Grown-Ass Man

Dump | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 1, 2003)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Shrimper Records
• ASIN: B00005Y8PU
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #447,066 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Some of us know James McNew as the guy without the purse or penchant for Arthur Lyman from the Boston band Christmas, or perhaps as the snare-drum bassist for Yo La Tengo, or if you attended the Jodeci after party, you are probably more familiar with him as the auteur of his one-man band Dump. A Grown-Ass Man includes ten new cuts penned by McNew, three covers (The Isley Bros.' "Mr. Too Damn Good," Thin Lizzy's "Cowboy Song," and a duet with Sue Garner on Marvin Gaye & Mary Wells' "Once Upon a Time"). Between tours with Yo La Tengo, James will tour the coasts on his own by harvest time. Bring some Kleenex, emo kingpin, cuz these songs are going to have you growing streams of tears.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great For a Sunrise or Sunset, October 11, 2003

By 

Langdon Alger (West Alexander, PA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Grown-Ass Man (Audio CD)

First off, this is not just a Yo La Tengo album under a different name, this is something altogether different. Sure, there are little hints of the revered trio that McNew has become a part of, but this album stands in stark contrast to the Yo La Tengo album of 2003, Summer Sun. Where Summer Sun is a clean, polished, and very mellow album, about a third of the songs on "A Grown Ass Man" are all out rockers. There aren't slick production values on this album, but the talent McNew displays is pretty slick, as he shows aptitude with several different instruments and the rough edges of this lo fi recording serve to reinforce the honesty of McNew's talent.

And these lo fi recordings aren't simplistic either, a few exceed five minutes in length and play with song structures and textures. The songs display a variety of moods from exuberance to introspection. Song highlights include the extended jam of "Daily Affirmation" and the transformational "Cowboy Song," the peppy almost-cliched drumbeat of "The History of Love," and the somewhat subdued "Sisters."

About the only negative I can say is that the drum machines don't fit in with all the tracks in my opinion, and the song "Mr. Too Damn Good" seems a little out of place, as McNew does a kind of Steely Dan/Elvis Costello sendup.

But heck, I'd recommend this album to anyone in a heartbeat.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A very honest review!, April 16, 2004

By 

Scott (Colorado) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Grown-Ass Man (Audio CD)

I don't know much about Dump or Yo La Tengo, but this cd is pretty cool. The music on this album is VERY mellow. Each song has something special about it, but every song is generally slow and you may find a few to be- oooh, they hate me- a tad boring. A Grown-Ass man soundtrack? Well, that makes sense.
If you like B-sides from Modest Mouse or the Flaming Lips, this is definately for you. However, you'll never hear any of these songs in a car commercial, and definately not on the radio. This album reminds me a lot of Blur's Think Tank. Did you like Think Tank? Well, I thought this was better than that! If you've never heard of the just mentioned peoples, you might not find this cd very interesting.
I personally like the Dump CD with the prince covers. Easy to listen to pop songs, but with an indie tweak. The dump version of 1999 sounds like a winter funeral procession to y2k. It's pretty cool.
Final thoughts? "Hmm..."

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Against all chlichés!, January 13, 2004

By 

Corrado Beldi (Jazz Critic, Milano, Italy) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Grown-Ass Man (Audio CD)

James McNew è una rock star alquanto improbabile: sovrappeso, sempre vesitito con pantaloncini e magliette oversize, sembra più un habitué di McDonald's che non uno dei veri innovatori della scena musicale alternativa. Ma le apparenze, come spesso accade, ingannano. Di giorno, un terzo dei mitici Yo La Tengo; di sera (come una specie di anti-supereroe), una "one man band" chiamata Dump. Identità alternative con cui egli abbatte tutti i cliché musicali, dal country rock al R&B, dal punk/noise ai Thin Lizzy. Non so voi, ma io mi sento già più sicuro...
Arthur Cravan