Product Description

Customer Reviews (13)

Elvis is King
Every so often, Elvis pops into my life, usually strongly. These are "exciting" periods in general.Good news: Elvis is back!Elvis is a great soundtrack for all you out there! And don't get beaten to the punch!

"Complicated Shadows" The Life & Music of Elvis Costello
THIS IS A GREAT BOOK ABOUT ELVIS FROM HIS BIRTH THROUGHOUT HIS CAREER UP UNTIL HIS INDUCTION INTO THE ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAME AND THE RELEASE OF "THE DELIVERY MAN" CD!!! (UP UNTIL ABOUT 2003?)

IT COVERS THAT HE ALWAYS LIKE TO PLAY SOME HANK WILLIAMS SONGS AND SOME GRAM PARSONS' SONGS!!! IT COVERS HIS CLASSIC ALBUMS,WHICH ARE MANY, BUT SOME OF MY FAVORTIE ONES INCLUDE HIS DEBUT ALBUM IN 1977 (I CAN'T THINK OF THE NAME OF IT NOW), I LIKED THE SONG "EVERYDAY I WRITE THE BOOK", AND I LIKED THE ALBUMS "KING OF AMERICA" , "ALMOST BLUE" AND "KOJAK VARIETY" (THIS FEATURES JAMES BURTON ON GUITAR), AND THE "DELIVERY MAN".

ELVIS HAS BEEN AND IS A VERY PROLIFIC SONG WRITER, AND MUSICIAN. HE IS A VERY VERSATILE MUSICIAN. HE CAN DO ROCK, COUNTRY, RHYTYM & BLUES, AND CLASSICAL. THIS BOOKS POINTS OUT THESE THINGS.

ELVIS HAS HAD A VERY INTERESTING LIFE, WHICH HAS INCLUDED SOME CONTROVERIES, HOWEVER HE ALWAYS FACED THESE CONTROVERIES, AND WORKED THROUGH THEM, RESULTING IN POSITIVE OUTCOMES. HE HAS PROVED HIMSELF AND HAS WON THE RESPECT OF ARTISTS FROM ALL GENRE'S AND RACE'S. THIS BOOK COVERS SOME OF THESE CONTROVERIES AND STORIES.

THIS IS A VERY GOOD ROCK BIOGRAPHY. IT COVERS A LOT ABOUT THE STORIES BEHIND SOME OF HIS MUSIC.

IT COVERS HIS MARRIAGE TO THE BEAUTIFUL JAZZ SINGER DIANA KRALL. IT COVERS HIS INDUCTION INTO THE ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAME!!!

IF YOU LIKE ROCK BIOGRAPHIES OF THIS TYPE ON A VERSATIVE MUSICIAN (NOT LIMITED TO ONE GENRE OF MUSIC). THEN, I THINK YOU'D LIKE THIS ONE, AND IN THAT CONTEXT, I RECOMMEND THIS BOOK!!!

Great!
Certainly a must-read for any Elvis fan. I enjoyed it immensely! The only possible downside was that I didn't realize that the last paragraph was (indeed) the last paragraph - and turned the page, ready for more!

From MacManus to Costello and back
No biography can ever have everything but for me this feels very in depth.I really appreciated the insights into Elvis' childhood.I knew Ross and Lillian ( parents ) were in the music business but I now have have clear visions of how Elvis' eclectic music roots flourished.

I have 'loved' Elvis since 1978, personally I couldn't put the book down.

Very Happy !!
This arrived on time and in great condition.Recommend the seller.Great book too. ... Read more

Product Description
This comprehensive collection is a matching folio to his double album of greatest hits. Features 40 of his finest, including: Accidents Will Happen * Alison * (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes * Everyday I Write the Book * (I Don't Want to Go To) Chelsea * Oliver's Army * (What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding * Pump It Up * Radio Radio * Shipbuilding * Veronica * Watching the Detectives * and more. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Baby Boomers and Elvis Costello!!
BB's and EC go hand in hand.If you're a BB and a piano player, you'll enjoy this collection of piano arrangements. I basically bought the book for the songs, "She" and "Candy."It's well worth the money spent. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

Insightful and impressionistic view of Costello.
This was the first of Reese's biographies of musicians, and was produced despite total non-cooperation from the subject.Her image-laden, insightful style gives a broad understanding of Costello as a person and anartist.Though not a fan, I still found the book quite interesting. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (3)

I got this book as a present in 1982
It helped me learn to play guitar. Elvis Costello's early compositions are all here. The songs are reasonably simple to learn and sing along to. The melodies are fantastic because it's Elvis Costello, and if you haven't listened to the songs that closely, you will be amazed at how clever his wordplay is.

