STEVE MANUEL: Comic Book Hero

Steve Manuel

Comic Book Hero

© 2006 Manuel Labors Music (837101217811)

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It's gimmicky, it's alternative, it's eclectic, it's rock/pop/soul, it's got conviction, and you can tap your feet to the get-down beat. Mostly it's fun.

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notes

Steve Manuel
(1945-2002)

Steven Alphonse Manuel was born backstage at the Théâtre de Babylone in Paris, January 5, 1953, during the world premier of Samuel Beckett’s “Waiting For Godot,” shocking his mother, who had already given birth to him once, eight years before. Beckett, a witness to the birth that night, commissioned his own epitaph on the spot: “I saw a baby born with lunch money in its pocket.” For Manuel, it was the beginning of a relationship with the stage that would last decades, garner millions of fans, and inspire three Elvis movies.

When he turned 16, Manuel’s mother was crushed beneath the foot of a rampaging Indian elephant, and he struck out, alone, in search of his estranged father, who had left the family ten years prior in search of his own father, a rampaging Indian elephant. His adventure took him to all corners of the globe, and little Stevie grew fast and strong in the lamplight of the world’s great societies:

At 19, traveling through Central Africa, Manuel – with his shock of bleach white hair – was mistaken for Nzambi, the supreme god for all the Kongo Kingdom. Later admitting his indulgence in hair product, he was demoted to a “nganga,” or a medicinal consultant in charge of rashes and phlegm.

At 23, Manuel burned his draft card and moved to Flin Flon, Manitoba, where he met and married a local anesthesiologist named Ruby who had induce-slept her way to the top of a prominent medical practice. The partnership unraveled, however, when Ruby admitted to splitting a cab once with U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara. The marriage was annulled and all reference to it blotted out of subsequent Soviet encyclopedias.

At 28, piecing his life back together, Manuel returned to his musical roots, and started a traveling harp-lute band. “It’s 1973,” he would often say. “And the world is ready for me and my harp-lute.” But it would be another sixteen years of dingy bars and honky-tonks from Lisbon to Istanbul before Manuel would finally be able to say, “At last I can say, nobody likes the harp-lute, and nobody likes me, Steve Manuel, who plays it.”

Little did he know that success lay just around the corner. While rounding a corner at a market in Prague, Stashwan (as he now called himself) slipped on a honeydew and immediately remembered the lyrics to an original song he heard in a fever dream as a child. He jotted the lyrics down on a banana rind and faxed it to his friend Elton John, who informed him that the song had already been recorded as “Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting)”, although with completely different lyrics and melody.

Devastated, alone, and still father-less, Manuel did the only thing he knew how to do: he courted investors, rented a stage on Broadway, and launched a musical based on his own life and experiences titled “Waiting For Godot.” It was a smash success, heralded by critics for its “rigorous use of the unities,” its “implacable interpretation of human life” and its “generously early intermission.” It was immediately embraced by audiences of toddlers and transients everywhere. Steven Manuel had become a household word, festooned with accolades and beclothed with rich coats of many colors (and also rich pants and matching boots of many colors). Yet Manuel would not admit success until 1998, when his name was used as a puzzle on Wheel Of Fortune under the clue “androgynous mysteries.”

Sadly, Manuel met with misfortune in May of 2002, when the airship he was attempting to fishtail suddenly burst into flames. He lingered in a partial coma for three weeks, emerging from his mental haze in short episodes long enough to swear vengeance on Schneider, before finally succumbing on June 17, 2002. He was 114. He is survived by his dog, Steven Manuel.

reviews

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  • Long Time Fan
    author: Cris Kaminskas

    Great Album Steve! I became a quick fan of yours when I started to attend Crossroads then moved to Spokane in 2006 and have been experiencing withdrawals ever since! Was glad to find your album and it's no surprise that I love it!

  • Love the passion
    author: Scott

    The songs on this CD are full of passion, that is very obvious. Well crafted lyrics with great music. Just about every song has a phrase that touches a feeling in my life. I haven't taken this CD out of my car since I received it in the mail.

  • Manuel Inspires
    author: Dan Carruthers

    Clever, sophisticated songs of personal discovery and the journey associated with that discovery... Steve Manuel thinks about what he's writing and asks you to come along for the ride. Manuel's strong chops layed over diversified arrangements and melodic hooks make Comic Book Hero a great listen... and you just might learn something about yourself...

  • Captivating and Soulful
    author: Misty

    The words were meaningful and profound. I find myself wanting to write down the lyrics of various songs as encouragement for things I am going through. The words are a mantra for life.

  • CBH is dynamic and sophisticated Pop music, with intricate, captivating layers,
    author: Mike Breen/CityBeat Cincinnati

    Comic Book Hero is an album of dynamic and sophisticated Pop music, with intricate, captivating layers, electronic, loopy quirks, plenty of spaciousness and lyrics that are spiritual and cleverly poetic. The tracks that really stand out on Comic Book Hero are the ones that are given creative, kaleidoscopic backdrops by the musicians and producers. Thankfully, that's practically all of them. The spare "Just As Well" is indicative of what a simple, acoustic singer/songwriter album from Manuel would sound like. While still showcasing strong songwriting chops, the augmentations on the other tracks make them far more alluring and unique. Practically every track offers some kind of cool sonic nuance between the nooks and crannies, making the listening experience kind of like eating through several boxes of Cracker Jacks -- there are prizes in each one and the caramel sticks with you (in your teeth with Cracker Jacks; in your brain with Manuel's songs). U2 is perhaps the most evident reference point for the album. Manuel's voice has a tone similar to Bono's, and cuts like "In and Out of Me" and "Up With Love" have some of the aural earmarks of the band as well, mixed with a little Beatles-y glaze in the harmonies and production tricks (something evident throughout the disc). Opener "Not My Clothes" recalls the sound and songs of a jaunty Peter Gabriel mixed with a little Brit Pop (a la Placebo), with its climbing, dramatic structure and melody. Other highlights include "Fooled," which features a soaring chorus hook and dirty yet pointed guitar work from Hordinski (who really stretches and shines on his six-string throughout), and the soulful "Go Somewhere," which is propped up by a grimy snare drum and one of Manuel's better vocal performances (he gets a little old-school Lenny Kravitz at times). Sonically, "Prayer" is enthralling, with its wavering keys and streaks of string sounds, but the song itself is one of the few clunkers, sounding like a maudlin Top 40 hit by Five For Fighting or Train (which is good for the pocketbook, bad for the artistic soul). But, overall, Comic Book Hero is a rich, poignant Pop/Rock album that should draw much attention to Manuel's evident talents as both a writer and performer. (myspace.com/stevemanuelband; stevemanuel.net)

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