Elvis/The Imposters, London, May 23 2012

Pretty self-explanatory
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migdd
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Re: Elvis/The Imposters, London, May 23 2012

Post by migdd »

The imposter wrote:
the_platypus wrote:From the youtube videos it looks like Pete's kit is isolated behind a sound shield. Was this being professionally recorded?
I've noticed that shield on every gig I've looked at, Maybe it's just so Pete doesn't make Davey's ears bleed! Probably just for better sound separation on the mixer??
Yes, the barrier is definitely installed for proper bass/drum separation. It's been evident on all dates of the Revolver tour.
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Re: Elvis/The Imposters, London, May 23 2012

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Man out of Time
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Re: Elvis/The Imposters, London, May 23 2012

Post by Man out of Time »

Text of The Spectator review, which has become a "dead link".

There are highs and there are ‘Lowes’. And there’s Russell Crowe.

One of the more surreal sights during Elvis Costello’s two-night Spectacular Spinning Songbook spell at the Royal Albert Hall came at the end of the first show. Costello sprang from stage left, having switched his visibly damp grey suit for a lurid gold jacket and faux-leopard-skin pillbox hat, and introduced Crowe to wail and growl away.

An execrable version of’ Folsom Prison Blues’ ensued, all but wiping out Costello’s previous anecdotes about the House of Cash and an unlikely Shepherd’s Bush session between the country music hero and the new age sneerer in the early 1980s.

It was 1986 that Costello last dragged out his Singing Songbook: a gigantic wheel that members of the audience are invited to spin to determine the songs that will be played. It was a concept, later nabbed by U2, which allowed Costello to don a top hat and sport a cane and play ringmaster.

His decision to resurrect the wheel comes at a time when his position as elder statesman of respectable music snobbery has hit a new apex courtesy of the Spectacle television show.

He thus dusted off the ‘decommissioned’ wheel – on display at the ‘Hartlepool Museum of Show Business Machinery’ so said the playful singer – and recalibrated a show featuring go-go dancers, strength-testers to unlock ‘songs of sneer’, and wheel jackpots such as ‘Time’ and ‘Numbers’ that unlocked a medley of tunes on the theme.

The first night in London proved a hit and miss affair. The first spin of the wheel brought up ‘Stations of the Cross’ from his last album, which brought silence from those members of the crowd bawling out for ‘Alison’ and ‘Chelsea’ and ignoring the concept of the show.

One cry of ‘Shipbuilding’ during a brief acoustic set featuring ‘A Slow Drag With Josephine’ and ‘Jimmy Standing in the Rain’ provoked a weary retort of ‘I’ll play that in minute, son’ from the spectacled one. He also rekindled his political leanings with a few Leveson quips and a resurrection of his vicious anti-Thatcher number ‘Tramp the Dirt Down’ that was directed at various Tory targets including one ‘Boris Thatcher’.

A sequence of well-dressed women, and one squat Australian man, took turns to go-go dance in the cage as the hits rolled around. Costello’s voice proved a little raspy on the high notes but a few rarities were rolled out for the diehards. The highlight was a venomous version of ‘I Want You’, when he stepped away from the microphone and sang to the rafters unamplified.

The second night offered salvation for those left eating crow following the ill-advised guest spot. Costello tore up the first half an hour with ‘Lipstick Vogue’, ‘You Belong to Me’, ‘Mystery Dance’ and ‘Radio Radio’, from his first two albums, played at a furious pace.

The first spin brought up the ‘Girl’ jackpot, which ushered in ‘Party Girl’ and ‘This Year’s Girl’ – also old favourites – and then ‘Happy’ triggered four songs from his Stax-influenced Get Happy, another early career highlight.

A fantastic blend of rarely heard classics (‘Strict Time’, ‘Deep Dark Truthful Mirror’); hits such as a dubby ‘Watching the Detectives’ and snippets of well-known covers including ‘Out of Time’ and ‘Day Tripper’ all kept the go-go dancers on their toes. Even new material was well-received. A vampy version of ‘National Ransom’, with menace missing from the studio recording, pushed the tale into more familiar ‘sneer’ territory.

All that was left was for Costello to make guest spot amends by bringing pub rock royalty on stage in the form of Nick Lowe. A warm version of ‘Poisoned Rose’ was a revelation and Lowe took his place centre stage for ‘Peace, Love and Understanding’, which he penned in the 70s.

Steve Nieve took to the Albert Hall organ and drummer Pete Thomas’s daughter, Tennessee, drummed on a set placed directly behind her father for the encore to create a strange optical illusion.

The lesson had been learned: Lowe, not Crowe.

http://www.spectator.co.uk/arts-and-cul ... rowe.thtml

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MOJO
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Re: Elvis/The Imposters, London, May 23 2012

Post by MOJO »

Catching up on the YouTube videos of the European Tour... From a Whisper to a Scream w/ GT.. No way, man. Killer. That is all.
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Re: Elvis/The Imposters, London, May 23 2012

Post by sulky lad »

My flash recording now up on dime: - Torrent #418676 Elvis Costello And The Imposters, Royal Albert Hall, London 23 May 2012
Please note, the recording is not quite complete ( or incomplete if you're really pedantic - mentioning no names and I know I haven't started the compilation yet but it will be ready by 20t September !!) because I got held up driving through Hammersmith and forgot to change the batteries from the Bristol show the night before so my recording cuts just after Day Tripper in the PIU medley so sadly the whole of PLU is lost though there is a clip on Youtube. It's been a labour of love, yet again trying to get all these recordings into some sort of shape but now they are, I will be making a compilation of all the recordings of all the songs played on the UK tour that I can using mostly my source recordings but also relying on the goodwill of some other tapers -it should be done in a couple of weeks, and then I'll start on Elvis Sings The Beatles including the rare outing of Savoy Truffle for Neil !
Last edited by sulky lad on Fri Aug 31, 2012 10:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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docinwestchester
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Re: Elvis/The Imposters, London, May 23 2012

Post by docinwestchester »

From the "better late than never" files....Thanks for the upload!
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Top balcony
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Re: Elvis/The Imposters, London, May 23 2012

Post by Top balcony »

Great stuff Sulky.

This was uploaded as the presale info for (almost all) next year's dates were published - are you in his management company ?

Colin Top Balcony
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Re: Elvis/The Imposters, London, May 23 2012

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I wish !!! I'd be making soundboard recordings "purely for personal use" of course !
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verbal gymnastics
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Re: Elvis/The Imposters, London, May 23 2012

Post by verbal gymnastics »

sulky lad wrote:...I know I haven't started the compilation yet but it will be ready by 20t September !!)
Is there any significance about this date then sulky :lol: :wink:
Who’s this kid with his mumbo jumbo?
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Re: Elvis/The Imposters, London, May 23 2012

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