Editing Elvis Costello (section)

===1980s===

Costello's 1980 [[Get Happy!! (Elvis Costello album)|''Get Happy!!'']] album featured a sound based on vintage American [[soul music]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Anderson |first=Rick |title='King Horse' – Elvis Costello & the Attractions |url=https://www.allmusic.com/song/king-horse-mt0013639757 |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=19 June 2022 |archive-date=14 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220614211210/https://www.allmusic.com/song/king-horse-mt0013639757 |url-status=live}}</ref> Some songs marked a distinct change in mood from the angry, frustrated tone of his first three albums to a more upbeat, happy manner.{{sfn|Thomson|2004|loc=chap. 7}} The single, "[[I Can't Stand Up for Falling Down]]", was a rendition of a [[Sam and Dave]] song.{{sfn|Hinton|1999|loc=chap. 6}} Lyrically, the songs are full of Costello's signature wordplay. His only 1980 appearance in North America was at the [[Heatwave (festival)|Heatwave]] festival in August near Toronto.

In January 1981, Costello released [[Trust (Elvis Costello album)|''Trust'']] amidst growing tensions within the Attractions.{{sfn|Thomson|2004|loc=chap. 7}} The single "[[Watch Your Step (Elvis Costello song)|Watch Your Step]]" was released in the US only and played live on [[Tom Snyder]]'s ''Tomorrow'' show, and received airplay on FM rock radio.<ref name="Doggett">{{cite magazine |last=Doggett |first=Peter |author-link=Peter Doggett |title=Elvis Costello: The ''Record Collector'' Interview |magazine=[[Record Collector]] |date=September 1995 |issue=193 |pages=38–44}}</ref> In the UK, the single "[[Clubland (song)|Clubland]]" scraped the lower reaches of the UK Singles Chart; follow-up single "[[From a Whisper to a Scream (song)|From a Whisper to a Scream]]" (a duet with [[Glenn Tilbrook]] of [[Squeeze (band)|Squeeze]]) became the first Costello single in over four years to completely miss the chart.{{sfn|Thomson|2004|loc=chap. 7}}{{sfn|St. Michael|1986|pp=64–73}} Costello also co-produced Squeeze's 1981 album ''[[East Side Story (Squeeze album)|East Side Story]]'' (with [[Roger Béchirian]]) and performed backing vocals on the group's hit "[[Tempted (Squeeze song)|Tempted]]".{{sfn|Thomson|2004|loc=chap. 7}}

October saw the release of ''[[Almost Blue]]'', a [[cover album]] of country music including songs written by [[Hank Williams]] ("Why Don't You Love Me (Like You Used to Do?)"), [[Merle Haggard]] ("Tonight the Bottle Let Me Down"), [[Gram Parsons]] ("How Much I Lied") and [[George Jones]] ("Brown to Blue"). The album received mixed reviews.<ref>{{Cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/how-elvis-costello-outlined-his-future-with-almost-blue-120065/ |title=How Elvis Costello Outlined His Future With 'Almost Blue' |first1=Will |last1=Hodge |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |date=21 October 2016|access-date=15 July 2019|archive-date=15 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190715230013/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/how-elvis-costello-outlined-his-future-with-almost-blue-120065/|url-status=live}}</ref> The first pressings of the record in the UK bore a sticker with the message: "WARNING: This album contains country & western music and may cause a radical reaction in narrow minded listeners".{{sfn|Clayton-Lea|1999|loc=chap. 4}}{{sfn|Hinton|1999|p=436}} ''Almost Blue'' did spawn a surprise UK hit single with a version of [[Jerry Chesnut]]'s "[[Good Year for the Roses]]", which reached number 6.{{sfn|Hinton|1999|loc=chap. 7}}{{sfn|St. Michael|1986|pp=74–81}} Costello had long been an avid country music fan and has cited George Jones as his favourite country singer. He had appeared on Jones' duet album ''[[My Very Special Guests]]'', contributing "[[Stranger in the House (song)|Stranger in the House]]", which they later performed together on a 1981 [[HBO]] special dedicated to Jones.<ref>{{cite AV media notes |last=Costello |first=Elvis |title=Almost Blue (reissue) |year=2004 |others=Elvis Costello and the Attractions |type=CD liner notes |publisher=[[Rhino Entertainment|Rhino Records]] |location=US |id=R2 76485}}</ref>

''[[Imperial Bedroom]]'' (1982) featured lavish production by [[Geoff Emerick]], engineer of several [[The Beatles|Beatles]] records.{{sfn|Thomson|2004|loc=chap. 8}} It remains one of his most critically acclaimed records, but again it failed to produce any hit singles—"[[You Little Fool]]" and the critically acclaimed "[[Man Out of Time]]" both failed to reach the Top 40 in the UK.{{sfn|Clayton-Lea|1999|loc=chap. 5}}{{sfn|Hinton|1999|p=428}}{{sfn|Parkyn|1984|p=31}} Costello collaborated with [[Chris Difford]], also of Squeeze, to write the song "Boy With a Problem". Costello has said he disliked the marketing pitch for the album. ''Imperial Bedroom'' also featured Costello's song "[[Almost Blue (song)|Almost Blue]]", inspired by the music of jazz singer and trumpeter [[Chet Baker]].{{sfn|Thomson|2004|loc=chap. 8}} Baker later recorded his own version of the song.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/chet-baker-in-tokyo-mw0000206862|title=Chet Baker in Tokyo|last=Anderson|first=Rick|website=AllMusic|access-date=27 May 2018}}</ref> ''Imperial Bedroom'' placed first on the ''Village Voice'''s annual Pazz & Jop poll.<ref>{{cite web|last=Christgau|first=Robert|title=Robert Christgau: Pazz & Jop 1982| url=https://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/pjres82.php}}</ref>

