Lisa B (Lisa Bernstein)

Artist Information

Biography

SINGER AND POET LISA B melds compelling jazz and jazz-soul vocals with vivid poetic spoken word, in songs also flavored with pop and world elements.

Imagine the interpretive jazz styling of Carmen McRae, Diana Krall's intimacy and swing, Joni Mitchell's songwriting depth and vocal clarity, Gil Scott-Heron's soulful poetic constructs, and Linda Rondstadt's Latin and pop fervor.

ALL of her previous FIVE CDs HAVE GOTTEN AIRPLAY INCLUDING CHARTING and heavy rotation on 350+ trade-reporter stations.

"Obviously you're a gigantic talent… you totally controlled the room." - Robin, owner, Paradise Lounge, San Francisco

“She totally captivated the audience. She is an originator, her arrangements are mesmerizing, and her band is great!” – Gary Hamada, Jazz and Blues Company/KRML-FM, Concert Manager

“Lisa Bernstein's mix of spoken word poetry...and passionate jazzy, high-register vocalizing is …hard to resist.” - All Music Guide

"Great pipes… talented songwriter." - Jazziz

"Her voice is a lovely instrument, her timbre warm, her phrasing fluid...an emotional range that makes lyrics sound like truth." - jazz critic Ted Panken

“Funky, fresh and sexy as all hell… seamless blending of jazz, hip-hop, soul, spoken word and popular music… One of the most daring and deft performers I’ve come across in a while.” – Jordan Richardson, Canadian Audiophile

" ...spoken word beautifully sung excursions...spiritually uplifting... hopeful... funny... sexy... sultry." - Mark Saleski, Blogcritics.com

“Daring, dexterous singer/songwriter/poet Lisa B...with appeal to both traditional and contemporary jazz tastes and even hip-hop hipsters.” – Jonathan Takiff, Philadelphia Daily News

“Lisa's signature alto awakens us to her spiritual travels with infectious rhythms and witticisms that are seductively inviting… In ‘The Poetry of Groove’ and ‘Get the Signal,’ Lisa explores the record's central themes: a call to spiritualism and more reliance on our deeper, more humanistic inclinations. But this ain't no lecture: Lisa brings the musical passion behind her spiritual manifesto… with her love of jazz, Latin rhythm and hip-hop's lyric sensibilities.” – Michael E. Ross, Journalist and blogger

“...B continues to ride the progressive tip with a creative abandon that makes it seem easy to break convention and get away with it. As sexy as you can sound without being a ...70s diva.” – Chris Spector, Midwest Record

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
RAISED IN NEW YORK AND NORTHERN CALIFORNIA, Lisa B (Lisa Bernstein) was influenced by lots of literature and music as she grew up, including such friends of her parents as saxophone master Jackie McLean and the members of the Art Ensemble of Chicago.

SHE WAS INSPIRED BY jazz, soul, pop, rock, and show tunes. She studied classical piano from elementary school to high school and wrote songs and stories. She also wrote and studied poetry seriously since her teens, going on to earn bachelor’s and master’s degrees in creative writing/literature.

TWO BOOKS OF HER POETRY have been published, the chapbook "Anorexia" (Five Fingers Poetry) and "The Transparent Body" (Wesleyan University Press). Her poems have appeared in more than 50 literary magazines and anthologies. She has received grants and residencies from the National Endowment for the Arts, Headlands Center for the Arts, Ucross Foundation, Barbara Deming Memorial Fund/Money for Women, and Puffin Foundation.

Lisa B’s many public poetry readings in the San Francisco Bay Area evolved into performances. One was a two-night, sold-out piece at the leading experimental theatre The Lab that included dancers and live music.

Lisa B then began to focus on songwriting, singing, and music, studying first at the Blue Bear School of Music, then with renowned Bay Area vocal coach Jane Sharp. Lisa was soon gigging frequently, performing jazz and selected pop standards along with her own compositions.

