London Independent, January 17, 1993: Difference between revisions
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Three years ago the Brodsky Quartet was performing its acclaimed Shostakovich series in London when someone spotted Costello in the audience. Costello had grown weary of pop concerts — too predictable, rather hammy — and had taken to concert halls in search of something more. In the Brodskys he found four brilliant musicians who achieved what he believed to be a unique balance. "They played music, not just notes, they had painstaking respect for the music, but weren't overawed by it," he said. They also looked pretty cool, a fact not lost on their record company's marketing department. They wore Issey Miyake, supported the Pet Shop Boys, posed for album sleeves astride motorbikes. | Three years ago the Brodsky Quartet was performing its acclaimed Shostakovich series in London when someone spotted Costello in the audience. Costello had grown weary of pop concerts — too predictable, rather hammy — and had taken to concert halls in search of something more. In the Brodskys he found four brilliant musicians who achieved what he believed to be a unique balance. "They played music, not just notes, they had painstaking respect for the music, but weren't overawed by it," he said. They also looked pretty cool, a fact not lost on their record company's marketing department. They wore Issey Miyake, supported the Pet Shop Boys, posed for album sleeves astride motorbikes. | ||
By chance, the quartet also admired Costello and went to his shows. These days, the mutual admiration is in danger of getting out of hand. "'Almost Blue' played in my car for 11 years non-stop," says violinist Michael Thomas. Costello feels a little queasy with this. "That's because it was stuck," he offers. | By chance, the quartet also admired Costello and went to his shows. These days, the mutual admiration is in danger of getting out of hand. "''Almost Blue'' played in my car for 11 years non-stop," says violinist Michael Thomas. Costello feels a little queasy with this. "That's because it was stuck," he offers. | ||
They decided on a collaboration in November 1991, and had their theme within a month. Cait O'Riordan, the one-time Pogue who has become Costello's wife, saw an article in ''The Guardian'' about a Veronese professor who answered letters sent to Juliet Capulet. They liked both the poetic and rather tragic qualities of this, and initially thought of producing a cohesive narrative song-cycle between two love-lorn correspondents. This structure "would have become like a prison," Costello believes, so they settled for a theme of letters. All letters, any letters: begging letters, chain letters, junk mail, suicide notes, kids' notes, solicitors' letters, letters written but never sent, letters sent that never arrived; everything but notes to the milkman. | They decided on a collaboration in November 1991, and had their theme within a month. Cait O'Riordan, the one-time Pogue who has become Costello's wife, saw an article in ''The Guardian'' about a Veronese professor who answered letters sent to Juliet Capulet. They liked both the poetic and rather tragic qualities of this, and initially thought of producing a cohesive narrative song-cycle between two love-lorn correspondents. This structure "would have become like a prison," Costello believes, so they settled for a theme of letters. All letters, any letters: begging letters, chain letters, junk mail, suicide notes, kids' notes, solicitors' letters, letters written but never sent, letters sent that never arrived; everything but notes to the milkman. | ||
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"We tried doing a letter from an aunt in Derry just writing trivial stuff," Costello says, "but there's no way you can get the peculiarities of the colloquialisms and phrasing over." | "We tried doing a letter from an aunt in Derry just writing trivial stuff," Costello says, "but there's no way you can get the peculiarities of the colloquialisms and phrasing over." | ||
The sleeve notes speak of "the absence of much of the crafty language of the songwriter," which may be taken as a reference to Costello's own past-his fondness for wordplay so intricate that it verged on the painful. You remember, when he used to "step on the brake to get out of her clutches," and "speak double-dutch to a real double duchess" | The sleeve notes speak of "the absence of much of the crafty language of the songwriter," which may be taken as a reference to Costello's own past-his fondness for wordplay so intricate that it verged on the painful. You remember, when he used to ''"step on the brake to get out of her clutches,"'' and ''"speak double-dutch to a real double duchess."'' | ||
