King Of America(LP)

Rating

Album: King Of America(LP)
#	Song Title		Time
1)	Brilliant Mistake (Side A)	More Info...
2)	Loveable (Side A)	More Info...
3)	Our Little Angel (Side A)	More Info...
4)	Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood (Side A)	More Info...
5)	Glitter Gulch (Side A)	More Info...
6)	Indoor Fireworks (Side A)	More Info...
7)	Little Palaces (Side A)	More Info...
8)	I'll Wear It Proudly (Side A)	More Info...
9)	American Without Tears (Side B)	More Info...
10)	Eisenhower Blues (Side B)	More Info...
11)	Poisoned Rose (Side B)	More Info...
12)	The Big Light (Side B)	More Info...
13)	Jack of All Parades (Side B)	More Info...
14)	Suit of Lights (Side B)	More Info...
15)	Sleep of the Just (Side B)	More Info...

Album: King Of America(LP)
#	Song Title		Time
1)	Brilliant Mistake (Side A)	More Info...
2)	Loveable (Side A)	More Info...
3)	Our Little Angel (Side A)	More Info...
4)	Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood (Side A)	More Info...
5)	Glitter Gulch (Side A)	More Info...
6)	Indoor Fireworks (Side A)	More Info...
7)	Little Palaces (Side A)	More Info...
8)	I'll Wear It Proudly (Side A)	More Info...
9)	American Without Tears (Side B)	More Info...
10)	Eisenhower Blues (Side B)	More Info...
11)	Poisoned Rose (Side B)	More Info...
12)	The Big Light (Side B)	More Info...
13)	Jack of All Parades (Side B)	More Info...
14)	Suit of Lights (Side B)	More Info...
15)	Sleep of the Just (Side B)	More Info...

Performer Notes

Personnel: Elvis Costello (vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, mandolin); James Burton (acoustic & electric guitars, dobro); T-Bone Wolk (electric guitar, accordion, keyboards, electric bass); T-Bone Burnett (electric guitar); Jo-El Sonnier (French accordion); Mitchell Froom (piano, harpsichord, organ, Hammond organ); Tom Canning (piano); Michael Blair (marimba); Jerry Scheff (acoustic & electric basses); Ray Brown (acoustic bass); Earl Palmer, Ron Tutt, Jim Keltner, Mickey Curry (drums); David Hidalgo (background vocals).
The Attractions: Steve Nieve (piano, Hammond organ); Bruce Thomas (electric bass); Pete Thomas (drums).
Producers: T-Bone Burnett, Elvis Costello, Larry Hirsch, The Coward Brothers.
Recorded at Ocean Way, Sunset Sound Studio and The Sound Factory, Los Angeles, California in 1985. Originally released on Columbia (40173). Includes liner notes by Declan Patrick Aloysius "Elvis Costello" MacManus.
On KING OF AMERICA, the ever-restless Costello reinvented himself yet again, using his Christian name (Declan MacManus) in the credits, and employing the other Elvis' old backing band (as well as Ray Brown and Earl Palmer) for his most reflective, mature-sounding album thus far. The overall sound here is closer to Costello's folk-rock roots (The Band, the Grateful Dead) than he'd ever dared come before, and the songs trade elliptical wordplay for considered emotional statements.Though the Attractions appear only on "Suit of Lights," their influence is felt on the album's poppiest tune "Lovable." Elsewhere, Costello offers poignant country ballads ("Indoor FIreworks," also expertly covered by Nick Lowe), jazz/blues torch songs ("Poisoned Rose") and even a bit of '60s Britbeat (an effective recasting of "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood"). In short, KING OF AMERICA contains some of Costello's finest, most understated work.

Professional Reviews

Rolling Stone (p.83) - 4 stars out of 5 - "[N]othing else in Costello's career has the soul power of these twisted adult love ballads..."

Q (9/95, p.129) - 5 Stars - Indispensable - "...its shifting corpus of US roots and rock'n'roll veterans...match Costello's comic/sardonic reflections on American Culture....Still virtually perfect."

Uncut (p.132) - 4 stars out of 5 - "The lyrical directness of the material...and the band's versatility synthesised Costello's folk, country and R&B impulses."

Mojo (Publisher) (p.128) - 4 stars out of 5 - "[A]n irresistible package..."

NME (Magazine) (10/2/93, p.29) - Ranked #88 in NME's list of the `Greatest Albums Of All Time.'