King of America
Encyclopedia
King of America is the tenth studio album
by the British
rock singer and songwriter Elvis Costello
, released in 1986 in the United Kingdom
as F-Beat
ZL 70946, and in the United States
as Columbia
JC 40173. It was billed as by "The Costello Show featuring the Attractions and Confederates" in the UK and Europe and "The Costello Show featuring Elvis Costello" in North America. It peaked at #11 on the UK album chart, and at #39 on the Billboard 200
.
. Costello and Burnett recorded a single together in early 1985, and ventured to imagine appropriate backing musicians for Costello's new songs. They booked time at Ocean Way
and Sunset Sound
studios in Los Angeles
, and assembled members of the TCB Band
who had backed Elvis Presley
in the 1970s (Costello being more familiar with their work on records by Gram Parsons
and Emmylou Harris
). Other sessions included the jazz
bassist Ray Brown
and New Orleans drummer Earl Palmer
, and a group of musicians dubbed 'the Confederates,' featuring T-Bone Wolk, Mickey Curry
, and producer Mitchell Froom
. Elvis' usual backing musicians The Attractions appear on only one track, "Suit of Lights," but would return to record in full Costello's next album, Blood & Chocolate.
In the album credits, Costello uses three different noms de plume for himself: his given name of Declan MacManus; his stage name of Elvis Costello; and the nickname awarded him by producer Nick Lowe
earlier in his career, the Little Hands of Concrete, that last a reference to his habitual breaking of guitar strings during recording sessions.
The cover of the 1964 hit single
by The Animals
"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
" was released a single, and peaked at #33 on the UK singles chart but missed the Billboard Hot 100
, as did the follow-up single released in America only, "Lovable." The single by Burnett and Costello as the Coward Brothers did not chart in either nation.
in 1986, with the Rykodisc Records reissue arriving nine years later on a single compact disc
with five bonus tracks, including the 1986 single by Costello and Burnett and credited to 'The Coward Brothers,' Elvis being Henry and T-Bone being Howard. These five tracks along with 16 others appeared as the second disc to the double-disc Rhino Records reissue in 2005. These reissues are out of print, the album reissued again by Universal Music Group
after its acquisition of Costello's complete catalogue in 2006.
except as noted; track timings taken from Rhino 2005 reissue.
; tracks 15-21 are live recordings from The Broadway Theatre
, New York City
, 23 October 1986.
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
rock singer and songwriter Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
, released in 1986 in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
as F-Beat
F-Beat Records
F-Beat Records was one of the record labels set up by Jake Riviera in late 1979/early 1980, at the same time as he started Demon Records. The label's first release, I Can't Stand Up For Falling Down by Elvis Costello & the Attractions, reached number 4 in the UK charts, the highest singles chart...
ZL 70946, and in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
as Columbia
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
JC 40173. It was billed as by "The Costello Show featuring the Attractions and Confederates" in the UK and Europe and "The Costello Show featuring Elvis Costello" in North America. It peaked at #11 on the UK album chart, and at #39 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
.
Content
During late 1984 and early 1985, Costello undertook a series of solo tours, sharing the bill with musician T-Bone BurnettT-Bone Burnett
Joseph Henry Burnett , widely known as T-Bone Burnett, is an American musician, songwriter, and soundtrack and record producer.He was a guitarist in Bob Dylan's band on the Rolling Thunder Revue...
. Costello and Burnett recorded a single together in early 1985, and ventured to imagine appropriate backing musicians for Costello's new songs. They booked time at Ocean Way
Ocean Way Recording
Ocean Way Recording is the name of a series of recording studios in Hollywood, California and Nashville, Tennessee. Ocean Way Studios is well known in the recording industry due to the award-winning albums that were produced there....
and Sunset Sound
Sunset Sound Recorders
Sunset Sound Recorders is a recording studio in Hollywood, California, located at 6650 Sunset Boulevard.The Sunset Sound Recorders complex was converted in 1962 by Walt Disney's Director of Recording, Tutti Camarata, from a collection of old commercial and residential buildings - some built more...
studios in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, and assembled members of the TCB Band
TCB Band
The TCB Band was a group of professional musicians who formed the core rhythm section of Elvis Presley’s band from August 1969 until his death in 1977. TCB stands for Taking Care of Business, a personal motto Presley adopted in the early 1970s...
who had backed Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
in the 1970s (Costello being more familiar with their work on records by Gram Parsons
Gram Parsons
Gram Parsons was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and pianist. Parsons is best known for his work within the country genre; he also mixed blues, folk, and rock to create what he called "Cosmic American Music"...
and Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris is an American singer-songwriter and musician. In addition to her work as a solo artist and bandleader, both as an interpreter of other composers' works and as a singer-songwriter, she is a sought-after backing vocalist and duet partner, working with numerous other artists including...
