''My Aim Is True'' is the debut studio album by English singer-songwriter
Elvis Costello
Declan Patrick MacManus Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in ...
, originally released in the United Kingdom on 22July 1977 through
Stiff Records
Stiff Records is a British independent record label formed in London, England, by Dave Robinson and Jake Riviera. Originally active from 1976 to 1986, the label was reactivated in 2007.
Established at the outset of the punk rock boom, Stiff ...
. After years of little success performing in Britain, Costello was signed to Stiff through the label's founders
Dave Robinson and
Jake Riviera
Jake Riviera (born Andrew Jakeman, February 1948, in Edgware, Middlesex, England) is a British music business entrepreneur, best known for his management of such performers as Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe and as co-founder (with Dave Robinson) o ...
. Recording sessions for the album took place at
Pathway Studios
Pathway Studios was an independent recording studio in North London. Founded in 1970, the studio became an early favorite of Stiff Records' Dave Robinson and Jake Riviera, and was the location for early recordings by The Damned, Madness, ...
in
Islington
Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ar ...
, London, from late 1976 to early 1977, over the course of six four-hour studio sessions. Produced by Stiff artist and musician
Nick Lowe
Nicholas Drain Lowe (born 24 March 1949) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and producer. A noted figure in power pop and new wave,[Clover
Clover or trefoil are common names for plants of the genus ''Trifolium'' (from Latin ''tres'' 'three' + ''folium'' 'leaf'), consisting of about 300 species of flowering plants in the legume or pea family Fabaceae originating in Europe. The genus ...]
, a California-based
country rock
Country rock is a genre of music which fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal s ...
act, who were uncredited on the original release due to contractual difficulties. Costello kept his day job as a
data entry clerk
A data entry clerk, also known as data preparation and control operator, data registration and control operator, and data preparation and registration operator, is a member of staff employed to enter or update data into a computer system. Data is o ...
during the sessions.
At the time performing as D.P. Costello, Riviera suggested that Costello change his name to Elvis after
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
, and adjusted his image to match the then-rising
punk rock movement. The music itself on ''My Aim Is True'' is influenced by a wide variety of genres, from punk,
new wave and British
pub rock to elements of 1950s
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...
,
R&B and
rockabilly
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...
. The more downbeat lyrics are motivated by revenge and guilt, reflecting topics from relationship struggles to politically charged situations and
misogynistic
Misogyny () is hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women. It is a form of sexism that is used to keep women at a lower social status than men, thus maintaining the societal roles of patriarchy. Misogyny has been widely practiced f ...
characters. The original monochrome cover art, showing Costello in a pigeon-toed stance, was later colourised for reissues.
The album was preceded by three singles, all of which failed to chart. By June 1977, Costello formed a new permanent backing band,
the Attractions
The Attractions were an English backing band for the English new wave musician Elvis Costello between 1977 and 1986, and again from 1994 to 1996. They consisted of Steve Nieve (keyboards and ukulele), Bruce Thomas (bass guitar), and Pete Tho ...
, to better match his new image and commenced live performances with them for the rest of the year. Shortly after Presley's death in August, ''My Aim Is True'' reached number 14 on the
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
. The American version, released in November 1977 through
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
, added Costello's newest single "
Watching the Detectives" as the final track on side one. By then the biggest-selling import album in US history, it peaked at number 32 on ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''
Top LPs & Tape
The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine and is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of art ...
chart.
On release, ''My Aim Is True'' was met with critical acclaim, with many praising Costello's musicianship and songwriting; it appeared on several year-end lists. In later decades, commentators consider it one of Costello's finest works, one of the best debut albums in music history and has appeared on numerous best-of lists. The album was reissued in 1993 and 2001, both of which featured extensive liner notes written by Costello, and in 2007 as a deluxe edition.
Background
Elvis Costello
Declan Patrick MacManus Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in ...
—under his actual name Declan MacManus—began performing in clubs and pubs in
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
and
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
in 1970. Over the years he created some
demo
Demo, usually short for demonstration, may refer to:
Music and film
*Demo (music), a song typically recorded for reference rather than release
* ''Demo'' (Behind Crimson Eyes), a 2004 recording by the band Behind Crimson Eyes
* ''Demo'' (Deafhea ...
tapes, but had little success in obtaining a recording contract. One tape he submitted to record companies contained "Blame It On Cain" and "Mystery Dance", both of which he would record properly for ''My Aim Is True''. It featured himself solo on vocals and acoustic guitar. He later told ''
Melody Maker
''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. It was founded in 1926, largely as a magazine for dance band musicians, by Leicester-born ...
'' that he "didn't have enough money to do anything with a band". According to author Graeme Thomson, British DJ Charlie Gillett played songs from the tape on his show throughout the summer of 1976. The exposure garnered interest from labels, although it was rejected by
Island Records
Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...
,
Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldwid ...
and American-based
CBS Records CBS Records may refer to:
* CBS Records or CBS/Sony, former name of Sony Music, a global record company
* CBS Records International, label for Columbia Records recordings released outside North America from 1962 to 1990
* CBS Records (2006), founde ...
.
When London-based
Stiff Records
Stiff Records is a British independent record label formed in London, England, by Dave Robinson and Jake Riviera. Originally active from 1976 to 1986, the label was reactivated in 2007.
Established at the outset of the punk rock boom, Stiff ...
was founded in 1976, MacManus, now performing as D.P. Costello after his great-grandmother, submitted his demos there in August and found some interest from label co-founder
Dave Robinson. Costello had originally submitted a demo tape to Robinson under a different name and rejected him; he later recalled, "When I submitted the tapes to Stiff, he didn't realise that it was the same person who'd done the earlier tape... It turned out he already had over an hour of me on tape and didn't know it." Stiff initially wanted Costello as a songwriter for
Dave Edmunds
David William Edmunds (born 15 April 1944) is a Welsh singer-songwriter, guitarist and record producer. Although he is mainly associated with pub rock and new wave, having many hits in the 1970s and early 1980s, his natural leaning has alwa ...
, who was managed by label co-founder
Jake Riviera
Jake Riviera (born Andrew Jakeman, February 1948, in Edgware, Middlesex, England) is a British music business entrepreneur, best known for his management of such performers as Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe and as co-founder (with Dave Robinson) o ...
. After receiving more demo tapes, Riviera offered Costello a record deal as a performer. He was the first artist signed to Stiff, but was the label's eleventh release.
The contract featured a record advance of £150, an
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and a
tape recorder
An audio tape recorder, also known as a tape deck, tape player or tape machine or simply a tape recorder, is a sound recording and reproduction device that records and plays back sounds usually using magnetic tape for storage. In its present- ...
.
