Favorite Elvis Costello album?
11-29-01, 03:30 PM
#1
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Favorite Elvis Costello album?
This one's for all you Costello fans out there.... What's your favorite? The new Rhino reissues (finally got the "My Aim Is True" yesterday!) got me thinking about the man's career and legacy - so chime in.
My picks (I will have to admit I haven't heard "Almost Blue" or his newer Burt Bacharach collaborations in full, but most of the rest I have):
Best CD: It's a tie for me - "My Aim is True" is probably the one I play the most. It's raw, angry and propulsive, and I never seem to tire of it. But my OTHER favorite album is probably one of his least liked - I really dig "Mighty Like A Rose." Maybe it's because it's just as eclectic as hell, richocheting madly from style to style with abandon - or maybe it's just because it always reminds me of my senior year of high school when it came out. Either way, I think it's overlooked and while it's pretty off-the-wall in tone, I think stuff like "Other Side Of Summer" (see my sig!) and "Harpies Bizarre" rank with his best. IMHO anyway....
My picks (I will have to admit I haven't heard "Almost Blue" or his newer Burt Bacharach collaborations in full, but most of the rest I have):
Best CD: It's a tie for me - "My Aim is True" is probably the one I play the most. It's raw, angry and propulsive, and I never seem to tire of it. But my OTHER favorite album is probably one of his least liked - I really dig "Mighty Like A Rose." Maybe it's because it's just as eclectic as hell, richocheting madly from style to style with abandon - or maybe it's just because it always reminds me of my senior year of high school when it came out. Either way, I think it's overlooked and while it's pretty off-the-wall in tone, I think stuff like "Other Side Of Summer" (see my sig!) and "Harpies Bizarre" rank with his best. IMHO anyway....
11-30-01, 02:38 AM
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It's impossible to pick an absolute top favorite, it changes from day to day. I love MAIT, but I think I've heard it too much to hit my top three anymore. These day's I'd say
1. Trust
2. Get Happy
3. Blood & Chocolate
4. This Years Model
And pretty much everything else logjams along the top.
I can pick the bottom three VERY easily:
1. (being least favorite) Goodbye Cruel World
2. Spike
3. Kojak Variety
1. Trust
2. Get Happy
3. Blood & Chocolate
4. This Years Model
And pretty much everything else logjams along the top.
I can pick the bottom three VERY easily:
1. (being least favorite) Goodbye Cruel World
2. Spike
3. Kojak Variety
11-30-01, 02:42 AM
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gah! of course I forgot "All this Useless Beauty". This album is an absolute gem, and is criminally overlooked. The Rhino reissue is just gorgeous and a must own.
11-30-01, 04:27 PM
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There's no way I can limit myself to just one. Besides, it varies depending on how I'm feeling at the moment. Right now the top 5 are....
1.) This Year's Model
2.) Get Happy!
3.) My Aim Is True
4.) King Of America
5.) Brutal Youth
The stinkers....
1.) For The Stars
2.) Goodbye Cruel World
3.) Kojak Variety (not really bad, but I want new Elvis material...not a bunch of remakes)
4.) Almost Blue
Most underrated...
1.) Brutal Youth
2.) All This Useless Beauty
3.) Painted From Memory (seriously!)
jim
1.) This Year's Model
2.) Get Happy!
3.) My Aim Is True
4.) King Of America
5.) Brutal Youth
The stinkers....
1.) For The Stars
2.) Goodbye Cruel World
3.) Kojak Variety (not really bad, but I want new Elvis material...not a bunch of remakes)
4.) Almost Blue
Most underrated...
1.) Brutal Youth
2.) All This Useless Beauty
3.) Painted From Memory (seriously!)
jim
11-30-01, 04:32 PM
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Here's some news on his next album....
Costello is back, in 'Cruel' fashion
By Elysa Gardner, USA TODAY
In recent years, Elvis Costello has collaborated with artists ranging from Burt Bacharach to classical mezzo-soprano Anne Sofie von Otter on a variety of eclectic projects. But the post-punk pop bard is ready to rock again, in his fashion. Costello's new CD, When I Was Cruel ” due in stores this spring, probably in April ” is full of witty, gritty tunes with such piquant titles as Tart, Episode of Blonde and Tear Off Your Head (It's a Doll Revolution).
"I never liked that 'rock' word, because to me it always meant some guy with his shirt open, with a lot of hair and something down his trousers," Costello muses. "And yet now, pop has become a dirty word, often meaning something kind of joyless and contrived. I guess I'd just say this record is rowdier, and there's more rhythm in it than the last couple of records I made."
