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English rock star Costello (who lately has been going more by his real name, Declan MacManus) emerged at the time of Elvis Presley's death, claiming that although they both had the same first name there was only one king, and it was Presley.
Eight years later Costello has taken power, and immersed his probing lyrics into a series of strictly American indigenous styles from blues to rockabilly to ballads. Using his Attractions band on some tracks, Presley's rhythm section on others, and even jazz bass great Ray Brown and cajun accordionist Jo-El Sonnier on a couple, Costello has created a work that holds together musically and thematically, from the opening "Brilliant Mistake" to the finale, "Sleep of the Just." In two non-originals he covers the Animals' '60s hit "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" and late American bluesman J.B. Lenoir's "Eisenhower Blues."
This album is neither as focused and pointed as some of his early angry records, nor as scatter-shot as his mid-period work. It is rock as a form that communicates on many levels, sometimes blatantly, sometimes subtly, always with a depth and spirit missing from today's mainstream.
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