Blood And Chocolate

No private session used for Spotify. The only Elvis is Elvis Costello, I haven't heard all of his work and have never sat down and listened to this one. I wonder why this one was picked? Or is this a one of many situation. Anyway, I like the energy and rock.

Somehow this one is better but that doesn't make it good or worthy of having so many albums on this list. I have wasted way to much time listening to him and writing about him

4 out of 5. Lots of haters here, especially claiming he has too many albums on this list when others like Bob Dylan are more valid. This album is probably my new favorite so far of Costello and the Attractions on this list.

An excellent album and one that seems unfairly overlooked in the EC canon. Full of all the things that you’d expect from the band. Spiky, catchy pop songs with barbed lyrics and great melodies. Tokyo Storm Warning is a tour de force! Solid 4

5/10 I'm not sure how much Elvis Costello is needed on this list, but I'm certain it's less than this. I found myself getting sucked in again - I am not adverse to his songwriting - but come on, 6 of his records?!?

This man called Pink Floyd 'dreary'. Ironic. I Want You is a world class song though

Another day, another mediocre Costello album. I don’t understand how he got so famous. Even with the songs on this one feeling stronger than most, his voice is so annoying and corporate sounding. Please let this be the last one by him.

Eh

This one didnt move me as much as some of the others of his on this list.

Taipuu ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Not awful, not great, pretty meh. Pretty performative sounding vocals, quite try hard American-style. Some of the songs are decent enough on their own but it gets jarring the more he sings, which is never a good sign. 2.5/5.

Not my favorite not awful. A fine listen.

Elvis Costello is such a love hate sitch. Sometimes I love him sometimes I can’t wait for the song to be over. This album has a stronger Dylan vibe and isn’t as rockin as others. It’s solid even if it isn’t a daily listen kind of album

After six Elvis Costello albums in 1001 days, I am very much looking forward to never, ever listening to him again.

I think I don't quite grasp Elvis Costello. Feels like all the parts should be there but really doesn't do it for me.

Should Elvis Costello have 6 albums on this list? Surely not! Have I heard an Elvis Costello album on this list I've disliked? Not yet. This album starts quite strong, but I think it loses something by the end, but maybe that was just my attention slipping.

This one was decent, but I never really got pulled into it enough to go any higher than a 3. “Uncomplicated” was a good start though. I liked how rough the guitar sounded. It had more bite than I was expecting. “Poor Napoleon” was probably my favorite song on here. It’s got this bitter, kind of miserable feel to it that fits Costello really well. “Tokyo Storm Warning” was cool too. It’s a long song, but I liked how the lyrics just keep throwing different images at you like he’s ranting about everything he sees. Nothing here was bad. I just found myself appreciating it more than actually getting excited about it. A few really good songs, a lot of perfectly fine ones, and not much I’m in a hurry to hear again.

I've always sort of low-key disliked Elvis Costello. Partly it's his very punchable voice, partly it's his reputation as a real dick, but neither of those things should be a dealbreaker considering that I like Bob Dylan and Van Morrison. But I regret to inform myself that these are good songs, well-performed and interesting, and if I'd heard this in 1986 I could have been a fan. Now I have to wrestle with my preconceptions and my prejudices and that's not something I like to do, so fuck you, Elvis Costello. Four stars.

Costello was way better in the 70s. We’ve had 3 from that decade that I gave 4s to. We had one other one from the 80s that was terrible and I gave a 2 to. This 80s one wasn’t as terrible so giving it a 3. He lost something over time though. His youthful energy? His creativity? His loving feeling? Who knows, but I think we’ve heard enough now.

This guy sucks! What the actual f**k was that crap?? It was without a doubt the worst of the 5 albums we’ve listen to from Costello and that is saying something. Horrible lyrics that repeat over and over and a vocalist who I’m not sure can hear the band playing behind him when he sings.

