| During
the '80s, Aimee Mann led the post-new wave
pop group 'Til Tuesday. After releasing
three albums with the group, she broke up
the band and embarked on a solo career.
Her first solo album, Whatever, was a more
introspective, folk-tinged effort than 'Til
Tuesday's albums, and received uniformly
positive reviews upon its release in the
summer of 1993. However, the album was only
a small hit, spending only seven weeks on
the American charts, where it peaked at
127. Nevertheless, Whatever rejuvenated
her career -- after its release, critics
were praising her songwriting, as were peers
like Elvis Costello, Difford & Tilbrook,
and Andy Partridge.
Early in 1995, Mann had
a modest hit with "That's Just What
You Are," a song included on the soundtrack
to the television series Melrose Place.
Following the success of the single, Mann
was set to release her second solo album
in the spring of 1995, but her record label,
Imago, filed for bankruptcy before its release.
She signed a contract with Reprise Records
after Imago went under, but Imago prevented
her from releasing any records. For most
of 1995, Mann battled Imago in an attempt
to free herself from the label, eventually
winning her independence at the end of the
year. After her dispute with Imago was settled,
she signed with DGC Records. Mann's second
album, I'm with Stupid, was released in
England in the late fall of 1995 and in
January of 1996 in America. Again, it was
greeted with positive reviews yet weak sales.
Mann's career got a kick-start
in early 2000, however, when she released
her soundtrack for the critically acclaimed
film Magnolia; the song "Save Me"
was later nominated for an Academy Award.
Originally available only at live dates,
the solo Bachelor No. 2 received national
release in the spring. In the summer of
2002, Mann returned to the forefront with
the self-released Lost in Space. Late 2004
saw the release of Live at St. Ann's Warehouse,
a CD/DVD package recorded during her summer
tour. It was followed in 2006 by the critically
acclaimed Forgotten Arm, a concept album
built around the return from Vietnam of
a drug-addicted boxer. Mann released a collection
of Christmas songs called One More Drifter
in the Snow in 2006. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine,
All Music Guide |
