My Aim Is True: Deluxe Edition

MY AIM IS TRUE DELUXE EDITION

Original album released 1977
Hip-O deluxe edition released September 11, 2007

DISC 1 (63:41)
My Aim Is True:
1. Welcome To The Working Week (1:23)
2. Miracle Man (3:32)
3. No Dancing (2:41)
4. Blame It On Cain (2:50)
5. Alison (3:25)
6. Sneaky Feelings (2:11)
7. (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes (2:48)
8. Less Than Zero (3:18)
9. Mystery Dance (1:36)
10. Pay It Back (2:33)
11. I'm Not Angry (2:59)
12. Waiting For The End Of The World (3:23)
13. Watching The Detectives (3:46)
The Outtakes:
14. No Action (early version) (2:13)
15. Living In Paradise (early version) (2:58)
16. Radio Sweetheart (2:29)
17. Stranger In The House (3:00)
The Pathway Studios Demos:
18. Welcome To The Working Week (1:24)
19. Blue Minute (1:33)
20. Miracle Man (2:22)
21. Waiting For The End Of The World (2:27)
22. Call On Me (1:58)
23. (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes (2:06)
24. I Don't Want To Go Home (1:45)
25. I Hear A Melody (2:10)

DISC 2 (69:56)
Live at the Nashville Rooms, August 7, 1977:
1. Introduction by Dave Robinson (0:26)
2. Welcome To The Working Week (1:18)
3. Blame It On Cain (2:53)
4. No Dancing (2:57)
5. Waiting For The End Of The World (3:54)
6. Night Rally (2:34)
7. Hoover Factory (2:01)
8. No Action (2:31)
9. (I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea (3:03)
10. Miracle Man (3:53)
11. The Beat (3:46)
12. Less Than Zero (3:27)
13. (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes (2:57)
14. Lipstick Vogue (3:59)
15. Watching The Detectives (4:23)
16. Lip Service (4:31)
17. Mystery Dance (3:34)
18. Alison (3:32)
Live at the Nashville Rooms - soundcheck, August 7, 1977:
19. Pay It Back (2:23)
20. Radio Sweetheart (2:56)
21. Sneaky Feelings (2:16)
22. Crawling To The USA (2:59)
23. Alison (3:25)

The first of Hip-O's "deluxe editions" of Costello albums get the proposed series off to a promising start with a whopping 26 unreleased tracks. Of course, it helps that My Aim Is True was easily the skimpiest of the Rhino reissues with only two unreleased tracks. Topping Rhino's versions of later albums will be a much greater challenge.

But while the quantity of new bonus material is impressive, the new release does not supersede Rhino's set, as much of the bonus material from that release is not repeated on the new version. Fans will want to hang on to their old CDs for "Imagination (Is A Powerful Deceiver)," the six Honky Tonk demos, and the live versions of "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself" and "Less Than Zero." It is possible that some or all of these tracks will appear on future releases.

It should be noted that "Watching The Detectives" was not part of the 1977 My Aim Is True LP in the UK but was added to the original US LP. It has been treated as part of the main album on most releases since 1993, including the Ryko and Rhino CDs and the single-disc Hip-O release.

WHAT'S NEW

PATHWAY STUDIOS DEMOS:

BLUE MINUTE
MIRACLE MAN
WAITING FOR THE END OF THE WORLD
CALL ON ME
(THE ANGELS WANNA WEAR MY) RED SHOES
I DON'T WANT TO GO HOME
I HEAR A MELODY

The eight Pathway Studios demos (the seven above plus the previously released "Welcome To The Working Week") were recorded in late 1976 and have Elvis accompanying himself on guitar. Especially notable are the four previously unreleased Costello originals. Three of them — "Blue Minute," "Call On Me," and "I Hear A Melody" — had already circulated among collectors in recent years, but to the best of my knowledge "I Don't Want To Go Home" is entirely new. "Call On Me" includes bits of the "Moods For Moderns" melody and some lyrics from both that song and "Lipstick Vogue." "I Hear A Melody" made an unexpected return to Costello's concert repertoire in 2005, when he identified it as having been written in 1975 and based on Van Morrison's "You're My Woman." "Blue Minute" was also played a couple of times in 2006. As for the more familiar songs, "Miracle Man" has a mostly different final verse.

LIVE AT THE NASHVILLE ROOMS, LONDON, AUG. 7, 1977:

WELCOME TO THE WORKING WEEK
NO DANCING
WAITING FOR THE END OF THE WORLD
NIGHT RALLY
HOOVER FACTORY
NO ACTION
(I DON'T WANT TO GO TO) CHELSEA
THE BEAT
LESS THAN ZERO
(THE ANGELS WANNA WEAR MY) RED SHOES
LIPSTICK VOGUE
WATCHING THE DETECTIVES
LIP SERVICE
ALISON

Disc 2 includes the complete set — the above 14 songs plus the previously released "Blame It On Cain," "Miracle Man," and "Mystery Dance" — from this very early concert by Elvis Costello and the Attractions. "Hoover Factory" is performed by Elvis solo after Bruce Thomas breaks a string.