Writing and recording
![MFF N Lowe-9573 (38373656842)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3e/MFF_N_Lowe-9573_%2838373656842%29.jpg)
In late 1976, Stiff financed recording sessions for an album at
Pathway Studios
Pathway Studios was an independent recording studio in North London. Founded in 1970, the studio became an early favorite of Stiff Records' Dave Robinson and Jake Riviera, and was the location for early recordings by The Damned, Madness, ...
, an eight-track studio located in Islington, with American band
Clover
Clover or trefoil are common names for plants of the genus ''Trifolium'' (from Latin ''tres'' 'three' + ''folium'' 'leaf'), consisting of about 300 species of flowering plants in the legume or pea family Fabaceae originating in Europe. The genus ...
as the backing band. The band, a
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
–based
country rock
Country rock is a genre of music which fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal s ...
act consisting of guitarist John McFee, bassist John Ciambotti, keyboardist Sean Hopper, and drummer Mickey Shine, had moved to Britain after gaining a
cult following
A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...
there and signed to
Phonogram Records
Phonogram Incorporated was started in 1970 as a successor to Philips Phonographic Industries, a unit of the Grammophon-Philips Group (GPG), a joint venture of Philips N.V. of the Netherlands and Siemens A.G. of Germany.
Phonogram was the nam ...
.
The band were not credited on the final album at the time due to contractual difficulties; some early marketing for the album identified them as the Shamrocks.
Costello stated that the band arrived in London during the
punk
Punk or punks may refer to:
Genres, subculture, and related aspects
* Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres
* Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
revolution and due to appearing as "American hippies", they "just didn't fit in". The band resided at
Headley Grange, a country house, during the period.
Due to Stiff's limited finances at the time, two tracks were initially taped at Pathway for release as a single: "Radio Sweetheart" and "Mystery Dance". The session was produced by fellow Stiff artist and house producer
Nick Lowe
Nicholas Drain Lowe (born 24 March 1949) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and producer. A noted figure in power pop and new wave,[Wreckless Eric
Eric Goulden (born 18 May 1954), known as Wreckless Eric, is an English rock/ new wave singer-songwriter, best known for his 1977 single " Whole Wide World" on Stiff Records. More than two decades after its release, the song was included in ''M ...]
—in a style similar to
Chess Records
Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago, specializing in blues and rhythm and blues. It was the successor to Aristocrat Records, founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music, gospel music, early rock and roll ...
' ''Chuck Meets Bo'' album—but Costello had written enough songs, most of them at home late at night (so as not to wake his wife and young son) or on the
London Underground
The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent ceremonial counties of England, counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and He ...
while commuting to work, to have an entire album of his own.
''My Aim Is True'' was recorded in a series of six four-hour sessions, from late 1976 to early 1977 for about £2,000.
Costello kept his day job as a
data entry clerk
A data entry clerk, also known as data preparation and control operator, data registration and control operator, and data preparation and registration operator, is a member of staff employed to enter or update data into a computer system. Data is o ...
at
Elizabeth Arden
Elizabeth Arden (born Florence Nightingale Graham; December 31, 1881 – October 18, 1966) was a Canadian-American businesswoman who founded what is now Elizabeth Arden, Inc., and built a cosmetics empire in the United States. By 1929, s ...
during the sessions. He called in sick to his day job, travelled to Headley Grange to rehearse the songs with Clover and travelled back to Pathway the next day to record. Costello recalled disliking the time at Headley Grange and that he and Clover had musical disagreements, but nevertheless praised their musicianship. According to Thomson, Clover were paid little for their contributions. Most of the tracks were recorded live and in first takes with little
overdubbing
Overdubbing (also known as layering) is a technique used in audio recording in which audio tracks that have been pre-recorded are then played back and monitored, while simultaneously recording new, doubled, or augmented tracks onto one or more av ...
.
While Clover provided most of the instrumentation, Stan Shaw of the Hitmen played keyboards on "Less Than Zero" while Lowe produced and sang backing vocals. Clover's lead singer Alex Call and
harmonica
The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...
player
Huey Lewis
Hugh Anthony Cregg III (born July 5, 1950), known professionally as Huey Lewis, is an American singer, songwriter, and actor.
Lewis sings lead and plays harmonica for his band, Huey Lewis and the News, in addition to writing or co-writing many o ...
, who later found fame with
the News, were absent from the sessions. Lewis later explained: "I took a vacation. I could have sung a bit or played a bit of harmonica, but we'd been on the road since 1970." Regarding his guitar work, Costello stated in his memoir that at the time, he did not own his signature Jazzmaster guitar so he used a "shrill" Telecaster on the album. He also lacked substantial knowledge on guitars themselves, stating that he played his guitar unadjusted until halfway through the sessions.
The majority of the songs on ''My Aim Is True'' were written in about two weeks. Most of them came from Costello's earlier demo tapes and live performances with his former band Flip City. Some tracks would appear on later albums, such as "Hand In Hand", which was written specifically for Lowe, who rejected it. More adventurous numbers such as "Hoover Factory", "Dr. Luther's Assistant", "Ghost Train" and "Stranger in the House" were also recorded during the sessions, but were omitted from ''My Aim Is True'' and instead appeared on
EPs and singles. According to biographer Brian Hinton, these tracks would have contrasted with Costello's aspiring image of a "straight talking psychopath". In the liner notes for the 1993 reissue of ''My Aim Is True'', Costello stated that the three main outtakes from the sessions were "Radio Sweetheart", "Stranger in the House" and "Living in Paradise", the first two being left off the final track list due to differences in sound and the last being properly recorded for Costello's follow-up album ''
This Year's Model
''This Year's Model'' is the second studio album by the English singer-songwriter Elvis Costello, released on 17March 1978 through Radar Records. After being backed by Clover for his debut album '' My Aim Is True'' (1977), Costello formed t ...
'' (1978).
After the first session, Lowe acted as producer for the rest of the album.
Regarding his role as producer, Thomson states that Lowe's priority was to keep the feel of the songs and create appropriate atmospheres for each. However, Lowe himself later stated that the musicians did all the work and all he contributed was "switch
ngeverything on". He rough-mixed the tracks with engineer Barry "Bazza" Farmer, the final mix completed in a single five-hour session at Pathway on 27 January 1977.
Name change
At the time, Costello was performing under the stage name "D.P. Costello" as a tribute to his father.
With "Less Than Zero" being readied for release as a single in March 1977, Robinson and Riviera decided to adjust his image to better match the rising punk rock movement. Looking like, in Clayton-Lea's words, an "average ordinary-looking computer operator geek", he lacked "neither aggression nor energy" in his live performances, as musician
Graham Parker
Graham Thomas Parker (born 18 November 1950) is an English singer-songwriter, who is best known as the lead singer of the British band Graham Parker & the Rumour.
