Aimee Mann
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Biography
Aimee Mann, late of 1980s one-hit wonders 'til tuesday, was a singer-songwriter plagued by record company woes and lackluster sales until her remarkable musical contributions to Paul Thomas Anderson's acclaimed 1999 release "Magnolia" pushed her back into the spotlight and offered her a new career opportunity. As part of 'til tuesday, Mann had a hit with "Voices Carry," a 1985 chart-topper off of their debut album of the same name. A pop-rock anthem that took to task a cold-hearted lover, the success of "Voices Carry" was due in no small part to the music video, an MTV favorite that featured the blonde, slender, delicate-featured Mann sporting a timely overdone coif and acting the part of the stifled girlfriend with explosive results. 'til tuesday never revisited the success of that single with their subsequent follow-up albums, and disbanded in 1989.
In the 1990s, Mann kicked off a solo career, releasing three albums that garnered overwhelmingly positive reviews but failed to register on the sales radar. She had a minor college radio hit with the catchy "I Should Have Known" from 1993's "Whatever" and won some attention when "That's Just What You Are" was heard on Fox's "Melrose Place" in 1994 and proved a stand-out track on the series' popular soundtrack album. In 1996, her solo work made its big screen debut when the song "Wise Up" was featured in Cameron Crowe's romantic comedy "Jerry Maguire." "Amateur" from Mann's second solo effort "I'm With Stupid" was featured on the big screen in both 1997's "Picture Perfect" and the following year's "Sliding Doors." Getting more play in multiplexes than she had received on the radio in over a decade, Mann herself appeared on film with a cameo in "The Big Lebowski" (1998). That same year her music was featured in Susan Skoog's 1980s set coming-of-age drama "Whatever." Next Mann's song "You Could Make a Killing," (first featured on the 1995 release "I'm With Stupid") was the sound of heartless opportunistic youth in both "The Curve" (1998) and "Cruel Intentions" (1999).
Mann, whose somewhat reserved personal demeanor is in sharp contrast to the frank emotionalism of her songs, was drafted by admirer Paul Thomas Anderson to contribute music to his wrenching epic "Magnolia" (1999). Anderson (who has collaborated with Mann's husband musician Michael Penn on his previous efforts 1996's "Hard Eight" and 1997's "Boogie Nights") wove Mann's lush melodies and stirring lyrics into the film, even using her words ("Now that I've met you, would you object to never seeing me again?") for dialogue in a key scene. One of the episodic film's more memorable and daring segments has the cast each singing in turn lines of Mann's song "Wise Up." In the end, Mann's was the only music used in the film, with seven original compositions and a particularly haunting remake of "One," Harry Nilsson's classic ode to loneliness. This practically unheard of move was previously employed with legendary effect in Simon & Garfunkel's contribution to "The Graduate" (1967) and Cat Stevens' work for "Harold & Maude" (1971). Similarly evocative and transcendent, Mann's "Magnolia" score was widely heralded, and the positive reaction to her entry into the film world could make the singer-songwriter more apt to take on further scoring projects in the future, especially contrasted to the struggles she has had with the record industry.
Filmography
Cast (Feature Film)
Music (Feature Film)
Special Thanks (Feature Film)
Misc. Crew (Feature Film)
Cast (Special)
Music (Special)
Life Events
1964
At age four, abducted by estranged mother, lived with her briefly in England (date approximate)
1982
With Joey Pesce, Robert Holmes and boyfriend and fellow Berklee dropout Michael Hausman, formed 'til tuesday
1984
As 'til tuesday, signed with Epic Records after winning a 1983 Boston battle of the bands contest
1985
'Til Tuesday released their debut album "Voices Carry," with the title single emerging as a top ten hit and an MTV staple
1986
Released follow up album as 'til tuesday, the less successful "Welcome Home"
1988
Last album with 'til tuesday, the confessional "Everything's Different Now"
1993
Made solo debut, with the acclaimed album "Whatever"
1995
Released sophomore solo effort "I'm With Stupid"
1998
Made acting debut, with a cameo role as "Nihilist Woman" in the Coen brother's "The Big Lebowski"
1999
Embroiled in record label problems and politics, opted out of contract with Interscope and bought back the masters for latest unreleased album "Bachelor No. 2", releasing it on own label as an EP
1999
Worked alongside director Paul Thomas Anderson, adding pivotal music to the film "Magnolia"; Anderson credits one of her songs as inspiration for film; earned an Academy Award nomination for the song "Save Me"
2000
Embarked on a club tour with her husband, fellow singer-songwriter Michael Penn
Family
Companions
