401. Elvis Costello - This Year's Model (1978)
















Track Listing

1. No Action
2. This Year's Girl
3. Beat
4. Pump It Up
5. Little Triggers
6. You Belong To Me
7. Hand In Hand
8. I Don't Want To Go To Chelsea
9. Lip Service
10. Living In Paradise
11. Lipstick Vogue
12. Night Rally

Review

From second 3 of this album you can tell that it is a much more professional affair than My Aim Is True. Strangely enough, even with the cleaner production it is also the punkier of the two albums.

The Attractions who make the début as Costello's backing band here are much more of a rock band than the previous one, Elvis' delivery is also angrier. Adding to this a smaller reliance on 50's rock and you get a much different album.

I was not that impressed with My Aim is True, but I must say that this was a better kettle of fish. I am still not overwhelmed by Elvis but that might still come, but I can say that I really did enjoy this album. His lyrics are funny and angry, his music is not a carbon-copy of anything else at this time and his Buddy Holly image is completely out of tune with 1978. Good.

Track Highlights

1. (I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea
2. No Action
3. Night Rally
4. Lipstick Vogue

Final Grade

8.5/10

(I don't usually do fractions, but I feel forced here, It is a better album than My Aim Is True, but it doesn't really merit a 9 i.e. inclusion in my MP3 player)

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

It was voted the best album of the year in The Village Voice Pazz & Jop critics poll. In 2000, Q magazine placed This Year's Model at number 82 in its list of the 100 Greatest British Albums Ever. In 1987, Rolling Stone magazine ranked it number 11 on its list of the best albums of the period 1967-1987. In 2003, the album was ranked number 98 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

(I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea: