North download?

Pretty self-explanatory
selfmademug

Post by selfmademug »

POV, I'm sure you're right about J. Schwartz!

And I agree about the cold weather aspect of it, it's why 'north' seems right. I keep picturing snow piling up outside windows-- I think because snow provides the sort of hush that this record both requires and explores.

As for theme, yeah, it's hard to read it as anything other than the complex and bittersweet end of one love, and the breathless, almost frightened giddiness of another. A very mature love story; I am eating it up.
norman brain
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Post by norman brain »

I agree, Mug. Each listening is making this album gel as a whole to me. As "You Left Me in the Dark" progresses to "I'm in the Mood Again," you can actually feel the anguish of lost love turning into the joy of love reborn.

Definitely the most straightforward lyrics he's ever written. No ambiguity here. When I listen to "Let Me Tell You About Her," it reminds me of something you said after reading the lyrics early on. Hand the poor guy a towel, he's naked.

I totally agree that this would have been tailor-made for Frank Sinatra and the Nelson Riddle Orchestra (my favorite Sinatra period).
Last edited by norman brain on Fri Aug 08, 2003 8:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
PlaythingOrPet
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Post by PlaythingOrPet »

Please disregard my comment about 'Fallen'. I love the whole damn thing the more I listen. 2:21 a.m. is a great time to have it on.
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norman brain
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Post by norman brain »

Plaything, you're right about that. In the wee hours (Sinatra pun intended) is when the album really gets to you.
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girl out of time
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north

Post by girl out of time »

....after some seriously listening.....these are my conclusions......

- contrary to selfmug´s appreciations I LOVE the first 4 tracks on this record.....i think the lyrics and the music reflect so much raw honesty it´s heartbreaking.....my fave: you left me in the dark
-songs like fallen and still are brilliant in their simplicity....e.c.´s vocal performance is just fantastic!
-when it sings it´s probably the one song on this record that you would all inmediately point out as a typical "elvis costello song"
-recent faves on this record: i´m in the mood again and impatience
-weakest songs (in my humble opinion): let me tell you about her(too obvious), north (too silly)and when green eyes turn blue(a bit boring)
...the promise of indulgence in my confidential voice approached inmortal danger but you´ll never know how close....
selfmademug

Post by selfmademug »

Okay, I have to mention a misheard lyric in I'M IN THE MOOD AGAIN that made me laugh at myself. The first few times I heard this song I thought the beginning line was:

Hail the taxes
They go where I go
Farewell to the newspapers
That no more than I know


And was totally confused by such a cynical line in such an otherwise sweet almost corny song... I am such a knucklehead sometimes.

I am officially in love with this record now.
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Gillibeanz
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Post by Gillibeanz »

How and where do I download this guys please???
COME ON YOU SPURS!!
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girl out of time
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soulseek

Post by girl out of time »

go to http://www.slsk.org (and download the program to your hard drive)..........there´s a lot of users who have north in their files........just type /elvis costello north/ and then by clicking each file (song) twice you can start downloading them.
...the promise of indulgence in my confidential voice approached inmortal danger but you´ll never know how close....
HolyCoatAndHat
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Post by HolyCoatAndHat »

Long time Costello fan, first time poster.

After listening to North about 3 times, I must say that I am impressed. When It Sings has a line in it that I think is GREAT! "...like tears of stone, falling from his statue." A classic EC type line. I don't remember hearing the sound of a guitar in the entire album.

Question on the song North: EC seems to like Canada. Any special reason?
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BlueChair
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Post by BlueChair »

Diana Krall is from Canada. :)
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A rope leash
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Download

Post by A rope leash »

I like Canada too. I hear it's supposed to be the next oil rush.

I like Krall, too. She's hot. Older men know why.

I also like Wisconsin. Welcome, HolyCoat.

I'm not downloading any unrealeased Elvis Costello songs for various reasons, some of them moral, and for the fact that I know Elvis would not approve of such pilferage.

It must piss him off to know that someone on the inside put it out on the web for everyone to just "have". Come on, he is full well losing sales right here among his loyal fans.

