Melody Maker, July 9, 1983: Difference between revisions
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<center><h3> Elvis Costello and The Attractions </h3></center> | <center><h3> Elvis Costello and The Attractions </h3></center> | ||
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<center> Allan Jones </center> | <center> Allan Jones </center> | ||
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''' Dingwalls, London | |||
{{Bibliography text}} | {{Bibliography text}} | ||
For a while back there, it looked like the old crown was slipping drastically askew. Elvis had reached a pretty sublime kind of peak with ''Get Happy!!'', nearly topped even that triumph with ''Trust'' and provided a thoroughly diverting entertainment with ''Almost Blue''; but virtually everything since has been a roll down the slope. ''Imperial Bedroom'' was full of glossy formalities but few songs that actually sucked you inside out in the grand manner. "Head To Toe" was emptily gruff; "Party Party" was simply wretched, especially set against Elvis' lyric for "Shipbuilding," which was among the most poignant and incisive pieces he'd ever written. | For a while back there, it looked like the old crown was slipping drastically askew. Elvis had reached a pretty sublime kind of peak with ''Get Happy!!'', nearly topped even that triumph with ''Trust'' and provided a thoroughly diverting entertainment with ''Almost Blue''; but virtually everything since has been a roll down the slope. ''Imperial Bedroom'' was full of glossy formalities but few songs that actually sucked you inside out in the grand manner. "Head To Toe" was emptily gruff; "Party Party" was simply wretched, especially set against Elvis' lyric for "Shipbuilding," which was among the most poignant and incisive pieces he'd ever written. | ||
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In this context, "Pills And Soap" was a reassuring return to form; its angry, compassionate intensity restoring to his work a vigour that had recently been worryingly absent, the cute marketing strategy that accompanied its release recalling the guerilla tactics of early Stiff campaigns. | In this context, "Pills And Soap" was a reassuring return to form; its angry, compassionate intensity restoring to his work a vigour that had recently been worryingly absent, the cute marketing strategy that accompanied its release recalling the guerilla tactics of early Stiff campaigns. | ||
No little wonder, then, that his return to Dingwalls was the hottest ticket in town last week. At £12.50 those tickets were hardly a cut-price snip, but what the hell? Six years ago, Costello and the Attractions made their official [[Concert 1977-07-26 London|debut]] here and played the kind of set that engraved itself indelibly upon the imagination. And, after the extravagances of the Albert Hall shows, and the inevitable graduation to concert halls that followed a brief apprenticeship in the clubs and bars, the opportunity of checking out the man and his band in the sort of atmosphere and environment that had originally nurtured their music was obviously irresistible; a potential thrill that surely couldn't be overlooked. | No little wonder, then, that his return to Dingwalls was the hottest ticket in town last week. At £12.50 those tickets were hardly a cut-price snip, but what the hell? Six years ago, Costello and the Attractions made their official [[Concert 1977-07-26 London|debut]] here and played the kind of set that engraved itself indelibly upon the imagination. And, after the extravagances of the Albert Hall [[Concert 1982-12-27 London|shows]], and the inevitable graduation to concert halls that followed a brief apprenticeship in the clubs and bars, the opportunity of checking out the man and his band in the sort of atmosphere and environment that had originally nurtured their music was obviously irresistible; a potential thrill that surely couldn't be overlooked. | ||
[[image:1983-07-09 Melody Maker photo 01.jpg|170px|right]] | |||
The evening rather clambered off the deck with a version of "Let Them All Talk" from the forthcoming ''Punch The Clock'' set. With the TKO Horns pushing and shoving against the Attractions' characteristically pugnacious bounce, the effect was scrappy, confused, ill-defined. A brusque, punchy "Possession" and a sensationally desolate "Secondary Modern" put the set back on the rails, set up the avalanche of horns and percussion (Pete Thomas giving it maximum stick behind the kit) that threatened to lift "The Greatest Thing" (another cut from the new LP) into surreal orbit. | The evening rather clambered off the deck with a version of "Let Them All Talk" from the forthcoming ''Punch The Clock'' set. With the TKO Horns pushing and shoving against the Attractions' characteristically pugnacious bounce, the effect was scrappy, confused, ill-defined. A brusque, punchy "Possession" and a sensationally desolate "Secondary Modern" put the set back on the rails, set up the avalanche of horns and percussion (Pete Thomas giving it maximum stick behind the kit) that threatened to lift "The Greatest Thing" (another cut from the new LP) into surreal orbit. | ||