SHE HAS SINCE PERFORMED AT MORE THAN 80 clubs, performance spaces, colleges, bookstores, and radio stations in the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, and New York.

While often composing lyrics and music on her own, Lisa B enjoys co-writing with musicians, including singer-pianist Barbara Higbie (Windham Hill, women’s music); Latin jazz trombonist-arranger Wayne Wallace (Patois Records); and her longtime cowriter/producer/engineer, Jim (James) Gardiner (whose credits include Deniece Williams, Digital Underground, En Vogue, E-40, John Lee Hooker Jr., Pharoah Sanders, Rickie Lee Jones, David Grisman, Seattle Symphony, numerous soundtracks and video games, and much more).

Lisa B also applies her spirit of inventive collaboration to existing compositions: Cole Porter's “Night and Day” merged with Lisa's magical poetic rap “The Cat Goddess”; “Joe Williams Died Walking” performed with “Every Day I Have the Blues”; Bobby Caldwell’s “What You Won’t Do for Love” with new poetic rap; and Lisa B’s heartrending poem “Trane’s Ride” performed with Coltrane’s “Naima.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

2009-2011 RADIO PLAY:
KCSM -- San Francisco Bay Area, California
KPFA - Berkeley, California
KPOO - San Francisco, California
KWMR – West Marin, California
KZSC – Santa Cruz, California
KCSB – Santa Barbara, California
KCSS – Turlock, California
KIDE – Hoopa, California
KMUD – Garberville, California
KUCI – Irvine, California
KVMR – Nevada City, California (#1 and continued Top 10 CMJ Jazz Charting!)
KDNK – Carbondale, Colorado
KVNF – Paonia, Colorado
WPKN – Bridgeport, Connecticut
WESU – Middletown, Connecticut
WWUH – West Hartford, Connecticut
WFIT – Melbourne, Florida
WMNF – Tampa, Florida (70,000 watts!)
WACG – Augusta, Georgia
WRFG – Atlanta, Georgia
WEFT – Champaign, Illinois
KJHK – Lawrence, Kansas
KRVS – Lafayette, Louisiana (100,000 watts, Baton Rouge coverage!)
WERU – Eorland, Maine
WMHB - Waterville, Maine
WHFC – Bel Air, Maryland
WICN – Worcester, Massachusetts
WMUA – Amherst, Massachusetts
WXOJ – Northampton, Massachusetts
KFAI – Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota
KOPN – Columbia, Missouri
WSCA – Portsmouth, New Hampshire
WNTI – Hackettstown, New Jersey
WLFR – Pomona, New Jersey
WDVR – Sargentsville, New Jersey (covering Trenton, Doylestown, Philadelphia)
WFDU – Teaneck, New Jersey
WAER – Syracuse, New York
WUSB – Stony Brook, New York
WSHA – Raleigh, North Carolina
WDPS – Dayton, Ohio (#6 CMJ Overall Charting!)
WRUW – Cleveland, Ohio
KRVM – Eugene, Oregon
KBOO – Portland, Oregon
WXAC – Reading, Pennsylvania
WSYC – Shippensburg, Pennsylvania
KPFT – Houston, Texas (100,000 watts!)
KSAU – Nacogdoches, Texas
KSYM – San Antonio, Texas
KZMU – Moab, Utah
Vermont Public Radio
WMLU – Farmville, Virginia (#20 CMJ Overall Charting!)
WRRW – Virginia Beach, Virginia (includes Norfolk Naval Base)
KAOS – Olympia, Washington
KUOW – Puget Sound, Washington
WOJBþ – Hayward, Wisconsin
WXPR - Rhinelander, Wisconsin
CKCU – Ottawa, Canada (12,000 watts)
CIUT – Toronto, Canada (One of Canada’s largest, satellite feed to whole country)
Sky Valley Radio, Salt Spring Island, British Columbia, Canada
Is On Live Radio – Australia
TKO Gold, Spain's Costa Blanca and worldwide on tkogold.com

