|
|
| A1 | Why Don't You Love Me (Like You Used to Do) | | 1:30 | | A2 | Sweet Dreams | | 2:52 | | A3 | Success | | 2:35 | | A4 | I'm Your Toy (Hot Burrito #1) | | 3:18 | | A5 | Tonight the Bottle Let Me Down | | 2:05 | | A6 | Brown to Blue | | 2:35 | | B1 | A Good Year for the Roses | | 3:05 | | B2 | Sittin' and Thinkin' | | 2:50 | | B3 | Colour of the Blues | | 2:15 | | B4 | Too Far Gone | | 3:18 | | B5 | Honey Hush | | 2:05 | | B6 | How Much I Lied | | 2:40 |
|
| 1981 |
Almost Blue: Elvis Introduces His Favorite Country Songs
[Promo]
|
 |
Vinyl LP |
Columbia |
AS 1318 | | 1981 |
Elvis Costello Introduces the Tracks from His New Album 'Almost Blue'
[33 rpm], [Interview], [Numbered Edition], [Promo]
|
 |
Vinyl LP |
F-Beat |
E.C. CHAT 1 | | 1981 |
Almost Blue
|
|
Vinyl LP |
F-Beat |
XXLP13 | | 1981 |
Almost Blue
[33 rpm]
|
|
Vinyl LP |
Columbia |
FC 37562 | | 1984 |
Almost Blue
|
|
Vinyl LP |
Columbia |
PC 37562 | | 1986 |
Almost Blue
|
|
CD |
Demon |
FIEND CD 33 | | 1994 |
Almost Blue
[Bonus Tracks], [Reissue], [Remastered]
|
|
CD |
Rykodisc |
RCD 20277 | | 1994 |
Almost Blue
[Bonus Tracks], [Reissue], [Remastered]
|
|
CD |
Demon |
DPAM 7 | | 2004 |
Almost Blue
[Bonus CD]
|
|
CD |
Edsel |
MANUS 107 | | 2004 |
Almost Blue
[Bonus CD], [Reissue], [Remastered]
|
|
CD |
Rhino |
R2 76485 | | 2007 |
Almost Blue
[CD Sized Album Replica], [Reissue], [Remastered]
|
|
CD |
Hip-O |
B0008628-02 | |
|
soundtrack
 Very Good
Vinyl
[Rating10501903]
|
Enjoyable for the laid back feel, which was at the time of release rather a new thing for an Elvis Costello album. Here, he made country palatable to a guy like me, immersed in rock 'n roll. With an excellent song selection and a surprisingly soulful feel for the material, this is a good addition to your album collection, especially if you're already an Elvis Costello fan. |
|
Grampus
CD
[Rating1697159]
|
Nowadays my weakness for plundering an artist's back catalogue when I'd virtually abandoned them years before is a regular occurrence, but in 1994, when Elvis Costello reissued virtually every one of his albums with added bonus tracks, it was a first.
Thinking back, Almost Blue was the one I very nearly left on the shelf and it was the one, upon its release, which caused a major rift in his fan base. Still it must have been anticipated. Why else attached a sticker to the jewel case with the legend "Warning: this album contains country and western music and may be harmful to narrow minds"? Whilst not a personal favourite, I've never regretted the purchase although without the inclusion of the brilliant "Psycho" as a bonus track, I may have felt differently.
And that's a strange thing to admit because in the interim period I've picked up the majority of the tracks by the artists who recorded them originally. I guess there are a couple of connected reasons. Firstly, apart from a rollicking version of Hank Williams' "Why Don't You Love Me (Like You Used To Do)?", Costello made a conscious decision to record the tracks as they were originally intended. And so, secondly, that ensured a direct comparison between himself and the artists that made the songs famous and, in the main, Costello loses those battles.
According to Costello himself the idea to record Almost Blue was conceived after his own work began to wane in popularity. Strangely he felt better able to express his own thoughts and feelings through the material of others rather than his own. His taste is impeccable. Besides Williams, There are selections from Charlie Rich ("Sittin' and Thinkin'", "There Won't Be Anymore"), George Jones ("Good Year For The Roses", "Colour Of The Blues", "Brown To Blue"), Patsy Cline ("Sweet Dreams"), Johnny Cash ("Cry, Cry, Cry"), Big Joe Turner ("Honey Hush"), Gram Parsons ("I'm Your Toy", "How Much I Lied") Merle Haggard ("Tonight The Bottle Let Me Down"), among others.
And then there's "Psycho". I've no idea who recorded the song originally (I've a version by someone called Jack Kittel but I don't know if that's the first). This is one of the most chilling and sinister songs I've ever heard: "Oh you recall that little girl Mama, I believe her name was Betty Clark. Oh don't tell me that she's dead Mama 'cause I just saw her in the park. We were sitting on a bench Mama, thinking of a game to play. Seems I was holding a wrench Mama, then my mind just walked away." Country gothic par excellence.
