When she’s not writing, recording, or performing with legendary rockers, this tireless songstress checks her calendar to see what’s next

by Laura D.C. Kolnoski

The first thing most notice about Lisa Bouchelle is her knockout looks, but when she picks up a guitar and begins to sing, she leaves no doubt that talents here are far more than skin deep.

Based in the Trenton area, Bouchelle has been singing since age 4, when she was propped on a picnic table in an American flag dress made by her grandmother and won a campground talent contest belting out “America the Beautiful.” Early in her career, she played in local coffeehouses and bars—often seven nights a week—driving from one gig to another in a car she named “Maude,” while sending her songs to everyone she could. She was finally spotted by a local music writer and it’s been a steady uphill from there.

Honing her craft, Bouchelle has created a solo and back-up career that has taken her around the world. She has performed with Bruce Springsteen, Rob Thomas, Cyndi Lauper, Daryl Hall, and Jon Bon Jovi, toured with Meat Loaf, Blues Traveler, and America, and opened for such diverse acts as Bryan Adams, Kansas, Train, Joan Jett, Nancy Sinatra, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Richard Marx, and Nils Lofgren. Performing in venues far and wide—including Philly hot spots and Atlantic City casinos—she also enjoys jamming with local musician friends. To aid in the state’s ongoing Superstorm Sandy recovery, last year she wrote “Restore the Shore,” recording it with Southside Johnny Lyon, Gary U.S. Bonds, John Popper, Steve Forbert, and others.

One of Bouchelle’s six albums to date, her 2007 first national release Paint Your Dreams, was recorded at Jon Bon Jovi’s Sanctuary Studio in Rumson, with help from Jovi’s longtime engineer and studio designer Obie O’Brien. That was followed by Bleu Room with a Red Vase and Live from Asbury Park, released last year. Among those performing on her recordings are John Popper of Blues Traveler, Rob Hyman of The Hooters, Bobby Bandiera, Bob Burger, Glen Burtnik, John Eddie, and David Bromberg.

Bouchelle is currently in the studio completing her latest record, Gold, with Jeff Trott, who has produced and co-written with Sheryl Crow (one of the artists Bouchelle is compared to). She now has her own label, WetDuck/Cement Shoes Records, which is distributed by the indie arm of the Universal Music Group. Once Gold is completed, Bouchelle will embark upon a national and international tour, one propelled in part by growing popularity in Japan, where she performed in 2008 in central Tokyo’s popular club district.