Over 20 Years Later and Lisa Fischer’s Still Asking “How Can I Ease The Pain?”

It’s been 23 years since Lisa Fischer’s 1991 #1 R&B hit, “How Can I Ease The Pain,” first captured our hearts and rolled Fischer into both a 1992 Grammy for Best R&B Female Vocal Performance and a Soul Train Music Award. From the Top 5 Album with three Top 20 R&B hits, So Intense, Fischer arrived, slayed, and after releasing just that one smash solo album quietly decided the spotlight wasn’t for her.

Afterwards, amid much speculation, Fischer went back to being among the highest paid session and background vocalists of all time for such icons and stars as Luther Vandross, Tina Turner, Sting, Melba Moore, Billy Ocean, Nine Inch Nails, Chris Botti, and perhaps most famously, The Rolling Stones. Recently, Fischer returned to the media glare as a breakout figure among legendary session singers like Merry Clayton and Darlene Love in the 2013 Oscar-winning documentary film, 20 Feet From Stardom. After spending the last two decades touring extensively and sprinkling the field with pop-up guest and featured vocalist credits along a wide spectrum of compilation CDs and soundtracks, Fischer has been as in demand as ever by everyone from jazz to rock veterans, barely catching her breath.

This recent performance at this year’s annual BAM R&B Festival at MetroTech in Brooklyn, NY last week might provide some insight into why Fischer’s never stopped working, even when you didn’t know it, and is as red hot as she was when first hitting the New York music scene in 1983 as Xēna. With a more mature voice that has lost little of its famed agility, Fischer maneuvers around her classic hit with more colors, shading, and texture than a Picasso. It’s the technique and experience of one of the most expert singers who ever did it. It’s the singular showcase of a legend at work.

By L. Michael Gipson