I still think the a Record Store Day release of the Girly Sound recordings would be well received among the type of people that Record Store Day is aimed at.
OK, if we're all done drooling, maybe we can get back to Phair's music now. I also don't buy the idea that her career has been a disappointment, let alone a tragedy. Guyville was an uncommonly strong debut, but there was plenty of very good material on the next two. And with the CD she did with The Matrix, she made a conscious decision (with nudging and $$ from her label) to go for a hit record, and it worked, despite the brickbats she received from her indie fans. Funnily enough, Tegan and Sara are drawing praise for making a similarly blatant grab at the charts with their new one.
I'm not convinced she was doing what she wanted following Whitechocolatespaceegg. She was doing what she thought would make her commercially successful, which to me is not necessarily the same thing as doing what you "want".
Didn't she have stage fright? I saw her at a KROQ thing years ago and she only had to do three songs and it was painful.
The way I see it great reviews didn't pay the rent, she wasn't good at touring, so she gambled all on trying to cross over and have mainstream success, be it the songs she did or the cheesecake photos that came out around the same time. And it didn't work. A lot of artists have been a lot more shameless in trying to stay afloat. I've got nothing bad to say about her.
Whitechocolatespaceegg may be my favorite..I really like Exile...didn't get Whipsmart as much... I don't know what is a tragedy about her? She sold a lot of records and made a good living. She is pretty misunderstood.... Not sure about some of the posts on this thread. Seem like written by prepubescent boys or something.
Even as someone who neither loves nor hates what she's done with her career, I found Pitchfork's evisceration of the s/t (it received a rating of "0.0") a very uncomfortable read. http://m.pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/6255-liz-phair/
I saw her three times in the 2000s... no stage fright or remnants left... as big fans we left very satisfied...
I don't know about greatest living tragedy, though given her more subversive roots, it is a little sad that she allowed herself to be turned into a sex object for drooling old geezers. I don't think she got the payoff she was looking for with the self titled album--she alienated her old fans but failed to cross over in a big way.
I understand wanting to achieve success and fame but at what cost? Selling out your soul and pulling the rug out from under whatever cult following you actually had? So much potential but now she is floundering. A very misguided and insecure artist if there ever was 1!
I wouldn't call it "tragic", but it is kind of sad when a talented 36 year old dumbs herself down to try and pass as a 20 year old to appeal to 13 year olds. And then, beyond one single, fails in the effort. "If you're gonna sell out, make sure they're buying" - Martha Davis of the Motels
She looks so awkward and uncomfortable here. Extremely dolled up too - What happened to the edgy raw Liz we all fell in love with in the 90's? Why is she trying to be just another disposable bland Me Too pop singer now? So misguided
Tragedy? Really I think that's a bit juvenille to describe someone who is as far as I know healthy and happy. Tragedy would best describe the Amy Winehouse's and Whitney Houston's of the world. Phair simply didn't make albums that were as brilliant as her early ones......well that pretty much describes almost every popular artist out there. I mean Matthew Sweet will probably never do something as great as Girlfriend again, but he still makes music, I still buy it, and no one would dare describe him as a tragedy. Maybe the OP should stop idolizing artists and he won't be so let down when they fail to measure up.
The OP would exclude them because they're dead, but I'd agree with the sentiment that "greatest living tragedy" should probably go for someone with severe mental issues or substantial drug abuse problems - or just someone who's suffered lots of trauma. Someone who simply made music another person doesn't like shouldn't be called the "greatest tragedy". But on the other hand, "greatest living tragedy" attracts more posts than "Is Liz Phair One of Rock's Moderate Disappointments"?
Believe it or not, people don't have to stay in the box we create for them no matter how hard we fell in love with them two decades ago.
Compared to her performances early in her career I would say she looks and sounds just fine. She has never had a super strong voice so I think the performance is about as good as you are going to get out of her. I enjoyed her first three albums and a handful of songs off of the fourth one. After that she kind of lost me. I was lucky enough to see her here in Milwaukee at Shank Hall back in 1995. Just her and an acoustic guitar. Even though it was still during her stage fright days, she put on a nice performance in an intimate setting. While her music now is not something I would buy I can't blame her for trying something different. People change so maybe at 40+ years old she didn't want to be the indie rock chick anymore. Did her career slip away a bit?? Yes. But I wouldn't call it a tragedy.
Liz has continued to make great music after her first 3 albums. It was a risky move she made for her 4th album and in retrospective, the wrong move. You got to remember she had submitted the finished album to Capitol, and they didnt want to release it as submitted. Capitol 'forced' her to re-work the album. Yes, she probably should have stayed her ground and continue to be an indie hero of some kind. She alienated her fans and didnt get enough new fans to turn her into a pop sensation. If you can get past all that, there is some great music to enjoy in her latest albums.
