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Why country? Elvis' record label hasn't had much success in the United States selling him to an audience outside of the FM rock cultists, which is good for 200,000 or 300,000 in sales but is nothing compared to Journey, Styx, or Foreigner. He has not been able to connect with a hit single via the normal pop route, and as country music seems to have as much space on the AM band as rock, it could be interpreted as a shrewd move for Elvis to have recorded an album of country standards and not-so-standards. But let us not ignore the fact that Elvis' early demos and recordings had a strong C&W tinge to them, and he is able to approach the genre with the genuine passion of an alkie.
Thus we have Almost Blue, Mr. Costello's first album featuring all non-original compositions and a producer other than Nick Lowe. It also marks the return of Doobie Bro' John McFee guesting on lead guitar and pedal steel, and though his contribution may not be as awe-inspiring as his playing on My Aim Is True, it certainly adds a nice touch But let's not beat around the bush. While Almost Blue may not be as downright awful as Costello's last LP, Hurt, it isn't the kind of record that you're bound to come back to time and again. It's got some nice things on it, and Elvis sings well on this sort of stuff, but its a curiosity item much like the single "Stranger in the House" except longer.
When Bob Dylan went country on Nashville Skyline it was more or less a mindblowing oddity, but Dylan wrote his own cornpone rather than reaching into Hank Williams' and George Jones' catalogs. What's more, that precedent was set a long time ago, and since then many artists have crossed over the line from country to rock and vice versa; there's simply no great surprise here. So what you keep reminding yourself is that this is a marketing gimmick rather than a definitive work. A good country album, perhaps, but for Elvis Costello — allegedly one of the great songwriters of our day currently in a slump — this is simply an all-too-obvious digression.
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