Lisa Loeb: Cake And Pie CD Track Listing

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Lisa Loeb Cake And Pie (2002)
Originally Released February 26, 2002\nLater Re-configured as ''Hello Lisa" on October 8, 2002\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: There was a gap of about five years between Loeb's second and third albums, which is enough time for some sort of significant growth or stylistic alternation to have taken place. There's not much of such things on Cake & Pie, however. Loeb remains an above-average major-label singer/songwriter, given to pensive self-reflection that doesn't quite cross the line into self-absorption. The emphasis is on intense examination of the motives that drive, maintain, and sometimes erode relationships, passionate without boiling into a rage. Perhaps she should get a little more uncoiled once in a while, though, as the hardest-rocking numbers here, like "Payback" and "Too Fast Driving," deviate enough from her established brainy-yet-emotional persona to command a little more attention than usual. On the more expected acoustic-colored numbers, "She's Falling Apart" is, again, a standout in that it strips down the production to enough basics that the arrangement has an unguarded edginess on par with the wary uncertainty of the lyrics. Otherwise the melodies and playing tend too much toward average modern rock, albeit with more heart and intellect than most. As a singer, she remains pleasant and confident, but not so unique or fiery that she burns into the synapses as well as the best storytelling songwriters do. -- Richie Unterberger\n\nAmazon.com Editorial Review\nIt could be argued that people forgive singers like Whitney Houston and Celine Dion their syrupy song choices because their voices are so magnificent. Almost exactly the opposite is true of coffeehouse cutie Lisa Loeb. While her voice is pleasant enough, it lacks the range, vibrato, and immediacy to rank as a compelling instrument. But set against Loeb's fizzy folk-pop, it becomes an ideal vehicle for her conversational lyrics. That's especially true on Cake and Pie, which bears the confessional stamp of a songwriter who's been around the block enough times to know that life comes stacked with some pretty heinous surprises. Hence subject matter ranging from relationships in decay ("Kick Start") to teenage anorexia ("She's Falling Apart"). There's brightness, too, in tracks like the relatively slamming "We Could Still Belong Together"--originally heard in the film Legally Blonde--and the cheeky, finger-wagging "You Don't Know Me." While Randy Scruggs, Dweezil Zappa, and superstar producer Glen Ballard (Alanis Morissette) appear as co-songwriters, Cake and Pie owes its chief debt to Loeb and her willingness to throw open the diary, real or imagined, and start dishing. --Kim Hughes \n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nNot just for dessert anymore., March 18, 2002\nReviewer: Sam B. Dlugach (Burbank, CA United States)\nWhen an artist we think we know takes a dramatic turn off her established path, it's a touchy thing for fans. Newbies come to the party with a different frame of reference (like folks who first heard U2 after Zooropa), but for long-time listeners, such a departure can usher feelings both of elation and betrayal. I admit vacillating between the two before concluding that Cake And Pie is a tasty disc indeed, more consistent in theme, yet more musically diverse than Lisa Loeb's two previous releases. \nThe elements that define her body of work thankfully remain intact: intelligent personal lyrics, courageous bare vocals, exquisite guitar playing, and infectious pop arrangements - but there's a broadened level of musical experimentation that takes us outside the familiar turf of Tails and Firecracker.\n\nLyrically, the songs delve into the mysteries of human incompatibility; of how, whether in a relationship or not, we fail to see plain truth before our eyes; and finally why we crave impossible ideals that inevitably disappoint. As is often the case with Loeb's compositions, her solid pop sensibilities make the songs easy to swallow and belie the depth of longing within.\n\nWith this new recording, her first for A&M, Lisa has expanded her level of collaboration to include such heavyweights as Glen Ballard and Randy Scruggs. Dweezil Zappa adds a crispy electrified influence to several tracks. The result is a richly textured stew, full of nuance and spice, but at a cost. It's a difficult to define subtlety, part recording and part performance, that I would call intimacy. Make no mistake - this is real, honest songwriting, but this album is a larger production than Lisa's earlier one-on-one sessions with producer Juan Patino, and as such, the flavor is different.