The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Pretty self-explanatory
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sweetest punch
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by sweetest punch »

https://twitter.com/ElvisCostello/statu ... 71840?s=20
https://www.facebook.com/ElvisCostello/ ... 6840668356

Green Shirt

Releasing November 6 via UMe, The Complete Armed Forces will also be available digitally for streaming and download.

The collection is proceeded with the release of a 2nd three-track digital EP featuring a remastered version of “Green Shirt” from ‘Armed Forces’, “Green Shirt (Demo Version)” recorded at Eden Studios, London January 1978 and “Green Shirt (Live Version)” taken from Europe ’79 – Live At Pinkpop.

Pre-order The Complete Armed Forces and stream the new digital EP here: https://elviscostello.lnk.to/GreenShirtEP
Since you put me down, it seems i've been very gloomy. You may laugh but pretty girls look right through me.
sweetest punch
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by sweetest punch »

Has anyone compared already the sound of the remastered Green Shirt with the old version(s) on CD?
Since you put me down, it seems i've been very gloomy. You may laugh but pretty girls look right through me.
Ulster Boy
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by Ulster Boy »

I did, hard to judge given the low quality of the YouTube clip. Nothing dramatic stands out.
rightbrain
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by rightbrain »

Listening to EC’s demo version of “Green Shirt,” I have to believe he may have had Paul Simon’s “Me And Julio Down By The Schoolyard” somewhere in the back of his mind.

Listen to:
Better send a begging letter to the big investigation.”

And then listen on Simon’s Demo Version to:
When the papa found out he began to shout, and he started the investigation.”

Simon’s DEMO Version:

at 0:14-0:22

https://youtu.be/qfrdDjDqG0U

Simon’s ORIGINAL Version:

at 0:23-0:28

https://youtu.be/JVdlpZ4M-Hw

I’m hearing an echo of the cadence and tune, in EC’s vocal delivery, too. Who knows? Just a thought! Your mileage may vary.
sweetest punch
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by sweetest punch »

Tweet from Todd Alcott: https://mobile.twitter.com/toddalcott/s ... 3GlFBiEh8o

A glimpse inside the Armed Forces box set, out November 6. I cannot begin to convey how excited I am about this project.

Image

Image

Image

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Since you put me down, it seems i've been very gloomy. You may laugh but pretty girls look right through me.
Mr. Getgood
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by Mr. Getgood »

sweetest punch wrote:Has anyone compared already the sound of the remastered Green Shirt with the old version(s) on CD?
I’ve just done a quick comparison between the new version on Spotify and the 1999 Very Best Of CD version. To my ears, the new version certainly sounds brighter and more spread out over the stereo picture. Initial observations include Pete’s cymbals having more sustain to them and the backing vocals being distinctly clearer/more apparent.

Interestingly, I’ve also quickly compared the two versions on Spotify (2020 and existing versions) and can’t really seem to tell much of a difference. I wonder if the original version has somehow already been replaced with the new remaster? Be interesting to see what others think.
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jardine
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by jardine »

sweetest punch wrote:Tweet from Todd Alcott: https://mobile.twitter.com/toddalcott/s ... 3GlFBiEh8o

A glimpse inside the Armed Forces box set, out November 6. I cannot begin to convey how excited I am about this project.

Image

Image

Image

Image
please tell me this is a joke, a fake. please!
sulky lad
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by sulky lad »

jardine wrote:
sweetest punch wrote:Tweet from Todd Alcott: https://mobile.twitter.com/toddalcott/s ... 3GlFBiEh8o

A glimpse inside the Armed Forces box set, out November 6. I cannot begin to convey how excited I am about this project.

Image

Image

Image

Image
please tell me this is a joke, a fake. please!
Couldn't agree more, SP!
Neil.
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by Neil. »

sulky lad wrote:
jardine wrote:
sweetest punch wrote: please tell me this is a joke, a fake. please!
Couldn't agree more, SP!
Eh? I don't get what your issue is, fellas. The intention is to parody 1950s comics/cheap novels, so surely they've more than succeeded in their aim?
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by sulky lad »

Neil. wrote:
sulky lad wrote:
jardine wrote: Couldn't agree more, SP!
Eh? I don't get what your issue is, fellas. The intention is to parody 1950s comics/cheap novels, so surely they've more than succeeded in their aim?
So, Neil, are you telling me ...........................


wait for it ............................



Their Aim IS True :D :D :D :D :D

I like the idea that Bruce is driving the jeep and possibly all The Attractions over the edge of a precipice!

