Album Reviews

While American soul music— northern urban and southern rural—and UK-via-the-Caribbean-derived Ska course through the veins of the fourth Elvis Costello and the Attractions album,  the flesh thankfully remains white limey. 

Listening to Elvis makes clear his indebtedness to Dean Martin and Bryan Ferry’s to Elvis. No doubt Paul McCartney was imitating growing up too. There’s not been a voice like it since, which for detractors is a good thing.  

Elvis’s first post-Army album created a sensation when it was released just one month after he entered Nashville Studio B on March 20th, 1960, two week after his release from the Army. Unfortunately, for Presley and RCA Elvis Is Back!  wasn’t a big seller because it didn’t contain any hits. Presley had been away for two years.

Glen Rock New Jersey is a small town in Northern Bergen County.

If I have to fight with you over the logic of releasing a double LP of music transferred from 78s, just think of your battles with digital lovers over the superiority of vinyl! I'm not suggesting that the original 78s from which this absolutely fascinating and often startling compilation was sourced sound like modern, full frequency response recordings. However, in the vital midrange, the sense of "living presence" is remarkable.

Pure Pleasure’s musical archeological digs have managed to find some interesting obscurities, this Gil Evans session from 1959 being one of them. It certainly deserves to be brought to your attention. However, its appeal will be limited to aficionados of Evans’ arranging excellence than for any other reason, though many fine players are involved, particularly and obviously trumpeter Johnny Coles as well as Steve Lacey, among others.