Aimee Mann
Encyclopedia
Aimee Mann is an American rock
singer-songwriter
, guitarist
and bassist
.
, graduated from Open High School (Richmond, Virginia) in 1978 and attended the Berklee College of Music
in Boston, but dropped out to sing with her first punk rock
band, the Young Snakes
. The band released the EP Bark Along with the Young Snakes
in 1982, and a compilation album
was issued in 2004.
In 1983, she co-founded with Berklee classmate and boyfriend Michael Hausman
the new wave
band 'Til Tuesday
, which achieved success in 1985 with its first album, Voices Carry
. The title song
is said to be inspired by Hausman and Mann's breakup. The record producer
, Mike Thorne, in a March 1999 article disputed this and stated the lyrics originally had Mann singing to another woman. The gender was changed due to pressure from the record label
. The video
became an MTV
staple, winning the MTV Video Music Award for Best New Artist
. Mann was featured on the Rush
song "Time Stand Still" (from Hold Your Fire
, 1987) which became a minor UK hit, singing backup vocals
and appearing in the music video. Her laughter is also heard at the start of "Force Ten," from the same album. With Mann playing an increasingly important role in songwriting, 'Til Tuesday released two more albums, Welcome Home and Everything's Different Now
. Shortly after the release of Welcome Home, Mann told a writer for Nine-O-One Network Magazine
that she was much more pleased with it than Voices Carry, primarily because she felt it made more of a personal statement about her life. On their final tour, musician Jon Brion
joined the band, which broke up in 1990 when Mann left to start her solo career.
Around the time of the first album's release, Mann began a romantic relationship with Jules Shear
; they broke up before the final 'Til Tuesday album, which contained the song "J For Jules." Professional relationships from the band would continue: Hausman later became Mann's manager, and Brion produced her first two solo albums, along with the Magnolia soundtrack.
. Again, reviews were positive, but sales were weak.
Mann recorded Bachelor No. 2
, but Geffen saw no hit singles in the material and ordered her back to the studio. The album languished while Mann and the label fought.
In 1997 Mann recorded "Nobody Does It Better" on the album Shaken and Stirred: The David Arnold James Bond Project.
Meanwhile, Mann became friends with film director Paul Thomas Anderson
. This developed as her husband, Michael Penn
, and Brion composed the soundtrack for Anderson's movie Hard Eight
. Mann gained greater public recognition in 1999 — indeed, more than for anything else since "Voices Carry" — when she contributed eight songs to the soundtrack of Anderson's Magnolia
, including the Academy Award
and Grammy-nominated song, "Save Me
". Anderson deliberately worked from Mann's lyrics to create the film's characters and situations. Mann soon became sought-after as a soundtrack contributor. Her song "Amateur" appeared prominently in the 1998 movie Sliding Doors
.
, and though initially only sold at concerts and via her website, the album became successful, allowing her to secure retail distribution through SuperEgo. The album, which included some songs from Magnolia and new material, was widely admired and Mann's "more indie
than indie" success was carefully noted by other musicians.
Mann, Penn, Brion, Fiona Apple
, and other musicians had by this time developed a subculture around the Largo
nightclub in L.A. Penn and Mann formed a concept called Acoustic Vaudeville to recreate it on tour in California
and eventually on an irregular, ongoing national tour. The Acoustic Vaudeville shows intermix music and stand-up comedy
; among the comedians joining them for individual shows were Janeane Garofalo
, Patton Oswalt
, and David Cross
.
(2002), a somewhat more somber album in the same vein as Bachelor No. 2, featuring art by Seth
. In 2003 her website released the Lost in Space Special Edition, which featured a second disc containing six live recordings (including a version of Coldplay's
"The Scientist
"), as well two B-sides and two previously unreleased songs. In November 2004, Live at St. Ann's Warehouse
, a live album and DVD
recorded at a series of June 2004 shows in Brooklyn
, came out; the two discs were sold packaged together in either a CD jewel case or a DVD case. Mann and her band also played two songs from Lost in Space in an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
(2005), as a concept album
set in the 1970s about two lovers who meet at the Virginia State Fair
and go on the run. The Joe Henry
-produced album, which was recorded mostly live with few overdubs, was released May 3, 2005. The album's illustrations and title reflect Mann's interest in boxing
, having trained with the boxing trainer Freddie Roach. In 2006, Mann received her one Grammy Award to date for "Best Recording Package" for art direction work related to The Forgotten Arm (shared with Gail Marowitz). The album title derives from a boxing move in which one arm is used to hit the opponent, causing him to "forget" about the other arm, which is then used to deliver a harsher blow. The album received weaker reviews overall, with critics impressed at the totality but unimpressed with any individual songs.
