Cleveland reviews of North

Pretty self-explanatory
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johnfoyle
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Location: Dublin , Ireland

Cleveland reviews of North

Post by johnfoyle »

Vern Morrison writes-

Subject: review of North in Cleveland Free Times Oct.1-7 issue
To: COSTELLO-L@LISTSERV.AOL.COM


Reproduced without comment and without permission:
-------------------------------
ELVIS COSTELLO
North
(Deutsche Grammophon)

*
(okay, I will make this comment: the reviewer gives it one star [poor]
out of a possible four. --VM)

The demise of the cassette tape ended the reign of what was
perhaps
the greatest form of populist record criticism ever to have existed:
the
car stereo with cassette player. With an unflinchingly swift push of a
single button (commonly labeled "eject") an offending cassette could,
in one
dramatic and fluid motion, be removed in less than a second and, with a
good
flick of the wrist, be out of the car window and gone from your life.
Just
like that--instant rock criticism (no wonder so many Night Ranger
cassettes
could be found curbside throught the '80s). And if done right, the
move
could easily be personalized, adding a nice touch of flair, or a
"voice" as
we say in the writing biz, to your contempt.

Alas, the CD era has come along and ruined the entire process.
Not
only have CDs doomed us to a full 75 minutes or more of playing time,
but CD
stereo systems are just too damn slow with the "eject" feature (mine
timed
out at a full four seconds!) to effectively express your disgust with a
particularly offending slab of music. And for that reason alone, Elvis
Costello's North, another one of those nearly insufferable pop
"experiments"
by the form's reigning mad doctor, remains in my possession. Because
had we
still been living in those heady days when cassette tapes ruled, North,
a
collection of show tune-type songs adorned only by piano and Costello's
patented wordiness, would certainly have found itself skipping happily
along
I-90, doing roughly 65 m.p.h. --Kurt Hernon
---------------------------------




Whilst searching in my own sad way for a link
to this ( none to be had - the Cleveland Free Times
website http://www.freetimes.com/ is being `upgraded`)
I found this other Cleveland review -

http://www.clevescene.com/issues/2003-0 ... index.html

Elvis Costello
North (Decca)
BY CARLO WOLFF
carlo.wolff@clevescene.com


Last year, Elvis Costello released When I Was Cruel,
one of his best recordings since the '80s. This year,
the mercurial, pop-besotted Costello seems to want to
be taken seriously, and North is serious indeed. It
also sounds like a collection of love songs
memorializing his engagement to Diana Krall, the
Canadian chanteuse who's made jazz sexy all over
again.
The album boasts ornate arrangements and unusually
careful vocals. North sounds like money; if nothing
else, it attests to the clout befitting an artist in
his third decade of genre-hopping and -influencing.
Unfortunately, North is also monochromatic. Even
though the instrumentation spans solo piano and a
48-piece ensemble, the tunes blend into one another
and are resolutely slow. Perhaps that's part of
Costello's strategy: Corral "serious" music lovers
with albums like North and his many collaborations,
then reconnect with his old audience with albums like
Cruel. Maybe next year, he'll choose invention over
craft and grace his patient fans with an album that's
serious and playful.

clevescene.com | originally published: September 24,
2003
cbartal
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Post by cbartal »

When I figure out how to throw CD's out of a moving vehicle The Beatles legacy will be in major jeopardy.
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LessThanZero
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Post by LessThanZero »

You know, if you can't throw CD's out of a window, you probably shouldn't be driving a VEHICLE!

I love it when people throw CD's from a moving vehicle. It's hilarious.

Wait a minute! Van Morrison wrote that review!! Did EC and
Van have a falling out??
Loving this board since before When I Was Cruel.
cbartal
Posts: 213
Joined: Wed Jun 04, 2003 9:24 am

Post by cbartal »

I'd love to sit and chat but I'm late for my weekly gig throwing inane music critics off of highway overpass's.
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LessThanZero
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Post by LessThanZero »

NO THAT WOULD BE FUNNY!!!

Woah...and dark...yeah, funny and dark. :oops:
Loving this board since before When I Was Cruel.
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