 | Armed Forces by Elvis Costello and the Attractions
Buy used from: $24.95 Viewed by some as 'Costello Lite', Armed Forces retains the bite of his first two albums while showing EC's development into a master craftsman of pop-rock gold.
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 | Painted from Memory by Elvis Costello & Burt Bacharach
Buy new: $13.98 / Used from: $1.21 Pretty much either reviled or lauded, I find 'Painted' most enjoyable. These songs are much more interesting sung by Elvis than by a Michael Buble or Harry Connick Jr.
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 | King of America by Elvis Costello
Buy used from: $7.48 'King' shows a maturing Costello. Aficionados of early angry Elvis will sneer at what seems to be a lurch into the mainstream. Well crafted and eminently listenable other than the virtually inexcusable recording of 'Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood'.
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 | All This Useless Beauty (With Bonus Disc) by Elvis Costello
Buy new: $18.98 / Used from: $8.96 Possibly one of Costello's most overlooked recordings. 'Beauty' doesn't grab you and throttle you like his first three albums. It grows on you with each listen. A few missteps, but also some very good stuff here.
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 | This Year's Model (With Bonus Disc) by Elvis Costello
Buy used from: $14.24 Fun songs on this sophomore effort...'Pump It Up', 'Lipstick Vogue', 'Radio, Radio'. EC rocks harder here than on his debut recording. This solidly rounds out my top 5 standard Costello recordings.
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 | Get Happy!! by Elvis Costello & the Attractions
Buy used from: $25.00 One of Costello's more overrated recordings. It's not bad, just not the classic that it's touted to be.
I think I get what he was trying to do here, but most of 'Happy' is just not as melodic as truly great R&B.
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 | Trust by Elvis Costello & the Attractions
Buy used from: $20.94 Somewhat overlooked in the early portion of Elvis's career is this rather unique collection of songs. No classics here, but solid overall. 'Strict Time', 'Lover's Walk' and 'From a Whisper...' are my faves.
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 | My Aim Is True (With Bonus Disc) by Elvis Costello
Buy used from: $24.99 A good debut with some interesting stuff although
critically overrated. Extended versions of 'Aim' with 'Stranger in the House', 'Radio Sweetheart' and 'Cheap Reward' are early indications of Elvis's affection for country music and signs of curves and sliders to be thrown in later recordings.
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 | Imperial Bedroom by Elvis Costello & the Attractions
Buy used from: $19.20 I'm one of the few Costello fans who does not care for 'Imperial Bedroom'. Only a couple of songs here are up to snuff. I think this is EC's most overrated recording.
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 | My Flame Burns Blue
Buy new: $18.98 / Used from: $1.91 Overall, not my cup of tea. However, the live version of 'That's How You Got Killed Before' almost makes this worth the purchase by itself.
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 | Brutal Youth (With Bonus Disc) by Elvis Costello
Buy used from: $14.77 Starting to slip toward the lower tier of Costello's recordings. A couple of somewhat compelling songs ('London's Brilliant Parade' and 'Favourite Hour') along with a few other tidbits. In general though, a notch below Elvis's better stuff.
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 | Spike (With Bonus Disc) by Elvis Costello
Buy new: $18.98 / Used from: $6.30 Some fans like 'Spike'. I'm not one of them. 'Veronica' is a classic and 'Deep Dark Truthful Mirror' is solid, but the rest of the songs here are hit and miss...mostly miss.
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 | Mighty Like a Rose by Elvis Costello
Buy new: $18.98 / Used from: $7.78 Not too much to get excited about here although I am a fan of Elvis's paean to the Beach Boys, 'The Other Side of Summer'. 'Hurry Down Doomsday...' is also a hoot, especially the live version on the Rhino issue bonus disc.
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 | Goodbye Cruel World by Elvis Costello & Attractions
Buy used from: $16.88 Elvis is right: This is one of his worst recordings. Even here one can find a nugget or two among the dust. You either hate (many do) or love (I'm in this camp) 'I Wanna Be Loved'...you've gotta dig that sax solo! Not much else of interest other than 'The Comedians' and 'Only Flame in Town'. Note: Better versions of both can be found on Rhino's 'All This Useless Beauty' bonus disc.
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 | Kojak Variety by Elvis Costello
Buy new: $18.98 / Used from: $16.93 A mediocre mess at best. I've heard the bonus CD on the Rhino reissue is good, but I'm not willing to subject myself to the original 'Kojak' again.
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 | Costello & Nieve (Ltd. Ed. Live 1996 5-disc box set - LA/San Francisco/Chicago/Boston/New York) by Elvis Costello & Steve Nieve
Buy used from: $38.49 Put this gem at the end just to separate it from Costello's regular recordings. It's hard to find at a decent price. If you do, snap it up and enjoy 20+ live versions of many of EC's lesser-know songs. Some, 'Little Atoms' and 'All This Useless Beauty' among them, are quite superior to the studio versions. This is a must for any Costello completist.
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 | The Very Best of Elvis Costello by Elvis Costello
Buy used from: $11.87 Supposedly, EC had a hand in the selections here so this may be better thought of as 'Costello's Favorites'.
Virtually no one is every satisfied by a Best of/Greatest hits package. This is a pretty good one. Like anyone, some of my favorites are missing while others ('Pills and Soap', 'Tramp the Dirt Down' and 'I Want You' among them) are quickly skipped when listening to this compilation.
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