We’ve brought in dozens of bands for our Groupee Sessions over the past several months and one name that kept coming up when I asked artists who they admired was singer/songwriter Liz Pappademas.  The first time I visited her website, I’ll be honest, I was not immediately impressed.  Piano ballads, nice voice, nothing unique there, right?  Sometimes you get caught up looking for a unique sound, though, and you can’t see clearly outstanding songwriting.

What did it for me, what made me realize that this was a major talent, was the song “Vacation Romance” (watch her live performance of that song below).  Once I heard that one, all of her other songs clicked into place for me.  Liz, to me, is a like a female Tom Waits, a storyteller whose songs are vivid and infused with character.  She is a great songwriter who has the eye of a novelist and a gift for elegantly concise melody.

This was one of our most relaxed sessions.  Liz just walked in and started playing.  In person, I was impressed with the quality of her voice.  It was much richer and smokier than I had expected.  And the songs, they are timeless little gems that sound like they could have been written in almost any era. 

We’ll have more on Liz, including our interview with her, at a later date.   Enjoy her Groupee Sessions performances as video and audio clips below!