KKUP, Cupertino, Calif. - interview 8/09
KPFA, Berkeley, Calif. - interviews 2003 - 2010

Internet radio stations:
nytalkradio.net - Joy Rose show
blogtalkradio.com/carmen-milagro - interview 2/10
Black Wings Radio
Scaredcat Radio
Sound in the Hall
A Relaxing Mix of Music (aka DJ Mental Health)
Super Flow Smooth Jazz
LesbianFunWorld Radio
Radio Phoenix
KOOL GROOVES
Smooth Groove Phoenix.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

SELECTED PREVIOUS RADIO PLAY:

Brown Radio, American Jazz Countdown
WKCR, New York, New York
WAER, Syracuse, New York
WRPI, Troy, New York
WFNP, New Paltz, New York: Top 10, four weeks!
WICB, Ithaca, New York
WRTC, Hartford, Conn.
WWUH, Hartford, Conn.
WPKN, Bridgeport, Conn.
WGBH, Boston, Mass.
WMBR, Cambridge, Mass.
WICN, Worcester, Mass.
WGDR, Plainfield, Vermont
WVPS, Burlington, Vermont
WVPR, Colchester, Vermont
WSCA, Portsmouth, New Hampshire
WRFR, Rockland, Maine: Top 10, two weeks!
WMPG, Portland, Maine
Maine Public Radio, Bangor, Maine
WBZC, Pemberton, New Jersey (Philadephia, Penn.)
WPRB, Trenton, New Jersey
WVUD, Newark, Delaware
WESM, Princess Anne, Maryland
WEAA, Baltimore, Maryland
WPFW, Washington, D.C.
WRGW, Washington, D.C.
WWVU, Morgantown, West Virginia
WRUW, Cleveland, Ohio
WRMR, Cleveland, Ohio
WDPS, Dayton, Ohio
WXTS, Toledo, Ohion
WGVU, Grand Rapids, Michigan
WRRG, Chicago, Illinois
WUIC, Chicago, Illinois
WEFT, Champaign, Illinois
WWSP, Stevens Pt., Wisconsin
KBEM, Minneapolis, Minn.
WTIP, Grand Marais, Minn.
KKFI, Kansas City, Missouri
KABF, Little Rock, Arkansas
KASU, Arkansas State University
WWOZ, New Orleans, Louisiana
KEDM, Monroe, Louisiana
Georgia Public Radio, Atlanta, Georgia
WUGA, Athens, Georgia
WACG, Augusta, Georgia
WWIO, Brunswick, Georgia
WUWG, Carrollton, Georgia
WJSP, Columbus, Georgia
WPPR, Demorest, Georgia
WNGU, Dahlonega, Georgia
WJWV, Fort Gaines, Georgia
WDCO, Macon, Georgia
WSVH, Savannah, Georgia
WWIO, St. Marys, Georgia
WABR, Tifton, Georgia
WWET, Valdosta, Georgia
WDNA, Miami, Florida
WSOE, Elon, North Carolina
WSHA, Raleigh, North Carolina
WUMR, Memphis, Tennessee
WFHC, Henderson, Tennessee
KSAU, Nacagdoches, Texas
KSFR, Santa Fe, New Mexico
KUVO, Denver, Colorado
KGNU, Boulder, Colorado
KVNF, Paonia, Colorado
KAJX, Aspen, Colorado
KSUT, Ignacio, Colorado
KDUR, Durango, Colorado: Top 10, three weeks!
KRZA, Alamosa, Colorado
KBUT, Crested Butte, Colorado
KXCI, Tucson, Arizona: Top 10!
KUER, Salt Lake City, Utah
KUNV, Las Vegas, Nevada
KSDS, San Diego, California
KLBC, Long Beach California
KZSC, Santa Cruz, California: Top 10, two weeks!
KKUP, Cupertino, California
KPFA, Berkeley, California
KCSM, San Mateo (San Francisco), California
KVPR, Fresno, California
KFCF, Fresno, California
KCHO, Chico, California
KMUD, Redway, California
KSMF, Ashland, Oregon
KWVA, Eugene, Oregon
KLCC, Eugene, Oregon
KEOL, La Grande, Oregon
KUGS, Bellingham, Washington
KAOS, Olympia, Washington
KRFP, Moscow, Idaho: #1, two weeks!
KGLT, Bozeman, Montana
KUSD, Vermillion, South Dakota
KNDS, Fargo, North Dakota
KCAW, Sitka, Alaska
KMXT, Kodiak, Alaska: Top 10, two weeks!
KEUL, Girdwood, Alaska
CHMR, St. Johns, Newfoundland, Canada: Top 10, two weeks!
CHUO, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Top 10, two weeks!
CILU, Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada: #1 CD, two weeks!
CJSR, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
CKXU, Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada: Top 10, three weeks!
CFBX, Kamploops, British Columbia, Canada
CJSF, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
Jazz & Blues Tour, The Netherlands
Radio Hostelbro, Denmark
Vinilemania, Monticelli Terma, Italy
Radio Adelaide, Sellicks Beach, Australia
Jazz Rendezvous, Capetown, South Africa
Netteradio.com
AOL Music
Radioio.com
Lebesquet ~ urlsbn.blogspot.com
live365.com

