Elvis Costello Fan Forum

"Bring Da Ruckus" -- Wu Tang Clan

I love "20% Amnesia." Is that some kind of commonly hated song among EC fans?

So, you know, it's a matter of emphasis. By and large I see his strengths far outweighing the failings. Yeah, you know, I do too. I'm not sure why my relationship with Dylan's post-"L&T" material is so dubious. Probably too much time spent hanging around the internet with overly analy...

Lastly: unlike Kevin, I don't put Dylan at the same level as EC. I put Dylan in a category onto himself. Perhaps I overrate the man, but I honestly feel that of all popular musicians of the past half-century, he and (for quite different reasons) The Beatles likely have the greatest claim to immorta...

Hey, my favorite album of all-time is on this list: Pearl Jam's "Yield." And some of the artists they're calling "great" would be debatable to say the least.

Oops, my mistake. They should be fixed now.

I'm loving "Pay in Blood." I've heard a couple people say it sounds like Warren Zevon and that feels spot on. "I'll pay in blood/But not my own." Now that's the Dylan I know and love.

Hey, what do you know, three more songs leaked:

Narrow Way:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysk5yrF- ... e=youtu.be

Pay In Blood:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndXoaqMJ ... e=youtu.be

Scarlet Town:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGFOjhW- ... e=youtu.be

Kevin, that was an interesting post. I'd not previously thought of that period as characterized by weak writing in the sense you describe. What came to mind immediately was 'King of Thieves,' a song that always struck me as cluttered; maybe 'TKO' too. But I strain to find other clear-cut examples.....

Thanks for that link, Jack. I think the length makes it difficult for me to view the song as having the same lightweight ambitions as "New Morning" or "Watching the River Flow," as the author reasonably suggests. It's been a recurring theme in Dylan's later work, actually, the te...

I don't especially dislike it; it does have a nice chug to it. It all just feels so predictable at this point. Perhaps by chance, Dylan has finally managed to find the voice that he heard in his head when he was playing folk and blues tunes at the Gaslight and Cafe Wha all those years ago, and he's ...

NPR release of "Duquesne Whistle" off of Dylan's new record, Tempest , set to be released on 9/11/12: http://www.npr.org/blogs/allsongs/2012/08/27/160015988/song-premiere-bob-dylan-duquesne-whistle?sc=tw&cc=share God, I am on that train with him- could not be more pleased. Yup, I love...

The song invokes alcoholism, failed seduction, moving through public space (perhaps as a performer) in a state of inner disarray...all themes you'd expect from EC in this era, but again, while the various couplets and lines are among his best, the picture as a whole is blurry This is exacerbated by...

I was just thinking about Bruce the other day, and wrote a little post on my blog about one of my favorite BT tunes:
http://kevinpauldavis.blogspot.com/2012 ... human.html

I think "Punch the Clock" is great through "Shipbuilding," dies off for a while, and then recovers at "Pills and Soap." "The Element Within Her" was a surprise highlight of the Spinning Songbook show I saw last year. And I've always loved "The Greatest Th...

I wish , indeed, that I could truly warm up to IB. But something about it has always left me cold despite enormous love for some of its key tracks ('Almost Blue,' 'Man out of Time' and especially 'Beyond Belief,' which really is). It may be that my CD suffers from the bad sound of being the first-g...

1. This Year's Model
2. Get Happy
3. North
4. King of America
5. National Ransom
6. All This Useless Beauty
7. Imperial Bedroom
8. Brutal Youth
9. Blood and Chocolate
10. Mighty Like a Rose

Don't know how many Brad Mehldau fans lurk around these parts, but he's one of my favorite jazz pianists working today, and his forthcoming album is to feature a cover of "Baby Plays Around." He's been playing it live for a number of years and it's lovely. http://www.nonesuch.com/journal/b...

I could never wrap my brain around The Smiths, either. Maybe I just missed my window.

Jason Mraz is insufferable.

I think my favorite will always be the one that hooked me: "Episode of Blonde."

Man, I love this song.

I'm surprised neither of you mentioned "Black Cowboys"--I'd rate that among the best songs Springsteen has written. This is a tune I'd recommend to any fan of Springsteen's D&D material. It's an outtake from his "Ghost of Tom Joad" album, which is an extremely uneven record t...

Haunts of Ancient Peace
Fair Play
For Mr. Thomas
Madame Joy
Madame George
Jackie Wilson Said
Be Thou My Vision
Cleaning Windows
Who Was That Masked Man?
The Street Only Knew Your Name (Philosopher's Stone version)

Okay, can't resist. 1. Radio Sweetheart 2. Living in Paradise 3. Oliver's Army 4. Accidents Will Happen 5. New Lace Sleeves 6. The Long Honeymoon 7. Man Out of Time 8. Almost Blue 9. Our Little Angel 10. American Without Tears 11. Battered Old Bird 12. Tokyo Storm Warning 13. Couldn't Call It Unexpe...

Original text:

"Pump it up Until you can feel it"

...10 translations later Bing gives us:

"Aubontil, maybe you feel pumped"