Stellar review from Rollling Stone's Christgau:
Back when he was a young geek storming pop through punk, who would have thought Elvis Costello's singing would end up more distinguished than his word-slinging? As his high baritone matured, however, its nasal angst gained technical command and emotional gravity, till eventually it could swallow a string quartet, an avant-jazz combo, a symphony orchestra -- jeez, even Bacharach-David. So this meeting with the great Sixties and Seventies New Orleans hitmaker is more than its Katrina angle. It's one collaboration in a series, timed just right.
The Allen Toussaint oldies Costello covers avoid the overfamiliar, and his delivery has a way of adding a post-disaster historical context to Toussaint's intended meaning -- not just with socially conscious material like "On Your Way Down" and "Freedom for the Stallion" ("They've made money, God") but with love songs such as "Nearer to You" (where the "you" could be his city) or "Tears, Tears and More Tears" (with its lost, well-remembered "walk in the park"). Although Elvis' title tune and the four co-written new songs are less winning, "Broken Promise Land" bites the hand that doesn't feed it with sarcastic gusto, and "International Echo" captures and holds the joy both men take in the record-making process it portrays. Costello's Imposters negotiate Toussaint's tricky rhythms jauntily enough, and the Crescent City Horns add warming coloration. But it's the master's steady, rollicking piano that elevates the music -- and keeps the ever-elusive Costello honest.
ROBERT CHRISTGAU
(Posted: May, 26 2006)
River in Reverse discussion
-
And No Coffee Table
- Posts: 3533
- Joined: Thu Aug 21, 2003 2:57 pm
-
charliestumpy
- Posts: 710
- Joined: Thu Jan 06, 2005 7:33 am
iTunes
Ta for tip - until kind person let me hear Japanese-only bonus track TGL I have been checking iTunes daily 'just in case'.
On my computers/browsers the 'Where is the love' does not show on Elvis Costello shop main page until I looked on next page where I saw/bought it - thanks.
On my computers/browsers the 'Where is the love' does not show on Elvis Costello shop main page until I looked on next page where I saw/bought it - thanks.
http://www.nashvillecitypaper.com/index ... s_id=50206
Nashville City Paper, TN
Costello, Toussaint team up on new release
By Ron Wynn, rwynn@nashvillecitypaper.com
June 05, 2006
Hit of the week
The personal and professional friendship between legendary New Orleans pianist/composer Allen Toussaint and famed rock musician Elvis Costello dates back to the ‘80s. Toussaint produced Costello’s version of Yoko Ono’s “Walking On Thin Iceâ€
Nashville City Paper, TN
Costello, Toussaint team up on new release
By Ron Wynn, rwynn@nashvillecitypaper.com
June 05, 2006
Hit of the week
The personal and professional friendship between legendary New Orleans pianist/composer Allen Toussaint and famed rock musician Elvis Costello dates back to the ‘80s. Toussaint produced Costello’s version of Yoko Ono’s “Walking On Thin Iceâ€
There's a song that's on the bonus DVD that they definitely shoulda had on the album instead of one of the lesser tracks! It's the one Allen sings - can't remember the title now.
Also, Allen shoulda been allowed half the singing duties - Elvis is a bit egotisitical to take all the vocals bar one song!
Also, Allen shoulda been allowed half the singing duties - Elvis is a bit egotisitical to take all the vocals bar one song!
-
verbal gymnastics
- Posts: 13657
- Joined: Wed Jun 11, 2003 6:44 am
- Location: Magic lantern land
And who do you think would win if the choice was down to those two? My not-too-obvious-a-guess would be for Mr Springsteen. Who I like by the way.pophead2k wrote:I don't know when the Grammys are, or that they even matter, but I think this album (and Springsteen's) will be favorites when the time comes.
Who’s this kid with his mumbo jumbo?
'What do you want the girl to do 'There's a song that's on the bonus DVD that they definitely shoulda had on the album instead of one of the lesser tracks! It's the one Allen sings - can't remember the title now.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/05/arts/ ... yt&emc=rss
THE NEW YORK TIMES
June 5, 2006
Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint
"The River in Reverse"
(Verve Forecast)
The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina brought sorrow, shock, anger, nostalgia and a cultural tenacity disguised as party spirit to New Orleans. They all run together on "The River in Reverse."
After the storm, Elvis Costello shared benefit-concert stages with Allen Toussaint, the sage New Orleans songwriter, pianist and singer who had worked with Mr. Costello in 1983 and in 1989. Late in 2005, they collaborated for two weeks in Hollywood and New Orleans to record this album: writing together, remaking songs by Mr. Toussaint and meshing Mr. Costello's band, the Imposters, with Mr. Toussaint's Crescent City Horns.
It's Mr. Costello's project. He sings nearly all the lead vocals and provides the new lyrics. But Mr. Toussaint's florid yet precise New Orleans piano, the way he can make a horn section laugh or sigh, and the stubborn idealism and canny humor of his songs temper Mr. Costello's convoluted earnestness. True to New Orleans attitude, the album starts out accusatory and ends up having a good time.
New songs on "The River in Reverse," are filled with images of destruction and loss, but they are parables and personalized hymns, not chronicles. In the title song, a disaster — "They're chasing shadows in the dark and counting widows" — leads to bitter reflections on 21st-century America. For "Ascension Day," Mr. Toussaint transposed a rollicking New Orleans standard, Professor Longhair's "Tipitina," into a pensive minor key, while Mr. Costello's words contemplate desolation and a chance to return. In "Broken Promise Land," Mr. Toussaint's pumping horns answered by Mr. Costello's shivering tremolo guitar make the anger start to strut. And the album doesn't stay downhearted. Mr. Costello and Mr. Toussaint also wrote songs rooted in New Orleans R&B and jovially celebrating music, "International Echo" and "Six-Fingered Man."
Still, Mr. Toussaint's old songs are a hard act to follow. There are devoted love songs like "Nearer to You," and philosophical songs written in other troubled times — "Who's Gonna Help Brother Get Further?" (with Mr. Toussaint singing lead) and "Freedom for the Stallion" — that hit home again. The New Orleans transmutation of trouble into revelry is most complete in "Tears, Tears and More Tears." Its mambo-funk beat is utterly danceable, though it's topped with jagged splinters of piano. And now, what had been a lonely lover's plaint becomes a plea for all the city's exiles: "Baby won't you please come home?" JON PARELES
http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/news ... 50&k=97062
Elvis Costello, left, and Allen Toussaint first recorded together in 1983. Their latest collaboration developed after Toussaint's displacement from his hometown of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
Photograph by : Peter J. Thompson, National Post
Mutual attraction
While not a member of Elvis Costello's most famous backing band, pianist Allen Toussaint has a long history with the U.K. singer, including a new album inspired by Hurricane Katrina
Mike Doherty
National Post
Monday, June 05, 2006
Allen Toussaint claims to have always written "in the moment," but in the wake of Hurricane Katrina the work of one of New Orleans' greatest living musicians has taken on an added resonance. With the help of an unlikely champion, Toussaint's music -- and its message -- are re-emerging just as the music scene in his hometown is bravely making a comeback.
The River in Reverse -- a collaboration with Elvis Costello, the one-time leader of English new-wave band The Attractions -- is the first album to bear Toussaint's name in nine years. For most of his 50-year career, the pianist and sometime singer has operated behind the scenes, composing and arranging songs that have become hits for artists as diverse as Lee Dorsey, Three Dog Night, Patti Labelle and Glen Campbell, who made his Southern Nights a smash. Given the sheer number of people both Toussaint and Costello have worked with, it was perhaps inevitable their paths would cross.
