Paste, October 2003

Bibliography   72 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 UK & Ireland weeklies UK & Ireland magazines UK & Ireland newspapers US newspapers US rock magazines US music magazines US magazines US alternative weeklies European magazines European newspapers Canada  •  Mexico  •  Asia Australia  •  New Zealand South America  •  Africa Blogs  •  Fanzines  •  Books Online publications Paste magazine   2003 October 2003 December 2004 December 2004 October 2005 April 18 2005 June 1 2005 November 22 2006 September   2008 March 3 2009 June 24 2010 April 29 2010 September 27 2010 November 2 2013 March 25 2013 September 17 2013 November 26 2014 May 24  2014 November 11 2015 October 15 2016 May 2 2017 March 29 2017 July 5 2017 August 31  2019 January 30  2019 June 24  2022 January 12 2023 March 13 US rock magazines  Circus Crawdaddy Creem East Coast Rocker Gig Good Times Grooves Hit Parader Hot Rock Musician New Orleans Wavelength New Sounds New Wave Rock New York Rocker Paste Phonograph Record Pop Rock Special Punk Rock Stars Pulse! Ray Gun The Record Relix Revolution Rock Around The World RockBill Rock Scene Rock World RockBill Rolling Stone Spin Star Hits Trouser Press Vibes — North Elvis Costello Tim Porter Elvis Costello refuses to stay in one place too long. He could have made a career of recycling the classic pop melodies and arrangements of My Aim Is True, but instead he chose to continually redefine his music with increasingly radical departures. Sometimes the result is glorious (all of the early Attractions albums, King of America, Painted From Memory); sometimes abysmal (Mighty Like a Rose, Kojak Variety). This time out, he follows last year's disappointing When I Was Cruel by crooning and bellowing his way through ballads wrapped in jazz and classical arrangements. Collaborating with Mingus Big Band, Jazz Passengers, and the mesmeric Lee Konitz on sax and Steve Nieve on piano, Costello led all of the arrangements and also brought back the Brodsky Quartet for one song and Marc Ribot for the scant 12 bars that contain electric guitar. Lyrically, North forms a complete song cycle, beginning with "You Left Me In the Dark" and progressing to "I'm In the Mood Again." The songs are surprisingly heartfelt and straightforward for someone who has built a reputation as one of the best songwriters this side of Dylan based on extreme density, opacity, cynicism and anger. North is a quiet album that demands patience of its listeners, but those who make the journey are amply rewarded. It is, quite simply, sublime. Tags: North  •  My Aim Is True  •  The Attractions  •  King Of America  •  Painted From Memory  •  Mighty Like A Rose  •  Kojak Variety  •  When I Was Cruel  •  Mingus Big Band  •  The Jazz Passengers  •  Lee Konitz  •  Steve Nieve  •  The Brodsky Quartet  •  Marc Ribot  •  You Left Me In The Dark  •  I'm In The Mood Again  •  Bob Dylan << >> Paste, No. 6, October 2003 Tim Porter reviews North. Images

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