From Liverpool, England. Elvis Costello (Declan MacManus)(vocals/guitar) in true punk fashion horrified many when he took the stage name of Elvis. What upstart would do this? He seemed to have a lot of attitude that's for sure. The true inspiration may have been the sole album that his father released, "Day MacManus Sings Elvis Presley's Greatest Hits". Costello's father Ross MacManus was a popular singer who sang for an orchestra on BBC radio. Declan MacManus started out in 1972 in a group called Rusty, followed by another group called Flip City before changing his name and going solo. He first drew attention when he got arrested busking in front of a CBS Records conference in the hopes of getting a record contract (actually a publicity stunt). Also a drunken fight with singer Bonnie Bramlett (of Delaney & Bonnie fame) when Costello insulted the music of Ray Charles, resulted in a fist fight! He assembled his back-up band The Attractions for his second album and stuck with them for many years. The Attractions were: Steve Nieve (keyboards), Pete Thomas (drums) and Bruce Thomas (bass). The Attractions even made an album without Elvis in 1980 called "Mad About The Wrong Boy". These days Costello has been hanging out with 60's pop songwriter Burt Bacharach and appears with him in the Mike Myers film "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me". Costello has been married three times. First to Mary Burgoyne who is now a London radio dj. He later married former Pogues musician Cait O'Riordan in 1986 and split from her in November 2002. In May of 2003, he announced his engagement to Canadian jazz singer Diana Krall and married her the following December. Costello started out as an angry young rocker and has matured by keeping many side projects that have explored his tastes for popular music, country, lounge, jazz, blues, movie and television scoring and even opera. 1977-present.
DISCOGRAPHY:
| FULL RELEASES | SINGLES |
| My Aim Is True | Alison/Less Than Zero/Watching The Detectives/Radio Sweetheart/Miracle Man/Mystery Dance/(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes |
| This Year's Model | Pump It Up/(I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea/Radio Radio/This Year's Girl |
| Live At El Mocambo | live performance/Radio Radio (live) |
| Armed Forces | Oliver's Army/Accidents Will Happen/Green Shirt |
| Get Happy | What's So Funny 'Bout Peace Love And Understanding?/New Amsterdam/High Fidelity |
| Taking Liberties | rarities/Getting Mighty Crowded/Stranger In The House (with George Jones)/My Funny Valentine |
| Ten Bloody Mary's And Ten How's Your Fathers | rarities |
| Trust | From A Whisper To A Scream/Clubland/Watch Your Step |
| Almost Blue | Sweet Dreams/Good Year For The Roses |
| Imperial Bedroom | Beyond
Belief/You Little Fool/Man Out Of Time/Almost Blue |
| Party Party soundtrack | title track |
| Punch The Clock | Shipbuilding/Everyday I Write The Book/Let Them All Talk |
| Goodbye Cruel World | The Only Flame In Town (with Darryl Hall)/I Wanna Be Loved/Peace In Our Time |
| The Best Of Elvis Costello & The Attractions | compilation |
| The Man | compilation |
| King Of America | Lovable/Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood/Brilliant Mistake |
| Blood And Chocolate | I Hope You're Happy Now/Tokyo Storm Warning/I Want You/Blue Chair |
| Out Of Our Idiot | rarities/Seven Day Weekend (with Jimmy Cliff)/The People's Limousine/From Head To Toe/Walking On Thin Ice/A Town Called Big Nothing |
| The Courier soundtrack | |
| Spike | Veronica/This Town/Let Him Dangle |
| Girls Girls Girls | compilation |
| G.B.H. soundtrack | |
| Mighty Like A Rose | The Other Side Of Summer/So Like Candy |
| The Juliet Letters | I Almost Had A Weakness |
| Brutal Youth | 13 Steps Lead Down/Sulky Girl/You Tripped At Every Step |
| Very Best Of | compilation |
| Kojak Variety | Pouring Water On A Drowning Man |
| Drop Dead Blue (with Bill Frisell) | live performance |
| Jake's Progress soundtrack (with Richard Harvey) | |
| All This Useless Beauty | It's Time/You Bowed Down/Little Atoms/The Other End Of The Telescope |
| Costello And Nieve | live performance |
| Extreme Honey | compilation/The Bridge I Burned |
| Painted From Memory (with Burt Bacharach) | Toledo/God Give Me Strength |
| Notting Hill soundtrack | She |
| When I Was Cruel | Tear Off Your Own Head/45 |
| Cruel Smile | Smile (alternate version)/rarities/live performance/remixes |
| North | Fallen/Still/title track |
| Piano Jazz (with Marian McPartland) | |
| Il Sogno | |
| The Delivery Man | Monkey To Man |
| My Flame Burns Blue | live performance |
| The River In Reverse (with Allen Toussaint) | Ascension Day |
| Rock And Roll Music | compilation |
| The Best Of Elvis Costello: The First Ten Years | compilation |
| Momofuku |
Turpentine/American Gangster Time |
| Secret, Profane & Sugarcane | Complicated Shadows (version
two)/Sulphur To Sugarcane |
| Live At Hollywood High |
live performance |
| Pomp & Pout: The Universal Years |
compilation |
OFFICIAL WEB PAGE: http://www.elviscostello.com/
Search for music by Elvis Costello here:
Follow these links to instantly download songs by Elvis Costello:
| 13 Steps Lead Down |
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| 45 |
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| A Town Called Big Nothing |
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| Accidents Will Happen |
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| Alison |
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| Almost Blue |
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| American Gangster Time |
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| Ascension Day |
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| (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes |
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| Beyond Belief |
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| Blue Chair |
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| Brilliant Mistake |
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| Clubland |
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| Compicated Shadows (version two) |
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| Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood |
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| Everyday I Write The Book |
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| Fallen |
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| From A Whisper To A Scream |
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| From Head To Toe | |
| Getting Mighty Crowded |
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| God Give Me Strength |
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| Good Year For The Roses |
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| Green Shirt |
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| High Fidelity |
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| I Almost Had A Weakness |
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| I Can't Stand Up For Falling Down |
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| (I Don't Wanna Go To) Chelsea |
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| I Hope You're Happy Now |
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| I Wanna Be Loved |
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| I Want You |
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| It's Time |
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| Less Than Zero |
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| Let Him Dangle |
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| Let Them All Talk |
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| Little Atoms |
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| Lovable |
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| Man Out Of Time |
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| Miracle Man |
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| Monkey To Man |
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| My Funny Valentine |
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| Mystery Dance |
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| New Amsterdam |
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| Oliver's Army |
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| Peace In Our Time |
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| Pouring Water On A Drowning Man |
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| Pump It Up |
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| Radio Radio |
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| Radio Radio (live at El Mocambo) |
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| Radio Sweetheart |
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| Seven Day Weekend |
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| She |
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| Shipbuilding |
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| So Like Candy |
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| Still |
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| Stranger In The Hiuse (with George Jones) |
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| Sulky Girl |
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| Sulphur To Sugarcane |
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| Sweet Dreams |
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| Tear Off Your Own Head |
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| The Only Flame In Town (with Daryl Hall) |
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| The Other End Of The Telescope |
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| The Other Side Of Summer |
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| The People's Limousine |
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| This Town |
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| This Year's Girl |
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| Tokyo Storm Warning |
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| Toledo |
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| Turpentine |
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| Veronica |
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| Walking On Thin Ice |
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| Watch Your Step |
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| Watching The Detectives |
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| (What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love
& Understanding |
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| You Bowed Down |
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| You Little Fool |
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| You Tripped At Every Step |
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