Elvis selects favourite songs

Pretty self-explanatory
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johnfoyle
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Joined: Wed Jun 04, 2003 4:37 pm
Location: Dublin , Ireland

Elvis selects favourite songs

Post by johnfoyle »

The selected songs are new ; the album list looks old .

http://www.amazon.com/gp/richpub/syltgu ... i=13881871

To mark the re-release of his early catalog as Elvis Costello Collector's Box Set - Limited Edition - Amazon.com Exclusive, Elvis Costello shares with Amazon customers some of his favorite music.






Elvis Costello's List of Music You Should Hear


Songs

"Don't Want to Be Nice," John Cooper Clarke ~ World of Mouth: Very Best of John Cooper Clarke

The best thing to come out of Manchester since Freddie Garrity, though not as a good dancer. Would be the Poet Laureate of any civilised country, just for having written "Beasley Street."

"Kingdom of Doom," the Good, the Bad and the Queen ~ The Good, the Bad & the Queen

Reminds me of that English sadness and makes me miss the place for about 30 seconds. Great to see Paul Simonon holding a bass again.

"Basing Street," Nick Lowe
~ 16 All Time Lowes

More tales of Notting Hill. One of Nick's finest recordings. Don’t miss his new record, At My Age.


"Boot-Leg," Booker T. and the M.G.s ~
Stax Profiles


Sounds as if Steve Cropper's guitar amp had caught fire or was about to blow up. I have to declare an interest here, as I put this compilation together and wrote the liner notes, but if you can find the original album, Funky Broadway: Stax Revue Live At The 5/4 Ballroom, from which this cut is taken, don't pass it up.

"Big–Eyed Beans from Venus," Captain Beefheart ~ The Spotlight Kid/Clear Spot
A great love song.

"Dexter's Rif," Dexter Gordon ~ Dexter Rides Again
An early gem from a man with a noble name.


"I've Got You Under My Skin," Frank Sinatra
~ Songs for Swingin' Lovers!
This is the first record that I can remember hearing as a child. Still sounds a great today.


"Nellie the Elephant," Mandy Miller
~ Hello Children Everywhere
A true family favourite.

"Nettie Moore," Bob Dylan ~ Modern Times
Mysterious and wonderful.

"Worried Man Blues," George Jones
~ The Unbroken Circle - The Musical Heritage Of The Carter Family
This song and singer will always have a special place in my heart.

"If I Only Had a Brain," Shorty Rogers ~ The Wizard of Oz and Other Harold Arlen Songs
My new theme song.


Albums

More Adventurous, Rilo Kiley
This album has the best lyric writing that I've heard in many a day. "Does He Love You?" is the finest and most touching telling of a short story that you are likely to hear all year. Rilo Kiley have wonderful melodies and great playing and singing. Don't miss this one.


Uh Huh Her, PJ Harvey


My favourite Polly Harvey records have always been the raw and bare ones, driven by her great guitar playing and voice. She plays everything on this one, except drums and it is all the more vivid as a consequence. Check out "Slow Drug" and "Pocketknife."


Moments from This Theater, Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham

This is the best Dan Penn album in catalogue because it is spare and spontaneous, putting the spotlight on those remarkable songs ("Dark End of the Street," "It Tears Me Up," and "I'm Your Puppet") and Dan's amazing voice. This is what Elvis Presley could have been.

Ollabelle, Ollabelle
A terrific vocal group with several vivid personalities. They have found the gospel in the Rolling Stones' "I Am Waiting" just as much as in Blind Willie Johnson's "Soul of a Man". Check out "Before This Time."

David Ackles, David Ackles
I've loved and recommended this record since the late '60s and I am glad to see it in the CD catalogue. David Ackles was probably the most underrated songwriter of his time. His melancholy voice and adult writing style was totally out of step with the times but the songs really hold up. Check out "Blue Ribbons" or "Road to Cairo." It is hard to choose between this one and the Subway to the Country album. I strongly recommend both.

Bruckner - Mass No. 1 in D minor - Motets / Orgonasova, Fink, Prégardien, Wilm Schulte; Gardiner by Bruckner/Vienna Philharmonic, Monteverdi Choir with Sir John Eliot Gardiner
I stumbled on this recording recently while looking for a Bruckner symphony (the 9th Symphony is a favourite work of mine). It is a really beautiful piece and this disc also contains some lovely performances of the motets.


Guitarra Portuguesa, Carlos Paredes

I was given this album recently during my first visit to Portugal in twenty-five years. Now I know what I've been missing; mysterious, delicate melodies and incredible playing.


Practice Tape No.1, Bill Evans

There are so many incredible Bill Evans records to recommend but this is something curious; a glimpse of his working methods, improvising at home and playing through pieces by Bach. Some of the performances are just fragments but it's rare to hear such sketches by a great artist.

The Return of Wayne Douglas, Doug Sahm
The final release by a much-missed character. If you can't find the all-star Doug Sahm & Band on Atlantic, then this is a great alternative. My favourites are "Cowboy Peyton Place" and the really funny "Oh No, Not Another One," a must for "real country" fans.


The Essential Sonny Boy Williamson, Sonny Boy Williamson

There are shorter, cheaper collections but treat yourself to this double CD and you won't regret it. It contains all of the most famous sides, "Don't Start Me Talking," "Your Funeral and My Trial," and "Help Me," but also gives you the quirky "Little Village," "Like Wolf," and "The Unseen Eye." A poet and the most conversational singer and harp-player you will ever hear.
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