Marshall Crenshaw - pre-Warner Bros demos (1980-81)

And so we've finally arrived at night number eight.  The big enchilada.  The one that everyone will be talking about (well a few dozen of you anyway). Up until this point I haven't offered anything by Marshall Crenshaw, except maybe the stray comparison.  You could chalk that up to a lack of shareable M/C material, be it studio or live recordings. That's all changed in a pretty marvelous way. 

Marshall's self-titled 1982 debut was one of the most seamless and gratifying records of the then still-relatively young eighties. Seemingly having emanated out of absolutely nowhere this hopelessly romantic protagonist conveyed himself via buoyant, but grounded guitar-pop tunes that didn't really skew to any of the prevailing trends of the year...or even the gaudier trends to come in the ensuing Reagan-era.  But where did this man come from?  The world was treated to a considerable amount of insight via the 1998 release of The 9 Volt Years...Battery Powered Home Demos and Curios.  Marshall's bare bones, home studio prototypes were imbued with more charm and TLC than even the most empathetic themes and notions conveyed on his finished album versions. Little did the vast majority of us know that 9-Volt's... fifteen cuts were culled from a larger portion of his go-it-alone endeavors., and that there was much remaining on his enlightening demo reels. 

This collection, apparently once available as a bootleg cd-r, takes a deeper dive into the blueprint phase of some of his most renown titles, including but not limited to "Brand New Lover," "The Usual Thing," and "Mary Anne."  The early arrangements of these numbers reveal that Marshall was so spot-on, and quite frankly visceral in his apartment that little modification was required when he made the transition to a proper studio.  But certainly, there's an even greater purity here amidst these early takes. Beyond that, much like the aforementioned 9-Volt disc, there's a handful of wholly unreleased songs in this batch.  "Communication," appearing in similar incarnations twice, is an infectious, driving rocker that would have further enhanced any of his crucial early records.  Elsewhere, "We Belong Together" and "She's Not Mine Anymore" (the latter fed to singer/songwriter Robert Gordon to record) illustrate that much like Marshall's adored Beatles, even when he doesn't bring his A-game, his outtakes and b-sides are still preferable to other artists most sterling material.  Again, this collection functions as an extension of the 9 Volt Years, and despite some dodgy audio in portions it's still revelatory, and in all ways an immense feast for the ears.

01. Never Gonna Happen Again

02. Communication 1

03. We Belong Together

04. This is The Love

05. She's Not Mine Anymore 1

06. Somebody Like You

07. Now I've Got You

08. She Can't Dance

09. Not For Me

10. Brand New Lover

11. Communication 2

12. I'll Do Anything

13. Rockin' Around in NYC

14. Soldier of Love

15. For Her Love

16. Something's Gonna Happen

17. Mary Anne

18. The Usual Thing

19. There She Goes Again

20. Cynical Girl

21. She's Not Mine Anymore 2

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