Even though Almost Blue has its faults in no way does it deserve all the brickbats thrown in its direction. It was one of the first indications that Costello would never be satisfied performing within a particular musical genre and, even if it divided and lost his loyal followers, it was a price he was willing to pay. |
|
XonE
 Paulie Gualtieri
[Rating20465968]
|
It's is a total catastrophe with this guy. I thought he was a bad artist as a new wave one, but what the hell. Why is he doing poppy country songs. Oh my god. Shut the fuck up already, take drugs and die in 1982 I'm sick of hearing you.
If sometime I can travel back in time, i will help |
|
corkie
CD
[Rating7786789]
|
The short-sighted criticised EC for this release of cover versions recorded in Nashville, but I consider this album to be an absolute must and it inspired me to reach out to a more diverse collection of music. This album will be best remembered for 'A Good Year For The Roses' but with the exception of tracks 1 and 11, every song here hits the mark and reflect Elvis and the Attractions at their very best.
Key Track: Good Year For The Roses. |
|
StudioMONDO
Play it all night long
CD
[Rating17398226]
|
The one thing that gains this CD another star over the LP is the inclusion of "Psycho". Man, I really like that song! |
|
StudioMONDO
Heard it twice today. Enough.
Vinyl
[Rating17398209]
|
I bought this LP, still sealed, for about $2.00 in a used book store just because I'd heard "I'm Your Toy (Hot Burrito #1)" and because I was curious to see what Costello did to Patsy Cline's "Sweet Dreams". While he does a pretty good job with the cryin'-in-your-beer ballads like I wasn't thrilled by his renditions of the more uptempo fare like "Why Don't You Love Me (Like You Used to Do)?" probably because his voice just seemed better suited for whining about love gone sour. |
|
Bruce66
CD
[Rating15369963]
|
I bunch of covers that got me into country music. If I'd known all the songs before I may have disliked it, but it didn't and so to me it felt fresh and exciting. And it still does, frankly, even though I'm now familiar with the originals. One of my regular listens. |
|
dwayshep
[Rating15315101]
|
AWFUL - his terrible voice shows up here, tackling songs from country greats like Gram, Hag, Hank, etc. - how dare he try to tackle a song by the mighty George Jones with his terrible voice? The songs are great - but don't get them by Costello! |
|
boywiththorninside
 Above Average; a Pretty Good Listen
CD
[Rating13496115]
|
I like Elvis Costello and I like traditional country music. I should love this record, right? Wrong. It's a good record, but it doesn't really fully work for me. "How Much I Lied" is great. On the other hand, Gram Parsons' amazing "Hot Burrito #1" sounds fairly pedestrian here. |
|
mdekoning
Curtis
CD
[Rating2044871]
|
Of the many times I've seen Elvis Costello live, the most memorable show was the one at Vredenburg in Utrecht in January 2005. Costello had a cold and there wasn't much left of his voice. About half an hour into the show somebody in the audience requested "Psycho", a song recorded during the sessions for this album and released on a B-side. Instead of his usual replies when it comes to requests ("Sorry, we don't do requests" or "We don't know that one, I think that's one by the Dolly Dots") to my surprise he replied with "That's a good one!" and did play the song. In my opinion the best song Costello ever recorded not written by himself, it sounded even better with Costello's shattered voice. The absolute highlight of an incredible evening.
That song can be found in all of its glory on the bonus disc of the double disc edition of this album. Not once, but twice; a studio and a live version. The bonus disc also brings us an early version of "Tears before bedtime", duets with Johnny Cash and George Jones and live versions of "Motel matches", "Sittin' and thinkin'" and "I'm your toy".
But in the end, it's still the original album that's most impressive. Costello shows his love for country by recording songs he learned from albums by Emmylou Harris and Gram Parsons ("I'm your toy" aka "Hot Burrito #1", "Tonight the bottle let me down", "Too far gone", "How much I lied"), a George Jones song ("Brown to blue"), the inevitable Hank Williams song ("Why don't you love me") and one by Don Gibson ("Sweet dreams"). He also does what every good cover album should do: he rescues Jerry Chestnut's "Good year for the roses" (originally recorded by George Jones) from obscurity by turning it into a hit single.
Whether he's doing ballads, traditional country or rocking out, Costello sounds inspired, relaxed and he's having fun. Not just that, he makes every song completely his own. One could of course complain about the absence of "Psycho" on the original album, but fortunately the 1994 and 2004 reissues correct that mistake. |
distribution | 1.0 | | 2 | | 1.5 | | 5 | | 2.0 | | 29 | | 2.5 | | 32 | | 3.0 | | 104 | | 3.5 | | 122 | | 4.0 | | 110 | | 4.5 | | 32 | | 5.0 | | 13 |
| most recent
| | | | CD |
| |  | | |
| | | | Digital |
| |  | | CD |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | Vinyl |
| | | | CD-R |
| | | | |
| | | | Digital |
| | | | CD |
| | | | CD | |
distribution | Cassette | | 5 | | CD | | 278 | | CD-R | | 8 | | Vinyl | | 163 | | Minidisc | | 1 | | Digital | | 53 | | Other | | 1 |
|
| | Digital |
| | Vinyl |
| | CD |
| | CD |
| | Wishlist |
| | Wishlist |
| | CD |
| | Digital |
| | CD |
| | |
| | Vinyl |
| | Wishlist | |
|
|
rym
