Copyright 2000 The Atlanta Constitution
The Atlanta Journal and Constitution
January 13, 2000, Thursday, Home Edition
SECTION: Features; Pg. 7D
LENGTH: 328 words
HEADLINE: ON MUSIC: Mann's melancholia blooms on 'Magnolia';
Weekend at Home
BYLINE: Doug Hamilton, Staff
SOURCE: CONSTITUTION
BODY:
SOUNDTRACK
"Magnolia"
Aimee Mann and others. Reprise.
13 tracks.
Grade: A-.
Aimee Mann has mastered the art of sounding fragile. Reaching
back to " Voices Carry," her 1985 hit with 'Til Tuesday, the singer-songwriter's
quavery, pitch-challenged voice and pain-soaked lyrics have projected a
wounded, world-weary image. There are hordes of angsty artists out there,
but few can nail low self-esteem as Mann does, with lines such as "Now
that I've met you, would you object to never seeing each other again?"
Writer-director Paul Thomas Anderson was so taken with that line --- from
Mann's melancholy ballad "Deathly" --- that he claims he constructed
his new movie "Magnolia" around it. A key character in the sprawling
drama utters a variation on the line, and Mann's songs flutter throughout
the movie, even, in one odd scene, landing on the lips of all the main characters.
If Mann's songs help drive "Magnolia," they also stand on their
own in this collection. Her nine cuts, including a searingly beautiful cover
of Harry Nilsson's "One," unfold with the delicate grace of the
title blossom. In the past, Mann's tentative delivery has bordered on wan,
but she's in full flower here, aided by such hot-shot producers as Jon Brion
and Brendan O'Brien.
If only Anderson, who compiled the soundtrack, had stuck with Mann all the
way through. The inclusion of two old chestnuts by Supertramp and a disco
trifle by Gabrielle breaks the mood. If you want a pure slice of Mann's
heartbreaking anguish, stop the CD after the ninth track. If you want Supertramp,
buy "Breakfast in America."
Access code: 150
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GRAPHIC: Photo
Singer-songwriter Aimee Mann with "Magnolia" director Paul
Thomas Anderson. / PETER SOREL / Reprise Records
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