Search - Elvis Costello :: My Aim Is True (With Bonus Disc)

Rhythmically admired

wordnat | United States | 08/31/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"EC's debut must have sounded pretty strange upon release (I was 8 at the time and in love with KISS, so I wouldn't really know), but it sure sounds tame, even quaint, now. But it sure still sounds good -- great songwriting, thankfully, never goes out of style. And although I've always felt this album was a tad overrated (it can't hold a candle to the three spastic masterpieces that followed it), MAIT makes it clear that Elvis was brilliant from the start. Heck, anyone who can write a song as off-kilter and affecting as "Radio Sweetheart" and then put it on the B-SIDE(!) of his first single is obviously someone with talent to burn...."

A GREAT PACKAGE TO RYTHMICALLY ADMIRE A GREAT ALBUM

Jack Baur | Eugene, OR United States | 11/06/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Elvis' "My Aim is True" is an amazing debut album, a marvel of simple, catchy pop song constructions and clever, sometimes scathing word play and often heartbreaking lyrical genius. This is the first step of a man who was going to become one of the greatest writers of pop songs of our time, and what a start!
The album itself is nearly perfect and this is a beautiful master, the sound is clean and sparkling as it was in 1977. With songs such as the timeless ""Allison," the white-boy skank of "Watching the Detectives" (which features some of the greatest lines ever: "She pulls his eyes out with a face like a magnet!"), "Less Than Zero," "Welcome to the Working Week": these songs alone make this a necessary album. When one considers all the goodies that come with this re-issue, you'd be mad to not buy it right now!
The Bonus disc kicks off with a great demo version of "No Action," all fuzzed-out and even more rockin' than the one that shows up on "This Year's Model," followed by an amazing live version of "Less Than Zero" with heavy distortion and some bitterly re-written verses and an early Bacharach cover. The majority of the other demos are so-called "Honky-Tonk" versions, featuring Elvis solo acoustic reimaginaing himself as a country crooner. These versions give an interesting insight into the songs, revealing elements not previously noticed.
Top all this off with the extensive liner-notes by Elvis Himself full of pictures antecdotes about the writing and recording of the album with an almost unknown record label and working a day-job as a computer engineer. After reading this stuff one is amazed that the album was ever made, but let's thank all the higher-powers there are that it was. This is an absolute master-work, one of the ballsiest debuts ever, and the birth of a rock legend."

The Marking of an Arrival

Blake Maddux | Arlington, MA United States | 02/19/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

