Customer Reviews

Happiness / Inconsiderate Bitch

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Before she started making records, Lisa Germano was known mainly as a former violinist for John Mellencamp. On her albums, she plays moody and usually slow songs where she plays guitar, keyboard, accordian, violin, and mandolin, while singing songs that generally paint her as a helpless loser. But both her songwriting vision and musical style are unique, and she's well worth giving a listen to. This album contains the only actual ROCK songs I've heard by her: "Puppet", "Everyone's Victim", and "Sycophant". "The Darkest Night of All" is a heartwrenching song that was once prominently used on NBC's "Homicide" show. Germano occasionally lightens up briefly, like on "The Dresses Song", about loving a man so much that "You make me want to wear dresses." But "Happiness" is a VERY ironic title for this album. On "Bad Attitude", she pictures the world as a cruel joke played on her ("You wish you were happy but you're not/Ha ha ha"), and that's probably the main theme of the album.

(At the time I write this review, several of the sound clips for this album are mixed up. If the track labeled "The Darkest Night of All" isn't a slow song, try #13, labeled "Energy".)

From the moment that Lisa Germano made her solo debut with 'On The Way Down From Moon Palace', it was very evident that this was a woman whose stories had to be heard. Among her five domestic releases, 'Happiness' stands as her most urgent and insistent. Originally released on Capitol Records and re-recorded and remixed for 4AD, the latter version stands as the better one. The lead track, 'Bad Attitude' is vintage Germano with lines like 'You wish you were pretty, but you're not, ha ha ha'. Self depreciation is theme of most of Germano's releases, but, it seems to strike to the bone on 'Happiness' from opening to close. The droning beat of the drum machine in 'Sycophant' along with Germano's fiddle and a spooky keyboard backdrop give the song an eery allure, and the parody and humor of 'The Dresses Song' is irresistible. 'Happiness' is not only an incredible album, but a must for fans of singer/songwriters. A gem.

In the 1990s, Lisa Germano released three albums in a row (Happiness, Geek the Girl, Excerpts from a Love Circus) that, lyrically and musically, were at least as strong as the famous first three albums by Elvis Costello in the 1970s, but instead of being lionized, she was largely ignored. Sexism? Antipathy to her darkly humorous world view, or her spooky but gorgeously swirling folk-pop musical confections, or her sickly little-girl voice? Who knows? But genius is genius, and you should take it where you can get it.

This is probably her best album to date; but still, I love all her CD's. However, this one has some of her best tracks on it: Puppet, Energy, Bad Attitude & Destroy The Flower are all worth buying this album for. The Darkest Night Of All, however, must be the most emotional, beautiful track Lisa ever recorded.... that one really hit me. You might also want to track down the original release of this album, on Capitol records - it features some different songs, and mixes. The extra songs on here are mixes and special versions previously only available on a promo EP - so well worth your money here!

This is probably her best album to date; but still, I love all her CDs. However, this one has some of her best tracks on it: Puppet, Cowboy, Bad Attitude & Destroy The Flower are all worth buying this album for. The Darkest Night Of All, however, must be the most emotional, beautiful track Lisa ever recorded.... that one really hit me. The remixes on this rerelease, I must admit, are very disappointing. These mixes were released as the Inconsiderate Bitch EP prior to the album's initial 4ad release, in 1994. Compared to the 1993 release of Happiness, these are remixes, but compared to the 4ad release, they're hardly! The Energy remix is the same as it appears on the album, and (Late Night) Dresses is the same as The Dresses Song. Puppet is a great track, but this remix is a little boring compared to the album version. And what happened to the remix of Happiness, which was available on the original Inconsiderate Bitch EP????? The album is the best, but I feel 4ad could have done a lot more with this 2-on-1 rerelease.

This beautiful CD got me through high school. I turned to Lisa's moody music when the boys got me down and the world didn't seem to recognize me as the goddess I wanted so badly to be! Songs like "Destroy the Flower" are a perfect theme song for any downtrodden woman. Lisa's lyrics ring painfully true, and are still hopeful. A beautiful album overall.

That use of 'How do you Sleep' on the show Homicide was brilliant. I love Lisa Germano. Not a useful review, but that's just how her music is.