Life and career Early career (1960s–1976)
Parker was born in Hackney, East L ...
told ''
Mojo
Mojo may refer to:
* Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo
Arts, entertainment and media Film and television
* MOJO HD, an American television network
* ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film
* ' ...
''.
As a marketing tactic, Riviera suggested changing Costello's name from Declan to Elvis after American singer
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
. Considered irrational but accepted by Costello himself, the change sparked controversy in both Britain and America, facing opposition from both Costello's supporters and Presley's fans. Costello later stated that the change was not meant to "insult" Presley; it "meant people would pause just that little bit longer". Wardrobe-wise, Costello became more exaggerated, donning
Buddy Holly
Charles Hardin Holley (September 7, 1936 – February 3, 1959), known as Buddy Holly, was an American singer and songwriter who was a central and pioneering figure of mid-1950s rock and roll. He was born to a musical family in Lubbock, Texas ...
-style glasses, tight jackets and "turned-up" jeans. He made his live solo debut under the new name and look on 27 May 1977.
Music and lyrics
According to biographer Tony Clayton-Lea, Costello and Lowe aimed to create "a collection of songs that were not only of their time, but which were also rooted in classic songwriting values". As such, commentators have written that the album combines various musical genres, including
new wave,
British
pub rock,
punk rock,
and
power pop
Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, an energetic performance, and ch ...
.
William Goodman of ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
'' magazine called it "rough edged and
bluesy" in a style reminiscent of
, and recognised the presence of punk,
rockabilly
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...
, UK pub rock,
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
and
honky-tonk
A honky-tonk (also called honkatonk, honkey-tonk, or tonk) is both a bar that provides country music for the entertainment of its patrons and the style of music played in such establishments. It can also refer to the type of piano (tack piano) ...
country.
''
Consequence of Sound
''Consequence'' (previously ''Consequence of Sound'') is an independently owned New York-based online magazine featuring news, editorials, and reviews of music, movies, and television. In addition, the website also features the Festival Outlook ...
'' Nick Freed wrote that the album combines elements of the British punk movement with 1950s and 1960s-style
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...
. He found tracks like "Miracle Man", "No Dancing" and "Alison" utilise that style to create
doo-wop
Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...
and
R&B melodies, thereby "taking the '50s and '60s ideas and adding the modern spin". Meanwhile, the rockabilly sound is present on "Less Than Zero", "Mystery Dance" and "Sneaky Feelings".
Clayton-Lea states that while it shared similarities with punk, it displayed musicianship and lyricism that were in control, showcasing a softer touch while underlined with a "unique savagery".
While the music presents a wide range of styles, the lyrics are mostly downbeat, discussing topics such as "deceit, sarcasm, bitterness, disdain, scorn
nddisgust". In an interview with
Nick Kent
Nick Kent (born 24 December 1951) is a British rock critic best known for his writing for the '' NME'' in the 1970s, and his books ''The Dark Stuff'' (1994) and ''Apathy for the Devil'' (2010).
Early life
Kent, the son of a former Abbey Road S ...
of the ''
NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'', Costello stated that the songs are motivated solely by "revenge and guilt".
Biographer David Gouldstone writes that the album's primary theme is "the unaccommodating nature of the world", which is explored in two distinct ways: "the personal songs as the microcosm, and the public as the macrocosm". The lyrics range from complex and surreal ("Waiting for the End of the World") to unsympathetic ("Less Than Zero") and misogynistic ("I'm Not Angry"). Dave Schulps of ''
Trouser Press
''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference to ...
'' described the album as "12 songs of revenge, guilt, jealousy, humiliation and rage".
Goodman found the lyrics and production matches a bedroom performance,
a sentiment echoed by LeMay, who similarly stated that Lowe's production has a "latent energy" that grants the album "all the immediacy of a live show".
Painter and art critic
Julian Bell
Julian Heward Bell (4 February 1908 – 18 July 1937) was an English poet, and the son of Clive and Vanessa Bell (who was the elder sister of Virginia Woolf). The writer Quentin Bell was his younger brother and the writer and painter Angelica ...
wrote that Costello's work "relies heavily on being ''between'' emotions, between sensations, ideas
ndinformations." Regarding Costello's vocal performance on the record, Gouldstone writes that his directness contributes to listeners' constant interest: "he continually grabs us by the shirtfront and harangues us, and we are sucked into the vortex."
Side one
The opening track, "
Welcome to the Working Week", expresses frustration at the ruthlessness of business. The lyrics are directed at "you", which Gouldstone analyses as the song's female character, the listener or the world itself. With a runtime of only 82 seconds,
the song contains a punk-style beat and handclaps and utilises elements of doo-wop and new wave.
Compared to the previous track, "Miracle Man" deals with the relationship between a man and a woman rather than society. Like the next track "No Dancing", "Miracle Man" concerns a man dominated by his female companion.
"No Dancing" contains a
Phil Spector
Harvey Phillip Spector (born Harvey Philip Spector; December 26, 1939January 16, 2021) was an American record producer and songwriter, best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s, followed decades later by ...
-type beat and various key changes, which was a rarity in Costello's early work.
Costello stated that he was attempting to merge a "Merseybeat bridge" into "
He's a Rebel" by
Gene Pitney
Gene Francis Alan Pitney (February 17, 1940 – April 5, 2006) was an American singer-songwriter and musician.
Pitney charted 16 top-40 hits in the United States, four in the top ten. In the United Kingdom, he had 22 top-40 hit singles, inclu ...
. Unlike other tracks on the album, the song's narrator is primarily observant, only directly appearing in the first verse. Commentators have analysed "dancing" on the record as a metaphor for sex, while Gouldstone goes further and writes that Costello is implying a lack of world order and harmony. Returning to the lyrical themes of the opening track is "Blame It on Cain", although Costello is more specific in this track, targeting entities such as "government buglers" and the
radio
Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...
. According to Gouldstone, the "it" in the chorus is not explicitly stated, only that it must be blamed on Cain. Taking the name
Cain
Cain ''Káïn''; ar, قابيل/قايين, Qābīl/Qāyīn is a Biblical figure in the Book of Genesis within Abrahamic religions. He is the elder brother of Abel, and the firstborn son of Adam and Eve, the first couple within the Bible. He wa ...
from the first murderer in the
Bible
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
, he analyses the track as fundamental frustrations that cannot be pinned on anyone and thus cannot be fixed, concluding that nothing wrong will become right. This growing tension is reflected in the music, which has an increased number of bars in each verse. Musically, the song was described by one reviewer as upbeat blues with a "Jersey Shore rock shine".