Instrumentation

Lisa B - vocals
Ben Flint, Adam Shulman, or Frank Martin - keyboards
Fred Randolph or John Wiitala - bass
Akira Tana or Bryan Bowman - drums

Discography

CHRISTMAS TIME IS HERE (AND CHANUKAH AND THE SOLSTICE) (2011)

THE POETRY OF GROOVE (2009)

WHAT'S NEW, PUSSYCAT?: TUNES & TALES ABOUT COOL CATS (2006)

CENTER OF THE RHYME (2003)

FREE ME FOR THE JOY (1999)

All CDs got airplay including charting and heavy rotation on 350+ noncomm (some commercial) trade-reporter stations. Also streaming.

Official Website

http://www.lisabmusic.com

Links

• YouTube video of "The Poetry of Groove"

Audio

• Joe Williams Died Walking_Every Day I Have the Blues_spoken lyrics by Lisa Bernstein
  Listen  
• Night and Day/The Cat Goddess written by Cole Porter + spoken lyrics by Lisa B aka Lisa Bernstein
  Listen  
• Cha Cha de la Gata written by Wayne Wallace and Lisa B aka Lisa Bernstein
  Listen  
• Our House written by Graham Nash
  Listen  
• Hine Ma Tov translated by Lisa B aka Lisa Bernstein
  Listen  
• Miracle written by Matisyahu
  Listen  
• Trane's Ride_Naima written by John Coltrane_spoken lyrics by Lisa Bernstein
  Listen  
• Holiday in Oakland by Jim Gardiner and Lisa B aka Lisa Bernstein
  Listen  
• The Poetry of Groove - jazzy chill mix
  Listen  
• What's New Pussycat
  Listen  

Lyrics

• The Poetry of Groove
• Be Electric
• Get the Signal
• Turning It Around

Video

The Poetry of Groove

Miracle, written by Matisyahu, performed by Lisa B

Photo Gallery

Press

• The Sure-Bet Holiday Music That Should Be Playing in Hipper Households [+ Show ]
  

  "This is the sure-bet holiday music that should be playing in hipper households over the next few mo..."This is the sure-bet holiday music that should be playing in hipper households over the next few months. Tasty throughout...
  Familiar and welcome versions of the classics... some interesting choices that convey her sense of the holidays as well as let her serious side shine brightly... tossing some originals in the mix as well."