SOUNDCHECK - NASHVILLE ROOMS, LONDON, AUG. 7 1977:

PAY IT BACK
RADIO SWEETHEART
SNEAKY FEELINGS
CRAWLING TO THE USA
ALISON

When combined with the main concert, disc 2 includes live versions of every song from My Aim Is True except "I'm Not Angry." "Crawling To The USA," which has some different lyrics, is erroneously listed as "Crawling In The USA."

WHAT'S OLD (BUT NOT ON THE RHINO CD)

PATHWAY STUDIOS DEMO:

WELCOME TO THE WORKING WEEK

The eighth of the Pathway Studios demos was included on the Rock And Roll Music compilation in May 2007 as a preview of My Aim Is True Deluxe Edition, released four months later.

LIVE AT THE NASHVILLE ROOMS, LONDON, AUG. 7, 1977:

BLAME IT ON CAIN
MIRACLE MAN
MYSTERY DANCE

These early live B-sides ("Blame It On Cain" and "Mystery Dance" appeared together on the B-side of the UK "Watching The Detectives," while "Miracle Man" was the B-side of "Alison" in the US) were ignored by both the Ryko and Rhino reissue programs, although they did appear on CD as part of the Singles, Volume 1 box set in 2003. (The track notes erroneously state that all three appeared on the original "Watching The Detectives" single. The confusion probably derives from the Singles, Volume 1 sequencing.)

RHINO REPEATS

NO ACTION (EARLY VERSION)
Elvis mentioned this outtake recorded at the same time as "Watching The Detectives" in the liner notes for the Ryko release, but at that time it was considered "lost." It was "found" and released for the first time on the Rhino CD.

LIVING IN PARADISE (EARLY VERSION)
This outtake from the My Aim Is True sessions is notable for substantially different lyrics. It was also mentioned as "lost" in the Ryko notes but appeared on the Rhino CD.

RADIO SWEETHEART
This track from Elvis' first "professional" recording session was originally the B-side of "Less Than Zero." After appearing on the various artists collection Hits Greatest Stiffs, it was included on Taking Liberties and Ten Bloody Marys and used as the B-side of "Getting Mighty Crowded" in the US. The song was remixed prior to its appearance on Taking Liberties and Ten Bloody Marys, and the remix was the standard version for many years, also appearing on the Ryko CD. The 2007 Deluxe Edition includes the original single mix, which made its CD debut on the Rhino My Aim Is True.

STRANGER IN THE HOUSE
This outtake from the My Aim Is True sessions was first issued on a bonus single included with initial copies of the This Years Model LP in the UK and later included on Taking Liberties, Ten Bloody Marys, and the vinyl version of Girls + £ ÷ Girls = $ & Girls.

WHAT'S MISSING (BUT ON THE RHINO CD)

I JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH MYSELF (LIVE, NORWICH, OCT. 18, 1977) (MIX 3)
This track from the varioust artists album Live Stiffs made its first appearance on a Costello album on Rhino's My Aim Is True, but it's missing from the latest release. Could it be slated for the upcoming This Years Model Deluxe Edition? (It should be noted that "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself" exists in at least three unique mixes, described in the "what's missing (released recordings)" section below.)

LESS THAN ZERO ("DALLAS VERSION") (LIVE, TORONTO, MAR. 6, 1978)
This track comes from the album Live At El Mocambo, originally a promotional-only release in 1978. Ryko released the entire album on CD, while Rhino just included the one track on My Aim Is True and ignored the rest. It remains to be seen what, if anything, Hip-O had planned for Live At El Mocambo.

IMAGINATION (IS A POWERFUL DECEIVER)
Although several other recordings by Elvis' mid-'70s band Flip City have been available on bootlegs for years, this is the only one so far to receive an official release, having appeared on both the Ryko and Rhino CDs. The bootlegs also include two very similar alternate versions of the song. It was recorded in early 1975 at Hope & Anchor Studios in Islington.

MYSTERY DANCE (HONKY TONK DEMO)
CHEAP REWARD (HONKY TONK DEMO)
JUMP UP (HONKY TONK DEMO)
WAVE A WHITE FLAG (HONKY TONK DEMO)
BLAME IT ON CAIN (HONKY TONK DEMO)
POISON MOON (HONKY TONK DEMO)
These six home demos from late 1975 or early 1976 circulated for years on bootlegs prior to their first official release on the Ryko CD. The Rhino version of "Wave A White Flag" includes a very brief guitar intro which is not on the Ryko release.

WHAT'S MISSING (OTHER RELEASED RECORDINGS)

LESS THAN ZERO (SINGLE MIX)
    [A-side of Elvis' first single]
The single mix of "Less Than Zero" is most notable for including a prominent organ part during the opening bars which is absent from the album version. It has never appeared on CD, not even on 2003's Singles, Volume 1, which used the familiar album mix, possibly by mistake. (The 1981 reissue of the vinyl single also substituted the album mix.) Some sources indicate that a third mix of "Less Than Zero" can be found on the 1977 various artists LP A Bunch Of Stiff Records, but to my ears it is identical to the single.

