Armed Forces (album)

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For other uses, see armed forces (disambiguation).
Armed Forces
Elvis costello armed forces 1.jpg
Studio album by Elvis Costello and the Attractions
Released 5 January 1979 (1979-01-05)
Recorded August 1978 (1978-08)–September 1978 (1978-09), Eden Studios, London
Genre New wave, punk rock
Length 40:05
Label Radar (UK)
Columbia (US)
F-Beat (1981 (1981) UK Reissue)
Demon/Rykodisc (19 October 1993 (1993-10-19) Reissue)
Rhino (19 November 2002 (2002-11-19) Reissue)
Hip-O (10 September 2007 (2007-09-10) Reissue)
Producer Nick Lowe
Elvis Costello and the Attractions chronology
This Year's Model
(1978)This Year's Model1978		 Armed Forces
(1979)		 Get Happy!!
(1980)Get Happy!!1980
Singles from Armed Forces
  1. "Oliver's Army"
    Released: 2 February 1979[1]
  2. "Accidents Will Happen"
    Released: 4 May 1979[1]
Alternative cover
US 1979 and 2002 reissue cover, also known as "paint spatter cover"

Armed Forces is Elvis Costello's third album, his second with the Attractions, and the first to officially credit the Attractions on the cover. It was released in the UK by Radar Records and in the USA by Columbia in 1979. The album had the working title Emotional Fascism.

Initial pressings of the album in the UK and USA included a promotional three-song single, Live at Hollywood High, which was recorded on 4 June 1978 (1978-06-04). The live tracks, also produced by Nick Lowe, are "Accidents Will Happen," "Alison," and "Watching the Detectives". The UK edition included 4 postcards featuring pictures of the band. The American version omitted "Sunday's Best" and replaced it with Costello's version of "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding", which had been released the previous November as the B-side of Nick Lowe's "American Squirm" single, at the end of side two.

The album has appeared on Q magazine and Rolling Stone magazine lists of "greatest albums". In the 1982 film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Elliott's brother, Michael (played by Robert MacNaughton), sings "Accidents Will Happen" in the family kitchen after coming home from school.[2]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
AllMusic 5/5 stars[3]
Blender 5/5 stars[4]
Chicago Tribune 4/4 stars[5]
Entertainment Weekly A+[6]
Pitchfork Media 9.5/10[7]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide 4/5 stars[8]
The Village Voice A–[9]
Initial

Janet Maslin in a 1979 review in Rolling Stone felt the album was a "killer in several senses of the word"; remarking on the brief, energetic songs with dense and sometimes overly-clever but snappy lyrics. Maslin felt that Costello "wants to be daring, but he also wants to dance".[10] Robert Christgau in a 1979 review in The Village Voice felt Costello was using words to "add color and detail to his music" rather than as "a thinking, feeling person"; though he approved of the "intricate pop constructions", and found the album overall to be "good" but not "great".[9] Both reviewers felt the album was more densely or richly produced than the two predecessors.[9][10]

Retrospective

In a retrospective commentary for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine felt that Armed Forces is a more "detailed and textured pop production" than Costello's first two albums, making the music more accessible, though the lyrics are "more insular and paranoid".[3] Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune, in his 1991 review, called the album "Costello's 'political' record, and also one of his most irresistibly melodic."[5] Matt LeMay, in a 2003 review for Pitchfork Media, also commented on the production, which he felt was "extravagantly layered with dense instrumentation and rich, effusive textures" which "often serves to conceal, rather than reveal the nuances of Costello's songwriting"; and concluded that "the greatest strength of Armed Forces may be the same thing that makes it less viscerally powerful than Costello's two prior records – its songs absolutely demand to be appreciated for their craftsmanship".[7] LeMay argued that the album marks the point at which Costello found his role as a songwriter.[7]

In 2000 Q magazine placed Armed Forces at number 45 in its list of the 100 Greatest British Albums Ever. In 2003, the album was ranked at number 482 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time",[11] and then in 2012, was moved to number 475 on an updated list.[12]

Track listing

All songs written by Elvis Costello.

Side one
  1. "Accidents Will Happen" – 3:00
  2. "Senior Service" – 2:17
  3. "Oliver's Army" – 2:58
  4. "Big Boys" – 2:54
  5. "Green Shirt" – 2:42
  6. "Party Girl" – 3:20
Side two
  1. "Goon Squad" – 3:14
  2. "Busy Bodies" – 3:33
  3. "Sunday's Best" – 3:22
  4. "Moods for Moderns" – 2:48
  5. "Chemistry Class" – 2:55
  6. "Two Little Hitlers" – 3:18

Live at Hollywood High promo single

  1. "Accidents Will Happen" (Live) – 3:18
  2. "Alison" (Live) – 3:08
  3. "Watching the Detectives" (Live) – 5:51

Reissues

There was a Rykodisc reissue in 1993, and a Rhino reissue in 2002. The Rykodisc version contains the original album and bonus tracks on one CD; the Rhino version has two CDs – disc one contains the original UK album plus "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding?" and disc two contains bonus tracks.

1993 Rykodisc reissue bonus tracks

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  1. "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding" (Nick Lowe) – 3:31
  2. "My Funny Valentine" (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart) – 1:28
  3. "Tiny Steps" – 2:42
  4. "Clean Money" – 1:57
  5. "Talking in the Dark" – 1:56
  6. "Wednesday Week" – 2:01
  7. "Accidents Will Happen" (Live at Hollywood High) – 3:18
  8. "Alison" (Live at Hollywood High) – 3:08
  9. "Watching the Detectives" (Live at Hollywood High) – 5:51
  • Note: the Rykodisc reissue placed "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding?" after a 15 second silence following "Two Little Hitlers."

2002 Rhino reissue bonus disc

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  1. "Tiny Steps" – 2:42
  2. "Busy Bodies" (Alternative version) – 3:48
  3. "Talking in the Dark" – 1:56
  4. "Big Boys" (Alternative version) – 2:56
  5. "Clean Money" – 1:57
  6. "Wednesday Week" – 2:01
  7. "My Funny Valentine" (Rodgers, Hart) – 1:33
  8. "Accidents Will Happen" (Live at Hollywood High, 4 June 1978) – 3:18
  9. "Mystery Dance" (Live at Hollywood High, 4 June 1978) – 2:01
  10. "Goon Squad" (Live at Hollywood High, 4 June 1978) – 3:42
  11. "Party Girl" (Live at Hollywood High, 4 June 1978) – 3:19
  12. "Stranger in the House" (Live at Hollywood High, 4 June 1978) – 3:52
  13. "Alison" (Live at Hollywood High, 4 June 1978) – 3:08
  14. "Lipstick Vogue" (Live at Hollywood High, 4 June 1978) – 4:26
  15. "Watching the Detectives" (Live at Hollywood High, 4 June 1978) – 5:51
  16. "You Belong to Me" (Live at Hollywood High, 4 June 1978) – 2:39
  17. "Chemistry Class" (Live solo at the Warner Theatre, Washington DC, 28 February 1978) – 2:34

Personnel

Charts

References

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  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Wenner, Jann S., ed. (2012). Rolling Stone – Special Collectors Issue – The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. USA: Wenner Media Specials. ISBN 978-7-09-893419-6
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 24 October 2011
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Elvis Costello > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums at AllMusic. Retrieved 23 October 2011.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Enter Armed Forces in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Platinum in the field By Award. Click Search
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH

External links

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