Okay, I said it.

As a gesture of repentance, all here who have downloaded North, and have full well enjoyed it without payment to the artist, should take a solemn vow to purchase at their easiest convienence from whatever retail source every current reissue, as well as North, when it actually comes out next month.

Repent!
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taz
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Post by taz »

Come on Rope...you think more than .001% of us on this site are gonna not buy the album anyway? Hell, half the ladies (and maybe some of the guys, not judging) just want it for the cover art anyway... :D

I've been unable to download any of the songs from North but I've damn sure looked...but I also guarantee that I'll be in line as soon as it's released. You lose something burning songs onto a cd, some cut out, some have poor quality, etc....
A lot of Christians wear crosses around their necks. Do you think when Jesus comes back he ever wants to see a fuckin' cross? It's kind of like going up to Jackie Onassis with a rifle pendant on.
HolyCoatAndHat
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Post by HolyCoatAndHat »

As a gesture of repentance, all here who have downloaded North, and have full well enjoyed it without payment to the artist, should take a solemn vow to purchase at their easiest convienence from whatever retail source every current reissue, as well as North, when it actually comes out next month

I agree. I intend to buy the CD when it comes out, but it might be September 24th or September 25th instead of the 23rd. It might even be October before I buy it, but I will buy it.

Too bad we can't send EC a small check for the download.
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spooky girlfriend
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Post by spooky girlfriend »

Well, since my husband is in the computer industry, he knows good manners of what should and shouldn't be done on the net - and he follows them religiously.

As soon as he saw that North was available to download he just walked away from the screen and said it was wrong. I haven't ever downloaded any music and couldn't get any peace about it either, even though I was anxious to hear it. I admit to having been sceptical of how I think this album will be, but I just don't want to hear it until I can open the real cd.

Just my opinion.
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A rope leash
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Everybody's doing it, so why can't we?

Post by A rope leash »

Tell it to Elvis, web snatchers!

Correct me if I'm wrong: Someone, somewhere, got a copy of this recording, quite possibly by out and out thievery. He then puts it on the web, so everybody who is "cool" can have it before it comes out. So there, anyone who wants it can just have it. Elvis can now expect sales of the CDs to his loyal fans, but everybody else can just take it off the web, since it doesn't have to be perfect, and they don't necessarily have to have the cover art, and they might only like the one song or two anyway.

In the process of this recording being made available on the web, a crime was committed. Elvis got mugged. Can't you see that you're sharing in that?
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taz
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Post by taz »

No...stop charging exorbitant prices for cd's and then we'll talk about who's mugging who. I know that's not the artist's fault, it's the industry, but I'm not bending over for it.

As it pertains to other musical groups, especially ones I'm not familiar with, I do download their songs, I listen to a good sampling of their music and figure out if I like them. If I do, I'll go buy their cd (most likely several of them), if I don't like it, I've saved a little bit of the money that wasn't taken in taxes. Sorry, but I don't feel guilty about it.
A lot of Christians wear crosses around their necks. Do you think when Jesus comes back he ever wants to see a fuckin' cross? It's kind of like going up to Jackie Onassis with a rifle pendant on.
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A rope leash
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The law

Post by A rope leash »

Taz, I don't feel middle-aged, but I am.

Read this:

http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/internet/0 ... index.html
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Post by BlueChair »

I'd have to agree with taz on this. The mark-up on compact discs is ridiculously high. I am all but certain that if CD's weren't so expensive, people would be buying a lot more of them.