The reason there’s so many Elvis Costello albums on the list is on full display here: each one has a few flashes of true potential (I Want You) but ultimately, the whole package under-delivers. The moments of inspiration make us hope for all the songs to be better than they actually are. When he gets it right, it’s genius, but scouring through 6 albums is betting that something will occur far more often than it actually does.

Not really my thing but it's decent

Of all the Elvis Costello albums, this is the one with no songs I've ever sung in the shower.

Nothing terrible here, but I've never been a fan of Elvis Costello or the Attractions. I guess there are worse ways to spend 47 minutes.

It still didn't land for me, hoping to eventually find an Elvis Costello album that I like.

Even with my first ever listen of any Elvis Costello song, I can already tell that I’m not into it. I don’t like his voice, and he seems out of breath quite easily on the higher pitch. Songs are a bit blend too. Don’t know if there’s other albums of him on this run. Just hope that they are gonna be better than this one. 2/5. Uncomplicated: 2,5 I Hope You're Happy Now: 3,5 Tokyo Storm Warning: 2,5 Home Is Anywhere You Hang Your Head: 2 I Want You: 2 Honey, Are You Straight or Are You Blind?: 2,5 Blue Chair: 2 Battered Old Bird: 2 Crimes of Paris: 2 Poor Napoleon: 2 Next Time Round: 2

4/10

Nope. Just not worthy of being on this list.

the tone of the vocals is difficult to endure

Don’t like his voice and don’t really think they deserve as many albums on this list as they have

These were some bland tracks

I do not like this man's voice.

I used to think that I liked Elvis Costello. Now every morning I dread getting another of his albums I have to listen to.

I don't know if this is an essential Elvis Costello album but I like it a lot like I do pretty much every Attractions album. Keyboard wizard Steve Neive is utilized to tremendous effect on this one. "Honey Are You Straight" is his best dance number.

Solid collection of stripped-down, occasionally snarling rock and roll tunes that showcase Elvis Costello’s talents as a songwriter. “I Want You” is a standout.

I'm not hating this as much as I hate most of Costello's stuff. I actually liked Tokyo Storm Warning. The rest of the seems more bearable than some of his other stuff. I wouldn't go so far as to say I like it though. Then again, just when I was starting to warm up slightly to this, the last song is your typically Costello kick in the junk. I dunno, can't do it. 2/5

Not for me.

Again, I really don't get Elvis Costello or why this list is obsessed with him.

This album is just another Elvis Costello album. It sounds basically exactly like every other Costello album, with the same nasally vocals and overcomplicated lyrics. There are some pretty good songs in here, but it doesn't leave much of an impact. Yeah, we can cut this one. This album is ranked #19 of 23 albums for 1986. Other 1986 albums rated by me: Graceland(1/23)-3 The Queen Is Dead(3/23)-4 Licensed to Ill(4/23)-4 Raising Hell(6/23)-5 Skylarking(9/23)-3 EVOL(20/23)-4 Guitar Town(21/23)-2

3/10

Elvis Costello is the specter that haunts this project

boring asf

meh

Made it 218 days before encountering Elvis Costello. This was my first time ever listening to Costello and so far I feel pretty neutral about him. I liked this album alright enough, but I'm not rushing out to buy a copy. Fine for the background. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Elvis Costello has written some great songs. None of them are on this album

I don’t like Elvis Costello.

Hot hot hot garbage.

4⭐️

1986 garage rock, angry elvis, live takes I hope you're happy now Tokyo storm warning Battered old bird

This guys the king of rock and roll?

I feel like before I did this list I had a pretty positive impression of Elvis C and now I kinda hate him LOL

Here we find Elvis somewhere along the winding road from cartoon greaser to Bacharach-esque NPR darling. Lots of great songwriting here, and also some Dylan-esque stuff that amounts to too-clever lyrics over too-lengthy vamps. I prefer cynical, excoriating Elvis to moon-eyed lovelorn Elvis, but love comes in many colors I suppose. The bass player deserves a medal, he's doing half the work here.

Ah, the 1001 Elvis Costello albums you must listen to before you die…. The people who have compiled this list love a bit of the E.C. Joking aside this one isn’t too bad!

