If you’re just joining us, check out the About This Project link for details. Basically, I make playlists of all the singles by certain musical artists and then try to order them using the guiding principle “do I like each song more than the last song.” I define “single” in a broad enough way to include any song that was released as a purchasable single in any format in any country; as a promotional single in any country; as a video; or generally any song that I know charted anywhere. My main sources are Wikipedia (mostly reliable) and Discogs (reasonably reliable). I welcome editing feedback since sometimes I favor speed over spelling.
I’m using the next couple of introductions to mention some Elvis Costello projects that didn’t have any singles. Last time, I discussed Costello’s foray into classical, Il Sogno. This time, I want to share Costello’s 2001 collaboration with Swedish mezzo-soprano Anne Sofie von Otter, For The Stars. The album is really more of a von Otter solo album produced and arranged by Costello, but his name on the title surely drew a little bit of additional mainstream attention to it. This is a collection of pop songs, mostly covers, and all ranging from very good to excellent. Von Otter sounds splendid throughout. Highlights include von Otter’s take on “Baby Plays Around” (#87), “Rope.” her duet with Costello “For The Stars,” and her cover of the Beach Boys classic “Don’t Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder).”
50. She
Single from the original motion picture soundtrack to Notting Hill (1999), released as a single in 1999
Cover of a song originally written and recorded by Charles Aznavour (1974)
Celebrated composer Trevor Jones (not to be mistaken for Trevor Horn, the producer of ABC‘s brilliant Lexicon of Love album and of the Pet Shop Boys “Numb” – #30 for the purpose of our ranked lists so far) produced this cover of French singer (and all around bad-ass) Charles Aznavour‘s big hit (in UK and Ireland, at least) “She” for the soundtrack to the movie Notting Hill. Now, if you’re like me, the main thing you remember about that film is Rhys Ifans‘ great performance as Spike. “She” ended up being a reasonably big hit for Costello in the UK (it reached #19, which makes it his last top 40 hit there). Aznavour’s version was recorded to be the theme song of the 1974 British TV series Seven Faces of Woman, a show for which there is no English language Wikipedia page (there is, however, an Italian Wikipedia page for the show). It sounds interesting though – ” An anthology series of seven plays looking at contemporary women at various different stages in their lives from a young teenager to the woman of 50,” all written by women.
I wonder how many other songs have been the theme to two different filmed projects? And of those songs, I wonder how many were top 40 hits in any country both times? “She” (which I admit skates along the edges of tacky) has become a staple at Costello’s concerts (“oh, honey, it’s that song from that movie… you know the one… uh… Julia Roberts was in it I think? And that British guy who got busted that time and then appeared on Leno? What was that called?”) and really the main attraction here is how well he sings it. I realize there’s many people who have issues with his voice (and Dylan’s… and Hendrix’s… and MacGowan’s…), but I have always liked it quite a bit and fell it’s just gotten richer with age. In fact, his performance of this song is earnest enough that you would be forgiven (by me) for ignoring some of the more Brummagen lyrics. Which brings us to….
What I Love – Costello’s voice.
49. Under Lime
(Artist: Elvis Costello and The Imposters)
Second single from Look Now (2018), released as a single in 2018
Lyric I Especially Like:
And the last time we saw him he was out in the rain
Watching the train roll down the track
Now he’s back in showbiz, trying to make a comeback
Costello released Look Now just last year and we’ll be listening to four songs from that album before this list ends. That this is the first song from that album to appear should be identified as a sign that I think the record is top rate. I was surprised that his wonderful songwriting collaboration with Carol King – “Burnt Sugar is So Bitter” – wasn’t a single. Neither were his three new collaborations with Burt Bacharach, particularly “Don’t Look Now” (as a side note, the Bacharach collaborations and a few others were written with the aim of creating a stage musical of Painted From Memory). The four songs that were released as singles (by my definition) are all splendid, so I take no issue with the selections. The album has been likened to both Imperial Bedroom and to Painted from Memory and, thus, falls firmly in the chamber pop circle on the Costello venn diagram. If you’re a fan of the man’s music and you’ve not listened to this album yet, consider this my firmest possible encouragement to seek it out right away.