"I have to live with certain preconceived ideas about me," Costello says, "I'm Mr Angry, Mr Revenge, and I only do tricky wordplay. But I'd like to see where this wordplay is on the last four or five records I made — it's just not there, it's an optical illusion. There are certain newspapers that have been writing the same review of my records for the last 10 years — just substituting the titles. Maybe the wordplay thing is not so much a reflection of my complexities as a writer, so much as the banality of so much else that's going on. I simply try to put stuff in that repays repeated listening." | "I have to live with certain preconceived ideas about me," Costello says, "I'm Mr Angry, Mr Revenge, and I only do tricky wordplay. But I'd like to see where this wordplay is on the last four or five records I made — it's just not there, it's an optical illusion. There are certain newspapers that have been writing the same review of my records for the last 10 years — just substituting the titles. Maybe the wordplay thing is not so much a reflection of my complexities as a writer, so much as the banality of so much else that's going on. I simply try to put stuff in that repays repeated listening." | ||
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The album has received only three public airings but is being taken on a brief world tour this month. With the exception of Jacqueline Thomas, the cellist, the group performs standing up, with Costello in the middle. Lots of black, lots of bow-ties, lots of gothic. Costello grips a heavy lyric book in place of the guitar. | The album has received only three public airings but is being taken on a brief world tour this month. With the exception of Jacqueline Thomas, the cellist, the group performs standing up, with Costello in the middle. Lots of black, lots of bow-ties, lots of gothic. Costello grips a heavy lyric book in place of the guitar. | ||
A problem arose at the first performance: what to do for an encore. Initially they performed a couple of letters again, but are now considering reworking some earlier Costello favorites, "but only if they can be dismantled to suit the mood and collaborative nature of the rest of the project" | A problem arose at the first performance: what to do for an encore. Initially they performed a couple of letters again, but are now considering reworking some earlier Costello favorites, "but only if they can be dismantled to suit the mood and collaborative nature of the rest of the project." | ||
"If we get this piece over to an audience, and we open up people's ears and take away any perceived terror of what we're doing, the crassest thing you could do after that is to come back out and do a quartet arrangement of 'Alison,' just to get cheap applause." | "If we get this piece over to an audience, and we open up people's ears and take away any perceived terror of what we're doing, the crassest thing you could do after that is to come back out and do a quartet arrangement of 'Alison,' just to get cheap applause." | ||
You'll hear more traditional stuff from Costello later in the year. He has written an entire [[Wendy James: Now Ain't The Time For Your Tears|album]] for Wendy James, formerly of Transvision Vamp. "They're beautifully written, melodious songs that will last forever," James says. "There are some things about my personality that he has understood without it ever being something he could pick up in print, and all that must come from the letter." ''Letter?'' Depressed, James had sent Costello a note "about my general dissatisfaction with everything going on in my life ... I was asking for help, but nothing specific" | You'll hear more traditional stuff from Costello later in the year. He has written an entire [[Wendy James: Now Ain't The Time For Your Tears|album]] for Wendy James, formerly of Transvision Vamp. "They're beautifully written, melodious songs that will last forever," James says. "There are some things about my personality that he has understood without it ever being something he could pick up in print, and all that must come from the letter." ''Letter?'' Depressed, James had sent Costello a note "about my general dissatisfaction with everything going on in my life ... I was asking for help, but nothing specific." A few weeks later she had an album's worth of songs. | ||
Costello has also made ''Kojak Variety'', a cover album of some favourite songs from 1930 to 1970. It's a modest offering. "When I was young, records came out called ''In a Latin Mood'' or whatever, and that's exactly what they were. What's wrong with doing a record like that? Now every rock record that comes out is Nietzsche and Kafka and Michelangelo all rolled into one — every record has great claims for it, and most of them aren't true. Some are just records, and it would be a lot better if they were just presented like that. | Costello has also made ''Kojak Variety'', a cover album of some favourite songs from 1930 to 1970. It's a modest offering. "When I was young, records came out called ''In a Latin Mood'' or whatever, and that's exactly what they were. What's wrong with doing a record like that? Now every rock record that comes out is Nietzsche and Kafka and Michelangelo all rolled into one — every record has great claims for it, and most of them aren't true. Some are just records, and it would be a lot better if they were just presented like that. |
Revision as of 00:33, 7 December 2020
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