Mann also released an EP for Christmas
in 2005 as a cover single of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
" for sale through her website and iTunes
. It also included "Christmastime", the 1996 duet she recorded with Penn for the Hard Eight
soundtrack, and a cover of "The Christmas Song
". The iTunes version replaced "Christmastime" with a cover of Joni Mitchell
's "River" and "Clean Up for Christmas" from The Forgotten Arm.
Mann's independence from the industry led to more overt political stances. She joined Artists Against Piracy, a group formed to act against the illegal downloading and file sharing
of copyright
ed music from the Internet
. Mann, Penn and Hausman took their experience with SuperEgo to found the independent music
collective
United Musicians
, which is based on the principle that every artist should be able to retain copyright
ownership of the work he or she has created, in contrast to normal music industry contracts.
In July 2006, Mann announced that she would be releasing One More Drifter in the Snow
, a full-length Christmas album
. The album featured primarily covers of Christmas standards, as well as a new version of Christmastime and an original song, called "Calling On Mary", written by Mann and bassist Paul Bryan
, who produced the record. It was released on October 31 in the US, and late November 2006 in the UK. An updated version of the CD was released in 2008 incorporating the Joni Mitchell song "River".
was released, featuring two new Mann songs, "The Great Beyond" and "At the Edge of the World".
July 2007 also saw the premiere of the music video for a song entitled "31 Today" (which featured comedienne Morgan Murphy
alongside Mann and Bobcat Goldthwait
as director) on YouTube
. The song appears on Mann's seventh studio album, @#%&*! Smilers, released on June 3, 2008 featuring cover and inside art by Gary Taxali which was nominated for a 2009 Grammy Award for Best Art Package (art directed/designed by Gail Marowitz). The album debuted on the Billboard 200
at Number 32 (one of Mann's highest positions to date), and on the Top Independent Albums chart at Number 2. @#%&*! Smilers was met with mostly praise, with Billboard stating that it "pops with color, something that gives it an immediacy that's rare for an artist known for songs that subtly worm their way into the subconscious... Smilers grabs a listener, never making him or her work at learning the record, as there are both big pop hooks and a rich sonic sheen."
Mann joined the 9th annual Independent Music Awards
judging panel to assist independent musicians' careers. She was also an inaugural member of the IMAs in 2002. In a September 2009 interview with Los Angeles blog LA Snark, Mann mentioned that she was beginning work on a musical based on her album The Forgotten Arm.
Mann's song Wise Up is being used for the organ donor campaign in Ontario, Canada and can be seen on the video within their site beadonor.ca
On her 2010 fall tour, Aimee talked about "The Forgotten Arm" musical, including playing four new songs written specifically for it: "You've Got To Be Willing To Hurt The One You Love", "Conflicted", "Easy to Die", and "Eiffel Tower". Two of these songs feature a new character from the musical, a boxing trainer named Ollie. In 2011, Aimee stated that the musical was put on hold indefinitely, due to similarities to The Fighter.
Michael Penn
in the late 1980s and with comparable songwriting styles and record-industry woes to share, they struck up a friendship during the recording of I'm with Stupid (to which Penn contributed vocals), which blossomed into romance and their marriage in 1997. Penn is the brother of actors Sean Penn
and Chris Penn
. Penn and Mann live in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles
. She is stepmother to Liam Penn, Michael's son from a previous marriage. Aimee has a sister, Gretchen Seichrist, who lives in Minnesota. Gretchen is five years younger than Aimee. She is a painter and has released two independent albums under the name, Patches & Gretchen.
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
, guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
and bassist
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
.
Early life
Aimee Mann grew up in Bon Air, VirginiaBon Air, Virginia
Bon Air is a census-designated place in Chesterfield County, Virginia, United States. The population was 16,366 at the 2010 census. The community is considered a suburb of the independent city of Richmond in the Richmond-Petersburg region, and shares a post office with Richmond...
, graduated from Open High School (Richmond, Virginia) in 1978 and attended the Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as a school for jazz, rock and popular music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including hip...
in Boston, but dropped out to sing with her first punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band, the Young Snakes
Young Snakes
The Young Snakes was an American band formed in Boston in the early 1980s. Lead singer and bassist Aimee Mann formed the group after she dropped out of Berklee College of Music; other members were guitarist Doug Vargas and drummer Mike Evans, who replaced Dave Bass, who returned to his hometown,...