Classic Songbook
I have used this songbook so much it's falling apart.All the early songs that E.C. wrote are included.(not the covers like My Funny Valentine)Songs are from the albums My Aim is True,This Year's Model, Armed Forces, Get Happy!! andtheTaking Liberties collection of b-sides and imports.A few lyrics may be a little off.There were never lyric sheets with those albums, so I may just have put in my own intrepretations.These early songs are great for budding guitarists and song writers.They are easily played on solo acoustic and you can learn about what makes a great song.Of course, you must first own the recordings!

Perfect Pop
For rock music fans this is a piece of history.The words and music to Elvis Costello's early canon of work, and as a contribution to the genre it doesn't get much better.Call yourself a music aficionado?Not untilyou've got this in your collection! ... Read more

Product Description
Elvis Costello arrives at the turn of the millennium generally recognized as one of the most important and influential stars of popular music. There are very few songwriters who can match his output on an album-to-album basis and none-perhaps with the exception of Bob Dylan-who can match his depth of passion and lyrical deftness. Born in London in 1955 as Declan Patrick McManus, he left school at seventeen, working as a computer operator by day and a folksinger by night. His first album, My Aim Is True, released in 1977, hit the charts and became the biggest import album of the decade when it crossed the Atlantic on the CBS/Columbia label. On his first U.S. tour, when a clash with Stephen Stills and Bonnie Bramlet turned ugly, Costello flew back home with death threats ringing in his ears. In the twenty years since, there have been twenty-three more albums that have made pop-music history. Tony Clayton-Lea tells the fascinating life story of an icon of the rock world-the hits, the drugs, the drink, the women, the critics, and the record companies-who once said it was his ultimate vocation in life to be an irritant.Amazon.com Review
Tony Clayton-Lea's Elvis Costello is a perfectexample of the cobbled-together rock biography. With no cooperationfrom Costello,and apparently no means by which to contact his past or present associates forcomment, Clayton-Lea scoured the press files again and again to fillhis thin narrative. The result will fail to intrigue the uninitiatedand will tell the committed fan little he or she doesn't alreadyknow. Given Costello's status as one of the most impressive andenduring music talents to emerge in the past quarter century, not tomention his many adventures on and off the job, this book must becounted as yet another failed attempt at telling his story. It doesn'thelp that Clayton-Lea's writing is sloppy and that some of thesimplest facts--for instance, how much of "Less Than Zero" Costelloand his band the Attractionsplayed on the Christmas 1977 episode of Saturday NightLive before abandoning it for "Radio Radio"--escape hispages. (The author also sets a new record for misspellings of King of Americacoproducer T-BoneBurnett's name.) Clayton-Lea provides the reader plenty toargue with, but not in the manner of, say, Marcus Gray's entertaining,infuriating Last Gangin Town: The Story and Myth of the Clash. In fact, many layfans' critical takes on Costello's work are bound to be moreinteresting than those of this supposed professional critic's. Hardlya must. --Rickey Wright ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Cut and Paste Bio
There are three types of unauthorized biographies, well-researched, pure speculation, and cut and paste. This is an example of the latter. The author gives us the Elvis Costello to be found in magazine interviews, and creates a whole book by taking information from a variety of sources and putting it all together into this quickie bio. Some decent insights into his recording career are to be found throughout, but this is really not well-done.You can put your time to better use by listening to a few Costello CD's and wonder about the workings of the man who created all this challenging music. That will bring you closer to understanding Elvis Costello than this book will.

Thin Account of Elvis
One thing that you have to give credit to Tony Clayton-Lea for is that he right up front advises the reader that Elvis Costello had nothing and wanted nothing to do with this biography. Cooperation from the subject of a biography is, of course, immensely helpful in writing of the book, but by no means a necessity.Mr. Clayton-Lea offers an extremely pedestrian account of the life and times of Elvis Costello.The book reads like press clippings in many spots and offers no insight into the man's career.Being that there are barely any books on Mr. Costello, this book has a minimum of value for that reason, but not much else. if you are an avid fan of Mr. Costello, then this book doesn't offer much, but if you are not that familiar with his career, then this book is a decent primer.

