Bloggerhythms

My Darling Clementine are Michael Weston King and Lou Dalgleish, a married couple sometimes compared to George Jones and Tammy Wynette - and the even more famous couple of Johnny Cash and June Carter. Because the duo is from Birmingham, England instead of the American South they don't sound like any of those aforementioned country legends, but they perform with the same spirit.   In 2019 and 2020 My Darling Clementine recorded twelve Elvis Costello songs that possess a country flare with help from Steve Nieve, keyboard player for both The Attractions and The Imposters, two of the English star's supporting groups.  Country Darkness was originally released as three, four-song EPs, but in November 2020 they were all packaged together onto one full length album. There is also one bonus track, "Powerless," an original written with Costello in mind. The Coronavirus caused those releases to get lost in the morass along with a myriad of worthy recordings by other artists. F...

I just listened to tracks from the highly anticipated Elvis Costello and The Roots album, Wise Up Ghost and Other Songs , and they are about what I expected: totally tuneless dirges with vocals that try one's patience. If Costello writes insightful lyrics they've yet to penetrate my soul because the sounds the veteran rocker produces never allow me to get that far. There are bad singers, like Bob Dylan, who I have no problem listening to because they write melodies with interesting arrangements. Others, such as Bruce Springsteen and Larry Kirwan of Black 47, can't sing either but their respective bands are so musical I actually care what their songs have to say. Unfortunately, not even Questlove's highly versatile outfit can save this new release. I'll admit to a few exceptions. Costello's cover of Nick Lowe's "What's So Funny about Peace, Love, and Understanding" is a fine, rocking track that manages to hide his vocal liabilities. ...