicuous, which I think works, since the night should be all about Liz. Any guitar solos were done by Liz herself.
The only time she didn't play the guitar was on "Rock Me" and "Favorite". Both of the songs show their transparency live, though and don't seem to fit with the rest of the set. "Extraordinary" and "Red Light Fever" on the other hand are very powerful and could have easily been a Guyville tune if I didn't no better.
Okay, that's enough from me. The set list as best as I can remember is down below. And if you have any questions I'll do the best I can.
For those who want to see photographic evidence of the show, check out Jasper Coolidge's photographs.
[Thanks to Evan Katz for the show report and MAX for the link.]
WNBA |
08-10-03: "EXTRAORDINARY" AND THE WNBA
The WNBA have started to use Liz's "Extraordinary" in their television commercials to promote their league. [Thanks to Chris DeLisle for the info.] |
[Thanks to Steven M. for the information.]
[Thanks to Spencer Lewis for the info.]
[Thanks to Neil Barbour for the information.]
[Thanks to Erin for passing along this information.]
After the show, Liz revealed that "Don't Apologize" will be released on the upcoming Trampoline Records compilation due out in September. Trampoline is Pete Yorn's record label. After mentioning it she reiterated that it was a compilation that Yorn is putting out (a sort of roster, I suppose?).
[Thanks to Phillip Morton for the show report and thanks to Larry Sloan for the setlist.]
If you are over the age of 18 and live in the NYC area, email contest@hollywoodandvine.com with your NAME, MAILING ADDRESS, and PHONE NUMBER. The first 20 people in NYC with completed entries will receive a pair of tickets to the show. Transportation is not provided.
The concert will be taped on Thursday, August 14th and also features Jason Mraz and Maroon 5.
[Thanks to the folks at lizphair.com for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to Fabrice for the information.]
[Thanks to Jason Long for the information.]
Liz at Chicago Tower Records, July 9, 2003 |
08-03-03: BETTER LATE THAN NEVER - THE CHICAGO TOWER RECORDS SHOW REPORT
Here's some eyewitness reports from the Liz's appearance at Chicago's Tower Records back on July 9th: The setlist:
From Paul Jensen: Afterwards she signed autographs, and I got to gush about how fantastic I think she is, and how much her music means to me, and how much I love everything she's done, etc etc. She just stared up at me with these big green eyes, seeming a bit shocked (or perhaps frightened at my fanaticism) and said "Thank you. Thank you so much." I gave her hand a squeeze and walked away, my heart beating extremely fast.. It was a memorable day indeed. :) Her performance rocked. There was a request for "X-Ray Man", but Liz said she couldn't remember how to play that one, and how sometimes she'll listen to a song and think "How the heck did I write that one?" People were also begging for "Stratford-on-Guy", but she said her band didn't know how to play it. Well, we were happy with what we got, I think.
