| Liz Phair is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. |
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BORN: April 17, 1967, New Haven, CT
Liz Phair (full name: Elizabeth Clark Phair) was born April 17, 1967, and adopted in New Haven, Connecticut. She grew up in Winnetka, IL (a suburb of Chicago) with her father, Dr. John Phair, mother, Nancy Phair, and her brother, Philip. Liz attended New Trier High School in Winnetka and later attended Oberlin College in Ohio. She majored in Art History/Studio Art and graduated in 1989. After graduation, Liz and three of her classmates moved to San Francisco. Here Liz supported herself by making Charcoal drawings. When Liz returned to Chicago, she began to make some demo tapes on the dare of a friend who was impressed with her playing. The resulting demos (three cassettes containing a total of 32 songs) were dubbed the Girlysound tapes. Liz originally made two copies, and gave one to Chris Brokaw (the friend who convinced her to make the tapes) and one to Tae Won Yu. They each made copies and gave them to friends. John Henderson, who runs the Chicago indie record label Feel Good All Over, got ahold of the tapes and offered to re-record some of the songs with Brad Wood. Nothing ever became of these recording sessions (save two collaborations with the band Ashtray Boy) because Henderson and Liz had a falling out over the manner in which the songs should be recorded. Liz continued working with Brad Wood and in 1992 sent a tape that had six songs on it to Matador Records. She was signed for two albums and an EP. Liz immediately started work on her first album, Exile in Guyville. The name comes partly from the Rolling Stones album, Exile in Mainstreet, but the term guyville refers to the male-dominated indie music scene. Liz's debut album, Exile in Guyville, got a lot of good reviews, and it is considered one of the 200 essential albums by Rolling Stone. In 1994, Liz released her second album, Whip-smart. This album was released to a lot of bad reviews. Many critics considered it a flop, but many of her fans enjoy the album very much. In 1995, Liz married Jim Staskausas, and had their first child, Nick, on December 21, 1996. Liz resides in Chicago with her Jim, Nick, and Jim's teenaged son, Aidan. In August of 1998, after four years, Liz released her third album, whitechocolatespaceegg. She toured with the Lilith Fair in the summer of 1998 to support the album, and then began a national tour in September. Liz Phair Biography 2 Growing out of the American underground of the late '80s, Liz Phair fused lo-fi indie rock production techniques and styles with the sensibility and structure of classic singer/songwriters. Exile in Guyville, Phair's debut album, was enthusiastically praised upon its 1993 release and spawned a rash of imitators, particularly American female singer/songwriters, over the following years. For her part, Phair wasn't able to break into the mainstream, even with the support of the press and MTV. Whip-Smart, her second album, was heavily promoted upon its 1994 release, yet despite its relatively strong chart positions, it was viewed as a disappointment and Phair's momentum declined steadily during the mid-'90s, as she took several years to record her third album. Phair (born April 17, 1967) was born in New Haven, CT, and adopted by wealthy parents, who raised her in the Chicago suburb Winnetka. After high school, she studied art at Oberlin College in Ohio. At Oberlin, she became fascinated with underground indie rock and eventually became friends with guitarist Chris Brokaw, who later joined Come. Following their college graduation, Phair and Brokaw moved to San Francisco, where she tried to become an artist. Eventually, Brokaw moved out east and Phair moved back to Chicago, where she began writing songs. Soon, she began releasing homemade tapes of these songs under the name Girlysound. While she supported herself by selling her charcoal drawings on the streets of Wicker Park, she was becoming involved in various portions of the Chicago alternative music scene; in particular, she became friends with Urge Overkill, a drummer named Brad Wood, and John Henderson, the head of the Chicago-based indie label Feel Good All Over. Henderson and Phair tried to re-record some of the Girlysound tapes with Wood, yet the pair had a falling out during the sessions, leaving Wood as Phair's only collaborator. Brokaw, who had by then joined Come, was still receiving Girlysound tapes and he gave a copy to Gerard Cosley, the head of Come's record label, Matador. By the summer of 1992, Matador had signed Phair and she began recording her debut album in earnest. Adapting its title from an Urge Overkill song, Exile in Guyville, her debut album, was released to strong reviews in the summer of 1993. Many articles focused on Phair's claim that the double album was structured as a response to the Rolling Stones' classic Exile on Main St. Over the course of the year, the record slowly built a dedicated following in America, both among critics and alternative rock fans. At the end of the year, it topped many Best of the Year critics polls, including The Village