New Musical Express, August 21, 1982: Difference between revisions
(update browser) |
(formatting / update browser) |
||
Line 31: | Line 31: | ||
"Then one day I thought up ''Imperial Bedroom'' and it was automatic, y'know: Ah perfect. Because the two words achieve just the right combination of 'faded splendour' and 'sleaze' to fit all the tracks on the album. It's 'Imperial Bedroom' music. That title evokes for me the perfect definition... I mean, I can just see the 'Imperial Bedroom' itself." | "Then one day I thought up ''Imperial Bedroom'' and it was automatic, y'know: Ah perfect. Because the two words achieve just the right combination of 'faded splendour' and 'sleaze' to fit all the tracks on the album. It's 'Imperial Bedroom' music. That title evokes for me the perfect definition... I mean, I can just see the 'Imperial Bedroom' itself." | ||
"Recorded just before Christmas | "Recorded just before Christmas, it turned out to be the longest album to make, mostly because, as co-producer I had to keep running from the control room to the studio in order to hear the take we'd just completed. Geoff Emerick took care of ''all'' the sound and mixing whilst my side of things really involved y'know, "Is it a good take"? As a result of my being more directly involved in production, there was a part in the band to treat each track individually as opposed to going for an overall production 'feel' which had always been the case before. Like on ''Get Happy'' there was the 'soul' idea so that every song conformed to that concept. | ||
"Geoff Emerick (best known for being George Martin's lay engineer and thus having worked on most Beatles' cuts, not to mention a plethora of the most diverse recordings) was the perfect man for the job of producer. possessing as he does endles patience, great ideas, vast experience and — something we both share — a healthy suspicion with regard to some of the more dubious 'trends' in modern production. Like, I didn't want to make a '60s-sounding record but there are certain elements to the '60s production thing that have gradually been eroded. For example, the bass drum has got louder and louder to this ludicrous state where it drums out the whole rest of the kit, whilst voices have got quieter and quieter with more and more effects that are almost too subtle. I've always believed that an effect should be used solely to leap out and grab you, plus I wanted my voice mixed up loud so you can hear the words. | "Geoff Emerick (best known for being George Martin's lay engineer and thus having worked on most Beatles' cuts, not to mention a plethora of the most diverse recordings) was the perfect man for the job of producer. possessing as he does endles patience, great ideas, vast experience and — something we both share — a healthy suspicion with regard to some of the more dubious 'trends' in modern production. Like, I didn't want to make a '60s-sounding record but there are certain elements to the '60s production thing that have gradually been eroded. For example, the bass drum has got louder and louder to this ludicrous state where it drums out the whole rest of the kit, whilst voices have got quieter and quieter with more and more effects that are almost too subtle. I've always believed that an effect should be used solely to leap out and grab you, plus I wanted my voice mixed up loud so you can hear the words. | ||
Line 55: | Line 55: | ||
"For every junkie musician or alcoholic writer who dies in what are twistedly regarded as romantic conditions — this supposed blaze of phoney glory — there's a mum or dad or a sister somewhere just crying their eyes out over it all. I mean, ''they're'' the ones who've got to bury the sod. This cheerful tune underscores an utterly morbid concept. Actually, it's not morbid, it's simply about wanting to live and not die. That's why there's the 'PS I Love You' at the end, the voice beyond the grave." | "For every junkie musician or alcoholic writer who dies in what are twistedly regarded as romantic conditions — this supposed blaze of phoney glory — there's a mum or dad or a sister somewhere just crying their eyes out over it all. I mean, ''they're'' the ones who've got to bury the sod. This cheerful tune underscores an utterly morbid concept. Actually, it's not morbid, it's simply about wanting to live and not die. That's why there's the 'PS I Love You' at the end, the voice beyond the grave." | ||
Costello defines his moral concerns with an endearingly erudite candour when talking about three of | Costello defines his moral concerns with an endearingly erudite candour when talking about three of <i>Bedroom</i>'s more initially evasive songs. "Little Savage," for example, "is a sort of love song. Most love songs are written on this very firm conviction of love found or love lost. There aren't nearly as many about people in the middle, and there are a lot of those people they're the ones who don't know if they're Mr Average or Little Savage, right? | ||
"'Pidgin English' is a political song, yes, because I think it's pretty disgusting the way the English language is being taken to pieces, particularly by certain newspapers. The way the ''Star'' and the ''Sun'' are trying to turn everyone into morons, people actually won't be able to talk properly in 50 years time. The English language is very expressive when used properly but everything's being turned into jargon. | "'Pidgin English' is a political song, yes, because I think it's pretty disgusting the way the English language is being taken to pieces, particularly by certain newspapers. The way the ''Star'' and the ''Sun'' are trying to turn everyone into morons, people actually won't be able to talk properly in 50 years time. The English language is very expressive when used properly but everything's being turned into jargon. | ||
