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Elvis Costello & The Roots perform "Wise Up Ghost" live at Brooklyn Bowl September 16, 2013.

Recorded at Feliz Habitat Studios, NYC; A House Called ?uest, Philadelphia, PA; Crew Studios, Vancouver, . Mixed at at Feliz Habitat Studios, NYC; A House Called ?uest, Philadelphia, PA; Crew Studios, Vancouver, .

That Costello's lyrical approach automatically invites comparison with the past is occasionally the album's undoing. Stick Out Your Tongue is a languid retooling of 1983's Pills and Soap, perhaps the most cryptic of his livid Thatcher-era state of the nation addresses: it's hard to get around the fact that the new version doesn't have the same menacing drama as the original, which is unfortunate, given that the overall message of the song appears to. be that nothing has really changed in the intervening 30 years.

Wise Up Ghost is a collaborative studio album by British singer/songwriter Elvis Costello and American hip hop group The Roots. The album was released on September 17, 2013, by Blue Note Records. The album's first single "Walk Us Uptown" was released on July 23, 2013. Growing out of Costello's appearances on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, where the Roots are the house band, Wise Up Ghost was well-received by professional critics.

Wise Up Ghost revisits Costello’s section of the record store by sampling some of his earlier songs, and setting the lyrics of others to new melodies. Invasion Hit Parade, from his Mighty Like a Rose (1991), becomes Refuse to Be Saved ; Pills and Soap, from Punch the Clock (1983), becomes Stick Out Your Tongue. It says something about how acute Costello’s observations were when older, topical lyrics from two or three decades ago can still pack a punch. The rest of the Roots play with conviction and authority as well, but I can’t help feeling that the opportunity for Costello to move in a new direction was missed. The sound is very current - that is, not entirely up to audiophile standards. Costello’s voice is out in front, but the instruments are crowded in behind him and the bass is often too prominent. I’d expect more from a Blue Note release.

Elvis Costello And The Roots - Stick Out Your TONGUE. 7. Elvis Costello And The Roots - Come The MEANTIMES. 8. Elvis Costello And The Roots - (She Might Be A) GRENADE. 9. Elvis Costello And The Roots - CINCO Minutos Con Vos. Download. 10. Elvis Costello And The Roots - VICEROY’S Row. 11. Elvis Costello And The Roots - Wise Up Ghost. 12. Elvis Costello And The Roots - If I Could BELIEVE. 13. Elvis Costello And The Roots - My New HAUNT (Bonus Track). 14. Elvis Costello And The Roots - Can You HEAR Me (Bonus Track).

They know about the art of musical reinvention and the kinetic creative boost that a well-timed collaboration can bring. For many Costello watchers, the depth and the density of the funk on Wise Up Ghost may surprise. But Costello has long shown a fondness for thick, soulful grooves, and he couldn’t be better paired in this regard than with Questlove

Elvis Costello's collaboration with Jimmy Fallon's house band exhbits their true potential. The Roots’ four years as house band on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon has helped unleash their limitless potential. This collaboration with veteran genre-hopper Elvis Costello follows his appearance on the show, and its only disappointment is the absence of Roots rapper Black Thought to joust with him. ‘Refuse To Be Saved’ is as funky as Dr John, and the title track mines a ’60s black-power vein.

You can listen to the whole album via NPR at this address: ww. pr. The 15-track album was produced by Steven Mandel (longtime Roots associate) with Costello and Questlove during several top secret sessions at New York’s Feliz Habitat Studios