And here's a very detailed report from Janet: I can't believe only *one* other person from the list was there besides me. I haven't read the posts in about a week, and was looking forward to hearing what everyone else had to say but maybe there weren't that many of us there. So ... for those of you who couldn't make it -- here's a summary. I got there about two hours early. The store was empty and the employees were setting up a table and posters with Liz pix on them where she'd be to autograph stuff. I'm thinking -- oh my God, no one else showed up? I can't be the first one or only one here -- jeez the album is not that bad guys. So I buy my CD to be autographed and inquire as to where they are hiding the crowd the clerk tells me "out there" and points to the balcony. I'm thinking - thank God, that means others showed up. i just hope that there's not too many so that i cant get in - and head out to see the line. it's not too bad, about 30 people or so. the signs on the doors say that you could have started lining up at 9 am and i think - God i hope no one did, there aren't that many people here now and it's about 4. So I take my place in line and hear the person behind me say that 20 minutes ago there were less than 15 people here. highlights and observations from waiting in line: *while waiting in line i learn that many people there keep up with the news about Liz on ken's mesmerizing site and talk about how much they appreciate it and what a great guy and dedicated guy he must be. (i am not exaggerating and i kid you not. good for you, ken! *you* have fans! well, sort of... =) ) i concur that from only knowing him here, he is. *the line itself was extremely diverse - everything from punk rockers to teenage girls [who only knew "why cant i" - didn't recognize extraordinary but really liked that song the best of her set, by the way, but both bought exile to have autographed, (a good sign indeed, i thought)], to preppy looking folk, to alternative folk, to hippie type folk - you name it, it was represented. and all ages, races and socioeconomic backgrounds, too. it was amazing. there were people much older than me and much younger than me of both genders. i was really surprised. the woman behind me and i agreed that if you had to pick out random people in a crowd who "knew who Liz Phair is" neither of us would have picked out 98% of those folks. i don't know who i would pick out, but it was interesting to note the diversity. *i kept wondering how different this line experience would have been had it been even a few years ago. Would the wait have been longer? A different crowd? Why were the people who were in line in line to see Liz that day? *while in line, a camera crew came down the stairs and followed the line all the way down the block to the end of the line - it multiplied incredibly in that last hour of waiting. by now its about 20 minutes until its supposed to start and we are still standing outside. folks around me joked about the camera crew - look! she really does have fans! but it was weird how these three guys two with cameras just came by with no announcement or explanation. we wonder if they're making a movie or a commercial or what. about ten minutes or less later the crew comes back by and asks if the woman behind me and I are "really hard core Liz fans." (i had on my 2000 Liz Phest T-shirt by the way. not planned i just grabbed it that morning without even thinking.) "like, you could answer trivia questions?" the guy without the camera says. he looks like what i imagine a producer might look like - very la or what i imagine that means - very trendy looking and very motivated and enthusiastic. Sure, I say and the woman behind me (almost too enthusiastically) says that we can. They ask if they can ask us questions on film and we say sure. I am frantically pulling up all of the Liz info i can muster in my brain. (i do not mean to sound pompous, but i do know a lot about Liz, having been on this list for years now, and a lot more than the people around me knew about her I later learned. but I'm freaking out because i don't know who these guys are or what this is for.) anyway, the point is, it made me really nervous trying to anticipate what they were going to ask. so they pull us out of line - sort of - clear the people around us a bit might be more accurate - and start rolling on both cameras from either side of us. the non-camera guy enthusiastically asks - so what do you think of the new album? the woman next to me says that she doesn't really like it but she guesses that its OK. the non camera guy makes a face. wrong answer, honey. i am thinking that if these guys are here to do a story on Liz this isn't the press that she needs, so i say - she set out to do a pop record and was really successful at it. it's a great album. then the guy asks so why do you like Liz Phair? (uhhhhh... how do you answer that? i don't know that i can answer that in a ten page paper much less a ten second sound clip with a camera stuck in my face and no forewarning.) the woman next to me starts saying that she has great lyrics. she's really insightful i add, and then the woman says - yeah, and she's the only woman on the planet I'd fuck. the interviewer guy makes a face again. oh - you