This is Easy: The Marshall Crenshaw Song Poll

I've never looked into him (and so shouldn't post first on this but w/e) but I love his cover of "Crying, Waiting, Hoping" in La Bamba / on the soundtrack & should probably give him a try.

I'm hoping "Someday, Someway" doesn't dominate: he topped it at least six times on this collection, never mind on the other albums.

I voted for "Better Back Off" -- a massive wall of sound behind one of the more original song concepts in modern pop. Second place: "Our Town."

I really need to get this CD, lord knows how many times I've yoinked it out of the bin, only to put it back in lieu of something newer and "hipper"...such a trove of goodness, "Whenever You're On My Mind" is so dreamy, but I'm going with "You're My Favorite Waste Of Time"...one of the all-time great b-sides, and what a delicious guitar solo...

I considered "Our Town" and "Whenever You're On My Mind" from the underrated Field Day (my fave MC album), "I'm Sorry (But So Is Brenda Lee)" (a cover). I like "The Usual Thing" and "The Distance Between" but they didn't make the comp. But I voted for his first single, "Something's Gonna Happen", a song I loved from the first time I heard it and still do.

I could vote for almost anything on here on any given day. Thinking at the moment it's a three-way race between "Monday Morning Rock," "Whenever Your On My Mind" and "Calling Out For Love At Crying Time," but then I think it's gotta be "There She Goes Again," which is one of the all-time great breakup songs. Then I hear "What Do You Dream Of?" in my head and think how effortlessly this dude tosses off melodies after so long in the business . . . this is a REALLY hard choice. Gotta think about it.

"What Do You Dream Of?" IS effortlessly great.

This is one of the most well-assembled greatest hits comps around btw. And the liner notes are great too IIRC.

Hmm. Should probably get this. I've only heard two of his albums after the classic first one.

If "Someplace Where Love Can't Find Me" is any indication, I need to get Good Evening. To my ears, this compilation dips in the middle during the Downtown-Mary Jean period.

"Whenever You're on My Mind" is the obvious choice for me, but "What Do You Dream Of?" actually made me pause for a few seconds.

I have Marshall's first four LPs, plus a couple of later CDs--at his best, he was one of my favourite '80s artists. My three favourites here are: 1. "Cynical Girl" (obvious, I know); 2. "Whenever You're on My Mind"; and 3. "Blues Is King." I haven't played the later CDs in a while, but there are a couple of nice instrumentals on #447, and a great (maybe even better than the great original) version of Grant Hart's "Twenty-Five Forty-One" on Miracle of Science.

Whenever You're On My Mind narrowly over Someday, Someway.

So good. The first one was everywhere in '82. In the end I'm going to vote for one of the later ones, Blues is King. I'll also put in a plug for Should Have Been There, that's a great tune I didn't hear until I got this comp.

Voted "Someday Someway". "You're My Favourite Waste Of Time" is perhaps an even better song, but Crenshaw's own version sounds a bit too unfinished, leaving it up to Owen Paul to make the definite version of that song.

Bette Midler, of all people, did a great cover of "Favorite Waste of Time" the one time I saw her perform. That comp is fantastic--think I'll also vote for the track ("Better Back Off") from his terrific MCA record, the one that sold about 50 copies before it went out of print. My fave cover of his, Bobby Fuller's "Let Her Dance" should've been on this set. Nobody's mentioned the 2003 record What's In the Bag? which I loved--has Prince and Funkadelic covers on that one.

flawless comp, "waste of time" my first love here and still my favorite. that crazy wash of sound at the end!

Short list: Something's Gonna Happen, Mary Anne, You're My Favorite Waste Of Time, Monday Morning Rock, Whenever You're On My MInd

and a great (maybe even better than the great original) version of Grant Hart's "Twenty-Five Forty-One" on Miracle of Science.

Hm. Lost track of his career at some point. Never even heard of this album What's in the Bag, which seems to have some kind of Parliament(s) cover.

Robert Forster also does a great cover of "2541". It's probably an unfuckupable song.

Mr. Fine Wine once pointed out to me the similarities of "2541" to a certain George Jones song, but I can't remember what it was.

I guess it was "Four-O-Thirty-Three," which also had windows as a selling point.

When I heard Crenshaw do "2541" live, he explained that he misheard the lyrics as "Big windows to lay in the sun," and was mortified that he got it wrong. Still a great cover, though.

Went with "You're My Favorite Waste Of Time." I actually love the unfinished feel of it, especially the taped-over ending.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Out of all the many great songs here, "You're My Favorite Waste of Time" means the most, since (along with Luther Vandross's "She Loves Me Back") it provided the soundtrack to the flush of my first love. (But I would hope I would vote for it even if I were an unlovable troll, since it's just plain inspired.) ("Our Town" 2nd place.) (P.S. Is Field Day never coming out on CD or as a download?)

Isn't the thickness of the "Our Town" sound as attractive as the song itself? I swear after fifteen years I don't think I've ever parsed the lyrics.

Also: Enrique, that's a lovely memory, esp if it's soundtracked with "She Loves Me Back."

"My Favourite Waste Of Time" is a great song and all, but I couldn't get myself to vote for a mono recording. It is just a very, very, very puny demo. Of a great song, yes, but sadly he was never the one who actually finished that song and made a proper stereo recording of it.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

Wow.

