Elvis Costello - Watching The Detectives - 1977

[FFRxPr0ducti0nz]

An early Weezer

[auggdogrules]

who care if elvis can't sing,he phrases songs so well...he's the best !

[TheGiftay]

I LOVE this! Thanks for the blast to the past. I was 12 in 1977. What a fantastic era of music I was lucky enough to grow up in...I had a huge schoolgirl crush on Elvis Costello. I would obsessively write his name on my hi tops (Elvis=left & Costello=right) and all over my pee chee folders. So much talent just bursting out of that man! <3

[solentgreenispeople]

14 day before i was born (yes i know same day as the 'other Elvis" blah blah blah) man did i miss out

[ImaniHekima]

I love the keyboard outro - very 'Edgar Wallace'.

[RyanStockbridge]

suppose to be? no, its all meticulously planned. sorry, you were born when you were suppose to be. Like the creator of this would let things happen at random. Its a perfect, its complex, and there are no mistakes :)

[inedibleobject]

Great

[tornmask1]

nothing, but CLaSSiC! ;0)

[kingnocomply]

godam that dudes terible... i mean hes got an enjoyable sound and its peace but holy fuck that guy cant sing lol

[jhnygtr]

@kingnocomply sorry he's not idol material, seacrest

[ifthethunderdontgety]

@kingnocomply

You are a moron.

~

[kingnocomply]

@ifthethunderdontgety .... dude that is not good singing fool ... how can you say he fuckin sings good dude

[MrLion1885]

@kingnocomply His voice fits his music. Like Dylan's does, or Waits ,or Cohen. It wouldn't have been half as good if performed by Pavarotti or Placido Domingo would it now?

[kingnocomply]

@MrLion1885 ... yea you pretty much some it up for wat it is but american idol diude lol forget bou t it even if your not talkin commercial bullshit sound like cmon lol

[2701soulassassin]

just lern to play this song i f*cking love it,hes got better with age keep rockin costello

[Screamerific]

he looks so different without his hat

[kd5txo]

This man is such a wordsmith .... What a talent.!! He's painted an entire genre of film into a poem.... and it's damn good.

[duncangray2011]

and the brides of egypt in white. and in egypt without head wear.

[BillyBonesKnows1]

im 21 and just got into this man what talent

[declanacdc]

ONE OF HIS BEST

[Staroth999]

Love it!

[jroberts24]

give it up for Andy Dick on bass!

[BaronM]

@jroberts24

funny stuff



[9mamacateyes9]

I was 11 years old in 1977, I dug Elvis then and it's stuck with me my whole life. I really love his voice!!!

[KTandKAT]

is this a pisstake??

[juanitac71]

omg so cool

[TheMightOfTheEnglish]

Eric,s re opening in september, 2011 

[maclennan73]

Brilliant.......that band were Huey Lewis's News......no Huey though.

[jayporks]

What's he playing there a fender Jazzmaster? 

[maclennan73]

@jayporks Yes it is, the Jaguar looks similar but has more switches.

[jayporks]

@maclennan73 thats kinda how I knew was a Jazzmaster, because I looked and said "Looks kinda like a jag, but I can't see him playin a jag"

[tanner1ie]

I was minus 4 when they sang this :) .

People often ask, in fims and such "do you think you were born in the wrong time?"

I'd say "Well considering i have music from as far back as the 40s, i should have been born in the 20s :) ".

[MouthingWords]

Infinitely fascinating

[TheGodzilla1955]

Bill Gates on bass XD I keed

grew up on elvis costello! He's completely one of a kind. World's still catching up to his b-sides

[LightenUpMcGraw]

Any Elvis fans check out the songs "Monkey to Man" and "Bedlam" great songs here on the Tubeyube.

[manni303]

love this song. fookin elvis. little fingers, ha ha ha.....

[vordman]

I was 14 in 1977 and didn't realize how spoiled we were back then with all the great music. We just took it for granted. Suppose it only becomes apparent with the passage of time.

[Choefoe]

When your name is Elvis and look like Buddy Holly can,t go wrong;-) WIN!

[anthonynewsome]

1977 what a perfect year for music - what d fook ever happened 2 d charts post 1986 - o yeah all the shite move n unt d youth generation got conservative/lazy-uptigh

[auggdogrules]

ELVIS IS GREAT,NOBODY PHRASES SONGS LIKE HIM....ELVIS IS KING!

[Artemetra]

That Telemaster got stolen years later.

[whytie23]

that bass is amazing!