• Eclectic, Fun and Highly Entertaining Holiday Release [+ Show ]
  

  "Lisa B helps you cover a great deal of seasonal ground in this eclectic, fun and highly entertainin..."Lisa B helps you cover a great deal of seasonal ground in this eclectic, fun and highly entertaining release.
  The same basic principle applies for most people when purchasing Christmas music: Do you know the tunes and are the arrangements good? Lisa B scores well here… From a swinging jazz trio to more orchestrated versions of both Christmas classics and Jewish music, the recording is well paced and evolves well.
  
  A rather hip twist for Christmas music would certainly be the three original tunes that showcase her unique talent of rapped poetry… Lisa B brings it from a traditional yet highly organic place that makes for an entertaining take on Christmas music sure to please a wider audience, if not a house full of friends!
  
  If you are looking for some new Christmas music to cover a pretty broad spectrum of seasonal taste, then Lisa B’s artistic spin on the holidays should be right up your alley!" - Brent Black
  

• An Ambitious Undertaking Covering Three Winter Holidays -- You Can’t Help But Be Drawn In [+ Show ]
  

  “An ambitious undertaking – covering three of the winter holidays – this one opens with the Vince Gu...“An ambitious undertaking – covering three of the winter holidays – this one opens with the Vince Guaraldi/Lee Mendelson “Peanuts” offering – “Christmas Time Is Here,” and follows with the traditional “Hine Ma Tov,” a hymn for Shabbat (Sabbath) feasts.
  Three originals are “Holiday in Oakland,” a pleasantly gospel-tinged celebration of the Bay Area; “The Flame,” which reminds us that, in Ms. Bernstein’s words [from her notes on the songs], “…being aware of others’ suffering—and our own—is painful, but the pain dissipates when we find the golden flame within ourselves, and take some action to help our communities.” The spoken word “Winter Solstice” is the third original.
  The range is from the super-traditional to music-backed poetry… Don’t like a particular piece? That’s okay, stick around. Coming up will be something you’ll love.
  I’ve cherry-picked my favorites from this disc for holiday listening (“Christmas Time Is Here,” “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas,” and the Sammy Cahn classic “Let It Snow.”) But there’s something here for everyone, and Ms. Bernstein’s energy is so palpable – you can’t help but be drawn in.
  This disc is highly recommended.” – Doug Boynton, Girlsingers.org

• Authenticates and Livens Up the Usual Christmas Fare [+ Show ]
  

  Lisa B (Lisa Bernstein) uses beats of poetry and her own Jewish heritage to authenticate and liven u...Lisa B (Lisa Bernstein) uses beats of poetry and her own Jewish heritage to authenticate and liven up the usual standard Christmas fare, in her fifth, self-produced album, “Christmas Time Is Here (and Chanukah and The Solstice).” Poetry in her rapping, jazz soul, and the showmanship in her pop-rock nature are organic manifestations of this artist’s progression…
  
  Her Christmas album takes on a few traditional songs normally on replay around the holidays, such as Vince Guaraldi and Lee Mendelson’s “Christmas Time Is Here,” and Sammy Cahn’s and Jule Styne’s “Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!” She handles these with an exuberant, confident flair, always keeping the musical jazz notes happening.
  
  She includes the unexpected, in “My Favorite Things,” an Oscar Hammerstein II and Richard Rodgers’ masterpiece from The Sound Of Music, adding an especially straight-ahead jazz instrumental finesse fading toward the end. And then she works in the moving, orchestral Jewish hymn, “Hine Ma Tov,” which adds the necessary glean of spiritual grounding to the atmospheric, message-centered album. She was able to add a new translation to the traditional lyrics.
  