guys probably cant use that, can you? she asks. i am mortified. i love Liz's music, have been a huge fan for years, and now i am frozen and can't say a word. their reaction to her response about not liking the new album and now this was obviously not the responses they were hoping for. the guys decides to finish up now and move on. i feel like a complete idiot i don't know what to say. i don't even know if they are still recording and i could say anything to help this situation out. so the guys say thanks for letting us interview you and ask us to record releasees for them to use these clips any time in any way shape or form forever. the camera guy tells me taht they want to use these to put on her website soon. now i really feel like an idiot it's over? that's it? he was kidding about the trivia? I'd have done better with those questions. and that's the best responses that i could muster to support Liz on her website? oh geez. i am so sorry that i couldn't be more supportive of Liz's new project or be more insightful about why i love Liz Phair. it happened so fast and i just froze. how awful. maybe if it had been done separately it would have been better - without having to react to and interrupt someone else's answers. oh well. they went on and interviewed at least one other guy behind us before heading in to the store. i hope that his interview went better than ours did. So the line moves through the store, winds around and then ends up in this side room where the racks have been pushed back and a stage has been put up. We get raffle tickets as we enter. Of course, the first three rows ahead of me are guys and women who are all taller than me. I'm 5 2. The teenage girls and other folks directly behind me are really short too. Someone from the back asks if everyone can sit down and the people in front either don't hear or just ignore him. We wait while Liz's record plays. (actually, when Liz came on stage someone asked her to have us all sit down too, and she said that she sympathized because she's short too, but left it at that.) she comes in with two younger looking guys, who i think both played guitar - i don't know, i couldn't really see. she had on a purplish top, green skirt and sparkly silver high heeled shoes. (how she stood the whole performance and signing in those, i don't know. go Liz.) she needed a pick to start, and one guy in the audience had one that he gave to her which she did use. the tower guy had announced before she started that she would only play 6 songs, and that we would be allowed to only take pix during the first three. as it turns out - she played 6 and then "felt another one coming on" at the end and played seven. and people took pix the whole time. i was able to get a pix at the beginning - see it attached to the next email - because the tall people in front, although they did not move so that the short people could see - did take the cameras we passed up and took pictures for us so that we could see what she looked like later. That was very nice of them. The camera crew guys were there when we came in, too and filmed the whole set from right up front. The guy ahead of me said that one of the camera crew guys said that we should look for this soon to be broadcast on her website. (I didn't hear that directly myself, so I don't know how true that is. Ken, do you know?) The other interesting thing to note -- that Liz joked about herself -- was that she changed all of the "bad" words from her songs. Instead of (supernova) you fuck like a volcano -- you're hot like a volcano; instead of (why cant I) we haven't fucked yet -- we haven't done it yet; etc. In-between songs she was trying to kill time while the other guy tuned her guitar and she started to sing "everytime i see your face..no i cant sing that. we have 'wee ones' here. come to the metro shows and it will be different". someone yelled to ask her why she was signing g rated lyrics and she said that she has lots of substitute lyrics for her songs for when she has to clean them up. someone near me thought maybe it had something to do with the filming crew, too. The only "bad" words that she sang were damn and hell. It was interesting but weird to hear her songs all so g rated. Look at the set list again and think about it. Afterwards they called out our raffle ticket numbers to line us up for autographs. One item per person, you can take pix of Liz but no pictures with Liz are allowed. We all get in line and Liz looks great and looks happy. The people around me are amazed that I drove six hours to see her and know the answers to all of their trivia questions about Liz. (They aren't hard questions, these are not 6'1"/S-S listers, where are you guys? is all I can think.). And 12 hours round trip in one day isn't that far. I've traveled by car or plane to see her in MN, OH, MI, IL, IN, lots of places, and most more than 6 hours. I think that's pretty normal for most of us here -- and many have come much farther than that to see her at least once in the last decade, I know. So I'm feeling like a fish out of water or at least a fish in the water but not with my correct school of fish. We finally get up to Liz and it was nice to see her look so happy like she was having fun. I did get my picture taken