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"...most energetic rock 'n' roll since the coming of Bruce Springsteen..." — Newsweek, May 2, 1978
"Woody Allen sings Nietzsche." — New Times, May 29, 1978
"...Dionne Warwick with fangs..." — New Republic, March 21, 1979
"Don't want just anybody saying, 'You belong to me'" — Elvis Costello
For the past three years, American critics have run themselves ragged trying to catch a glimpse of what Elvis Costello is all about. Not surprisingly, about all they've done is chase themselves into corners attempting to categorize his music, pulling themselves in the awkward position of then justifying the sound his next inclination leads him to release.
Finally, it has become safest to save all definite statements on Costello's work for retrospective comparisons. Thus, My Aim Is True has been tagged an "exciting debut." This Year's Model is "rock and roll." And Armed Forces is simply "pop."
However, with his latest release, the critics' obsessive awe of Costello waned. Subconsciously riding on the memories of a disillusioning '79 tour, racial slurs and perhaps even the shock of Costello's total disinterest in their quest to comprehend him, reviewers yawned at Get Happy!!
Rolling Stone's Tom Carson called the LP "hard to get into." "Get Happy!! fails," he wrote, "because Costello fails: he doesn't break through." Still, no one has actually placed the album on its "proper" shelf yet.
In short, we Americans are always behind Costello in the race. Yet all the while, we keep expecting him to look over his shoulder and applaud our ungainly lopes. Ah, but he has no intention of such action; he is probably not even aware of us.
Of course, Elvis' U.S fans didn't take on such expectations without reason. Costello was a taste of the latest British fad to which we could, at last, relate. My goodness, accessible punk for a Top Forty culture! Humming "Alison" and buying old clothes came into vogue really fast. Somehow Costello was "our man" — a better-late-than-never preparation for the increasingly softer shock waves of punk that had been tossing across the Atlantic for some time. Shock waves which we now know (again the retrospect) were actually the first ripples of new wave.
Thus, the U.S. acquired its first real taste for raucous punk via the gentle tugs of Elvis Costello. Our experience was just the opposite of England's, where the volume began at 10, and came down to a less violent level.
The big brother image was fostered, and we thought we understood Costello, when, in reality, we were in no position to comprehend his anger, his cynicism, his spitting impotency. We were as naive as Henry James' "innocents abroad."
It took Elvis himself to rescue us — though he never asked to play this role either. "I'm a menace," he said and proceeded to tear apart our red, white and blue traditions. And at last we awoke, shocked at first (i.e. the refusal to accept Get Happy!!), but at least prepared to realize that Costello was not going to do what we expected.
And it is at this point on such a rocky road we finally stand as Columbia Records unfurls its latest bundle of Costello tunes. Taking Liberties is a 20-song collection that gives the best look at this artist's extremely diverse talents to date. Containing seventeen singles never before released in the U.S. and three previously recorded pieces, this album spans the career that has so entangled American music enthusiasts. The best part is that we get all of Costello's greatest tricks without this becoming a greatest hits collection.
Here, Costello takes over a good deal of the production duties from the talented Nick Lowe, thus giving himself the total freedom of choice in the direction of his statements. Surprisingly, most of these numbers comprise the album's quieter cuts, bringing forward the low, moody vocals. Not the arrogant move it might seem, this tactic makes for some of Taking Liberties best material.
"Hoover Factory" is one such piece. Like last spring's "New Amsterdam," it immediately stands out on vinyl. This is one of the new songs, which continues Costello's love of changing styles with its vox humana-like back-ups and soothing melody. However, that sardonic perception can creep in even here, as Elvis sings "It's not a matter of life or death — But what is, what is?"
"Black and White World" and "Clown Time Is Over" are reworked at a similar pace. On "Clowntime" this goes a bit overboard; at 3:30, it becomes one of Costello's longest recordings so far. On the other hand, "Black and White" works nicely with the slight reggae phrasing that becomes dreamy for the line, "There'll never be days like that again," and more clipped when faced with reality.
"Just A Memory" and the ironic version of "My Funny Valentine" are equally pleasing soft cuts with the former showcasing some rich keyboard work by Steve Nieve.
Lowe takes back his producer's seat for most of the rock and roll numbers, re-establishing his ability to make Costello and the Attractions fuse to create their powerful magnetism. The hence-unheard "Clean Money" begins the LP at such a pace with its frenzied "Pump It Up"-styling. That old phrase "You won't take my love for tender" reappears in a new context here, characterizing the Costello love of such word play. "Wednesday Week" is equally grabbing as Elvis first growls, "You won't give a damn by Wednesday week," then does a complete about-face musically and moans "I'd better lose my memory by Wednesday week."
An old friend from the '79 tour "(I Don't Want to Go to) Chelsea" is included with some tough guitar and organ accented by Costello's staccato vocals. Another vaguely familiar cut, "Night Rally" (which replaced "Radio, Radio" on the British release of This Year's Model) is equally haunting, though in a more violent fashion.
Elvis continues his occasional flirts with country music on "Stranger in the House" and "Radio Sweetheart," where John McFee of Clover does a great job on steel guitar. "Getting Mighty Crowded" leans toward R&B. "Sunday's Best" sounds like a carnival nightmare, and "Talking in the Dark" is immediately catchy.
Taking Liberties is Columbia's retrospective look at Elvis Costello to answer all our floundering attempts to pin him down. We've been given a moment to stop the race, take a breath and perhaps even capture the flash ahead of us.
It's time to realize that Elvis Costello is not undefinable, but his vocabulary is ever so much extensive than we ever will imagine. In short, Elvis has more than enough talent to be whatever he wants to be and usually is.
Or to put it in his words, "I'm not sure what I want, but that's not the point — it's that I want it now."
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