Jewogle - Lisa Loeb

Biography:

Lisa Anne Loeb (born 11 March 1968) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. In 1994, she had her first hit with the song "Stay (I Missed You)". The song today still remains her biggest hit and most well-known song. Recently, she has moved into other endeavors, such as television. In 2006, she had her own reality TV show on the E! channel.

Early years:

Born in Bethesda, Maryland, and raised in Dallas, Texas, Loeb attended The Hockaday School, an all-girls private school in Dallas. Her father is Dallas gastroenterologist Peter Loeb. She has three siblings -- Benjamin Loeb, Debbie Loeb, and Philip Loeb. After graduating from high school in 1986, she went to Brown University, where she graduated in 1990 with a degree in comparative literature. At Brown, she and Elizabeth Mitchell formed a band named Liz and Lisa, featuring future singer/songwriter and Brown classmate Duncan Sheik as a guitarist as well as the upcoming influential jazz/rock bassist Rick Lassiter while contemplating band names such as Nine Stories and Soto Voce'. The duo released the albums Liz and Lisa and Liz and Lisa - Days Were Different independently. Loeb had developed a following from her solo acoustic performances on the New York City coffeehouse circuit, where she sold a collection of her songs referred to as The Purple Tape.

Loeb's big break came when she was discovered by actor and friend Ethan Hawke, who lived in an apartment across the street from her in New York City. She met Hawke through mutual friends in the NYC theatre community. Hawke gave a tape of Loeb's song "Stay (I Missed You)" to director Ben Stiller during the making of the 1994 film Reality Bites. Stiller subsequently agreed to use the song in the film and on the film's soundtrack. "Stay" ultimately went on to become a number one hit on the American charts. When her song hit number one, Loeb earned the distinction of being the only artist to top the Hot 100 before being signed to any record label.

Recording career:

In September 1995, Loeb's debut album, Tails, was released. The album was co-produced by Juan Patiño, her longtime then-boyfriend. Although none of the singles from Tails could quite match the breakthrough appeal of "Stay" (which was also included on this album), Loeb still managed a top 20 hit with "Do You Sleep?" and two moderately successful radio hits with "Taffy," and "Waiting for Wednesday". Tails went on to achieve Gold status.

In 1997, a second major-label album, Firecracker, was released. Though critically praised, it did not have the commercial success of Tails, but the single "I Do" was popular on radio (it peaked at #17 on the Hot 100) and music television. The song "How" featured in the soundtracks for the films Twister and Jack Frost, and was featured in the Buffy episode "Homecoming". "Let's Forget About It" was released as a single. At this point Loeb dropped the name of her support band, Nine Stories, and performed under her own name. "Firecracker" went Gold. Loeb's band, "Nine Stories", is named after the J. D. Salinger collection.

In 2000, she participated on the Ozzy Osbourne tribute album Bat Head Soup performing Goodbye to Romance with Dweezil Zappa on guitar.

Loeb's next project was Cake and Pie the release of which was delayed until 2002. The album was a commercial failure (despite excellent reviews) and did not receive any major backing or promotion from her record label. She was eventually dropped, and she bought the rights to the masters of the songs from that album. It was re-released by Artemis Records in late 2002, with the songs rearranged and some deletions/additions. Featuring new packaging, it was retitled Hello Lisa. A children's album called Catch the Moon was independently released in 2003. Videos from this album have been featured on the Noggin TV network for children, alongside those of Laurie Berkner and Dan Zanes, rockers who have crossed over much further into the children's music field.

In May 2004, Loeb announced that her longtime relationship with Dweezil Zappa was over. In 2004, Loeb changed record labels once again, due to a lack of promotion from her former label, Artemis Records. She was signed to the independent label Zoe/Rounder, and The Way It Really Is was released August 2004. The album was Loeb's fifth studio-recorded album.

Her greatest hits album, The Very Best of Lisa Loeb, was released in January 2006.

