Elvis Costello Fan Forum

"45"...being as much an exercise as an inspiration I wonder, why such a high price on this "inspiration?" Much great songwriting is "exercise"--execution, consideration, the muscle the individual songwriter brings to the table, and the care he takes in harnessing his c...

PS--thanks for your write-up on "45," Connor, there were a handful of details you pointed out that never really registered with me, and I never knew about the Leno version, which is lovely. Nice to have a little perspective on this song that kicked open such a door for me.

It's an inconsistent album with a few duff tracks, and the sound is kind of abrasive, but I owe my entire Costello fandom--one of the most sonically pleasing and intellectually stimulating musical excursions of my life--to "When I Was Cruel." I was 19 and my tastes were going through some ...

Count me among those who find Von Otter's voice to be a little stiff for the material--it's been a while since I've listened to the record, but I always felt like she seemed incapable of really getting inside the song, of really inhabiting what was going on with the melody, the lyric, etc. Great sin...

3. Relatedly - and clearly this is a matter of personal preference - I'm seldom a great enthusiast of narrow writing boxes (i.e., de facto or de jure "concept" albums). PFM and North both restrict themselves to a very narrow range of subject matter - in effect, romantic songs - and I find...

I know it's about three weeks late but I did want to retroactively speak up in favor of "Almost Blue": Is there any reason - apart from being a completist - that one would need to own this album? I always felt that if I wanted these songs, I'd get them in the original; and the cuts from th...

I'll agree that "Almost Ideal Eyes" is kind of awkward and cluttered. But it is definitely, as PD says, "inspired," and rhythmically I think one of the most unique things EC did with the Attractions. I'm happy to have it as a B-side but I think I prefer "All This Useless Bea...

Any opinions on the new Miles Davis Bootleg Series, Jack? I've been playing it pretty obsessively all week. It's a period of Miles's career I'm thrilled to see finally being given official treatment.

Yeah, the '75 and '76 shows were remarkably quite different from each other considering how little the nature of the tour changed. I prefer the slightly more charged chemistry of the 1976 gigs, but love it all in the end. Have you heard the "Hard Rain" album, Otis? After "Live 1966,&q...

"It Never Entered My Mind" is so good.

Here are a couple classic bootlegs which feature it. Both are well-worth the time to download: Fort Worth, TX-Hold The Fort For What It's Worth-partial sbd (5-16-76) Flacs Disk 1 pt 1 http://www.mediafire.com/?xaxyhwb7loh4g3d pt 2 http://www.mediafire.com/?5ey2l3nc53z1fe2 Disk 2 pt 1 http://www.medi...

Nerd alert: Though it seems part of the same seamless run of shows, the 1987 tour is not generally considered part of the Never-Ending Tour. Among Dylan dorks, Concord 6/7/88 is generally viewed as the beginning of the NET--the Petty and Grateful Dead tours of 1987 are seen as different things entir...

And where the hell are they going with Mumford and Sons? U2 with banjos is their verdict. Great. And then some US act with a very retro photo gets praised as being the USs answer to the Mumfords. WTF? Why does the US need an answer to some godawful bunch of bearded twats who think that shaking and ...

Thanks guys--I'll probably pick up a CD or two after Christmas.

Mr. Of All Parades, what do you know about a jazz guitarist named Jim Hall? I've discovered a few recordings this year that have happened to feature him as a sideman--specifically, Sonny Rollins's "The Bridge" and some stuff off a Bill Evans comp--and I find his playing consistently alluri...

All 756 of us will probably be buying this collection. :wink: Take it down to 755, though I might use it as an excuse to buy the few tracks I don't have yet off iTunes. Otherwise I think this is a silly, extraneous compilation, especially since it's so incomplete. Had it been an excuse to corral al...

At first glance I thought this read "Elvis plays Kid Rock benefit in New York."

Never heard that one, Jack. I always surmised that Herbie must have had an apartment at Rudy Van Gelder's studio in the early sixties--he plays on so many records.

I think my favorite Herbie album might be the 1979 solo record "The Piano."

Also, it never ceases to amaze me how often "Blood on the Tracks" is mis-abbreviated as "BOOT." I've been on Dylan boards for years and this happens all the time. Why do you suppose this is?

Not disposable, it just isn't clicking with me. I find my mind drifting the further into it I go. What am I missing?

My official copy of "Tempest" arrived in the mail on Thursday; I've been playing it pretty continuously for the past few days after having put it down for a week or so, the whole thing feeling more "whole" now that I have the total package (the artwork, the proper disc--silly, pe...

Thanks for that. I've got this album coming in the mail this week along with Calexico's new one. I enjoyed "Ode" a lot and am trusting this will make a good companion, as per the press kit.

I was curious about the Byrne/St. Vincent record. Doesn't sound promising from what you're saying. How would you say it compares to "Strange Mercy" in the head-up-ass department? I felt like "Mercy" had just the right amount of it...

"California" - Bob Dylan
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkpqZv5-Tpw

Great song, great album.

Horse to Water -- REM