438 of 1001 Albums: Elvis Costello's Brutal Youth

I know there are a lot of Elvis Costello fans out there, and I can see the appeal, but honestly the more I listen to Costello the more I don't enjoy hearing it. With Brutal Youth Costello is veering out of the sounds from the 70's and 80's, and taking his talent into the 90's, and while it may not be my thing the guy is good about finding a style that he sticks with and carrying it over decades.

History: The last album I listened to was Blood and Chocolate, and well since that last time I listened to it, it was also the last album that Costello recorded with the band The Attractions until this one, in 1994. The albums reviews though would be very mixed though. Some would give it a positive review, while others would give it a mix one. The album would do well with the public, but it would't quite achieve the billboard success others had.

422 of 1001 Albums: Elvis Costello and The Attractions' Blood and Chocolate

Some Elvis Costello songs are good where as others were a bit rougher. With this one it seems that Costello puts the roughest songs to get through at the beginning, and puts his better stuff about halfway to the end of the album. Costello has an unique style, and maybe I just wish he would go back to more of that 50's rock and roll that matches his flare so well musically.

History: This album was a return for Costello to his usual backing group, The Attractions. The album reached #16 on the charts, and was a success with critics who reviewed the album. Costello even used his nickname for some of the album, Napoleon Dynamite. You may associate this name with the 2004 movie, but Costello believes they stole it from him though it's been denied. The singles that were released from this album struggled to chart.

405 of 1001 Albums: Elvis Costello and the Attractions' Armed Forces

It took me a really long time to finish this album. While Elvis Costello has a certain talent with his vocals and the instrumentals can be catchy, the music itself lacks a bit of that 50's rock charm that his other album I listened to had. His vocals just feel very different than the vibe of the tunes themselves. The music though this also features The Attractions, a backing band he commonly teamed up with to put together his album for this listen.

History: The reviews are mixed for the album. At the time of the release there was good feedback, but there were also some comments on how the production still wanted that pop charm. Over time the album has became more critically welcomed by recent critics. The album also has made a few pop culture references. This album would be the first that The Attractions were credited on the cover of the album for being apart of the music.

366 of 1001 Albums: Elvis Costello's My Aim Is True

After hearing Elvis Costello's name for so long, I was curious about his music would sound. It was very different than I expected with the 50s rock n' rock vibe that was put in well with the 70s.  This album had a rough start though as Costello had a difficult time getting a label to pick it up, and on top of that when the album was released the backing band, The Clovers, weren't even credited due to some contract difficulties. Years later though this album has become a classic, and inducted into a few Hall of Fames.

Costello gets the album started off well with "Welcome to the Working Week". With such a topic usually greeted with not too much excitement he makes his song pop with the fun sounds of the 50s. When you do the 50s though it can be a difficult sound to modify to fit another sound but he does that well by mixing the pop and rock aspect of it.