Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Pretty self-explanatory
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Fishfinger king
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by Fishfinger king »

krm wrote:He has done this before if my memory serves me right. RAH + Favourite hour on the big organ! I have it on some old VHS if my memory serves my right. I could be wrong though......
No you're right - the 1994 Brutal Youth Tour at RAH - I was there- his voice was in better nick back then. Still enjoyed it this time, though.
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krm
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by krm »

That´s the one! Thanks. Now I can sleep tonight :-)
Azmuda
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by Azmuda »

Fishfinger king wrote:
krm wrote:He has done this before if my memory serves me right. RAH + Favourite hour on the big organ! I have it on some old VHS if my memory serves my right. I could be wrong though......
No you're right - the 1994 Brutal Youth Tour at RAH - I was there- his voice was in better nick back then. Still enjoyed it this time, though.
Anyone recall which one?
http://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/inde ... -05_London
http://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/inde ... -06_London
http://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/inde ... -07_London

Or possibly all three?
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by Paul B »

It was the closer or near closer on each night, as I recall. The show's themselves weren't a patch on the soon to follow Shepherd's Bush ones though.
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Otis Westinghouse
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by Otis Westinghouse »

Opener for the encores on all three, by the look of it (going by the 7th's breakdown). I was at the first of the three and yep, great moment indeed. Overall, no, it wasn't the best of shows, but opening with No Action was cracking and I loved hearing Party Girl live.

Noting from the wiki that 209 songs have been played on the tour. Incredible:

http://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/inde ... olver_Tour
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by Man out of Time »

Paul B wrote:It was the closer or near closer on each night, as I recall.
Actually, if you check the set lists on the wiki here

http://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/inde ... -05_London
http://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/inde ... -06_London
http://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/inde ... -07_London

it shows that Favourite Hour was 23rd out of 31 songs on the first night, 20th out of 28 on the second and 21st out of 29 on the third night. It is not really a song to close a set with as it does not involve Pete or Bruce (for those shows), and the ending is a bit down beat. It is a great song though - just a pity that Elvis' voice could not match Steve's playing at the RAH last week.

MOOT
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by sweetest punch »

Since you put me down, it seems i've been very gloomy. You may laugh but pretty girls look right through me.
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

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sweetest punch wrote:Heart Of The City / PLU (with Nick Lowe): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LEQAwJVJZY
That is one HELL of a finale!
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by verbal gymnastics »

The opening and closing were great. And so were the bits in between!
Who’s this kid with his mumbo jumbo?
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Post by charliestumpy »

'Day tripper' snippet after 1.20 ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aHef-I6W5Q
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by sweetest punch »

Since you put me down, it seems i've been very gloomy. You may laugh but pretty girls look right through me.
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by And No Coffee Table »

Elvis Costello presents highs, Lowes and Russell Crowe
By Nic Fildes

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.


Elvis Costello: Royal Albert Hall, London – live review
By Declan IOM on May 29, 2012 in Live Reviews

Elvis Costello
London. The Royal Albert Hall.
24th May 2012.

Elvis Costello‘s recent RAH show was a three hour marathon involving a random song selection process. Did it work? Is this the future of live music? Read on to find our writers thoughts on the whole do.

Amongst the grandeur of the Royal Albert Hall, Elvis Costello & the Imposters deliver a storming 3 hour show, that is part revival meeting, part sleazy gameshow and part last days of the music hall.

Costello fans have grown used to a shifting persona – The Angry Young Man of the 70’s and 80’s, the awkward experimenter of the 90’s, and the worthy faux-Americana of recent years. Last time I saw him he was firmly in the grip of American roots music, it was expertly executed but by gosh it’s the dullest music of his career.

Thankfully, tonight he’s dusted off an old persona from the mid 80’s – Napoleon Dynamite. A fading gameshow host with a snarky personality and a Spectacular Spinning Songbook. This is a Wheel of Fortune, which Napoleon invites members of the audience onto stage to spin. The conceit is that Elvis & The Imposters will play whichever song it lands on, whilst the audience member cage-dances.

There’s an element of the huckster about this, and it’s probable Elvis played whatever songs he felt like. The set drew heavily from the 77-86 period, opening with a nonstop sprint through new wave favourites – Lipstick Vogue, You Belong to Me (see audience taken video below – Ed), Mystery Dance & Radio Radio. Songs are grouped together by theme. When the wheel points to “Girl” we get This Year’s Girl, Spooky Girlfriend and Party Girl.

