Man About Town (album)
| Man About Town | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Mayer Hawthorne | ||||
| Released | April 8, 2016 | |||
| Recorded | 2014–16 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 34:02 | |||
| Label | Vagrant | |||
| Producer |
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| Mayer Hawthorne chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Man About Town | ||||
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Man About Town is the fourth studio album by American musician Mayer Hawthorne. It was released on April 8, 2016, under Vagrant Records.[1]
Critical reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Aggregate scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AnyDecentMusic? | 6.4/10[2] |
| Metacritic | 74/100[3] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [4] |
| Exclaim! | 7/10[5] |
| The Guardian | [6] |
| PopMatters | 7/10[7] |
| Record Collector | [8] |
| Uncut | 8/10[3] |
Man About Town received generally positive reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 74, based on 8 reviews.[3] Mark Deming of AllMusic said, "Man About Town doesn't boast much in the way of radical steps forward. But it confirms the man is still very good at what he does."[4] Ken Capobianco of The Boston Globe said, "Highlights album come when the songs stretch beyond Hawthorne's solo comfort zone."[9] Mackenzie Herd of Exclaim! said, "There is an invigorating energy that shines through the lyrics and tempo of this album, so although lyrics about the finer things of California living aren't necessarily profound or entirely relatable, on Man About Town, Hawthorne's buoyant optimism for beginning anew in 2016 is utterly contagious."[5] Colin McGuire of PopMatters said, "Like it or not, there aren't many people who can pull off what Mayer Hawthorne does best these days as well as Mayer Hawthorne does it. It fills a very real void in an increasingly crowded and grossly jaded pop music world. It is, in essence, important work."[7] Charles Waring of Record Collector said, "Containing 10 songs and with a running time of 30 minutes, it's tantalisingly brief but never short of quality."[8] Uncut said, "Ultimately, the delight is in the details, notably the pairing of Hawthorne's fluent basslines and the trashcan thump of ancient drum machines."[3] Rachel Aroesti of The Guardian said, "For the most part, he remains in relatively banal lyrical territory on this fourth album, but what he's able to do with some aplomb is capable the majestic effortlessness of the Motown sound."[6]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Man About Town" | Andrew Cohen | 0:41 |
| 2. | "Cosmic Love" |
|
3:13 |
| 3. | "Book of Broken Hearts" | Cohen | 3:34 |
| 4. | "Breakfast in Bed" | Cohen | 4:07 |
| 5. | "Lingerie & Candlewax" |
|
3:37 |
| 6. | "Fancy Clothes" | Cohen | 4:10 |
| 7. | "The Valley" |
|
3:36 |
| 8. | "Love Like That" |
|
4:06 |
| 9. | "Get You Back" |
|
3:36 |
| 10. | "Out of Pocket" |
|
3:22 |
Total length: |
34:02 | ||
Personnel
Credits for Man About Town adapted from AllMusic.[10]
- Joe Abramson – bass guitar
- Hubert Alexander – fender rhodes, keyboards
- Ambroise Aubrun – violin
- Sam Beaubien – trumpet
- Benny Sings – organ, pianette
- Ben Bortelt – viola
- Lola Delon – background vocals
- Rhea Fowler – violin
- Gerald Glecer – electric guitar
- Mayer Hawthorne – bass guitar, cabasa, drum programming, drums, fender rhodes, glockenspiel, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, handclapping, marimba, soloist, string arrangements, synthesizer, tambourine, vibraphone, lead vocals, background vocals, wurlitzer, keyboards
- Jim Hocker – trumpet
- Brian Inscore – bass guitar, crumar orchestrator, drums, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, wurlitzer
- Jimi James – saxophone, background vocals
- Quentin Joseph – drums
- Justin Jozwick – saxophone
- Matt Martinez – trombone
- Jimetta Rose – background vocals
- Harlan Silverman – cello
- Joe Splash – bass guitar, drums, string arrangements
- Juan Turros – saxophone
- Sam Wishkowski – string arrangements
- Christian Wunderlich – electric guitar, soloist
Charts
| Chart (2016) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Japanese Albums (Oricon)[11] | 61 |
| US Billboard 200[12] | 90 |
| US Independent Albums (Billboard)[13] | 7 |
| US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[14] | 6 |
References
- ↑ "Man About Town by Mayer Hawthorne on iTunes". iTunes Store. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
- ↑ "Man About Town by Mayer Hawthorne reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved November 1, 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 "Reviews for Man About Town by Mayer Hawthorne". Metacritic. Retrieved April 16, 2016.
- 1 2 Deming, Mark. "Man About Town – Mayer Hawthorne". AllMusic. Retrieved April 16, 2016.
- 1 2 Herd, Mackenzie (April 6, 2016). "Mayer Hawthorne Man About Town". Exclaim!. Retrieved April 16, 2016.
- 1 2 Aroesti, Rachel (April 7, 2016). "Mayer Hawthorne: Man About Town review – kitsch soul nails 70s sound". The Guardian. Retrieved April 16, 2016.
- 1 2 McGuire, Colin (April 13, 2016). "Mayer Hawthorne: Man About Town". PopMatters. Retrieved April 16, 2016.
- 1 2 Waring, Charles. "Man About Town". Record Collector. Retrieved April 28, 2016.
- ↑ Capobianco, Ken (April 7, 2016). "Album review: Mayer Hawthorne, 'Man About Town'". The Boston Globe. Retrieved April 16, 2016.
- ↑ Man About Town (Media notes). Vagrant Records.
- ↑ "Oricon Top 50 Albums: 2016-04-25" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved April 24, 2016.
- ↑ "Mayer Hawthorne – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Mayer Hawthorne. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
- ↑ "Mayer Hawthorne – Chart history" Billboard Independent Albums for Mayer Hawthorne. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
- ↑ "Mayer Hawthorne – Chart history" Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums for Mayer Hawthorne. Retrieved April 19, 2016.