Cruel finds Costello working with old friends Pete Thomas and Steve Nieve, the original drummer and keyboardist in the singer's band The Attractions. Costello had originally thought of calling the CD I'm in the Mood Again, he quips "or, I'm in a Mood Again." So why When I Was Cruel” and, when was he cruel? "When was I not? I just like the way the title could apply to a number of thoughts and different songs on the record. I'm going to leave it
to other people to work out what the words mean."
Costello is back, in 'Cruel' fashion
By Elysa Gardner, USA TODAY
In recent years, Elvis Costello has collaborated with artists ranging from Burt Bacharach to classical mezzo-soprano Anne Sofie von Otter on a variety of eclectic projects. But the post-punk pop bard is ready to rock again, in his fashion. Costello's new CD, When I Was Cruel ” due in stores this spring, probably in April ” is full of witty, gritty tunes with such piquant titles as Tart, Episode of Blonde and Tear Off Your Head (It's a Doll Revolution).
"I never liked that 'rock' word, because to me it always meant some guy with his shirt open, with a lot of hair and something down his trousers," Costello muses. "And yet now, pop has become a dirty word, often meaning something kind of joyless and contrived. I guess I'd just say this record is rowdier, and there's more rhythm in it than the last couple of records I made."
Cruel finds Costello working with old friends Pete Thomas and Steve Nieve, the original drummer and keyboardist in the singer's band The Attractions. Costello had originally thought of calling the CD I'm in the Mood Again, he quips "or, I'm in a Mood Again." So why When I Was Cruel” and, when was he cruel? "When was I not? I just like the way the title could apply to a number of thoughts and different songs on the record. I'm going to leave it
to other people to work out what the words mean."
12-02-01, 10:53 AM
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Gamblor,
Thanks for the update. I can't wait for the final product.
Hope this means he'll tour again. I saw him twice the last go-round.
Thanks for the update. I can't wait for the final product.
Hope this means he'll tour again. I saw him twice the last go-round.
12-02-01, 12:26 PM
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Gamblor - groovy! Thanks for the info. With new Tom Waits coming out this spring too looks like I'm in the poorhouse again... 
12-03-01, 11:37 AM
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My Aim is True was the first LP i got and it is still my favorite (which Less than Zero being my favorite song). Ohh the days of playing NES and listening to My Aim is True and Never Mind the Bullocks.
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12-04-01, 03:27 PM
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And here are the tracks for the bonus discs included in the next batch of rereleases. I believe that they are all still scheduled for February.
THIS YEAR'S MODEL bonus disc
1. Big Tears
2. Crawling to the U.S.A.
3. Running Out of Angels (demo)
4. Greenshirt (demo)
5. Big Boys (demo)
6. You Belong to Me (demo)
7. Radio, Radio (demo)
8. Neat, Neat, Neat (live b-side)
9. Roadette Song (live version from the same show as Neat, Neat, Neat)
10. The Price of Love (live Everly Brothers cover)
11. This Year's Girl (alternate take)
12. (I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea (alternate take)
13. Stranger in the House (BBC version)
Presumably the familiar version of "Radio, Radio" will be on disc 1.
BLOOD & CHOCOLATE bonus disc
1. Leave My Kitten Alone (studio take)
2. New Rhythm Method
3. Forgive Her Anything (different from the Ryko version)
4. Crimes of Paris (electric)
5. Uncomplicated (alternate version)
6. Battered Old Bird (alternate version)
7. Seven Day Weekend
8. Baby's Got a Brand New Hairdo
9. American Without Tears No. 2 (Twilight version)
10. All These Things (Neville Brothers cover - Elvis solo)
11. Pouring Water on a Drowning Man (Elvis solo)
12. Running Out of Fools (Elvis solo)
13. Tell Me Right Now (Joe Tex cover - Elvis solo)
14. Lonely Boy Blue (Conway Twitty cover - Elvis solo)
BRUTAL YOUTH bonus disc (tentative lineup)