\n\nStill, it's great sound: exceptionally clean drumming, crisp acoustic guitars, and tastefully applied distortion. Splendid dynamics abound - Loeb is really good at this. And the best part: she's not afraid of a microphone, or of recording her vocals dry. In fact, the reverb on the single "Someone You Should Know" is an uncharacteristic surprise. Also unexpected is the Wurlitzer electric piano on many tracks - a convincing condiment.\n\nIn the confessional "The Way It Really Is," obsessive analysis of a relationship drives Loeb from pole to pole (panning from speaker to speaker) as she questions the validity of her own perceptions. Smothering vines of doubt and dreams twist from her imagination, fertilized by an unwillingness to accept anything at face value, and nurtured by the truth that we can never really know someone else. In the end, Loeb's sole voice amidst a sparse bed of strings is lovely, fragile, and utterly alone. \n\nTwin acoustic guitars paint a gorgeous stereo image in "Underdog," a heartbreaking song about being invisible and misunderstood, and craving love. These sonic and emotional themes continue in "Everyday," where a moving Calypso beat and a surprising chorus mate with delicious percussion to deliver a standout performance. This is Lisa Loeb and Nine Stories in full band mode, and from gleaming Fenders to delicate woodblocks to pounding floor toms, the dynamics are stellar. \n\nBy comparison, the sparse "Drops Me Down" recalls the Beatles, with a guitar solo that is positively Harrisonian. More derivative still is "You Don't Know Me," an eighties time warp with razor guitars and a metallic snare that sounds like a Brian May / Go-Gos collision. In "Too Fast Driving," squashed unison vocals reference nineties power pop, and there's a dreamlike break with fat bass and a flanged wall of sound that descends into something mental. "Payback," a soulful seventies jam must have been a blast to record, with nods to Rick Wright and Stephen Stills. Showing my age, I wish this one were longer! \n\nCertainly some listeners will find these odd songs incongruous, and they might make the album seem schizophrenic, but Loeb explains that these diversions pay homage to artists she grew up on. It's a dense, unusual grouping, but ah, the bookends...\n\nBy far the most striking songs on Cake And Pie are a pair of acoustic ballads. "She's Falling Apart" is an unsettling tale of a girl's eating disorder, and "Kick Start," which pleads with raw honesty for action against inertia, is a lyric that strikes chords universal about the state of the human condition. It's a wonderful a song that could transcend even this magnificent performance where drone flattops and subtle percussion leave air for Loeb's vulnerable, close vocals. \n\nHaving two desserts implies too much of a good thing, but Cake And Pie is not overly sweet. Inside each song is a woman desperate to connect. And while Lisa Loeb begs our indulgence of her experiments, we are ultimately rewarded with courses that comprise a full and varied meal. This is no mere confection.\n\nHalf.com Details \nContributing artists: Dweezil Zappa \n\nAlbum Notes\nPersonnel includes: Lisa Loeb (vocals, acoustic & elctric guitar, harmonica); Anne Previn (whistling, background vocals); Dweezil Zappa (acoustic & electric guitars); Randy Scruggs, Rusty Anderson (guitar); Michael Sherwood (piano); Jim Cox (keyboards); Leland Sklar (bass); Ronny Crawford (drums, percussion); Matt Chamberlain (drums); Steve Forman (percussion).\n\nProducers: Lisa Loeb, Peter Collins, Randy Scruggs, Dweezil Zappa.\n\nEngineers include: Michael C. Ross, Gary Burr, Dweezil Zappa.\n\nMillions will recall Lisa Loeb as the singer-songwriter with the Catwoman glasses whose hit "Stay" enlivened the mid-'90s film REALITY BITES. Those who've kept track of her subsequent career won't be surprised to find that her 2002 album CAKE AND PIE is full of songs with a spirit and sheen to equal that aforementioned radio staple. Spinning the wheel, Loeb co-wrote opening song "The Way It Really Is" with Alanis Morissette collaborator Glen Ballard, but Loeb's innate winsomeness keeps things from getting as angst-ridden as the Canadian pop queen. Loeb's own chiming acoustic guitar and little-girl voice are at the heart of the arrangements on CAKE AND PIE, but Jack Joseph Puig's full-bodied production provides just the right amount of rock muscle at the appropriate moments, helping Loeb to acheive the proper balance of folk-rock introspection and radio-ready, contemporary rock & roll.\n\nIndustry Reviews\n...When built around her voice and guitar, her songs have an appealing, conversational intimacy. She's adept at a blend of singer-songwriter braininess and pop-single bubble... - Rating: B\nEntertainment Weekly (03/01/2002)
This rock cd contains 12 tracks and runs 44min 41sec.
Freedb: b30a000c
Buy: from Amazon.com

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