release date: Feb. 4, 1986
format: vinyl (RCLP 20369) / digital (2013 remaster)
[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,92]
producer: The Coward Brothers ['T-Bone' Burnett, Elvis Costello]
label: RCA Victor - nationality: England, UK
10th studio album by Elvis Costello, credited the Costello Show, following close to two years after Goodbye Cruel World (Jun. '84) marks a new direction in a more substantial way than has usually been the case. Costello has always sought new ways of expression and challenged his fans from album to album but never to the extent he end up showcasing here. Around '84 he had found himself in various deep conflicts - be it privately, between two women, which ended with his first wife Mary [Burgoyne] filing for divorce and Costello then rejecting his American girlfriend, and the ongoing and increased tensions with The Attractions had him considering firing the band. He sought relief on an American solo tour where he played with 'T-Bone' Burnett [aka Joseph Henry Burnett III] and in him found a soul, with whom things seemed to work out for the better. Alledgedly, Burnett helped Costello in finding the essense of his songs and skip the superfluous arrangements he had recently become accustomed to. Together the two played covers from a long range of songwriters in a refreshing new style, and this appears to be the first step to this album. Initially, Costello invited The Attractions to the States because he still thought they should back him on the album, but after listening to what they produced together, he simply rejected the idea of a full involvement from his old backing band and completed most songs with the studio musicians that Burnett suggested - and with whom Costello found a new free form that was impossible for him to imitate together with The Attractions (they all play on two songs; keyboardist Steve Nieve on three). All but two covers are written and composed by Costello who was so determined to come up with something new that he also skipped his name; or rather: he returned to his birthname, so all songs are credited Declan MacManus and the producer-duo (T-Bone Burnett & Costello) are simple credited The Coward Brothers.
But he had also found a new love in Cait O'Riordan. He had been introduced to The Pogues and immediately fell for the band's bassist, and he then managed to hire the band as warm-up on a tour in Britain and not long after, he was hired as the band's producer for Rum, Sodomy & The Lash (1985) and during the recordings he soon began acquainting O'Riordan, and in Dec. '85 the two informally married [since Costello wasn't yet officially divorced] - seemingly, they married officially in May '86; however, Cait much later admitted - in 2004 when the two parted ways - that there never was an official marriage. The album then both deals with old flames, a broken marriage and a newfound love.
King of America is in many ways the rebirth of the artist. He tries hard to dissociate his new self with the image he had tired from, but it's not an easy task, when everyone knows who you are anyway. But with new musical friendships, new backing musicians and songs that have been stripped from the pretentiousness of his recent releases, Costello succeeds - again. His songwriting talent makes it a sheer tour de force of emotions and the sound is far from anything he has done before. He has included two covers: "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" by Bennie Benjamin, Sol Marcus, and Gloria Caldwell (originally written for Nina Simone in '64 and covered by many artists over the years) and "Eisenhower Blues" by J. B. Lenoir - probably to pay tribute to the very song catalogue that had inspired him to make the album, and perhaps also to show in what context he basically wanted his new songs to hint at.
I recall, purchasing the album upon its release - simply because it had been rumoured to be something completely different from his recent albums, and I simply wished he would live up to his name. Iinitially, I was slightly bewildered but the songs and the stripped down arrangements were so good that I embraced it as his best in years.
The 2013 remaster is released by Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab.
The album is Costello's first of two full-length albums to be issued in '86, and King of America is simply a cornerstone in an already long and remarkable career.
A must.
[ allmusic.com 4,5 / 5, Blender, Q Magazine 5 / 5, Rolling Stone 4 / 5 stars ]