[ChainCollector]

You dont need to be old to enjoy this music, this song is great!

[Criszzilla]

One of my favorite songs of all time.

[xn6]

holy crap i never realised where weezer got it from

[ArchangelBoab]

They're so cute.

[dirtyratmiller]

Love the way it starts!

[jjpeterson1]

4 people should leave the adults alone. Go back to Justin Booby or Beiber

[xirondanielx]

that sucks

[congalishious]

This is great for live but would have been awesome for the News , Hughie Lewis's band was playing as they did the studio recording.... Little known fact !!!!! Brilliant all the same

[KKultanu]

Fantastic. Greatest songwriter of the 20th century.

[FungusMossGnosis]

I wonder if any one has a video of them doing "Rodette Song" ?

[juankenon]

is there more of this show available?

[sambda]

@juankenon The performances were shown on "So it Goes" 16/10/77. In the show there is also: "(I Don't Want To) Go To Chelsea" and "Lip Service", plus a brief "Alison". An song not use in the show, "No Dancing", also exists.

[lujas10]

was his dad really the 'R.Whites lemonade' singer?

[glosman1]

Great version, thanks.

[blissdubsystem]

i love the organ part in this version. reggae was the rage - what happened to the world?

[jobros5657]

@blissdubsystem R&B and dipshits like Usher

[krallstello]

Could anyone be cooler than E.C.? Nah...

[Choefoe]

@krallstello would like to see him perform with Joe Jackson ;-)

[glosman1]

@Choefoe why?

[Choefoe]

@glosman1 Because they are in the same legue,they think so;-)

[glosman1]

@Choefoe Hardly the same talent. Although i do like JJ. Both intelligent guys.

[Choefoe]

@glosman1 And they like eachother, ;-)

[jamesjohnson77]

@Choefoe I totally agree with you. I'm a huge fan of JJ and Elvis. They have both had very similar careers, arriving at the same time (late 70's). Having hit singles with great baking bands. Going on to experiment with various musical styles (jazz, classical), perform with other musicians and solo. And often rearrange their best known material for live shows. Both still going strong critically and commercially but never collaborated. Possibly never even met? A shame I think....

[Choefoe]

@jamesjohnson77 Tnx for explaining so good what I mean ;-) really!!!, just what I mean. they have all that in common and I,m sure they agree on that too,. Would be great to see them preform live together. tnx for your reaction ;-)

Cheers

[trig]

Perfection

[mcarman150]

he's a trip - great song.

[missbee63]

super all the way.

[Mish3lliie]

mmm so sweaty!

[lolamck]

It's a beautiful thing...

[whitejmw]

A class act then as now

[ZZJoCa]

His best tune, imo and it was kind of neat listening to a live version from 77, Thanks for the up.

[VALlewellyn]

I was 11 yrs old when this came out and I remember the moment I heard it and where I was. Will never forget how cool it was to hear this on radio 1.

[JazzJonnie]

Superb. Thanks so much for posting........

[teddymademesomesoup1]

where the hell did you get this probably the best early vid i've seen thank you very much

[TheMavrakis]

Not only is this guy cool today...the "coolness" goes way back!

[rekkof]

Pure Elvis!!!

:-)

[malthuswasright]

priceless artefact....

[adesfootballdvds]

pure class

[ri394]

the guy doin the organ looks bored. lol

[Ydontyougosuckone696]

@ri394 because Elvis Costello is about as exciting as an empty box of Kotex.

[sanjurodog]

@Ydontyougosuckone696 <------ her boyfriend liked him in high school.

[skatewidow]

I was 17 and so were you and you know who I am talking about ... and who has those glasses now... You know they are not.. my babies think so... but they dont know.. where they came from... Elvis costelllo ROCKS!

[mokona3373]

flumpoolの隆太さんのMUSIC of theSCENEに載ってた！

[MrAlohashirt]

Generally speaking, white boys can't do reggae (most notably The Police, who didn't have the first idea) but Elvis takes a pretty good stab at it here.

[TheMightOfTheEnglish]

@MrAlohashirt what aout ub40 then , they wer pretty successful at playing reggae

[rekkof]

@MrAlohashirt Elvis Reggae HUH? The Police did a great job! Moholo ;)

[headhunterjay]

this songs about the moors murderers,myra hindley and ian brady, fucking scum.

[MrAlohashirt]

@headhunterjay - no, it's about a lover who would rather watch TV.

[shakeshaftthomas]

whats this song about??