1. Life Shrinks
2. Favourite Hour (alternate version)
3. This Is Hell (alternate version)
4. Idiophone
5. Abandon Words
6. Poisoned Letter
7. A Drunken Man's Praise of Sobriety
8. Pony St (alternate version)
9. Clown Strike (demo)
10. Rocking Horse Road (demo)
11. Still Too Soon to Know (demo) *OR* 13 Steps Lead Down (demo)
12. All the Rage (demo)
13. Just About Glad (alternate take *OR* demo)
14. Sulky Girl (demo)
15. You Tripped at Every Step (alternate version)
jim
THIS YEAR'S MODEL bonus disc
1. Big Tears
2. Crawling to the U.S.A.
3. Running Out of Angels (demo)
4. Greenshirt (demo)
5. Big Boys (demo)
6. You Belong to Me (demo)
7. Radio, Radio (demo)
8. Neat, Neat, Neat (live b-side)
9. Roadette Song (live version from the same show as Neat, Neat, Neat)
10. The Price of Love (live Everly Brothers cover)
11. This Year's Girl (alternate take)
12. (I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea (alternate take)
13. Stranger in the House (BBC version)
Presumably the familiar version of "Radio, Radio" will be on disc 1.
BLOOD & CHOCOLATE bonus disc
1. Leave My Kitten Alone (studio take)
2. New Rhythm Method
3. Forgive Her Anything (different from the Ryko version)
4. Crimes of Paris (electric)
5. Uncomplicated (alternate version)
6. Battered Old Bird (alternate version)
7. Seven Day Weekend
8. Baby's Got a Brand New Hairdo
9. American Without Tears No. 2 (Twilight version)
10. All These Things (Neville Brothers cover - Elvis solo)
11. Pouring Water on a Drowning Man (Elvis solo)
12. Running Out of Fools (Elvis solo)
13. Tell Me Right Now (Joe Tex cover - Elvis solo)
14. Lonely Boy Blue (Conway Twitty cover - Elvis solo)
BRUTAL YOUTH bonus disc (tentative lineup)
1. Life Shrinks
2. Favourite Hour (alternate version)
3. This Is Hell (alternate version)
4. Idiophone
5. Abandon Words
6. Poisoned Letter
7. A Drunken Man's Praise of Sobriety
8. Pony St (alternate version)
9. Clown Strike (demo)
10. Rocking Horse Road (demo)
11. Still Too Soon to Know (demo) *OR* 13 Steps Lead Down (demo)
12. All the Rage (demo)
13. Just About Glad (alternate take *OR* demo)
14. Sulky Girl (demo)
15. You Tripped at Every Step (alternate version)
jim
12-04-01, 07:29 PM
#19
Gosh darn it! I think I'll have to buy all of these. These are my 3 favorites (so far). I guess I like the rockin' Elvis best.
What do people think of the new releases versus the Ryko versions? Are these much better? Having the extras on a separate disc makes me think I won't play them much. I really enjoyed most of the bonus tracks on the Rykos & was happy to have them at the end after a pause. Though even more extra material is a good thing. What about the way they're releasing them - in themes?
What do people think of the new releases versus the Ryko versions? Are these much better? Having the extras on a separate disc makes me think I won't play them much. I really enjoyed most of the bonus tracks on the Rykos & was happy to have them at the end after a pause. Though even more extra material is a good thing. What about the way they're releasing them - in themes?
12-04-01, 08:06 PM
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Originally posted by Lokimok
What do people think of the new releases versus the Ryko versions? Are these much better? Having the extras on a separate disc makes me think I won't play them much. I really enjoyed most of the bonus tracks on the Rykos & was happy to have them at the end after a pause. Though even more extra material is a good thing. What about the way they're releasing them - in themes?
What do people think of the new releases versus the Ryko versions? Are these much better? Having the extras on a separate disc makes me think I won't play them much. I really enjoyed most of the bonus tracks on the Rykos & was happy to have them at the end after a pause. Though even more extra material is a good thing. What about the way they're releasing them - in themes?
The albums are being rereleased in themes. I do have a list of the sets and the expected release dates around some where. I'll post it when I find it again.
jim
12-13-01, 05:05 PM
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More info on "When I Was Cruel", including track listing....
Costello gets 'Cruel' on April 16
By JOHN SAKAMOTO
-- Executive Producer, JAM! Showbiz
Elvis Costello's first solo album in more than five years, "When I Was Cruel", is scheduled to be in stores on April 16, according to a spokesperson for Universal Island Def Jam.
The 15-track album will be Costello's 17th proper studio release (not counting compilations or collaborations) and the first under his own name since 1996's "All This Useless Beauty".
One insider who has heard the album described it as more of a straightahead "pop" release than Costello's most recent work. "Just listening to it, it really sounds like The Attractions are on the album."
