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If you can't say it in 10 songs, maybe you can say it in 20. At least that seems to be Elvis' idea in his latest album, Get Happy!!
Producer Nick Lowe assures us that putting 10 songs on each side in no way affects the sound quality. What he fails to mention is the effect Elvis achieves in doing so.
After five or six cuts, all the songs begin to sound alike. None of the ideas are fully developed. You get the idea that all of the these songs are just sketches of great things to come. Of the 20 tunes on the album, only two contain memorable guitar licks.
This may be due to the fact that Costello is trying to give the Attractions some of the spotlight. He certainly isn't trying hard. His bassist, who seems so phenomenal in concert, isn't given a single solo. His reggae-style, however, adds a certain flavor to this album which wasn't present before.
Most of the takes on the album sound live. The production is raw. But rather than counting as a plus in Elvis' favor, this counts against him. The Attractions aren't the Ramones, and there is no use pretending they are. Elvis sounds best with the full, well-mixed sound that was so much a part of This Year's Model and Armed Forces.
Get Happy!! sounds like it should have come after My Aim is True. The songs are simple and the themes almost trite. The presentation is just bad. Elvis just isn't what he used to be.
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