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Blood & Chocolate

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For other uses, see Blood & Chocolate (disambiguation).

Blood & Chocolate
Studio album by
Elvis Costello and the Attractions
Released15 September 1986
RecordedMarch–May 1986
StudioOlympic (London)
Genre
Length47:48
LabelDemon
ProducerNick Lowe, Colin Fairley
Elvis Costello and the Attractions chronology
King of America
(1986) 		Blood & Chocolate
(1986) 		Out of Our Idiot
(1987)
Singles from Blood & Chocolate
  1. "Tokyo Storm Warning"
    Released: August 1986
  2. "I Want You"
    Released: November 1986

Blood & Chocolate is the eleventh studio album by the English singer-songwriter Elvis Costello, released in 1986 through Demon Records (UK) and Columbia Records (US). It is his ninth album with his long-standing backing band the Attractions. After his previous album King of America (1986) with producer T-Bone Burnett had largely featured different musicians, this album reunited him with producer Nick Lowe and his usual backing group the Attractions.

The album peaked at No. 16 on the UK Albums Chart, and No. 84 on the Billboard 200. It placed ninth in The Village Voice's 1986 Pazz & Jop critics poll and was later included in the books 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (2005) and Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums (2000).

The recording of Blood & Chocolate was troubled, as the relationship between Costello and the Attractions had deteriorated during sessions for King of America. The album was generally recorded live in the studio, with minimal takes and overdubs, and featured the band performing at concert-level volume in a way that Costello felt suited the material. Following the album's release and subsequent tour, the group disbanded and would not perform together again for eight years.

Background[edit]

Six months after the Los Angeles sessions for King of America, which found Costello working with new musicians outside of his backing band the Attractions, he returned to the studio with the Attractions to work on the songs for Blood & Chocolate.[6] Costello later reported the band's relationship as having "soured" at this time.[6] He explained, "The Attractions' sole contribution to that album, 'Suit of Lights,' had been made during our least successful and most bad-tempered days in the studio. The air of suspicion and resentment still lingered as King of America was released and we entered Olympic Studios, London, to make what proved to be our last record together for eight years."[7]

Recording[edit]

Blood & Chocolate was recorded in a single large room at high volume, with the band listening to each other on monitor speakers and playing at stage volume, an unusual practice in the studio for its time.[6] As Costello recalled, "Nick Lowe was producing us for the first time in five years and, together with engineer Colin Fairley, agreed to an approach that would get the music recorded before the band and I fell out completely. Olympic's control room still contained some of the Bakelite switches and other arcane features left over from the days when it had hosted sessions by Jimi Hendrix and the Rolling Stones. The live room was big enough for a full orchestra, so we filled it with our live monitor system and played at something approaching stage volume. Although it is commonly thought that high volume in the studio creates an uncontrollable sonic picture, this approach seemed to suit the material entirely."[7] Most of the songs were recorded in a few takes, with most overdubs completed very quickly afterwards.[6] "I Want You" was recorded in a single take,[8] while "Tokyo Storm Warning" was a first take with some elements added afterward.[6]

Composition[edit]

Will Birch likened the record's sound to the then-embryonic grunge style, proclaiming it to be "six or eight years ahead of its time."[3] Similarly, Blood & Chocolate was described in 1989 as a "brash, grungy" effort by Carlo Wolf of Goldmine,[4] and in 2007 as "ferocious and grungy" by Garry Mullholland of Q.[5] Writing for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine deemed Blood & Chocolate a "straight-ahead rock & roll" album, while acknowledging lesser elements of folk and country.[2]

Regarding Blood & Chocolate's lyrical content, Douglas Wolk of Blender noted the album's "blistering songs about sexual despair and disgust."[9] In Costello's words, "I Hope You're Happy Now" described a "fatal affair"; "Battered Old Bird" was "a macabre fairy tale based on my childhood in Olympia"; "Tokyo Storm Warning" was "a psychedelic travelogue"; "Home Is Anywhere You Hang Your Head" "sees a man confirmed in his unworthiness"; "Poor Napoleon" was the "theme song" for a short story he'd written.[10] Costello added that "The rest of the songs were like the blurred and unfortunate Polaroids that people used to keep to document their worst desires and unhappy love affairs before we had the blessing of phone cameras."[10] The line "Japanese God-Jesus robots telling teenage fortunes" in "Tokyo Storm Warning" refers to a real toy made by Bandai.[11][better source needed]

Several songs were re-workings from the King of America sessions, including "Blue Chair", "I Hope You're Happy Now",[6] "Next Time Round" and "Crimes of Paris".[10]

Artwork and packaging[edit]