“Under Lime” is a sequel to “Jimmie Standing In The Rain” (coming up) from National Ransom. The latter song is about a Vaudevillian (who apparently was a singing cowboy) at the end of his career, literally left behind by an “indifferent nation.” Costello sets that song in 1937, per his liner notes. “Under Lime” is 20 or so years later and he’s trying to make a showbiz come back on a TV Quiz show. The writer(s) at SongMeanings suggest that – after proving himself a lecher – he goes on the show and embarrasses himself. I think it is possible to read the lyrics in an even less flattering manner for Jimmie (I think it’s suggested he and the production assistant have an utterly unsatisfying – possibly even unsuccessful – assignation backstage) but the main point, as the chorus suggests, is that he’s still on a long slide down from his (now ancient) career peak. The song’s title suggests living under “limelight,” but also implies the use of lime on a corpse to make it decay faster. I’ll add that it also hints at Jimmie’s alcoholism. The songs on Look Now often have the feeling of character sketches, plays and stories (I mean, some were intended for a musical) and I find this particularly satisfying.
What I Love – Pete Thomas’ drumming is entirely excellent, particularly when he tik-toks the time away.
48. Go Away
(Artist: Elvis Costello and The Imposters)
Second single from Momofuku (2008), released as a single in 2008
Lyric I Especially Like:
You used to be my hand-painted villain
You used to be so thrilling
Unarguably the best album named after the inventor of instant noodles. Costello selected this name because the album was made over the course of just 6 days – as Costello wrote ” like so many things in this world of wonders, all we had to do to make this record was add water.” Costello and Imposter bassist Faragher were guesting in on Jenny Lewis’ 2006 album Acid Tongue, notably on the song “Carperbaggers.” Now, Costello sings on that song and it was a single. In fact, Jenny Lewis’ version of “Go Away” was the b-side of that single. In theory, that song should be on this list except, first, Costello isn’t named on the sleeve and, second, I didn’t know this song existed before today. So, uh, yeah. Anyhow, Costello, Faragher, Lewis and her band got along so well, they booked studio time and ripped through ten songs. Momofuku is surprisingly good – something about the speed at which it was recorded makes it sound raw and fresh. The rawest and freshest song might, in fact, be “Go Away,” a 60’s garage rock number with this amazing filthy sounding organ work by “Farmer” Dave Scher. Seriously, it sound like the sound from the organ was filtered through the rag used to clean the counters at a truck stop somewhere and it is glorious. The first line in the lyric establishes that the song is a spy movie (perhaps summoning up 60’s spy songs like “Secret Agent Man,” but also perhaps summoning up Austin Powers, a film series to which Costello contributed) and the rest of the song is a pastiche of images related to this imaginary film. There may be more depth going on, but I have to be honest, I like the surface of the song so much that I’ve never made the slightest effort to dive beneath it. The only thing that keeps me from ranking it higher is that it’s maybe 1:00-1:30 longer than I’d like.
What I Love – Holy cats, the chorus – “Why don’t you come back baby? Why don’t you go away?”
47. 13 Steps Lead Down
Second single from Brutal Youth (1994), released as a single in 1994
Lyric I Especially Like:
So tonight I’m drinking to your health
Because I just can’t stand myself
What is a top ten hit? Does it need to have reached the Billboard top 10 in the US? The Official Singles Chart in the UK? Or does reaching the top ten on the Billboard Modern Rock chart count? This song reached #6 on that chart in the 1994 (and apparently 115 on the Billboard Hot 100, which suggests either a math error or a placement on the”Bubbling Under” list). In fact, a number of Costello’s recent singles have placed on the Triple A Billboard list – Adult Album Alternative chart aka Dad Rock. This means that somehow, when I download a song, my voice is being heard.
So in 1994, I was out of college radio for the first time since 1985 and my sources of new music were sort of limited. Radio Free Hawaii was really quite good (though it was gone by early 1997) and MTV was still showing videos, so I occasionally heard something decent there. Mostly, I would go to Tower Records and endlessly flip through stacks of CDs and occasionally hear about something cool from my friends. I’m reasonably certain that I knew about Brutal Youth from the promotional campaign (“Costello plays again with The Attractions!” “Costello’s first loud album in years!”) but I was also a superfan, so it’s entirely possible that I just new it was coming out from spending hours in the record stores and seeing it in the CD rack one day. Maybe, if I was lucky, there was a preview station set up with this CD as an option so I could preview a few tracks, but truth be told, I’d have bought this one anyways. I’d bought every Elvis Costello album new since King of America and I’m nothing if not loyal to my bands. Well, by 1994. In the late 80’s I was fickle. Let’s move on.
“13 Steps Lead Down” was the first single I heard from Brutal Youth and it’s a doozy. The first image that came to mind when I heard this song was The Drunkard’s Progress (admittedly a nine step process). After a few listens back in 1994, I figured that Costello is surely referring to 12 Step Programs here, the 13th step presumably the moment where the recovering (recovered?) addict starts using again (and probably not the colloquial “13th step” which refers to predators who take sexual advantage of newcomers to 12 step programs). As it happens, Costello wrote this about the title:
“13 Steps Lead Down” refers to that number being used to instill dread in those entering the Tomb of the Spanish Kings at El Escorial. Not that the song continues much with that theme — it was more for those who could not subscribe to the new fashion of sobriety.
Elvis Costello, liner notes to the 2002 reissue of Brutal Youth
Oh, El Escorial, of course.
One of the themes of Brutal Youth is contrasting youth with one’s current age. There is an interesting contrast in the circumstance of the female addict at the center of “13 Steps Lead Down” between the first and last verses that suggests to me that she’s at a better place in her life in some ways but still choosing to sneak off to pursue her addictions. As one does.
It should be noted that “13 Steps Leads Down” has one of Costello’s best b-sides – “My Mood Swings,” which was featured in The Big Lebowski. That would maybe be a top 20 track for me. Maybe.
What I Love – There’s this great little rave-up starting around 2:15 that I adore.
46. 45
Second single from When I Was Cruel (2002), released as a single in 2002
Lyric I Especially Like:
Bass and treble heal every hurt
There’s a rebel in a nylon shirt
But the words are a mystery, I’ve heard
‘Til you turn it down to 33 and 1/3
‘Cos it helps with the elocution
Corporations turn revolutions
45
“45” is at 46. This was no deliberate. If I was deliberate, I would have placed it at 45 or somewhere entirely different. So this is a coincidence and one that annoys me, but not enough to cook the books. It’s 46. I have to live with that. We all do.
Costello wrote “45″ on his 45th birthday and it’s sort of a rumination on his life using the number 45 to represent a number of signposts in his life. 45 means, in turn, the year World War 2 ended; a record that his father played upon his birth in 1954 and then the 45s that he bought, that he listened to while falling in love, and that he ultimately has to separate from his ex-wife’s 45s as they break up; the actual revolutions per minute (there’s a clever line about “Corporations turn revolitions – 45”) you play a 45rpm single at (“turn it down to 33 and 1/3”); a 45 pistol that somebody (presumably the “rebel in a nylon shirt” in the previous verse) uses to kill himself; and ultimately the age that creeps up on Costello in 1999. The gents at Elvis Costello song of the week identify the song as a “love song to music.” I can buy that. Musically, I am a sucker for the soft/loud thing – in this case, verses accompanied primarily by drums and handclaps and choruses where the whole band kicks in loudly. It’s a classic pop song structure that is perfect for this tune.
What I Love – There’s this thing that Steve Nieve does with the keyboards during the rave-ups that sounds like somebody singing “ooo ooo ooo.”
45. Monkey To Man
(Artist: Elvis Costello and The Imposters)
First single from The Delivery Man (2004), released as a single in 2004
Lyric I Especially Like:
After all of the misery that he has caused
He denies he’s descended from the dinosaurs
Points up to heaven with cathedral spires
All the time indulging in his base desires
I also like the lyric about “pomp and pout.” Let that go on the official record.
For those of you just joining us, when I make these lists, I start with a playlist of every song I’m going to include in chronological order and then gradually sort them into a list. I then keep listening and keep sorting until I’m done writing about everything. My goal in any given week is to make sure that I’m not going to want to rank any of the songs with better rankings into the lower regions of the list. Sometimes, I keep kicking a song into next week’s list because I realize I like it more than I thought I did.
With that in mind, I originally ranked “Monkey to Man” at #96 and have been steadily moving it up the list from week to week. I’m not 100% confident that I don’t want to knock it into the top 40, but I am fairly confident that there’s nothing else in my current top 40 that I want to move any lower. So here it is at #45 (where “45” should rightfully be). Costello “derived” this song from “The Monkey” by David Bartholomew (hence that line in the first verse about ” A long time ago, our point of view/Was broadcast by Mr. Bartholomew”). Costello and The Imposters covered that song as a b-side to this one. Anyhow, in an interview in the October 2009 British GQ (five years after this song was released), Costello said of this song “there’s a line about man constantly seeking to dress up his vile instincts.I think that defines all of art. It’s either in the service of God, or ego, or desire.”
This song’s parent album – the excellent and underrated The Delivery Man – had at one time a central narrative that was ultimately abandoned that was about the impact the titular character had on the lives of three women. One of the women struck me as a bit of a high society matron and I always imaged this was her song. Of course, I also assumed “13 Steps Lead Down” had nothing to do with the historical residence of the King of Spain, so let’s just file my assumption about this song in the old “B.S.” file and move on.
What I Love – There’s a ton of things I love about this song, but two in particular are how the little guitar response after each line in the first verse fades in a little louder; and the pre-chorus rhythm change in the vocal melody.
44. Mystery Dance
Belgian single from My Aim Is True (1977), released as a single in 1977
Lyric I Especially Like:
You can see those pictures in any magazine
But what’s the use of looking when you don’t know what they mean
As I mentioned in the very first entry of this list, I’ve long thought that “Mystery Dance” was almost certainly the first song I ever heard by Elvis Costello because it was played on the Dr. Demento Show. For those of you who never listened to it and think it was all Weird Al Yankovic and other general silliness, well, you’re not entirely wrong. For me at age 13-16, it was like somebody blew up a wall in my head and gave me permission to make comedy. However, the Dr. Demento Show also exposed me to a whole history of music. A song didn’t have to be uproariously funny to be on the show, just a little weird or clever or, well, demented. I would never have heard of Tom Lehrer or Spike Jones for example. I got to hear Sparks, Madness, and a dozen other bands that didn’t get a whole lot of airplay elsewhere. So, yes, “Mystery Dance” made the cut and young me figured if Elvis Costello was good enough for Dr. Demento, he was good enough for me.
Evidence suggests, however, that I am wrong about this. See, there are well curated archives of every episode of the Dr. Demento Show and as I researched this entry, I discovered that the most likely time I’d have heard “Mystery Dance” on Dr. Demento was May 15, 1983. I was already very aware of Elvis Costello by the time “Every Day I Write The Book” was released that year, so this belief that “Mystery Dance” was the first Elvis Costello song I ever heard is strictly something I made up in my head. However, I am confident(ish) that hearing the song on Dr. Demento did increase Costello’s cred with me significantly.
“Mystery Dance” is all of 1:36 long and not a second is wasted. It’s a classic rock and roll tune (and prototypical New Wave tune) about trying to figure out how to navigate one’s first sexual encounter – that’s the titular mystery dance. Costello and Clover (his backing band on My Aim Is True) tear through the song with absolute glee and I think the production work on the album (which I perceive as a little muddy) really works for this particular song. It is a classic little tune and it’s over before you have a chance to get sick of it.
What I Love – The attitude and the pace.
43. This Year’s Girl
(Artist: Elvis Costello and The Attractions)
U.S. only single from This Year’s Model (1978), released as a single in 1978
Lyric I Especially Like:
Forget your fancy manners, forget your English grammar
‘Cause you don’t really give a damn about this year’s girl
This is the first of four song on this list from This Year’s Model, Costello’s brilliant first album with The Attractions. How great is this album in my estimation? Well, the three “main” singles from it are in my top 20 so we won’t be hearing another song from it for two more entries. I’m often critical of which songs are selected as singles from albums that I love, but I think the label pretty much got it right this time (though they could have released “Lipstick Vogue” too). The lyrics are about how men are interested in the bodies of female models but not really in the human being that is doing the modeling. Speaking of modeling, I encourage you to read this anecdote about Costello modelling for the cover of the album because it’s amusing. The Attractions had been formed in 1977, at first as a touring unit and then as a permanent ensemble. They are… I mean… they’re seriously great. I like all periods of Costello’s music but even I have to admit that there was something magical about this particular line-up of musicians at this particular time.
This does, however, seem to be a good time to mention that The Attractions recorded one album independently of Costello and that this was the first single.
What I Love – Steve Nieve’s big, meaty keyboard work. It’s big. It’s meaty. It rocks.
42. Lovable
(Artist: The Costello Show)
U.S. only single from King of America (1986), released as single in 1986
Lyric I Especially Like:
If you thought I was a fool for you
Then I must be a bigger fool for her
There’s only three songs from King of America that qualified as singles, even under my loose definition of the term. We’ve already visited his cover of “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” (#96) and “Brilliant Mistake” is still coming up. While writing about “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood,” I proposed a few other tracks that would have made excellent singles and I contend they would have been better choices than “Lovable” too. This is said with the understanding that I quite like “Lovable.” Arguably the musical highlight of the song is the bass work by Jerry Scheff of The TCB Band (he also toured with Costello as a member of The Confederates in 1986). “Lovable” is a faithless lover song – he loves her so bad but she plays around. What’s more, people are talking about it – “it’s going round the town – you’re so lovable.” I mean, it isn’t stopping the narrator from going back to her again and again, but I guess if he figures if he whines hard enough she’ll stop. That is unkind – a country song themed around “she is fooling around so we decided to go into couples counseling and we’re both working hard on our relationship” wouldn’t seem quite right.
What I Love – I can sing along with that chorus all day forever.
41. Impatience
French promo single ostensibly from North (2003), released as a single in 2003
Lyric I Especially Like:
As far as I know no one ever got killed
By impatience
I own a copy of Elvis Costello’s North, one of his least-loved albums. I recall watching A&E Live by Request in 2003 (tragically, I couldn’t get through to make a request) and Costello stated it was devised as a quiet album. It’s regarded to be a bit of an open diary chronicling the end of his relationship to Cait O’Riordan and the start of his relationship with Diana Krall. I’ll write about this in more detail when we get to a song that is actually from North. I rather like North but confess I didn’t much listen to the bulk of it much after 2003. So, when it came time to make this list and I saw that a song called “Impatience” was a single and it was said to have been taken from that album, I figured I just must never have burned that song from CD to my hard drive. Nope – it wasn’t on the track list anywhere. I found it on YouTube and it sounds nothing like the other songs from North – the lyrics would fit in on that album, but musically it feels more like a celebration than a meditation. After some research /clumsy poking around, I found that the song was included on Costello’s 2010 collection Pomp & Pout: The Universal Years (note that the title is taken from “Monkey to Man”). I typically rail against compilation albums, but Costello is unusually closely involved in selecting songs for many of his which means you get some deep cuts, b-sides and rarities and often don’t get singles. I would like to draw attention to three songs on that collection that I don’t think I’ve previously mentioned – “Bedlam” (from The Delivery Man), “Stella Hurt” (from Momofuku) and “In Another Room” (a Delivery Man outtake). However, I never would have thought to purchase Pomp & Pout so I missed that it’s a fine representation of his 21st century output.
Anyhow, “Impatience” was a delightful find for me. It features The Imposters and a great horn arrangement. The lyrics are about the feeling of having fallen madly in love with somebody but being unable to yet say that. It is one of the most obscure songs on this list and it just missed my top 40 so that is a pretty ringing endorsement from me.
What I Love – The horns, but also the “making us wait just an extra second” for the last “impatience.”
Coming Soon: The only single from The Juliet Letters as well as a fantastic film song.
Elvis Costello Singles Ranked – 111-116 – 101-110 – 91-100 – 81-90 – 71-80 – 61-70 – 51-60 – 41-50 – 31-40 – 21-30 – 11-20 – 1-10