Elvis Costello - Music Forums - Music Forum

PinkCigarette · 07-22-2009

You should put some info about the artist when you make a thread because some people may not have heard of him.

Anyways, Pump It Up is my favourite.

vinnydictive · 07-22-2009

the music tells a better story than i could

vinnydictive · 07-22-2009

you're probably right though, i just kinda assumed most people already knew, i wasn't really trying to introduce him to anyone, just postin videos i found

CowboyFromHell420 · 07-22-2009

vinny, whenever you make a thread on an artist that we do not yet have, we'd appreciate it if you kind of gave us a background on the artist, what they're about, what some of their better songs and albums are...etc. not everybody knows who elvis costello is and your information might interest them.

vinnydictive · 07-22-2009

yea, this is actually one of maybe two threads ive posted w/o any info, i've actually been pretty good at sharing my 2 cents, but like i said, i was just sharing videos, i wasn't really even looking to discuss him, but i'll keep that in mind, my apologies.

vinnydictive · 02-01-2010

alright, i think i'm ready to add to this thread now...

The son of musicians, Costello was exposed to a mix of British and American styles—dance-hall pop to modern jazz to the Beatles—from an early age. During the early 1970s he lived in London, recording demos and performing locally while working as a computer programmer. He befriended Nick Lowe, bassist for the pub rock band Brinsley Schwarz, who brought him to the attention of Jake Riviera, one of the heads of the independent label Stiff Records. In 1977 Lowe produced Costello's first album, My Aim Is True. A critical and commercial success, it aligned the cynicism and energy of punk bands like the Sex Pistols and the Clash with the structures of a more literate songwriting tradition, weaving complex wordplay through a set of clever pop tunes and moving easily among varied melodic styles.After the success of My Aim Is True, Costello formed a strong backing band, the Attractions, with Steve Nieve on keyboard, Pete Thomas on drums, and Bruce Thomas on bass. On the early albums with the Attractions—This Year's Model (1978), Armed Forces (1979), and Get Happy!! (1980)—Costello and Lowe developed a distinctive guitar and keyboard mix that was influenced by a variety of 1960s artists, including Booker T. and the MG's. The most notable work of this early period—rockers such as “This Year's Girl” and “Lip Service,” deceptively upbeat pop tunes such as “(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes,” and rapid-fire, soul-inflected songs such as “Black and White World”—featured appealing melodic bass lines that complemented an energetic rhythm guitar and a stylized, almost awkward vocal style. Through densely constructed thematic puns, Costello explored the intersection of power and intimacy, often from the perspective of a rejected lover.During the 1980s Costello broadened his range, working with various producers who developed more-layered arrangements.

The hit “Everyday I Write the Book” (1983) was composed during this period, and albums such as Trust (1981) and Imperial Bedroom (1982) won critical acclaim. However, the early 1980s were also a time of creative inconsistency, as Costello experimented with the country genre in Almost Blue (1981) and released Goodbye Cruel World (1984); both albums had only limited critical and commercial success. In 1985 Costello divorced his wife, and he married Cait O'Riordan, the bassist of the British band the Pogues, the following year. Following his marriage, Costello recorded King of America (1986), a radical stylistic departure. Produced by T-Bone Burnett, King of America featured spare acoustic arrangements and a more direct lyrical style. Costello continued to explore new sounds on his next album, Spike (1989). In both of these works, Costello wrote about the role of the artist in popular culture, blending contemporary cultural imagery with modern and classical literary allusions. He developed a fragmented, dissonant lyrical style; the influence of modern poets such as T.S. Eliot was evident on visionary songs such as “…This Town…” from Spike and “Couldn't Call It Unexpected #4” from Mighty Like a Rose (1991).In the 1990s he released a mixed set of recordings, ranging from straightforward, well-crafted rockers to experimental works such as the song cycle The Juliet Letters (1993), recorded with a string quartet, and Painted from Memory (1998), written with the composer Burt Bacharach. Costello continued to develop musically and lyrically and remained one of rock's most respected songwriters through the close of the century.

Muzoid · 02-01-2010

Genius!

Love the guy!

Rolling Stone has him in the Top 100 Musicians in History

I agree!

His new country stuff is off the hook wicked...fun tunes, I hear a live version of "Mystery Train"...wow...blow your mind 16th note solos.....way better than the studio version....not the version I heard but great....(the one I heard had an amazing fiddle solo)

vinnydictive · 02-01-2010

Quote:

Originally Posted by Muzoid

Genius!

Love the guy!

Rolling Stone has him in the Top 100 Musicians in History

I agree!

His new country stuff is off the hook wicked...fun tunes, I hear a live version of "Mystery Train"...wow...blow your mind 16th note solos.....way better than the studio version.

he is definitely more than worthy of being called one of the top 100 musicians in history, i wouldn't argue that for a second, he has so much more to offer than i think a lot of people realize.

and i couldn't agree more with you on his new stuff, he's one of those rarities that just get better with time, i'm convinced.

Muzoid · 02-01-2010

Hahaha....did you notice at the beginning of the Mystery Train vid

It's labeled "Elvis Presley" by the TV station.

Hahahahaha...talk about living after death