Described by Goodman as the album's "spiritual centrepiece",
"
Alison" is a
ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...
that combines jazzy guitars with soulful vocals. It was written about a checkout girl at a local supermarket.
Unlike other tracks on the album, "Alison" is more upbeat in tone and contains more caring and tender lyrics rather than feelings of maliciousness and anger; these feelings are present, but are muted compared to the preceding tracks. In the track, the narrator longs for the title character, who has married an inferior man even though he knows she is making a mistake.
The album takes its title from a line in the song.
"Sneaky Feelings" marks a return to upbeat blues and standard pop.
Much lighter in tone, the song concerns unfaithfulness. Gouldstone states that the 'sneaky feelings' are our desires for the unfeasible: "feelings which will only cause suffering and so must be suppressed."
Side two
Biographer Brian Hinton calls "
(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes" a "harder take" on "Alison". Gouldstone describes the characters' relationship in the song as "fractured" and "punctured". The woman is, like other tracks, portrayed as a heartless prosecutor of men but also a victim of them. He also identifies it as a rare example of Costello's that is sympathetic towards women. The red shoes are an allegory for an individual's freedoms and as such, metaphorical forces (referred to as 'angels') want to take away the narrator's freedom. The song also deals with the passage of time, which several subsequent tracks revisit. The most overtly political song on the album, "
Less Than Zero" is a steady rocker
that concerns the 1920s
British Union of Fascists leader
Oswald Mosley
Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet (16 November 1896 – 3 December 1980) was a British politician during the 1920s and 1930s who rose to fame when, having become disillusioned with mainstream politics, he turned to fascism. He was a member ...
. Costello accuses him of various crimes, such as brutality and possibly rape and incest, after Mosley denied any wrongdoings on television in the mid-1970s.
The song's chorus suggests the media suppresses knowledge of government corruption, thereby invoking
censorship
Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...
. Listeners in the United States assumed that "Mr. Oswald" was
Lee Harvey Oswald
Lee Harvey Oswald (October 18, 1939 – November 24, 1963) was a U.S. Marine veteran who assassinated John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, on November 22, 1963.
Oswald was placed in juvenile detention at the age of 12 fo ...
, the assassin of president
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...
, so Costello wrote an alternative lyric to refer to the assassin.
"Mystery Dance" is a 1950s-style rocker
that uses dancing as a metaphor for sex, but unlike "No Dancing", concerns a couple's first experience with it; as such, the narrator is confused by it. Writing for
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
, Tom Maginnis considered the track reminiscent of the "sock-hop rock" of Buddy Holly.
"Pay It Back" affirms the implication that the media lies to the public. In the song, the narrator finds out not everything in life is guaranteed and feels betrayed. Hinton describes it as "deeply cynical". Meanwhile, misogyny is prevalent on "I'm Not Angry", where sex is portrayed as demeaning rather than joyful. The ideal is acknowledged through the spite in Costello's vocal performance, while the music has been likened to
hard rock
Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...
.
"Waiting for the End of the World" depicts a surrealistic narrative that takes place on a train, which Gouldstone analyses as a symbol for life. Furthermore, Costello suggests
God
In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
created the universe but allowed it to be manipulated through individuals that seize power.
Packaging and artwork
The album cover was designed by
Barney Bubbles who, like Clover, was uncredited on the sleeve. It depicts a checkerboard pattern (surrounding the photo of Costello) on which the phrase "Elvis Is King" is written,
which Hinton states was intended as a parody of
Bridget Riley
Bridget Louise Riley (born 24 April 1931) is an English painter known for her op art paintings. She lives and works in London, Cornwall and the Vaucluse in France.
Early life and education
Riley was born on 24 April 1931 in West Norwood, No ...
's
Swinging Sixties
The Swinging Sixties was a youth-driven cultural revolution that took place in the United Kingdom during the mid-to-late 1960s, emphasising modernity and fun-loving hedonism, with Swinging London as its centre. It saw a flourishing in art, mus ...
op art paintings. In the centre, Costello dons his new look and stands in a stiff, pigeon-toed pose clutching a Fender guitar with his large shadow behind him. Author Mick St. Michael commented: "This fellow looked like he'd find it hard to aim a paper aeroplane." According to Costello, the final shot was one of the only usable images due to the comical nature during the photo session.
He struck a similar pose in the photo on the back of the original sleeve, where he appeared in monochrome against a coloured background while his head appeared disproportionately large. Gouldstone compares his look to "a demented version" of
Brains
A brain is an organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It is located in the head, usually close to the sensory organs for senses such as vision. It is the most complex organ in a v ...
from the 1960s British science fiction series ''
Thunderbirds'', actor
Woody Allen
Heywood "Woody" Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American film director, writer, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades and multiple Academy Award-winning films. He began his career writing ...
and Piggy from ''
Lord of the Flies
''Lord of the Flies'' is a 1954 novel by the Nobel Prize-winning British author William Golding. The plot concerns a group of British boys who are stranded on an uninhabited island and their disastrous attempts to govern themselves. Themes i ...
'' (1954).
Initially, the cover art was in
black-and-white
Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey.
Media
The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...
on the front and came in four different colours; later reissues added seven additional variants. The first pressings of the record included a flyer that read "Help Us Hype Elvis", which asked buyers to send in a 25-word description of "why they liked the 'English' Elvis". According to Hinton, the first 1,000 purchasers earned them a free copy of the LP to be sent to a friend of their choice. The idea originated from
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...
' attempts to gain American musician
Van Dyke Parks
Van Dyke Parks (born January 3, 1943) is an American musician, songwriter, arranger, and record producer who has composed various film and television soundtracks. He is best known for his 1967 album ''Song Cycle (album), Song Cycle'' and for his ...
a larger audience.
Release and aftermath
Singles
Stiff issued "Less Than Zero" as a single on 11March 1977, backed by the outtake "Radio Sweetheart". Despite receiving praise from various reviewers, such as the ''
NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
''
Charles Shaar Murray
Charles Shaar Murray (born Charles Maximillian Murray; 27 June 1951) is an English music journalist and broadcaster. He has worked on the ''New Musical Express'' and many other magazines and newspapers, and has been interviewed for a number of ...
, the single failed to reach the UK charts. "Alison" followed on 14May, backed by "Welcome to the Working Week", which also did not chart. In early July, Stiff released "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes" as a single, backed by "Mystery Dance"; it lacked a picture sleeve and failed to chart. Regarding the poor commercial performances, Costello later recalled: "I remember it being very demoralising, feeling that my only contact with the world was those singles, and those people who I didn't know or I'd never met had to make or break of it…that was very depressing." Nevertheless, Costello continued to garner attention from music journalists, from ''Melody Maker''
Allan Jones and the ''NME''
Nick Kent
Nick Kent (born 24 December 1951) is a British rock critic best known for his writing for the '' NME'' in the 1970s, and his books ''The Dark Stuff'' (1994) and ''Apathy for the Devil'' (2010).