). Other sessions included the jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
bassist Ray Brown
Ray Brown (musician)
Raymond Matthews Brown was an American jazz double bassist.-Biography:Ray Brown was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and had piano lessons from the age of eight. After noticing how many pianists attended his high school, he thought of taking up the trombone, but was unable to afford one...
and New Orleans drummer Earl Palmer
Earl Palmer
Earl Cyril Palmer was an American rock & roll and rhythm and blues drummer, and member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame....
, and a group of musicians dubbed 'the Confederates,' featuring T-Bone Wolk, Mickey Curry
Mickey Curry
Michael Timothy Curry is an American drummer. He is best known for his long-term collaboration with the singer-songwriter Bryan Adams, although he has also worked with Hall & Oates, Cher, Tina Turner, Alice Cooper, David Bowie, Elvis Costello, Sam Phillips, Tom Waits, The Cult, Steve Jones and...
, and producer Mitchell Froom
Mitchell Froom
-Career:Froom began his career as a keyboard player in Sonoma County, California. The band Crossfire featured two keyboards players; Mitchell on one side of the stage and brother David on the other with Gary Pihl on guitar...
. Elvis' usual backing musicians The Attractions appear on only one track, "Suit of Lights," but would return to record in full Costello's next album, Blood & Chocolate.
In the album credits, Costello uses three different noms de plume for himself: his given name of Declan MacManus; his stage name of Elvis Costello; and the nickname awarded him by producer Nick Lowe
Nick Lowe
Nicholas Drain "Nick" Lowe , is an English singer-songwriter, musician and producer.A pivotal figure in UK pub rock, punk rock and new wave, Lowe has recorded a string of well-reviewed solo albums. Along with vocals, Lowe plays guitar, bass guitar, piano and harmonica...
earlier in his career, the Little Hands of Concrete, that last a reference to his habitual breaking of guitar strings during recording sessions.
The cover of the 1964 hit single
Hit single
A hit single is a recorded song or instrumental released as a single that has become very popular. Although it is sometimes used to describe any widely-played or big-selling song, the term "hit" is usually reserved for a single that has appeared in an official music chart through repeated radio...
by The Animals
The Animals
The Animals were an English music group of the 1960s formed in Newcastle upon Tyne during the early part of the decade, and later relocated to London...
"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" is a song written by Bennie Benjamin, Gloria Caldwell and Sol Marcus for the singer/pianist Nina Simone, who first recorded it in 1964. "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" has been recorded or performed by many artists, and is widely known by the 1965 blues rock hit...
" was released a single, and peaked at #33 on the UK singles chart but missed the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
, as did the follow-up single released in America only, "Lovable." The single by Burnett and Costello as the Coward Brothers did not chart in either nation.
Release history
The album was released initially on vinylGramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
in 1986, with the Rykodisc Records reissue arriving nine years later on a single compact disc
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
with five bonus tracks, including the 1986 single by Costello and Burnett and credited to 'The Coward Brothers,' Elvis being Henry and T-Bone being Howard. These five tracks along with 16 others appeared as the second disc to the double-disc Rhino Records reissue in 2005. These reissues are out of print, the album reissued again by Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations...
after its acquisition of Costello's complete catalogue in 2006.
Track listing
All tracks written by Declan MacManusElvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
except as noted; track timings taken from Rhino 2005 reissue.
Side one
- "Brilliant Mistake" — 3:45
- "Lovable" (MacManus, Cait O'RiordanCait O'RiordanCaitlín O'Riordan is a British musician. She played bass guitar for the British-Irish punk/folk band The Pogues from 1983 to 1986. She later played with Elvis Costello, her husband from 1986 to 2002, as well as several other projects....
) — 2:53 - "Our Little Angel" — 4:06
- "Don't Let Me Be MisunderstoodDon't Let Me Be Misunderstood"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" is a song written by Bennie Benjamin, Gloria Caldwell and Sol Marcus for the singer/pianist Nina Simone, who first recorded it in 1964. "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" has been recorded or performed by many artists, and is widely known by the 1965 blues rock hit...
" (Bennie BenjaminBennie BenjaminClaude A. Benjamin was a songwriter, often teaming with George David Weiss. He was born on November 4, 1907 in Christiansted on the island of St. Croix . At the age of twenty, he moved to New York City. There, he studied the banjo and guitar with Hy Smith...
, Sol Marcus, Gloria Caldwell) — 3:22 - "Glitter Gulch" — 3:17
- "Indoor Fireworks" — 4:10
- "Little Palaces" — 3:49
- "I'll Wear It Proudly" — 4:25
Side two
- "American Without Tears" — 4:34
- "Eisenhower Blues" (J. B. LenoirJ. B. LenoirJ. B. Lenoir /ləˈnɔːr/ was an African American blues guitarist and singer-songwriter, active in the 1950s and 1960s Chicago blues scene....