This didn’t do it for me. Doesn’t feel like one of the 1001 best albums of all time. I preferred This Year’s Model, that felt a lot more groundbreaking.

This was fun, but nothing special. Sometimes I don't love the mixing, especially of his voice, but it isn't bad at all Liked Songs: "I Hope You're Happy Now" , "Tokyo Storm Warning" , "Home Is Anywhere You Hang Your Head" , "Honey Are You Straight Or Are You Blind" , "Crimes Of Paris" , "Next Time Round"

An album from Elvis Costello that I wasn’t that familiar with.

Quite enjoyable and always something new is picked up on during another listen.

'I Want You' is a real gem. It seems few people hold it in such high regard as I do. The rest of the album is quite different, and OK.

1986. Listening to this album a couple times helped me better appreciate Elvis Costello but I know he has more acclaimed albums. This album was very raw with emotion. He does well to create a world within a song.

612/1089 - I still think "Brutal Youth" was the most interesting of his albums and "Pump It Up" the best of his songs and that was 400ish albums ago. Elvis Costello occupies the same place in my mind as The Rolling Stones and The Kinks in which they are competent and have multiple highly acclaimed projects but everything sounds sorta the same to me and I don't get the appeal.

I really don't like him. He has 2 good songs. One of them is on here. The rest.... can't even be bothered to write about

Good

Fun enough

Liked it.

Really good album. I think King of America plus this album in the same year equals Elvis Costello best period. His song writing had matured, his use of musicians excellent and the sheer range of songs also brilliant. Put the two together and you have your complete starter pack to Costello

Not bad. If I were a costello fan I think I would be into this, sadly it's more background music for me.

Undeserving Costello album #1.

My 2nd Elvis Costello, and under 60 total. This one is worse.

I have to admit that I was more impressed by this one than I expected to be. Costello has been the butt of my jokes (and probably those of most people on this website) since the very beginning, so I thought, why not join in? But I was VERY intrigued when I read—well before starting this challenge—that Thom Yorke of all people was very impressed with the recording process behind this album, and I can see why. Costello recorded the album rather quickly, doing a maximum of one or two takes per song, completely live, with almost no overdubs. That's pretty cool! So I can see how this appealed to Yorke, given his history of trying to make Radiohead sound as "live" as possible on record. The first song, "Complicated," was a bit rough to get through: a cacophonous blues/punk noise riff stomping along with Costello's obnoxiously nasal vocals WAY TOO LOUD in the mix. I wasn't prepared for that—but, as luck would have it, the next song immediately switched to the poppier, lovelier approach he does best. In fact, the album follows a great run of high-energy pop songs filled with distortion and interesting moods (even the ballad "I Want You" eventually descends into tuneless noise) up until "Battered Old Bird" through "Next Time Around," where the quality takes another nosedive. Clichéd lyrics, corny melodies, and pretty much all of the annoying Costello-isms that prevent me from loving the guy in the first place. But that's better than nothing. Gets a generous 3 stars—may revisit this one a bit more over time.

Can't stand his voice. Sorry

Honestly getting pretty tired of this guy and many additions of him on the list, each one sounding like the last. To be fair, he's not bad, but then again one or two records is enough, so this time I won't be as generous and he gets 2 stars

Pretty catchy. I liked the organ! His expressive singing can be a bit much.

This is my second Elvis Costello album on this list. The first was This Year's Model, which I thought was decent. I enjoyed the punk vibes it was giving, but for the most part, it was just fine. This album sounds similar to me in music and attitude. Tokyo Storm Warning is a solid song. Just another fine album. He still sounds like a punkier Tom Petty to me.

I find the instrumentation here mindlessly clang-y and quite boring.