Sitting in a Yorkville restaurant during a promotional stop in Toronto, the dapperly-attired Costello, whose plastic-rimmed shades are the only visible reminder of a career flouting convention, recalls the first time he met Toussaint and recorded in New Orleans, in 1983.
"For outsiders," he says, "it's quite hard to break into that town. I used to get my agent to book me in there, because I'd be pretty confident that the concert would be cancelled for lack of ticket sales and then I'd have a couple of days off. On this occasion, I got to record with Allen."
The experience stuck with him, even if the result (a cover of Yoko Ono's Walking on Thin Ice) vanished quickly into his cluttered back catalogue; the two would work together again in 1988 for a song on Costello's album Spike, and they found themselves sharing stages for Katrina benefit concerts last year. Costello, ever the musical explorer, approached the pianist to do an "Allen Toussaint songbook."
"I knew there were a number of songs that I felt strongly about," he says, "several of which I thought there was no finer moment than now for them to be heard."
He picked out early '70s numbers such as Who's Gonna Help Brother Get Further? and Freedom for the Stallion, both of which deal with race relations in America. Costello was spending a lot of time in New York City, and since Toussaint was living there in exile after his New Orleans home was flooded, the pair began writing together, inspired by current events. "I never had looked for as much as what happened in this collaboration," explains the serene (and equally dapper) Toussaint. "Usually an artist is sent to me, in a way 'nekkid,' and I'm to take it from there. That's a totally different element from what happened here. To have this much real collaboration, I must say, was a luxury and a blessing."
Together, the two penned five songs, which evoke sorrow, anger, determination, jubilation and human weakness. Perhaps the most memorable new composition is The Sharpest Thorn, which sounds like a drunken but rueful waltz. "Although we know we must repent," sings Costello, "We hit the scene and look for sins / That haven't even been invented."
Says Costello, "It's a simple tale about somebody who goes out, full of pride, to join a parade, and comes home at the end of the day with confetti in his hair and his pocket's been picked, and [he's] a little wiser and humbler."
Other songs also evoke evil and judgment; Costello attributes this, half-jokingly, to his and Toussaint's Catholic upbringing. In Broken Promise Land, he sings, "There's a place where infidels and showgirls meet." Costello sees this lyric as a key to this aspect of the album. "There are some people who will tell you that what happened to New Orleans was some sort of divine retribution, because it's a sinful place -- where's the charity in that remark?"
Of course, there was a time where the last thing anyone would expect from Costello was charity. In 1977, he told the New Music Express that all he knew of emotions were "revenge and guilt."
"I'd drunk 14 Pernods when I said that," recalls Costello rather sheepishly. "There was a degree of bravado in that remark. I might have been trying to clear a little space around myself to get on with my job by saying something that would be like, 'Wow! Get over that!' I realized after a few years that you couldn't base your career on one view of music or one narrow set of emotions."
The River in Reverse was recorded partially in New Orleans last December, just as the city was slowly opening back up for business. It features both Costello's band, The Imposters, and Toussaint's Crescent City Horns, and ends with a succession of upbeat songs reflecting how Toussaint sees the post-Katrina period as one of new opportunities -- this collaboration being one of them.
"There's loads of great things coming out of Katrina," he affirms. "The small things I see, moving slowly but very surely, will become more obvious and glorious as time goes on. It's going to take a while, because New Orleans always is a bit slower than the rest of America, even in tragedy. That's one of the things that we live with, and which comes from the soul and the strut and the syncopation of the music, as well as the shrimp po' boy and gumbo."
If the reception to the duo's performance at this year's New Orleans Jazz Festival was any indication, many people in the city share his optimism.
"The crowd was just wonderful," enthuses Toussaint. "It was more than I've ever seen at one time. I was expecting the best, because I always do, and the best came and said, 'Here I am.' "
- The River in Reverse is in stores tomorrow.
© National Post 2006
Elvis Costello, left, and Allen Toussaint first recorded together in 1983. Their latest collaboration developed after Toussaint's displacement from his hometown of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
Photograph by : Peter J. Thompson, National Post
Mutual attraction
While not a member of Elvis Costello's most famous backing band, pianist Allen Toussaint has a long history with the U.K. singer, including a new album inspired by Hurricane Katrina
Mike Doherty
National Post
Monday, June 05, 2006
Allen Toussaint claims to have always written "in the moment," but in the wake of Hurricane Katrina the work of one of New Orleans' greatest living musicians has taken on an added resonance. With the help of an unlikely champion, Toussaint's music -- and its message -- are re-emerging just as the music scene in his hometown is bravely making a comeback.
The River in Reverse -- a collaboration with Elvis Costello, the one-time leader of English new-wave band The Attractions -- is the first album to bear Toussaint's name in nine years. For most of his 50-year career, the pianist and sometime singer has operated behind the scenes, composing and arranging songs that have become hits for artists as diverse as Lee Dorsey, Three Dog Night, Patti Labelle and Glen Campbell, who made his Southern Nights a smash. Given the sheer number of people both Toussaint and Costello have worked with, it was perhaps inevitable their paths would cross.
Sitting in a Yorkville restaurant during a promotional stop in Toronto, the dapperly-attired Costello, whose plastic-rimmed shades are the only visible reminder of a career flouting convention, recalls the first time he met Toussaint and recorded in New Orleans, in 1983.
"For outsiders," he says, "it's quite hard to break into that town. I used to get my agent to book me in there, because I'd be pretty confident that the concert would be cancelled for lack of ticket sales and then I'd have a couple of days off. On this occasion, I got to record with Allen."
The experience stuck with him, even if the result (a cover of Yoko Ono's Walking on Thin Ice) vanished quickly into his cluttered back catalogue; the two would work together again in 1988 for a song on Costello's album Spike, and they found themselves sharing stages for Katrina benefit concerts last year. Costello, ever the musical explorer, approached the pianist to do an "Allen Toussaint songbook."
"I knew there were a number of songs that I felt strongly about," he says, "several of which I thought there was no finer moment than now for them to be heard."
He picked out early '70s numbers such as Who's Gonna Help Brother Get Further? and Freedom for the Stallion, both of which deal with race relations in America. Costello was spending a lot of time in New York City, and since Toussaint was living there in exile after his New Orleans home was flooded, the pair began writing together, inspired by current events. "I never had looked for as much as what happened in this collaboration," explains the serene (and equally dapper) Toussaint. "Usually an artist is sent to me, in a way 'nekkid,' and I'm to take it from there. That's a totally different element from what happened here. To have this much real collaboration, I must say, was a luxury and a blessing."
Together, the two penned five songs, which evoke sorrow, anger, determination, jubilation and human weakness. Perhaps the most memorable new composition is The Sharpest Thorn, which sounds like a drunken but rueful waltz. "Although we know we must repent," sings Costello, "We hit the scene and look for sins / That haven't even been invented."
Says Costello, "It's a simple tale about somebody who goes out, full of pride, to join a parade, and comes home at the end of the day with confetti in his hair and his pocket's been picked, and [he's] a little wiser and humbler."
Other songs also evoke evil and judgment; Costello attributes this, half-jokingly, to his and Toussaint's Catholic upbringing. In Broken Promise Land, he sings, "There's a place where infidels and showgirls meet." Costello sees this lyric as a key to this aspect of the album. "There are some people who will tell you that what happened to New Orleans was some sort of divine retribution, because it's a sinful place -- where's the charity in that remark?"
