‘The Bridge I Burned’ is a cut from one of the extended editions Elvis Costello released in the early 2000s, in this case the 2001 reissue of 1995’s All This Useless Beauty.
At least that’s where my copy of this song lives. It was originally released as part of a 1997 greatest hits collection, a contractual obligation that allowed Costello to finish off his time at Warner Bros.
Continuing my look at 1994, first by counting down my own top ten albums of that year.
#8 – Brutal Youth – Elvis Costello
A long time ago on this blog, I referred to Brutal Youth as “one of the highlights of the back half of Costello’s career.” I guess that was true when I wrote it, more than a decade ago.
This album was Costello’s 16th of 33 (and counting), putting it just before the midpoint in terms of recorded output. And it was released in the 27th year of his 55-year (and counting) career, again putting it just before the midpoint. So now, rather than representing the “back half” of his career, I guess Brutal Youth falls at almost the exact center.
The Random iTunes Fairy serves up a lot of interesting songs. But I didn’t realize until today’s selection popped up just how rarely she delivers something I really love.
Usually, my reaction to the first notes of the random song is something akin to “huh.” As in, there’s an artist I haven’t thought about much lately. Or, I wonder how this album wound up in my iTunes library?
Elvis Costello released a new album a few weeks ago, and I still haven’t listened to it all the way through.
There’s a sentence I didn’t think I’d ever write.
Once upon a time, a new Elvis Costello album was a major event in my life, like a Christmas day that happened every three or four years. But somewhere along the line, I stopped getting excited about Costello’s new music.
This week’s posts could be filed under an ‘OK Boomer’ label, because I’ll be featuring new work by five white guys in their 60s or 70s.
I have to hand it to this group of artists. Well past traditional retirement age, they’re cranking out interesting and relevant new music. Well, four of them are… one is dead, but his family is releasing new material.
Even so, it’s hard to get too excited about these new albums. These guys are building on towering resumés — how can anything they do have a chance of measuring up?
Meet Me In Montauk 