Description

Elvis Costello arrived as a sneering spitfire, the smartest and meanest X singer/songwriter in the first wave of 1970s British punk backed by the Attractions, a band who could match his ferocity. Soon, Costello galloped away from the loud, fast rules of punk, demonstrating his musical and verbal facility with Armed Forces, a 1979 album that contained "Oliver's Army" "Accidents Will Happen," and his cover of Nick Lowe's "(What's So Funny About) Peace, Love and Understanding." Such rapid musical evolution and switches in style became the rule in Costello's career, as he amassed a catalog that seemed to touch upon every conceivable genre. Alongside his left- turns, stripped-down albums like 2022's The Boy Named If showed that the fire that inspired him hasn't dimmed even a little.