Almost Blue - Elvis Costello (1981)


 

Almost Blue was recorded not long after Elvis' & the Attractions' three year commercial peak had ended in the UK, and it seems he had a bit of writer's block. So he took the unusual move of taking The Attractions to Nashville to record what seems meant as a straight up country album of country classics. All classcis. 

 Of course The Attractions are a rock band from the UK, but their version of country  (along with some hard-hitting rockabilly) on Almost Blue is actually way more authentic sounding than you'd think it would be, coming from a bunch of English punks. 

A lot of these songs really evoke old-style smoky, dim honky-tonks.  air.... You can almost hear the thud of cowboy boots on thewooden floor, and feel the crunch of complimentary peanut shells underneath your feet and smell the cigareettes and cheap perfume. 

There are some guest musicians on this album who really add to the authenticity, particularly The Doobie Brothers John McFee who plays lead guitar and pedal steel, but really the band just has a natural feel for this stuff. 

But for some reason I don't dig it as well as many retrospective reviews do. It doesn't fade into the background -- it demands a bit of attention...but only a bit...and none of the songs really stick with me that much.

I like country music, (but don't love it) and maybe in the end the reason I'm a little cool on this album is that Elvis' voice doesn't quite deliver the melodies and thus the pathos of these songs very well. He just might not be the right singer for straight up country, though I think that his Americana albums are generally better. Or maybe he should just sick with writing his own songs.

2.5/5

My version is the 1995 Rykodisc/Demon CD reissue, which included a lot of outtakes and also some live tracks. I really like that series. Many people have complained about it, though ( and maybe even an incorrect mix included -- best sounding CD apparently original Columbia.)

 Rhino  reissue has even more bonus tracks (like an entire CD-full but is brickwalled. Probably Worth it though for the bonus tracks if you like this album or a super fan of Elvis....I'll pass on that, however.


Coming Up:

A.M. Wilco

A.T.O.M. - Carbon Silicon

ABBA - ABBA 

ABBA Gold: Greatest Hits

Abbey Road - The Beatles

Achtung, Baby! U2

Actually - Pet Shop Boys

Adult/Child- The Beach Boys

Aerosmith's Greatest Hits

After The Gold Rush - Neil Young

Afterglow - Crowded House

Aftermath (UK Version) - The Rolling Stones

Against The Odds: 1974-1982 Blondie (three disc version)

Aimee Mann Live at St. Ann's Warehouse

Aiming For Your Head - Betchadupa

The Album -- ABBA

The Album That Never Was - The Kinks

All Four One - The Motels

All Over the Place - The Bangles

All Summer Long -- The Beach Boys

All the Great Hits -- Diana Ross

All Things Must Pass -- George Harrison

All This Useless Beauty -- Elvis Costello & the Attractions

All-Time Greatest Hits - Neil Diamond

Alluvium -- Eddie Rayner

Almost Blue -- Elvis Costello & The Attractions

Almost Summer - Celebration

Alpha Mike Foxtrot -- Wilco*

The Alphabetchadupa - Betchadupa

Altitude - ALT

American Idiot Green Day*

American Prayer -- The Doors

Amnesiac Radiohead*

And I Feel Fine...The Best of the IRS years (1982-1987) - R.E.M.

Animals - Pink Floyd

Anodyne - Uncle Tupelo

Another Life - Another Life

Another Music in Another Kitchen: The Buzzcocks

Another Side of Bob Dylan - Bob Dylan

Anthology: Diana Ross & The Supremes

Anthology: Smokey Robinson & The Beatles

Anthology 1: The Beatles

Anthology 2: The Beatles

Anthology 3 The Beatles

Anthology: North South, East West - Tim Finn

Apple Venus: Volume One -- XTC

Apollo 18 - They Might Be Giants

The ArchAndroid: Janelle Monae

Are the Village Green Preservation Society -- The Kinks

Are Well-Respected Men - The Kinks

Armed Forces -Elvis Costello & The Attractions

Around the World in a Day - Prince

Arthur (or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire) - The Kinks

At My Piano - Brian Wilson

Autoamerican - Blondie

Automatic for the People - R.E.M.

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