Third rate book on one of the greatest performers
What a let down! I can't think of anyone more deserving of a good biography than Elvis Costello. The greatest 20th Century songwriter -- and I include Dylan, Gershwin, Porter, et al., in that comparison. Well, thisisn't what we've been waiting for, by a country mile. A thrown-togethercollection of press clips, apocrypha and tired gossip, with absolutely noanalysis of his lyrics and songwriting in general. If you're going to reada bio, try "God's Comic" instead. It's no great shakes either,but this is the pits. Why the publisher didn't just sling the MS in thetrashcan, I don't know. Obviously done with no cooperation from the subjector anyone who knows the first thing about his music. Save your money.

Costello biography fails to dazzle.
Tony Clayton-Lea's book, "Elvis Costello: A Biography" is about as inspired as its title. It is a mostly a cookie-cutter approach to the life of the greatest singer-songwriter this side of Bob Dylan.Interestingly, previous chronologies of Dylan's life and times have beenimaginative, provocative, and literate. It's a shame Costello has yet toreceive equal treatment. Clayton-Lea's book reads like a cross between acollege term paper and a transcript from VH1's "Behind theMusic". Basically, rock star makes it big, is overcome by sex, drugs,and fame, has a few tiffs with his record company, but is able to maintainhis artistic integrity throughout. Though it may be true, it's a plotthat's been exhausted a thousand times over with a hundred other artists.There has got to be a more creative approach to filling 200 pages aboutthis man's life and work. The book's one saving grace is its ample use ofinsightful quotes from various interviews throughout the years. If Costellohad been on board to lend literacy to this entire project, perhaps qualityand originality would have been enforced (and "Damnation'sCellar" would not be referred to as "Damnation's Alley").

An informative and reasonably well writen book.
Even though the author says in the beginning that he was rejected by his subject for an authorised biography,he still manages to write an interesting,informative and esoteric piece of work.I think this book willonly be worthwhile to someone who is already a fan and is familiar with hisdiscography.It gave some light as to how E.C.'s career has taken so manyturns and how he became influenced by so many musical genres.It also becameclear that he would'nt be the artist that he is today if he had'nt beensome what of a maverick in the music industry.This of course is furthersupported by ups and downs of his personal life that was often reflected inhis music.Overall,the book was tastefully writenand will again,be ofinterest primarilyto fans of E.C. and not to people unfamilar with hiswork as there are reletively few sensational and trashy stories toentertain the voyeuristic and curious public. ... Read more

Product Description
A caustic wit and the knack for great pop, this is Costello's classic mixture of soul and new wave. Features Accidents Will Happen, Oliver's Army and What's So Funny 'bout Peace Love and Understanding. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

horrendous
i've read a few of the other 33 1/3 books and found them to be consistently good reads, but this one was unbearable. i've tried on three separate occasions to get through it and fail more miserably with each attempt. the writing is impenetrable, the organization arbitrary. perhaps it would be useful as an academic tome on advanced songwriting, but the author tries harder to impress the reader with his knowledge of obscure details than to explain how they serve the songs.

even the fracas between elvis and bonnie bramlett and the damage that did to the potential for the album becomes dull in this authors hands.

i was hoping for a quick, interesting book about a good record by one of my fave musicians. guess i'll keep looking.

A critical tour de force -- anda must-buy for serious Elvis fans
Franklin Bruno's book on *Armed Forces* gives Elvis's music the serious attention that it deserves. As someone who has had the album in fairly constant rotation since I bought it 20 years ago, I was amazed throughout by discoveries, small and large, about the album. Small discoveries: Who knew that Elvis's band listened constantly to ABBA and Cheap Trick while on tour (and that these bands left their fingerprints on his imagination)? Who knew that Elvis's version of 'Peace, Love and Understanding" cut out the satiric patter and folk-rock harmonies of the Nick Lowe original? Who knew that each of Elvis's first three albums begins with Elvis's voice unaccompanied by his band? Bruno is a wonderful 'close listener' of the music and he has a great ability not just to notice these small details but also to speculate on their meaning for Elvis's project as an artist.

Large discoveries: Bruno captures something that I've always struggled with when thinking about Elvis -- how his 'avenging dork' persona became the vehicle for a new kind of pop music, music that was witheringly critical of so much (neo-colonial adventures, power games involving sex and money, the media that turns everything into black and white) but also could be very self-critical too. Bruno suggests that the avenging dork persona was a kind of doppelganger of the 'authoritarian personality' -- the foot-soldier of reactionary movements -- and that the power of Elvis's argument with 'emotional fascism' (the album's original title) was that it was something of an internal dialogue. To me, that seems right-on, though unsettling too. Here Bruno follows the critic Greil Marcus's lead, but he's able, as a musician himself, to tie these larger questions of pop & politics to the actual sound of the music.

It's probably fair to advertise to the reader that Bruno's book is structured in a novel way -- as an 'A to Z' guide to Armed Forces, with entries that begin with 'abbreviations' and 'Accidents Will Happen' and end with Costello's novel use of the 'you' pronoun and the word 'zero' (as in Songwriting Degree Zero, or as in the song 'Less than Zero'). For me, the form worked perfectly -- it allows Bruno to spend time on fascinating digressions (i.e. the resemblance between the balance of sentimentality and satire in Chaplin's The Great Dictator and in Armed Forces), and it allows a reader who wishes to skip ahead to, say, his gloss of 'Oliver's Army' to flip ahead to the 'O' section. Those who read the book from start to finish, however, will discover that it does develop its argument, surprisingly -- very cunningly in fact -- 'from A to Z''.

I'm Being Nice
Overall the word I'd use to describe this book is "choppy," as if there was no outline and the early draft was edited and immediately published.In the preface the author says, "As to the less than ideally elegant organization I have chosen, I will say only that it is meant to to be useful as well as playful."Did he say playful?Useful???How about half-baked?THERE'S NO CHAPTERS!And what about all the "see below" references as if it were still in word-processor format?If the author would have spent more time filling in the gaps between his periodic historical references, I would have felt like my 11 bucks were better spent, but as it stands, I wasn't all that impressed w/ his sometiems dazzling (occasionally flat) wordplay guessing a song's detailed structure, which constitutes the bulk of the text.And why are some words bold-face?It's inconsistent -- that's all -- and makes me wish the research had yielded a better book about ARMED FORCES.The album deserves it and in itself was the primary drive behind reading the entire book on a Sunday (three stars for that).

Good luck:you'll need it.The other reivewer ("Scott") must have been tipped off regarding his insight to the structure, b/c there's no way someone could just off-hand determine such organization from confusion. ... Read more

Product Description
The first full study of the extraordinary career of this enigmatic singer/songwriter--London born Elvis Costello. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

Very Under-rated
This is a very good reference for Costello admirers. I like the odd speculation about his song content and the possible intentions to his message. Costello is a master songwriter and this book gives a few different perspectives to his work. I don't think Hinton is far off with some of his theories. What I have found with the lyrics in question is that they have many possible meanings. The music might suggest love but the lyrics will point to politics, just to give one example. All in all, this was an entertaining observation into the life of a mysterious man. A very under-rated book to boot. I really think it is worth the purchase and the read.

This book tells it like it is
I really enjoyed reading this book. It took alot of effort to do so much research on such a private man. His music is fantastic and his personal life is just like you and me. Ups and downs and very normal. At the time of this book Mr. Costello was happily married to his wife Cait. Now that marriage is over and he is to marry again, this time to a jazz singer. I think he should just be single for awhile. The book also explores the meanings of the songs. I liked that the best.

LET THE AUTHOR TALK...
I've never been so aware of an author before.Usually, even in a biography, you can kind of lose yourself in the story.Not here.Apparently the writer is getting paid by the word, and the longer the better.Turn to any page and there are examples like: "Sniffing glue and being sick had replaced rural weekends, tower blocks were suddenly more romantic than a bluebell wood, and anger and amphetamine seemed infinitely preferable to drifting away on a dope-fuelled reverie"(Honestly, I didn't even look for this.I opened the book for an example and it is the first thing I saw!)It is a very annoying read that also concentrates too much on live performances and interviews in the press.I guess I'm still looking for a book about Elvis that concentrates on the SONGS - a book that is much more browsable than this one.Some decent anecdotal song information is here, but you have to suffer through so much garbage to get it that you should save the money and form your own opinions.

