Lisa Loeb has kept busy since her '90s hit "Stay (I Missed You)."
After doing a TV show with Dweezil Zappa, appearing in a reality TV dating show, taking writing workshops, releasing albums, running an advice column and starting a foundation to send underprivileged kids to summer camp, she's on tour to promote her latest album, Camp Lisa.
She'll perform at 7 p.m. today at the El Rey Theater, at 620 Central Ave. S.W.
"I'll play songs people always request," Loeb said. "Some new songs from the Camp record, some old songs from Purple Tape."
Comedian Steve Martin plays banjo on Camp Lisa.
"I was a huge fan of his growing up - as an actor and as a writer - so it was fun to work with him as a musician, too," she said. "I met him years ago at a restaurant in L.A., and (my friend and I) were sitting there discussing who should play banjo, and we realized I can ask him to play banjo. He called me back, and after a couple conversations, he decided to play on the record."
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
Loeb said she had such great experiences at summer camp as a child, including learning how to play guitar, that she was inspired made Camp Lisa.
"I made a record with my friends and college roommates," she said. "We made one kids' record, and it went really well. So, a couple years later I decided to make another kids record, and I decided to make it a summer-camp form because that's the music I liked best."
She said she'll be visiting kids benefited by the Camp Lisa Foundation during her short tour through the South and up to New York.
"I realized it would be great to have more kids get the experience of going to summer camp, and I wanted to start a foundation to send underprivileged kids to summer camp," she said. "There was an organization that was already established, called SCOPE, that finds kids to go to summer camp and works with summer camps specifically designed for those kids, so we decided to join them. Funds we raised would go through them to reach the kids."
Loeb said she likes coming to New Mexico because she is friends with Taos writer Natalie Goldberg, whom she sometimes visits and whose thoughts on the writing process have influenced her.
Loeb said it's important not to be too judgmental about first drafts.
"It's important to judge it when you're crafting a song, but you have to get that part away - not focus on (editing) when I'm writing," she said. "I also just like the whole concept that you can write about anything. Sometimes, it's good to find things you're into writing, because writing can be really daunting."