[rekkof]

@shakeshaftthomas Are you kidding me? LISTEN! to the lyrics it is as close to a story as any song I have heard.....No wait your kidding right?

;)

[Mike102056]

has anybody heard of a song that elivs and paul mcc sang she not the only girl in town

[ampheat]

New wave music (which was a bit of the old with a new attitude) began with Elvis Costello's release of my favorite album of his: My Aim is True. New wave pulled us out of the disco doldrums with a hell of a gale-force. truly memorable time.

[h1soka]

@ampheat

One word: Sparks.

[djhotdogboy]

My music listening "life" began with Elvis Costello - what a fantastic, varied career, spanning many genres of music. And still going strong!!!

[jakeblues56]

"She's filing her nails while they're dragging the lake..." lol- Happy Birthday Caitlin- always had your number, and your back. Love, Dad. :-)

[rubyrose456]

Just ADORE Elvis Costello, especially his songs involving his Heart.....in and out of Love....sneering and sniveling in all his Glory of sarcastic witticism...TY.

[jonnda]

The bass line is better in this live version.

[lem1968a1]

This song was written about Barney Phife

[lem1968a1]

Cool classic I loved this stuff when i was little

[betterthanbrad]

"Intelligent Punk" Oxymoron! I love the guy!!

[daBlackBaron13]

cellophane shrink-wrapped, so correct...

[instasign]

hey encee -we watched this fucked up on Actifed and acid back in the day when music access was a bus to town or a crappy videotape of a BBC special - must have been incredible to have been there...

[jimdevo]

awesome. ELVIS IS KING

[JCStanton117]

they are sweating balls. must've been a hot show.

[encee1000]

I was at this gig in 1977, still one of the best I have ever been to. EC was so *angry* and the tiny club (Erics in Liverpool) was absolutely packed out. IMHO, Welcome to the Working week is one of the best first track first album songs ever made.

[vaf88]

oodoocacapeepee

[PhiDeck]

Contrary to some posting here, I am not impressed by what the organ player does. Check out Garth Hudson's work with The Band, or Alan Price's work with The Animals, for superior organ playing.

What makes this song, in addition to Elvis, is Bruce Thomas' inventive bass lines.

[malthuswasright]

@PhiDeck The guy's doing what's required for the song. That's enough.

[commlink101]

My new favorite song!

[Chribinator]

Excellent, mellow performance of this song by the boys.

[oliasdoug]

I remember seeing him do this on Saturday Night Live. I didn't get it at the time; didn't really have an appreciation for this kind of music until later on. Just goes to show how wrong a person can be.

[mistaben2k]

Got a reggae groove to it.

[aletheahelen]

where are they palying then?

[dizzyisme]

this is awesome.

[GaryReggae]

Amazing, particularly the organ player...that rhythm just skanks along, it's so ... words fail me, I love it so much, it's fab.

[Macmetz1]

you know it - the kings best song!

[GruppeB]

the keys are really "less is more" on this live cut

[ElRico2525]

Sick ass outro

[hutchinz69]

My old man got in a punch up with him and nicked his tie haha!! good music tho :)

[NAMTRIP]

@hutchinz69

This guy is better than hes recognized for,this is a great song.

[Dachtewitz]

I saw Costello 1991 in Auckland at the other side of summer-tour- a fat and longhaired man - but - wonderful !!

[rasichap]

I believe it is about a time he went to pick up a girl at her house to go out on a (first) date, and she was more interested in watching a cop show on TV.

[waynepayne]

my impression is that its based on watching TV

man, this must be a very early Attractions gig

Bruce Thomas, the bass player is stealing the show

with all his fancy triplets dont u think?

[4amiller]

Love it. Does anyone know if this is based on a true crime?

[4amiller]

Oh, thanks. Guess that girl missed out on a great guy. TV over a date - should be a no-brainer.

[brittanykathlyn]

<33333

[gordon458]

love this song

[elvisandjesus]

very cool. love both elvises, glad the one is still around, even though sometimes you have to say still around.

[chrisclerk1]

ec the meistro on both vocals and guitar

with the calypso beat and the story goes

she is watchin/he is watchin---the detectives/don't get cute shoot!!!!

[jdrums161]

The epitome of cool. Just awesome.

[squireman72]

Written about a very evil woman. As are many of Elvis' greatest tunes.

[punkbabydoll77]

is that the right date, aug 2/77...i thought EC didn't make his debut a few months after the other elvis died on the crapper...

[thegirl44]

Nope EC's first album came out spring of '77.

[punkbabydoll77]

thanks...i had know idea EC was around before the other elvis died...someone told me he came out in oct 77...thanks for clearing that up, i love EC...

[thegirl44]

Anytime, Pet.

Thanks for the invite.

[MrBlankgeneration]

Ahhhhhh, good old Eric's, Liverpool.

[Umskiddy]

Nice authentic reggae riddim here, especially the keyboards.

[rob58166]

great lyrics

[179077]

Just another example of the amazing talent that exploded across the New Wave scene then a proper song writer to boot with his own style

[nuMbERsRuNN3R]

Nice girls not one with a defect,

cellophane shrink-wrapped, so correct.

Red dogs under illegal legs.

She looks so good that he gets down and begs.

She is watching the detectives.

"ooh, he's so cute!"

She is watching the detectives

when they shoot, shoot, shoot, shoot.

They beat him up until the teardrops start,

but he can't be wounded 'cause he's got no heart.

[nuMbERsRuNN3R]

Long shot of that jumping sign,

Visible shivers running down my spine.

Cut to the baby taking off her clothes.

Close-up of the sign that says,"We never close"

You snatch a tune and match a cigarette,

She pulls the eyes out with a face like a magnet.

I don't know how much more of this I can take.

She's filing her nails while they're dragging the lake.

[nuMbERsRuNN3R]

You think you're alone until you realize you're in it.

Now fear is here to stay. Love is here for a visit.

They call it instant justice when it's past the legal limit.

Someone's scratching at the window. I wonder who is it?

The detectives come to check if you belong to the parents

who are ready to hear the worst about their daughter's disappearance.

Though it nearly took a miracle to get you to stay,

it only took my little fingers to blow you away.

[nuMbERsRuNN3R]

Just like watching the detectives.

Don't get cute!"

It's just like watching the detectives.

I get so angry when the teardrops start,

but he can't be wounded 'cause he's got no heart.

Watching the detectives.

It's just like watching the detectives.

[bHussieno]

Very cool...song still evolving...so early...pure

[shelkamark]

Outstanding clip...Excelcior!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[cajohn54]

this is so big its huge

[patc161]

My first notion, this man is great, never stopped liking his music since.

[heagy56]

i have to agree suburiboy,,,but is there anything he does that isnt gr8?

[suburiboy]

from this same performance he also did "no dancing". that is one of the most under-known rock songs ever. amazing song.

[A4est]

this guy is good.. just like the real guy. If he comes to the 505 I will go see him

[moezmoe1960]

He is the real guy silly...unless you were being funny, it didn't come across that way though. You took the time to come to this site so, I thinik not

[A4est]

this most have been a long time ago then. He's changed a lot, or is this guy just lipsyncing EC.

[suburiboy]

this is from when the song was new 1977. that is the band we was with from 1977- 1986 ish.

and that is him

[therry1956]

Oh i love this song. Nice to it live. Elvis Costello is one of my fav..

[dolph66]

Why does elvis remind me of someone out of thunderbirds ????

[God4Dunoon]

nah its Joe 90

[tsopuaifa]

Me and my best friend used to sing this song walking down the streets checking out the ladies. Those were good times!

Mange RIP.

[orville1960]

saw him in winterpeg canada, in the late 70s

[sudnaidu]

I take the world with me when I travel.

[lordkoos]

Yeah I saw him in '79 too, at the Whiskey in LA... it was one of the best shows ever. I think it may have been only his 2nd or 3rd gig in the USA.

[picark]

Strange how Elvis Costello became popular right after Elvis Presly died.

I like this song particularly.

[Forestamtul]

strange but true isnt it.

[artgonewrong]

WRONG!

[DreamOfTurtles]

Elvis Costello was right in 1977. Everybody else was wrong.

[koestenbraumstar]

@DreamOfTurtles agreed!



[tonee127]

@DreamOfTurtles Nah, not quite, the clash were very very right aswell :)

[Jowea]

I love Jazzmasters

[bkgrinch]

funny geeks:))

[hoffbug]

I saw Elvis Costello and the Attractions at the Old Saint Paul Theater in St. Paul Minnesota March 8th 1979.. People still look at me funny what I tell them its in the top three live shows Ive ever seen.. and Ive been to well over 100 concerts!

[koreyman]

I am not looking at you funny. I envy you...

[vicentico21]

k final más increíble !!!!!!!!!! Parece de película de suspenso

[greyhoundfriend123]

You just had to be there! Awesome!

[Crowsfan55]

fuck he is great