egroj world: Bill Frisell & Elvis Costello • The Sweetest Punch

Sunday, June 29, 2025

Bill Frisell & Elvis Costello • The Sweetest Punch

Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Elvis Costello's collaboration with Burt Bacharach produced the exquisite Painted From Memory, an unabashedly classicist pop album that recalled Bacharach's heyday with Hal David. It was such an individual album, unlike anything in Costello's catalog, that it's a wonder that the same batch of songs could produce another album as equally compelling and unique, which is exactly what Bill Frisell's The Sweetest Punch is. Costello sent Frisell demos of every song on Painted From Memory after they were completed. As Costello and Bacharach worked on their album, Frisell wrote his own arrangements of the songs, assembling a stellar band -- including Don Byron, Brian Blade, Billy Drewes, Curtis Fowlkes, Viktor Krauss, and Ron Miles -- to record an alternate album. Neither group of musicians heard the others work, which meant each record developed its own personality. Indeed, it's fascinating to hear The Sweetest Punch after living with Painted From Memory for a year -- it's like passing through the looking glass. Frisell stays true to his own music and the songs, crafting inspired, subtly challenging arrangements. They're a far cry from the lavish orchestrations of the Costello-Bacharach affair, but Frisell's mild dissonance and elegant flow feels equally luxurious. These versions emphasize the strength of the songs. The musicians on The Sweetest Punch open the songs up, just as numerous jazz artists have with pop standards, discovering new emotional and musical layers to the melodies. And that's the key to the record's success: Not only does it work as a companion piece to Painted From Memory, but it's a wonderful work in its own right that can be appreciated without knowledge of its predecessor.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-sweetest-punch-the-songs-of-costello-and-bacharach-mw0000047290

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Reseña de Stephen Thomas Erlewine
La colaboración de Elvis Costello con Burt Bacharach dio como resultado el exquisito Painted From Memory, un álbum pop descaradamente clasicista que recordaba el apogeo de Bacharach con Hal David. Era un álbum tan personal, diferente a todo lo que había en el catálogo de Costello, que es sorprendente que el mismo conjunto de canciones pudiera dar lugar a otro álbum igual de atractivo y único, que es precisamente lo que es The Sweetest Punch, de Bill Frisell. Costello envió a Frisell maquetas de todas las canciones de Painted From Memory una vez terminadas. Mientras Costello y Bacharach trabajaban en su álbum, Frisell escribió sus propios arreglos de las canciones y reunió a una banda estelar, que incluía a Don Byron, Brian Blade, Billy Drewes, Curtis Fowlkes, Viktor Krauss y Ron Miles, para grabar un álbum alternativo. Ninguno de los dos grupos de músicos escuchó el trabajo del otro, lo que significó que cada disco desarrolló su propia personalidad. De hecho, es fascinante escuchar The Sweetest Punch después de haber convivido con Painted From Memory durante un año: es como atravesar el espejo. Frisell se mantiene fiel a su propia música y a las canciones, creando arreglos inspirados y sutilmente desafiantes. Están muy lejos de las lujosas orquestaciones de la colaboración entre Costello y Bacharach, pero la suave disonancia y el elegante flujo de Frisell resultan igualmente lujosos. Estas versiones enfatizan la fuerza de las canciones. Los músicos de The Sweetest Punch abren las canciones, al igual que han hecho numerosos artistas de jazz con los estándares del pop, descubriendo nuevas capas emocionales y musicales en las melodías. Y esa es la clave del éxito del disco: no solo funciona como complemento de Painted From Memory, sino que es una obra maravillosa por derecho propio que se puede apreciar sin conocer su predecesor.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-sweetest-punch-the-songs-of-costello-and-bacharach-mw0000047290

www.billfrisell.com ...
www.elviscostello.com ...

Tracks:
1 - The Sweetest Punch - 4:45
2 - Toledo - 5:27
3 - Such Unlikely Lovers - 5:44
4 - This House Is Empty Now - 5:04
5 - Painted From Memory - 4:10
6 - What's Her Name Today? - 4:57
7 - In The Darkest Place - 5:56
8 - Vamp Dolce - 3:27
9 - My Thief - 4:31
10 - I Still Have That Other Girl - 2:23
11 - Painted From Memory (Reprise) - 3:38
12 - The Long Division - 3:59
13 - Tears At The Birthday Party - 3:44
14 - I Still Have That Other Girl (Reprise) - 1:53
15 - God Give Me Strength - 4:41

Credits:
Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar – Bill Frisell
Arranged By – Bill Frisell
Art Direction, Design – Carla Leighton
Bass – Viktor Krauss
Clarinet, Bass Clarinet – Don Byron
Coordinator [Package Coordinator] – Sandi Hanowitz
Coordinator [Release Coordinator] – Randy Dry
Creative Director – Penny Bennett
Drums, Percussion – Brian Blade
Engineer [Assistant] – Adam Muñoz, Greg Gasperino, Scott Young (11)
Executive-Producer – Chris Roberts*, Chuck Mitchell (4), Noel Grey
Lyrics By – Elvis Costello
Mastered By – Ted Jensen
Mixed By – Judy Clapp (tracks: 2, 5, 10)
Photography By – Jimmy Katz
Photography By [Assistant] – Jenny Langsam
Photography By [Cover] – Christine Williams
Producer – Lee Townsend
Producer [Assistant] – Louisa Spier
Recorded By [Vocals] – Judy Clapp
Recorded By, Mixed By – Joe Ferla (tracks: 1 to 4, 6 to 9, 11 to 15)
Trombone – Curtis Fowlkes
Trumpet – Ron Miles
Vocals – Cassandra Wilson (tracks: 5, 10), Elvis Costello (tracks: 2, 10)
Written-By – Bill Frisell (tracks: 8), Burt Bacharach (tracks: 1 to 7, 9 to 14), Elvis Costello (tracks: 1 to 7, 9 to 14)

The Sweetest Punch features new (instrumental) arrangements by Bill Frisell of all the songs composed by Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach for their 1998 Mercury Album "Painted From Memory".

Label: Decca – 314 559 865-2
Country: US
Released: 1999
Genre: Jazz
Style: Contemporary Jazz
https://www.discogs.com/release/3135489-Elvis-Costello-Burt-Bacharach-Bill-Frisell-The-Sweetest-Punch?srsltid=AfmBOoqGOc-YrTkH33mE9JlOlM6W0DEgx6vv8TqoLNMXKl5NjY4l-QNb