Elvis Costello 6: Trust

Trust followed a period of doubt, disenchantment, and introspection (not to be his last) that was only slightly reflected in the lyrics. Elvis wrote some of the songs on piano—which pervades throughout the album—and pulled a few from his teenage notebooks. The words are more oblique than ever, and many struggle to fit inside the measures. His voice is a little deeper, and a little weary. It’s still a terrific album.

There are a lot of “big numbers” here. “Clubland” was the current single, and opens the proceedings on a slightly sinister tone. “Lovers Walk” and “Strict Time” turn the New Orleans sound of the Meters upside down while spitting out wordplay; in between “You’ll Never Be A Man” makes one sigh with relief that such bile is directed at someone else, and “Pretty Words” features the most economical overuse of crash cymbals on any rock album. “Luxembourg” hurtles by at top speed to the point of gibberish, but the more clockwork “Watch Your Step” manages to succeed despite being a weaker variation on “Secondary Modern” (from Get Happy!!).

They’re all solid songs with unique arrangements, but the prize goes to “New Lace Sleeves”, easily one of Elvis’s best songs and one of the Attractions’ best performances in the entire catalog, from Pete Thomas’s drums to Steve Nieve’s piano, organ, and melodica, while Bruce Thomas keeps it simple on the bass. “From A Whisper To A Scream” features Glenn Tilbrook of Squeeze (whose East Side Story Elvis and engineer Roger Bechirian had produced around this time) on dueling vocals, and “Different Finger” works yet another country-western trope in a clear hint to his next move. “White Knuckles” is starkly worded but powerfully performed, culminating in an unlikely singalong over the fade. Nobody expected “Shot With His Own Gun”, a hypnotic murder mystery without a discernable plot, sung solely to Steve’s grand piano, then we get more pub rock as “Fish ‘N Chip Paper” bemoans the degradation of society. The solo finale, “Big Sister’s Clothes”, is a disguised attack on Margaret Thatcher—also not to be his last—recorded alone, backwards accordion and all, to the point where the sleeve reads “Nick Lowe not to blame for this one”.

As good as the original album is, the Rykodisc reissue made it even better with an excellent selection of bonus tracks, all but one of which were also included on the later Rhino version. Either is essential for the inclusion of such gems as the B-sides “Black Sails In The Sunset” (wrongly faded on Ryko, restored on Rhino) and “Big Sister” (a ska version of the album closer), the work in progress “Twenty-Five To Twelve”, and even Elvis’s own fabulous version of Steve’s “Sad About Girls”, one of the better songs from the Attractions’ “solo” album from a year earlier. “Weeper’s Dream” is a brief instrumental sketch, while “Love For Sale” and “Gloomy Sunday” show his fascination with the Great American Songbook.

While the Rhino version did not carry over the excellent demo for “Seconds Of Pleasure”, it did include the one for “Boy With A Problem”, and even added an instrumental of “The Long Honeymoon”, giving a preview to his next album but one. The alternate takes are generally revealing; “Clubland” is slower and more hesitant, and doesn’t have the overt steal from “Rhapsody In Blue”, but you can still hear how “On Broadway” would fit in. “From A Whisper To A Scream” certainly benefitted from Glenn Tilbrook’s contribution. “Big Sister” is taken even slower, angrier, and probably drunker, following a fun bash through Larry Williams’ “Slow Down”. There’s even a remake of “Hoover Factory” for some reason. It would have been tough to improve on the Ryko CD, but Rhino came through.

Elvis Costello & The Attractions Trust (1981)—5
1994 Rykodisc: same as 1981, plus 9 extra tracks
2003 Rhino: same as 1981, plus 17 extra tracks