Lisa Loeb - Early Music Career

Early Music Career

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, with future singer/songwriter and classmate Duncan Sheik as a guitarist. The duo released the albums Liz and Lisa (1989) and Liz and Lisa - Days Were Different (1990) independently. After college, bassist Rick Lassiter and TV and drummer Chad Fisher joined the band. After developing a following together, Loeb and Mitchell parted ways a few years after college.

She attended Berklee School of Music in Boston for a session of summer school, and in 1990 formed a full band called Nine Stories. The band, which was named after the book by J.D. Salinger, included Tim Bright on guitar, Jonathan Feinberg on drums, and Joe Quigley on bass. Loeb began working with producer Juan Patiño to make the cassette Purple Tape in 1992. It included the earliest recordings of later popular tracks such as “Do You Sleep?,” “Snow Day,” “Train Songs,” and “It’s Over.” Loeb sold the violet-colored cassette to fans at gigs and used it as a sonic calling card to industry gatekeepers. Loeb and her band also made a recording of her song "Stay (I Missed You)" during the same time.

Loeb also developed a following from her solo acoustic performances on the New York City coffeehouse circuit and the rock club circuit. She travelled to cities such as Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Dallas, but focused mainly on New York City. She played acoustically and with her band in folk and rock clubs, including CBGBs. Loeb also performed at music festivals such as the New Music Seminar and South by Southwest.