Line 63: | Line 63: | ||
"'You Little Fool' is about a young girl who's worth a lot more than she's getting. This fellow — a real creep — is taking advantage of her and she doesn't know quite enough to say 'Leggo'. Thus the split personality vocals: the guy singing the chorus sounds horribly slimey, I wouldn't want to meet him. | "'You Little Fool' is about a young girl who's worth a lot more than she's getting. This fellow — a real creep — is taking advantage of her and she doesn't know quite enough to say 'Leggo'. Thus the split personality vocals: the guy singing the chorus sounds horribly slimey, I wouldn't want to meet him. | ||
"The central theme is one step up from 'Mother's Little Helper' by | "The central theme is one step up from 'Mother's Little Helper' by the Rolling Stones — when they were still like a group — the girl keeps getting this useless advice from her mother, who thinks she's being liberal but who is giving her daughter no help whatsoever. That goes on a lot. | ||
"Like Adam Ant says, you don't have to lose your virginity at 15. You're your own master. | "Like Adam Ant says, you don't have to lose your virginity at 15. You're your own master. | ||
Line 69: | Line 69: | ||
"A lot of people have been saying for 20 years now that kids are too permissive, but it's more the mothers reading ''Cosmopolitan'' feeding them this kind of garbage. The kids themselves usually know what's going on. They don't need to read ''The Sensuous Woman''. What a load of bollocks that is." | "A lot of people have been saying for 20 years now that kids are too permissive, but it's more the mothers reading ''Cosmopolitan'' feeding them this kind of garbage. The kids themselves usually know what's going on. They don't need to read ''The Sensuous Woman''. What a load of bollocks that is." | ||
Finally, with a swift nod to | Finally, with a swift nod to "Town Cryer" ("The key line is <i>'I'm never going to cry again'</i> — on ''Almost Blue'' — people had enough of me wingeing on"), one quote lingers as a perfect reason for Costello's supremacy as pop writer and the perfect reason for the general public, choosing to keep on ignoring him. | ||
"Most people, I think, are confused regarding their identities, or how they feel, particularly about love. They're confused because they're not given a voice, they don't have many songs written for or about them. On the one hand there's <i>'I love you, the sky is blue</i>,' or total desolation, and ''inbetween'' there's this lack of anything. And it's never that clear-cut. There's a dishonesty in so much pop — written, possibly, with an honest intent — all that starry eyed stuff. | "Most people, I think, are confused regarding their identities, or how they feel, particularly about love. They're confused because they're not given a voice, they don't have many songs written for or about them. On the one hand there's <i>'I love you, the sky is blue</i>,' or total desolation, and ''inbetween'' there's this lack of anything. And it's never that clear-cut. There's a dishonesty in so much pop — written, possibly, with an honest intent — all that starry eyed stuff. | ||
"I believe I fulfill the role of writing songs that aren't starry eyed all the time." | "I believe I fulfill the role of writing songs that aren't starry-eyed all the time." | ||
{{cx}} | {{cx}} | ||
Line 88: | Line 88: | ||
[[Nick Kent]] writes about Elvis Costello and ''[[Imperial Bedroom]]'', quoting heavily from the ''[[A Conversation With Elvis Costello|Conversation With Elvis Costello]]'' promo. | [[Nick Kent]] writes about Elvis Costello and ''[[Imperial Bedroom]]'', quoting heavily from the ''[[A Conversation With Elvis Costello|Conversation With Elvis Costello]]'' promo. | ||
---- | ---- | ||
Paul Tickell reviews the ''Gram Parsons'' compilation, which features [[Gram Parsons (1982) liner notes|liner notes]] by | Paul Tickell reviews the ''Gram Parsons'' compilation, which features [[Gram Parsons (1982) liner notes|liner notes]] by EC. | ||
---- | ---- | ||
Also includes an [[:image:1982-08-21 New Musical Express advertisement.jpg|ad]] for the [[:Category:Bedrooms Of Britain Tour|Bedrooms Of Britain Tour]]. | Also includes an [[:image:1982-08-21 New Musical Express advertisement.jpg|ad]] for the [[:Category:Bedrooms Of Britain Tour|Bedrooms Of Britain Tour]]. | ||
Line 94: | Line 94: | ||
{{Bibliography images}} | {{Bibliography images}} | ||
[[image:1982-08-21 New Musical Express page 08.jpg| | [[image:1982-08-21 New Musical Express page 08.jpg|380px|border]] | ||
<br><small>Page scan.</small> | <br><small>Page scan.</small> | ||
Line 117: | Line 117: | ||
<br><br> | <br><br> | ||
[[image:1982-08-21 New Musical Express page 10 clipping.jpg| | [[image:1982-08-21 New Musical Express page 10 clipping.jpg|380px|border]] | ||
<br><small>Clipping.</small> | <br><small>Clipping.</small> | ||
<small>Advertisement.</small><br> | <small>Advertisement.</small><br> | ||
[[image:1982-08-21 New Musical Express advertisement.jpg| | [[image:1982-08-21 New Musical Express advertisement.jpg|380px|border]] | ||
<small>Cover.</small><br> | |||
[[image:1982-08-21 New Musical Express cover.jpg|x120px|border]] | [[image:1982-08-21 New Musical Express cover.jpg|x120px|border]] | ||
{{Bibliography notes footer}} | {{Bibliography notes footer}} |
Revision as of 22:21, 13 July 2019
|