There was a time not too long ago when I didn’t get Liz Phair. I still don’t like some of her songs, but I do generally regard her as a good, original writer with a voice that just barely gets the job done. I only say that because half the time it sounds like she’s singing without a care in the world; her voice isn’t trained, or even naturally pretty. It comes out the way it comes out, which might be mistaken as lazy in our society. It’s not, though.
Liz Phair fits a gap in my music library that lacks confidence. The truth is, Phair will say whatever she wants, when she wants to. She’ll write a pop album when her fans want more songs like “Fuck and Run.” She’ll do shots when others are sipping wine.
How many female artists these days owe their careers to Ms. Phair? Perhaps we’ll never know. And that’s probably just fine with her.