) — 3:46 - "Poisoned Rose" — 4:07
- "The Big Light" — 2:33
- "Jack of All Parades" — 5:18
- "Suit of Lights" — 4:06
- "Sleep of The Just" — 3:51
1995 bonus tracks
- "The People's Limousine" (The Coward Brothers) (Henry CowardElvis CostelloElvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
& Howard CowardT-Bone BurnettJoseph Henry Burnett , widely known as T-Bone Burnett, is an American musician, songwriter, and soundtrack and record producer.He was a guitarist in Bob Dylan's band on the Rolling Thunder Revue...
) — 3:43 IMP single #006 - "They'll Never Take Her Love from Me" (The Coward Brothers) (Leon PayneLeon PayneLeon Payne , "the Blind Balladeer", was a country music singer and songwriter.-Life:Leon Roger Payne was born in Alba, Texas on June 15, 1917. He was blind in one eye at birth, and lost the sight of the other eye in early childhood. He attended the Texas School for the Blind from 1924 to 1935,...
) — 2:55 IMP single #006 b-side - "Suffering Face" — 3:08 demo recording
- "Shoes Without Heels" — 4:20 released as the b-side to "Blue Chair"
- "King of Confidence" — 2:48 session outtake
2005 bonus disc
Tracks 1-8 and 13 are solo demo recordingsDemo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
; tracks 15-21 are live recordings from The Broadway Theatre
The Broadway Theatre
The Broadway Theatre is a Broadway theatre located at 1681 Broadway in midtown-Manhattan....
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, 23 October 1986.
- "Having It All" — 3:57
- "Suffering Face" — 3:08
- "Deportee" — 3:35
- "Indoor Fireworks" — 3:50
- "I Hope You're Happy Now" — 3:06
- "Poisoned Rose" — 4:12
- "I'll Wear It Proudly" — 3:26
- "Jack of All Parades" — 3:32
- "The People's Limousine" (The Coward Brothers) (Coward & Coward) — 3:43 IMP single #006
- "They'll Never Take Her Love from Me" (The Coward Brothers) (Payne) — 2:55 IMP single #006 b-side
- "King of Confidence" — 2:48 session outtake
- "Shoes Without Heels" — 4:20 released as the b-side to "Blue Chair"
- "End of the Rainbow" (Richard Thompson) — 3:28
- "Betrayal" — 2:25 session outtake with The Attractions
- "That's How You Got Killed Before" (Dave BartholomewDave BartholomewDave Bartholomew is a musician, band leader, composer and arranger, prominent in the music of New Orleans throughout the second half of the 20th century...
) — 3:14 - "The Big Light" — 3:08
- "It Tears Me Up" (Dan PennDan PennDan Penn is an American singer, songwriter, record producer and sometime guitar player who co-wrote many soul hits of the 1960s including "Dark End of the Street" and "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man" and "Out of Left Field" & "Cry Like A Baby"...
& Spooner OldhamSpooner OldhamDewey Lindon "Spooner" Oldham is an American songwriter and session musician. An organist, he recorded in Muscle Shoals, Alabama and at FAME Studios on such hit R&B songs as "When a Man Loves a Woman" by Percy Sledge, "Mustang Sally" by Wilson Pickett and "I Never Loved a Man" by Aretha...
) — 3:27 - "The Only Daddy That'll Walk the Line" (Ivy J. BryantJimmy BryantJimmy Bryant was a prominent American session guitarist. He was billed as "The Fastest Guitar in the Country".-Biography:Ivy J. Bryant, Jr. was born in Moultrie, Georgia, the oldest of 12 children...
) — 2:42 - "Your Mind Is On Vacation/Your Funeral My Trial" (Mose AllisonMose AllisonMose John Allison, Jr. is an American jazz blues pianist and singer.-Biography:...
/Sonny Boy WilliamsonSonny Boy Williamson IIWillie "Sonny Boy" Williamson was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, from Mississippi. He is acknowledged as one of the most charismatic and influential blues musicians, with considerable prowess on the harmonica and highly creative songwriting skills...
) — 5:16 - "That's How You Got Killed Before (Reprise)" (Bartholomew) — 7:00
- "True Love Ways" (Buddy HollyBuddy HollyCharles Hardin Holley , known professionally as Buddy Holly, was an American singer-songwriter and a pioneer of rock and roll...
& Norman PettyNorman PettyNorman Petty was an American musician, songwriter, and pioneer record producer who helped shape modern popular music, including pop and rock....
