“It is indeed a pretty flawless account of all things MAIT, before , during and after it’s release. Richard has a clear, succinct style. Part of the acknowledgments goes ‘ to those who declined to talk to me , Jake Riviera, Tony Parsons, and Nick Lowe, among others, for making me rethink the approach to the book.’ There is a lengthy analysis of the songs – making all kinds of comparisons, including one to Whitney Houston – but otherwise it is a straight narrative of events. I’m , of course, too close to the subject matter to tell if it will cause a new wave (ha!) of interest in the album but it is certainly recommended as a introduction to it. The writer doesn’t bang on to much about his reaction to the album as a teenager but what he does is touching and evocative. There’s a especially vivid description of watching the SNL appearance in Dec. ’77 in his father’s tv store , with rows of tvs showing it at top volume.”
Richard’s new book, Elvis is King: Costello’s My Aim is True, has a four out of five star rating on Goodreads!
“Richard Crouse analyzes and explains the meaning of the songs on the album, as well as detailing the events leading up to the release of the album. The highlight of the book is the description of the songs’ meaning within the context of the time they were written. Some 40 decades later, I finally understand a lyric I have listened to hundreds of times – “Now that your picture’s in the paper being rhythmically admired…” Think about it!”
“Richard Crouse’s book is an easy-to-read and well-written and researched story of how My Aim is True came to be. It is very easy to tell that he loves the album as much as I do, and I learned quite a bit about one of my favorite musicians. My Aim is True is probably still one of my favorite albums, and I never get tired of listening to these songs. If you have not heard this album, download and listen as soon as you can, then go and read this book because you will want to know more.”
Richard talks about the origin of prog, pub and punk rock and how they fed the creation of the classic Elvis Costello album “My Aim is True” on “Canada AM” with Beverly Thomson.
“The author keeps his adoration for the album—”Elvis’s raw energy and anger… spoke to me in a way nothing had before”—confined to the introduction, though there is little doubt the entire project is a labor of love that many readers will find [as] contagious as listen[ing] to My Aim Is True again or for the first time.” – Publisher’s Weekly
Liverpool, Nova Scotia, is the hub of the Lighthouse Route’s scenic drive along the province’s South Shore. Blessed by Mother Nature, it’s picturesque, book-ended by beautiful beaches, parks, and forests. As the home of the third oldest lighthouse in the province, it’s also rich in history but not exactly the center of the pop culture universe.
Even less so in the 1970s when, as a music and movie obsessed kid, I went to Emaneau’s Pharmacy every week to pick up magazines like Hit Parader and Rona Barrett’s Hollywood. Perhaps because I grew up in a renovated vaudeville theater (it’s true!) I was deeply interested in a world that seemed very far away, and those weekly and monthly magazines were my only connection to music and movie stars.
Liverpool wasn’t on the flight plan for the people I saw in those pages.
Sure, there were rumors that James Taylor and Carly Simon had a beach house nearby, but nobody ever saw them at Wong’s Restaurant, the only eatery in town. And Walter Pidgeon was thought to have come to visit an old friend, but the Mrs. Miniver star, who was born in 1897, wasn’t quite cool enough to be on my list of must-meets or even must-get-a-glimpse-ofs.
Those magazines were my only source. The local movie theater—a gigantic reno-ed opera house—was months behind in getting the new releases, and local department stores like Steadman’s and Metropolitan (known locally as the Metoplitan because of the blown-out “r” and “o” bulbs on the sign that was never repaired) didn’t carry the LPs I was reading about. On paper, I read about The Ramones, Television, the Sex Pistols, learning everything there was to know about the brash new music coming out of New York and London—Johnny Rotten said “fuck” on national television!—before I had ever heard a note of their music. Somehow, though, I knew I would love it…
“I want to thank everyone who came out last night to the Rivoli for the book launch ECW Press threw for me and Andy Burns to celebrate the releases of our books Elvis is King: Costello’s My Aim is True and Wrapped in Plastic: Twin Peaks.
“It was Nick Lowe’s sixty sixth birthday last night so it was appropriate to raise a pint and celebrate one of my favorite records of all time and the subject of my new book.
“Also thanks to everyone who posed for photographs with copies of Elvis Costello’s records and singles. It was a lot of fun and a great way to kick off this new book.
More on Elvis is King: Costello’s My Aim is True HERE!
What was it like the first time you heard My Aim Is True?
Hearing My Aim Is True for the first time was one of those aha moments for me that changed everything. From the opening chord of “Welcome to the Working Week,” I knew this record was something special. By the time I got to track four, “Blame It on Cain,” I knew I never had to listen to Pablo Cruise or REO Speedwagon ever again. Someone out there was making music that spoke to me and it hit me like a punch in the gut. I heard the snarl in Elvis’s voice, the cynicism dripping off every line and for me that was the noise that art made. It was liberation from my small town.
When was the last time you listened to My Aim Is True?
While I was writing the book it was on constant replay but it would not be a stretch to say that barely a week has gone by since I first heard the record that I have not listened to at least part of it. “Welcome to the Working Week” is my unofficial anthem and is in heavy rotation around the House of Crouse… Read the whole thing HERE! Buy the book HERE!
Elvis is King: Costello’s My Aim Is True
By Richard Crouse
Before Elvis Costello was one of Rolling Stone’s greatest artists of all time, before he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, he was Declan P. McManus, an office drone with a dull suburban life and a side gig in a pub rock band. In 1976, under the guidance of legendary label Stiff Records, he transformed himself into the snarling, spectacled artist who defied the musical status quo to blaze the trail for a new kind of rock star with his debut album, My Aim Is True. In Elvis Is King, Richard Crouse examines how the man, the myth, and the music of this arrestingly original album smashed the trends of the era to bridge the gap between punk and rock ’n’ roll.
Thanks to John Foyle for his kind words on Richard’s book Elvis is King: Costello’s My Aim is True!