What A Great Talent
I just finished this book today. I am not that versed in Mr. Costello but I got curious when I finished the autobiography of Bebe Buell, "Rebel Heart", with Victor Bockris. I am now curious to explore his music mentioned in both books. I love a good love story!! This one sort of reminds me of the movie "Immortal Beloved" with Gary Oldman. After finishing this bio by Hinton, I was left wondering how one man could have so much talent and so many songs inside of him. It is rare to say the least. The only music I have by Mr. Costello is the "Painted From Memory" effort, which I really enjoy. I guess I will have to go and purchase the entire lot at this point!
As for this book, I found it interesting and complete. Many times I found it hard to put down. When you read this book back to back with Ms. Buell's bio, it is even more entertaining. My final word, is that Mr. Costello is a genius and a master of mind games. Wordplay is also a specialty of his and I think he will be around as an artist for a very long time. An enormous talent for sure!

Costello Fan To The MAX!!
I think some of the reviews about this book are a tad harsh and unfounded. I really enjoyed the thing and all the fun theories on the topics of his songs and such. I feel that Hinton did a very complete job of exploring all the possibilities. I think that even if Costello himself were to write his own book, it would be veiled in mystery. Most writers of his talent love to confuse and excite the listener. I feel this book answered alot of questions and confirmed alot of MAYBE's... I think that this is the best of the Costello tomes and I can't wait to hear the new record, "When I Was Cruel". Sounds like he is trying to say sorry to someone. And whats up with the two big bumble "Bees" on the cover?? I can hardly wait!! ... Read more

Product Description
The torch song has long been a vehicle for expression-perhaps American song's most sheerly visceral one. Two artists in particular have built upon this tradition to express their own unique outlooks on their lives and the world around them. Joni Mitchell, Elvis Costello, and the Torch Song Tradition combines biographical material, artist commentary, critical interpretation, and selected exemplars of the writers' work to reveal the power of authorship and the creative drive necessary to negotiate an artistic vision in the complicated mechanisms of the commercial music industry. Author Larry David Smith, as in his Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, and American Song, considers the complicated intersection of biography, creative philosophy, artistic imperative, and stylistic tendencies in the work of both Joni Mitchell and Elvis Costello-two songwriters with seemingly nothing in common, yet, as Smith shows so incisively, two personalities that prove fascinatingly complementary. Both have made historic contributions to the singer-songwriter model, two rebellious respones to the creative and commercial compromises associated with their chosen field, and two distinct thematic responses to the torch song tradition. Smith examines these responses, offering a unique and invaluable exploration of the craft of two of the last century's most towering musical figures. ... Read more

Product Description
Here to stay, and recognized by Burt Bacharach as "a great survivor," Elvis Costello has produced a large and significant body of work. This is the first book on Costello that avoids chronological presentation in favor of a thematic approach focused on music and words over the nearly 30 years that separate "Radio Sweetheart" and "Country Darkness." In addition to engaging with the songs Costello has performed as a rock musician, the book features informed discussions of more recent albums, such as Painted from Memory, North, and Il Sogno. Also considered are the essays Costello has written to support CD reissues of his recordings, a substantial body of writing that approaches a critical autobiography. The book demonstrates that on all fronts--music, words, voice, instrumental resources--Costello's work broadens and deepens, as he sets himself the task of expanding the range of expressive material available. ... Read more