with her (yay) and told her thanks. the guy behind me comes up and says "tell her how far you came". I'm already walking away. no, its no big deal I say. how embarrassing! he says she drove 6 hours to see you! to Liz and she hollers over to me - aww, honey! was it worth it? absolutely! i say back. absolutely Liz! thanks! i am still embarrassed - because I was already to the door - but it was sweet of her to be so sincere and she appeared to be sincere about the appreciateiveness too. I have to say that Liz seems to always handle everything well and I appreciate how accessible and friendly she has always made herself to us in these situations. How many stories have been posted to this list about how she hung out with fans or talked with them after before or during her shows. I am sure that there are "bigger" stars that have fans that do more outlandish things than we do and probably with less or no acknowledgment or appreciation. I wanted to go find the camera crew and tell them that, but they appeared to be gone already. too bad. It was great to see Liz perform and meet Liz again. And it was a great set. Her voice sounded truly beautiful. I kept thinking during the show how different it sounds now compared to when i saw her back in the mid 90's and even during the wcse - lillith - college tours. she seems so confident and her voice has smoothed out - if i had never heard her before this performance i would have been really impressed with her vocal talents and presence. i know many have criticized the glossy sound and production on these new songs but her voice really sounds that good live, too. it's an authentic, beautiful singing voice. i know some love exile for her voice there, and i love that its rough cuz i cant sing and i can sound OK singing it when i sing along. but good for her. if a better voice is what she wants i think she has done a great job achieving it. it really sounded great. [Thanks to Paul Jensen for the pictures and report, and thanks to Janet for the detailed report.] |
Liz and the g series from Cole Haan |
07-30-03: LIZ - COLE HAAN SPOKESPERSON
Liz is now a spokesperson for the Cole Haan -- in particular, their g series line of boots. See the advertisement in the September issue of Jane. [Thanks to Valerie for forwarding me this information.] |
[Thanks to KZHT-FM for the information.]
Liz goes on at 10:15 PM.
After "Mesmerizing", she mentioned this little tidbit: "Someone asked me what is that sound at the end of the song on the record. It was Casey holding a dog by its neck up to a mic. No, not me..."
Liz decided to add "Help Me Mary" at the spur of the moment -- the shouts of requests from the audience egged her on.
Liz and guitarist Dino Menighen were changing guitars almost every song. Liz asked the audience to give the guitar guy Mike a big hand for running back and forth with the guitars. "We gotta change the setlist," Liz remarked in terms of the use of guitars.
Someone requested "Jeremy Engle", to which she said, "Hey, that's a new one."
Another comment I remember her saying was something like, "I've written so many songs... the problem is trying to remember how to play them!"
The band leaves the stage at 11:15PM, but come back immediately, because Liz doesn't want us to wait around. The band is joined on stage by Rami Jaffee from the Wallflowers (who played the Fillmore the night before) on keyboards, because, according to Liz, "he can't resist playing on a dirty song."
Her comment about "H.W.C." - "If ya can't do it in San Francisco, where can ya do it? Not Charlottesville, Virginia, I'll tell ya that!"
The band leaves the stage at 11:25 PM. The stage hands are putting away instruments and amps, but the crowd is cheering for Liz to come out again, and she obliges. The second encore is just Liz.
The show finally ends at 11:35PM.
[Thanks to John Kim, Robert Joyner, and Michael for their assistance.]
Shoptalk: Exile in Deutschville
Ad execs combing the liner notes of Liz Phair's new album will find a familiar name among the thank you's: Eric Hirshberg.
It turns out the Deutsch/LA executive creative director's musical interests extend beyond soundtracks for Mitsubishi ads. A "closet songwriter," Hirshberg says he became friends with Phair after the indie-turned-commercial pop queen purchased some art at his wife's gallery in Los Angeles, where Phair now resides after moving from Chicago a few years ago. "We hit it off right away because we share the songwriting thing," says Hirshberg, who's been penning his own compositions since he was 15. "I've been a huge fan of hers." Hirshberg says he's given Phair feedback on some of her works in progress, and Phair has returned the favor, offering her thoughts on some songs Hirshberg is putting together for a CD of his own--a process he likened to "getting tips on my jump shot from Michael Jordan."
While some critics and fans have rued Phair's foray into mainstream pop on Liz Phair, Hirshberg says she's staying true to herself. "She wanted to make an unapologetically commercial album," he says. "I think she's done that and managed to maintain her artistic voice." There's no word on whether a Phair tune might show up in a Mitsubishi spot anytime soon.
-- Tim Nudd
[Thanks to Tim Nudd / AdWeek.com for the article.]
