Before we return to mining great older songs, let’s spend the balance of January looking back at more great stuff from 2022. One track, up to three times a week. Don’t forget to join in on the conversation, too. And you can always keep up via the Playlist Repair main and Playlist Repair ambient playlists on Spotify.
‘With my machine that can turn ink stains into words/Lends honey to the hive and the melody to birds/The death of magic thinking’
I had hoped that by now, Elvis Costello would have given full exploration of his wit (and cynical bite) in a novel. He’s a fount of ideas, with the poetic touch to match. I can remember hanging out in a friend’s basement, sampling his dad’s homemade prosciutto and wine, and marvelling over the songcraft of what, in 1986, was Costello’s latest: King of America. Poring over the guy’s lyrics has always been the best way to digest what was going on, and in 2022, the man was back in form at age 68 with the full-length The Boy Named If. In The Death of Magic Thinking, he riffs about the awakening of teen lust at a blistering pace, in a race against frenetic percussion and guitar, and as if he may finish too soon. He may no longer be the Angry Young Man who once switched songs midway through a Saturday Night Live appearance, but he is very much alive, and still wielding a very sharp knife.
With you on the excessive crooning aspect of a lot of Elvis' recent music. No need to adorn the words, which speak for themselves.
Good to see Elvis back in form. I love the guy. Probably own more albums by him than anyone else and have seen him live multiple times. In my alternate universe, Putin is locked in a room somewhere listening to Shipbuilding on repeat for eternity. That said, I've been a bit turned off by a lot of EC's more recent music. He still writes good songs, but I feel his singing style has become so affected I find it grating to listen to more than a couple of songs at time. It seems like he is trying to wring every ounce of emotion out of each word like it was his last. Working with a band again seems to be the right move as it breaks him out of that tendency. Pump it up!