Thoughts on the reissues (so far)

Post by **BlueChair** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 8:54 am

Maybe I was just expecting the worst from this album, but I'm really enjoying it! Especially the bonus disc.

"Strange" is a definite album highlight for me, although it seems weird to start an album with a false start. Few of the tracks are actually improved upon the originals, but I still think it's a fun album to listen to.

The bonus disc just makes me smile. "You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go" has long been a favourite of mine, so hearing Elvis sing it is a true joy. I had heard "Step Inside Love" and "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away" before, but it's nice to have them on CD now. "Still Feeling Blue" is another favourite from the bonus disc.

Goodbye Cruel World is definitely my vote for the worst. I've always loved "The Only Flame In Town", but the GCW album version is just awful. However, "Home Truth", "Love Field", and "Inch by Inch" make it an album well worth owning. And again, the bonus disc has some great songs.

Still waiting on Almost Blue!

John · Post by **John** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 10:40 am

My favourite track off these reissues so far is What I Like Most About You Is Your Girlfriend from GCW. I always liked it by The Special AKA but Elvis sings it with such menace and conviction it makes me laugh.

Still waiting for KV to arrive.

wehitandrun · Post by **wehitandrun** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 1:13 pm

001. Almost Blue
002. Goodbye Cruel World
003. Kojak Variety

GCW awful? Blasphemy. There's a set of great songs that disagrees.

I recently fell in love with "Joe Porterhouse" and "The Comedians".

The closest things to bad songs on that album are "Love Field" and "I Wanna Be Loved". I usually skip those, but the rest is so brilliant.

Post by **BlueChair** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 1:24 pm

Elvis admits it is his worst album, and it most certainly is.

It has some GREAT songs, but pretty much all of the songs I had heard before on bonus discs and so forth, I prefer the bonus disc versions.

The cheesy drums and sax on "The Only Flame In Town" almost made me turn off the CD immediately.

"Love Field" is awesome!

wehitandrun · Post by **wehitandrun** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 1:25 pm

Elvis says a lot of things- think for yourself.

The bonus disc version of "The Only Flame In Town" is awful, and makes the album version sound great- which it is.

I thought you were the R&B boy around here? Learn to love it, it's a brilliant song.

normabuel · Post by **normabuel** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 1:39 pm

My comments on AB are found in another thread: "Almost Blue Bonus Disc."

Re: GCW: I just purchased GCW this week (for the first time) and I am still absorbing it. In general, it isn't exceptionally different from PTC (TKO horns excluded, of course), which I liked at the time and still do.

I have always liked "Only Flame," and the bonus disc does nothing to change my mind. "I Wanna Be Loved" sounds like any typical (and unremarkable) '80's "new wave" dance songs from any number of so-called haircut bands. P.U.

I like Love Field and Inch By Inch.

Re: KV: I haven't purchased KV. I have the original release. Unless the board convinces me that the bonus disc is worth it, I won't buy it.

laughingcrow · Post by **laughingcrow** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 3:15 pm

Why are the demos so hissy on the GCW disc??? Try listening to them through personal headphones at a high(ish) level...

I'm off to get KJ tommorrow morning...why oh why oh why was it delayed by a week before it came out in blighty?

Overall, I think AB is a strong contender for best resissue so far, and GCW, as nearly everyone has noted, has struck me as having some wicked songs! I had a tape of GCW a few years ago, but barely played it...now Im realising what wicked songs these are...especially Home Truth.
I don't really find the 'production' unlistenable either...and as for the Only Flame In Town (with it's mad wailing intro)...it's kinda cool in a cheesy way, and I like the hurried delivery!

Sour Milk Cow · Post by **Sour Milk Cow** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 3:21 pm

The Only Flame In Town kicks ass. If it were one of the songs on Painted From Memory, it would have been praised as everybody's favorite because of how catchy it is.

I would fall with joy if Elvis ever made another pop album that had a single as great as TOFIT. I don't know why everybody hates it so much. (And this is coming from someone who hates hates hates most saxophone music)

wardo68 · Post by **wardo68** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 3:28 pm

Sour Milk Cow wrote:If it were one of the songs on Painted From Memory, it would have been praised as everybody's favorite because of how catchy it is...

I'm right with you on that, and I maintain that any of the PFM songs would fit on many of his earlier albums, albeit with slightly different arrangements.

(And this is coming from someone who hates hates hates most saxophone music)

I generally I hate horn sections too.

Sour Milk Cow · Post by **Sour Milk Cow** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 4:10 pm

wardo68 wrote:
(And this is coming from someone who hates hates hates most saxophone music)
I generally I hate horn sections too.

Horn sections are another matter with me. I generally like the horns on PTC, and WIWC, and on the bonus track "Impatience" on the UK version of North.

I still think that EC has yet to make his great album with a horn section. PTC wasn't quite it, because it was a little bit too 80s pop (nothing wrong with that, but I'm imagining a different kind of masterpiece.) WIWC used horns quite sparingly, so it isn't that either.