That confidence would be severely tested in a couple of weeks with the release of Liz Phair's album. If the Matrix presided at the birth of a star with [Avril] Lavigne, it would soon be accused of assisting in the career suicide of the indie-rock heroine.
"Embarrassing" and "desperate" were the keynote words in several vehemently negative reviews of Liz Phair. The album's four collaborations between the Matrix and the singer-songwriter took special abuse in screeds accusing Phair of betraying her fans and her artistry.
"I think the criticism's mainly coming from the point of view that she's kind of abandoned her fan base and moved on to a different area," [Graham] Edwards said after the dust had started to settle. "I think that's a little unfair, because she's allowed to change."
"It's an artistic statement to be able to do something lighter," [Lauren] Christy added. "Liz was saying when she came in to us she'd just come out of a really bad relationship Her marriage had broken up; she'd been in the bummer tent for too long. These songs we did were reflective of where she was at, just wanting to lighten up a bit.
"She knew she'd be criticized, but she loved it. She kept saying to me, 'I know I'm gonna be in trouble for this, but I'm just blasting this stuff in my car and singing along to it, and I love it. I'm proud of it.'"
Their success since then makes it easier to laugh off the criticism — they've even hung up a framed copy of a headline calling them "three soulless droids" — but inevitably, the urge for vindication emerges.
"We don't want to be portrayed as 'Oh, those guys just run a sausage factory over there,' 'cause we really don't," [Scott] Spock says. "We really write from our hearts. We don't consciously think, 'What have we got to do to get this band on the radio?' We just try to do the best we can and write songs."
"It's really hard to say we know what a hit song is or what Liz Phair needed to be a hit," Christy says. "All we know is that the three of us have a sort of a vibe and we feed off each other, and we kind of like what each other does. We don't say we know what will become a hit. We just trust our instincts."
"We like to think of ourselves as we've got this magnifying glass," Spock adds, "and when an artist comes in, we try to take all the cool parts of what they're known for and just magnify them so it's more appealing for the masses to grab a piece of."
"I think I know who the real guys are I'm not easily fooled on who's good," the L.A.-based Englishman [Sandy Roberton] says. "The Matrix are not manufacturing people. They really are songwriters who people come to to get a hit. They can write for American radio. If you're in the pop business, you want records that people want to play and hear."
That includes Phair, who may be taking heat for her decision but also is hearing her song on the radio.
"I've got to say, for all the criticism she's had, she went straight into the album charts at 27," Edwards says. "She's never been that high with any of her records, so people are buying it and wanting to listen to it."
[Thanks to Richard Cromelin / Los Angeles Times for the article and Al Madrid for mentioning it.]
[Thanks to WTMX-FM for taking pictures of the event and Steve Kisko for providing the link.]
Jason Mraz Psyched To Tour With Liz Phair
(7/8/03, 6 p.m. ET) -- Jason Mraz is psyched he got the call to co-headline a tour with Liz Phair. Mraz says "Playing shows with artists like Liz Phair, someone who I've admired artistically for years, is such a treat. I have to pinch myself sometimes to make sure it isn't all a dream."
The "Remedy" singer adds that "as great as Dave Matthews and John Popper and some of the other guys I've played with are, you've got to admit that Liz is much prettier."
Next up for the singer is a headlining gig at the Crest Theatre in Sacramento on July 23. He'll then be opening for Alanis Morissette on July 26 in Costa Mesa, California.
Mraz's co-headlining stint with Liz Phair begins July 30 at the Paramount Theatre in Denver.
Mraz recently completed a mini-tour of Australia.
[Thanks to Yahoo! LAUNCH for the article.]
[Thanks to the folks on the Support System mailing list for the info.]
If you just want to see his pictures from the show, plus a short video of Liz having fun with "Flower", click here.
My apologies for taking so long to post this. I've been overwhelmed by Liz's publicity tour...
[Special thanks to Wes for the links.]