. The band released the EP Bark Along with the Young Snakes
Bark Along with the Young Snakes
Bark Along with The Young Snakes is the Young Snakes' only EP, released in 1982.-Track listing:#"Give Me Your Face" – 3:10#"Suit Me" – 2:24#"Don't Change Your Mind" – 2:53#"Way the World Goes" – 1:51#"Not Enough" – 2:48-External links:*...
in 1982, and a compilation album
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
was issued in 2004.
In 1983, she co-founded with Berklee classmate and boyfriend Michael Hausman
Michael Hausman
Michael Hausman is an American percussionist and artist manager in the music industry.He was a former student of Berklee College of Music and played with a Boston band called The Dark before becoming the drummer for the mid-1980s New Wave band 'Til Tuesday; the group's only hit, Voices Carry, is...
the new wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
band 'Til Tuesday
'Til Tuesday
Til Tuesday was an American New Wave band formed in Boston in 1982. Its original lineup was bassist/vocalist Aimee Mann, guitarist/vocalist Robert Holmes, keyboardist Joey Pesce, and drummer Michael Hausman.-History:...
, which achieved success in 1985 with its first album, Voices Carry
Voices Carry
Voices Carry is the first studio album by the American band 'Til Tuesday, released in 1985. .'Til Tuesday's debut single was the album's title track, which went to #8 on the Billboard singles chart and remains the band's best-known song...
. The title song
Voices Carry (song)
"Voices Carry" is a song by American new wave band 'Til Tuesday. Written by Aimee Mann, the song was produced by Mike Thorne for the group's debut album Voices Carry, released in 1985. The song is about past sour relationships and was originally written and sung as if to a woman, but the lyrics...
is said to be inspired by Hausman and Mann's breakup. The record producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, Mike Thorne, in a March 1999 article disputed this and stated the lyrics originally had Mann singing to another woman. The gender was changed due to pressure from the record label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
. The video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
became an MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
staple, winning the MTV Video Music Award for Best New Artist
MTV Video Music Award for Best New Artist
The MTV Video Music Award for Best New Artist is one of the four original general categories that have been given out since the first annual MTV Video Music Awards in 1984...
. Mann was featured on the Rush
Rush (band)
Rush is a Canadian rock band formed in August 1968, in the Willowdale neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario. The band is composed of bassist, keyboardist, and lead vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart...
song "Time Stand Still" (from Hold Your Fire
Hold Your Fire
Hold Your Fire is the 12th studio album by the Canadian rock band Rush, released in the fall of 1987 . The album was recorded at The Manor Studio in Oxfordshire, Ridge Farm Studio in Surrey, Air Studios in Montserrat and at McClear Place in Toronto.Rush continued to explore new songwriting...
, 1987) which became a minor UK hit, singing backup vocals
Backing vocalist
A backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
and appearing in the music video. Her laughter is also heard at the start of "Force Ten," from the same album. With Mann playing an increasingly important role in songwriting, 'Til Tuesday released two more albums, Welcome Home and Everything's Different Now
Everything's Different Now
Everything's Different Now is the third and final studio album by the American band 'Til Tuesday, released in 1988. .-Track listing:1. "Everything's Different Now" – 3:56...
. Shortly after the release of Welcome Home, Mann told a writer for Nine-O-One Network Magazine
Nine-O-One Network Magazine
Nine-O-One Network Magazine was a bi-monthly music magazine published in Memphis, Tennessee, from 1986 to 1989.-Beginnings:The magazine originated during the heralded 1986 “Class of '55” recording session in Memphis with Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, and Carl Perkins. Producer Chips...
that she was much more pleased with it than Voices Carry, primarily because she felt it made more of a personal statement about her life. On their final tour, musician Jon Brion
Jon Brion
Jon Brion is an American rock and pop multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, composer and record producer.-Early life:...
joined the band, which broke up in 1990 when Mann left to start her solo career.
Around the time of the first album's release, Mann began a romantic relationship with Jules Shear
Jules Shear
Jules Mark Shear is a US singer, songwriter, and guitarist born in Pittsburgh in 1952. Although he has had only one minor hit as a performer , he has recorded almost 20 albums to date...
; they broke up before the final 'Til Tuesday album, which contained the song "J For Jules." Professional relationships from the band would continue: Hausman later became Mann's manager, and Brion produced her first two solo albums, along with the Magnolia soundtrack.
