Marshall Crenshaw

Marshall Crenshaw (born November 11 1953) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist.

Related Topics:
November 11 - 1953 - American

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Crenshaw was born in Detroit, Michigan, and grew up in the nearby suburb of Berkley. He began playing guitar at age ten, and got his first break playing John Lennon in the off-Broadway company of a musical, Beatlemania. By now living in New York, he made a single for Alan Betrock's Shake Records, "Something's Gonna Happen," which led to his being signed to Warner Brothers Records. Robert Gordon took Crenshaw's "Someday, Someway" to #76 in 1981, and Crenshaw's version made #36 the next year. Marshall Crenshaw, his first album, was acclaimed as a pop masterpiece upon release, revealing Crenshaw as a first-rate songwriter, singer and guitarist. His second album, Field Day, sported a somewhat heavier sound which displeased some listeners, but Field Day is regarded by many critics as Crenshaw's best album, and one of the classic power pop statements, although Crenshaw's work, like Alex Chilton's, transcends the genre. "Some of the stuff I've done you could call power pop," he told an interviewer. "But the term does have sort of a dodgy connotation."

Related Topics:
Detroit, Michigan - Berkley - John Lennon - Warner Brothers Records - Power pop - Alex Chilton

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Although Marshall Crenshaw has never sold enormous numbers of records, he enjoys a reputation as one of the finest songwriters of the era, with roots in classic soul music, British Invasion songcraft, Burt Bacharach and Buddy Holly--to whom Crenshaw was often compared in the early days of his career, and whom he portrayed in the 1987 film La Bamba. He continues to record, and in 1999 made one of his best albums, #447. In 1994 he published a book, Hollywood Rock: A Guide to Rock 'n' Roll in the Movies.

Related Topics:
Soul music - British Invasion - Burt Bacharach - Buddy Holly

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~