Early life
Kent, the son of a former Abbey Road S ...
, who gave positive assessments to live shows in May and June. Costello also refused to give biographical details in interviews, even telling ''
Sounds
In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid.
In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...
'' magazine's John Ingham he did not want to be photographed. Costello left his day job at Elizabeth Arden on 5 July. Riviera guaranteed he'd make as much money as he had there, so he "turned professional the week the album came out".
Initially intended for release shortly after the first single, ''My Aim Is True'' was delayed to July while Stiff resolved a distribution dispute with Island Records. In the meantime, Costello wanted to form a permanent backing band that better fitted his aspiring image compared to the laid-back approach of Clover. Regarding the dismissal, McFee later said: "I would have been very happy to do it, but I don't think it was ever really a serious consideration." Desiring himself solely on guitar, the first person hired was drummer
Pete Thomas, followed by bassist
Bruce Thomas
Bruce Thomas (born 14 August 1948 in Stockton-on-Tees, England) is an English rock bass guitarist, best known as bassist for the Attractions; the band formed in 1977 to back Elvis Costello in concert and on record.
In addition to his work ...
. Submitting a wanted ad to ''
Melody Maker
''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. It was founded in 1926, largely as a magazine for dance band musicians, by Leicester-born ...
'' in June 1977, further auditions took place that month in Putney with Costello using drummer
Steve Goulding
Steve Goulding (born 1954) is an English drummer, who has played as a member of Graham Parker and The Rumour, The Associates, Poi Dog Pondering, The Waco Brothers, Sally Timms and the Drifting Cowgirls and The Mekons. He also played the drums ...
and bassist
Andrew Bodnar
Andrew Bodnar is an English bass player who grew up in Clapham, South London. He and drummer Steve Goulding (The Rumour, The Mekons, etc) met and began playing together as a rhythm section while still at school. They spent their teenage years au ...
of
the Rumour
The Rumour was an English rock band in the late 1970s and early 1980s. They are best known as the backup band for Graham Parker, whose early records (from 1976 to 1980) were credited to Graham Parker & The Rumour. However, The Rumour also ...
. During the audition, the trio rehearsed Costello's new tracks "
Watching the Detectives" and "No Action", which were quickly recorded at Pathway days later with Lowe producing;
Steve Nason later provided organ and piano overdubs. "Watching the Detectives", influenced by
the Clash
The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the wa ...
's
debut album, was a departure from the sound of ''My Aim Is True'', displaying
reggae
Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...
-style rhythms. Costello later called it his "first real record". "Watching the Detectives" was subsequently issued as a single in the UK on 14October 1977, backed by live versions of "Blame It on Cain" and "Miracle Man".
Live performances
Stiff issued ''My Aim Is True'' in the UK on 22July 1977, with the catalogue number SEEZ 3.
By the time it came out Costello was already performing with his new backing band, donned
the Attractions
The Attractions were an English backing band for the English new wave musician Elvis Costello between 1977 and 1986, and again from 1994 to 1996. They consisted of Steve Nieve (keyboards and ukulele), Bruce Thomas (bass guitar), and Pete Tho ...
,
who made their live debut on 14July. Shortly after its release, Costello and the Attractions performed an unauthorised show outside a
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
convention that gathered executives from around the world. Partly due to the antics of Riviera, Costello was arrested and charged with obstruction, fined £5 and released from the police station in time for a gig later that evening. The stunt attracted the attention of executive Greg Geller, who was integral in Costello's signing to Columbia in the United States months later.
To support ''My Aim Is True'', Costello and the Attractions conducted a short five-week tour starting 28July 1977 and ending on 4September. The gigs took place in major cities throughout Britain, alongside a
residency
Residency may refer to:
* Domicile (law), the act of establishing or maintaining a residence in a given place
** Permanent residency, indefinite residence within a country despite not having citizenship
* Residency (medicine), a stage of postgrad ...
at the Nashville Rooms in London on Sunday nights. The setlist consisted mostly of ''My Aim Is True'' tracks plus various new songs. In the middle of the tour, Elvis Presley died of a heart attack on 16August. Presley's death had an immediate impact on Costello: British newspapers ''
Daily Mail
The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper and news websitePeter Wilb"Paul Dacre of the Daily Mail: The man who hates liberal Britain", ''New Statesman'', 19 December 2013 (online version: 2 January 2014) publish ...
'' and ''Daily Observer'' cancelled their planned features on the artist while Stiff ran a new slogan for the label that read "The King Is Dead, Long Live the King". According to Thomson, Presley's death helped earn Costello more stature in the music press, with his name becoming "the mood of the zeitgeist". Four days after Presley's death, ''My Aim Is True'' reached number 14 on the
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
.
On 3October 1977, Costello and the Attractions embarked on another tour with other Stiff artists, including Lowe and Wreckless Eric, dubbed the Greatest Stiffs Live Tour. It was plagued with disorder and self-inflicted sabotage, partly due to Costello's refusal to play songs from ''My Aim Is True'', declaring "If you wanna hear the old songs, buy the fucking record;" he reversed this stance after audience backlash. Costello also fought with fellow artist
Ian Dury
Ian Robins Dury (12 May 1942 27 March 2000) was a British singer, songwriter and actor who rose to fame during the late 1970s, during the punk and new wave era of rock music. He was the lead singer and lyricist of Ian Dury and the Blockheads an ...
throughout the tour. Riviera departed Stiff around this time due to disputes with Robinson. Per his management contract, Costello–and Lowe–followed Riviera and departed Stiff for
Radar Records
Radar Records was a UK-based record label formed in late 1977 by Martin Davis (managing director) who had previously worked at United Artists Records, and Andrew Lauder, who had previously been head of A&R at the UK divisions of Liberty Recor ...
; his final release for Stiff was "Watching the Detectives", which became both the artist and label's first single to reach the UK top 20. In the meantime, Costello had amassed a large amount of new material that would appear on his second album ''This Year's Model''. In mid-November, he began his first tour of America.
US release
''My Aim Is True'' was released in revised form in the United States through Columbia Records on 1November 1977, adding "Watching the Detectives" as the final track on side one.