Thinking about it, they could have done a parody of a forties army comedy film with Elvis as the brainy leader, pete as the ever cheerful chappie, Steve as the quiet one and Bruce as the ..................make up your own version, I'd call him the insurgent!
Neil.
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by Neil. »

sulky lad wrote:So, Neil, are you telling me ...........................


wait for it ............................


Their Aim IS True :D :D :D :D :D
Boom tish!

Boom Boom!

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jardine
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by jardine »

First it is e.c. driving them over a cliff. And so, sexist parodies, parodies of masculinities,..ha ha, i get it. Armed! Forced!!! Trying!!! Hard!!!! Big Boys!!!!!! Breasts!!!!! Weapons!!!!! Cooooool.

Insert Puke Emojii here. I perhaps-wrongly thought that armed forces was a parody, a punch AGAINST this sort of purtrid masculinity, this bulgy-breasted junk. I guess not. Oliver's Army is just a joke, as is peace love and understanding...all irony all the time and don't get silly enough to believe that it might just be on behalf of something. Tricked! Nicely done! Talk about emotional fascism. Don't bother posting more of your fake lyrics, then.

To quote Bob Dylan "I don't believe you. You're a liar."
Last edited by jardine on Sun Oct 25, 2020 9:41 am, edited 1 time in total.
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verbal gymnastics
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by verbal gymnastics »

Sulky - fortunately for you there isn’t a tumbleweed smilie. :lol:

I love the pastiche posters which are clearly close to Elvis’ heart.
Who’s this kid with his mumbo jumbo?
sulky lad
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by sulky lad »

verbal gymnastics wrote:Sulky - fortunately for you there isn’t a tumbleweed smilie. :lol:

:D :D :D :roll:

I love the pastiche posters which are clearly close to Elvis’ heart.
Do you think he had that much input to the artwork? I'd have prefered some Eamon Singer daubs even if they wouldn't necessarily be of that time!
bronxapostle
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by bronxapostle »

well....not in love with it, but never been a comic book guy personally myself. but, is it THE FIRST TIME HE HAS ASTONISHED US, good or bad in any way, shape or form? NOOOOO, that's why we love the guy. always keeps us guessing....throwing us for a loop. it's goofy looking, yes! but fun! Elvis with superhero muscles fighting off a very unbuttoned cocktail murderess? driving in an army jeep Hogans Heroes style? horny and chasing after a teary eyed starlet? :lol: :lol: like i said...good, clean, GOOFY fun! :D
WallyRando
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by WallyRando »

sulky lad wrote:
verbal gymnastics wrote:Sulky - fortunately for you there isn’t a tumbleweed smilie. :lol:

:D :D :D :roll:

I love the pastiche posters which are clearly close to Elvis’ heart.
Do you think he had that much input to the artwork? I'd have prefered some Eamon Singer daubs even if they wouldn't necessarily be of that time!
There was a post by the artist on the r/elviscostello subreddit. They said they were reached out to my his people out of the blue, and in the comments, the artist says Elvis's only note was "I love it. More."

https://www.reddit.com/r/ElvisCostello/ ... urce=share
cwr
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by cwr »

jardine wrote:First it is e.c. driving them over a cliff. And so, sexist parodies, parodies of masculinities,..ha ha, i get it. Armed! Forced!!! Trying!!! Hard!!!! Big Boys!!!!!! Breasts!!!!! Weapons!!!!! Cooooool.

Insert Puke Emojii here. I perhaps-wrongly thought that armed forces was a parody, a punch AGAINST this sort of purtrid masculinity, this bulgy-breasted junk. I guess not. Oliver's Army is just a joke, as is peace love and understanding...all irony all the time and don't get silly enough to believe that it might just be on behalf of something. Tricked! Nicely done! Talk about emotional fascism. Don't bother posting more of your fake lyrics, then.

To quote Bob Dylan "I don't believe you. You're a liar."
I find it kind of weird that anyone would object to these elements of graphic pastiche based on pulp novels and comic books so strongly but not have objections to the ironic use of racist language and flip references to the holocaust in the lyrics, especially if you thought the latter were part of a "parody." These new pieces by Alcott are different in style from what Barney Bubbles was doing but his pop art album design was serving the same LP in a similar way. I don't see anything in these new pieces that is out of step with the way Armed Forces has always been a provocative smartass record that is still making serious points when it wants to.