Of course, there was a time where the last thing anyone would expect from Costello was charity. In 1977, he told the New Music Express that all he knew of emotions were "revenge and guilt."
"I'd drunk 14 Pernods when I said that," recalls Costello rather sheepishly. "There was a degree of bravado in that remark. I might have been trying to clear a little space around myself to get on with my job by saying something that would be like, 'Wow! Get over that!' I realized after a few years that you couldn't base your career on one view of music or one narrow set of emotions."
The River in Reverse was recorded partially in New Orleans last December, just as the city was slowly opening back up for business. It features both Costello's band, The Imposters, and Toussaint's Crescent City Horns, and ends with a succession of upbeat songs reflecting how Toussaint sees the post-Katrina period as one of new opportunities -- this collaboration being one of them.
"There's loads of great things coming out of Katrina," he affirms. "The small things I see, moving slowly but very surely, will become more obvious and glorious as time goes on. It's going to take a while, because New Orleans always is a bit slower than the rest of America, even in tragedy. That's one of the things that we live with, and which comes from the soul and the strut and the syncopation of the music, as well as the shrimp po' boy and gumbo."
If the reception to the duo's performance at this year's New Orleans Jazz Festival was any indication, many people in the city share his optimism.
"The crowd was just wonderful," enthuses Toussaint. "It was more than I've ever seen at one time. I was expecting the best, because I always do, and the best came and said, 'Here I am.' "
- The River in Reverse is in stores tomorrow.
© National Post 2006
-
bambooneedle
- Posts: 4533
- Joined: Tue Jun 03, 2003 4:02 pm
- Location: a few thousand miles south east of Zanzibar
http://blogs.usatoday.com/listenup/2006 ... revie.html
USA TODAY
June 05, 2006
Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint, The River in Reverse (* * *)
Elvis Costello, a serial collaborator who has flitted from jazz to string quartets to Burt Bacharach, has now sidled up to Allen Toussaint. And while the match benefits the underappreciated New Orleans songwriter/producer in terms of exposure, it’s the pop hipster who profits creatively from the odd coupling. The Katrina-themed set, recorded at Piety Street Studios in New Orleans last December with The Imposters and the Crescent City Horns, unveils new songs and retrofits such lesser-known vintage Toussaint tunes as Tears, Tears and More Tears. Toussaint is the album’s heart and soul, a saving grace, since Costello has little natural old-school R&B spunk. Costello’s title track feels stiff, and despite the deliciously spiteful lyrics, his Broken Promise Land is a jumbled composition (salvaged by Toussaint’s horn charts). Their labor of love has warmth and emotional weight, but it’s Toussaint’s creamy vocals, funkified piano and R&B sensibilities, particularly in Gonna Help Brother Get Further, that makes this River run deep. — Edna Gundersen
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/pop/27280 ... source=rss
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Tuesday, June 6, 2006
This Week's Hot CD: Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint's 'The River in Reverse'
The River in Reverse (Verve)
The perfect response to the call of Elvis Costello's plain singing is Allen Toussaint's sophisticated piano style.
The emotions within the vocals are echoed with unobtrusive fills, nearly fierce chords and a lyricism seldom found in rock and pop. While Costello is an adventurous gadabout, Toussaint remains one of the geniuses behind the R&B and funk that rose out of New Orleans from the '50s through the '70s. Like Costello, he is a poet with an ear for good hooks. Toussaint's "On Your Way Down" and Costello's "Broken Promise Land" last long after listening to them.
Each contributes their own originals, and several were written together. While the post-Katrina blight is inherent in some tunes, the songwriters' broad palettes set to timeless music create universality. Themes of politics, social ills and romance come together on "The River in Reverse," making it a brilliant set. (Roberta Penn)
GRADE: A
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.ew.com/ew/article/review/mus ... 0_,00.html
Entertainment Weekly
The River in Reverse
Elvis Costello, Allen Toussaint
Reviewed by David Browne
You know the drill by now: Another year, another chance for Elvis Costello to dabble in a genre that doesn't come naturally to him. I know that sounds cruel; after all, we should be encouraging musicians to stretch out. But in light of his derivative classical pieces and torturous jazz experiments, you have to wonder if anyone around Costello has the guts to tell him his ideas aren't always worth preserving on record.
The River in Reverse, Costello's collaboration with revered New Orleans songwriter-producer-pianist Allen Toussaint, could have fallen victim to some of the same problems as his previous side projects: How easily would the Big Easy come to him? But Costello's longtime love of R&B, dating back at least to the Stax-tinged Get Happy!!, saves it from self-indulgence (and the vocal strain heard on some of his other forays). The album is roughly divided between covers of old Toussaint songs and new tunes written by both men, and Costello sounds at home in Toussaint's steady-rolling supper-club funk. The men have worked together on and off since the '80s (that is Toussaint's piano playing on Spike's ''Deep Dark Truthful Mirror''), and their camaraderie is evident in the record's confident tone.
But what truly holds the album together is the ghost of Katrina hovering over it. In its original incarnation, Toussaint's 1970 song ''On Your Way Down'' was a fairly mild put-down; in Costello's hands, it becomes a scalding tongue-lashing, clearly aimed at those responsible for the disaster. With its images of the impoverished and homeless, a buoyant remake of the 1970 tune ''Who's Gonna Help Brother Get Further?'' (the only track sung alone by the smooth-voiced Toussaint) feels like it could have been written last August. The same goes for a charged, Attractions-reminiscent run-through of the nearly 40-year-old ''Tears, Tears, and More Tears.''
Costello can still oversing and overwrite: The title track's idiosyncratic melody distracts from his anguished, elegiac lyrics, and he's not a natural soul belter. But even when he threatens to turn baroque, as in ''Broken Promise Land,'' Toussaint rescues him. That newly penned collaboration, with its obvious flood references (''How high shall we build this wall?''), has more musical fits and starts than a jammed highway, but Toussaint's sublime horn arrangement uplifts it. Moments like those are also reminders of what New Orleans once gave to music, and hopefully will again. Grade: B+
(Posted:06/02/06)
USA TODAY
June 05, 2006
Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint, The River in Reverse (* * *)
Elvis Costello, a serial collaborator who has flitted from jazz to string quartets to Burt Bacharach, has now sidled up to Allen Toussaint. And while the match benefits the underappreciated New Orleans songwriter/producer in terms of exposure, it’s the pop hipster who profits creatively from the odd coupling. The Katrina-themed set, recorded at Piety Street Studios in New Orleans last December with The Imposters and the Crescent City Horns, unveils new songs and retrofits such lesser-known vintage Toussaint tunes as Tears, Tears and More Tears. Toussaint is the album’s heart and soul, a saving grace, since Costello has little natural old-school R&B spunk. Costello’s title track feels stiff, and despite the deliciously spiteful lyrics, his Broken Promise Land is a jumbled composition (salvaged by Toussaint’s horn charts). Their labor of love has warmth and emotional weight, but it’s Toussaint’s creamy vocals, funkified piano and R&B sensibilities, particularly in Gonna Help Brother Get Further, that makes this River run deep. — Edna Gundersen
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/pop/27280 ... source=rss
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Tuesday, June 6, 2006
This Week's Hot CD: Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint's 'The River in Reverse'
The River in Reverse (Verve)
The perfect response to the call of Elvis Costello's plain singing is Allen Toussaint's sophisticated piano style.