More recently, Loeb has contributed vocals to New Found Glory's cover of "Stay", which was featured on their 2007 LP From the Screen to Your Stereo Part II, as well as performing the song live with the band. Loeb also guest performed on the song "Anti-Hero" on all-female Japanese musical group Rin''s album Inland Sea.

When not touring, or doing other promotional work, she resides in Los Angeles.

Loeb is an avid collector of Hello Kitty items, including a Hello Kitty Stratocaster, manufactured by Squier. She was featured on the American Sanrio website.

According to Loeb's official website, her next release will be 'Camp Lisa', a set of 21 new children's songs featuring an array of guest stars. A new studio album will also follow in 2008.

Acting and reality television:

Loeb has had several guest appearances on television shows, such as The Nanny in 1997. In 1998, she played the voice of a newborn baby in The Rugrats Movie and played a musician in an episode of Cupid. In 1999, Loeb was featured as a news reporter in the horror film House on Haunted Hill. In 2004, she was featured in Serial Killing 101.

On January 16, 2004, her reality show Dweezil & Lisa first aired on Food Network, in which she shared title billing with her now ex-boyfriend Dweezil Zappa. The show featured the two musicians touring the country together, stopping at different restaurants and sampling unique and diverse dishes. In the opening for each episode of Dweezil & Lisa, she claimed to be a vegetarian who enjoyed eating the occasional serving of bacon. In 2005, she appeared on The Colbert Report as herself as part of a small gag in which the eponymous host could not remember all the lyrics of "Stay," and asked Loeb, who was standing by a camera with her guitar, how it went. She sang and strummed a little to jog Colbert's memory.

She has been the voice of Mary Jane Watson in the animated show Spider-Man: The New Animated Series, broadcast on MTV. She also did voice acting for the character of Lutina in the video game Grandia Xtreme. On Friday, May 18, 2007 she did the voice of a character on the Disney Channel's Shorty McShorts' Shorts.

In the fall and winter of 2005, Loeb taped a reality show, #1 Single, for the E! Channel, in New York City. The show focused on her quest for love, success, career and family. It premiered on the E! Channel in January 2006 in an eight-part series, coinciding with the release of Loeb's new album, The Very Best of Lisa Loeb.

On August 2, 2006, Lisa Loeb co-hosted The View. In the episode, she defended a "woman's right to choose, a right to control her body, and have an alternative... something that's safe", clashing with regular co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck on more than one exchange.

Style:

Loeb is known for wearing distinctive cat-eye shaped tortoiseshell glasses. She says she is allergic to contact lenses. She has stated in numerous interviews she is very nearsighted with a prescription near -6.00D.

Discography:

Singles:

Year	Single	US Hot 100 Singles	U.S. Modern Rock	U.S. Adult Contemporary	U.S. Adult Top 40	Album
1994	"Stay (I Missed You)"	#1	#7	#5	#1	Tails
1995	"Do You Sleep"	#18	#20	#30	#26	Tails
1995	"Taffy"	#92	-	-	-	Tails
1996	"Waiting For Wednesday"	#83	-	-	#36	Tails
1997	"I Do"	#17	-	#22	#3	Firecracker
1998	"Let's Forget About It"	#71	-	-	#38	Firecracker
2002	"Underdog"	-	-	-	#39	Cake and Pie
2004	"Fools Like Me"	-	-	-	-	The Way It Really Is
2006	"Anti Hero" (duet with Rin')	-	-	#36	-	Inland Sea
2007	"Jenny Jenkins"	-	-	-	-	-

Albums:

Year Album Chart Position*

1989 Liz and Lisa -

1990 Liz and Lisa - Days Were Different -

1992 Purple Tape -

1995 Tails 30

1997 Firecracker 88

2002 Cake and Pie 199

2002 Hello Lisa -

2003 Catch the Moon -

2004 The Way It Really Is -

2006 The Very Best of Lisa Loeb -

2007 Gypsies, Tramps, and Thieves (EP) -

2007 Cherries (EP) -

2008 Lisa Loeb: The Purple Tape (2-discs: CD re-issue plus interview disc) -

2008 Camp Lisa -

2008 TBC -