By then, it was the biggest-selling import album in US history. Marketing for the American release was spearheaded by Columbia's product manager Dick Wingate, who commissioned a billboard for the LP on Los Angeles's
Sunset Boulevard
Sunset Boulevard is a boulevard in the central and western part of Los Angeles, California, that stretches from the Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades east to Figueroa Street in Downtown Los Angeles. It is a major thoroughfare in t ...
, which was usually reserved for more major acts. Other merchandise created included a dartboard for Columbia's staff.
On 13October, Wingate sent a memo to key Columbia staff, which read: "Despite his appearance, Costello is a deadly serious artist, singer and songwriter... in the R&B revivalist/rock-and-roll school of Graham Parker,
Southside Johnny
John Lyon (born December 4, 1948), better known by his stage name Southside Johnny, is an American singer-songwriter who usually fronts his band Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes.
Southside Johnny has long been considered the Grandfather of ...
, or even
Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originato ...
. His music is not punk-rock, and should never be labeled so."
Later the same month, Columbia's VP of National Album Promotion Mike Pillot sent a memo to staff calling it "One of the most unique and exciting new albums that has graced any turntable during the last few years".
According to Thomson, Costello's fame in the US skyrocketed faster than in the UK. He was earning acclaim in publications such as ''
Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...
'' and ''
Newsweek
''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...
'' and was also approached to appear on
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
's ''
Saturday Night Live
''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...
''. His newfound popularity led ''My Aim Is True'' to selling 100,000 copies towards the middle of the tour, and shortly before Christmas 1977, it reached number 32 on ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''
Top LPs & Tape
The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine and is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of art ...
chart. After leaving Stiff, Costello retained his deal with Columbia for distribution in America. Costello was nominated for the
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
for
Best New Artist
The Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since 1959. Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were handed out, for records released in the previous year. The award was not presented in 1967. The official guidelines are as ...
at the
20th Annual Grammy Awards in 1978, but lost to the group
A Taste of Honey.
Critical reception
''My Aim Is True'' received rave reviews from British and American music journalists on release. Writing for ''Trouser Press'', Schulps hailed ''My Aim Is True'' as 1977's "most auspicious debut album", praising Costello's musicianship and songwriting, concluding he has "produced a classic in his first try".
Chas de Whalley of ''
Sounds
In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid.
In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...
'' magazine called Costello "a songwriter of rare sensitivity and talent" but had trouble getting a grip with the songs, nevertheless concluding: "Like a flower, Elvis' debut album is opening up into something of metallic beauty."
In ''
Melody Maker
''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. It was founded in 1926, largely as a magazine for dance band musicians, by Leicester-born ...
'', Jones found that "hell, you can dance to it, swoon and romance with it, smooch and romance to it".
He further noted the record contained "enough potential hit singles to stock a bloody juke-box", concluding "I can think of only a few albums released this year that rival its general excellence."
Roy Carr
Roy Carr (1945 – 1 July 2018) was an English music journalist, covering pop, rock and jazz. He joined the '' New Musical Express (NME)'' in the late 1960s, and edited ''NME'', '' Vox'' and '' Melody Maker'' magazines.
Biography
Born in Bla ...
of the ''
NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'' came across "sexual psychoanalysis set to a dozen superb juke joint anthems... a Seventies interpretation of Sixties rhythm and roll," while the songs "spill over with emotional torture and melodrama".
He commented that "Costello must have taken a lot of emotional knocks to come up with such a powerful album. To the extent that one is reticent to guess to what lengths he may have to go to enact a second instalment."
Several reviewers praised Costello as an artist.
Greil Marcus of ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' wrote: "How far Costello can go... remains to be seen, but I have a feeling that once he is heard, he is going to shake up a lot of his erstwhile peers and make many musicians whom he would not consider his peers seem quite irrelevant."
In ''Stage Life'', Jeffrey Morgan wrote that at only 22 years old, Costello "gashed a line in his soul using rock 'n' roll as the blade", creating an LP that, as "flawed as it is, cannot be ignored".
Sam Sutherland of ''High Fidelity'' hailed Costello as a "new wave rock classicist", creating an album that "rediscovers the raw vitality of rock" in the midst of '70s pop. He also called Lowe's production "exciting" and "deliberately crude".
Meanwhile, Robin Denselow of ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' considered the lyrics the best from a British artist in years.
''
The Philadelphia Inquirer
''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pennsy ...
'' gave ''My Aim Is True'' three out of four stars, also praising the lyrical content and felt Costello would achieve a commercial breakthrough.
Writing for ''
Creem
''Creem'' (often stylized in all caps) is a monthly American music magazine, based in Detroit, whose main print run lasted from 1969 to 1989. It was first published in March 1969 by Barry Kramer and founding editor Tony Reay. Influential criti ...
'', Mitchell Cohen hailed ''My Aim Is True'' as one of the year's best albums and praised the songs for their "memorable" choruses and strong ideas. However, he criticised the misogynistic lyrics, which he compared to the mid-1960s material of
Mick Jagger
Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...
, concluding that Costello has "some way to go before his emotional maturity matches his prodigious artistic skill".
In ''
The Village Voice
''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...
'', veteran critic
Robert Christgau
Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...
wrote: "I like the nerdy way this guy comes on, I'm fascinated by his lyrics, and I approve of his rock and roll orientation." However, he negatively compared Costello to
Jackson Browne
Clyde Jackson Browne (born October 9, 1948) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and political activist who has sold over 18 million albums in the United States.
Emerging as a precocious teenage songwriter in mid-1960s Los Angeles, he h ...
in that "he's a little boring", which he states comes from an "overconcentration on lyrics" and can be solved by "a healthy relationship with a band".
Danny Baker in ''
ZigZag
A zigzag is a pattern made up of small corners at variable angles, though constant within the zigzag, tracing a path between two parallel lines; it can be described as both jagged and fairly regular.
In geometry, this pattern is described as ...
'' magazine, who also made comparisons to Browne in his review, simply called ''My Aim Is True'' a "good, good album".
In ''The Village Voice'' annual
Pazz & Jop
Pazz & Jop was an annual poll of top musical releases, compiled by American newspaper ''The Village Voice'' and created by music critic Robert Christgau. It published lists of the year's top releases for 1971 and, after Christgau's two-year abse ...
critics' poll of the year's best albums, ''My Aim Is True'' finished at number two, behind the
Sex Pistols
The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they were one of the most groundbreaking acts in the history of popular music. They were responsible for ...
' ''
Never Mind the Bollocks
''Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols'' is the only studio album by English punk rock band the Sex Pistols, released on 28 October 1977 by Virgin Records in the UK and on 11 November 1977 by Warner Bros. Records in the US. The albu ...
''. It further placed in other year-end lists by ''Rolling Stone'', ''NME'' (3) and ''Sounds'' (9).