The emotions within the vocals are echoed with unobtrusive fills, nearly fierce chords and a lyricism seldom found in rock and pop. While Costello is an adventurous gadabout, Toussaint remains one of the geniuses behind the R&B and funk that rose out of New Orleans from the '50s through the '70s. Like Costello, he is a poet with an ear for good hooks. Toussaint's "On Your Way Down" and Costello's "Broken Promise Land" last long after listening to them.
Each contributes their own originals, and several were written together. While the post-Katrina blight is inherent in some tunes, the songwriters' broad palettes set to timeless music create universality. Themes of politics, social ills and romance come together on "The River in Reverse," making it a brilliant set. (Roberta Penn)
GRADE: A
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.ew.com/ew/article/review/mus ... 0_,00.html
Entertainment Weekly
The River in Reverse
Elvis Costello, Allen Toussaint
Reviewed by David Browne
You know the drill by now: Another year, another chance for Elvis Costello to dabble in a genre that doesn't come naturally to him. I know that sounds cruel; after all, we should be encouraging musicians to stretch out. But in light of his derivative classical pieces and torturous jazz experiments, you have to wonder if anyone around Costello has the guts to tell him his ideas aren't always worth preserving on record.
The River in Reverse, Costello's collaboration with revered New Orleans songwriter-producer-pianist Allen Toussaint, could have fallen victim to some of the same problems as his previous side projects: How easily would the Big Easy come to him? But Costello's longtime love of R&B, dating back at least to the Stax-tinged Get Happy!!, saves it from self-indulgence (and the vocal strain heard on some of his other forays). The album is roughly divided between covers of old Toussaint songs and new tunes written by both men, and Costello sounds at home in Toussaint's steady-rolling supper-club funk. The men have worked together on and off since the '80s (that is Toussaint's piano playing on Spike's ''Deep Dark Truthful Mirror''), and their camaraderie is evident in the record's confident tone.
But what truly holds the album together is the ghost of Katrina hovering over it. In its original incarnation, Toussaint's 1970 song ''On Your Way Down'' was a fairly mild put-down; in Costello's hands, it becomes a scalding tongue-lashing, clearly aimed at those responsible for the disaster. With its images of the impoverished and homeless, a buoyant remake of the 1970 tune ''Who's Gonna Help Brother Get Further?'' (the only track sung alone by the smooth-voiced Toussaint) feels like it could have been written last August. The same goes for a charged, Attractions-reminiscent run-through of the nearly 40-year-old ''Tears, Tears, and More Tears.''
Costello can still oversing and overwrite: The title track's idiosyncratic melody distracts from his anguished, elegiac lyrics, and he's not a natural soul belter. But even when he threatens to turn baroque, as in ''Broken Promise Land,'' Toussaint rescues him. That newly penned collaboration, with its obvious flood references (''How high shall we build this wall?''), has more musical fits and starts than a jammed highway, but Toussaint's sublime horn arrangement uplifts it. Moments like those are also reminders of what New Orleans once gave to music, and hopefully will again. Grade: B+
(Posted:06/02/06)
http://www.denverpost.com/ci_3902163?source=rss
The Denver Post
June 6 '06
Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint
"The River in Reverse"
With Costello and Toussaint sharing the songwriting and playing, this album is a shoo-in as a late-career bloom for both music legends.
Costello has waxed prolific lately, but this subtle work, laden with B3 organ, is his most significant project since 2002's "When I Was Cruel." Toussaint, who penned R&B hits "Working in a Coalmine," "Get Out of My Life Woman" and "Everything I Do Gonh Be Funky (From Now On)," has performed for five decades, going back to his days with producer Dave Bartholomew laying down tracks at recording sessions for Fats Domino.
Their collaborations are special, including "Broken Promise Land," an accomplishment as soulful as it is playful, and "The Sharpest Thorn." But the most moving track on this sweeping, gospel-influenced disc is Toussaint's "All These Things," a lush homage to the music of his '60s heyday. |Ricardo Baca
The Denver Post
June 6 '06
Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint
"The River in Reverse"
With Costello and Toussaint sharing the songwriting and playing, this album is a shoo-in as a late-career bloom for both music legends.
Costello has waxed prolific lately, but this subtle work, laden with B3 organ, is his most significant project since 2002's "When I Was Cruel." Toussaint, who penned R&B hits "Working in a Coalmine," "Get Out of My Life Woman" and "Everything I Do Gonh Be Funky (From Now On)," has performed for five decades, going back to his days with producer Dave Bartholomew laying down tracks at recording sessions for Fats Domino.
Their collaborations are special, including "Broken Promise Land," an accomplishment as soulful as it is playful, and "The Sharpest Thorn." But the most moving track on this sweeping, gospel-influenced disc is Toussaint's "All These Things," a lush homage to the music of his '60s heyday. |Ricardo Baca
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/review/s ... 37,00.html
Sunday June 4, 2006
The Observer ( London)
Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint
The River in Reverse (Universal)
Angry codger Costello and New Orleansveteran Toussaint decided to work together when they met at a benefit gig for the latter's recovering city. The result, recorded there late last year, is this soulful, rocking baker's dozen with backing from the Imposters and a kicking horn section. Toussaint is an amazing pianist and you wish he was more prominent here; only on 'Ascension Day' is he alone to back Costello and the combination is gorgeous. The title track and 'Broken Promise Land' barely conceal barbs for the US government and its response to Hurricane Katrina.
Molloy Woodcraft
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/entert ... _nightlife
Sun, Jun. 04, 2006
Philadelphia Inquirer
Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint
The River in Reverse
(Verve Forecast ***1/2)
It's tiring just trying to keep up with everything Elvis Costello's up to - imagine how exhausting it must be to be him. Of all the bespectacled Brit's various and sundry projects, however, The River in Reverse is one worth homing in on. It pools the resources of the prolific songwriter with the great Allen Toussaint, elegant New Orleans songwriter, piano man and producer, author of "Workin' in a Coal Mine," among many others. Recorded in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and produced by Joe Henry, it's made up of six new songs and seven lesser-known Toussaint gems. The elder songsmith's compositions such as "Tears, Tears and More Tears" and "Who's Gonna Help Brother Get Further" sound freshly relevant, and new Costello lyrics like those to the title cut and "Broken Promise Land" are fittingly soulful and indignant. A mutually beneficial collaboration, if there ever was one.
- Dan DeLuca
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.vh1.com/news/articles/153353 ... tory.jhtml
Vh1, Mon, 05 Jun 2006
1 Week, 10 Songs: Editors' Picks
Every week our music writers choose 10 must-hear, must-have tracks. Keep coming back to hear which tunes we're hot about.
by Jim Macnie & C. Bottomley
(extract)
Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint "Ascension Day" The River In Reverse
The masterful New Orleans pianist reworks the classic "Tipitina" melody in a minor key as EC emotes about an eerie situation where "not a soul was stirring and not a bird was singing" - you know, like big blast of evil was about sweep through town. It did, of course. And here at the start of a new hurricane season, ghosts haunt their families, survivors shake their fists at the skies, and hollow apologies fall on enraged ears. The chilling voice and piano affair is the most touching track on Costello and Toussaint's Katrina connection.
