Album of the day (#3558): Imperial Bedroom

[albummaster]

Today's album of the day

Imperial Bedroom by Elvis Costello And The Attractions (View album | Buy this album)

Year: 1982.
Country:
Overall rank: 834
Average rating: 78/100 (from 313 votes).

Thumbnail. Click to enlarge.

Tracks:
1. Beyond Belief
2. Tears Before Bedtime
3. Shabby Doll
4. The Long Honeymoon
5. Man Out Of Time
6. Almost Blue
7. ...And In Every Home
8. The Loved Ones
9. Human Hands
10. Kid About It
11. Little Savage
12. Boy With A Problem
13. Pidgin English
14. You Little Fool
15. Town Cryer

About album of the day: The BestEverAlbums.com album of the day is the album appearing most prominently in member charts in the previous 24 hours. If an album, or artist, has previously been selected within a x day period, the next highest album is picked instead (and so on) to ensure a bit of variety. A full history of album of the day can be viewed here.

[Skinny]

It's a total masterpiece, bitter and funny and passionate and drunk on its own wordplay, set to a soundtrack that takes in a variety of styles of post-1950s pop music whilst remaining of a piece throughout. I used to prefer Costello's earlier, more straightforward work, dismissing this as overly clever and knowing and just a bit too tryhard, but I was wrong. (I mean, it definitely is all of those things, but it's all the better for it.) There's something contagiously nerdy and almost scientific about his desire, and subsequent ability, to craft this particular collection of songs, a kind of 'songwriting for songwriting's sake' vibe which casts Costello as this desperate show-off whose talents are nonetheless undeniable. Though he made funner, more instinctive records, he never made an album as complete as this one, before or since.
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