This is my view on mp3's. If it weren't for mp3's, I wouldn't be exposed to a lot of music that simply doesn't get radio play. And as a result, I wouldn't spend nearly as much money on CD's as I do. For this reason, a lot of independent artists love the idea of having their music downloaded. Wilco loved the fact that while they struggled to get Yankee Hotel Foxtrot released after being dropped from Reprise, their audiences were singing along to the new material thanks to mp3 downloads. In many ways, it made the album more popular than it would have been.
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mood swung
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Post by mood swung »

well, one great thing about mp3s is that they seem to have resurrected the single. I do miss 45's. I suppose it is technically wrong to download music you haven't paid for (unless it's in the public domain!), but record companies and artists ought to see it more as a way to gain exposure.
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Post by Pov »

Well, I've had this discussion on other boards, but I'll say it here - Downloading without paying is wrong. It doesn't matter how overpriced CDs are, how crappy today's music is, what bastards the record companies are, or whatever other excuse people come up with. They are just that - excuses for stealing.

Having said that, I did d/l North :oops: Why? Because it was not otherwise available and I REALLY wanted to hear it. I guess I can live with myself for that. I've already pre-ordered it on Amazon, along with the latest 3 reissues. By the end of September, I will have bought and paid for every EC CD currently in print and a couple that are not. So my conscience isn't bothered in this limited instance.
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Post by Otis Westinghouse »

I passed up a kind offer of a copy of North, not because I thought it was immoral (and whilst it is theft, I do agree with the general theory that downloading and the internet in general is a great way to increase CDs in general, borne out by statistics), but because, and I suppose this reveals my ingrained habits as almost a fetishist when it comes to buying music, I would so hate the emptiness of buying a CD I already had just to have the added element of the cover (and the clear conscience of then paying for it). It's not quite as bad as reading the lyrics before you listen, but it's part of the continuum. As all fetishists know, the desire and anticipation is a huge part of the ultimate pleasure. The agony of waiting and wondering. It would be so easy to click a few times and get it, but doesn't that easiness take away a lot of the magic? I can understand the opposite in the fan mentality ('I must have everything as soon as I can'), but not for me.

HolyCoatAndHat: great name! One of my favourite Elvis lines in one of his best songs.
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Post by martinfoyle »

Since I kicked off this thread, may I weigh in with my 2€ cents?
Sure I've downloaded a copy of the album -its a stunning achievement, btw, particularly in its 11 track version-, I can't wait to get a proper copy of it. The download is mp3 sourced, and it shows. The sound is clear but thin. Any EC fan has to get the legitimate version to fully appreciate this masterpiece. So settle down and enjoy the anticipation, it'll be worth the wait.
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DrJ
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Post by DrJ »

I can't wait to buy all three cd versions of North so I can put them next to the three copies I have of MAIT, GH, BY,.... if I bought the SACD version I'd have four copies to go with my four copies of TYM, AF, Spike...

Two things...

(1) Broadband is still a ripoff in this country, but as soon at the Apple iTunes Music Store comes to Europe, I'm on board... download the song you want for a buck each... perfect... and the artist still gets screwed...

http://www.business2.com/subscribers/ar ... 72,00.html

(2) I never bought "When I was Cruel". My dad got me a preview copy about six weeks before it came out. That was a good day. I looked at it for about 10 minutes wondering if I should listen to it or not, because that "release date anticipation" had disappeared. I listened to it... obviously. Did I mention that this promotional copy of WIWC was personally signed by EC?

The point of this anecdote is to brag... 8)

DrJ
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Post by PlaythingOrPet »

If I hadn't been offered a copy of North (which wasn't from the 'net, by the way) I would never've dowloaded it because I haven't got the capabilities, time or patience. That isn't theft, and I don't feel at all guilty. My curiosity has been satisfied with a perfect sounding CD, yet my money will still be on the counter when it comes out. Simple as. The people who are looking for a quick freebie and have no intention of buying the official version are the ones who really get my goat.

Everyone needs their own Universal rep.
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Post by Danny »

Anyway guys - fine about the pros and cons of downloading, but can those who've heard it give us more detail about the album itself? I want my appetite whetted! What's the opening like? Are they all slow songs? Just gimme the lowdown on the whole album! And what's the song 'North' like? With those outdoorsy lyrics, I imagine a big, sweeping song for Canadian airlines but I guess I'm being silly cos I know they're all intimate and in Elvis's speaking register.

('Speaking register' - sounds like summink out of Harry Potter. Soz.)
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