Sunday June 4, 2006
The Observer ( London)
Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint
The River in Reverse (Universal)
Angry codger Costello and New Orleansveteran Toussaint decided to work together when they met at a benefit gig for the latter's recovering city. The result, recorded there late last year, is this soulful, rocking baker's dozen with backing from the Imposters and a kicking horn section. Toussaint is an amazing pianist and you wish he was more prominent here; only on 'Ascension Day' is he alone to back Costello and the combination is gorgeous. The title track and 'Broken Promise Land' barely conceal barbs for the US government and its response to Hurricane Katrina.
Molloy Woodcraft
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/entert ... _nightlife
Sun, Jun. 04, 2006
Philadelphia Inquirer
Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint
The River in Reverse
(Verve Forecast ***1/2)
It's tiring just trying to keep up with everything Elvis Costello's up to - imagine how exhausting it must be to be him. Of all the bespectacled Brit's various and sundry projects, however, The River in Reverse is one worth homing in on. It pools the resources of the prolific songwriter with the great Allen Toussaint, elegant New Orleans songwriter, piano man and producer, author of "Workin' in a Coal Mine," among many others. Recorded in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and produced by Joe Henry, it's made up of six new songs and seven lesser-known Toussaint gems. The elder songsmith's compositions such as "Tears, Tears and More Tears" and "Who's Gonna Help Brother Get Further" sound freshly relevant, and new Costello lyrics like those to the title cut and "Broken Promise Land" are fittingly soulful and indignant. A mutually beneficial collaboration, if there ever was one.
- Dan DeLuca
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.vh1.com/news/articles/153353 ... tory.jhtml
Vh1, Mon, 05 Jun 2006
1 Week, 10 Songs: Editors' Picks
Every week our music writers choose 10 must-hear, must-have tracks. Keep coming back to hear which tunes we're hot about.
by Jim Macnie & C. Bottomley
(extract)
Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint "Ascension Day" The River In Reverse
The masterful New Orleans pianist reworks the classic "Tipitina" melody in a minor key as EC emotes about an eerie situation where "not a soul was stirring and not a bird was singing" - you know, like big blast of evil was about sweep through town. It did, of course. And here at the start of a new hurricane season, ghosts haunt their families, survivors shake their fists at the skies, and hollow apologies fall on enraged ears. The chilling voice and piano affair is the most touching track on Costello and Toussaint's Katrina connection.
-
sweetest punch
- Posts: 5997
- Joined: Sat Apr 03, 2004 5:49 am
- Location: Belgium
Still doing well.John wrote:Tears, tears and more tears is storming up this airplay chart. Now at 18.
http://www.fmqb.com/Article.asp?id=16700
Since you put me down, it seems i've been very gloomy. You may laugh but pretty girls look right through me.
-
Who Shot Sam?
- Posts: 7097
- Joined: Tue Jun 03, 2003 5:05 pm
- Location: Somewhere in the distance
- Contact:
Just received mine today - importing to iTunes at the moment. Will have to give it a few listens.BlueChair wrote:So what do my fellow North Americans think now that it's out here? I am debating picking up the proper release for the sake of the DVD, but am still spinning my promo copy for now.
Mother, Moose-Hunter, Maverick
http://www.stern.de/unterhaltung/musik/ ... 62430.html
Costello
"Sie ist bärenstark, wenn sie wütend ist"
Elvis Costello hat nicht nur eine vitale Musikerin als Frau, er hat schon mit allen Größen der Branche zusammengearbeitet. Gerade hat er ein neues Album mit Allen Toussaint eingespielt. Im stern.de-Interview spricht über sein Engagement in New Orleans nach Katrina, Diana Krall und Fußball.
Musikalische Grenzen gibt es für Elvis Costello nicht. Der Brite brilliert in etlichen Stilrichtungen und hat mit Größen wie Paul McCartney, Johnny Cash oder Burt Bacharach zusammengearbeitet. Nun gesellt sich eine weitere Legende dazu: Mit dem Rhythm & Blues-Songwriter Allen Touissant hat Costello das Album "The River In Reverse" (Universal) eingespielt. Die Klassiker und Eigenkompositionen, gesungen von Costello, arrangiert und begleitet von Toussaints Band, pendeln zwischen 60’s R’n’B und groovigem Delta-Soul und sind den Opfern von Wirbelsturm Katrina gewidmet.
.
Herr Costello, Sie haben eine Ballettsuite komponiert, spielen mit renommierten Orchestern und treten mit ihrer Rockband auf. Gibt es irgendetwas, das Sie nicht können?
Oh ja, ich bin ein verdammt schlechter Tänzer. Höchstens bei Hochzeiten und unter Androhung von Gewalt gehe ich aufs Parkett. Aber im Ernst: Ich bin nicht Beethoven und bekomme viel Unterstützung beim komponieren von klassischem Material. "Il Sogno" wurde für eine Ballettaufführung von Shakespeares "Sommernachtstraum" entworfen. Sowohl das London Symphony Orchestra und Dirigent Michael Tilson Thomas hatten sehr viel Einsicht mit mir. Ansonsten gibt es so viele interessante musikalische Richtungen, da bleibt für mich noch jede Menge zu entdecken.
Das neue Album "The River In Reverse" haben Sie zusammen mit Allen Toussiant in New Orleans aufgenommen. Wie war das Gefühl als eine der ersten nach der Flutkatastrophe dort zu arbeiten?
Nach der schrecklichen Flutkatastrophe musste ich erstmal wissen, ob Allen etwas zugestoßen ist: Glücklicherweise befand er sich in New York, hatte aber sein Haus in New Orleans verloren. Am Anfang war nicht daran zu denken, dort zu arbeiten. Das ging mit den ausgebuchten Hotels los, in denen nur obdachlose Menschen untergebracht waren. Immerhin veränderte sich die Situation beim Wiederaufbau relativ rasch. Im Dezember konnten wir dann - nachdem wir schon in Los Angeles einen Teil eingespielt hatten - endlich für eine Woche in New Orleans aufnehmen. Ein sehr emotionaler Moment, denn Allen sah zum ersten Mal seine zerstörte Heimat.
Wie kam es überhaupt zur Zusammenarbeit mit Allen Toussaint, dessen Songs unter anderen von Bo Diddley gecovert wurden?
Ich kannte seine Songs wie "Fortune Teller" schon als junger Musiker, ohne allerdings zu wissen, dass er der Komponist war. Allen Toussaint hat als Songwriter und Produzent entscheidend den R&B-Sound der 60er und 70er Jahre geprägt und wurde von den Neville Brothers und Paul Simon für ihre erfolgreichsten Alben verpflichtet. Außerdem hat er die "Meters" produziert und immer so einen eigenen, unverwechselbaren Sound kreiert. Ich war einfach ein Fan. Auf meinem Album "Spike" von 1989 habe ich dann mit ihm zusammen an dem Song "Deep Dark Truthful Mirror" gearbeitet. Der Hurrikan Katrina brachte uns 2005 wieder zusammen. Wir traten nur wenige Tage nach der Katastrophe gemeinsam auf und dabei reifte ganz schnell die Idee eines Albums.
Der Wiederaufbau von New Orleans ist nach einem dreiviertel Jahr immer noch nicht abgeschlossen. Denken Sie, dass die Stadt wieder zur alten Lebendigkeit findet?