  It’s when Lisa B attempts to incorporate her poetry and rap rhythms to the jazz, R&B, and Sting-esque beats of her and Jim Gardiner’s three original compositions that her daring bravado shows brightly…“Holiday In Oakland,” “The Flame,” and “Winter Solstice”…
  
  … the nod to her current residence… “Holiday in Oakland”… is an effortless, breezy sweep through the decidedly R&B-gospel influences of that tough but tender city. In the song, her rap is flawless, and unobtrusive, because the “Bump City” references blend evenly, like redwoods, salsa in the dark, Tower of Power, the Pointer Sisters, and Digital Underground.
  - Carol Banks Weber, jazz critic, Examiner.com
  

• I Hear Sparks column on "The Poetry of Groove" by Jordan Richardson [+ Show ]
  

  “Funky, fresh and sexy as all hell, Lisa B’s ‘The Poetry of Groove’ is an impressive collection of r...“Funky, fresh and sexy as all hell, Lisa B’s ‘The Poetry of Groove’ is an impressive collection of remixes and new pieces.
  
  The beauty of what Lisa B (Lisa Bernstein) does is wrapped up in her seamless blending of jazz, hip-hop, soul, spoken word and popular music. Her approach to her craft is invigorating, cementing herself as an artist excited to take risks and make moves that other artists might stray from. Lisa B makes the blend work, oozing sexuality and clever cool without coming across as pompous or tacky...
  
  Bolstered by her pedigree as a poet, Lisa B’s command of lyricism is manifest with each piece. She is, after all, the author of two books of poetry (‘Anorexia’ and ‘The Transparent Body’) and it shows in her approach to songwriting. Lisa B paints pictures with her command of language, going beyond uncomplicated metaphors to tell entire stories with her art.
  
  The title track is given the privilege of three separate mixes, forming the foundation for the record with its smooth grooves and slick beats. The ‘Jazzy Chill Mix’ starts the record off with polished beats and Lisa B’s spoken word vocals. She’s alluring, venturing through various tones and moods throughout the course of the song. The ‘Edit of Jazzy Chill Mix’ closes the record in similar fashion, while the ‘House Mix’ packs in a danceable beat.
  
  ‘Be Electric (Electronica Remix)’ is a sophisticated, sleek cut that makes great use out of Lisa’s hushed, breathy tones and funky witticisms.
  
  The remastered ‘Trane’s Ride (Naima)’ is my favourite song on the record. It uses Coltrane’s piece to underline Lisa’s deeply seductive lyrics, creating fiery waves of sensuality and sexiness. The beat, provided by James Richard’s drum and bass programming, pulsates and vibrates in time to Lisa’s hot vocal performance.
  
  Other cuts, like ‘Get the Signal’ and ‘Virtual Kiss,’ allow Lisa to do more singing. She shows off her jazz pipes, gracefully dancing through various tones and moods with delight and style.
  
  All in all, ‘The Poetry of Groove’ is a sexy and exciting collection of tunes from one of the most daring and deft performers I’ve come across in a while.”
  
  

• Mark Saleski on "The Poetry of Groove" [+ Show ]
  

  "...spoken word beautifully sung excursions...in a bunch of snazzy grooves from hip-hop to slinky ja..."...spoken word beautifully sung excursions...in a bunch of snazzy grooves from hip-hop to slinky jazzification. (READ ALL:)
  
  I've always been attracted to...'non-standard' listening...Lene Lovich, Kate Bush, Yoko Ono, The Roches, Meredith Monk, and Bjork. This doesn't mean that I don't enjoy 'regular' singers...The only problem here...is that sometimes the humanity and emotion can get masked by the perceived strangeness of the presentation. I had this problem when I first heard Kate Bush...but was won over after a single listen...
  
  With Lisa B (that would be Bernstein), there was never any doubt. I was hooked when I first heard what she did with 'What's New, Pussycat?.' Yes, Bacharach and David wrote it, and Tom Jones took off with it, but Lisa B put a very cool spin on it.
  
