| Bachelor No. 2 or, the Last Remains of the Dodo | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 2, 2000 (2000-05-02) | |||
| Recorded | 1999 | |||
| Genre | Pop rock | |||
| Length | 49:21 | |||
| Label | SuperEgo,V2 | |||
| Producer |
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| Aimee Mann chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Bachelor No. 2 or, the Last Remains of the Dodo | ||||
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Bachelor No. 2 or, the Last Remains of the Dodo is the third studio album by the American singer-songwriterAimee Mann, released on May 2, 2000. Some songs were previously released onthe soundtrack for the 1999 filmMagnolia, which Mann wrote in the same period. "The Fall of the World's Own Optimist" was co-written with the English singer-songwriterElvis Costello.
Mann took more control over the production than on her previous albums. Many of the songs were inspired by her frustration with her record label,Geffen Records. Mann's previous albums had not been successful, and Geffen refused to releaseBachelor No. 2, feeling it contained no hit singles. In response, Mann set up her own label, SuperEgo, and released it herself.Bachelor No. 2 sold 270,000 copies, a large number for an independent artist.
According toMetacritic,Bachelor No. 2 is the 28th best-reviewed album and the ninth best-reviewed indie or alternative album of the decade, andSlant Magazine named it the decade's 100th-best album. The success established Mann as a career artist who could work outside of the major label system.
Aimee Mann's first two solo albums,Whatever (1993) andI'm With Stupid (1995), achieved strong reviews but did not meet sales expectations.[1] After success in the 1980s with her band'Til Tuesday, Mann began to be seen as someone whose career was in decline.[2]
Mann contributed songs tothe soundtrack of the 1999 filmMagnolia, including some songs later included onBachelor No. 2.[2] She wrote the soundtrack andBachelor No. 2 in the same period, and collaborated again with the producer and multi-instrumentalistJon Brion.[3] Mann took more control over the production than she had for her previous albums,[3] and said in 2020: "This was the only record that I really took responsibility for all the music: all the parts that were played, the way everything sounded."[4] Thedodo of the album title reflected Mann's sense that singer-songwriters were a "dying breed" in 2000.[3]
Mann's frustration with her record label,Geffen, inspired many of the songs. She described playing them to Geffen staff, who would complain that they did not sound like commercial singles. The criticism made her feel that she was failing and she developedwriter's block.[3] One executive suggested she work withDiane Warren, who had written hit singles for major acts.[5] Mann wrote "Nothing Is Good Enough" in response to the criticism, but felt the song could also apply to many kinds of relationship.[3]
"The Fall of the World's Own Optimist" was co-written with the English singer-songwriterElvis Costello.[6] According to Mann, "I sent him a tape of a song that I couldn't finish and he added a new bit. Basically I had a problem with a song and he fixed it — it was as simple as that."[5] Mann and Costello had previously collaborated on "The Other End (Of the Telescope)", released on the 1988 'Til Tuesday albumEverything's Different Now.[5]
Geffen refused to releaseBachelor No. 2, feeling it had no commercial potential.[7] In response, Mann sold homemade EPs of her music on tour, a move she described as a "DIY fuck-you-record-company-I'm-selling-it-myself" gesture.[8] Geffen allowed Mann to leave her record contact. She said later: "I could not have gotten out of there fast enough."[3]
In 1998, theSony Music employee Gail Marowitz predicted that Mann would make more money selling 70,000 albums independently than by selling 300,000 on a major label.[1] In 1999, Mann and her manager, Michael Hausman, formed their own label, SuperEgo Records.[9] With Mann's husband, the songwriterMichael Penn, they also established United Musicians, a collective working outside the major label system.[10][11] Using the money earned through royalties fromMagnolia, Mann bought theBachelor No. 2 masters from Geffen.[10]
Mann sold 25,000 copies ofBachelor No. 2 via mail order from her website, a large amount for an independent artist.[12] After she secured a distribution deal,[12]Bachelor No. 2 sold more than 270,000 copies,[3] outperformingI'm With Stupid.[7]Pitchfork described this as a "decisive victory".[7] The success established Mann as a career artist who could work outside of the major label system.[13] As of May 2008,Bachelor No. 2 had sold more than 230,000 copies in the US.[14] In 2020, Mann released a 20th-anniversary reissue forRecord Store Day, with an alternative track list and five bonus tracks, including songs included on theMagnolia soundtrack. Mann said she remained pleased with the album and did not regret leaving Geffen.[4]
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 89/100[15] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [16] |
| The Baltimore Sun |  [17] |
| Entertainment Weekly | A−[18] |
| Los Angeles Times | [19] |
| Pitchfork | 9.0/10[20] |
| Q | [21] |
| Rolling Stone | [22] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [23] |
| The Times | [24] |
| USA Today | [25] |
On the review aggregator websiteMetacritic,Bachelor No. 2 has a score of 89 out of 100 based on 13 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[15] According to Metacritic, it is the 28th best-reviewed album and the ninth best-reviewed indie or alternative album of the decade.[26]Slant Magazine named it the 100th-best album of the decade.[27]
Writing for theNew Yorker in 2000,Nick Hornby wrote thatBachelor No. 2 was Mann's strongest work to date, praising her "bleak and bracing cynicism about our ability to connect with fellow humans" and her "sinuous,Burt Bacharach-like melodies".[28]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "How Am I Different" |
| Aimee Mann | 5:03[29] |
| 2. | "Nothing Is Good Enough" | Mann |
| 3:10[29][30] |
| 3. | "Red Vines" | Mann | Mann | 3:44[29] |
| 4. | "The Fall of the World's Own Optimist" |
| Jon Brion | 3:06[29] |
| 5. | "Satellite" | Mann | Mann | 4:10[29] |
| 6. | "Deathly" | Mann | Brion | 5:37[31] |
| 7. | "Ghost World" | Mann | Mike Dineen | 3:30 |
| 8. | "Calling It Quits" | Mann | Judge | 4:09[29] |
| 9. | "Driving Sideways" |
| Brendan O'Brien | 3:49[31] |
| 10. | "Just Like Anyone" | Mann | Mann | 1:22[29] |
| 11. | "Susan" | Mann | Mann | 3:51 |
| 12. | "It Takes All Kinds" | Mann | Mann | 4:06 |
| 13. | "You Do" |
| Mann | 3:43[31] |
| Total length: | 49:21 | |||
