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It's an unfortunate fact of life in the record industry that some promising artists succumb to financial pressures and release what could be called a "commercial album." The sound of such an album is homogenized and trendy, as artistic aspirations go out the window while the money rolls in. This is commonly referred to as selling out. Then along comes Elvis Costello and the Attractions. Their slick new pop release Punch The Clock is now climbing the album charts and already has one hit single titled "Everyday I Write The Book."
Elvis sells out, right? Wrong. Punch The Clock promises to be his best selling album since the 1979 release of Armed Forces and could establish him commercially here in America.
The important thing is that Elvis has not done this at the expense of his artistic sensibility. Punch The Clock is as vibrant and powerful an album as anything that he has ever done and it promises to win him a following without alienating any of his old fans.
The reason that Elvis has pulled off commercial and artistic success is his growth as a songwriter. His writing still has the bite and the clever wordplay that established him during England's punk revolution, but it has now grown in scope to handle a variety of topics while still remaining honest and interesting.
He now deals with more than he dealt with his old themes of guilt and anger.
Punch The Clock is a good reminder of Elvis' talent. The songs are grasping and hook-laden and the lyrics range from endorsements of domestic bliss in "The Greatest Thing," to the hypocrisy of Britain's Tory government in "Pills and Soap."
Musically, Elvis makes several important changes on this album. The most important of these is the addition of the TKO horn section which is used extensively on the first side of the album and gives it a Stax-soul feel. The arrangements are uptempo and driving and add an urgency to the lyrics.
The second major addition is a two woman backup vocal group called Afrodiziak. They give several of the songs a Motown doo-wop sound that shows Elvis' fascination for that sound and his ability to interpret it well.
The musical highlights of the album are Elvis' memorable and tuneful vocals. The once snarling punk brashness is gone and has been replaced by the control and skill of a balladeer.
Nowhere is this more evident than on the album's two best cuts, "Shipbuilding" and "Pills and Soap."
"Shipbuilding" is a Sinatra-like tale about the Falklands War which is crooned masterfully and features a touching trumpet solo by Chet Baker.
"Pills and Soap" features Attraction's Steve Nieve on piano and is a scathing attack on Thatcher and the aristocracy.
In this song Elvis refers to Prince Charles and Lady Diana as "Lord and Lady Muck." There will be no Royal Command Performance this year.
Punch The Clock is a thoroughly satisfying album that will reward the serious and not so serious listener.
A word of caution, however — the first pressing is of a rather poor quality and you may have to return a copy to get one that sounds alright, but it is well worth the effort.
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