New Musical Express, March 13, 1993

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Elvis Costello & The Brodsky Quartet


Terry Staunton

Theatre Royal, London

Something strange happens to pop personalities as they approach middle age; they experience an overwhelming urge to be taken "seriously." Declan MacManus is the latest to set up stall on Respectable Street, and tonight is not so much a gig as a recital.

This ain't rock 'n' roll — this is gentrified. Costello, carrying a large, hard-back lyric book, has teamed up with a string quartet for a very unusual project; a series of "letters" inspired by a newspaper item about lost souls who've actually written to Shakespeare's Juliet Capulet. And though listening to The Juliet Letters at home can be heavy going, on stage, it works perfectly. Elvis has described it as a song sequence for string quartet and voice, and it has been suggested in some quarters that a different voice might have done the material more justice. It's true that certain passages expose weaknesses in Costello's voice, as was the case with the country album Almost Blue (trying to follow George Jones was a big mistake), but at times his natural frailty only enhances the songs' drama.

"Taking My Life In Your Hands" wouldn't be out of place on Imperial Bedroom, "Jacksons, Monk And Rowe" might just be his best single in ten years, and "Damnation's Cellar" — a tale of choosing a dead hero to return to life — shows Costello hasn't lost his sense of humour: "The critics say Nijinsky, the dancer, of course / While the punters would probably prefer the horse."

Bonus encores of Kurt Weill's "Lost In The Stars" and Jerome Kern's "They'd Never Believe Me" are a treat, but there are no new arrangements of Costello favourites, although parts of The Juliet Letters does offer the venom and menace of old. No Armed Forces, or This Year's Model, but plenty of blood and Capulet.



Wendy's boat comes in


Terry Staunton

When her record company refused to release the last Transvision Vamp album in the UK, it looked like the beginning of the end for Wendy James. But now she's back as a top priority solo act — on the same label — with an LP of songs written by Elvis Costello. Terry Staunton met the new "adult" Wendy, who's out to prove she's not just another mouth of lipstick vogue.

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Pity poor Wendy. One minute she was telling us that she and her band Transvision Vamp were "born to be sold," the next her record company couldn't even give them away.

Fame is a fickle mistress, as Wendy found out to her cost. After selling close to two million albums worldwide, the pop bubble burst in the most public of ways. As Transvision Vamp were falling apart on an American tour in late '91, their British label MCA made a very harsh decision. The group's newly recorded third album, The Little Magnet Versus The Bubble Of Babble, would not be finding its way into the record stores. The marketing dream pop package of glamour and guitars had turned into a nightmare. Recent singles had failed to make any serious dents in the Top 40 and the flavour of the month had gone sour.

Had we heard the last of Wendy James? Not quite. MCA opted to keep her as a solo artist, and the first album under her own name is in the shops this week. What makes Now Ain't The Time For Your Tears such a fascinating prospect is that all ten of its songs were penned by Elvis Costello.

The first single, "The Nameless One," reached the top 40. A typical Costello ...




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Tags: Theatre RoyalLondonThe Brodsky QuartetThe Juliet LettersDeclan MacManusWilliam ShakespeareJuliet CapuletTaking My Life In Your HandsImperial BedroomDamnation's CellarJacksons, Monk And RoweKurt WeillLost In The StarsJerome KernThey Didn't Believe MeArmed ForcesThis Year's ModelPaul McCartneyMighty Like A RoseThe AttractionsAlmost BlueGeorge JonesWendy JamesNow Ain't The Time For Your TearsThe Nameless One

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New Musical Express, March 13, 1993


Terry Staunton reviews Elvis Costello & The Brodsky Quartet, Sunday, February 28, 1993, Theatre Royal, London, England.


Terry Staunton reviews the single for "Jacksons, Monk And Rowe."


Terry Staunton profiles Wendy James.


An ad for Now Ain't The Time For Your Tears runs on page 20.

Images

page 43page 19
Clippings.


Jacksons, Monk And Rowe


Terry Staunton

When was the last time a firm of solicitors lent their name to a cracking pop single? And make no mistake; deep in the weightiness and worthiness of The Juliet Letters, Costello's "song sequence" for string quartet and voice, "Jacksons, Monk And Rowe" is a beautifully crafted four minutes which would grace any jukebox or radio show. Two verses of childhood reminiscences and then Elvis switches to a divorce petition, while the Brodskys' bold strings scrape out a motif that wouldn't be out of place on a Jim Webb epic. This is big pop!

The Juliet Letters is everything that McCartney's artwank meandering Liverpool Oratorio wasn't. A brave and largely successful move by El after the mess of Mighty Like A Rose, and the Brodskys are probably the best band he's worked with since The Attractions.


Advertisement.
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Cover.
1993-03-13 New Musical Express cover.jpg

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