Lisa Germano to Tour with Radiohead's Phil Selway

Last week when Radiohead played their surprise Haiti benefit at the Henry Fonda Theater, those of us lucky enough to get onto the guest list (we still donated $$, for the record) received confirmation via email. In the email was a document containing the entire guest list, which for a Radiohead show in Los Angeles means a lot of heavy-hitters. Yes, on it were the celebrities and the industry big-wigs, but it also contained a few surprise names, and one of them was singer/songwriter Lisa Germano.

We've long been a fan of Germano's gorgeous, expansive aesthetic, but she's far from a household name, and though Radiohead seems to have pretty good taste, her appearance was kind of a non-sequitur, and set our imagination afire. Hmmm: Was she down with the band? Do they share management? When they stay in LA, do they shop at the Whole Foods in West Hollywood, where Germano works when she's not making music? What's the connection?

We still don't know the full answer, but a notice this morning we received announcing Germano's upcoming tour as opener for Radiohead drummer Phil Selway helped explain her appearance. Further research indicates that Germano performs on Selway's upcoming solo album, which will be released in the spring, and will be part of his touring band. She performs on Selway's album alongside Wilco members Glenn Kotche and Pat Sansone.

Selway's yet to release his tour dates, but we'll keep you posted. In the meantime, make sure and read John Payne's profile of Germano, which we published a few weeks back. And enjoy this beautiful cover of Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood's "Sand," from OP8, the band she performed in with Giant Sand's Howe Gelb and the principal members of Calexico. It's one of our favorite-ever albums.