''Garage Orchestra'' is an album by the American musician Cindy Lee Berryhill, released in 1994. It marked a turn from the folk material of Berryhill's past, to a more orchestral pop sound. Berryhill was working in a San Diego bookstore when Cargo Music suggested that she record an album. Berryhill subsequently named her band after the album.

Production

The album was produced by Berryhill and Michael Harris. It was recorded in San Diego, over six 10-hour days. "Song for Brian" is a reverie about falling in love with

Brian Wilson Brian Douglas Wilson (born June 20, 1942) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often called a genius for his novel approaches to pop composition, extraordinary musical aptitude, and m ...

Critical reception

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference to ...

'' wrote that "an army of instrumentalists—playing everything from clarinet and cello to banjo, vibraphone and tympani—helps Berryhill deliver inventive, thoughtful, entertaining songs that fully deserve the diverse junior Phil Spector productions." ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' noted that, "to songs whose raw, free ecstasies recall Patti Smith, Berryhill adds strings-and-timpani flourishes that echo Brian Wilson." ''

The Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pennsy ...

'' stated that the music is "filled with Kurt Weill-meets-Brian Wilson forays." ''

The San Diego Union-Tribune ''The San Diego Union-Tribune'' is a metropolitan daily newspaper published in San Diego, California, that has run since 1868. Its name derives from a 1992 merger between the two major daily newspapers at the time, ''The San Diego Union'' and ...

'' called the album "a delightful collection of pithy songs that are simultaneously earthy and evocative, lyrical and lilting." The ''

Herald & Review The ''Herald & Review'' is a daily newspaper based in Decatur, Illinois. It is owned by Lee Enterprises. The Herald & Review was named one of Editor & Publisher's "10 Newspapers That Do It Right" in 2019 for its use of government documents and p ...

'' listed ''Garage Orchestra'' as the seventh best album of 1994.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

wrote: "The massed backing vocals, buzzing string sections, woodwinds, and

andy Andy may refer to: People *Andy (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters *Horace Andy (born 1951), Jamaican roots reggae songwriter and singer born Horace Hinds *Katja Andy (1907–2013), German-American pianist and piano ...

Hoffman's tympani, vibraphone, marimba, and other noisemakers give the songs a sound that's big and rich with nuance, but the music still has a playful quality, just ramshackle enough to be loose but still painting the big picture she requires with the layers of sound at her disposal."

Track listing

References

{{authority control Cindy Lee Berryhill albums 1994 albums