Mann 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, seeking a return to "sweetness and melody", she co-founded with Berklee classmate and boyfriend Michael Hausman the new wave band 'Til Tuesday, which achieved minor success in 1985 with its first album, Voices Carry. The title song is said to be inspired by Hausman and Mann's breakup; the video became an MTV staple, winning the MTV Video Music Award for Best New Artist, though Mann's signature spiky hair would lead some to dismiss the group. Mann performed with the rock band Rush on the song "Time Stand Still" (from Hold Your Fire, 1987), singing backup vocals and appearing in the music video. With Mann playing an increasingly important role in songwriting, 'Til Tuesday released two more albums, Welcome Home and Everything's Different Now. On the final album and 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.
Solo career
In 1993, Mann released Whatever, her first solo album. Promotion suffered due to the collapse of her label, Imago. While only a small hit, the album was critically praised, and paved the way for her next release, 1995's I'm with Stupid, through Geffen Records. Again, reviews were positive, but sales were weak.
Mann had met musician Michael Penn in the 1980s and with comparable songwriting styles and record-industry woes to share, they struck up a friendship during the recording of Stupid, which blossomed into romance and their 1997 marriage. Around this time Brion produced her album 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.
Meanwhile, iconoclastic film auteur Paul Thomas Anderson, for whom Penn and Brion had composed a soundtrack, became a close friend. Mann gained greater public recognition in 1999 — indeed, more than anything else since "Voices Carry" — when she contributed eight songs to the soundtrack of Anderson's Magnolia, including the Academy Award-nominated song, "Save Me". Anderson deliberately worked from Mann's lyrics to create the film's characters and situations. Due to this exposure, Mann became sought after to contribute to soundtracks, a success made ironic by the music industry's indifference.
Independence
Fed up with both ineffectual promotion and artistic meddling by her record label, an experience documented in her song "Calling It Quits", she struck out on her own and founded SuperEgo Records in 1999. Mann self-released Bachelor No. 2 in 2000 (see 2000 in music), having negotiated a contract release from Geffen, 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.
Aimee continued her solo career with Lost in Space (2002), a somewhat more sombre album in the same vein as Bachelor No. 2. In 2004 her website released the Lost in Space Special Edition, which featured a second disc containing six live recordings, as well two B-sides and two previously unreleased songs. In November of that year Live at St. Ann's Warehouse, a live album and DVD recorded at a series of July 2004 shows in Brooklyn, came out; the two discs were sold packaged together in either a CD jewel case or a DVD case.
Mann described her next album, The Forgotten Arm (2005) as a concept album set in the '70s about two lovers who meet at the Virginia state fair and are now on the run. The Joe Henry-produced album, which was recorded mostly live and has few overdubs, was released May 3, 2005. The album reflects Mann's interest in boxing in its illustrations as well as its title, derived 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.
In October 2006 Aimee released 'One More Drifter in The Snow', an album of Christmas songs. All bar one of the songs, 'Calling on Mary' were covers of holiday classics.
Mann's independence from the industry led her to more explicit political stances. She joined Artists Against Piracy, a group formed to act against the illegal downloading and file sharing of copyrighted 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.
June 2008 brought the release of '@#%&*! Smilers,' a collection of songs featuring greater use of keyboards. Aimee's set at the Bonnaroo Music Festival in the same month featured a number of selections from the new album as well as a number of her concert standards. Aimee and her band covered Elton John's 'My Father's Gun' as part of the set.
Build That Wall
Aimee Mann Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Courtin' disaster in an undertone
She's feelin' nostalgic
And feelin' that fall
How could anyone ever fight it?
Who could ever expect to fight it
When she builds that wall
Maybe it's one where it's just fare thee well
I hear her comin'
As she walks down the hall
How could anyone ever fight it?
Who could ever expect to fight it
When she builds that wall
I know the choice is made
I can tell I said
By your guilty face
And I never was one to fight it
How does anyone ever fight it?
(Ooh ooh oo oo oo ooh)
How does anyone ever fight?
