Comments on: Album Review: Elvis Costello – Secret, Profane and Sugarcane

By: Leeann Ward

Leeann Ward — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 03:13:44 +0000

I just couldn’t get into this one. I tried.

By: merlefan49

merlefan49 — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 02:23:39 +0000

I downloaded it on emusic using my tracks for this month. I gotta say I hear more country on this cd then I’ve heard in a while. I am not familiar with his music. I remember back in the late 70’s just before I graduated from high school some of my classmates talking about him. The last track on this disk I hear a Jimmie Rodger type influence. Ie Shackle and chains.

By: Rick

Rick — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 22:13:49 +0000

I have never been a fan of Elvis/Declan’s singing voice, although he does the best he can with what he has and it works on his rock songs. Back on April 18th he was featured on “A Prairie Home Companion” singing some of the songs off this album and they were enjoyable but would never motivate me to consider a purchase. As far as late 70’s new wave rockers are concerned, it would be really interesting if Joe Jackson were to tackle a project like this..

By: Juli

Juli — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 16:20:50 +0000

Jon, thanks for catching the Carson/Duncan error.

Dan, I agree that all of the components of this record look fantastic on paper–and for the most part they are fantastic separately–but they just don’t mesh well together. For each really good track like “The Crooked Line” there’s one that seems self-indulgent and out of place (songs from his Hans Christian Andersen opera, for instance). Costello and Burnett have worked well together in the past, so this disjointedness is both unexpected and disappointing.

YMMV of course, but when it comes to rootsy Costello, I’ll stick with King of America and The Delivery Man.

By: Dan

Dan — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 15:56:37 +0000

This looks fantastic and I have to agree with the reviewer above, 2 out of 5? Come on. Also, if anyone is interested in checking out the man who found Elvis Costello check out some music by Bob Gallo.

Check him out here: http://www.amazon.com/Windsong-Bob-Gallo/dp/B00000I5F3/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1244216935&sr=1-2

He and other rare recordings of American artists
can be found on Lost Gold Records at http://www.lostgoldmusic.com

By: Jon

Jon — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 13:41:49 +0000

Erm, while you’ve got Stuart Duncan’s name right in the penultimate paragraph, he’s listed as “Stuart Carson” in the second. And while you may not think of Bing Crosby when you think of country music (although you should; he was enormously influential), Pee Wee King, who was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame 35 years ago, had a #4 country hit on “Changing Partners” – and let me just add that calling Monroe’s awkward vocal “flawless” when it’s pitched in a key where he’s comfortable with neither his natural voice nor his falsetto (and therefore flops between the two like a fish out of water) is, I’m sorry to say, just bizarre.

In fact, this seems like a generally bizarre review – or, more precisely, the rating doesn’t really jibe with the text. Dock an album 2 stars out of 5, despite high marks for musicianship, production and songwriting simply because it feels disorganized “under the surface?” C’mon.

By: Steve Harvey

Steve Harvey — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 12:41:20 +0000

Elvis Costello, Emmylou Harris, Jim Lauderdale, T Bone Burnett and Jerry Douglas all on one record! Can’t wait to hear this…