10,000 Maniacs: Their best album

So, today when everyone was at work, I listened to all of our 10,000 Maniacs albums. Gye Greene doesn't have **every** one they produced, but fairly close: The Wishing Chair (1985); In My Tribe (1987); Blind Man's Zoo (1989); Hope Chest (1990); and Our Time in Eden (1992).

Despite their wild-sounding name, 10,000 Maniacs are a fairly gentle band. They're not like some bands, where I like **all** of their songs on an album -- but all the albums have one or two good songs. If you're not aware of their stuff, I'd recommend Blind Man's Zoo and In My Tribe, both in terms of lyrics and melody.

IMO, if you can look at the track listing for an album and go "Oh, that one," that's a good sign. If you can't remember the song, that's bad. Based on that, here's my results:

Hope Chest (1990): Pit Viper, My Mother the War
The Wishing Chair (1985): Can't Ignore the Train, My Mother the War.
Blind Man's Zoo (1989): Eat for Two, Please Forgive Us, You Happy Puppet
In My Tribe (1987): What's the Matter Here, Hey Jack Kerouac, Like the Weather, Don't Talk, Peace Train, My Sister Rose
Our Time in Eden (1992): These are Days, Candy Everybody Wants

Gye Greene was introduced to them by a former girlfriend, who broke up with him, then decided she was gay. But while they were dating, she convinced him to go see them in concert -- and then the band broke up a year or so later. Thus, he saw them in the nick of time. So, he figures it all balances out.


GG and I have a bit of a grudge against Natalie Merchant, their singer and songwriter. Although on the whole she seems like a decent person, with good intentions, **just** as the band was breaking through into the mainstream with "Candy Everybody Wants," she dumped the band and went solo. In interviews, she said it was due to feeling stifled by the band dynamic, where all decisions are compromises.

Which, I can understand. But the solution, then, is to go cut a few solo albums -- e.g. Phil Collins, from Genesis -- in **between** your "band" albums.

A band's vocals are the public identifier of their "sound." When the singer leaves -- especially if she/he was also the songwriter -- she's **really** scuttling the band.

I think 10k Ms released another album or two after Natalie Merchant left, using their on-tour violinist/backing vocals lady as their new singer. But, it didn't work out.


The band School of Fish was another one: had a hit with "Three Strange Days", then cut another album. Then the lead singer/songwriter/rhythm guitarist got cocky, decided to go solo.

Crash and burn, baby -- crash and burn. There's some cruel justice in this world: payback for wrecking a perfectly good band, leaving yer buddies behind.

BTW -- check out the two School of Fish albums. IMO, the first one is slightly stronger.