I want him to make an album with the Imposters and a truly great horn section used to maximum effect. Maybe someday it will happen.

normabuel · Post by **normabuel** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 4:24 pm

"Impatience" is a GREAT song! After Still, it may be my favorite song on North.

Impatience was recorded, I think, with the Ray Nathanson horns. They played with EC and the Imposters at the Beacon in 2002, with excellent versions of WTD (similar to version he just played at Lincoln Center) and Chewing Gum -- the latter I had mistaken for some James Brown tune. (They also played Dust and 15 Petals.)

His work with horns has become better over time, IMHO. According to all of the "expert" reviews of Il Sogno, EC is an excellent orchestrator, so your dream of a masterpeice with horns may be a reality. (Not having heard Il Sogno, it may be that that is his horn section materpiece.)

Does anyone know if there are horns on the Deliveryman

Post by **BlueChair** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 6:33 pm

Almost Blue arrived!

Sour Milk Cow · Post by **Sour Milk Cow** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 6:44 pm

normabuel wrote:"Impatience" is a GREAT song! After Still, it may be my favorite song on North.

It is, IMHO, the best EC track in years. Better than anything on WIWC, FTS, yes, even PFM. I love the song, the production, the arrangement, the singing, the band, the strings, the horns. It is FUN. It is amazing that he hasn't played this one live in concert, it would be wonderful with the band and a horn section! (And a full orchestra coming in just at the end!)

normabuel wrote:Does anyone know if there are horns on the Deliveryman

From what I've heard and what I know, there are no horns. Just the Imposters, plus some steel guitar. And I think Steve plays the theremin!

And No Coffee Table · Post by **And No Coffee Table** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 6:57 pm

normabuel wrote:I haven't purchased KV. I have the original release. Unless the board convinces me that the bonus disc is worth it, I won't buy it.

Get it! The bonus disc is one of the very best.

Sour Milk Cow · Post by **Sour Milk Cow** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 7:30 pm

And No Coffee Table wrote:
normabuel wrote:I haven't purchased KV. I have the original release. Unless the board convinces me that the bonus disc is worth it, I won't buy it.
Get it! The bonus disc is one of the very best.

I second this! KV's bonus disc is actually better than KV itself. It's worth every penny.

Shatteredmannequin · Post by **Shatteredmannequin** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 10:19 pm

I was so glad to finally hear the demos for the never-to-be George Jones record. They're my favorite tracks on the disc. Innocent When You Dream is incredible (Tom Waits cover versions always have a way of just amplifying those beautiful melodies he writes ). And for all the times I've heard Elvis do "Dark End of the Street" live, I've never heard a version as good as on this bonus disc. And his take on Dylan's "You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome.." would be right at home on King of America.

Mr. Misery · Post by **Mr. Misery** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 6:48 am

BlueChair wrote: The bonus disc just makes me smile. "You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go" has long been a favourite of mine, so hearing Elvis sing it is a true joy.

I love the paradoxical lighthearted sadness of this, and the effortless poetry: "I'll see you in the stars above, in the tall grass and the ones I love."

invisible Pole · Post by **invisible Pole** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 4:04 pm

I finally finally got the reissues from Amazon!!

I have just finished listening to Goodbye Cruel World bonus disc and I'm stunned. I am sure that had Elvis decided to record the songs only with acoustic guitar we would have got one of his best albums. These are simply very good songs and the unpolished, acoustic setting seems just perfect for them. I would find it hard to name my favourite, though probably the emotional directness and sadness of Home Truth moved me most.

Add to it a great selection of live cuts and covers like "Baby It's You", "Withered And Died" and hilarious "What I Like Most About You ..." - and to me this is one of the best bonus discs so far (haven't listened to AB and KV yet).

And last but not least, am I the only one here who's a big fan of "She Loves The Jerk" ? Brilliant song and a most tender rendition by Elvis.

OK, I'm moving on to Almost Blue....

wehitandrun · Post by **wehitandrun** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 5:05 pm

You'll love Almost Blue, and "Withered and Died" is very suiting for my current mood.

laughingcrow · Post by **laughingcrow** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 10:18 am

WHAR...good choice.....now go out and listen to I want to see the bright lights tonight, by Richard and Linda Thompson (has the original W&D on it). I guarantee that your mind will be blown by The end of the Rainbow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

johnfoyle · Post by **johnfoyle** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 5:25 pm

http://www.riverfronttimes.com/issues/2 ... tions.html

Best line -

'Costello hadn't yet learned to inhabit this kind of
music, so listening today, we hear reverence, some
mildly interesting arrangements and a lot of songs
we've heard done better.'

So absolutely spot on!
J.F.

Elvis Costello
Almost Blue
Goodbye Cruel World

Kojak Variety (Rhino)

BY STEVE PICK
stevevin@mo.net

When Rhino Records decided to reissue Elvis Costello's
catalogue in groups of three non-chronological
releases, it was inevitable that the process would end
here. Two years after launching with some of
Costello's best and hardest-rocking albums, Rhino is
left with three of his least essential or popular
oddities. These include the only two albums ever made
by one of pop's greatest songwriters without even a
single original composition, as well as the album
Costello once rightly called the worst he'd ever made.

