Lisa Said (pronounced Sa’ yeed) is a Tennessee girl from an Egyptian family. She was exposed to old-time hill music, country, folk and rock growing up just like any other girl in the Volunteer state, and she also was exposed to the music of her family’s homeland. All of these influenced find their way into the music on Lisa’s first release, First Time, Long Time.
The EP opens with “Been Around”, an alt-country song spiced up with Middle Eastern-tinged percussion. “Been Around” is definitely my favorite track on the disc because it give a hint of a creative and unique voice. That’s not to say that the other four songs aren’t good. “Hard to Break” is a nice, loping break-up song that has a sly reference a Starland Vocal Band hit (how’s that for eclectic). I would like to hear Said take more chances. Too often the songs play it safe which leaves them sounding a bit too generic. I look forward to hearing what comes next. Lisa Said has skills and could prove to be a very interesting artist.