Early solo career
In 1993, Mann released Whatever, her first solo album. Promotion suffered due to the collapse of her label, Imago. The album sold modestly and met with critical praise, paving the way for her next release, 1995's I'm with Stupid, through Geffen RecordsGeffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...
. Again, reviews were positive, but sales were weak.
Mann recorded Bachelor No. 2
Bachelor No. 2
Bachelor No. 2 is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Aimee Mann, released in 2000. Its full title is Bachelor No. 2 or, the Last Remains of the Dodo. The album is notable for the fact that Mann was initially without a record company and sold the album through her website, but the...
, but Geffen saw no hit singles in the material and ordered her back to the studio. The album languished while Mann and the label fought.
In 1997 Mann recorded "Nobody Does It Better" on the album Shaken and Stirred: The David Arnold James Bond Project.
Meanwhile, Mann became friends with film director Paul Thomas Anderson
Paul Thomas Anderson
Paul Thomas Anderson is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He has written and directed five feature films: Hard Eight , Boogie Nights , Magnolia , Punch-Drunk Love and There Will Be Blood...
. This developed as her husband, Michael Penn
Michael Penn
Michael Penn is an American singer, songwriter and composer. He is the eldest son of actor/director Leo Penn and actress Eileen Ryan, and the brother of actors Sean Penn and the late Chris Penn.-Career:...
, and Brion composed the soundtrack for Anderson's movie Hard Eight
Hard Eight (film)
Hard Eight is a 1996 American crime thriller film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, starring Philip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow and Samuel L. Jackson...
. Mann gained greater public recognition in 1999 — indeed, more than for anything else since "Voices Carry" — when she contributed eight songs to the soundtrack of Anderson's Magnolia
Magnolia (film)
Magnolia is a 1999 American drama film written, produced, and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, narrated by Ricky Jay, and starring Tom Cruise, Philip Baker Hall, Philip Seymour Hoffman, William H. Macy, Julianne Moore, John C. Reilly, and Jason Robards in his last feature film appearance...
, including the Academy Award
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
and Grammy-nominated song, "Save Me
Save Me (Aimee Mann song)
Save Me is a song written and performed by Aimee Mann for use in the film Magnolia. It appears on the Magnolia soundtrack, which was released on December 7, 1999. The song also appears on the European edition of the album, Bachelor No...
". Anderson deliberately worked from Mann's lyrics to create the film's characters and situations. Mann soon became sought-after as a soundtrack contributor. Her song "Amateur" appeared prominently in the 1998 movie Sliding Doors
Sliding Doors
Sliding Doors is a 1998 British-American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Peter Howitt and starring Gwyneth Paltrow and John Hannah, and featured John Lynch, Jeanne Tripplehorn and Virginia McKenna. The music was composed by David Hirschfelder...
.
Independence
Disillusioned with both the ineffectual promotion and artistic meddling by her record label, an experience documented in songs such as "Calling It Quits" and "Nothing Is Good Enough", she struck out on her own and founded SuperEgo Records in 1999. Mann self-released Bachelor No. 2 in 2000, having negotiated a contract release from David GeffenDavid Geffen
David Geffen is an American record executive, film producer, theatrical producer and philanthropist. Geffen is noted for creating Asylum Records in 1970, Geffen Records in 1980, and DGC Records in 1990...
, and though initially only sold at concerts and via her website, the album became successful, allowing her to secure retail distribution through SuperEgo. The album, which included some songs from Magnolia and new material, was widely admired and Mann's "more indie
Indie (music)
In music, independent music, often shortened to indie music or "indie" is a term used to describe independence from major commercial record labels or their subsidiaries, and an autonomous, Do-It-Yourself approach to recording and publishing....
than indie" success was carefully noted by other musicians.
Mann, Penn, Brion, Fiona Apple
Fiona Apple
Fiona Apple McAfee Maggart is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. Apple met international acclaim for her 1996 debut album, Tidal, which was a critical and commercial success...
, and other musicians had by this time developed a subculture around the Largo
Largo (nightclub)
Largo is a nightclub and cabaret in Los Angeles, CA, known informally as Café Largo or Club Largo, known for its retinue of musical and comedic performers and for the Friday night "residency" of singer-songwriter Jon Brion, which has made the club a must-visit for fans and professional...
nightclub in L.A. Penn and Mann formed a concept called Acoustic Vaudeville to recreate it on tour in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and eventually on an irregular, ongoing national tour. The Acoustic Vaudeville shows intermix music and stand-up comedy
Stand-up comedy
Stand-up comedy is a comedic art form. Usually, a comedian performs in front of a live audience, speaking directly to them. Their performances are sometimes filmed for later release via DVD, the internet, and television...
