Aimee Mann : Releases >>

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@#%&*! Smilers >>

Limited edition book packaging of her 2008 album, Aimee's seventh solo release to date. The album is a return to form after the artistic detours of 2005's concept album The Forgotten Arm and 2006's Christmas CD One More Drifter in the Snow. Featuring thirteen new original songs, producer Paul Bryan describes the record as "deceptively powerful...very rich and grand-sounding." The songs range from the stripped-down-to-basics of "Columbus Avenue," to the almost Cars-esque synth-pop of "Freeway," alongside the classic Jimmy Webb/Glen Campbell-era "Phoenix," and the hushed creepiness of "Little Tornado." The final song "Ballantines" is a duet with Sean Hayes complete with barroom piano and trombone section. All songs were penned by Mann with the exception of "True Believer" which was co-written with fellow singer-songwriter Grant Lee Phillips.

One More Drifter in the Snow >>

Grammy winner and Oscar nominee Aimee's first Christmas album is a collection of holiday classics and two original, beautiful, and bittersweet songs written by Mann and Michael Penn. Reminiscent of classic albums of the 40's and 50's, but without any retro kitsch. Like Frank Sinatra, Johnny Mathis, and Peggy Lee, Aimee Mann captures the emotional beauty of Christmas.

Bachelor No. 2 >>

Japanese only SHM-CD (Super High Material CD - playable on all CD players) pressing. Universal. 2008.

Lost in Space >>

Dividing her time between waging war on the music industry and writing sublime pop songs, Aimee Mann shows on her fourth solo album that she is equally adept at both. "Let's hear it for guys like me," she sings over the lilting rhythms and stylish guitar work of "Guys Like Me." Her case for toppling the corporate structure is airtight; just check her Web site for the latest bulletin. Her music, meanwhile, keeps getting better. The success of the Magnolia soundtrack may have restored her confidence following the record company strife that followed her first two solo releases--Whatever and I'm With Stupid--but the wounds have not healed. "All the perfect drugs and superheroes wouldn't be enough to bring me up to zero," the former 'Til Tuesday singer imparts over the layered, lush tones of the opening "Humpty Dumpty." Meanwhile, on the emotionally distressed "It's Not," she muses over a forlorn 16-piece string section, "I keep waiting for a change but I don't know for what." It could be the prettiest, most polite battle cry ever. --Aidin Vaziri

Magnolia: Music from the Motion Picture >>

The much anticipated follow-up to Paul Thomas Anderson's Boogie Nights, Magnolia features a specially orchestrated soundtrack, largely written and performed by Aimee Mann ('Til Tuesday member and sadly overlooked solo artist). Mann's voice has always been a suitable vehicle for conveying emotional turmoil and indelible sadness, and several tracks here ("Build That Wall," "You Do," "Driving Sideways") do so with the rich melodicism that informs her best work. Producer Jon Brion's sprightly horn arrangements for "Momentum" are an unexpected (though not completely unwelcome) splash of cold water. Only Mann's cover of the Harry Nilsson-penned Three Dog Night hit "One" backfires, as it simply doesn't deliver the same effective climax as the original. The two Supertramp tracks from their Breakfast in America LP tacked on at album's end are incongruous (though they cut down the degrees of separation between them and Mann to an incredible one!). However, for anyone with an interest in Mann's melodic songwriting, there are eight worthy originals waiting for you. --Rob O'Connor

The Forgotten Arm >>

The Forgotten Arm is the new studio album from the Grammy and Oscar nominated singer/songwriter Aimee Mann. Aimee's songs have a literary quality to them — sharp, spare short stories set to music — so it was probably inevitable that she would one day make a concept album, the musical equivalent of a novella. The Forgotten Arm , her fifth solo release, is exactly that: a dozen songs that tell, rather loosely, the story of John and Caroline as they meet, fall in love and road trip across America.

Whatever >>

Mann has retired the 'Til Tuesday moniker, but the elements that made Everything's Different Now (1988) so superb--heartrending songs, baroque pop arrangements and lovely melodies--remains intact. Jeff Bateman

I'm with Stupid >>

What we're getting here is what we've come to expect from this talented songstress: pop arrangements of literate songs that deal with knotty relationships involving lovers, critics, and corporations. Mann co-wrote a song with Elvis Costello for the final 'Til Tuesday album, and it was an apt pairing. Like Costello at his best, Aimee is equal parts adroit and direct. A couplet like "I came back twice, now I'm the Anti-Christ" or "A thousand compromises don't add up to a single win" may be accompanied by something a little more to the point--"Don't you know you're a fucking freak in this world?" Mann and producer/multi-instrumentalist Jon Brion keep the songs pithy and punchy, bringing on guests like Juliana Hatfield (on the particularly intoxicating "You Could Make a Killing"), Suede alumni Bernard Butler, Michael Penn, Chris Difford, and Glenn Tilbrook for occasional adornment, but mostly maintain a hands-on approach. The result frequently recalls Abby Road-period Beatles, which isn't a bad source. --Steven Stolder