I like these results. I think "Monday Morning Rock" should have gotten a vote, and there should have been more votes overall, and "Cynical Girl" may be a tad overrated (relatively speaking), but, yeah. Makes sense.

Still like his debut the best, not least because of the production, which is brilliant with very wide stereo and all (as opposed to "Field Day"!). Crowded with great songs too.

As for the underrated one, that would be "The Miracle Of Science", against partly because of the production, this time by the great Brad Jones, who was one of the best soundmen in the mid 90s.

Voted "Something's Gonna Happen" but today feel like I should have gone with MMR

"You're My Favorite Waste of Time" looks forward too much to all those horrible 2000s Pugwash type Beatles apers that advertise themselves as power pop. Then again maybe I have spent too much time giving a chance to all those Pugwash type bands because they advertise themselves as power pop.

Forgot to vote but I would have gone for "Whenever You're on My Mind". Love the sixth and seventh jumps at the ends of the verses and the quick buttoned up chorus.

saw him open for Joe Jackson in '82, and several other times in that decade.

"You're My Favorite Waste of Time" looks forward too much to all those horrible 2000s Pugwash type Beatles apers that advertise themselves as power pop. Then again maybe I have spent too much time giving a chance to all those Pugwash type bands because they advertise themselves as power pop.

They are the ones who are true power pop, with an empasis on Pop. I guess you have listened to too much Cheap Trick, Big Star and Flamin' Groovies, none of which are archetypical examples of the genre. The true powerpoppers from the 70s were rather the likes of Rubinoos and Plimsouls.

Rubinoos and Records, I mean

"Someplace Where Love Can't Find Me." He takes this generic John Hiatt song and plays the hell out of it.

xxp Yeah, there's such a huge gulf between "A Million Miles Away" and "Back Of A Car."

Speaking of Plimsouls, didn't Marshall actually cover a Peter Case song at one time? Ah yes, "Steel Strings."

MC on Curtis Mayfield, hating TV, etc:

http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/feature/interview-marshall-crenshaw/305

Just discovered Marshall Crenshaw - Field Day. What a wonderful guitar pop record! Sounds like memories of those hazy summer days growing up. Good stuff. Anyway, I'll let myself out.

saw him open for Joe Jackson in '82, and several other times in that decade.

Seeing him in a couple of weeks, with The Bottle Rockets backing him.

No option for "Peggy Sue" or "Let's Go"?

Yes, I haven't had coffee yet, but am still feeling playful.

Yes, the pier next to the Intrepid, Redd.

Contest here http://www.marshallcrenshaw.com/index.php#
Upcoming gigs at the City Winery

Oh wait, this seems to be a year old.

Well, this is three years old. But I like the story...

a friend of mine went to a friend's 50th birthday party in connecticut the other year. it was a big bash, and he'd been told there would be a live band. so he got there and wandered out to this big tent that had been set up in the backyard and saw the band was setting up, and it was marshall crenshaw. i guess the guy who was turning 50 was a big marshall crenshaw fan, so his wife did a little web searching and discovered that she could hire marshall crenshaw for, i don't know, three grand or something. with a rhythm section and all. my friend said marshall was good, did an hour or so, didn't seem to care that he was playing to 60 people in a connecticut backyard or whatever.

― us_odd_bunny_lady (tipsy mothra), Sunday, June 28, 2009 7:44 AM (2 years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Wonder how much Robbie Fulks would have charged?

Yeah, whatever happened to Robbie?

I don't know anything about Marshall Crenshaw outside of the fact that he was in La Bamba, but Robbie Fulks had a regular Monday night gig at the Hideout last time I checked.

I guess 'Girls Girls Girls' isn't on this record...the gear shift between verse/chorus in that song always drives me nuts.

The reason I mentioned Robbie was that you can also contact him and hire him for your backyard party. When I was last keeping track of him he had moved to NYC for a spell while his wife Donna was appearing in Our Town and was playing duets at Barbès a lot with Jenny Sheinman right before she had her baby. He's probably been back in Chicago for about two years now

Took a minute to register, but in a store on the way home the radio was playing "Whenever You're on My Mind." (No chance it was a CD.) I'm mystified as to which station would play this in 2013. We're basically down to one college station here, and, based on the store, it's a thousand to one that was the station--which is probably moot, because I doubt Marshall ever gets played on that station anyway. Past that, I can't even begin to guess what format it would have been.

sure it wasn't Muzak or Pandora player?

Very doubtful...This is a Canadian retail thrift store--they're always selling DVDs with Big Lots stickers on them, so maybe the stores are comparable--and the woman working the cash was older than I am.

That song used to get played a LOT on "light rock" stations around here. Don't know if it still does, I wouldn't be caught dead listening to terrestrial radio.

This may be an American thing, but it's really easy to get Muzak or related services in stores and restaurants, no matter their size.

I'd be more inclined to go with the first possibility. Maybe Marshall has a whole other easy-listening existence I wasn't aware of.

Have y'all heard the Ronnie Spector covers of his stuff?

Sixty one today

Can't believe you didn't mention "Monday Morning Rock" on your worksong rundown.

I need to post a link to one of those Ronnie Spector covers.

There She Goes Again 0

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