For seven years she toured and recorded as a member of Mellencamp's band,[4][5] appearing on The Lonesome Jubilee (1987),[6] Big Daddy (1989), Falling from Grace (1991), Human Wheels (1993), and Dance Naked (1994).

[citation needed] She signed a contract with the British label 4AD, which had a manufacturing and distribution deal with Warner Bros. in the U.S. Ivo Watts-Russell, founder and president of 4AD, was a fan of Germano's work.

He remixed some of the tracks from Happiness with producer and engineer John Fryer, who had been involved in Watts-Russell's This Mortal Coil project.

Germano's album Geek the Girl (1994) was reviewed positively by the press[8] Excerpts From a Love Circus (1996) was praised by Spin and Rolling Stone.

[citation needed] Earlier that year, Watts-Russell approached 4AD's musicians with the idea that each act would find another person or band to collaborate with on three songs.

Germano worked with rock band Giant Sand, but after their tracks had been recorded, the label decided that the series would be unfeasible and rejected the idea.

In April 1997, 4AD began promoting "I Love a Snot" (remixed by Tchad Blake) to radio and retail stores in America, but sales of the album remained static at best.

With David Bowie With Michael Brook With Eels With Neil Finn With Howe Gelb With Indigo Girls With Billy Joel With John Mellencamp With Simple Minds With Yann Tiersen With others