  On 'The Poetry Of Groove,' Lisa B takes her spoken word beautifully sung excursions and wraps them up in a bunch of snazzy grooves that vary from hip-hop to slinky jazzification. On the spiritually uplifting 'Get The Signal,' the grooves are built from a sparse outline (thanks to what sounds like a kalimba) into something more earthy and insistent. The title track's hopeful message ('...It's the things you crave that fill you with singing...') is set up with a slow burn that opens up with the addition of strings, backing vocals, and piano & funk guitar accents. On 'Trane's Ride (Naima) (Remastered),' Bernstein delivers some very evocative poetry over a hip-hop mashup of the Coltrane classic.
  
  All is not serious here though, as "Virtual Kiss (Remix)" jokes about dissatisfaction with a life of office work. Wait...maybe that's not so funny! Even so, I did laugh at the line "Did I go to college for this?" On this track Lisa B also adds some terrific backing vocals with slightly off-kilter harmonies. Maybe they're not as off-kilter as the idea of spending an entire working life in a cubicle.
  
  Oh, did I mention that Lisa B can bring the sexy? "Turning It Around (Remix)" is carried by a sultry groove that kicks in after the breathy opening of "Turn around....just like that...ahhhh..." A peach is then used as a metapho.....uhhhh, what were we talking about?
  
  In a world that pretty much drips of fresh cynicism, music such as that found on The Poetry Of Groove becomes all the more important..."
  

• Michael E. Ross of Culchavox.blogspot.com [+ Show ]
  

  “...Lisa's signature alto, by turns smoky and lapidary, awakens us to her spiritual travels with inf...“...Lisa's signature alto, by turns smoky and lapidary, awakens us to her spiritual travels with infectious rhythms and witticisms that are seductively inviting. (READ ALL:)
  
  …on ‘The Poetry of Groove,’… Lisa's signature alto, by turns smoky and lapidary, awakens us to her spiritual travels with infectious rhythms and witticisms that are seductively inviting… She brings a refreshingly maverick cadence to the spoken-word experience.
  
  In ‘The Poetry of Groove’ and ‘Get the Signal,’ Lisa explores the record's central themes: a call to spiritualism and more reliance on our deeper, more humanistic inclinations. But this ain't no lecture: Lisa brings the musical passion behind her spiritual manifesto… with her love of jazz, Latin rhythm and hip-hop's lyric sensibilities.
  
  The remix of ‘Virtual Kiss’ [has]… nothing missing in terms of its nervous, thoroughly modern dissonance. Hearing it today, more than 10 years after the first version, Lisa's lyrics ring eerily prophetic; this clever take on the persistence of technology and how the ways of the heart struggle to rise in a digital, cubicled world has more pertinence now than it did a dozen years ago.
  
  Lisa's inclusion of a remastered version of ‘Night and Day’ (from ‘What's New, Pussycat?’) may be the best distillation of where she's at as a singer and, more basically, as an evolving artist. This combination of a faithful vocal reading of the Cole Porter classic with her own feline-inspired poetic interpolation remains a reminder of what makes her so fiercely original.
  
  …the jazzy-chill edit of the title track, which closes the album…[w]ith its lush string accents and a deft balance of vocal and instrumental prowess… shapes up as the perfect closing statement… on an album that capably and joyously brings the talents of a true musical iconoclast front and center again.”
  

• As Sexy As You Can Sound without Being a 70s Diva [+ Show ]
  

  Three years ago, B established herself as our fave Catwoman since Julie Newmar and now we find her m...Three years ago, B established herself as our fave Catwoman since Julie Newmar and now we find her moving back to her writer self and bringing her poetry slam side to the fore.
  
