“Being the patron saint of a certain kind of woman-hating dweeb is not a great career. Let me say that, right out.” Also in Rolling Stone, Elvis Costello reflects on his journey thus far, on the eve of two new albums, The Delivery Man and Il Sogno.
Category: Elvis Costello
You Tripped at Every Step.
Slate ruminates on whether lovebirds Elvis Costello and Diana Krall are lousy influences on each other. A bit mean, perhaps, but I’ve thought for awhile that a happy Elvis might mean trouble.
All this Useless Beauty.
A long-time Elvis Costello fan sours on North. “Now he’s a navel-gazing romantic who apparently let all those Gershwin comparisons go to his head.” Well, I haven’t heard Costello’s latest yet, but I dunno if this is really fair. As the article notes, Elvis was superb on tour last year, and he still seems miles away from Billy Joel country.
I Hope You’re Happy Now.
Via Pearls that are his Eyes, the Guardian talks with Elvis Costello on his new album and newfound love. While I’m glad the guy’s feeling peachy, I must say the jury’s still out for me on the idea of a blissful Elvis…I prefer my Costello lacerating, verbose, and irreconcilable.
Elvis is King.
Elvis Costello, The Police, and The Clash will all be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame next year. To my mind, that’s the most worthy induction class in recent memory.
Trust Elvis.
The Elvis Costello show at the Beacon the other evening was superb (set list here)…I was surprised how good he sounds live. I expected his voice to be a little more off, but he could hit all the notes and wavers from the studio versions. If I could pick three Elvis songs I had to hear, they’d be “Man Out of Time,” “Indoor Fireworks,” and – most importantly – “I Want You,” so I was not disappointed. (Yeah, “Alison,” “Beyond Belief,” or “Everyday I Write the Book” would’ve been cool too, but I’ll take what I can get.) The third encore in particular, the blue-lit, NIN-esque version of “I Want You” paired with “Almost Blue,” was truly a thing of beauty. As for Underworld the other night, I was underwhelmed…mostly by the venue, which was way too small and overbooked for a dance show. In fact, I’ve pretty much given up on the Hammerstein as a venue by this point. (More on the Underworld show in the comments of this post at Do You Feel Loved.) Did I mention that Elvis is King?
Born Slippy, Beyond Belief.
This appears to be the one week a year when I take advantage of living in NYC. A high school friend has procured me a ticket to see Underworld tonight at the Hammerstein, and then Tuesday I’m off to the Beacon to catch one of those acts on my must-see list for years, Elvis Costello and the Imposters. If the setlist is anything as ridiculous as Wednesday‘s, the show is going to be off the hook…Man Out of Time, Indoor Fireworks, Beyond Belief, Alison, Almost Blue, and I Want You?! Unbelievable.
Cover Me.
The Covers Project, via Pearls That Are In His Eyes. Great for use in association with Kazaa. To take just two examples, I didn’t know Scott Weiland covered Depeche Mode’s “But Not Tonight” (tho’ the original is still better) or that Elvis Costello riffed on Dylan’s country classic, “I Threw It All Away.” Good stuff.