Liz Phair- Girly-Sound Tapes

As I was writing yesterday's post about Liz Phair, I realized you really can't talk about Liz Phair's early work without mentioning her pre-Exile In Guyville recordings, the Girlysound tapes. Actually Girly-Sound was the moniker Liz Phair used when she self-produced several tapes in 1991. They were recorded in her bedroom in her parent's house and were initially given only to two people. These tapes circulated and she eventually signed with Matador Records on the strength of a tape she sent the label that contained 6 songs from the Girly tapes. Many of the songs from Girly-Sound were reworked and re-recorded for her debut and altered versions of the other songs appeared on later studio albums. You could say Liz Phair became a bit of a phenomenon, as the tapes were traded within the taper community and Liz Phair fan music circles. To read more about the tapes and the tracks on each and a guide to what album the tracks eventually appeared on, read the wikipedia page for Girly Sound. None of the Girly-Sound tapes have been officially released, though 5 tracks appeared on her 1995 Juvenilia EP and a bonus disc of Girly-Sound tracks were included on the physical version of 2010's Funstyle album.

The tracks posted below are mp3's (probably 1st generation) from the three cassette tapes (sorry, I don't have the actual tapes!). These are truly a prize for any Liz Phair fan and an interesting listen for anyone curious about home recording. Technology has come a long way from the 4-track cassette recordings of Liz Phair and probably hundreds of other musicians that recorded music in their bedroom (yes, I have made many recordings of myself from my single track cassette recorder and 4-track tape machine!), nowadays a bedroom recording can sound as slick and intricate as a professionally recorded album thanks to computers and software. Thank you Liz Phair for proving that DIY can be a launching pad for a successful music career.
Enjoy!

Tape #1
GIRLY-SOUND
Yo Yo Buddy Yup Yup Word To Ya Muthuh (1991)

01. White Babies
02. Shane
03. Six Dick Pimp
04. Divorce Song
05. Go West
06. Dont Hold Your Breath
07. Johnny Sunshine
08. Miss Lucy
09. Elvis Song
10. Dead Shark
11. One Less Thing
12. Money
13. In Love With Yourself (Combo Platter)
14. Fuck Or Die

Tape #2
GIRLY-SOUND
Girls Girls Girls (1991)

01. Hello Sailor
02. Wild Thing
03. Fuck & Run
04. Easy Target
05. Soap Star Joe
06. Ant In Alaska
07. Girls Girls Girls
08. Polyester Bride
09. Thrax
10. Miss Mary Mack
11. Clean
12. Love Song
13. Valentine
14. Shatter

Tape #3
GIRLY-SOUND
Untitled (1991)

01 Flowers
02 Whip Smart
03 Open Season (Beg Me)
04 Go Speed Racer
05 Stratford Guy
06 South Dakota
07 Why I Left California
08 Batmobile
09 Gigolo (Cant Get Out What Im Into)
10 Easy (Its Not That)
11 Slave (Sometimes A Dream Is What Makes You A)
12 Chopsticks

GIRLY-SOUND- Tape 1. rar
GIRLY-SOUND- Tape 2. rar
GIRLY-SOUND- Tape 3. rar