Product Description
Commentary (music and lyrics not included).Chapters: Almost Blue, Elvis Costello Discography, My Aim Is True, Get Happy!!, Imperial Bedroom, Secret, Profane & Sugarcane, Armed Forces, Concerts for the People of Kampuchea, This Year's Model, Trust, Painted From Memory, Goodbye Cruel World, Punch the Clock, Spike, Blood and Chocolate, Girls Girls Girls, Mighty Like a Rose, the Juliet Letters, the Very Best of Elvis Costello, 2 1/2 Years, Kojak Variety, the Best of Elvis Costello & the Attractions, King of America, Out of Our Idiot, When I Was Cruel, All This Useless Beauty, the Delivery Man, Brutal Youth, the River in Reverse, Taking Liberties, Cruel Smile, the Very Best of Elvis Costello and the Attractions 1977-86, the Sweetest Punch, Ten Bloody Marys & Ten How's Your Fathers, the Best of Elvis Costello: the First 10 Years, North, G.b.h., My Flame Burns Blue, Live at the El Mocambo, Momofuku, Il Sogno, Costello & Nieve, for the Stars, Deep Dead Blue, Jake's Progress, Terror & Magnificence, Extreme Honey. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 184. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: This page lists albums, singles and compilations by the musician Elvis Costello, release date (UK and U.S.) and label (UK and U.S.) Note that all albums from My Aim Is True through to Blood and Chocolate were reissued on 1 May 2007 by Hip-O Records as single CDs featuring the original U.S. track listings. The dates listed below refer to the deluxe double CD editions which feature bonus material. The following is a list of all Costello's commercially available singles. The key for the Artist Credit below is as follows: ...http://booksllc.net/?id=4885047 ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

This book is awesome
This book is really good. I bought it off a really nice man in Brooklyn yesterday for only a few dollars. I am so excited to send it to my friend in Pennsylvania. I think that any opinion anyone has is totally valid. I love music and I love reading; so I love reading about music. Anything. Yes, I find it somehow fascinating knowing what color Elvis Costello's socks were when he wrote songs. I don't know why, but I do. In the world of literary criticism, that is what you call the New Historicism. It's a totally valid theory, full of a lot of interesting commentary. I think people who write poorly written reviews filled with misspelled words are dumb and insecure. They should consider creating something on their own before they take the time to say something negative about a book that has been published. I think all writing is good. This book rules. Everyone in the world should read it. I am so happy to send it to my friend in Pennsylvania.

illuminating, but off the mark too often
I found the book interesting, mostly because it's only book I could find analyzing his music. The author is way off on some of his "interpretations", and delves into fiction sometimes with his owntheories about what songsor phrases in songs mean.This is why artistslike Costello HATE having their songs dissected. they usually get it wrong.

A Good Laugh
If you plan to get some sort of deep insight into Costello's lyrics with this book, give up now.However, if you can stomach all 200 pages of this book, you will atleast walk away with a few good laughs.Gouldstonecompletely misunderstands practically each and every Costello song.Not tomention he insults some of his best albums.I got a kick out of this bookbecause it made me realize that there are some people out there who are soarrogant as to think they know everything when they actually know nothing.

Quite Terrible--ZERO stars
Unless you care to know what color socks Elvis Costello was wearing the morning he laid down the fourth take of his harmony vocal track for the third verse in the song "Sour Milk-Cow Blues" from the album"Goodbye Cruel World" I don't recommend this book. Unfortunately, this vital piece of information isn't revealed, but somestartling revelations about EC's songs are uncovered.The songs aretediously dissected searching for hidden meanings and questioningridiculous aspects of the music and lyrics.At one point, when pickingapart the song "Green Shirt" from the album "ArmedForces" he writes, "'Green Shirt' has a trick up it's sleeve, soto speak.It's basically in 4/4, but in the second line of the chorus abeat mysteriously disappears so that one bar is in 3/4.This deviceensures that there's something subtly 'wrong' with the song, making thelistener feel uncomfortable, as if something's going on behind your backbut you're not quite sure what it is.This feeling of uncertainty ofcourse echoes the song's theme of suspicion and paranoia."Riveting! That is exactly what I thought when I first heard the same song.He thenponders the question that has plagued every EC fan fordecades......"Why 'green'shirt?"You'll have to get the book to find out, sorry to leave you insuspense.