  Much more Jill Scott than Rod McKuen, B continues to ride the progressive tip with a creative abandon that makes it seem easy to break convention and get away with it. As sexy as you can sound without being a ...70s diva.” - Chris Spector
  
  

• "What's New, Pussycat?" in All Music Guide [+ Show ]
  

  "...musically and vocally, this 2006 release has a lot going for it… Bernstein uses the word cat as ..."...musically and vocally, this 2006 release has a lot going for it… Bernstein uses the word cat as a metaphor — as hipster/beatnik/bebop slang — and she is really singing about human situations on jazzy, playful originals like 'Crazy Cat,' 'Slay Me (My Young Cat)' and the salsa-flavored 'Cha Cha de la Gata (Kitty-Cat Cha)'… from Bernstein´s own material to an intriguing arrangement of Graham Nash´s 'Our House,' 'What's New, Pussycat?' is infectious more often than not…on this generally memorable and clever CD."
  
  
  

• "Center of the Rhyme" in Phildadelphia Daily News [+ Show ]
  

  "Daring, dexterous singer/songwriter/poet Lisa B catches the 'Center of the Rhyme' (Piece of Pie), a..."Daring, dexterous singer/songwriter/poet Lisa B catches the 'Center of the Rhyme' (Piece of Pie), an imaginative set of originals with appeal to both traditional and contemporary jazz tastes and even, on occasion, hip-hop hipsters."
  
  

• "Center of the Rhyme" in Jazz Times [+ Show ]
  

  " 'Center of the Rhyme' reveals a singer, spoken-word artist and poet with an incisive way of chroni..." 'Center of the Rhyme' reveals a singer, spoken-word artist and poet with an incisive way of chronicling situations, memories and emotions. She sings with a pliable, expressive voice dipped in blue... B intercuts her smooth rendition of Bobby Caldwell's 'What You Won't Do for Love' with a rap, and turns saucily suggestive on 'Keeps Me Up All Night.' She sets her urgent poetic lyrics against a violin-driven, electro-fusion background on 'Be Electric,' and a spacious musical bed, highlighted by romantic saxophone, swirls around her imagistic vocals on the title track."
  
  

• Jazz & Blues Co. booker [+ Show ]
  

  "She totally captivated the audience. She is an originator, her arrangements are mesmerizing, and he..."She totally captivated the audience. She is an originator, her arrangements are mesmerizing, and her band is great!"
  
  

• Paradise Lounge booker, S.F., Calif.
  

  "Obviously you´re a gigantic talent…you totally controlled the room."

• Frances Mayes in S.J. Mercury on "The Transparent Body"
  

  "…Whatever she knows or sings comes, in Whitman´s term, from the body electric."

Setlist

Lisa B has performed in clubs, colleges and universities, festivals, performance spaces, and bookstores. She can do one to three 40-minute sets, either solo with tracks or with her trio.

She has an M.A. in creative writing and teaching experience from kids to university level, and she also offers workshops on writing poetry, spoken word, lyrics, and poetic rap and how to integrate with music. Set lists can include many soul and jazz standards.

For the upcoming winter holiday shows celebrating her new CD "Christmas Time Is Here (and Chanukah and the Solstice)," Lisa will be performing Christmas songs, Jewish music, and original songs (including spoken word) on the winter season.

Holiday core set list:
1. Christmas Time Is Here
2. Let It Snow
3. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
4. This Christmas
5. Holiday in Oakland (original)
6. My Favorite Things
7. Hine Ma Tov
8. Miracle
9. The Flame (original)
10. The Solstice (original)

Otherwise, core one-set list is:
1. Trane's Ride (Naima)
2. Be Electric
3. Turning It Around
4. Get the Signal
5. Night and Day / The Cat Goddess
6. Joe Williams Died Walking / Every Day I Have the Blues
7. Virtual Kiss
8. The Poetry of Groove

Examples of additional standards and covers -
What's New, Pussycat?
It Never Entered My Mind
A Taste of Honey
Feelin' Good
All Blues
You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To
Our House
'Round Midnight (as a cha cha medium ballad)
What You Won't Do for Love
Yesterdays (uptempo)

Examples of more originals -
Slay Me
Cha Cha de la Gata
Warrior Cat
Center of the Rhyme

Basic Requirements

PDF Rider

Lisa B Solo & Band Gig Technical Needs

Calendar