Wenn man sich New Orleans jetzt anschaut, kann man nicht wirklich daran glauben. Letztlich besitzt die Stadt eine Geschichte und Kultur, die der Hurrikan teilweise weggefegt hat. Umgefallene Häuser, Müll, kaputte Autos - gerade in den ärmeren Stadtteilen sieht es aus wie in einer Geisterstadt. Es gibt aber auch viel Hoffnung, denn mehr Menschen als erwartet, kehren zurück. Leider wird kein Geld von den Behörden investiert. Und Bewohner, die tatsächlich von ihrer Versicherung Entschädigungen erhalten, bauen ihre Häuser aus Furcht vor neuen Fluten im Landesinneren auf. Die Wut auf die Verantwortlichen, aber auch die Hoffnung auf die Rückkehr der alten Vitalität, haben wir versucht musikalisch zu verarbeiten. Immerhin machen sich die Einwohner auf T-Shirts bereits lustig über den Hurrikan: Die Aufschrift "Katrina gave me a blow job I'll never forget" beweist: den bodenständigen Humor werden die Menschen hier nie verlieren.
Sie sind verheiratet mit der Jazzsängerin Diana Krall. Kritisieren sie ihre Arbeiten gegenseitig, oder ist der Hausfrieden wichtiger?
In erster Linie kritisieren wir uns selbst. Schließlich haben wir auch einen sehr unterschiedlichen musikalischen Geschmack. Deshalb wäre eine Kritik in manchen Situationen ohne jegliches Fundament. Wir unterstützen uns lieber in allen Dingen, als ständig rumzunörgeln. Vielleicht hat das auch etwas mit häuslicher Ruhe zu tun. Auf jeden Fall möchte ich mich bei einem Streit mit Diana nicht verletzen: Sie ist bärenstark, wenn sie wütend ist.
Wie verbringen zwei Musiker, die ständig auf Tour sind, die rare Freizeit?
Wichtig ist, dass wir uns nicht aus den Augen verlieren. Länger als drei Wochen sind wir kaum getrennt - diese persönliche Regel gilt für uns. Das gelingt uns ganz gut, weil wir ein gemeinsames Management haben. Auf der anderen Seite erleben Diana und ich durch die Trennungen unsere gemeinsame Zeit umso intensiver. Die verbringen wir dann mit Freunden, gutem Essen und viel Musik: Sie sehen es geht bei uns völlig unglamourös, manchmal sogar spießig zu.
Eine Frage zur Fußball-WM ist unvermeidbar. Welches Team wird Weltmeister? Und wie stehen die Chancen für England?
Ich habe mich nie so richtig für Nationalmannschaften interessiert, mein Verein ist der FC Liverpool. Bei England hasse ich besonders die nationalistischen Symbole der Fans, etwa das St. Georges Kreuz auf Fahnen. Zudem gibt es in der Fanszene zu viele rechtsgesinnte Personen. Ich bevorzuge die Romantik im Fußball. Also hoffe ich auf tolle Spiele der Außenseiter. Bei der WM 1990 gab es diesen magischen Moment mit Irland. Ich war dort in meinem Haus, und die irischen Nobodys zogen überraschend ins Viertelfinale ein. Das war eine Euphorie, die das gesamte Land erfasst hat. Und sollte Trinidad/Tobago diesmal Weltmeister werden, dann hat sich eben die Mannschaft mit dem besten Teamgeist durchgesetzt.
Das Interview führte Thomas Soltau.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Google trans -
Costello “Is bear strong you, if it is furiousâ€
Costello
"Sie ist bärenstark, wenn sie wütend ist"
Elvis Costello hat nicht nur eine vitale Musikerin als Frau, er hat schon mit allen Größen der Branche zusammengearbeitet. Gerade hat er ein neues Album mit Allen Toussaint eingespielt. Im stern.de-Interview spricht über sein Engagement in New Orleans nach Katrina, Diana Krall und Fußball.
Musikalische Grenzen gibt es für Elvis Costello nicht. Der Brite brilliert in etlichen Stilrichtungen und hat mit Größen wie Paul McCartney, Johnny Cash oder Burt Bacharach zusammengearbeitet. Nun gesellt sich eine weitere Legende dazu: Mit dem Rhythm & Blues-Songwriter Allen Touissant hat Costello das Album "The River In Reverse" (Universal) eingespielt. Die Klassiker und Eigenkompositionen, gesungen von Costello, arrangiert und begleitet von Toussaints Band, pendeln zwischen 60’s R’n’B und groovigem Delta-Soul und sind den Opfern von Wirbelsturm Katrina gewidmet.
.
Herr Costello, Sie haben eine Ballettsuite komponiert, spielen mit renommierten Orchestern und treten mit ihrer Rockband auf. Gibt es irgendetwas, das Sie nicht können?
Oh ja, ich bin ein verdammt schlechter Tänzer. Höchstens bei Hochzeiten und unter Androhung von Gewalt gehe ich aufs Parkett. Aber im Ernst: Ich bin nicht Beethoven und bekomme viel Unterstützung beim komponieren von klassischem Material. "Il Sogno" wurde für eine Ballettaufführung von Shakespeares "Sommernachtstraum" entworfen. Sowohl das London Symphony Orchestra und Dirigent Michael Tilson Thomas hatten sehr viel Einsicht mit mir. Ansonsten gibt es so viele interessante musikalische Richtungen, da bleibt für mich noch jede Menge zu entdecken.
Das neue Album "The River In Reverse" haben Sie zusammen mit Allen Toussiant in New Orleans aufgenommen. Wie war das Gefühl als eine der ersten nach der Flutkatastrophe dort zu arbeiten?
Nach der schrecklichen Flutkatastrophe musste ich erstmal wissen, ob Allen etwas zugestoßen ist: Glücklicherweise befand er sich in New York, hatte aber sein Haus in New Orleans verloren. Am Anfang war nicht daran zu denken, dort zu arbeiten. Das ging mit den ausgebuchten Hotels los, in denen nur obdachlose Menschen untergebracht waren. Immerhin veränderte sich die Situation beim Wiederaufbau relativ rasch. Im Dezember konnten wir dann - nachdem wir schon in Los Angeles einen Teil eingespielt hatten - endlich für eine Woche in New Orleans aufnehmen. Ein sehr emotionaler Moment, denn Allen sah zum ersten Mal seine zerstörte Heimat.
Wie kam es überhaupt zur Zusammenarbeit mit Allen Toussaint, dessen Songs unter anderen von Bo Diddley gecovert wurden?
Ich kannte seine Songs wie "Fortune Teller" schon als junger Musiker, ohne allerdings zu wissen, dass er der Komponist war. Allen Toussaint hat als Songwriter und Produzent entscheidend den R&B-Sound der 60er und 70er Jahre geprägt und wurde von den Neville Brothers und Paul Simon für ihre erfolgreichsten Alben verpflichtet. Außerdem hat er die "Meters" produziert und immer so einen eigenen, unverwechselbaren Sound kreiert. Ich war einfach ein Fan. Auf meinem Album "Spike" von 1989 habe ich dann mit ihm zusammen an dem Song "Deep Dark Truthful Mirror" gearbeitet. Der Hurrikan Katrina brachte uns 2005 wieder zusammen. Wir traten nur wenige Tage nach der Katastrophe gemeinsam auf und dabei reifte ganz schnell die Idee eines Albums.
Der Wiederaufbau von New Orleans ist nach einem dreiviertel Jahr immer noch nicht abgeschlossen. Denken Sie, dass die Stadt wieder zur alten Lebendigkeit findet?
