Top 6@6 Week #33 Headliner Poll: Post Your 6 Favorite Tracks By Elvis Costello

Subtitled: Now I know I’m getting old as a fuck! It’s bad enough all my favorite ballplayers are now younger than me but now they gotta go & induct Elvis Costello into the Rock-N-Roll Hall of Fame?

First: The Who’s, What’s, Where’s & Why’s of the Headliner Poll

In an attempt to squeeze as many bands in the shortest amount of time possible, The Monday 6 @ 6 Polls include a Headliner poll. This Elvis Costello poll, like the featured Clash thread will be closed and tallied 7 days from today, Monday December 9, 2002 at or about 6PM EDT. Results from all polls will be posted a few minutes later on that same day in Week #34’s featured Cream 6 @ 6 Poll.

Why you ask? After the ZZ Top poll, sometime this decade, the plan is to compile all the votes from the SDMB & post them in a few threads. Then I’ll burn a several volume CD set & mail ‘em out to the voters who helped keep these threads going. Here are links to the artists we’ve already closed polling on:

Alice Cooper § Cheap Trick § Captain Beefheart (& His Magic Band) § Nick Cave (& The Bad Seeds) § Leonard Cohen § The Cars (Benjamin Orr, Rick Ocasek) § Neko Case (& Her Boyfriends) / New Pornographers § Canned Heat § J J Cale § Johnny Cash (& The Tennessee Two) § Cab Calloway § Dave Clark Five § The Bonzo (Doo-Dah) Dog Band§ Cake§ Beck (Hanson) § Jimmy Buffett § Jeff Buckley § The Byrds § Buffalo Springfield § Bush § Kate Bush § Jackson Browne § James Brown § Better Than Ezra § Banarama § David Bowie / (Tin Machine) Boston § Bon Jovi § Blur § Belle & Sebastian§ Blue Öyster Cult § Blondie§ Blink 182§ Black Sabbath§ The Black Crowes§ Bjork / Sugarcubes§ B-52’s§ Chuck Berry§ Beastie Boys§ Jeff Beck§ The Band / Robbie Robertson§ The Beach Boys§ The Beatles§ The Animals§ Tori Amos § Alice In Chains § The Allman Brothers§ AC/DC § Abba& Aerosmith polls.

It only takes a minute to vote, and you can compare your faves with other dopers who voted next week

Second: The Poll & How it Works

It’s simple enough, post your 6 favorite songs by the artist. Personal observations, opinions, liner notes, comments and the like are always welcome but are in no means required. You May include Cover Versions. If you specify Live version, it will be noted, but tallied together with the studio version of the same title.

Third: The Headliner Poll Artist’s Discography

Whether it’s with Quiver, The Attractions, Clover, The Brodsky Quartet or duets with Burt Bacharach, et al and if your memory of the headliner artist of the week isn’t exactly up to speed, here’s a link to his discography with 30 second cuts of some of track previews when you drill down through the albums: When I Was Cruel  This Year’s Model  Mighty Like A Rose  Imperial Bedroom  Cruel Smile  Brutal Youth  Blood & Chocolate  Armed Forces  Spike  My Aim Is True  All This Useless Beauty  Painted From Memory .

The links are provided by CD Now, and are meant to refresh your Elvis Costello “101” knowledge & jar loose any forgotten titles. (Please refrain from voting based on .wav previews).

Lastly: The Headliner Poll Artist of the Week

Without further ado, Mr. Declan McManus: Elvis Costello.

Here are my 6 ELVIS COSTELLO selections:

  1. 45
  2. Accidents Will Happen
  3. Radio, Radio
  4. Pump It Up
  5. Watching The Detectives
  6. The Beat

Two really rough ones in a row! That was just as hard as whittling it down to 6 Clash songs. So tell us…What are your 6 favorite tracks by Elvis Costello?

Thanking you all in advance I hope to see some of you at the Clash and Collective Soul polls. Have a great week!

  1. Everyday I Write The Book
  2. (What’s So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love & Understanding
  3. Alison
  4. Veronica
  5. Watching The Detectives
  6. Pump It Up
  1. Watching the Detectives
  2. Jack of all Parades
  3. B Movie
  4. Blue Chair
  5. Veronica
  6. So Like Candy

I’m not sure about the order. And even after scouring allmusic.com I’m not sure this is the definitive list - he is so damn prolific.

God’s Comic
Alison
Watching the Detectives
Oliver’s Army
Blame it on Cain
Let him Dangle

  1. Watching the Detectives
  2. Allison
  3. Accidents Will Happen
  4. I Want You
  5. Radio, Radio
  6. Mystery Dance

Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood
Alison
Every Day I Write the Book
Veronica
Watching the Detectives
Oliver’s Army

I Don’t Want To Go To Chelsea
Pump It Up
Welcome To The Working Week
Radio Radio
Less Than Zero
Veronica

Anyone reading this should check out the cover versions of Pump It Up by Mudhoney and Chaos UK. Killer stuff.

Jon

5- Accidents Will Happen
4- What’s So Funny About Peace, Love and Understanding?
3- Allison
2- Veronica
1- Pump It Up

(What’s So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding?
Oliver’s Army
Shipbuilding
I Can’t Stand Up For Falling Down
(I Don’t Want To Go To) Chelsea
Everyday I Write The Book

Less than Zero
Watching the Detectives
Radio, Radio
Mystery Dance
Oliver’s Army
Pump it Up

Alison
Veronica
Watching the Detectives
She
Everyday I Write the Book
Rocking Horse Road

-Lil

  1. Spooky Girlfriend
  2. So Like Candy
  3. Blame it on Cain
  4. Alison
  5. Watching the Detectives
  6. Pump it Up

It’s probably preaching to the choir, but i hold that Costello, Dylan and Tom Waits have consistently been the leading songwriters over the last 20 years. (Longer of course in Dylan’s case.)

  1. From a Whisper to a Scream
  2. Blue Chair
  3. Man Out of Time
  4. Hand in Hand
  5. Talking in the Dark
  6. Stranger in the House

No Dancing
Human Hands
Party Girl
Every Day I Write the Book
Sneaky Feelings
Little Fool

This IS an extremely hard one, I previously hypothesized (to myself, not this forum) that none of my top 6 will be the top 6 votegetters – and I’m glad that a lot of people will be in the same boat.

This is the poll that ive been WAITING for – Costello’s my second favorite artist besides Pink Floyd, but my Floyd faves will most likely be among the top vote getters:

  1. Tart
  2. No Action
  3. Hand in Hand
  4. This is Hell
  5. Lip Service
  6. The Long Honeymoon
  1. Watching the Detectives
  2. Pump It Up
  3. Radio Radio
  4. Oliver’s Army
  5. Every Day I Write The Book
  6. Alison

Tramp the Dirt Down
Accidents Will Happen
(I don’t want to go to) Chelsea
Shipbuilding
Watching The Detectives
I Hope You’re Happy Now

This is hard. So many great songs.

  1. Less Than Zero
  2. Oliver’s Army
  3. Lipstick Vogue
  4. Pills and Soap
  5. Allison
  6. (What’s So Funny 'Bout) Peace Love and Understanding

This is bleedin’ impossible!

  1. (What’s So Funny 'Bout) Peace Love and Understanding? (though technically not an EC song)
  2. High Fidelity
  3. Clubland
  4. You Little Fool
  5. White Knuckles
  6. Riot Act

Watching the Detectives
Radio Radio
(What’s So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding
New Amsterdam
High Fidelity
Riot Act