The “new wave” era songs are delivered with a variable degree of quality Oliver’s Army is dashed off in perfunctory fashion at the end of the first encore, but Radio Radio is outstanding and Pump It Up (given a Memphis Funk arrangement) a triumph. The Americana section was a drag, a weak Stations of the Cross, leads into a half-arsed take on People Get Ready, the section only redeemed by the appearance of Nick Lowe for a stately 50’s country-style run through of Poisoned Rose.

It’s the songs from Get Happy!, Trust & Imperial Bedroom that stand out. The dignified grandeur of the venue (proclaimed by Elvis as ”the fleshspots of Knightsbridge”)and the faded showbiz shtick of the Songbook concept suits these songs written and recorded when Costello & the Attractions were jaded popstars. Can’t Stand Up For Falling Down is a rackety joy. King Horse an organ driven treat, whilst Man Out of Time (which is coupled with the Stones’ Out of Time) is majestic.

The secret star here is Keyboardist Nieve. It’s his driven, organ sound that adds much of the colour and drama to the set. From melodica on Man Out of Time to swirling demonic hammond on Running Wild, to a churchified Favourite Hour on the Royal Albert Hall’s gigantic pipe organ.

His interplay with drummer Pete Thomas on Watching the Detectives creates a tense, sparse masterpiece. The Imposters are rounded out by Davy Faragher on bass and too strident backing vocals.

There’s a political theme running through the evening. “My contribution to the Olympics is Murdoch’s head on a stick” he commented (perhaps Elvis thinks he really is lookalike MP Tom Watson) and was joined onstage by Labour MP’s Maria & Angela Eagle. Several audience members muttered about an American resident commenting on UK politics and I suspect a large proportion of the middle-aged South-Eastern audience probably support the coalition but many of the themes of his early songs such as “Shipbuilding” are bitterly relevant today.

“I never thought I’d have to sing this song again” introduced the moving Tramp the Dirt Down, but the words have a new urgency in this era of austerity –

“Just like a schoolboy, whose head’s like a tin-can
filled up with dreams then poured down
the drain
Try telling that to the boys on both sides, being
blown to bits or beaten and maimed
Who takes all the glory and none of the shame”

The show was long, but there were few lulls. Costello took the band off after two hours, only to return a minute later to play a couple of solo songs themed around the days of Music Hall.

The band returned and played for 30 further minutes before exiting after Oliver’s Army. The second encore was a triumphant Pump It Up with Tennessee Thomas joining her father on a second drum kit, this was given a fantastic Memphis funk reworked arrangement.

Then Nick Lowe returns to duet on Heart in the City and (What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love & Understanding for a brilliant finale.
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by Natasha »

I still have videos to upload from both nights. The connection at cafes didn't help me to do it but I'll do it now. :)
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

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“Between tenderness and brute force.”

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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by sweetest punch »

Since you put me down, it seems i've been very gloomy. You may laugh but pretty girls look right through me.
scielle
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by scielle »

Steve on the RAH organ was a thing of beauty. Definitely a highlight of the show. And nice to see a full house 2 nights in a row.
(But I must say, the official program is waaay overpriced. £12? Seriously? I think that's the most expensive show program I've ever bought here in LDN)
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by The imposter »

scielle wrote:(But I must say, the official program is waaay overpriced. £12? Seriously? I think that's the most expensive show program I've ever bought here in LDN)
The tour programme was basically a blown up copy of the spinning songbook cd booklet, (for those who haven't seen it ). Nice to see the pictures blown up though and print you can read, I like the centre spread which was new, listing details of the "Jackpots" ..but alas no "Sparkling Day" or "Unwanted Number" played on this tour...
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by verbal gymnastics »

There were quite a few songs I was disappointed that didn't make the wheel - although they did in the US.

I was also disappointed that Unwanted Number, Sparkling Day and Beautiful didn't make it in either country.

Mind you Dream Time was on the wheel in 1986 and they didn't play it when it was landed on. I heard it was the Hall & Oates song but I hoped it was a cover of The Jam song.
Who’s this kid with his mumbo jumbo?
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by FAVEHOUR »

verbal gymnastics wrote:There were quite a few songs I was disappointed that didn't make the wheel - although they did in the US.

I was also disappointed that Unwanted Number, Sparkling Day and Beautiful didn't make it in either country.

Mind you Dream Time was on the wheel in 1986 and they didn't play it when it was landed on. I heard it was the Hall & Oates song but I hoped it was a cover of The Jam song.

They played about two lines of Dream Time at one of the shows in 86, then segued into Accidents...I guess he was pointing out a similarity of arrangement, but I'm not familiar with the Hall and Oates song so don't know for sure.
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Re: Elvis/Imposters - Royal Albert Hall 24th May 2012

Post by migdd »

Dream Time was actually on Daryl Hall's first solo album.
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