ALISON (US VERSION)
    [A-side of US single]
"Alison" was subjected to additional overdubs and remixing prior to its release as a US single in an apparent effort to give it a more commercial sound. When asked about its omission from the Rhino reissue program, Elvis responded, "I don't think we need to inflict it on the listeners a second time." Nevertheless, it did eventually make its CD debut on Singles, Volume 1 as a hidden bonus track.

WATCHING THE DETECTIVES ("A DEMO VERSION")
    [NME Pogo A Go Go cassette by various artists]
Inexplicably labeled a demo, this extremely tentative performance actually comes from an appearance on UK TV's Top Of The Pops intended to promote the single. In light of its negligible musical value, the mystery is not so much why it has yet to appear as reissue bonus material as why it was ever released in any form at all.

MIRACLE MAN (LIVE, LEICESTER, OCT. 22, 1977)
    [Live Stiffs album by various artists]
This performance has yet to appear on an Elvis album, but it could be a contender for This Year's Model Deluxe Edition.

I JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH MYSELF (LIVE, NORWICH, OCT. 18, 1977) (MIX 1)
    [Live Stiffs album by various artists]
I JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH MYSELF (LIVE, NORWICH, OCT. 18, 1977) (MIX 2)
    [The Stiff Records Box Set album by various artists]
Although they all seem to derive from the same basic performance, "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself" exists in three unique mixes for reasons which remain unclear. The version on the Live Stiffs LP and CD includes much more reverb on the vocals than can be found on The Stiff Records Box Set or Rhino's My Aim Is True. All three versions have very slight variations in the lyrics. Both The Stiff Records Box Set and My Aim Is True begin with Elvis singing, "Just don't know what to do with myself, just don't know what to do with myself," while Live Stiffs has him singing, "I just don't know what to do with myself, I just don't know what to do with myself." Toward the end of the song, The Stiff Records Box Set has him singing, "don't know what else to do," while Live Stiffs and My Aim is True have "I don't know what else to do." Also, the "oh oh oh" at the end has Elvis holding the final "oh" longer on Live Stiffs and My Aim Is True than on The Stiff Records Box Set. Obviously one or more of these mixes must incorporate some overdubbed vocals. In fact, there is a hint of a double-tracked vocal on the line "needs the sun and rain" on My Aim Is True. It should also be noted that the Live Stiffs CD runs at a slightly slower speed than the Live Stiffs LP. (Reports of a fourth mix on the UK compilation The Love Songs Of Burt Bacharach are incorrect. That CD uses the Live Stiffs mix.)

WHAT'S MISSING (UNRELEASED RECORDINGS)

THIRD RATE ROMANCE
LIVING IN PARADISE (FLIP CITY VERSION)
RADIO SOUL
PAY IT BACK (FLIP CITY VERSION)
KNOCKIN' ON HEAVEN'S DOOR
PACKIN' UP
PLEASE MISTER DON'T STOP THE BAND
EXILES ROAD
All of the above were recorded with Flip City in the mid-'70s. Only a brief excerpt of "Exiles Road" is widely available, but the rest have been available on bootlegs for years. (The bootlegs include two versions each of "Radio Soul" and "Packin' Up.")

BASEBALL HEROES
WRECK ON THE SLIDE
ON THE ROAD
YOU WIN AGAIN
SWEET REVIVAL
The existence of these additional 1974-1975 recordings with Flip City is noted on the Flip City website, and Costello biographer Graeme Thomson apparently had a chance to hear them as well. "Baseball Heroes" (an early version of "Miracle Man"), "Wreck On The Slide," and "Sweet Revival" are unreleased MacManus originals. "On The Road" was written and sung by Flip City guitarist Steve Hazlehurst, while "You Win Again" is based on the Grateful Dead's version of the Hank Williams song.

RADIO SWEETHEART (DEMO)
LIVING IN PARADISE (DEMO)
RADIO SOUL (DEMO)
Apparently some collectors have these, but I have never heard them. Reportedly similar in sound and recording date to the familiar Honky Tonk demos from late 1975 or early 1976, they are mentioned in Richard Groothuizen and Kees den Heyer's book Going Through The Motions (Elvis Costello - 1982/1985). They are described as coming from a 15-song demo tape which also included the six familiar Honky Tonk demos as well as six other songs which have evidently never reached collectors' hands.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

"Mystery Dance" on disc 1 ends with a fadeout, just as it did on the original LP and the Rhino CD. The Ryko version (and the Columbia CD and the Girls + £ ÷ Girls = $ & Girls compilation) favored a slight variation which ended with a cold stop.

Although they are not listed above, technically all of the Live At El Mocambo songs other than "Less Than Zero" belong on the list of "what's missing," as it is unclear whether Hip-O plans to reissue that album.

return to index