Mix was rough and not his bestbwork

After nearly 180 albums, it had to happen... my first Elvis Costello album, out of the 2000 on this list. Based on this listening, i can't say if i'm too excited about that. The only thing i can say is that this is an album that exists. It's not comically or outrageously bad like some albums can be. It's not exceptional. It's here to make me wonder how some albums were not chosen for this list, but this one was

Awkward cadences.. didn’t like it

This didn't rock me but it was okay

2.18

Strange, difficult to describe. Sort of punk but not punk, a bit like the Jam but not really. Pretty good considering I don't think I could name a single track and had never heard any of them before?

It's not that it's bad, Tokyo Storm Warning is an amazing song and I didn't really suffer listening to this album. But I didn't vibe with it at all, it was just ok.

is the blue chair in the room with us right now?

Once again I just find Elvis Costello boring and forgettable. It's unfortunate. I Want You isn't bad.

I know that Elvis Costello is kind of a meme at this point, but this was actually a pretty good album

The thing about all these Elvis Costello albums is that they’re starting to sound kind of the same. And they’re all consistently good, but I do wish he was pushing his formula just a bit more. However, “I Want You” is my favorite of all his songs and so Blood and Chocolate isn’t going to be the first EC album I give less than four stars… not sure this list needed this many albums from him though.

yeaaahahhxbdbsksns s

Not my favorite singer. Mostly I can't listen to his voice for more than 10 minutes. When the music is exciting like on This Years Model I can get over it but I find this album very boring. I want you is the only song on it I like. A bit of a dilletant our Elvis.

i’ve never really cared for him

One of his worst and I truly love this man's work but this one is bad.

Elvis Costello record #3, because he needed six for some reason. It's admittedly the best of the three I've gotten so far, but it's also the first one I wouldn't call outright bad. I'm hoping that the first two were particularly bad albums in an otherwise okay discography rather than this being the one okay album in an otherwise bad discography. It was weird as hell to find out that a member of The Pogues sings backup vocals on two of these songs but neither of the songs were particularly memorable. Tokyo Storm Warning and I Want You were both great songs, and the first two Costello songs I can genuinely say I liked, but the album as a whole doesn't do much for me.

It's okay. I've never been a huge fan, but it's definitely listenable.

first costello album i listen. Not dissapointed.

how much elvis costello is on this fucking list

Costello er fínn en fjórar plötur er alltof mikið. Þessi plata átti ekki erindi á þennan lista.

not bad, but not remarkable either.

I had heard I Want You before and I quite like snarky Elvis so had reasonable hopes for this and it didn't disappoint. It's got plenty of pep, some great lyrics and the band serve the songs well. Favourite tracks - Tokyo Storm Warning, Blue Chair, Battered Old Bird and I Want You.

i want you lang gusto ko🍺

3.5

My previous experience with Elvis Costello was "Brutal Youth", which I gave a bad score and described it as annoying, and made me fear for what to expect from the rest of his albums that are in this list. Fortunately, this one is way better and I actually enjoy it. I really liked the more uplifting power pop tracks in here, being very solid tunes with a decent energy that make them entertaining to listen to. "Uncomplicated" and "I Hope You're Happy Now" are the best examples, as they open the album in a great mood, and "Honey Are You Straight Or Are You Blind" and "Next Time Round" are fun to listen to as well. I would also include "Tokyo Storm Warning" if it wasn't so long and the vocal melodies so repetitive, and "Blue Chair" if it had a bit more enthusiasm. Have to make a note that, while the songs I pointed out are great, they aren't super exciting and don't have anything extraordinary. The instruments and voice sound with a lot of body, but the playing, melodies and chord progressions I find to be quite ordinary. Is more like a "simple but effective" thing, with the level of effectiveness being normal instead of high. The rest of the tracks are slower cuts that I think are decent at best. "Home Is Anywhere You Hang Your Head", "Crimes of Paris" and "Poor Napoleon" are songs that are neither super fun nor sentimental and that are just alright, while "I Want You" and "Battered Old Bird" are unnecessary slow and long, making them quite boring to listen to, as I don't find anything emotional about them. Overall, I think it is a decent album. It certainly is an improvement from what I heard before, having its fun songs, but ultimately, it isn't nothing special.

God I love Elvis Costello