When was the last time you saw Magnolia? I just watched that movie for what must be the first time in 20 years — its 25th anniversary happens to be Sunday — and it is a way more coked-out experience than I ever realized. I'm not just talking about some characters sniffing coke on camera. I'm talking about the teeth-grinding restlessness of the storytelling itself. It's still good, but I don't think I ever fully appreciated its feverish sweatiness. The part where everything stops and all the characters sing Aimee Mann's "Save Me," though? That's the good stuff. That's where the fog lifts and all these people having all these crises just get a moment to stare into the abyss.
Aimee Mann wrote "Save Me" specifically for Magnolia, and she got an Oscar nomination for it. There's at least some possibility that the song is about Dave Foley from Kids In The Hall; he and Mann dated for a minute. Today, Joe Pernice, the indie-folk lifer from the Pernice Brothers, shares his version of "Save Me." It's soft and bare and lovely, and it's part of Pernice's ongoing Substack Tapes series. Pernice regularly posts new songs and covers on his Substack, and sometimes he gives those songs a wide release. Here's what he says about "Save Me":
I have been a big fan of Aimee Mann’s songwriting since my teenage years in suburban Boston. I saw ‘Til Tuesday open for Hall & Oates at the Boston Garden. I used to listen to WBCN, especially on Fridays to hear the top ten countdown. They always played "Friday" by Joe Jackson, which was cool. They also featured a local top three. Since ‘Til Tuesday was at the time a Boston band, they often made that list. I guess I heard "Love In A Vacuum" first. Since I was a bass player back then, I was surprisingly pleased by the slap style of bass on the song. Which brings me to a point: While Aimee Mann is a great singer and songwriter, don’t forget that she is a bona fide beast of a bass player. One of my favorites, up there with Carol Kaye, Andy Rourke, and Graham Maby. Aimee Mann is still making great music almost 50 years into it. We’re all better for it. Because I’m an old-school guy brought up by Depression-Era parents who impressed upon their kids the idea that (and I’m paraphrasing) acting like an asshole makes you an asshole, I sent the recording to Aimee Mann to make sure she was cool with it. She was cool with it. I hope you all like it. I’ve always kind of thought it’s hard to mess up a great song…but you never know.
Check it out below.
As for Aimee Mann herself, she just covered the Carpenters for The Chair Company. Also, years after she wrote songs for a Girl, Interrupted musical, that show will finally open in New York next year.