Self-indulgent claptrap
Elvis Costello may be one of the most literate songwriters in pop music -- he certainly has the best vocabulary.This book, however, consists mostly of tedious line-by-line dissections of his songs for hidden meanings andsocial commentary, and much of the artistry is lost along the way.One isreminded of '60s types looking for hidden messages in Beatles and Dylanlyrics, and it's not a pretty sight.Only a die-hard Costello aficianadocould make it through this tedious book, and so I did -- despite thehopeless morass. ... Read more

Product Description
The influential rock musician Elvis Costello is recognized for the impressive breadth and scope of his music. His collaborations with such musicians as Tony Bennett and the Count Basie orchestra, however, attest to the many contradictions that define Elvis Costello, the punk rocker. This important guide to his music and career contains over 800 bibliographic citations and a complete discography of Costello's commercially released recordings. The discography, divided into two sections, separately details Costello's career as performer and composer. A brief biography traces his critically acclaimed career and highlights both the influences on his music and the myriad ways in which his music has influenced others. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Reference books are *fun* again
A bibliography lists books and magazine articles about its subject. Mr. Perone described the articles so well that I'm going to get some rolls of dimes for the copiers, go to my library, and get some of these articles. ... Read more

Product Description
Any man who is prepared to take on the first name of the King of Rock 'n' Roll has to have enough confidence in his own talent not to care what the critics think of him, and this is certainly the case with Mrs. McManus' little boy. From the sneering 'psychotic bank clerk' look and short, sharp, splenetic singles of his early days with the Attractions, through the period when he wore a beard and made serious music with the Brodsky Quartet, to his mellow, tuneful songs written with Burt Bacharach, Costello has always been a musical chameleon. Commercial success has been sporadic, but Costello's refusal to follow fashion or bow in the face of often vitriolic criticism has marked him out as uncompromising, determined, and focused on exploring the boundaries of his craft. His influence on the next generation of artists remains unquestioned, and his acceptance as one of the greatest singer-songwriters of the last twenty years is assured. The book includes a chronology and complete discography. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

I learned alot from this book about Mr. Costello
This is the perfect "beginners" Elvis Costello book. But thats the most it has to offer. Lots of facts and stuff about his early years. It is so interesting to me that he came from a musical family background. I then suggest moving on to the Brian Hinton bio which is the definitive and best book ever written on Costello. The Tony Clayton-Lee book is the weakest of the lot.

Elvis For Beginners
Admittedly, it's not the deepest of dissertations. However, it's completely factual and a lot better-written than the Clayton-Lea biography. If I had a friend who was just starting to get into Elvis, I would loan her this book, but tell her that some of the comments on individual songs might not mirror her experience.

Elvis deserves better
Witless and dry distillation executed in the style of high school book report.Pass on it.

Kill This Book Please
While the author's account is factual accurate, I felt I did not learn much new information about EC. The book was very thin and really did not go into much detail. The author only alludes to what Elvis might have been thinking/feeling etc. or quotes what others have stated. The whole book felt like a term-paper I might have written at the end of high school. Being a huge Elvis Costello fan, I really expected more from this book. The book is divided up into three sections. The first section is the bio. The second is a discography (available at almost every EC website) a complete waste of paper (but given that the bio portion is so short the author probably needed to fill the pages with something). I only wish I had read a review of this book prior to pre-ordering it. I've learned my lesson. So basically unless you need to own every piece of Elvis Costello...skip this one! ... Read more

Product Description

Product Description
A collection of writing from the world's leading authority on jazz and popular song, including previously unpublished work. The world's leading authority on jazz and popular song, Benny Green was a prolific writer whose material spanned every aspect of the musical arts. As an insider who knew and worked with most of his subjects, Benny wrote from a matchless personal perspective. Now, for the first time, previously unpublished writing joins sleevenotes and live reviews, books and obituaries in a unique collection put together by his son, Dominic, following Benny Green's death in 1998. Included in SUCH SWEET THUNDER are discussions on the great songwriters and leading jazz singers; the role of jazz in musicals; the leading jazz musicians. From Ella Fitzgerald to Frank Sinatra, Irving Berlin to Rodgers and Hammerstein, SUCH SWEET THUNDER is essential reading for all music fans. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Expensive reviews
Before you purchase this expensive book, you may wish to see my review of Benny Green's critical essays on Jazz, "The Reluctant Art". As listed in Amazon, "Such Sweet Thunder" is $4.36 per page! "The Reluctant Art" is a bargain.

such sweet thunder' benny green
A fascinating collection of articles, written by a musician who understands facets of jazz different to his own musical persuasion, he appreciates the earlier styles though he was more of a modernist. He also wrote a marvellous book on the history of cricket, suggesting a true "English" appreciation of the finer things in life. ... Read more