; among the comedians joining them for individual shows were Janeane Garofalo
Janeane Garofalo
Janeane Garofalo is an American stand-up comedian, actress, political activist and writer. She is the former co-host on the now defunct Air America Radio's The Majority Report. Garofalo continues to circulate regularly within New York City's local comedy and performance art scene.-Early...
, Patton Oswalt
Patton Oswalt
Patton Oswalt is an American stand-up comedian, writer, actor and voice actor. He is best known for portraying Spencer Olchin in the popular sitcom The King of Queens, voicing Remy from the film Ratatouille and Thrasher from the Cartoon Network original series Robotomy.-Early life:Oswalt was born...
, and David Cross
David Cross
David Cross is an American actor, writer and stand-up comedian perhaps best known for his work on HBO's sketch comedy series Mr...
.
Lost in Space: 2002–2004
Mann continued her solo career with Lost in SpaceLost in Space (album)
Lost in Space is an album by singer-songwriter Aimee Mann, released on her own label SuperEgo Records in 2002 . A special edition released in 2003 featured a second disc containing six live recordings, two B-sides and two previously unreleased songs.Mann performed the songs "This Is How It Goes"...
(2002), a somewhat more somber album in the same vein as Bachelor No. 2, featuring art by Seth
Seth (cartoonist)
Seth is the pen name of Gregory Gallant , a Canadian comic book artist and writer. He is best known for comics such as Palookaville.Born in Clinton, Ontario, Seth attended the Ontario College of Art in Toronto...
. In 2003 her website released the Lost in Space Special Edition, which featured a second disc containing six live recordings (including a version of Coldplay's
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...
"The Scientist
The Scientist (song)
"The Scientist" is the second single from British alternative rock band Coldplay's second album, A Rush of Blood to the Head. The song was written collaboratively by all the band members for the album. It is built around a piano ballad, with its lyrics telling the story about a man's desire to love...
"), as well two B-sides and two previously unreleased songs. In November 2004, Live at St. Ann's Warehouse
Live at St. Ann's Warehouse
Live at St. Ann's Warehouse is a live album by singer-songwriter Aimee Mann. It was released in 2004 by SuperEgo Records. It is an album/DVD package, the CD being the album and the DVD being the concert film directed by Pierre Lamoureux. St...
, a live album and DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
recorded at a series of June 2004 shows in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, came out; the two discs were sold packaged together in either a CD jewel case or a DVD case. Mann and her band also played two songs from Lost in Space in an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
The Forgotten Arm and One More Drifter in the Snow: 2005–2006
Mann described her next album, The Forgotten ArmThe Forgotten Arm
The Forgotten Arm is an album by singer-songwriter Aimee Mann with illustrations by artist Owen Smith. It was released by SuperEgo Records on May 3, 2005....
(2005), as a concept album
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
set in the 1970s about two lovers who meet at the Virginia State Fair
Virginia State Fair
The State Fair of Virginia is held annually at the end of September, currently at the Meadow Event Park in Caroline County, Virginia. Through 2008, the fair was held at the Richmond Raceway Complex, located in eastern Henrico County, just outside of the capital city of Richmond.-Structure :The...
and go on the run. The Joe Henry
Joe Henry
Joseph Lee "Joe" Henry is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. Henry's musical style spans several genres, including alt. country, rock, jazz and folk.- Early years :...
-produced album, which was recorded mostly live with few overdubs, was released May 3, 2005. The album's illustrations and title reflect Mann's interest in boxing
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
, having trained with the boxing trainer Freddie Roach. In 2006, Mann received her one Grammy Award to date for "Best Recording Package" for art direction work related to The Forgotten Arm (shared with Gail Marowitz). The album title derives from a boxing move in which one arm is used to hit the opponent, causing him to "forget" about the other arm, which is then used to deliver a harsher blow. The album received weaker reviews overall, with critics impressed at the totality but unimpressed with any individual songs.
Mann also released an EP for Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
in 2005 as a cover single of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" is a song introduced by Judy Garland in the 1944 MGM musical Meet Me in St. Louis. Frank Sinatra later recorded a version with modified lyrics, which has become more common than the original. The song was written by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane...