Retrospective appraisal
In later decades, ''My Aim Is True'' has received critical acclaim, with some naming it one of the best debut albums in rock history.
Terry Staunton of ''
Record Collector
''Record Collector'' is a British monthly music magazine. It was founded in 1980 and distributes worldwide.
History The early years
The first standalone issue of ''Record Collector'' was published in March 1980, though its history stretches ba ...
'' magazine summarised: "As opening salvos go, ''My Aim Is True'' has to be one of the most important, impressive and enduring debuts of all time."
Senior AllMusic editor
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, occ ...
wrote: "Costello went on to more ambitious territory fairly quickly, but ''My Aim Is True'' is a phenomenal debut, capturing a songwriter and musician whose words were as rich and clever as his music."
In ''
Paste'' magazine, Mark Baker similarly wrote that although the record was not Costello's greatest work, it still remains "a landmark, highly influential first album".
Goodman concurred, calling the album Costello's most essential album.
Writing in 2010, Nick Freed of ''Consequence of Sound'' called ''My Aim Is True'' one of the strongest debut albums, stating, "You couldn't find a stronger way to bring your style to the world", further recognising Costello's influence on bands such as
They Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants (often abbreviated as TMBG) is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years, Flansburgh and Linnell frequently performed as a duo, often accompanied by a d ...
and
the Hold Steady
The Hold Steady is an American rock band originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota, now based in Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2003. The band consists of Craig Finn (vocals, guitar), Tad Kubler (guitar), Galen Polivka (bass), Bobby Drake (drums), ...
.
''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
''
Armond White
Armond White (born ) is an American film and music critic who writes for ''National Review'' and ''Out''. He was previously the editor of '' CityArts'' (2011–2014), the lead film critic for the alternative weekly ''New York Press'' (1997–201 ...
wrote that out of the British pub rock scene, ''My Aim Is True'' stands out as a debut "with lots to say".
''
PopMatters
''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...
'' reviewers Jason Mendelsohn and Eric Klinger, while positive overall, commented on the lack of the Attractions and subdued production over Costello's subsequent albums. Nevertheless, the two called it a "solid" debut whose faults would be resolved the next year on ''This Year's Model''.
Many have commented on the record's influence on music. Reviewing in 2001, Adam Bresnick of ''Rolling Stone'' wrote: "Balancing the rage of punk with the formalism of the century's best songcraft, the album delivers passion and intelligence in equal measure."
In 2007, LeMay highlighted "Alison", "Red Shoes", "Less Than Zero" and "Watching the Detectives" as tracks that represent a "vital chapter" in the development of punk and new wave. Furthermore, he found the album as a whole remains as relevant as it did when it was first reissued.
Ten years later, a reviewer for ''Classic Rock Review'' stated that ''My Aim Is True'' "introduced the world to a hybrid sound that drew near equal influence from 1950s old time rock n' roll and 1970s cutting edge new wave and punk."
LeMay summarised the album as: "Wordy, witty, and geeky as fuck, ''My Aim Is True'' is without question one of the finest statements of brilliant nerddom ever to be released."
Gouldstone appraises ''My Aim Is True'' as "a magnificently measured cry of rage" and remains a "remarkable achievement" for someone only 22 years old at the time. Thomson later told ''Record Collector'':
Rankings
''My Aim Is True'' has frequently appeared on lists of the greatest albums of all time.
In 2000, ''My Aim Is True'' was voted number 266 in the third edition of writer
Colin Larkin
Colin Larkin (born 1949) is a British writer and entrepreneur. He founded, and was the editor-in-chief of, the ''Encyclopedia of Popular Music'', described by ''The Times'' as "the standard against which all others must be judged".
Along wit ...
's book ''
All Time Top 1000 Albums
''All Time Top 1000 Albums'' is a book by Colin Larkin, creator and editor of the ''Encyclopedia of Popular Music''. The book was first published by Guinness Publishing in 1994. The list presented is the result of over 200,000 votes cast by the ...
'' (2000). In 1987, ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' placed it at number 29 on its list of the best albums of the past 20 years. The same magazine ranked the album number 168 in its list of
the 500 greatest albums of all time
"The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a recurring opinion survey and music ranking of the finest albums in history, compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and indust ...
in 2003, maintaining the rating in a 2012 revised list, and dropping to number 430 on the 2020 list. The same magazine ranked it the 21st best debut album in 2013. ''
Uncut
Uncut may refer to:
* ''Uncut'' (film), a 1997 Canadian docudrama film by John Greyson about censorship
* ''Uncut'' (magazine), a monthly British magazine with a focus on music, which began publishing in May 1997
* '' BET: Uncut'', a Black Enter ...
'' magazine also placed it at number 31 in their 2006 list of the 100 best debut albums and number 125 in their 2016 list of the 200 greatest albums of all time. Other publications that have included ''My Aim Is True'' in their lists of the 100 greatest albums of all time include ''Sounds'' (29), ''The Times'' (32) and ''Entertainment Weekly'' (75). In 2004, ''Pitchfork'' ranked ''My Aim Is True'' the 37th best album of the 1970s, while in 2012, ''Paste'' placed it at number 20 in a similar list. The staff of ''Paste'' later voted it the best new wave album of all time in 2020, arguing that it set both the "musical and fashion stage" for the genre.
In 2007, ''My Aim Is True'' was inducted into the
Grammy Hall of Fame
The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...
. The album was also included in the 2018 edition of Robert Dimery's book ''
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die
''1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'' is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the ''1001 Before You Die'' series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music critics ...
''. Based on the album's appearances in professional rankings and listings, the aggregate website
Acclaimed Music
Acclaimed Music is a website created by Henrik Franzon, a statistician from Stockholm, Sweden in September 2001. Franzon has statistically aggregated hundreds of published lists that rank songs and albums into aggregated rankings by year, deca ...
lists ''My Aim Is True'' as 7th most acclaimed album of 1977, the 41st most acclaimed album of the 1970s and the 131st most acclaimed album in history.
Legacy
In lists ranking Costello's albums, ''My Aim Is True'' has consistently ranked as one of Costello's best. In 2021, writers for ''
Stereogum
''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine.
''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several award ...
'' placed it at number six, calling it "one of rock music's great opening salvos".
A year later, writing for ''
Spin'' magazine, Al Shipley placed it at number two, behind ''This Year's Model'', stating that had he not made another record after ''My Aim Is True'', he would "still be a legend". The same year, Michael Gallucci of ''
Ultimate Classic Rock
Townsquare Media, Inc. (formerly Regent Communications until 2010) is an American radio network and media company based in Purchase, New York. The company started in radio and expanded into digital media toward the end of the 2000s, starting wi ...
