Had the new wave washed up no other artist than Elvis Costello, it would have been worthwhile. But Costello's very talent and productivity make him a difficult figure to follow. His constant changes force his listeners to work as hard as he does just to keep up with him.
Costello's output divides into three rough periods. His initial "angry young man" phase lasted through Armed Forces, still his most consistent album. A period of uncertainty followed in which he dabbled in 60s soul (Get Happy!!) and Nashville country (Almost Blue), as if mistrusting his own abilities.
He regained his nerve with Imperial Bedroom, the beginning of his current phase. On that album, Costello, producer Geoff Emerick and keyboardist Steve Nieve went wild with baroque arrangements and Beatlesque studio effects, at times obscuring the songs.
For Punch the Clock, Costello added a horn section and submitted to the commercial instincts of Madness producers Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley. In the process he scored his first U.S. top 40 hit with the cheery "Everyday I Write the Book," though the album's real highlights were the dark political ballads "Pills and Soap" and "Shipbuilding."
The new album maintains the same production team and the same mix of the commercial and the controversial. There's another potential hit with soul underpinnings ("The Only Flame in Town," with Daryl Hall singing backup), as well as a slew of songs that take time and attention to make their impact.
As usual, Costello's lyrics are dense with puns and wordplay (from "The Only Flame": "But you blew hot and cold / Turned my heart to a cinder / And with each passing day / You're less tender and more tinder"). The arrangements, too, fairly bulge with details — strings, horns, keyboards, background vocals.
It all just manages to hold together, in part because the Attractions have turned into such superlative players. The horns that sounded a little awkward on Punch the Clock fit in much more naturally here. And Costello does more with a technically limited voice than any comparable singer.
Once again the highlights are pretty ballads with sinister political implications. "The Great Unknown" suggests its anti-war intent indirectly, through allusion and metaphor. On "Peace in Our Time," a tale of political naivete and betrayal from Neville Chamberlain to the present, Costello supports a grim lyric with one of his most beautiful melodies.
One has to keep listening to discover the album's other pleasures — the charming, tuneful "Worthless Thing," the metrically intricate "The Comedians," the raucous "Sour Milk-Cow Blues" and "The Deportees Club." Costello's throwaways outclass most artists' masterworks. His music demands close attention — but it's worth the work.
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