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When Costello is in this kind of form the opposition just doesn't exist. | When Costello is in this kind of form the opposition just doesn't exist. | ||
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{{tags}}[[Concert 1983-06-28 London|Dingwalls]] {{-}} [[London]] {{-}} [[The Attractions]] {{-}} [[The TKO Horns]] {{-}} [[Let Them All Talk]] {{-}} [[Punch The Clock]] {{-}} [[Get Happy!!]] {{-}} [[Trust]] {{-}} [[Almost Blue]] {{-}} [[Imperial Bedroom]] {{-}} [[From Head To Toe]] {{-}} [[Party Party]] {{-}} [[Shipbuilding]] {{-}} [[Pills And Soap]] {{-}} [[Stiff Records]] {{-}} [[Concert 1982-12-27 London|Albert Hall]] {{-}} [[Possession]] {{-}} [[Secondary Modern]] {{-}} [[Pete Thomas]] {{-}} [[The Greatest Thing]] {{-}} [[Town Cryer]] {{-}} [[Everyday I Write The Book]] {{-}} [[The World And His Wife]] {{-}} [[TKO (Boxing Day)]] {{-}} [[Q-Tips: Live At Last|The Q-Tips]] {{-}} [[Clowntime Is Over]] {{-}} [[Big Sister's Clothes]] {{-}} [[The Beat (band)]] {{-}} [[Stand Down Margaret]] {{-}} [[Shipbuilding]] {{-}} [[Oliver's Army]] {{-}} [[John Cale]] | |||
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{{Bibliography notes}} | {{Bibliography notes}} | ||
{{Bibliography next | {{Bibliography next | ||
|prev = Melody Maker, | |prev = Melody Maker, July 2, 1983 | ||
|next = Melody Maker, July 30, 1983 | |next = Melody Maker, July 30, 1983 | ||
}} | }} | ||
'''Melody Maker, July 9, 1983 | '''Melody Maker, July 9, 1983 | ||
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[[Allan Jones]] reviews Elvis Costello | [[Allan Jones]] reviews Elvis Costello & [[The Attractions]] with [[The TKO Horns]], Tuesday, [[Concert 1983-06-28 London|June 28, 1983]], Dingwalls, London, England. | ||
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''Melody Maker'' reports that EC may appear on ''[[TV 1983-11-04 The Tube|The Tube]]''. | |||
{{Bibliography images}} | {{Bibliography images}} | ||
[[image:1983-07-09 Melody Maker clipping | [[image:1983-07-09 Melody Maker page 14 clipping 01.jpg|380px]] | ||
<br><small>Clipping.</small> | <br><small>Clipping.</small> | ||
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<center><h3> Elvis to play 'Tube'? </h3></center> | |||
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<center> Melody Maker </center> | |||
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[[image:1983-07-09 Melody Maker clipping 01.jpg|120px|right]] | |||
Elvis Costello and The Pretenders are among artists who've offered to appear on the second series of ''The Tube'', following the "phenomenal" success of the programme's one-off Midsummer special. | |||
The five-hour marathon, described by Tyne-Tees Television staff as "a labour of love we sweated blood over," featured films, live music and pre-recorded interviews from performers as diverse as Culture Club, Twisted Sister, Duran Duran, King Sunny Ade, David Bowie and U2. | |||
Phone calls in response to the competitions and opinion pieces arrived at the rate of 27,500 an hour, jamming the station's switchboards. | |||
The new series begins again on Channel 4 in October for a 26-week run. Meanwhile, ITV are planning to put on a series of one-hour Saturday programmes (from 11 pm to midnight) containing highlights of the first ''Tube'' series. Additionally, an even more ambitious marathon — an all-day event — is being discussed for next year. | |||
Malcolm Gerrie, senior producer of ''The Tube'', said this week: "The crazy idea for the Midsummer special was born in April in a conversation between Jeremy Isaacs (''Tube'' executive for Channel 4) and Mike Bolland (commissioning editor for young people's programmes). Then our programme controller Andrea Wonfor became involved. | |||
"This was at a time when ''The Tube'' was starting to mushroom and our ratings were really taking off, getting over a million people a week. But we still weren't expecting anything like the audience figure we've been told to expect; it's absolutely phenomenal. | |||
"We had our troubles. I had to try to convince people that King Sunny Ade was worth putting on rather than Rod Stewart who'd showed an interest in doing something for us that night. | |||
"That King Sunny worked so well means we can be even braver in the second series. You can actually give new and perhaps more cultish bands the chance to make it work." | |||
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<br><small>Cover and page scan.</small><br> | |||
[[image:1983-07-09 Melody Maker cover.jpg|x120px|border]] | [[image:1983-07-09 Melody Maker cover.jpg|x120px|border]] | ||
[[image:1983-07-09 Melody Maker | [[image:1983-07-09 Melody Maker page 14.jpg|x120px]] | ||
{{Bibliography notes footer}} | {{Bibliography notes footer}} | ||
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==External links== | ==External links== | ||
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melody_Maker Wikipedia: Melody Maker] | *[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melody_Maker Wikipedia: Melody Maker] | ||
*[https://twitter.com/nothingelseon/status/1174974951444504576 Twitter: nothingelseon] | |||
{{DEFAULTSORT:Melody Maker 1983-07-09}} | {{DEFAULTSORT:Melody Maker 1983-07-09}} |
Latest revision as of 10:07, 5 July 2023
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