Voice and Spin. With all the attention focused on Phair, many indie rock figures -- particularly members of the Chicago noise rock scene such as Steve Albini -- were developing a resentment toward her and launching an attack at the singer and the heavy media attention Exile in Guyville received. The criticism couldn't halt the progress of Phair and Exile, and in early 1994 she launched her first tour, which was plagued by her stage fright. Around the same time, MTV began airing "Never Said" and, as a result of all the hype, the album briefly appeared in the charts in February. By the spring of 1994 it had sold over 200,000 copies -- a remarkable number for an independent release. By that time, Phair had begun work on her follow-up record. Matador had signed a distribution deal with Atlantic Records in 1994, and her second album was going to be one of the first to be heavily promoted by the alliance. Indeed, Whip-Smart was released to a whirlwind of media attention -- including Phair, dressed only in negligee, on the cover of Rolling Stone -- and debuted at number 27 upon its fall 1994 release. "Supernova," the first single from the album, received heavy airplay on MTV and alternative rock radio, becoming a Top Ten modern rock hit. However, Whip-Smart received mediocre reviews and never developed into the hit that it was expected to be. Phair didn't tour to support the album and was slow to deliver a second single. By the time the title track was released as a single in the spring of 1995, the album had disappeared from the charts. Phair quietly retreated from the spotlight during 1995, marrying Jim Staskausas, a Chicago-based film editor who had previously worked on Phair's videos. Later in the summer of 1995, she released the Juvenilia EP, which was essentially the "Jealousy" single amplified with the first official release of Girlysound material. During the summer of 1996, she released "Rocket Boy," a single pulled from the Stealing Beauty soundtrack that received little attention. For much of 1996, Phair worked on her third album with producer Scott Litt, yet by the fall, she decided to scrap the sessions, unsatisfied with their sound. Toward the end of 1996, Staskausas and Phair announced she was several months pregnant. On December 21, 1996, Phair gave birth to her first child, James Nicholas Staskausas. Her long-delayed, much-anticipated third LP, whitechocolatespaceegg, finally appeared in mid-1998. Five years later, Phair returned with a self-titled effort. Liz Phair, which appeared in June 2003, found singer/songwriter Michael Penn and the Matrix in the production seat as well as Phair herself. Jimmy Chamberlin, Wendy Melvoin, and Pete Yorn also contributed to Phair's newly slick sound. When Liz Phair finally appeared in June 2003, it was panned by purist rock critics and militant Liz nerds who felt she'd sold them out with the record's pop star sensibilities. But Phair stood up for her work in typcally brash fashion - sometimes it seemed like she even invited the fan boy ridicule - and the album was a decent hit for her behind its single "Why Can't I", peaking at #27 on the Billboard 200. The quieter Somebody's Miracle appeared in fall 2005. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide One of modern rocks most cherished artists, credited with everything from Alanis Morissette to my love life, Liz Phair returns triumphantly to the world of music with her first new album since 1994s half-million-selling Whip-Smart. whitechocolatespaceegg is at once her most interesting and assured record, full of all the candor, insight, and chunky riffage youve come to expect, along with some surprises. Produced in separate but equal parts by Liz herself, Scott Litt (REM), and Brad Wood (the previous two Liz albums), whitechocolatespaceegg is something of a leap from the homespun intimacy of her other work. Its sweeping sound is fleshed out with liberal use of keyboards and organ, ranging from the sultry shimmy of the title track to Polyester Bride, perhaps Lizs first perfect pop song. The lyrics, too, run the gamut from the conversational ramble for which she is perhaps best known (What Makes You Happy) to a less literal, more oblique approach (Big Tall Man). Fans of her honest, brash sexuality will of course be thrilled by hits like Johnny Feelgood (I never realized I was so dirty and dry/Til he knocked me down, started dragging me around in the back of his convertible car/And I liked it), while songs like Perfect World have a longing and delicacy which Liz has rarely afforded herself in the past. Liz Phair has been plenty busy in the four years since Whip-Smart, during which time shes seen the creative and commercial climate for female artists flourish under her influence. The time between records allowed her to choose only the best from a wealth of material, as opposed to the more by-the-seat-of-her-pants attack of the previous two records. She still lives in her hometown of Chicago. While in the past Liz has only toured sporadically, and even then often doing solo acoustic performances, she will be touring with a full band for this album, first on several Lilith Fair dates this summer (July 15 through mid-August), then full international touring beginning in September. Juvenilia August 8, 1995 Jealousy one... one... one cause youve got me and two... two... two cause you owe me and three... three... three, shes attractive and four, four, four, were at dinner and five, five, insecure five cause its six, six, six and the winner takes everything everything everything! Turning Japanese A video? Jim Ellison thinks we should put these round TV screen helmets on our heads and rock in front of a sea of bouncing hip-hop cars (low riders) so that our faces singing vocalsm can turn into anything we want. But then he asked me if I knew what the song was really about, and then explained that its about this guy who is locked away in prison and has covered his walls with photos of a woman about which he masturbates and hence turns Japanese because his face is contorting as he climaxes. Ok. Or we could be these UFO abductee people that discover they have alien implantations and have to break their own noses to get them out. Animal Girl is about growing out of puberty and needing gratification. Its also about a situational romance that never seemed to happen on the days when I was free. This song is for Lotje Ijzermans, VPRO personality, who is an inspiration of a dame. I wanted to be her and live in Amsterdam. California seven, seven, seven out of money and eight, eight, eight I cant believe I dated you and nine, nine, I forget what nine is but then ten, ten, ten Im a loser at everything everything everything! just then, South Dakota Totally juvenile, embarrassing, and all of that, but theres no getting around a spooky atmosphere. I think Im Iggy Pop and Im writing Funhouse. Batmobile My family nickname is Bats, Batty, etc... dont ask. A combination of an old Dentyne commercial (Hellooooo Betty!) and the obvious. Anyway, most of this Girlysound music was written while I was still in high school or early college, and getting out from under the influence of my parents seemed like a do or damned proposition. Dead Shark Because my friend Nina pointed out that a shark is like a relationship; it has to keep moving or it will die. Lastly, one of my favorites, Easy I used to pretend that my grandfather, who died when I was eight or so, was hanging around, watching out for me. When I got older, I would imagine that if you blew off a friend or a boyfriend, that their presence would continue to haunt you, as if you had killed them and they wanted revenge. American Werewolf in London was helpful in solidifying this paranoia. Ciao! Whip Smart September 15, 1994 Supernova July 23, 1994 The first single off Whip-Smart and an otherwise unreleased experimental mess on the b-side, Combo Platter. The CD5 also has the radio-edit of Supernova. Exile in Guyville June 24, 1993 Born and raised in one of the most upscale parts of Chicago, Liz Phairs parents brought up their daughter in a home with a serious liberal arts approach in child development. Says Liz Phair: There was really no way for me to rebel against my parents. My father provided me with my very own subscription to the Evergreen Reader by the time I turned ten. My mother used to read aloud from Henry Millers Sexus and the Victorian erotic magazine The Pearl when I brought boys over during my teens. My form of teen rebellion which incidentally took a while for me to perfect was to get heavily involved with the scientology group at my high school. I moved out of my parents house the same day I turned 21 to join my boyfriend at the time, a Canadian hazardous waste engineer, when his job relocated him to San Francisco. Ms. Phair likes to refer to her Bay Area stay as her lost years. When push came to shove during the phone conversation I had with Liz Phair to prepare this bio, she refused to go into detail about the time in San Francisco. Just tell them that I experimented with a lot of different lifestyles, OK? Further inquiries revealed nothing. This woman literally has no recorded past. No bank account, no credit card, no old friends (or none willing to speak). After her return to Chicago circa Christmas of 1990 (exact dates are kind of muddy and Liz wont help me at all), she immediately got heavily involved in music. On a dare, she began producing a string of cassettes under the moniker Girly Sound, which circulated through the efforts of Tae Won Yu (Kicking Giant) and Chris Brokaw (Come), who were the only two direct recipients of the tapes. These two gentlemen started dubbing copies for their music-industry weasel friends, which stirred up a barrage of hype that resulted in Gerard Cosloy of Matador approaching Liz with a recording contract. After lengthy negotiations, she agreed to come out of her basement and actually meet him over coffee. The contract was signed the same day, but only after Ms. Phairs wish to receive all of the advance money in cash was fulfilled. The album Exile in Guyville was recorded at Idful Studios in Chicago in the summer of 1992, co-produced with her drummer and bass player Brad Wood. Guitarist Casey Rice throws in a riff or two. The guys just fuckin rip, says Ms. Phair. |
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