Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Music Box: The (Other) King

Thinking about "I Don't Want to Go to Chelsea" got us thinking about Rock and Roll Hall-of-Famer Elvis Costello's larger body of work. The Irish legend is, incidentally the second most famous person ever named Elvis, just ahead of former NFL quarterback Elvis Grbac.


This is Elvis Costello and The Attractions with 1984's utterly delightful "The Only Flame In Town." Guest vocals by Daryl Hall, of Hall & Oates fame.



A stark, solo acoustic version of U2's song, Please," complete with odd German subtitles.



Supposedly, this is first ever song played publicly by Elvis and the Attractions (audio only), recorded at a tiny pub in London in 1977. Maybe. Maybe not. It sure sounds raw, fast, pissed-off and fun enough to be the real deal.