"When I Was Cruel" will indeed feature two of the three Attractions: keyboardist and Costello's longtime touring partner Steve Nieve, and drummer Pete Thomas. Missing will be
>bassist Bruce Thomas, with whom Costello has had a long, fractious relationship. He will be replaced by Dave Faragher.
"I guess I'd just say this record is rowdier, and there's more rhythm in it than the last couple of records I made," Costello told USA Today recently, adding that he almost titled the album "I'm In The Mood Again"
or, jokingly, "I'm In A Mood Again".
Asked when he was last cruel, Costello quipped, "When was I not?" The prime candidates for the album's first single are the lead-off track "45", which Costello played on tour back in the fall of 1999, and "Alibi".
Other songs on the new album -- including "Dust" and "Spooky Girlfriend" -- have been featured in more recent Costello performances.
Despite the half-decade gap between solo albums, Costello has hardly been idle. Since "All This Useless Beauty", he has collaborated with legendary songwriter Burt Bacharach 1998's "Painted From Memory") and classical singer Anne Sofie von Otter(2001's "For The Stars").
He has also been the subject of three best-ofs, overseen another round of catalogue reissues, and contributed to a slew of movie soundtracks, including "Notting Hill", "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me", and "The Family Man".
Here is the complete track listing for "When I Was Cruel":
1. 45
2. Spooky Girlfriend
3. Doll
4. Cruel 2
5. Soul For Hire
6. 15 Petals
7. Tart
8. Dust 2
9. Dissolve
10. Alibi
11. Dust
12. Daddy
13. Blue Window
14. Blonde
15. Radio Silence
So....
We get a new album, at least 6 rereleases (all 2 disc sets), and yet another collaboration (This time with the Mingus Orchestra) next year for a total of 8 Elvis Costello albums next year.
jim
Costello gets 'Cruel' on April 16
By JOHN SAKAMOTO
-- Executive Producer, JAM! Showbiz
Elvis Costello's first solo album in more than five years, "When I Was Cruel", is scheduled to be in stores on April 16, according to a spokesperson for Universal Island Def Jam.
The 15-track album will be Costello's 17th proper studio release (not counting compilations or collaborations) and the first under his own name since 1996's "All This Useless Beauty".
One insider who has heard the album described it as more of a straightahead "pop" release than Costello's most recent work. "Just listening to it, it really sounds like The Attractions are on the album."
"When I Was Cruel" will indeed feature two of the three Attractions: keyboardist and Costello's longtime touring partner Steve Nieve, and drummer Pete Thomas. Missing will be
>bassist Bruce Thomas, with whom Costello has had a long, fractious relationship. He will be replaced by Dave Faragher.
"I guess I'd just say this record is rowdier, and there's more rhythm in it than the last couple of records I made," Costello told USA Today recently, adding that he almost titled the album "I'm In The Mood Again"
or, jokingly, "I'm In A Mood Again".
Asked when he was last cruel, Costello quipped, "When was I not?" The prime candidates for the album's first single are the lead-off track "45", which Costello played on tour back in the fall of 1999, and "Alibi".
Other songs on the new album -- including "Dust" and "Spooky Girlfriend" -- have been featured in more recent Costello performances.
Despite the half-decade gap between solo albums, Costello has hardly been idle. Since "All This Useless Beauty", he has collaborated with legendary songwriter Burt Bacharach 1998's "Painted From Memory") and classical singer Anne Sofie von Otter(2001's "For The Stars").
He has also been the subject of three best-ofs, overseen another round of catalogue reissues, and contributed to a slew of movie soundtracks, including "Notting Hill", "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me", and "The Family Man".
Here is the complete track listing for "When I Was Cruel":
1. 45
2. Spooky Girlfriend
3. Doll
4. Cruel 2
5. Soul For Hire
6. 15 Petals
7. Tart
8. Dust 2
9. Dissolve
10. Alibi
11. Dust
12. Daddy
13. Blue Window
14. Blonde
15. Radio Silence
So....
We get a new album, at least 6 rereleases (all 2 disc sets), and yet another collaboration (This time with the Mingus Orchestra) next year for a total of 8 Elvis Costello albums next year.
jim
06-30-02, 04:11 PM
#22
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He's had so many great great albums that it's hard to pick just one. If anything though, "This Year's Model" would be right up there. "Get Happy" is another fav, and I believe "Trust" to be hugely underrated.
06-30-02, 11:10 PM
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Have to say the new "How To Be Cruel" has really grown on me. Don't know yet where it'll stand in the long term with his others but it's my favorite in a long time from him. Great stuff!