Elvis Costello - where next?

Worm,

Try his first album "My aim is true" and "Punch the clock", barely a dud track on them.

Regards

Nic

You can't really go wrong up to Blood and Chocolate perhaps with the exception of Goodbye Cruel world.

If I had to pick 3 they would be

Get Happy
Trust
Blood and Chocolate.



SJB

This Years Model.

Peter

seconded

As well as those recommended above - I'd go for 'Punch the Clock' - a wonderful album that includes two of Elvis's best songs - 'Pills and Soap' and 'Shipbuilding'. The former contains the lines 'there are ashtrays of emotion for the fagends of the aristocracy', which I don't think he has ever bettered. The trumpet solo on Shipbuilding is by Chet Baker and is very wistful and moving.

Nigel

Agreed 'Shipbuilding' is a classic, one of the best anti-war songs ever written. The rest of Punch The Clock is a bit lightweight.
I'd echo Blood And Chocolate and Imperial Bedroom. I'm also very fond of the collaboration with Burt Bacharrah, Painted From Memory.

I know I am in minority around here, but I think the guy is seriously over-rated. I do have some of his earlier albums but I haven't played them in a long time. His singing is mannered and, for me, not very pleasant. I suspect he is is his own number one fan.

Dreadful sentence construction there. Sorry.

Love 'im or hate 'im. I'd have difficulty denying the guy's damn talented.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

Chris - yours is pretty much the view I had for 20 or so years. Bought Armed Forces on a whim a few months ago and liked what I heard. That led me to King of America which personally I think is streets ahead and I have found myself putting it on he CD player a lot.

I bought the expanded remastered versions - the sound quality is fantastic there is a huge amount of material on them (they both run to 2 discs) and you can normally pick them up from an Amazon Marketplace reseller for a £5.

Cheers

worm

Malky
I'm sure he is talented. But there are many very talented musicians out there who do not come across as being quite so smug and self-satisfied as Mr McManus. Just one of my musical blindspots I'm afraid (along with Bjork, rap, modern "R&B" and several other genres which are failing to spring to my aging mind right now!).

Worm
I take your point. To be fair, I have never heard EC on my Naim set up. If I can put my hands on one of the CDs I shall give it a spin. Maybe I'll grown into him again!

Chris,

I don't "get" him either (performance wise he grates) but he writes good stuff and I enjoy hearing others perform it.

Dave Edmunds for one that springs to mind.

Steve.

Robert Wyatt's version of "Shipbuilding" is a cracker.

Try and locate a copy (bootleg) of his first year concert Live At The El Mocambo. This was a radio station only LP of a concert he gave at the El Mocambo nightclub in Toronto to support his first album. To this day one of the most exhilerating live performances ever!

Gregg

PS his new album where he sings songs of the legendary Alan Toussaint is not to shabby either!

Elvis Costello - where next? Retirement hopefully. A truly dreadful performer with a ridiculous voice imo.

I like Armed Forces ( for nostalgic reasons), also, This Years Model is fairly good. However, sometimes I agree with Acad, I'm not a huge fan.

BB

quote:

Originally posted by glevethan:
Try and locate a copy (bootleg) of his first year concert Live At The El Mocambo. This was a radio station only LP of a concert he gave at the El Mocambo nightclub in Toronto to support his first album. To this day one of the most exhilerating live performances ever!

Gregg

I've just listened to this for the first time in years after reading this post.

It's a good live performance with an unfortunately very irritating guy near the right mic who thinks he's in a rodeo!
Sometimes these hard to get albums generate a mystique they don't deserve.

Personally I'd go for any (all) of the first 3 albums before I'd venture here. I got my copy with the demon reissue series ( a box set of 4 albums called 2 1/2 years).

worm, if you're thinking of buying this at the exorbitant online prices, let me know and I'll run you out a copy.



SJB

quote:

worm, if you're thinking of buying this at the exorbitant online prices, let me know and I'll run you out a copy

What a naughty boy you are!!

I too have the El Mocambo set bought as part of the 2 1/2 years box. It's very - shall we say - raw!

Nigel

quote:

But there are many very talented musicians out there who do not come across as being quite so smug and self-satisfied as Mr McManus

Hilary and I had a very pleasant evening with Elvis and Diana over the weekend. I didn't find he was self satisfied at all.

Nigel

Naim dropper!

My Aim Is True

Almost Blue


The two essential Costello albums.



Nigel

I am biased but believe it is a good thing to buy/listen to everything DPAM has recorded officially or unofficially.

me too

I love get happy the most though

Have to agree with Eloiseneedle that Get Happy is his best .

Also consider This years model and King of America . Pretty much all of them really.