Wenn man sich New Orleans jetzt anschaut, kann man nicht wirklich daran glauben. Letztlich besitzt die Stadt eine Geschichte und Kultur, die der Hurrikan teilweise weggefegt hat. Umgefallene Häuser, Müll, kaputte Autos - gerade in den ärmeren Stadtteilen sieht es aus wie in einer Geisterstadt. Es gibt aber auch viel Hoffnung, denn mehr Menschen als erwartet, kehren zurück. Leider wird kein Geld von den Behörden investiert. Und Bewohner, die tatsächlich von ihrer Versicherung Entschädigungen erhalten, bauen ihre Häuser aus Furcht vor neuen Fluten im Landesinneren auf. Die Wut auf die Verantwortlichen, aber auch die Hoffnung auf die Rückkehr der alten Vitalität, haben wir versucht musikalisch zu verarbeiten. Immerhin machen sich die Einwohner auf T-Shirts bereits lustig über den Hurrikan: Die Aufschrift "Katrina gave me a blow job I'll never forget" beweist: den bodenständigen Humor werden die Menschen hier nie verlieren.
Sie sind verheiratet mit der Jazzsängerin Diana Krall. Kritisieren sie ihre Arbeiten gegenseitig, oder ist der Hausfrieden wichtiger?
In erster Linie kritisieren wir uns selbst. Schließlich haben wir auch einen sehr unterschiedlichen musikalischen Geschmack. Deshalb wäre eine Kritik in manchen Situationen ohne jegliches Fundament. Wir unterstützen uns lieber in allen Dingen, als ständig rumzunörgeln. Vielleicht hat das auch etwas mit häuslicher Ruhe zu tun. Auf jeden Fall möchte ich mich bei einem Streit mit Diana nicht verletzen: Sie ist bärenstark, wenn sie wütend ist.
Wie verbringen zwei Musiker, die ständig auf Tour sind, die rare Freizeit?
Wichtig ist, dass wir uns nicht aus den Augen verlieren. Länger als drei Wochen sind wir kaum getrennt - diese persönliche Regel gilt für uns. Das gelingt uns ganz gut, weil wir ein gemeinsames Management haben. Auf der anderen Seite erleben Diana und ich durch die Trennungen unsere gemeinsame Zeit umso intensiver. Die verbringen wir dann mit Freunden, gutem Essen und viel Musik: Sie sehen es geht bei uns völlig unglamourös, manchmal sogar spießig zu.
Eine Frage zur Fußball-WM ist unvermeidbar. Welches Team wird Weltmeister? Und wie stehen die Chancen für England?
Ich habe mich nie so richtig für Nationalmannschaften interessiert, mein Verein ist der FC Liverpool. Bei England hasse ich besonders die nationalistischen Symbole der Fans, etwa das St. Georges Kreuz auf Fahnen. Zudem gibt es in der Fanszene zu viele rechtsgesinnte Personen. Ich bevorzuge die Romantik im Fußball. Also hoffe ich auf tolle Spiele der Außenseiter. Bei der WM 1990 gab es diesen magischen Moment mit Irland. Ich war dort in meinem Haus, und die irischen Nobodys zogen überraschend ins Viertelfinale ein. Das war eine Euphorie, die das gesamte Land erfasst hat. Und sollte Trinidad/Tobago diesmal Weltmeister werden, dann hat sich eben die Mannschaft mit dem besten Teamgeist durchgesetzt.
Das Interview führte Thomas Soltau.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Google trans -
Costello “Is bear strong you, if it is furiousâ€
After two listens, I really love this album. I love that it is not 'overtly' about Katrina, but the subtext is there. Most of the AT songs I have known in one version or another over the years of hanging out in New Orleans bars, so its great to hear the treatment our man gives 'em. A few initial thoughts:
The Sharpest Thorn: a kissing cousin to 'That Day is Done' in terms of melody and feel- a very strong number that is a little out of step with the rest of the funky flow (but not in a bad way).
The River in Reverse: I really love this arrangement and especially the horns.
Brother: I've loved this song for a long time, and I love that AT sings this one. Steve's organ playing is just unreal on this one. I'm sure he wasn't trying to consciously upstage AT's piano, but he may have done it anyway.
Broken Promise Land: Did EC finally find a place to use part of the meldoy from '25 to 12'?
I'm afraid the last two numbers on the version I have (Wonder Woman and Six Finger Man) are initially my least favorite. I wish that Ascension Day would have been sequenced last, fitting in with the EC style of the last few years of 'mellow' closers (Favorite Hour, Radio Silence, I Want to Vanish, etc.)
I saw the DVD at the Full Frame Film Festival here in Durham a few months ago. I would recommend getting it, if for no other reason than to watch EC pull his own stuff from baggage claim at the New Orleans airport and to watch Steve quietly studying AT's piano stylings.
I'll be road trippin' to New Orleans in a week or two and this will be a welcome addition to the trip!
The Sharpest Thorn: a kissing cousin to 'That Day is Done' in terms of melody and feel- a very strong number that is a little out of step with the rest of the funky flow (but not in a bad way).
The River in Reverse: I really love this arrangement and especially the horns.
Brother: I've loved this song for a long time, and I love that AT sings this one. Steve's organ playing is just unreal on this one. I'm sure he wasn't trying to consciously upstage AT's piano, but he may have done it anyway.
Broken Promise Land: Did EC finally find a place to use part of the meldoy from '25 to 12'?
I'm afraid the last two numbers on the version I have (Wonder Woman and Six Finger Man) are initially my least favorite. I wish that Ascension Day would have been sequenced last, fitting in with the EC style of the last few years of 'mellow' closers (Favorite Hour, Radio Silence, I Want to Vanish, etc.)
I saw the DVD at the Full Frame Film Festival here in Durham a few months ago. I would recommend getting it, if for no other reason than to watch EC pull his own stuff from baggage claim at the New Orleans airport and to watch Steve quietly studying AT's piano stylings.
I'll be road trippin' to New Orleans in a week or two and this will be a welcome addition to the trip!
-
Who Shot Sam?
- Posts: 7097
- Joined: Tue Jun 03, 2003 5:05 pm
- Location: Somewhere in the distance
- Contact:
Toussaint really is a majestic pianist. He reminds me a lot of the jazz great Hank Jones in style - really ringing and confident. I love those little trills on "Six-Fingered Man". Steve's work on the Hammond B3 is terrific throughout the album (a great compliment to Toussaint), though perhaps somewhat more noticeable on the first half. "Tears, Tears and More Tears" strikes me as almost a Get Happy-era Attractions tune. Great horn arrangements too, as pophead said. My only minor quibble is with the slightly tortured lyrics of "The Sharpest Thorn", though musically I dig it.
After a few listens I'm really very pleased with it and get the feeling that it's something I will come back to more often than recent albums such as TDM or WIWC. For something that was sort of put together on the fly it sounds more coherent than either of those albums.
After a few listens I'm really very pleased with it and get the feeling that it's something I will come back to more often than recent albums such as TDM or WIWC. For something that was sort of put together on the fly it sounds more coherent than either of those albums.
Mother, Moose-Hunter, Maverick
I listened to the VH1 stream last week and had the CD on in the background at the office today. My initial feeling was that it's pleasant, but not something I'll love. However, having now watched the DVD, I'm convinced I need to pay closer attention, and probably with the headphones on. The DVD really gives you an impression of how much the musicians were into the project, the material, the moment. If you're thinking of picking the album up, do yourself a favor and get the version with the bonus DVD.
