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.
Lucky
Aimee Mann Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yeah I guess I will
What's the use in pushing
When it's all uphill
I can't be appointed
Keeper of the flame
Without two to carry
Oh, it seems obvious to me
But then again
Could be
You just never felt that way
I wish you believed in life
Believed in fate
Believed you were lucky
And worth the wait
'Cause life could be lovely
Life could be so great
It gets so embarrassing
So I acquiesce
And I'll change my mind again
You change your address
Oh, it seems logical to me
But then again
Could be I was simply not that smart
I wish you believed in life
Believed in fate
Believed you were lucky
And worth the wait
'Cause life could be lovely
Life could be so great
There must be some other door that they are saving
Behind which my happiness lies
I won't be wasting my words
To tell you hopes that I had -
We can just leave it alone for now
I wish you believed in life
Believed in fate
Believed you were lucky
And worth the wait
'Cause life could be lovely
Oh life could be fucking great
In the opening lines of Aimee Mann's song "Lucky," she seems to give up on someone, leaving it up to fate to take care of the rest. The uphill battle is not worth it. She is no longer pushing and feels like she can't keep the flame alive as the keeper of the flame, which would require two people to carry it. In the same verse, she wonders if the other person never felt the same way, or if it's just apparent to her.
The song has a message that life could indeed be lovely if the other person believed in fate, luck, and their worth. Aimee Mann is encouraging the other person to see the silver lining and the potential for how wonderful life could be but notes that it is embarrassing when she acquiesces and changes her mind. Her thoughts seem reasonable, but maybe her intelligence could be questioned (could be I was simply not that smart).
In the final lines of the song, Mann acknowledges that there could be another door that opens in the future where she could find happiness, but for now, they will leave it alone. The tone of the song is melancholic but hopeful, as seen in the final line where Mann adds an expletive to emphasize just how great life could be.
Line by Line Meaning
So I guess I'll give it up
I am done trying to pursue this.
Yeah, I guess I will
I've reached a point where I feel I can't keep trying.
What's the use in pushing
There's no point in continuing to pursue this.
When it's all uphill
This has been a difficult task from the start.
I can't be appointed
I cannot be solely responsible for this.
Keeper of the flame
Maintaining the spark or passion in this situation.
Without two to carry
This requires the participation of at least two people.
It won't burn the same
If only one person is invested, it won't have the same effect.
Oh, it seems obvious to me
This seems like common sense.
But then again
But I may be wrong.
Could be
It's possible.
You just never felt that way
You may not have shared the same perspective or feeling about this.
I wish you believed in life
I hope you had a positive outlook on life.
Believed in fate
Believed that things happen for a reason.
Believed you were lucky
Believed that you were fortunate.
And worth the wait
And that waiting for something worthwhile was worth it.
'Cause life could be lovely
A reminder that life has the potential to be beautiful.
Life could be so great
Life can hold great experiences and moments.
It gets so embarrassing
This experience has become uncomfortable and awkward.
So I acquiesce
So I give in.
And I'll change my mind again
I'm not sure if I'll remain committed to this.
You change your address
You may move on from this situation altogether.
There must be some other door that they are saving
There must be another opportunity out there for me.
Behind which my happiness lies
Behind that opportunity may be where I can find true happiness.
I won't be wasting my words
I won't bother explaining my feelings about this.
To tell you hopes that I had -
Sharing my hopes for our future is pointless now.
We can just leave it alone for now
We can move on from this without further discussion.
Oh, it seems logical to me
This makes sense to me.
Could be I was simply not that smart
But I may not have been clever enough to see the whole picture.
Oh life could be fucking great
A strong statement conveying the potential for experiencing great things in life.
Contributed by Molly P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Moonsick Stridor, MD
This is 'Til Tuesday... I was hoping for a solo acoustic version she played live in her current career.
Brian Alderson Smith
So, not a B-side? The 'Til Tuesday version?
Micky Garcia
I forget about Aimee until I hear one of her songs and then I just have to go back through them all. I love you Aimee. Thanks for the years of good advice.
BNL07604
Love this song!
Matthew Christian
I met Aimee Mann in 1981 when she was with Til Tuesday and working at Newbury Comics on Newbury Street, Boston. I picked out Laurie Anderson's "O Superman" for a friend and put it down on the checkout counter. Aimee came over and put a big stack of comic books on top of the record and asked me what I was buying. I told her I was buying the record she put the comic books on top of. After a few rounds of "I don't have time for this bullshit, what are you buying / I'm trying to buy the record you covered" Aimee called a manager. I told him I wanted to buy the record Aimee had covered with comics. He lifted the pile and there was the record. He just looked at Aimee and walked off. I paid and left.
Rob F
Interesting story. What was Aimee's issue? Was she jealous of Laurie Anderson? I live South of Boston and worked in Boston for years and years.
Kolin Timothy
This is not a b-side this is a released til Tuesday song