Incredible new, exciting game!!

Pretty self-explanatory
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LessThanZero
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Post by LessThanZero »

5ive Gears starts with this heavy heavy rock riff....it's pretty different than anything else he's done that I've heard. That bass guitar unifies it with the rest of the album though. Bruce was really letting loose on this album it seems (or being let loose). I've only heard the song about 20-30 times though probably, since I just bought the CD a couple weeks ago, so that's all I have to say about that. Other than it sounds almost classic rock compared to the rest of Get Happy.

What song do i want to read ingenious analysis about next????

hmmm....

OH, FIRST OFF, I've been listening to Get Happy pretty much non-stop, and I heard in one of the song's codas, something that reminded me of the coda of Alison. I heard this on another Get Happy song as well, after that. And that made me think: other than that, Elvis sounds NOTHING like he did on My Aim is True on Get Happy. What do you have to say about that???? huh??? and the song IS:

The Greatest Thing
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Gilbert
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Post by Gilbert »

While on the subject of "5ive Gears in Reverse", I can still recall seeing Elvis play that at the now demolished Regal Theatre in West Calder in Scotland in March 1980, with the roadies making sure the speakers didn't fall over. They played it as an instrumental...

The Greatest Thing is one of the better moments from punch The clock, with Pete's drums sounding fantastic and good use of the horns too. They mimed it on "Pebble Mill At 1" for the BBC. Nice lyrics as well.

"Everybody stopped when she walked into the room - isn't that the greatest thing?"

Next up is From Head To Toe
Four eyes - one vision
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bambooneedle
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Post by bambooneedle »

A simple and charming little declaration of affection to his girl, all polished up smooth with those great backing vocals and bouncy bass with that dramatic "hey, hey, sweet baby...". I've got the Ryko version of this & EC says they are done by "The Indulgences"... (him?). Haven't heard the Smokey Robinson and The Miracles version of FHTT yet... imagine it might be even smoother.

Next - Take your pick (or deal with as a group if you wish) from these three noteworthy EC songs given to Ute Lemper for her album Punishing Kiss:

-Punishing Kiss
-Couldn't You Keep That To Yourself?
-Passionate Fight
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Post by PlaythingOrPet »

I think FHTT fits Robinson's sweet voice better. Just one question about EC's - is that the Attractions on backing vocals?

Leaving 'Boo's Ute Lemper songs for someone else cos I've never heard them.
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bambooneedle
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Post by bambooneedle »

PoP, they'll be a pleasant surprise, whenever you get around to it, I assure you. Great writing (Passionate Fight w/ Steve Nieve; Punishing Kiss w/ Cait) and performances - beaut, Ute!

He says: " "From Head To Toe" was originally recorded by Smokie Robinson and The Miracles, but as the backing vocals here are done by "The Indulgences", this version owes more to the Liverpool group The Escorts, who also recorded the original "Night Time". "

Those inverted commas, plus the Liverpool reference, lead me to suspect it was probably himself overdubbed -- "Paa paa pah" -- though the "hey, hey, sweet baby" part doesn't all sound like him... you might be right.
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verbal gymnastics
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Post by verbal gymnastics »

PlaythingOrPet wrote:I think FHTT fits Robinson's sweet voice better. Just one question about EC's - is that the Attractions on backing vocals?
I do believe it is. I saw them play it live once and saw Bruce sing the backing vocals. I assume Steve and/or Pete backed it up too.

Smokey's version is so much better.

And now back to the main part of the show...
Who’s this kid with his mumbo jumbo?
the poisoner
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Post by the poisoner »

speaking of the world and his wife...
no.
really.
it looks like we got bogged down by the last one.
i know i have got punishing kiss on a single with puppet girl and we despise you, but i cannot recall anything about it, really. it is 'punishing kiss', no?
so in an effort to kick start...
' the conversation melts like chocolate down their open jaws' is just one of many lyrical jewels in tw&hw. i like lyrical 'similes'(?) that i can almost picture.
some of his wittiest wordplay are in this song tho it is not so deep or mysterious. this is one of his easiset songs to decipher.
the music is just a lovely complementary bonus to the song. both versions on the ptc re-issue are fantastic (some of the lines are changed).

if no one can expand upon the previously proffered trio might i suggest...
pump it up
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bambooneedle
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Post by bambooneedle »

Maybe this game can split off so there's two or more current songs...
PlaythingOrPet
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Post by PlaythingOrPet »

There's life in it yet!

Listening to Almost Ideal Eyes today and I just love EC's voice on it. It'd be good to see other's comments on this brilliant song.

Bamboo - go for it.
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bambooneedle
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Post by bambooneedle »

Thank you PoP, I'm deeply honoured that you're thinking of me... it wouldn't be because I'm being held responsible for grinding the game to a halt, is it? :wink: But wow, has nobody heard those songs... I can't emphasize enough how worthwhile they are. But I wouldn't condone (gasp)... just downloading them, or anything...


Oh no, Almost Ideal Eyes...

I'm kind of conflicted about it. There's something missing in this song... (or I'm missing something in it). There's a great syncopated beat, some very Hurry Down Doomsday parts... -- a fantastic array of sounds -- but somehow it doesn't come together for, or grab, me. The suddenly slowed down, and perhaps too-emotionally-emphatic-in-contrast, chorus makes me think, "I'm just not tuning in with this"; it baffles me. So I have to conclude that it had a lot of potential that went unrealized. If it has some main -- specific and interesting -- idea (which, if it does, I seem to be missing) perhaps it could have been better honed. I agree that at least it sounds great, and would also be interested to hear if and how other people might find it more satisfactory.

But for now...Home Is Anywhere You Hang Your Head...
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lapinsjolis
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Post by lapinsjolis »

This is one of my favorites for personal and not so personal reasons. The sense of hopelessness the exquisite sorrow of unrequited love. It all hangs on the lead not knowing how to bring it together and perhaps the impossibly of the whole thing weighing down on him. It's a wonderful accompaniment to any heartache and I never tire of it. All is not well and never will be.

I remember hearing Elvis playing it before the 'Lonely World Tour' show as I sneaked to listen through the closed door. I'm off to listen to it now.



Inch by Inch
Mr. Misery
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Post by Mr. Misery »

Welcome back! You describe the delirious despair so well, Lapinsjolis.

There is a sense of disillusionment in "Inch by Inch" ("Write my name in heaven in invisible ink/ I just woke up from dreaming I think") combined with a heavy erotic undertone that makes up in passion what it lacks in subtlety. I like it very much. It is said to have an altogether different effect on adoring women when he does it in concert.

"My Thief"
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lapinsjolis
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Post by lapinsjolis »

Thank you Mr. Misery, to deface a classic, "I am Mr. Misery." It lacks the drama as there are no moors in Miami. I'm sure 'Inch by Inch' is a song that thrills many ladies of the board to their toes.

'My Thief' is the perfect expression of being haunted by love. The torment of wanting and the mixed emotions of hating that need and yet not being able to let it go. There is also that unreal suspicion that it's all carefully planned. It is sung off key but beautifully written.

Heathen Town
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Post by Mr. Misery »

An obscure delight. I remember discovering it as the b-side of the single Everyday I Write the Book and transcribing my best version of the lyrics. It treats the lure of indulgence in the night life of the city, and the prices paid in money and remorse. A number of memorable lines: "There's a choir of angels at the fall of Rome." "With one eye on a place in debtor's prison and the other on a girl dressed as a rabbit." "The only stake you cannot raise is the one driven through your heart."

An even better version of Heathen Town is featured on the excellent bonus disk to Punch the Clock. EC adds engaging harmonies, accompanying himself on back up vocals.

When It Sings
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Gillibeanz
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Post by Gillibeanz »

My personal fav from the new album. I dont think i've ever heard Elvis sing better, it's a beautiful song beautifully sung. I like the musical arrangement on this track and I think Elvis has got it just right. Theres just enough to compliment the song - anything more would have taken the emphasis away from the words.

The words are very sad and I think are a bit of insight to his marriage ending.

Next discuss 'You tripped at every step' - one of my alltime favs.
COME ON YOU SPURS!!
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Post by Otis Westinghouse »

It's one of those Elvis classics that starts, as Larkin wrote of Sidney Bechet, 'like an enormous yes'. It's typically elaborate, you can run the different elements of the structure through your mind and be surprised at how many bits there are, yet how well it all develops. The shift from one part to the next is exquisite. Maybe the middle eight is over-egging it, it would be fine without one, but then Elvis always delivers an impressive middle eight. I recall someone commenting on a theory that it was written about Cait drinking too much. I'll happily be spared the autobiographical angle, but I do like the sense of tenderness and sympathy that the song evokes, mixed in with some nice pathos and comedy. Great chorus to sing along to. Thematically, or steptastically at least, linked to '13 Steps Lead Down'. are there any other 'step' refs on BY?