Eric Ferguson and Kathy Hart will host a special live performance by Liz Phair at a private studio session from the House of Blues at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, July 8th on WTMX-FM (101.9).
[Thanks to Robert Joyner for this information.]
Liz iTunes |
07-01-03: EXCLUSIVE LIZ SONG ON APPLE iTUNES MUSIC STORE
Well, Mac users have been having problems with the comeandgetit EP (e.g. downloading and burning a CD copy). But Mac users will be pleased to learn of an exclusive track on the iTunes music store called "Insanity". I don't have details about the song yet (e.g. songwriting and production credits), but according to the iTunes site, "the previously unreleased track 'Insanity' was recorded during Liz's recent studio sessions. 'Insanity' is about lost love, and is one of Liz's personal favorites." Liz was a spokesperson for the iMac a few years ago... [Thanks to Michael for this information.] |
Fans who purchased a copy of Liz Phair's new self-titled Capitol album can download an exclusive EP titled comeandgetit from a secure site. The five-track EP is available as a single download from a secure section of Phair's official Web site, which will be unlocked when a purchased copy of Liz Phair is inserted into the computer's CD-ROM drive.
The EP comprises five unreleased tracks recorded during the sessions for "Liz Phair" -- "Jeremy Engle," "Bouncer's Conversation," "Fine Again," "Hurricane Cindy" and "Shallow Opportunities" -- but the artist says that the new tracks are much more stripped-down and informal than the polished album.
"I'm really excited about this," she said in a statement. "The songs on the EP have a totally different vibe from the record and show a different side of my song writing which will be familiar to old fans whose support has meant a lot to me over the years and hopefully will draw new fans deeper into my music."
-- Troy Carpenter, N.Y.
[Thanks to Billboard.com / Troy Carpenter for the report and to Jason Long for passing along this information.]
[Thanks to Matt for this information.]
The first song and a half were aired on ABC.
Here is an account of the show from Jim Z.:
M'wife and I went for a cheap friday night date. Good fun. I love living in L.A!
It sounded very good from where we were (10 feet away right in front of Liz in a converted parking lot in back of the El Capitan theater). She looked _great_ actually... Anyhow, whatever the reason, she had great energy for the show, and was very outgoing with the crowd. In fact, the warm-up comic had to shut her up from some of her banter at one point in order to announce countdowns, etc.
[Regarding Liz doing a pyramid] It was the band under her, her on top, for the interstitial. It took them a good 5 minutes to get it together, during Jimmy's interview with the Irish guy. Liz at one point mugged a bit and pointed at the band trying to form the first 2 pyramid layers and said "This is gonna happen!" It was a cute moment. Then she climbe atop them and threw her arms up just in the nick of time for the break. What a sport. I wonder if her agent or manager or whatever negotiated something extra for that little stunt.
Naw, Liz was not telling anyone to cheer. But she sure seemed to love the adoration. There was a lame-ass warm-up comic who was prodding the audience to cheer and, as he put it, "go fucking' nuts!" when we went to camera. If you've ever been to a taping, you'll know that his is standard operating procedure. It's hard to keep the energy level up with so much down time between takes. Our crowd for this Liz thing was standing outside in the horrid L.A. conditions (a mild 70-degree evening with a slight breeze...) for about 2 hours before Liz played, so things get a little sluggish. Once the band came out, though, the crowd definitely perked up. She signed a lot of autographs before she went on, which was a kind gesture. And some guy asked for her pick before she went on, and after she'd finished playing she actually climbed down off the stage to hand it to him.
Seriously, I had no idea! She finished Supernova live, of course. She then went on to play Extraordinary and Divorce Song (unexpurgated, as no tape was rolling). The backup singer was embrassed at the end of Extraordinary because she didn't really know the song and messed it up a bit. She left the stage for Divorce Song. Notwithstanding the glitches it was a great set. Divorce song really rocked, which at first seems a bit odd, but following Extraordinary it made sense, and it actually sounded great. Very electric guitar, and played at a brisk pace. Breakneck, even.