""If he didn't exist, someone would try to invent him", read a promotional poster for Elvis Costello's 1977 debut. However, sometimes truth is stranger than fiction, and to try to invent Elvis Costello would be like trying to invent Woody Allen, a personality whose singularity is on par with Elvis's. Elvis Costello was the angry young man par excellence, and if punk is all about attitude, then he certainly fit the bill (he was only 22 when the LP was released). My Aim is True also introduced a superb artist who could cover half a dozen styles (punk, rockabilly, reggae, Tin Pan Alley, new wave, singer/songwriter) and emotions (bitterness, anger, lust, ruefulness, whimsy, and musical inspiration) in an equal number of songs. Top that off with his moniker and unsettlingly warped Buddy Holly appearance, and you have the walking popular music museum that Costello is. On My Aim is True - which must have come as a shock to his ex-office colleagues - his greatness manifests itself in about six tracks, five of which are undeniably brilliant, the other of which any individual listener can choose for him or herself. The other songs, while hardly mere filler, pale by comparison, and are perhaps ill-served by bare-bones production, slow tempos, and somewhat forced lyrics. The greatness of My Aim is True lies at least as much in the fact that it is the marking of an arrival as it does in the half-dozen truly great songs it contains.On first listen, "Welcome to the Working Week" seems to start off the disc beautifully, and provide a great introduction to what makes Elvis tick. It is angry, bitter, and pithy (which is probably the single best and most oft-used word to describe his lyrics). However, one cannot be struck by the song's overly abrupt ending (a technique which can be effective, especially in punk, but isn't here), and the fact that the song doesn't make much sense and therefore fails to pack its potential lyrical punch (why is someone whose picture is in the paper being "rhythmically admired" being welcomed to the working week?). "Miracle Man" further reveals Elvis' lyrical abilities, and has that patented Elvis mix of bitterness and guilt, but is a bit ill-served by its matter-of-fact presentation (as are "Blame it on Cain" and "Less Than Zero," the latter of which was the first indication of what one critic called his "bizarre fascination with fascism"). "No Dancing," a chronicle of an eager-to-please, sex-starved nice guy (I wonder who?), is more pleasantly poppy, and is the best of the first four songsFinally, at track five, we arrive at "Alison," the first undeniable indication of Elvis' talent. Here he is a singer-songwriter in the best sense of the term. Elvis packs all of what were to become his trademark emotions into this song, as he laments a lost love from whom he just can't keep the appropriate physical and emotional distance ("Sometimes I wish that I could stop you from talking" / "I can't stand to see you this way"). The singer of the song wants Alison back, but cannot accept her as she is now (and he probably shouldn't), but would gladly have her as she once was (and she might be just as happy to be that person again, too). This song should lay waste to any doubts that the first-time listener might have.After "Alison," the CD alternates between truly undeniable brilliance and pleasant enough pop songs. In the latter category are the Tin Pan Alley ditties "Sneaky Feelings" and "Pay It Back," which are entertaining, but serve mainly to indicate Elvis' range, and may not impress listeners who appreciate the pithy Elvis. "Less Than Zero", the first line of which was immortalized by Elvis's first (and, for a very long time, only) Saturday Night Live appearance, might have worked better if it were a bit tighter, and played at a quicker tempo, while "Waiting for the End of the World" sounds more like a report than a song (although the guitar work is quite tasteful).But don't let this frighten you away. The second half of the disc also treats the listener to four of the best songs Elvis ever recorded, which, in combination with "Alison", almost make pointing out the weaker moments of the disc sound like nit-picking. "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes" sublimely reveals a kinder, gentler, whimsical Elvis, who seems to think he's good enough, smart enough, and possibly liked by non-existent entities. It also contains some of the best lyrics on the CD (eg, "I used to be disgusted, but now I try to be amused" / Oh, I said 'I'm so happy I could die'/She said 'drop dead' and left with another guy"). "Mystery Dance" reveals the sexually frustrated Elvis in an impossibly catchy one-and-a-half minute glory days of rock and roll song drenched in the attitude of punk. Hearing Elvis Costello sing "I'm not angry anymore" - in a quintessential Costello self-portrait - is like hearing a fish sing a song called "I'm Not Wet." And the disc's closer, the reggae-infected "Watching The Detectives", almost sounds out of place on My Aim is True, but it nicely foreshadows the greater sophistication of his future releases (but the soon-to-be-released single "Radio Radio" seems to belong on this album). All things considered, Elvis emerged more or less fully formed on the finer moments of My Aim is True. The weaker songs, at the very least, indicate an amazing musical facility, while the stronger songs are strong not only by comparison to the others on the disc, but to any song released in 1977. The CD is less of a sign of things to come than a full-fledged revelation of a great musical talent and palpably unique personality. I do believe that he has better, or at least more consistent, albums (eg, This Year's Model, Armed Forces), but the best songs on this CD are at least as good as the best ones anywhere in his catalog. Still, the lesser songs do subtract a bit from the overall quality and momentum of the disc. Even if they are good enough songs, they are less impressive in a way that makes them seem unsatisfying and disappointing. But this can fade with repeated listenings, and My Aim is True is a fine place to start or to continue appreciating one of the best singer-songwriters of the past three decades. (The bonus disc included with the Rhino re-issue is worth having not only for the alternate takes and live songs, but for the fascinating liner notes, penned by Elvis himself. All nine of the Ryko version bonus tracks are included, and the alternate versions of "No Action" and especially "Mystery Dance" - which is solo and all acoustic - are welcome additions. Live versions include those of "Less Than Zero" - with some interestingly different lyrics - and the David/Bacharach song "I Just Don't Know What to do With Myself". Several other tracks are presented in what are appropriately called "Honky Tonk demos," and showcase Elvis' lifelong enthrallment with country. Plus, lyrics to every song - bonus tracks too - are thrown in. So be sure to shell out the extra few bucks for the Rhino 2-disc set.)"