Elvis Costello

Hey everyone. I am now making an Elvis Costello thread for us to talk about Elvis Costello. I'm getting real into his stuff, especially King of America and This Year's Model. The collaboration with Burt Bacharach, Painted From Memory, is also impressing me quite a bit.
What else should I check out? It seems like everyone has a very unique relationship with his music, so I guess it's mostly a matter of trial and error. I listened to Trust today, it's beginning to grow on me.
Thanks for humoring me, dimestore peeps.  

Nice thread!

I'm a huge Elvis Costello fan and he's one of my favorite artists. There's really no right or wrong place to start but his catalogue can be pretty overwhelming for a newcomer. I'd recommend starting with his early albums (My Aim Is True, This Year's Model, Armed Forces, Get Happy!!, Trust) and then moving on up to Imperial Bedroom, King of America, and Blood & Chocolate. All This Useless Beauty is my favorite album of his; it's heavy on ballads but if that's your thing then you'll enjoy it. Momofuku and Brutal Youth are also pretty great; from there I'd suggest his more challenging effors like Spike, National Ransom, Mighty Like a Rose, and Almost Blue.

The thing I love about Costello is that all of his albums are good. And they're all different. You can basically start anywhere and not be disapointed. I might be wrong but I believe All This Useless Beaty are all songs he wrote for other people, that he decided to sing himself. Kojak Variety are all covers of songs that span from the '40's to the '70's. And Almost Blue is an album of country covers. When I Was Cruel and Blood And Chocolate are my favorites.
He also has a song called 45.

onbackstreetsinbackseats wrote:

The thing I love about Costello is that all of his albums are good. And they're all different. You can basically start anywhere and not be disapointed. I might be wrong but I believe All This Useless Beaty are all songs he wrote for other people, that he decided to sing himself. Kojak Variety are all covers of songs that span from the '40's to the '70's. And Almost Blue is an album of country covers. When I Was Cruel and Blood And Chocolate are my favorites.
He also has a song called 45.

You're correct. All This Useless Beauty was mainly composed of songs written for other artists that he decided to record for himself. Even the tracks he writes for others are brilliant and he's one of the few artists I know who an actually make me care about a cover album or random side project.

Each album is different and I find always find something to enjoy. Albums like North, Punch the Clock, and Goodbye Cruel World aren't my favorites but they still have some great tunes.

thanks for all the advice, guys. my inner sanctum of costello songs after being into it for a few months is American Without Tears, Little Palaces, Brilliant Mistake, Little Triggers, Beyond Belief, Man Out of Time, the Long Honeymoon, Everyday I Write the Book, Toledo, In the Darkest Place, and Alison

DeathoftheCool wrote:

thanks for all the advice, guys. my inner sanctum of costello songs after being into it for a few months is American Without Tears, Little Palaces, Brilliant Mistake, Little Triggers, Beyond Belief, Man Out of Time, the Long Honeymoon, Everyday I Write the Book, Toledo, In the Darkest Place, and Alison

Solid list. 

My favorites include You Bowed Down, American Without Tears, I Felt the Chill Before the Winter Came, Poisoned Rose, (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes, Accidents Will Happen, Man Out of Time, All Grown Up, No Hiding Place, and You Tripped at Every Step.

Elvis Costello rules. As most have said, he has a very wide range of music. From synth-pop songs to piano ballads. My personal favorite song of his Radio Radio.

And my personal favorite SNL moment to watch is this

Saw a good video today of Elvis jamming with Mumford and sons covered Springsteen while playing in a field

what do my fellow Elvis fans think of the new album w/ The Roots?

i'm still getting a handle on it, but i think its pretty good! i thought Black Thought would be rapping at least a bit on it though, so i was a bit disappointed there. still a solid release! great jams.

i've only heard the first two songs so far but i really like the groove of the songs so far, it's an interesting mix of classic and modern sounds

I'm trying to refrain from listening to it until it comes out.

onbackstreetsinbackseats wrote:

I'm trying to refrain from listening to it until it comes out.

it's streaming up on npr. you can listen to it if you want here: *temptation* http://www.npr.org/2013/09/08/219316721/first-listen-elvis-costello-the-roots-wise-up-ghost?sc=tw&cc=twmp&refresh=true

I've listened to a bit of it. I'm not sure exactly how I feel about it yet but you have to give the man credit for still putting out music and pushing himself after all these years. It's always good to have him back.