'' also placed it at number two, behind ''This Year's Model''. He noted Clover's lack of force compared to the Attractions, but nevertheless wrote that fewer have arrived with debuts as "instantly significant" as ''My Aim Is True''.
On 8 November 2007, Costello reunited with the members of Clover from the original recording sessions to perform the songs from ''My Aim Is True''. This marked the first (and to date only) live public performances of these songs by the original ensemble that recorded them. The event took place at the
Great American Music Hall
The Great American Music Hall is a concert hall in San Francisco, California. It is located on O'Farrell Street in the Tenderloin neighborhood on the same block as the Mitchell Brothers O'Farrell Theatre. It is known for its decorative balconies ...
in San Francisco, and was a benefit for the Richard de Lone Special Housing Fund, which assists those with
Prader–Willi syndrome
Prader–Willi syndrome (PWS) is a genetic disorder caused by a loss of function of specific genes on chromosome 15. In newborns, symptoms include weak muscles, poor feeding, and slow development. Beginning in childhood, those affected become c ...
.
Reissues
''My Aim Is True'' was first released on
CD through Columbia and
Demon Records
Demon Music Group (DMG) is a record company owned by BBC Studios that is mainly concerned with back-catalogue rights and re-issuing recordings as compilations on physical media (CDs and vinyl) via supermarkets and specialist stores.
History
DM ...
in July 1986.
Its first extended reissue came in October 1993 through Demon in the UK and
Rykodisc
Rykodisc is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, operating as a unit of WMG's Independent Label Group and is distributed through Alternative Distribution Alliance.
History
Claiming to be the first Compact Disc, CD-only independ ...
in the US, which featured nine bonus tracks and extensive liner notes written by Costello himself.
In 2001, it was again reissued on CD by
Rhino Entertainment
Rhino Entertainment Company is an American specialty record label and production company founded in 1978. It is currently the catalog division for Warner Music Group. Its current CEO is Mark Pinkus.
History
Founded in 1978, Rhino was original ...
, featuring the original album on disc one and a bonus disc of demos, live versions and outtakes, along with a new set of more elaborate Costello-written liner notes;
all nine bonus tracks from the 1993 reissue were included with an added four.
LeMay considers this reissue the most essential for the album itself.
Six years later, ''My Aim Is True'' was reissued again by
Universal
Universal is the adjective for universe.
Universal may also refer to:
Companies
* NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company
** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal
** Universal TV, a ...
/
Hip-O
Hip-O Records is a record label that specializes in reissues and compilations. It is part of Universal Music Group. Established in 1996, the label has distributed releases from 'out of style' genres such as disco and early hip-hop music as wel ...
on 11 September 2007 in a single-disc "Original Masters" package and a two-disc deluxe edition comprising 48 tracks, 26 previously unreleased. This package boasts the original album, outtakes and solo demos on disc one and a complete live show (with soundcheck) recorded on 7 August 1977 at the Nashville Rooms in London on disc two.
The tracks from the live show were mostly from ''My Aim Is True'', with some that appeared on ''This Year's Model'', while the demos are previously unreleased tracks including "Blue Minute", "Call on Me", "I Don't Want to Go Home" and "I Hear a Melody".
Hip-O hailed the deluxe edition as "the most definitive version of 'My Aim Is True' yet!"
Despite this, the deluxe edition received mixed reviews. LeMay felt it was inferior to the previous reissues, stating that it "lacks the reverent and enthusiastically geeky perspective of the Rhino reissue". He further noted the absence of several tracks and in-depth liner notes present on the other reissues.
Erlewine similarly questioned the release of the deluxe edition, as he felt it was superfluous following the Rhino reissue. He nevertheless stated that hardcore fans would appreciate the new material, albeit having to purchase an album likely already purchased before.
Track listing
All songs written by
Elvis Costello
Declan Patrick MacManus Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in ...
.
Side one
# "
Welcome to the Working Week" – 1:22
# "Miracle Man" – 3:31
# "No Dancing" – 2:39
# "Blame It on Cain" – 2:49
# "
Alison" – 3:21
# "Sneaky Feelings" – 2:09
Side two
# "
(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes" – 2:47
# "
Less Than Zero" – 3:15
# "Mystery Dance" – 1:38
# "Pay It Back" – 2:33
# "I'm Not Angry" – 2:57
# "Waiting for the End of the World" – 3:22
Notes
* "
Watching the Detectives", released in the UK as a single in October 1977, was added to the US release as the last track on side one.
It has subsequently appeared as the final track on the album on reissues.
Personnel
According to the liner notes of the 1993 reissue:
*
Elvis Costello
Declan Patrick MacManus Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in ...
– vocals, guitar, piano and
drumsticks on "Mystery Dance"
*
John McFee
John McFee (born September 9, 1950, Santa Cruz, California) is an American singing, singer, songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist, and long-time member of The Doobie Brothers.
Biography
Some of McFee's early and no ...
– lead guitar,
pedal steel guitar
The pedal steel guitar is a Console steel guitar, console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all s ...
, backing vocals
*
Sean Hopper – piano,
organ, backing vocals
* Johnny Ciambotti – bass, backing vocals
* Mickey Shine – drums
* Stan Shaw – organ on "Less Than Zero"
*
Nick Lowe
Nicholas Drain Lowe (born 24 March 1949) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and producer. A noted figure in power pop and new wave,[Andrew Bodnar
Andrew Bodnar is an English bass player who grew up in Clapham, South London. He and drummer Steve Goulding (The Rumour, The Mekons, etc) met and began playing together as a rhythm section while still at school. They spent their teenage years au ...]
– bass on "Watching the Detectives"
*
Steve Goulding
Steve Goulding (born 1954) is an English drummer, who has played as a member of Graham Parker and The Rumour, The Associates, Poi Dog Pondering, The Waco Brothers, Sally Timms and the Drifting Cowgirls and The Mekons. He also played the drums ...
– drums on "Watching the Detectives"
*
Steve Nieve
Steve Nieve ( "naïve"; born Stephen John Nason, 21 February 1958) is an English musician and composer. In a career spanning more than 40 years, Nieve has been a member of Elvis Costello's backing bands the Attractions, the Imposters and Madnes ...
– organ and piano overdubs on "Watching the Detectives"
Technical
* Nick Lowe – producer
* Barry "Bazza" Farmer – engineer
* Wendy Sherman – art direction, design
Charts and certifications
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
Notes
References
Sources
*
*
*
*
*
External links
*
{{Authority control
Albums produced by Nick Lowe
Columbia Records albums
1977 debut albums
Elvis Costello albums
Hip-O Records albums
Rhino Records albums
Rykodisc albums
Stiff Records albums