" for sale through her website and iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
. It also included "Christmastime", the 1996 duet she recorded with Penn for the Hard Eight
Hard Eight (film)
Hard Eight is a 1996 American crime thriller film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, starring Philip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow and Samuel L. Jackson...
soundtrack, and a cover of "The Christmas Song
The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)
"The Christmas Song" is a classic Christmas song written in 1944 by musician, composer, and vocalist Mel Tormé and Bob Wells. According to Tormé, the song was written during a blistering hot summer...
". The iTunes version replaced "Christmastime" with a cover of Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell, CC is a Canadian musician, singer songwriter, and painter. Mitchell began singing in small nightclubs in her native Saskatchewan and Western Canada and then busking in the streets and dives of Toronto...
's "River" and "Clean Up for Christmas" from The Forgotten Arm.
Mann's independence from the industry led to more overt political stances. She joined Artists Against Piracy, a group formed to act against the illegal downloading and file sharing
File sharing
File sharing is the practice of distributing or providing access to digitally stored information, such as computer programs, multimedia , documents, or electronic books. It may be implemented through a variety of ways...
of copyright
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
ed music from the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
. Mann, Penn and Hausman took their experience with SuperEgo to found the independent music
Independent record label
An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...
collective
Collective
A collective is a group of entities that share or are motivated by at least one common issue or interest, or work together on a specific project to achieve a common objective...
United Musicians
United Musicians
United Musicians is an independent music collective founded by Aimee Mann, Michael Penn and Michael Hausman. According to UM's Web site, it is "founded on the principle that every artist should be able to retain copyright ownership of the work he or she has created and that this ownership is the...
, which is based on the principle that every artist should be able to retain copyright
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
ownership of the work he or she has created, in contrast to normal music industry contracts.
In July 2006, Mann announced that she would be releasing One More Drifter in the Snow
One More Drifter in the Snow
One More Drifter in the Snow is the tenth album and first Christmas album by Aimee Mann, released by SuperEgo Records in the United States on October 31, 2006 . It was produced by Paul Bryan and comprises covers of "standard great Christmas classics" and two original compositions: "Christmastime",...
, a full-length Christmas album
Christmas music
Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music normally performed or heard around the Christmas season, which tends to begin in the months leading up the actual holiday and end in the weeks shortly thereafter.-Early:...
. The album featured primarily covers of Christmas standards, as well as a new version of Christmastime and an original song, called "Calling On Mary", written by Mann and bassist Paul Bryan
Paul Bryan (musician)
Paul Bryan is a music producer, arranger, songwriter and bassist based in Los Angeles. He was born in San Pedro, Los Angeles, California.Work as a music producer:...
, who produced the record. It was released on October 31 in the US, and late November 2006 in the UK. An updated version of the CD was released in 2008 incorporating the Joni Mitchell song "River".
2007–present
On July 31, 2007 the soundtrack for the motion picture Arctic TaleArctic Tale
Arctic Tale is a 2007 documentary film from the National Geographic Society about the life cycle of a walrus and her calf, and a polar bear and her cubs, in a similar vein to the 2005 hit production March of the Penguins, also from National Geographic. It was directed by Adam Ravetch and Sarah...
was released, featuring two new Mann songs, "The Great Beyond" and "At the Edge of the World".
July 2007 also saw the premiere of the music video for a song entitled "31 Today" (which featured comedienne Morgan Murphy
Morgan Murphy (comedian)
Morgan Murphy is an American stand-up comic and comedy writer. She was born in Portland, Oregon. She has performed in the Comedians of Comedy tour and appeared in the "Comedians of Comedy: Live at the Troubador" DVD. Bobcat Goldthwait cast her in the films Sleeping Dogs Lie and World's Greatest...
alongside Mann and Bobcat Goldthwait
Bobcat Goldthwait
Robert Francis "Bobcat" Goldthwait is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, and film and television director. He is commonly known for his energetic, ravenous stage personality, his dark, acerbic black comedy, and his gruff but high-pitched voice.- Early life :Goldthwait was born in Syracuse,...
as director) on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
. The song appears on Mann's seventh studio album, @#%&*! Smilers, released on June 3, 2008 featuring cover and inside art by Gary Taxali which was nominated for a 2009 Grammy Award for Best Art Package (art directed/designed by Gail Marowitz). The album debuted on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
at Number 32 (one of Mann's highest positions to date), and on the Top Independent Albums chart at Number 2. @#%&*! Smilers was met with mostly praise, with Billboard stating that it "pops with color, something that gives it an immediacy that's rare for an artist known for songs that subtly worm their way into the subconscious... Smilers grabs a listener, never making him or her work at learning the record, as there are both big pop hooks and a rich sonic sheen."