) — 3:33
Personnel
- Elvis CostelloElvis CostelloElvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
– acoustic guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, electric guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
, mandolinMandolinA mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
, lead vocal - T-Bone BurnettT-Bone BurnettJoseph Henry Burnett , widely known as T-Bone Burnett, is an American musician, songwriter, and soundtrack and record producer.He was a guitarist in Bob Dylan's band on the Rolling Thunder Revue...
- guitars, backing vocals - Mitchell FroomMitchell Froom-Career:Froom began his career as a keyboard player in Sonoma County, California. The band Crossfire featured two keyboards players; Mitchell on one side of the stage and brother David on the other with Gary Pihl on guitar...
– Hammond organHammond organThe Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s it became a standard keyboard...
, harpsichordHarpsichordA harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It produces sound by plucking a string when a key is pressed.In the narrow sense, "harpsichord" designates only the large wing-shaped instruments in which the strings are perpendicular to the keyboard...
, organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
, doctored pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal... - Tom "T-Bone" Wolk – electric guitar, piano accordionPiano accordionA piano accordion is an accordion equipped with a right-hand keyboard similar to a piano or organ. Its acoustic mechanism is more similar to that of an organ than a piano, as they are both wind instruments, but the term "piano accordion"—coined by Guido Deiro in 1910—has remained the popular...
, electric bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Jerry ScheffJerry ScheffJerry Obern Scheff is an American bassist, perhaps best known for his work with Elvis Presley in the early 1970s as a member of his TCB Band and his work on The Doors' final recordings....
– string bassDouble bassThe double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
, electric bass - Mickey CurryMickey CurryMichael Timothy Curry is an American drummer. He is best known for his long-term collaboration with the singer-songwriter Bryan Adams, although he has also worked with Hall & Oates, Cher, Tina Turner, Alice Cooper, David Bowie, Elvis Costello, Sam Phillips, Tom Waits, The Cult, Steve Jones and...
– brushes, drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, sticksDrum stickA percussion mallet is an object used to beat drums and other percussion instruments. Some specialized mallets are called beaters, drumsticks.Note: See Rute .-Drum sticks:...
Additional personnel
- Michael Blair – marimbaMarimbaThe marimba is a musical instrument in the percussion family. It consists of a set of wooden keys or bars with resonators. The bars are struck with mallets to produce musical tones. The keys are arranged as those of a piano, with the accidentals raised vertically and overlapping the natural keys ...
- James BurtonJames BurtonJames Burton is an American guitarist. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2001 , Burton has also been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame...
– electric guitar, DobroDobroDobro is a registered trademark, now owned by Gibson Guitar Corporation and used for a particular design of resonator guitar.The name has a long and involved history, interwoven with that of the resonator guitar...
, acoustic guitar - Tom Canning – piano
- Ralph CarneyRalph CarneyRalph Carney is an American musician. While his primary instruments are various saxophones and clarinets, Carney collects and plays many instruments, often unusual or obscure ones....
- saxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846... - Jim KeltnerJim KeltnerJames Lee "Jim" Keltner is an American drummer known primarily for his session work. He has contributed to the work of many well-known artists...
– sticks, drums, brushes - Earl PalmerEarl PalmerEarl Cyril Palmer was an American rock & roll and rhythm and blues drummer, and member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame....
– brushes, drums - Ronnie Tutt – brushes, drums
- Ray BrownRay Brown (musician)Raymond Matthews Brown was an American jazz double bassist.-Biography:Ray Brown was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and had piano lessons from the age of eight. After noticing how many pianists attended his high school, he thought of taking up the trombone, but was unable to afford one...
– double bassDouble bassThe double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
on "Eisenhower Blues" - David HidalgoDavid HidalgoDavid Hidalgo is an American singer-songwriter, best known for his work with the band Los Lobos. He is also a member of the supergroup Los Super Seven and of the Latin Playboys, a side project band made up of some of the members of Los Lobos...
– harmony vocal on "Lovable" - Jo-El SonnierJo-El SonnierJo-El Sonnier is an American singer-songwriter and accordionist who performs country music and Cajun music. Originally signed to Mercury Nashville Records, Sonnier charted several minor singles on the Billboard country charts in the late 1970s...
– French accordionAccordionThe accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
on "American Without Tears" - Steve NieveSteve NieveSteve Nieve is an English keyboardist, best known for his work with Elvis Costello and the Attractions and Elvis Costello and the Imposters.-Musical career:...
– piano, Hammond organ on "Suit of Lights" and "Betrayal" - Bruce ThomasBruce ThomasBruce Thomas is best known as bassist for The Attractions; the band formed in 1977 to back Elvis Costello in concert and on record....
– electric bass on "Suit of Lights" and "Betrayal" - Pete ThomasPete ThomasPete Thomas is best known as the longtime drummer for Elvis Costello. Tom Waits has referred to him as "one of the best rock drummers alive".-Career:...
– sticks, drums on "Suit of Lights" and "Betrayal"