My ten favorite albums: Elvis Costello & The Attractions' Get Happy

[I'll get to the other ten albums sooner or later]

From My Aim Is True, This Year's Model, Armed Forces, Get Happy, up to Trust, Elvis Costello was a songwriting and song performing machine. These five albums are, in my booklet, the best music to emerge in those years (77-81). And they had some pretty stiff competition from Talking Heads, The Clash, The Ramones, and many others. . .I mean at that point, even Motown was still a force. Elvis is the best composer to emerge from either side of the Atlantic.

In album four, Get Happy, Elvis achieved a masterpiece. Elvis's embrace of Stax/Motown is stunning. And it had twenty songs-- a miracle on vinyl. It is a shimmering, blazing tribute to soul. It may not be his greatest album (Imperial Bedroom or maybe Armed Forces takes that prize), but it is my favorite, and the favorite of a lot of long-time fans. On the re-mastered version that came out a couple of years ago, Elvis included an incredible 30 bonus tracks, ranging from demos to alternate versions. It is a tribute to Elvis that he almost always made the right choices--I have yet to hear an alternate version that was better than the released one.

As with previous albums, this one was recorded in an alcohol-fueled frenzy. The songs tumble out jackhammer style--some of them are less than two minutes long. Nick Lowe was once again the producer and somehow he pulled it off, despite his production methods, which Elvis once said consisted of

"a fader in one hand and a vodka bottle in the other."

These songs were frequently written and recorded in canon blasts, like the boast of "Possession" being written in five minutes after an afternoon infatuation with a cocktail waitress. The Attractions' mission was to pump out as much music as possible, as soon as possible.

Album five, Trust, was another excellent album. And then things got spottier. But ten great albums, or whatever it is. . .not many can match that. Maybe only one other band. And now, I'm thinking I've been a bit hasty. . .do I really like this album better than This Year's Model, Imperial Bedroom, or Armed Forces? Well, I do today.
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