Melody Maker, October 21, 1989: Difference between revisions
(formatting) |
(formatting +tags) |
||
Line 8: | Line 8: | ||
---- | ---- | ||
''' Elvis Costello <br> | ''' Elvis Costello <br> | ||
Girls Girls Girls <!-- Girls + | Girls Girls Girls <!-- Girls +£÷ Girls =$& Girls --> | ||
{{Bibliography text}} | {{Bibliography text}} | ||
Just another Costello compilation? I should coco. At first glance, this might look like an extravagant exercise in gaining more mileage out of the crafty bugger's extensive back catalogue. The preposterously titled ''Girls + | Just another Costello compilation? I should coco. At first glance, this might look like an extravagant exercise in gaining more mileage out of the crafty bugger's extensive back catalogue. The preposterously titled ''Girls +£÷ Girls =$& Girls'' comes in three formats. Forty seven songs on the CD, 51 on the cassette, 31 on the record — 65 different songs in total. | ||
But that's not all. As Costello points out in the accompanying [[Girls Girls Girls (1989) liner notes|notes]], these songs have been arranged in four parts so as to try and tell a number of different stories. He leaves the listener to make what they will of each section. "The deciding factor in making these choices," he writes, "is contained in the obscure arithmetic of the title, although I must caution against taking it too seriously, unless you are considering a career in the legal profession." | But that's not all. As Costello points out in the accompanying [[Girls Girls Girls (1989) liner notes|notes]], these songs have been arranged in four parts so as to try and tell a number of different stories. He leaves the listener to make what they will of each section. "The deciding factor in making these choices," he writes, "is contained in the obscure arithmetic of the title, although I must caution against taking it too seriously, unless you are considering a career in the legal profession." | ||
Line 18: | Line 18: | ||
It seems highly unlikely, therefore, that Costello himself should wish to unravel his own knots. When he talks of arranging these songs into chapters, one wonders how deeply his tongue is entrenched in his cheek. One wonders whether the playful concept of this collection is merely a way of justifying the second Costello anthology in three years, ''The Best Of Elvis Costello: The Man'' having been issued by Demon in 1986. | It seems highly unlikely, therefore, that Costello himself should wish to unravel his own knots. When he talks of arranging these songs into chapters, one wonders how deeply his tongue is entrenched in his cheek. One wonders whether the playful concept of this collection is merely a way of justifying the second Costello anthology in three years, ''The Best Of Elvis Costello: The Man'' having been issued by Demon in 1986. | ||
Whatever the reasons, ''Girls + | Whatever the reasons, ''Girls +£÷ Girls =$& Girls'' is perhaps as close to a definitive Costello compilation as we could hope for. As one plays with the permutations, it becomes clear that Costello is at least partly serious when he talks of the systematic arrangement of these songs. Take Side Four of the cassette format which chronicles the corruption and decay of Thatcher's Eighties. His more blatant and acerbic political/social designs ("Oliver's Army," "Pills And Soap," "Night Rally" and "Shipbuilding") are set against some of his more metaphorical timebombs ("American Without Tears," "Watch Your Step," "Clubland" and "Suit Of Lights"). It's not all so clearly devised though. On the vinyl option, the George Jones-inspired "Stranger In The House" is mysteriously squeezed between "Pills And Soap" and "Clubland." Are we expected to sort out the red herrings, too? Are we even expected to burrow deep for allusions and hidden signs? If so, then this is a whole lot weirder than I first imagined and Costello has enough space in his attic to park a large tractor. | ||
Let's take Side Two of the vinyl version. Here, Costello gathers together his speculations on the vagaries and vanities of love, from "Man Out Of Time" and "Brilliant Mistake" to "Green Shirt" and "Beyond Belief." Love affairs badly acted, murdered, blood-splattered, imagined, ulcerated and unbuttoned. Nobody writes soap operas like Elvis. | Let's take Side Two of the vinyl version. Here, Costello gathers together his speculations on the vagaries and vanities of love, from "Man Out Of Time" and "Brilliant Mistake" to "Green Shirt" and "Beyond Belief." Love affairs badly acted, murdered, blood-splattered, imagined, ulcerated and unbuttoned. Nobody writes soap operas like Elvis. | ||
Line 26: | Line 26: | ||
And so on. Locate the end of the thread and find your way to the spool, with a little help from Elvis. Sometimes it makes sense and sometimes it doesn't. Whatever his motives might be, Costello has assembled a corking compilation, which prompts the listener to bring a new curiosity to these songs. Perhaps he feels taken for granted and this is a way of making us pay attention once again. Perhaps, like Lou Reed, he has decided that he's been writing the Great Novel all along, chapter by chapter. God only knows. One thing's for sure, ''Girls Girls Girls'' is one hell of a bingo hall. | And so on. Locate the end of the thread and find your way to the spool, with a little help from Elvis. Sometimes it makes sense and sometimes it doesn't. Whatever his motives might be, Costello has assembled a corking compilation, which prompts the listener to bring a new curiosity to these songs. Perhaps he feels taken for granted and this is a way of making us pay attention once again. Perhaps, like Lou Reed, he has decided that he's been writing the Great Novel all along, chapter by chapter. God only knows. One thing's for sure, ''Girls Girls Girls'' is one hell of a bingo hall. | ||
{{cx}} | |||
{{tags}}[[Girls Girls Girls|Girls +£÷ Girls =$& Girls]] {{-}} [[Girls Girls Girls (1989) liner notes|Girls Girls Girls liner notes]] {{-}} [[Oliver's Army]] {{-}} [[Pills And Soap]] {{-}} [[Shipbuilding]] {{-}} [[Night Rally]] {{-}} [[American Without Tears]] {{-}} [[Margaret Thatcher]] {{-}} [[Watch Your Step]] {{-}} [[Clubland]] {{-}} [[Suit Of Lights]] {{-}} [[Stranger In The House]] {{-}} [[George Jones]] {{-}} [[Brilliant Mistake]] {{-}} [[Man Out Of Time]] {{-}} [[Green Shirt]] {{-}} [[Beyond Belief]] {{-}} [[Alison]] {{-}} [[Indoor Fireworks]] {{-}} [[Party Girl]] {{-}} [[Riot Act]] {{-}} [[Almost Blue (song)|Almost Blue]] {{-}} [[Poisoned Rose]] {{-}} [[I Want You]] {{-}} [[I'll Wear It Proudly]] {{-}} [[Demon]] {{-}} [[Lou Reed]] | |||
{{cx}} | {{cx}} | ||
Line 41: | Line 44: | ||
{{Bibliography images}} | {{Bibliography images}} | ||
[[image:1989-10-21 Melody Maker page 41 clipping 01.jpg|380px | [[image:1989-10-21 Melody Maker page 41 clipping 01.jpg|380px]] | ||
<br><small>Clipping.</small> | <br><small>Clipping.</small> | ||
<small>Cover.</small><br> | <small>Cover.</small><br> | ||
[[image:1989-10-21 Melody Maker cover.jpg|x120px | [[image:1989-10-21 Melody Maker cover.jpg|x120px]] | ||
{{Bibliography notes footer}} | {{Bibliography notes footer}} |
Latest revision as of 16:27, 1 July 2023
|