Marshall Crenshaw 7: My Truck Is My Home

The Razor & Tie label was started in the mid-‘90s by a couple of ex-corporate lawyers who were determined to perpetuate the careers of some of their favorite performers whom they felt had unjustly fallen by the wayside in the modern music scene—Little Steven, Gary U.S. Bonds, Willie Nile, and so forth. After reissuing various albums and compilations, they set to signing established acts. Marshall Crenshaw was a perfect choice.

To buy some time and bring in some cash before a new studio album, a live set winkingly titled My Truck Is My Home presented a smattering of recordings of varying vintage and quality to present something of a snapshot of a typical Crenshaw show. As is made clear, his shows were anything but typical. Just as his own albums had veered into other people’s material, here he tackles tunes by the Byrds, the MC5, and even ABBA alongside his own concise compositions, including songs from the debut and the stellar “You’re My Favorite Waste Of Time”. The settings range from amplified acoustic to full band, and it all sounds like him. It’s also a nice primer for anyone who only knows the man from “Someday, Someway” and “Whenever You’re On My Mind”.

Marshall Crenshaw Live… My Truck Is My Home (1994)—3