Customer Reviews

Mary Jean & 9 Others

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I absolutely recommend "Mary Jean & 9 Others" 100% !!! This is, by far, my fave Crenshaw album. Marshall has referred to it as his "guitar album". It sure is...tasty licks and melodious solos throughout. It is one of those albums that just brings a smile to your face. Every song is a keeper...no clunkers here. Get this one now!

Crenshaw Crazy Steve O.

I recently stumbled across this re-release and was happy to finally hear "This is Easy" and the 9 others "Mary Jean" being one of the unheard. It was a blast of pop bliss. Fat guitar licks, catchy beats, heartfelt melody. I am so happy this is avalible again.

I just turned 50 a few days back and thought unrequited
day dreams were over about past bliss but....just listen to
Marshall's, "This Street". It's about as cool a October
llulaby as you will ever hear. The bass line in this song
by Graham Maby is classic. He captures your heart racing
to the sound of wild romance. This is a good Marshall cd
and I'm glad it's finally on cd. It's his overall best.
Like I said before it's the right time of year to listen
to it. Mike "tremelo" Caldwell

If you like pure power pop, Marshall is your man and this is a CD you need to have in your collection. All of the songs are gems, but "Calling Out For Love (At Crying Time)" is my favorite. The guitars swoop and soar in and out of the vocal track throughout this song, and they come together in the middle in a mad, almost hysterical rush (you can even hear shouting in the background at this point). Marshall's voice is full of anguish and longing--a trademark sound I never grow tired of hearing.

Marshall Crenshaw is a man who seems virtually incapable of making a bad album. Granted, there was the occasional filler tune but almost every album had at least one power-pop classic on it. On "Mary Jean & 9 Others," you have the shimmering heartbreak of "Calling Out For Love At Crying Time." Like his first three albums, "Mary Jean.." carries on the classiscist tradition of weeding the kind of Buddy Holly pop to 80's new wave.

This time it was producer Don Dixon (REM, Smithereeens and Dixon's wife Marti Jones, who adds vocals here) trying to capture Crenshaw's essence. With Crenshaw's pop-leanings and Dixon's affinity towards jangley guitar pop, it should have been a perfect fit. Alas, however, this is the most wooded on Crenshaw's five CD's for Warner Brothers. It doesn't stop the brilliance of "Calling Out For Love" or "Somebody Crying," but it does make "This Street" feel uninspired.

On the other hand, "They Will Never Know" may be one of Crenshaw's best love ballads. The lone cover - of Peter Case's rootsy "Steel Strings" - is a perfect match of artist/production/song, and the exuberant "hold me darling, hold me baby" whoops in "Til That Moment" recall the hype that surrounded his debut album. Had it been any other artist, it probably would have been a landmark of Jangle-pop. Placed next to "Marshall Crenshaw" and "Field Day," its just a really good 4th album that slipped through the cracks. It had fallen out of print for several years (I still have my WB version, thanks Wounded Bird for this and "Downtown"), so this is for the loyal fans that were unwilling to cough up the exorbitant auction prices.

...including this gem. While I'm not sure I agree it's the greatest rock album of all time, it is very satisfying indeed. The opening cut's bridge ("...falling falling falling in empty air.") is one of his loveliest bits of writing, but you can get that on the recent best-of, which takes its title from that song. The best-of omits several songs of almost equal quality, including "This Street," "Somebody Crying," and the gorgeous "They Never Will Know."

My beat-up old cassette of this album is crumbling, and it is ridiculous to think that in this era of specialization you can't buy this disk, nor download its contents, anywhere. Ditto "Downtown" (I scored a used copy of this great collection, but it begs to be remastered), "Good Evening" (probably his worst album, but with a number of highlights like "She Hates to Go Home") and "Life's Too Short," which may in fact be one of the great unheard rock and roll albums of all time. There HAVE to be enough MC fans for a total reissue of his catalogue. You don't have to try to get people to buy them at Wal-Mart...sell them thru Amazon or other online services. Or put it up for downloading on Rhapsody or I-Tunes. Someday, someway, rock fans should get another chance to hear Crenshaw at his peak. He didn't dry up after his first album, and in fact he's still going strong.

"Mary Jean" was power-rocker and rock'n roll reviver Marshall Crenshaw's fourth album. It was originally released in 1987, same year as the La Bamba movie, in which Crenshaw played the part of Buddy Holly and gave a terrific version of "Crying, Waiting, Hoping". In fact, this was the song that made me notice Crenshaw.

"Mary Jean" is probably one of Crenshaw's most consistent albums, featuring 9 Crenshaw originals and a cover of Peter Case's "Steel Strings".

Most tracks are upbeats catchy power-pop songs; and the opening track "This is Easy" sets the right mood from the beginning. A string of similar great tracks like "Calling Out For Love", "Somebody Crying", "Mary Jean" and "Till that Moment" follows. Only "A Hundred Dollars" and"Wild Abandon" disappoint.

The only ballad "They Will Never Know" closes a fine album. Besides being a prolific songwriter, Crenshaw is a fine singer and guitarist, and there is usually a lot to enjoy on his albums.

Marshall's special blend of rock's basics came to ulimate fruition with this flawless collection of delirious pop gems! With sharp production from Don Dixon and an explosive three-piece combo delivering chilling punch to his tightest collection of songs. From the burning churn of "Wild Abandon" to the sinewy groove of Peter Case's "Steel Strings," Marshall and co. give rise to the sonic fruition of our deepest rock and roll dreams. Abandoning the bombast of "Field Day" (which is NOT, by the way, a criticism) our gunslinger leaves all retro pretenders in his wonderful wake. It is no accident that the title of M.C.'s retrospective comes from the opening salvo of this masterwork. It has been deleted for years but is well worth the effort to find. The ghosts of Buddy Holly, Chuck Willis and the venerable Sam Cooke walk the thrilling halls of this rock classic.Enjoy!

When you listen to this album, your life will never be the same, I guarantee it! You'll sing along to every song, and it'll always be the month of May whenever this is on! Brian Christopher Morrison

this record is a dream from beginning to end. why must it be out of print and so hard to find?! i will wait patiently for a reissue.