American Music Club "San Francisco" (1994)

San Francisco
release date: Oct. 4, 1994
format: cd
[album rate: 3 / 5] [2,68]
producer: Joe Chiccarelli and American Music Club
label: Reprise Records - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Fearless" - 3. "Can You Help Me?" - 5. "Wish The World Away" - 12. "I Broke My Promise" - 16. "California Dreamin' "

7th studio album by American Music Club is an album of 16 songs of which Mark Eitzel composed 1-15. The last two tracks are not enlisted on inlay or back cover. Track #16 is a cover of the hit single "California Dreamin' " by The Mamas & The Papas (org. rel. Dec. 8, 1965).
The music is the rather distinct style of most albums by AMC and / or Mark Eitzel solo with focus on singer / songwriter compositions and a certain slow folk rock (also labelled slowcore) with references to alt. country.
It's not a bad album but I've always found it somewhat anonymous.
[ allmusic.com 3 / 5, Rolling Stone 4 / 5 stars ]

American Music Club "Mercury" (1993)

Mercury
release date: Mar. 23, 1993
format: cd
[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,78]
producer: Mitchell Froom
label: Reprise Records - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Gratitude Walks" - 2. "If I Had a Hammer" - 3. "Challenger" - 4. "I've Been a Mess" (4 / 5) - 5. "Hollywood 4-5-92" - 11. "Johnny Mathis' Feet" - 14. "Will You Find Me?"

6th studio album by American Music Club has unmistakably Mark Eitzel's fingerprints all over, and it's, as usual, a slowcore album with elements from folk and jangle pop. Stylistically, it's like the second / continued part of  the fine Everclear from '91.
To me, this is clearly the best album by the band with it's more varied compositions held nicely together in Mitchell Froom's eye for solid productions.
[ allmusic.com, Rolling Stone, Sputnikmusic 4 / 5 stars ]

American Music Club "Everclear" (1991)

Everclear
release date: Oct. 1991
format: digital
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,62]
producer: Bruce Kaphan, American Music Club
label: Alias Records - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Why Won't You Stay" - 2. "Rise" - 5. "Crabwalk" - 6. "The Confidential Agent" - 10. "What the Pillar of Salt Held Up"

5th studio album by American Music Club is a relatively quiet [often referred to as 'slowcore'] singer / songwriter, folk rock collection of songs with some country, and jangle pop influences. I think it's clearly the so far best album by the band.
[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5 stars ]

American Music Club "California" (1988)

California
release date: Oct. 1988
format: cd
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,32]
producer: Tom Mallon
label: Frontier Records - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Firefly" - 3. "Laughingstock" - 8. "Now You're Defeated" - 9. "Jenny" - 10. "Western Sky" - 11. "Highway 5" - 12. "Last Harbor"

3rd studio album by American Music Club is produced and engineered by drummer Tom Mallon and Mark Eitzel wrote all songs. The style is folk rock with a mix of jangle pop and pop / rock in a singer / songwriter shape.
The album is the only AMC album to be enlisted in "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die".
The style has certainly changed much since the debut in '85, and although, it's not my favourite by the band, it's quite good without containing evident great tracks, imho.
[ allmusic.com 4 / 5 stars ]

American Music Club "The Restless Stranger" (1985)

The Restless Stranger [debut]
release date: Aug. 1985
format: digital
[album rate: 2,5 / 5] [2,38]
producer: Tom Mallon
label: Grifter Records - nationality: USA

Track highlights: 1. "Room Above the Club" - 3. "Away Down My Street" - 8. "Tell Yourself"

Studio debut album by American Music Club, who at this early point was a quintet consisting of songwriter (and undisputed leader), lead vocalist and guitarist Mark Eitzel, lead guitarist Vudi [Mark Pankler], keyboardist Brad Johnson, bassist Dan Pearson and with Matt Norelli on drums.
Compared to later albums by the band this has its own style of pop / rock without the distinct style of slow rock / slowcore and alt. folk. Also, the best track might be "Tell Yourself", which is anything but a track one would associate with American Music Club with its up-tempo beat. Generally, the keyboard and guitar are more in focus on the album, and the songs simply lack songwriting and musical quality to make it more than than a mediocre release.
[ allmusic.com 2 / 5 stars ]