OK, hope this wasn't done before (the hiatus makes this a risk, but what the hell): YOU LITTLE FOOL
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Post by double dutchess »

A lovely cautionary tale about beastly boys. I love the line "imitation lashes flutter above/looking for an imitation of love". It makes me feel sorry for the girl, in spite of her obvious silliness. Girls will be girls, and I think most of us can relate to this, either by having been with the wrong person, or by watching someone else make that mistake. Either way, in retropect, we all realize how stupid we were being. Perhaps it could even be considered a comming of age song. Or am I reading too much into it?

Next up:

Goon Squad
I wasn't born the sharpest thorn
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Post by bambooneedle »

(*made a change)

Goon Squad... it's like a relative of Oliver's Army and others on Armed Forces, being related thematically. Makes effective statements about boofhead mentalities within armed forces, and about non-conformity. I can imagine someone in that position needing to hear it, feeling the sense of doom that is musically conveyed.

I have been curious about Almost Ideal Eyes and found this article. David Crosby!? http://www.astheygo.com/ecessay22.html

Next: * Changed the next song up to: Seconds Of Pleasure
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Post by Mr. Misery »

Another example of a minor artist turning down the work of a genius, as Phil Collins refused 'Seconds of Pleasure' from Elvis Costello. It's not a work of genius in itself, but very witty (perhaps that was the stumbling block) and mordant. It has lyrics later incorporated into the songs 'Love Went Mad' and 'The Invisible Man.' And it features one of my favorite lines, "You treat me like a piece of human furniture."

Starting to Come to Me.
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lapinsjolis
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Post by lapinsjolis »

'Starting to Come to Me' is such a cutting and biting song. He lashes with witty lines and contemptuous criticisms. Stripping the mask mercilessly away from the subject. Yet I can't help but feel a hint of surrender when he sings, "Come to me, come to me". Ah Elvis!

Still Too Soon To Know
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Post by Mr. Misery »

A torch song and a very powerful one. He's often accused of excessive wordplay (when he should be celebrated for doing it at such a high and artistic level) but here the words are as straightforward as the pain and regret. The line "when I think back a couple of days" has always moved me; how quickly things can change. But as the outcome is uncertain there is still hope. I witnessed EC doing an amazing version of this in concert, a capella and unmiked. It brought a reverent hush to the boisterous crowd.

God Give Me Strength.
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lapinsjolis
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Post by lapinsjolis »

One of his most openly heartfelt songs that illustrates the excruciating pain of rejection and finding out the one you can't live without can live very happily with someone else. At the point of course that you still have hope and want them back! Yet there is the acknowledgment of it being truly over. "That song is sung out. . " He captures that emotional limbo beautifully and with all the ardor that one could hope for. I know it was written with Mr. Bacharach for 'Grace of My Heart', I love their collaborations. I love them even more when they don't include backup singers.


What Do I Do Now?
the poisoner
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Post by the poisoner »

what do i do now?
perfect grasp of exasperation in every line.
it's a love sond. a what-mighta-been song.
this was not written by elvis , was it?
but it coulda been. some of the wittiest lyrics , in amost natural way.
it is beautifully arranged and sung by him.
it's reminisent of 'please stay' on kojak variety.
i would love to see what the original writer would have done with it.
has to pale to this version. ec's musical talent is so vast that he makes pearls out of others songs.
almost disappointed he did not write it

opinions on 'love for tender'
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lapinsjolis
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Post by lapinsjolis »

It's by Lousie Wener. It's also unique because he doesn't change the woman's perspective. I love that he didn't try to make it from a man's view. I hate when they clumsily alter the lyrics.



It's still 'Love For Tender'.
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LessThanZero
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Post by LessThanZero »

Blue said he'd teach me how to play "What Do I Do Now" on the guitar.

I guess he was lying. :(
Loving this board since before When I Was Cruel.
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