elvis costello / albums

1,100,060 plays
249 SHARES
805 FAVS
109 fans

- My Aim Is True
- - 87,443 plays
  - 35 favs
  - 24 shares
Elvis Costello
Released 1977

Watching The Detectives
03:43
8,724 plays

Welcome To The Working Week
01:22
8,620 plays

(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes
02:46
7,225 plays

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songs

- 1
- Welcome To The Working Week
- 01:22
- 8,620 plays

- 2
- Miracle Man
- 03:31
- 6,552 plays

- 3
- No Dancing
- 02:39
- 5,268 plays

- 4
- Blame It On Cain
- 02:49
- 5,841 plays

- 5
- Alison
- 03:24
- 12,548 plays

- 6
- Sneaky Feelings
- 02:09
- 5,187 plays

- 7
- (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes
- 02:46
- 7,225 plays

- 8
- Less Than Zero
- 03:15
- 6,346 plays

- 9
- Mystery Dance
- 01:35
- 4,789 plays

- 10
- Pay It Back
- 02:33
- 4,531 plays

- 11
- I'm Not Angry
- 02:57
- 4,734 plays

- 12
- Waiting For The End Of The World
- 03:22
- 4,477 plays

- 13
- Watching The Detectives
- 03:43
- 8,724 plays

- play all

album review

Elvis Costello was as much a pub rocker as he was a punk rocker and nowhere is that more evident than on his debut, My Aim Is True. It's not just that Clover, a San Franciscan rock outfit led by Huey Lewis (absent here), back him here, not the Attractions; it's that his sensibility is borrowed from the pile-driving rock & roll and folksy introspection of pub rockers like Brinsley Schwarz, adding touches of cult singer/songwriters like Randy Newman and David Ackles. Then, there's the infusion of pure nastiness and cynical humor, which is pure Costello. That blend of classicist sensibilities and cleverness make this collection of shiny roots rock a punk record -- it informs his nervy performances and his prickly songs. Of all classic punk debuts, this remains perhaps the most idiosyncratic because it's not cathartic in sound, only in spirit. Which, of course, meant that it could play to a broader audience, and Linda Ronstadt did indeed cover the standout ballad "Alison." Still, there's no mistaking this for anything other than a punk record, and it's a terrific one at that, since even if he buries his singer/songwriter inclinations, they shine through as brightly as his cheerfully mean humor and immense musical skill; he sounds as comfortable with a '50s knockoff like "No Dancing" as he does on the reggae-inflected "Less Than Zero." 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. [Ryko/Demon's 1993 reissue contained several bonus tracks, including the country B-sides "Radio Sweetheart" and "Stranger in the House," plus demos of his first group, Flip City.] ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide