Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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44 of 46 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Elvis Costello's artistic pinnacle, October 30, 2003
Elvis Costello was explosively prolific and consistent through his first five albums, from "My Aim is True" in 1977 through "Trust" in 1981. He remains a highly valuable and relevant artist, but what he accomplished in those first four years makes even the Beatles look relaxed. To me, his fourth album "Get Happy" is his masterpiece. The first three were brilliant, but if you didn't like that punk/New Wave sound, they were hard to appreciate. On "Get Happy," Elvis began the stylistic stretching-out that he has continued to the present day. The fact that he moved on from the harsh, angular, almost stereotypically "angry" stance of his initial discs to encompass thoughtfully a range of traditional styles is the reason why we still listen to EC, and why we don't listen to most of the other New Wavers who burst on the scene with him in the late 70s. "Get Happy" was the first one to take that step, embracing 60s soul music, especially the "sounds" of the Supremes, Booker T and the MGs, Dionne Warwick, and the Four Tops. A few songs almost sound like parodies of those styles, while on others, the influence is more subtle. But beyond the musical trickery, the grafting of soul music onto his clever lyrical wordplay and harsh insights into romance and political betrayal had the much-needed effect of rounding out his sound, giving Elvis himself a lot more "soul." The original LP had 20 songs, and to fit that many discrete songs onto a vinyl LP, Elvis had to make each song short and sweet--again, to the tremendous benefit of the listener, who can be absorbed into these miniatures, feel all the emotion, enjoy the studio wizardry and brilliant musicianship (where would Elvis be without the keyboardist Steve Nieve?), and then bang, song's over, onto the next. There is not a single wasted moment on this disc, and -- again somewhat in contast to the first three discs -- this disc has a lot more fun on it. There are fewer people being turned into lampshades or submitting to Hitler's will on this disk. Instead, he is building entire songs around puns about money, setting them to the most infectious beat in town, and otherwise entertaining us while still retaining his emotional focus. I've loved this album for 20+ years, and it still sounds fresh today. Bravo.
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21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A top notch journey through the "soul" of Elvis, September 9, 2003
Elvis Costello has called "Get Happy" his soul record. It's more like his tortured soul record. This disc reflects the cumulative effects of a manic, exhausting 3-year treadmill of touring/songwriting/recording on a 25-year-old Elvis. It also shows Elvis starting to face or at least realize the consequences of some aggressively self-destructive behavior that he had been exhibiting during 1979. When he and the Attractions convened to record these songs initially, Elvis was dismayed to find the results sounding stale and too much like "Armed Forces: the Sequel". A second-hand store excursion that netted Elvis a stack of Motown and Stax/Volt records caused him to consider adapting the sounds associated with these hit factories of the 60?s as a blueprint for the record. With this framework in mind, recording recommenced with much momentum and drive, and the resulting Nick Lowe-produced disc is one of the strongest in Elvis's deep catalog of excellence.Elvis wrote 18 of the 20 songs on the album (disc 1). At various points in some of these tunes one can spot musical references to or faint reminders of songs by the Four Tops, Booker T. and the MG's, the Supremes, etc. No one would really mistake the Attractions for a Motown or Stax/Volt act, but they prove to be adept at allowing a definite 60's soul influence seep into their tight combo sound. No song gets as much as four minutes to unwind; most fly by in less than three and blend into an uptempo whirl that evokes 60's AM radio. The two covers on the first disc in this set include a Sam & Dave song (I Can't Stand Up...), and a mid-60's British pop song done by the Merseybeats (I Stand Accused). Both of these originally slow or mid-tempo numbers end up getting jolted into warp speed by the Attractions' breakneck treatment. The frenetic pacing of the 20 song set rarely lets up until the final song "Riot Act", which finds Elvis sounding appropriately worn out and speculating that he's not "going to be around much anymore". Nearly a quarter of a century later, we can gladly report that his fears of demise or disappearance from the musical world were unfounded.
The lyrics are a rushing torrent of some of Elvis's strongest wordplay, images, rhymes and allegory. He's pulling out all of the verbal stops to fill this huge batch of tunes, and he's even giving us insight into the terrible way lots of things were turning out for him at the time. Here are just a few of the many devastatingly clever lyrical tidbits to listen for: "You check your effects and check your reflection/ I'm so affected in the face of your affection" (Man Called Uncle) "So I see us lying back to back/my case is closed my case is packed/I'll get out before the violence/or the tears, or the silence" (Possession) "He'd seen the bottom of a lot of glasses/but he'd never seen love so near/he'd seen love get so expensive/ but he'd never seen love so dear" (King Horse) "When I said that I was lying I might have been lying/never let me hear you say you're not trying" (The Imposter) "Tryin' to be so bad is bad enough/Don't make me laugh by talking tough/Don't wear your heart out on your sleeve/When your remarks are off the cuff" (Riot Act)
Disc two of the Rhino package collects a generous, 30 song outpouring of material from around the same timeframe on the second disc. Prolific seems too mild a word to describe Elvis's writing and recording habits at the end of the 70's. Eleven of these selections were previously released recordings consisting of B-sides, cover versions of two songs (So Young, Getting Mighty Crowded), demos/alternate versions, and one live song (from the "Concerts for the People of Kampuchea" soundtrack). Ten of them (plus about half of the "Love for Tender" demo as a hidden track) were on the Rykodisc reissue of "Get Happy". (Eight of these ten were also on the 1980 Columbia compilation called "Taking Liberties".) The rest of the previously unreleased goodies include more demos of Disc 1 songs, alternate versions of many songs (we finally get to hear the "Armed Forces, Part II" versions of some songs), three early versions of songs that appeared on the next album "Trust", and some live material from around this time period. This insightful and rockin' 30-song bonus set concludes appropriately enough with an excellent live cover of the Temptations' "Don't Look Back", bringing the Motown influence full circle. "Get Happy" is essential listening for any Elvis fan, and the Rhino reissue lives up to the usual standards of excellence we've come to expect from them. Get this sprawling 50 song set and relive those wonderful, terrible, substance-and-adrenaline-fueled, whirlwind months of Elvis's musical life when he was burning both ends as well as the middle of his candle. His "soul record" still reflects the brilliance of that combustion.
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18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of his best, superbly expanded . . ., September 10, 2003
To my ears, this is the best edition of the Rhino 2-on-1 reissues of the Costello catalog. Aside from the fact that it was always a fantastic and generous (20 tracks on vinyl!) album, it's augmented here by not only all 10 bonus tracks that were on the Rykodisc reissue, but 20 more tracks beyond that - for a total of 50 (plus a funny radio ad which is unlisted but tacked on to the end of the bonus CD).The first three albums didn't have many crucial recordings added to them beyond what was already on the Rykodisc versions - an alternate version or two, some live tracks - many of which were clearly inferior to the released material. That's not true with the 20 new (and 10 old) bonus tracks here. Clearly this was a prolific time for Costello and a sort of peak - although his diversity of style has increased steadily, never again did it reach the perfect balance with consistently high-quality material that it does here. New highlights are many - pretty different alternate versions of songs like "Girls Talk", "King Horse" and "I Stand Accused", early stabs at "New Lace Sleeves" and "Watch Your Step", a fantastic live take on the soul classic "Don't Look Back", a different set of lyrics set to a minimalist musical backing which became "Luxembourg" (that's "Seven O'Clock") and plenty more. Of course, you can't forget the album itself, which holds up wonderfully more than two decades later and exemplifies the Attractions' arranging brilliance. The liner notes and packaging are top-notch as well. It's astonishing to think that even as Elvis cranked out an album or two a year, there was still a lot left in the vaults. But here's the proof!
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See all 20 tracks on this disc
by Elvis Costello & The Attractions 