Almost Blue is the album here with the greatest
commercial success. In 1981 New Wave fans were stunned
when Elvis Costello went to Nashville to do an LP of
honky-tonk music. Imagine what country fans must have
thought when they compared these
tentative-if-well-meaning versions to the classic
originals. For those of us on the rock side who
followed Costello's tribute to his heroes, Almost Blue
crossed the line we hadn't imagined had been drawn,
revealing the harsh bigotry of our ignorance. It
probably isn't stretching a point to claim that
alt-country wouldn't have happened without this record
opening the minds of a lot of alternative-rock fans.

Costello hadn't yet learned to inhabit this kind of
music, so listening today, we hear reverence, some
mildly interesting arrangements and a lot of songs
we've heard done better. The bonus disc includes some
terrific live material from a variety of settings.

Goodbye Cruel World came out in 1984, and more than
anything else Costello has ever recorded, it sounds
trapped in its time. The fresh pop sheen of the
production overwhelms the songs, with dated keyboard
sounds and incessant saxophone interjections getting
in the way of modern enjoyment. There are good to
great songs here, but ironically, only the two most
heavily produced cuts -- "The Only Flame in Town" and
an obscure cover song, "I Wanna Be Loved" -- still
sound fresh. Interestingly, the bonus disc has two
alternate versions of "The Only Flame" that are even
better, revealing the subdued, haunting chills at the
core of this song.

Costello always improves songs live, and the six newly
unearthed live cuts on the bonus disc show up the lack
of emotional honesty on the record itself. Given that
this album was recorded at the time of the final
ending to his first marriage, it's possible he was
afraid of revealing too much truth in the recording
studio. If so, it was the only failure of nerve he's
ever shown us.

I'd forgotten what a gem Kojak Variety is. The album
was recorded in 1991, in five days, with a brilliant
lineup of musicians. The group took a week's vacation
in Barbados and ran through a bunch of amazing,
frequently completely obscure cover songs from a
variety of genres. Costello has always displayed
impeccable understanding of other people's songs.
There's a palpable sense of fun on this record too, as
the players have no thoughts of trying to make this
one a commercial success.

The bonus disc includes a lot of rarities rounded up
from the mid-'90s, with the core being a set of ten
songs, most previously unissued, Costello recorded in
the style of George Jones with the intention of
convincing the country master to cover material by the
likes of Tom Waits, Paul Simon and Bruce Springsteen.
It could be the best album George Jones never made,
though Costello's vocals are a far cry from his
influence here. Of the three new reissues, Kojak
Variety easily offers the most consistent pleasures.

SweetPear · Post by **SweetPear** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 11:21 pm

I've got all three and so far I've listened to AB a few times through.
I've just listened to GCW for the FIRST TIME! It's the only EC record I've never had. I don't know why. I've heard a few of the songs before, obviously The Only Flame and I Wanna Be Loved, Love Field and Inch By Inch and Peace In Our Time, I've heard. I've read so many things about this record, I couldn't open it fast enough once it arrived. I haven't made it all the way through the bonus disc yet.

I say WOW! There are so many great songs on this record! Except for Love Field which is okay, I always loved Flame (although I think the arrangement on the bonus disc suited the record more) and IWBL has always been one of my favorite EC songs. God, he's just pulling at my heart strings with that song....as with Worthless Thing, Room With No Number, Inch By Inch and Home Truth. Wow.

Then there's the bunch of songs that I can't believe I've NEVER heard before....Joe Portehouse, The Deportees Club, The Comedians and SMCB!!! I just can't wait to listen to it again!

invisible Pole wrote:
I have just finished listening to Goodbye Cruel World bonus disc and I'm stunned. I am sure that had Elvis decided to record the songs only with acoustic guitar we would have got one of his best albums. These are simply very good songs and the unpolished, acoustic setting seems just perfect for them. I would find it hard to name my favourite, though probably the emotional directness and sadness of Home Truth moved me most.

Just one comment....I thought that it was a strange mix of songs, probably more so than on his other records. Flame and IWBL, SMCB....weren't they a little too snazzy? I imagined the record to be more along the lines of the 2nd through the 7th tracks. I was surprised at the glitzy numbers like Flame.

Although I can't wait to listen to KV, I think I want to absorb GCW a while longer.

wehitandrun · Post by **wehitandrun** » Thu Aug 19, 2004 1:16 pm

That was a great post, SweetPear. I love GCW.

LessThanZero · Post by **LessThanZero** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 3:47 pm

GCW has gotten a bad rap around here!

I too have just listened to it for the first time.

Is Home Truth his best song? It's never in any of our rankings, but it is deeply and disturbingly wonderful.

And I believe that Love Field is perfect.

wehitandrun · Post by **wehitandrun** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 3:54 pm

Joe Porterhouse is a masterpiece. The Comedians seems like a lesser Joe Porterhouse.

Elvis Costello Fan Forum

Thoughts on the reissues (so far)

Thoughts on the reissues (so far)

KV is my fave of the bunch

Re: Thoughts on the reissues (so far)