This is not me arguing that anyone needs to *like* Alcott's work (though I very much do) it just strikes me as a very strange hill to die on for an album that from the very beginning was in your face and often glib and goofy while still being substantial. How one could be furious about these covers but not the drunken antics in the music videos they filmed at the time is beyond my ability to comprehend.
Hawksmoor
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by Hawksmoor »

Like most posters above, I'm sympathetic to Jardine, but really can't see the problem. These are humorous parodies/pastiches of certain types of comic books, graphic novels, pop art, whatever, from the 1950s through the 1970s. Emphasising the themes of the LP but in a visual way? They're funny, clever and provocative. Similar kind of thing here, and equally amusing/interesting:

https://lithub.com/all-your-favorite-so ... e-welcome/
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Ymaginatif
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by Ymaginatif »

I've noticed a growing tendency in Elvis Costello's visual output to chose media (e.g. old pulp fuction covers) or contexts (e.g. go-go cages on stage) that are directly associated with the objectification of women. I've tried to interpret this as an ironic raised eyebrow by EC, but there has been just too much of it to ignore that there is a deliberate choice in going for the bimbo-effect to appeal to his audience.

I hate being put into that category.
Hawksmoor
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by Hawksmoor »

Ymaginatif wrote:I've noticed a growing tendency in Elvis Costello's visual output to chose media (e.g. old pulp fuction covers) or contexts (e.g. go-go cages on stage) that are directly associated with the objectification of women. I've tried to interpret this as an ironic raised eyebrow by EC, but there has been just too much of it to ignore that there is a deliberate choice in going for the bimbo-effect to appeal to his audience.

I hate being put into that category.
It's complex, isn't it? Because if we think Elvis is deliberately using those devices to objectify women (or to titillate male viewers/listeners), that's difficult to square with the man who writes 'This Year's Girl' 'Poor Fractured Atlas' and 'Why Can't a Man Stand Alone?' Or who worships at the feet of Larkin Poe?

I'm sympathetic to your problem, but I confess I'm still comfortably in the 'ironic raised eyebrow' camp. Then again, I'm still wrestling with whether I should still be listening to Morrissey CDs. :(
jardine
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by jardine »

I find his own artwork garish and exaggerated and distorted and nightmarish enough to make the "point" about objectification without being objectifying. In fact, it is why I like his own visual work so much -- actually makes me feel queasy [word of the day!] about the male gaze in don't look now, or isabelle ringing and drawn into the complexity of the lives being lived out. The comics are good for a moment's laugh, but that is about all, and the laugh feels 'off' really quickly.
cwr
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by cwr »

Again, I get not liking them but I also find Armed Forces to be the one point in EC's discography where he is pushing at the ugliness of culture and history in ways that are aggressively provocative. Songs like "Chemistry Class" are making sex jokes mere seconds before referencing Hitler's final solution. Sometimes the distance between a sexual pun and a reference to lampshades made out of human skin or a racial slur is a few seconds. So much of Armed Forces has always made me queasy, even the songs I really like and think are great. (The "Don't Join" poster with Elvis putting a gun in his mouth has always made me feel kind of out of step with the attitude of that era of Elvis, even while I do love AF as an album overall.)

I wonder if maybe what feels "off" about ANY new Armed Forces-related material being made in 2020 is connected to the difference between then and now and lessons learned the hard way at the time. The events of 1979 changed Elvis-- he would still pursue similar themes and wouldn't shy away from joking and commenting on the ugliness of this world but no album would ever have the same overconfidence that he could say the most awful things with a sneer and know that people would trust that he was doing it all ironically. But this is the first Armed Forces-related "authorized" content that is newly commissioned rather than culled from the archives, so we have to process it as a "now" thing rather than a "then" thing. I don't think if EC wrote "Oliver's Army" today and released it that I would process it the same way I did when I first heard it in the early 1990s and I processed it as a song from the late 1970s...
jardine
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by jardine »

For me, it may be that 'the times' make it hard for me to take any more "aggressive provocation." And, I think, those comics are not aggressively provocative. They are very limp and make the aggressive provocations of Armed Forces seem, well, limper. I dare say that I wish he or his designers had pumped it up a notch from Armed Forces and not, well, trivialized and diminished it.
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krm
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by krm »

....and I am getting a bit upset that this is sold as a 9 LP collection.
When did they start calling 7" singles LP??
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cwr
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Re: The Complete Armed Forces (Super Deluxe Edition)

Post by cwr »

jardine wrote:For me, it may be that 'the times' make it hard for me to take any more "aggressive provocation." And, I think, those comics are not aggressively provocative. They are very limp and make the aggressive provocations of Armed Forces seem, well, limper. I dare say that I wish he or his designers had pumped it up a notch from Armed Forces and not, well, trivialized and diminished it.
I am genuinely curious what that would look like.
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