She seemed nervous at first, and defintely before they played, but once she got into it, she got the groove and it was all good. Seemed like she had a great time. I know I did!
[Thanks to the Jesse and Jim Z. for their audience accounts of the show.]
[Thanks to the Lauren for forwarding me this information.]
[Thanks to the folks over at lizphair.com for this information.]
[Thanks to the folks over at lizphair.com for this information.]
The CD includes access to a weblink to an exclusive EP. That EP would be COMEANDGETIT. Here is the tracklisting:
All songs written by Liz Phair. Tracks 1-3 Produced by Michael Penn / Mixed by Mike Shipley. Track 4 Produced by Liz Phair / Mixed by Howard Willing. Track 5 Demo.
My gripe: What's the point of having artwork for this "CD" if you can't burn a CD with the audio file that's COPY PROTECTED? Someone give me an answer to this one...
[Michael] Penn's other recent projects include producing much of the new Liz Phair album. He originally did the whole album, but several tracks went by the wayside when Phair later teamed up with pop hit-makers the Matrix (Avril Lavigne, Britney Spears). "We tried so hard to make an inexpensive record, pulling favors for very little money," Penn says. "I guess when she got some extra dough, she decided to write with the Matrix. I didn't know if any of my stuff was actually going to survive."
"Liz is so wonderfully perverse," Penn continues. "I think she looks at working with the Matrix as like a performance art project, and they are remarkably good at what they do. It might have bothered me if she had gone with somebody more like me, but this is apples and oranges."
Colin Devenish
You can actually buy tickets online at lizphair.com or at Liz Phair Direct Ticketing. This allows you to buy tickets online, directly from the artist for upcoming shows, in an effort to reduce the high surcharges from other online ticket vendors, and to offer a more convenient ticketing option.
[Thanks to the folks over at lizphair.com for the information.]
[Thanks to the folks over at lizphair.com for the information.]
[Thanks to Stacey Wirt for the information.]
[Thanks to the folks over at lizphair.com for the information.]
[Thanks to Al Madrid for the info.]
Blow-Up! DVD |
06-07-03: THE NEW LIZ PHAIR VIDEOS: "WHY CAN'T I?" AND "EXTRAORDINARY"
VH1 has added Liz's "Why Can't I?" video to their playlist. The video will start airing the week of June 16th. As for the video for "Extraordinary", it will appear on the Capitol Records DVD release Blow-Up!. The release date for this DVD is June 10th, and it will be available only to independent music stores. Other acts on the DVD include Radiohead, Coldplay, The Dandy Warhols, and The Vines. [Thanks to Cana for the DVD info, the folks over at lizphair.com for the VH1 info, and to Liz Phair for the video info.] |
Liz's printed set read:
However, after "Johnny Feelgood", she abandoned the set to play the following:
The guitarist/keyboardist for the Starlight Mints was on Liz's left and played bass and did the keyboards for "Perfect World". She referred to "Extraordinary" as "the song they didn't pick for the single" and dedicated "Hot White Cum" to Pete Yorn, who was supposedly in the audience (he was opening for the Foo Fighters at a venue down the street the next night).
She also said that the audience was "chaos" and that she was waiting for the clean version of her album to come out so she could send it to her mom. Her set was brief, but excellent.
[Thanks to Sean Cone for the report.]
Liz on KBCO. |
06-04-03: LIZ POPS UP ON KBCO-FM, BOULDER, COLORADO
Liz and her accompanying guitarist Dino Menighen dropped by KBCO 97.3 FM, Boulder, Colorado. She played a few songs and chatted. [Did anyone tape this? If any kind soul could get me a copy of this, I'd really appreciate it!] Expect a track from this performance to appear on an upcoming KBCO Studio C compilation. Visit KBCO's website for details. [Thanks to KBCO-FM / WireImage for the pictures.] |