The Record, September 1984

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The Record

US rock magazines

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Goodbye Cruel World

Elvis Costello

Wayne King

When Elvis Costello toured America in spring, playing solo renditions of his songs, it proved that he didn't need the backing of the Attractions to make his work come alive. The decision to perform acoustic shows may have had deeper motives behind it, though, because, judging from Goodbye Cruel World, he may not want to record with the Attractions at all anymore. At least, that's the impression given by an album in which, when Costello and his cohorts aren't repeating themselves, the music is at odds with the songs.

It may seem perverse to focus so much attention to the music here; after all, isn't Elvis a word man primarily? The answer to that is, in my book, not quite the resounding affirmative that general consensus would have it. While the critical focus on Costello's output has correctly centered on his complex lyrics, the Attractions' role in his music shouldn't be underplayed. The difference between his first two albums, My Aim Is True and This Year's Model is, after all, the contribution of Pete Thomas, Bruce Thomas and Steve Nieve, which is quite a difference. Whatever Costello has wanted from them musically—the grand pop of Armed Forces and Imperial Bedroom, the neo-soul of Get Happy, even the C&W treatments of Almost Blue — the Attractions have delivered. But last year's Punch The Clock relied as much on outside elements brought in by the established production team of Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley, like the TKO Horns, or the spare arrangements of numbers like "Shipbuilding" and "Pills And Soap."

Goodbye Cruel World is reminiscent of Graham Parker's The Up Escalator, because in both cases the power of the songwriting was undercut by the incongruity of the backing. Whether it's on the soul-based side-openers, "The Only Flame In Town" and "I Wanna Be Loved," or the plodding "Home Truth," the careful framing that Costello gives his lyrics just isn't evident with the music. And when the songs have to do without sympathetic backing, the shortcomings of Elvis' singing and the occasional obscurity of his writing is overemphasized. Parker's Escalator turned out to be his last record with the Rumour, a collaboration which served both of them well; he has continued doing fine work since. Maybe it's now time for Costello and the Attractions to part. Because, as he gets further away from the ambitious pop constructions of Imperial Bedroom, it looks as if Elvis Costello wants to start singing his songs alone.


Tags: Goodbye Cruel World1984 US Solo TourThe AttractionsPete ThomasBruce ThomasSteve NieveThe Only Flame In TownI Wanna Be LovedHome TruthMy Aim Is TrueThis Year's ModelArmed ForcesImperial BedroomGet Happy!!Almost BluePunch The ClockClive LangerAlan WinstanleyThe TKO HornsShipbuildingPills And SoapGraham ParkerThe RumourNick LoweBobby IrwinNick Lowe And His Cowboy OutfitThe Sex PistolsPaul McCartney

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The Record, September 1984


Wayne King reviews Goodbye Cruel World.


Christopher Hill reviews Nick Lowe & His Cowboy Outfit.

Images

1984-09-00 The Record page 56.jpg
Page scan.



Nick Lowe And His Cowboy Outfit


Christopher Hill

1984-09-00 The Record page 57.jpg

Well, what do you know? A record with some perspiration. And inspiration. And even conviction. Just when it looked like Nick Lowe was set to carve himself a niche as the wiseguy Paul McCartney of post-Sex Pistols Britain, Nick Lowe and His Cowboy Outfit sets out deliberately to prove that Lowe can deliver a solid, good-rocking album's worth without collapsing in giggles. And he comes pretty close.

The first sign of this new earnestness is the way that practically every cut wastes no time in rolling out the big guns, making you sit up and take notice from the start. "Break Away" does just what it says, with Lowe coming on breathy, stuttering, eager to jump into each new verse. "Love Like A Glove" announces it presence with a barrage of rich acoustic chords; "(Hey Big Mouth) Stand Up And Say That" surfs in smooth and cocksure.

Moments like these utilize Lowe's pop skills rightly enough, but this time they're placed at the service of an overriding desire to rock out. Lowe and band grab for all the gusto they can in "Half A Boy and Half A Man," a ripping border radio workout. Drummer Bobby Irwin bashes away hard enough to threaten the song's structure, Lowe's bass just keeps pushing faster, and the exuberant singing makes it clear that Lowe is having a hell of a time. The whole thing ends up sounding like a rare night at the Chicken Ranch. Of course, not everything breezes along so easily. Every Nick Lowe album needs some throwaways; here they come in the form of "Maureen" and "God's Gift To Women," two derivative country-rock homages.

Nick Lowe and His Cowboy Outfit is summed up best in the last cut, a beguiling version of Faron Young's "Live Fast, Love Hard, Die Young." As always, Lowe stands a little outside the material, allowing himself an ironic, artful distance from the song's both-ends-burning romanticism. And yet there's such an unguarded quality in his singing now that he makes the song's premise sound genial, warm, full of earthy wisdom. Of such contradictions, unreconciled yet joined together, does fine rock 'n' roll come.


Cover and contents page.
1984-09-00 The Record cover.jpg 1984-09-00 The Record page 04.jpg

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