Mann joined the 9th annual Independent Music Awards
The Independent Music Awards
The Independent Music Awards is an international program that honors top-ranked independent artists and releases in more than 50 Album, Song, Music Video and Design categories....
judging panel to assist independent musicians' careers. She was also an inaugural member of the IMAs in 2002. In a September 2009 interview with Los Angeles blog LA Snark, Mann mentioned that she was beginning work on a musical based on her album The Forgotten Arm.
Mann's song Wise Up is being used for the organ donor campaign in Ontario, Canada and can be seen on the video within their site beadonor.ca
On her 2010 fall tour, Aimee talked about "The Forgotten Arm" musical, including playing four new songs written specifically for it: "You've Got To Be Willing To Hurt The One You Love", "Conflicted", "Easy to Die", and "Eiffel Tower". Two of these songs feature a new character from the musical, a boxing trainer named Ollie. In 2011, Aimee stated that the musical was put on hold indefinitely, due to similarities to The Fighter.
Discography
- 1993 – Whatever
- 1995 – I'm with Stupid
- 2000 – Bachelor No. 2 or, the Last Remains of the Dodo
- 2002 – Lost in SpaceLost in Space (album)Lost in Space is an album by singer-songwriter Aimee Mann, released on her own label SuperEgo Records in 2002 . A special edition released in 2003 featured a second disc containing six live recordings, two B-sides and two previously unreleased songs.Mann performed the songs "This Is How It Goes"...
- 2005 – The Forgotten ArmThe Forgotten ArmThe Forgotten Arm is an album by singer-songwriter Aimee Mann with illustrations by artist Owen Smith. It was released by SuperEgo Records on May 3, 2005....
- 2006 – One More Drifter in the SnowOne More Drifter in the SnowOne More Drifter in the Snow is the tenth album and first Christmas album by Aimee Mann, released by SuperEgo Records in the United States on October 31, 2006 . It was produced by Paul Bryan and comprises covers of "standard great Christmas classics" and two original compositions: "Christmastime",...
- 2008 – @#%&*! Smilers
Acting
- Mann played the role of a GermanGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
nihilistNihilismNihilism is the philosophical doctrine suggesting the negation of one or more putatively meaningful aspects of life. Most commonly, nihilism is presented in the form of existential nihilism which argues that life is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value...
who sacrificed her green nail polishNail polishNail polish, or nail varnish, is a lacquer applied to human fingernails or toenails to decorate and/or protect the nail plate.-History:...
ed little right toe in the movie The Big LebowskiThe Big LebowskiThe Big Lebowski is a 1998 comedy film written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Jeff Bridges stars as Jeff Lebowski, an unemployed Los Angeles slacker and avid bowler, who is referred to as "The Dude". After a case of mistaken identity, The Dude is introduced to a millionaire also named...
(1998). - Mann and her band appear as themselves in the 2002 Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode "SleeperSleeper (Buffy episode)"Sleeper" is the eighth episode of the seventh and final season of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.-Plot synopsis:Spike digs a grave for and buries the woman he just killed while he hums a tune. In London, a man with a briefcase finds a young woman he knows lying dead...
", performing the songs "This Is How It Goes" and "Pavlov's Bell" at The BronzeThe BronzeThe Bronze is a fictional nightclub in Sunnydale, the fictional setting for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Of 144 episodes of the series, 66 have at least one scene at the Bronze, not including its appearance in the unaired pilot....
. She has one line in the episode: "Man, I hate playing vampire towns." "Pavlov's Bell" also appears on the Buffy soundtrack album Radio SunnydaleBuffy the Vampire Slayer: Radio Sunnydale - Music from the TV SeriesBuffy the Vampire Slayer: Radio Sunnydale – Music from the TV Series is the second Buffy the Vampire Slayer soundtrack album, following on from Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Album....
. - She and her band also play themselves in a 2002 episode of The West WingThe West Wing (TV series)The West Wing is an American television serial drama created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999 to May 14, 2006...
, "College KidsCollege Kids-Plot:President Bartlet, concerned about potential liability in the Qumari matter, tells Leo to get him a lawyer. Leo tabs Jordan Kendall, who is understandably wary. And the campaign suffers a setback when a Federal judge rules that Presidential debates must be open to minor-party candidates...