Any of you know of any albums with just Allen playing solo piano?
Any of you know of any albums with just Allen playing solo piano?
-
Toy Soldier-Scaremonger
- Posts: 40
- Joined: Fri Feb 13, 2004 8:06 pm
- Location: NORTH
O God what a wonderful album he's done! Waiting and waiting for another albums with wall to wall horns was worth it. Many songs are very reminiscent of the great Deep Dark Truthful Mirror because of AT's input. Listening to it and knowing Elvis is back in Ontario next month makes me cry tears, tears, and more tears!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 
I can't remember being any younger.
http://www.kentucky.com/mld/kentucky/en ... 754146.htm
Tue, Jun. 06, 2006
Costello, Toussaint an unlikely pairing
DAVID BAUDER
Associated Press
Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint, "The River in Reverse" (Verve Forecast)
Nine months after Katrina comes this welcome offspring, an unlikely pairing of musical masters united in anger and determination over what happened to New Orleans.
It's an inspired work. Much like Costello took to the formal melodicism of Burt Bacharach when they collaborated, he embraces the loose soulfulness of Toussaint, one of New Orleans' musical kings. The pianist Toussaint, the Crescent City Horns and guitarist Anthony "AB" Brown blend with Costello's backing band as if they've been working together for decades.
The disc seethes with anger at the Bush administration, particularly the title cut: "count your blessings when they ask permission, to govern with money and superstition." Just as impressive is the bubbling blues of "On Your Way Down" and "International Echo," seemingly a story of English boys trying to replicate music from the states, displaying an unusually open and playful Costello.
Costello's most recent musical trip down south, on "The Delivery Man," proved an important tutorial. While he sounds at home with the vocals, it would have been nice to hear Toussaint take the lead on more than one of the disc's 13 songs.
Otherwise, it's a true partnership. Seven songs are raided from Toussaint's back catalog, five are co-written and one, "The River in Reverse," is solely a Costello composition.
Toussaint, who has relocated to New York after his New Orleans home was badly damaged in the hurricane, renewed acquaintances with Costello on the benefit circuit last fall, leading to this project.
Its release proves at least one good thing came from that disaster.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.avclub.com/content/node/49297&rss=1
Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint
The River In Reverse
(Verve Forecast)
Reviewed by Keith Phipps
June 7th, 2006
Elvis Costello has spent the past decade dabbling in so many styles that it's impossible to say what defines his sound anymore, at least without lopping off everything from 1996's All This Useless Beauty forward. While some would claim that isn't a bad idea, and few would claim Costello's past decade is his least lop-offable, doing so would mean missing out on gems like the Burt Bacharach collaboration Painted From Memory and The River In Reverse, a new pairing with New Orleans eminence Allen Toussaint.
In a career stretching back to the '50s, Toussaint has acted as a producer, arranger, and performer. But here, Costello pays tribute to his songwriting skill, digging deep into the Toussaint catalog for the lion's share of River's tracks and performing them with Toussaint and a band that brings together Costello's Imposters and Toussaint's Crescent City Horns. That combination could have led to overcrowding, but the set remains intimate and reverent. Occasionally, it's a bit too reverent, but it's still a spotlight for first-rate songs like "Tears, Tears And More Tears" and "The Sharpest Thorn," one of several new tracks co-written by Costello and Toussaint.
That last song is one of several that references—either obliquely or directly—Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. Costello wrote the title track for a benefit concert, and its dark, oblique imagery contrasts nicely with Toussaint's own pull-no-punches response song, "Who's Gonna Help A Brother Get Further?" With such strong material and talented performers, it's a pity that River frequently sounds too fussed-over. Joe Henry provides airy production, but neither the singers nor the players risk cutting loose, and the gravity drags the project down in the second half. The reverence sometimes overwhelms the passion, but when the ensemble gets the balance right, The River In Reverse sounds even better than the sum of its parts.
A.V. Club Rating: B
Tue, Jun. 06, 2006
Costello, Toussaint an unlikely pairing
DAVID BAUDER
Associated Press
Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint, "The River in Reverse" (Verve Forecast)
Nine months after Katrina comes this welcome offspring, an unlikely pairing of musical masters united in anger and determination over what happened to New Orleans.
It's an inspired work. Much like Costello took to the formal melodicism of Burt Bacharach when they collaborated, he embraces the loose soulfulness of Toussaint, one of New Orleans' musical kings. The pianist Toussaint, the Crescent City Horns and guitarist Anthony "AB" Brown blend with Costello's backing band as if they've been working together for decades.
The disc seethes with anger at the Bush administration, particularly the title cut: "count your blessings when they ask permission, to govern with money and superstition." Just as impressive is the bubbling blues of "On Your Way Down" and "International Echo," seemingly a story of English boys trying to replicate music from the states, displaying an unusually open and playful Costello.
Costello's most recent musical trip down south, on "The Delivery Man," proved an important tutorial. While he sounds at home with the vocals, it would have been nice to hear Toussaint take the lead on more than one of the disc's 13 songs.
Otherwise, it's a true partnership. Seven songs are raided from Toussaint's back catalog, five are co-written and one, "The River in Reverse," is solely a Costello composition.
Toussaint, who has relocated to New York after his New Orleans home was badly damaged in the hurricane, renewed acquaintances with Costello on the benefit circuit last fall, leading to this project.
Its release proves at least one good thing came from that disaster.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.avclub.com/content/node/49297&rss=1
Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint
The River In Reverse
(Verve Forecast)
Reviewed by Keith Phipps
June 7th, 2006
Elvis Costello has spent the past decade dabbling in so many styles that it's impossible to say what defines his sound anymore, at least without lopping off everything from 1996's All This Useless Beauty forward. While some would claim that isn't a bad idea, and few would claim Costello's past decade is his least lop-offable, doing so would mean missing out on gems like the Burt Bacharach collaboration Painted From Memory and The River In Reverse, a new pairing with New Orleans eminence Allen Toussaint.
In a career stretching back to the '50s, Toussaint has acted as a producer, arranger, and performer. But here, Costello pays tribute to his songwriting skill, digging deep into the Toussaint catalog for the lion's share of River's tracks and performing them with Toussaint and a band that brings together Costello's Imposters and Toussaint's Crescent City Horns. That combination could have led to overcrowding, but the set remains intimate and reverent. Occasionally, it's a bit too reverent, but it's still a spotlight for first-rate songs like "Tears, Tears And More Tears" and "The Sharpest Thorn," one of several new tracks co-written by Costello and Toussaint.
That last song is one of several that references—either obliquely or directly—Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. Costello wrote the title track for a benefit concert, and its dark, oblique imagery contrasts nicely with Toussaint's own pull-no-punches response song, "Who's Gonna Help A Brother Get Further?" With such strong material and talented performers, it's a pity that River frequently sounds too fussed-over. Joe Henry provides airy production, but neither the singers nor the players risk cutting loose, and the gravity drags the project down in the second half. The reverence sometimes overwhelms the passion, but when the ensemble gets the balance right, The River In Reverse sounds even better than the sum of its parts.
A.V. Club Rating: B
It reminds me more of Country Darkness. I can see where you're going in terms of My Day is Done though.pophead2k wrote:The Sharpest Thorn: a kissing cousin to 'That Day is Done' in terms of melody and feel- a very strong number that is a little out of step with the rest of the funky flow (but not in a bad way).
If there were a king of fools than I would wear that crown/And you can all die laughing/Because I'll wear it proudly.