You couldn't pin this one on me
You knew my thoughts so far as I can see
Ohh I say it's hopeless
But you make the call
'Cause I never was one to fight it
And if given the chance I guess
I'll learn to build that wall
Aaa aa aa aa ha ha ha ha
Ahh ah ah ahh ha ha
(Ooh ooh ooh)
Aaa aa aa aa ha ha ha ha
Build that wall
Aaa aa aa aa ha ha ha ha
(Ooh ooh ooh)
Build that wall
Aaa aa aa aa ha ha ha ha
Build that wall
(Ooh ooh)
Aaa aa aa aa ha ha ha ha
(Ooh ooh ooh)
Ooh ooh oo oo oo ooh
(Aaa aa aa aa ha ha ha ha)
Build that wall
(Build that wall)
Aaa aa aa aa ha ha ha ha
(Ooh ooh oo oo oo ooh)
Build that wall
Aaa aa aa aa aa aa aa aa aaa
(Ahh aa aa aa)
Build
That
Wall
The song "Build That Wall" by Aimee Mann is about a woman who is struggling to let go of a past relationship and is building an emotional wall to protect herself from getting hurt again. The first verse paints a picture of a woman who spends a lot of time on the phone, talking about negative things in an undertone, and feeling nostalgic about the past. As the song progresses, it becomes apparent that this woman is building an emotional wall to shield herself from future emotional pain. The lyrics repeatedly ask, "How could anyone ever fight it?" suggesting that the wall is inevitable and will not be taken down easily.
The second verse introduces the idea that the wall may be a final goodbye to a relationship, as the line "Maybe it's one where it's just fare thee well" implies that the relationship is over. The chorus repeats the phrase "Build that wall" while drawing out the word "aa" to create an eerie, haunting effect. The bridge of the song recognizes that the choice to build the wall has been made and that the singer will not fight it, even though they know it's not the healthiest choice. Finally, the song ends with a repetition of the chorus that fades out into a repetitive chant of "Build that wall."
Overall, "Build That Wall" is a poignant song about the pain of heartbreak and the lengths people will go to protect themselves from getting hurt again. Its haunting melody and repetitive chorus make it a memorable and emotional listening experience.
Line by Line Meaning
She's been a long time on the phone
She's been talking to someone for a while.
Courtin' disaster in an undertone
She's whispering dangerously.
She's feelin' nostalgic
She's longing for the past.
And feelin' that fall
And feeling the sadness that comes with it.
How could anyone ever fight it?
How could someone resist it?
Who could ever expect to fight it?
Who could ever expect to resist it?
When she builds that wall
When she isolates herself.
Maybe it's one where time will tell
Maybe it's uncertain and only time will reveal.
Maybe it's one where it's just fare thee well
Maybe it's a goodbye.
I hear her comin'
I hear her approaching.
As she walks down the hall
As she comes closer.
I know the choice is made
I know she's made up her mind.
I can tell I said
I can sense it from what I said.
By your guilty face
By the look on her face that shows guilt.
And I never was one to fight it
And I've never been one to resist.
How does anyone ever fight it?
How does anyone resist it?
(Ooh ooh oo oo oo ooh)
Musical interlude.
You couldn't pin this one on me
You couldn't blame me for this.
You knew my thoughts so far as I can see
You knew what I was thinking (as far as I can tell).
Ohh I say it's hopeless
Oh, I say it's a lost cause.
But you make the call
But it's your decision.
'Cause I never was one to fight it
Because I've never been one to resist.
And if given the chance I guess
And if I had the chance, I suppose.
I'll learn to build that wall
I'd learn to isolate myself.
(Aaa aa aa aa ha ha ha ha)
Musical interlude.
(Ooh ooh ooh)
Musical interlude.
(Aaa aa aa aa ha ha ha ha)
Musical interlude.
Build that wall
Isolate yourself.
(Aaa aa aa aa ha ha ha ha)
Musical interlude.
(Ooh ooh oo oo oo ooh)
Musical interlude.
(Build that wall)
Isolate yourself.
(Aaa aa aa aa ha ha ha ha)
Musical interlude.
(Ooh ooh oo oo oo ooh)
Musical interlude.
(Ooh ooh ooh)
Musical interlude.
Build that wall
Isolate yourself.
(Build that wall)
Isolate yourself.
(Aaa aa aa aa aa aa aa aa aaa)
Musical interlude.
(Ahh aa aa aa)
Musical interlude.
Build
Isolate.
That
One's self.
Wall
In isolation.
Lyrics © Downtown Music Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: JON BRION, AIMEE MANN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind