New Bacharach/Costello Composition

[Bruce Bernard Williams]

"Purse", the new EP by Elvis Costello & The Imposters, will drop Saturday, April 13, 2019 {Record Store Day}. The 12" 180 gram Vinyl release features four {4} songs. Side 1. 1) "Everyone's Playing House" (Bacharach/Costello); 2) "The Lovers That Never Were" (McCartney/Costello) Side 2. 1) "If You Love Me" (Cash/Costello); 2) "Down On The Bottom" (Dylan/Costello). There will only be a quantity of 3,000 made available and is a Concord Records release.

[pljms]

Apparently 'Everyone's Playing House' was registered with ASCAP by Bacharach and Costello in 2014. Here's the cover to the EP and I see that the 12 inch vinyl disc is selling for the not inconsiderable sum of £23.99. A friend of mine who's heard the Bacharach song on Apple Music told me it's "jolly good".

https://www.roughtrade.com/gb/music/elv ... ello-purse

[Blair N. Cummings]

It would have to be more than "jolly good" for me to buy a turntable and speakers for the first time in thirty-five years. This is the sort of niche-marketing that pissed me off decades ago when someone would issue a new song (performed live and recorded in mono) on the B-Side of a single only released in South Korea.
I hope this is uploaded to YouTube or Spotify. I`m too old and poor for these games.

[Martin Johnson]

With his adopted name I suppose it's obvious that Elvis Costello must be a fan of "The King of Rock and Roll". However, with Bacharach's involvement I can't imagine for one moment that their song will bear much resemblance to this rockabilly classic on the same subject of "playing house". Contains the line, "I'd rather see you dead, little girl, than to see you with another man", which the younger, angrier Elvis Costello would have been proud of:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=92iwC-xI3mE

[pljms]

Bacharach and Costello registered ten songs with ASCAP in February 2014:

Don't Look Now
Everyone's Playing House
He's Given Me Things
I Looked Away
I've Always Had Men
Look Up Again
Photographs Can Lie
Shameless
Taken From Life
You Can Have Her

So after Everyone's Playing House is released tomorrow there will still be five of these songs waiting on a recording or at least a release.

I was trying to recall where I first heard the song Baby Let's Play House posted above by Martin as recorded by Elvis Presley when I remembered that it featured in a DVD I have of a tremendous concert tribute to Les Paul put on by Jeff Beck and the singer Imelda May in New York in 2010. It's sung by UK rockabilly stalwart Darrel Higham who was Imelda May's guitarist (and husband) at the time.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Ebj4CqhS5o8

[pljms]

Finally posted on YouTube, here is 'Everyone's Playing House'.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wlAyFC_ZDBk

[Blair N. Cummings]

This is fully the equal of anything on PFM and much of his `60s work.
Many thanks .

[blueonblue]

Finally posted on YouTube, here is 'Everyone's Playing House'.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XpdJg4ya8lQ

Absolutely Superb !
Elvis has the innate ability of getting the very best out of Burt.

Thank you Paul.

'blue'

[Blair N. Cummings]

Have I seen too many horror movies or does the positioning of the title on the cover art make it seem like the lips have been sewn together?

[Sara D]

It takes a few listens, as per normal with B&C's material, but it has more of Bacharach's stamp on it than some of their other collaborations, particularly the recurring theme on the keyboard.

[Martin Johnson]

Lyrically it sounds like a woman's song to a man which suggests it was written for the Painted From Memory musical. The credits reveal that musically it's a co-composition and my guess is that Elvis Costello was responsible for the bridge and Bacharach the rest of the song.