", performing a cover of James TaylorJames TaylorJames Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
's "Shed a Little Light" at a Rock the VoteRock the VoteRock the Vote is a non-profit organization in the United States of America whose mission is to engage and build the political power of young people....
concert. - In 2006, Mann guest-starred as herself on an episode of Love MonkeyLove MonkeyLove Monkey is a television series created by Michael Rauch and based on a book of the same name, by Kyle Smith. It starred Tom Cavanagh as a 30-something, single, record executive who navigated the tumultuous and highly amusing waters of work and dating in New York City.Its first episode aired on...
, "The One Who Got Away". - On March 26, 2008, Mann appeared as herself in the Comedy CentralComedy CentralComedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
series Lewis Black's Root of All EvilLewis Black's Root of All EvilLewis Black's Root of All Evil is an American television series that premiered on March 12, 2008 on Comedy Central, and was hosted by comedian Lewis Black. The series producer was Scott Carter from Real Time With Bill Maher; and the writer was David Sacks from The Simpsons...
. She took the position that musicians don't need marijuana in a comedic interview conducted by comedian Paul F. TompkinsPaul F. TompkinsPaul Francis Tompkins , best known as Paul F. Tompkins, is an American actor and comedian.-Life and career:Tompkins was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to a receptionist mother and railway worker father. He started out in stand-up comedy in 1986 at The Comedy Works, Philadelphia, PA, where he...
. - Mann played a cleaning woman putatively based on herself (the music industry now being unprofitable) on the Independent Film ChannelIndependent Film ChannelThe Independent Film Channel is an American cable TV network that airs independent film and related programming. IFC programming includes commercially interrupted feature-length films, original documentaries, shorts, animated series, original series, acquired series, and content exclusively for...
show PortlandiaPortlandia (TV series)Portlandia is a television series that debuted on the Independent Film Channel on January 21, 2011. The show, produced by Andrew Singer and Jonathan Krisel, is set and filmed both in and near Portland, Oregon and features Saturday Night Live cast member Fred Armisen as well as Carrie Brownstein, a...
; the episode aired 4 February 2011.
Personal life
Mann met fellow singer-songwriterSinger-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Michael Penn
Michael Penn
Michael Penn is an American singer, songwriter and composer. He is the eldest son of actor/director Leo Penn and actress Eileen Ryan, and the brother of actors Sean Penn and the late Chris Penn.-Career:...
in the late 1980s and with comparable songwriting styles and record-industry woes to share, they struck up a friendship during the recording of I'm with Stupid (to which Penn contributed vocals), which blossomed into romance and their marriage in 1997. Penn is the brother of actors Sean Penn
Sean Penn
Sean Justin Penn is an American actor, screenwriter and film director, also known for his political and social activism...
and Chris Penn
Chris Penn
Christopher Shannon "Chris" Penn was an American film and television actor known for his roles in such films as The Wild Life, Reservoir Dogs, Footloose, Rush Hour, True Romance, All the Right Moves and Pale Rider.-Early life:Penn was born in Los Angeles, California, the youngest son of Leo Penn,...
. Penn and Mann live in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. She is stepmother to Liam Penn, Michael's son from a previous marriage. Aimee has a sister, Gretchen Seichrist, who lives in Minnesota. Gretchen is five years younger than Aimee. She is a painter and has released two independent albums under the name, Patches & Gretchen.
External links
- Official site
- Aimee Mann's discography at Discogs
- Aimee Mann at Rolling StoneRolling StoneRolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
- Aimee Mann Live Interview/Performance on KCMPKCMP-WCAL:The station began with physics experiments in 1918 when five students and a professor built a small radio transmitter at St. Olaf College. Using a wire antenna strung between the campus chapel and the college's "Old Main" , signals from these experiments were picked up as far away as New...
(2005) - Aimee Mann Live Interview/Performance on KCMPKCMP-WCAL:The station began with physics experiments in 1918 when five students and a professor built a small radio transmitter at St. Olaf College. Using a wire antenna strung between the campus chapel and the college's "Old Main" , signals from these experiments were picked up as far away as New...
(2008) - Aimee Mann at NPR Music
- Aimee Mann on IMDB
- Aimee Mann's Off-The-Wall Christmas Concert on NPR.prg
- Aimee Mann Live at St. Ann's Warehouse (Performs "The Moth") at Apple.com HD Video Gallery