In 1983, he released ''[[Punch the Clock]]'', featuring female backing vocal duo ([[Afrodiziak]]) and a four-piece horn section ([[the TKO Horns]]), alongside the Attractions. [[Clive Langer]] (who co-produced with [[Alan Winstanley]]), provided Costello with a melody which eventually became "[[Shipbuilding (song)|Shipbuilding]]", which featured a trumpet solo by Baker. Prior to the release of Costello's own version, a version of the song was a minor UK hit for [[Soft Machine]] founder [[Robert Wyatt]].{{sfn|Thomson|2004|loc=chap. 8}}{{sfn|Clayton-Lea|1999|loc=chap. 5}}{{sfn|Hinton|1999|loc=chap. 9}}

Under the pseudonym The Imposter, Costello released "[[Pills and Soap]]", an attack on the changes in British society brought on by [[Thatcherism]], released to coincide with the run-up to the [[1983 United Kingdom general election|1983 UK general election]].{{sfn|Thomson|2004|loc=chap. 8}}{{sfn|Hinton|1999|loc=chap. 9}}{{sfn|Clayton-Lea|1999|loc=chap. 5}} ''Punch the Clock'' also generated an international hit in the single "[[Everyday I Write the Book]]", aided by a music video featuring lookalikes of [[Charles III of the United Kingdom|Prince Charles]] and [[Diana, Princess of Wales|Princess Diana]] undergoing domestic strife in a suburban home. The song became Costello's first [[Top 40]] hit single in the US.{{sfn|Thomson|2004|loc=chap. 8}}{{sfn|Hinton|1999|loc=chap. 9}}{{sfn|Clayton-Lea|1999|loc=chap. 5}} Also in the same year, Costello provided vocals on a version of the [[Madness (band)|Madness]] song "Tomorrow's Just Another Day" released as a [[B-side]].

Tensions within the band – notably between Costello and bassist Bruce Thomas – were beginning to tell, and Costello announced his retirement and the break-up of the group shortly before they were to record ''[[Goodbye Cruel World (Elvis Costello album)|Goodbye Cruel World]]'' (1984).{{sfn|Thomson|2004|loc=chap. 9}}{{sfn|Clayton-Lea|1999|loc=chap. 6}} Costello later expressed disappointment with the final album's production, describing it as "probably the worst record that I could have made of a decent bunch of songs".<ref>{{cite AV media notes |last=Costello |first=Elvis |title=Goodbye Cruel World (reissue) |year=2004 |others=Elvis Costello and the Attractions |type=CD liner notes |publisher=[[Rhino Records]] |location=US |id=R2 76486}}</ref> The record was poorly received upon its initial release; the liner notes to the 1995 [[Rykodisc]] re-release, penned by Costello, begin with the words "Congratulations! You've just purchased our worst album".<ref>{{cite AV media notes |last=Costello |first=Elvis |title=Goodbye Cruel World (reissue) |year=1995 |others=Elvis Costello and the Attractions |type=CD liner notes |publisher=[[Rykodisc]] |location=US |id=RCD 20280}}</ref> Costello's retirement, although short-lived, was accompanied by two compilations, ''Elvis Costello: The Man'' in the UK, Europe and Australia, and ''[[The Best of Elvis Costello & The Attractions]]'' in the US. [[Daryl Hall]] provided backing vocals on the song "The Only Flame in Town" on ''Goodbye Cruel World''.

In 1985, he appeared in the [[Live Aid]] benefit concert in England, singing the Beatles' "[[All You Need Is Love]]" as a solo artist. Costello introduced the song as an "old northern English folk song", and the audience was invited to sing the chorus. In the same year Costello teamed up with friend [[T&nbsp;Bone Burnett]] for the single "The People's Limousine" under the moniker of The Coward Brothers. That year, Costello also produced ''[[Rum Sodomy & the Lash]]'' for the Irish punk/folk band [[the Pogues]] and he sang with [[Annie Lennox]] on the song "Adrian" from the [[Eurythmics]] record ''[[Be Yourself Tonight]]''.

Growing antipathy between Costello and Bruce Thomas contributed to the Attractions' first split in 1986 when Costello was preparing to make a comeback. Working in the US with Burnett, a band containing a number of [[Elvis Presley]]'s sidemen (including [[James Burton]] and [[Jerry Scheff]]), and minor input from the Attractions, he produced ''[[King of America]]'', an acoustic guitar-driven album with a country sound. It was billed as performed by "The Costello Show featuring the Attractions and Confederates" in the UK and Europe and "The Costello Show featuring Elvis Costello" in North America. Around this time he legally changed his name back to Declan MacManus, adding Aloysius as an extra middle name.<ref name="Levin"/> Costello retooled his upcoming tour to allow for multiple nights in each city, playing one night with the Confederates, one night with the Attractions, and one night solo acoustic. In May 1986, he performed at [[Self Aid]], a benefit concert held in [[Dublin]] that focused on the chronic unemployment which was widespread in Ireland at that time.

Later that year, Costello returned to the studio with the Attractions and recorded ''[[Blood & Chocolate]]'', which was lauded for a [[post-punk]] fervour not heard since 1978's ''This Year's Model''. It also marked the return of producer [[Nick Lowe]], who had produced Costello's first five albums. While ''Blood & Chocolate'' failed to chart a hit single of any significance, it did produce what has since become one of Costello's signature concert songs, "[[I Want You (Elvis Costello song)|I Want You]]". On this album, Costello adopted the alias Napoleon Dynamite, the name he later attributed to the character of the [[emcee]] that he played during the [[vaudeville]]-style tour to support ''Blood & Chocolate''. (The pseudonym had previously been used in 1982, when the B-side single "Imperial Bedroom" was credited to Napoleon Dynamite & the Royal Guard; whether the title of the 2004 film ''[[Napoleon Dynamite]]'' was inspired by Costello is disputed). After the tour for ''Blood & Chocolate'', Costello split from the Attractions, due mostly to lingering tensions between him and Bruce Thomas. Costello continued to work with another Attraction, Pete Thomas, as a session musician for future releases.

Costello's recording contract with Columbia Records ended after ''Blood & Chocolate''. In 1987, he released a compilation album, ''[[Out of Our Idiot]]'', on his UK label, [[Demon Records]] consisting of B-sides, side projects, and unreleased songs from recording sessions from 1980 to 1987. He signed a new contract with [[Warner Bros.]] and in early 1989 released ''[[Spike (Elvis Costello album)|Spike]]'', which spawned his biggest single in the US, the Top 20 hit (it reached number 19) "[[Veronica (song)|Veronica]]",<ref name=bbchart>[{{BillboardURLbyName|artist=elvis costello|chart=all}} "Veronica" – Elvis Costello – Chart History] Billboard.com; Retrieved 14 August 2023</ref> one of several songs Costello co-wrote with [[Paul McCartney]]. At the [[1989 MTV Video Music Awards]] on 6 September in Los Angeles, "Veronica" won the MTV Award for [[MTV Video Music Award for Best Male Video|Best Male Video]].<ref>[http://www.mtv.com/ontv/vma/winners-by-category.jhtml 1989 MTV Video Music Awards: Video Vanguard Award] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120629222913/http://www.mtv.com/ontv/vma/winners-by-category.jhtml |date=29 June 2012 }} MTV. Retrieved 7 December 2011</ref>

Costello and McCartney wrote several songs together over a short period, which were released over a number of years:
* "Back On My Feet", the B-side of McCartney's 1987 single "[[Once Upon a Long Ago]]", later added as a bonus track on the 1993 re-issue of McCartney's ''[[Flowers in the Dirt]]''
* Costello's "[[Veronica (song)|Veronica]]" and "Pads, Paws and Claws" from his album [[Spike (Elvis Costello album)|''Spike'']] (1989)
* McCartney's "[[My Brave Face]]", "Don't Be Careless Love", "That Day Is Done" and the McCartney/Costello duet "You Want Her Too", all from McCartney's ''Flowers in the Dirt'' (1989)
* "So Like Candy" and "Playboy to a Man" from Costello's ''[[Mighty Like a Rose]]'' (1991)
* "The Lovers That Never Were" and "Mistress and Maid" from McCartney's ''[[Off the Ground]]'' (1993).
* "Shallow Grave" from Costello's ''[[All This Useless Beauty]]'' (1996).
* Costello has also issued solo demo recordings of "Veronica", "Pads, Paws and Claws" and "Mistress and Maid" (a song he did not otherwise record). Two other McCartney/Costello compositions remained officially unissued, while existing as widely bootlegged demos ("Tommy's Coming Home" and "Twenty Fine Fingers"). These two tracks, along with demos of other songs from their collaboration, did eventually see release on the Paul McCartney Archive edition of ''Flowers in the Dirt''.

In 1987, Costello appeared on the [[Home Box Office|HBO]] special ''[[Roy Orbison and Friends, A Black and White Night]]'', a tribute to his long-time idol [[Roy Orbison]].{{Cn|date=September 2024}} Costello co-wrote "[[The Other End (Of the Telescope)]]" with the American singer-songwriter [[Aimee Mann]]. It appears on the 1988 album ''[[Everything's Different Now]]'' by Mann's band [[Til Tuesday]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=8 September 2020 |title=Happy 60th Birthday Aimee Mann: Revisiting A Classic Interview |url=https://www.hotpress.com/music/happy-60th-birthday-aimee-mann-revisiting-classic-interview-22827171 |access-date=22 December 2023 |website=[[Hot Press]]}}</ref>