at a glance...

Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
First Recordings: '80s

Members:
Aimee Mann -vocals, guitar
Buddy Judge -various contributions
Jon Brion -various contributions
Michael Hausman -various contributions
Milt Sutton -drums
Jim Keltner -drums
David Coleman -electric cello

Bands in the family :
Til Tuesday, Young Snakes, Juliana Hatfield, Difford & Tillbrook, Neil Innes, Squeeze, Bernard Butler, Michael Penn, XTC

Notes:
Many thought Aimee Mann peaked in the early '80s as the leading member of 'Til Tuesday, but die-hard fans and sage critics know that Aimee has always been around since those early days -- working hard, writing and performing her own special brand of clever, well-crafted, take-no-prisoners, "adult-pop" classics. Still going strong and more independent than ever, it is only now that Mann is finally garnering the accolades and wider recognition she so justly deserves. After Til Tuesday disbanded in '88, Mann went on to write and record two critically acclaimed solo albums. 1993's Jon Brion-produced Whatever (Imago), rife with brutally honest, evocatively therapeutic, and non-Pollyana-esque songs, garnered the solo Mann high praise. '96's I'm With Stupid again won the critics hearts as another melodic gem of pop truisms, prompting Time Magazine to refer to it as one of the "catchiest pop albums of the year, brimming with poised three-minute mini-masterpiece." With praise of such high magnitude, you'd have thought Mann would have been more of a public fixture after the release of I'm With Stupid. But years of major label hijinks, including Imago's demise, and Geffen's virtual disappearance via the Polygram/Universal merger, led to the prolific Mann's creative handcuffing (at least on the distributed/finished product-level). This languish in no-man's label land, combined with Mann's honorable unwillingness to betray her convictions, compromise her integrity or be re-vamped by the spin machine of major label management led to the much-too-long four years between albums. A public resurgence came via director Paul Thomas Anderson, a friend and long-time fan, whose latest film, "Magnolia," contains no less than 8 Mann songs, 3 of which are also included on Bachelor No. 2. Anderson, inspired by tapes he'd heard Mann working on while thinking of his next movie, ended up writing Magnolia's screenplay/basing it's characters on Mann's lyrics. Mann's "Save Me," received Golden Globe and Oscar nominations for best song from a motion picture. Enter Bachelor No. 2, Aimee Mann's third solo and first self-produced album. Mann, finally fed up with major label machinations, bought the album back from Interscope (where she landed after the merger) in the Summer of 99 and created her own label, SuperEgo records, through which she will distribute Bachelor No. 2.

No one could ever accuse Aimee Mann of mincing words towards her personal antagonists - rather, she makes delicious lyrical mincemeat of them. In fact, Mann, a singer/songwriter par excellence, can convey more emotion and conviction in a few lines than most artists can in an entire album.

"I Should Have Known" laments our collective capacity for self-deception while the beautifully straightforward, "Stupid Thing" revels in exposing the transparent machinations of others. In the latter, Mann deftly demonstrates her musical sense of humor with the opening organ flourishes, imbuing the song with a requiem-like texture. The chilling and deceptively titled "4th of July" is no celebratory tune, but rather a rueful ode to lost opportunities. Their lyrics seem to perfectly sum up the structure and essence of Whatever: the songs are beautiful and heartfelt chapters of one artist's weary journey through life. "Say Anything" further epitomizes Mann's message when she finally delivers the line, "now I've heard everything," with such knowing weariness, it becomes apparent that she is not overstating her case. One gets the impression that Mann has, indeed, heard it all - from record companies to ill-suited paramours.

"I've Had It" showcases the progression of Mann's life as an enduring singer/songwriter/person. Just when you think despair might have conquered the beleaguered songstress, she manages to find learned strength from her missteps when she utters, "but I'll never get that disease/'cause I've had it." What Mann does deserve to have is a semblance of success, and she unabashedly bemoans that longing on "Put Me on Top" in which she insists, "I should be riding on a float in a hit parade/instead of standing on the curb behind the barricade." With her delicate yet insistent vocals, Mann constructs her evocative tales around collaborator Jon Brion's masterful folk-rock arrangements.

One can only wonder, after absorbing the bittersweet life lessons masterfully articulated within her lines, if there is any emotional terrain this artist has not traversed? Mann, herself, recently proffered this wisdom about songwriting: "You don't know that you have something to say; you only know that you have to say it." The marvel is that her words invariably convey universal truths for all.

If you like Aimee Mann, check out:
Aimee Mann Bachelor No. 2
Aimee Mann I'm With Stupid
Aimee Mann Magnolia Soundtrack
Michael Penn MP4
Suzanne Vega Days Of Open Hand
Edie Brickell Ghost Of A Dog
Jill Sobule Pink Pearl

-- Paul Barras