As on his King of America, Costello uses multiple names to credit himself: his given name of Declan MacManus; his stage name of Elvis Costello; and the nickname Napoleon Dynamite, his alter ego as master of ceremonies for the Attractions' spinning songbook tour.[6] The cover art painting was credited to Eamonn Singer,[6] which was later revealed to be another of Costello's pseudonyms: "I painted another daub for the cover of the record: a tyrant with a face resembling a cold pork chop in a tricorn hat, screaming at a broken chocolate bar full of blood or Turkish delight, it was hard to tell. After all, I wasn't that adept with the brush."[8]

The name "Napoleon Dynamite" would later be used for a 2004 cult film by Jared Hess, who denied that the title was inspired by Blood & Chocolate.[12] The back cover and liner notes use the international auxiliary language Esperanto to list musician credits and LP sides.[6]

Release[edit]

The album was released initially on vinyl, CD and cassette in 1986.

In 1995, the album was reissued on CD by Rykodisc Records in the U.S. and Demon Records in the U.K., featuring six bonus tracks, including the 1987 single version of "Blue Chair" recorded during the King of America sessions.[13] A limited-edition version of this release came with a bonus disc entitled An Overview Disc, consisting of a 78-minute interview with Peter Doggett, conducted on 21 July 1995, in which Costello and Doggett discuss his career and releases up to 1986.[14][15] In 2002, Rhino Records reissued the album again, this time with a second disc of 15 bonus tracks.[16]

The tracks "Tokyo Storm Warning", "I Want You", and "Blue Chair" were all released as singles. The "Blue Chair" single was not the recording from the album, but an earlier one made with T-Bone Burnett during the King of America sessions with the Confederates band.[6] "Tokyo Storm Warning" peaked at No. 73 on the UK Singles Chart but missed the Billboard Hot 100. The other two singles did not chart in either nation. With the exception of a compilation released in the UK, Out of Our Idiot (1987), this album would be the final release on his Demon/Columbia contract, Costello signing with Warner Brothers for his next LP, Spike (1989).

The UK CD included an alternative mix of "Uncomplicated" which "lacks the anvil sound after the 'horse that knows arithmetic' line and a guitar part from the guitar break near the end."[17] This version is also available on the CD-only release of Girls + Girls + Girls (1989).

After joining Costello on stage during his solo appearance at the Glastonbury Festival of 1987, the Attractions disbanded.[18]

Reception[edit]

Commercial[edit]

Blood & Chocolate peaked at No. 16 on the UK Albums Chart, and No. 84 on the Billboard 200.[19]

Critical[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Blender[9]
Chicago Tribune[20]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[27]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[21]
Mojo[22]
Q[23]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[24]
Uncut[25]
The Village VoiceA−[26]

Robert Christgau of The Village Voice felt that the band hadn't "sounded so tough- or single-minded since This Year's Model. Like Little Creatures, it's a return to basics with a decade of growth in it".[26]

In retrospective reviews, Armond White of Entertainment Weekly praised Blood & Chocolate as a "blistering" and "wildly infectious" effort.[21] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic lauded the album as "lively" and "frequently compelling."[2]

In The Village Voice's annual Pazz & Jop critics poll for the year's best albums, Blood & Chocolate finished at number 9.[28] The album was also included in the 2005 book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.[29] In 2000 it was voted number 475 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums.[30]

Track listing[edit]

All songs written by Declan MacManus (Elvis Costello), except "Tokyo Storm Warning", by MacManus, Cait O'Riordan.

Track times and side labels adapted from U.S. Columbia Records LP.[31]

Flanko unu (Side one)

  1. "Uncomplicated" – 3:23
  2. "I Hope You're Happy Now" – 3:05
  3. "Tokyo Storm Warning" – 6:22
  4. "Home Is Anywhere You Hang Your Head" – 5:03
  5. "I Want You" – 6:39

Flanko du (Side two)

  1. "Honey, Are You Straight or Are You Blind?" – 2:07
  2. "Blue Chair" – 3:38
  3. "Battered Old Bird" – 5:48
  4. "Crimes of Paris" – 4:19
  5. "Poor Napoleon" – 3:20
  6. "Next Time Round" – 3:34

Personnel[edit]

Credits adapted from 2002 Rhino CD liner notes.[6]

Elvis Costello and the Attractions

Additional musicians

Technical

  • Nick Lowe – producer
  • Colin Fairley – producer
  • Elvis Costello (as Eamonn Singer) – 'Napolean Dynamite' painting
  • Keith Morris – photography
  • Michael Krage – design

Notes and references[edit]

  1. ^ Rowley 2018-08-22T11:58:18Z, Scott (22 August 2018). "New wave: A guide to the best albums". LouderSound. Archived from the original on 30 December 2019. Retrieved 30 December 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ a b c d Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Blood & Chocolate – Elvis Costello & the Attractions / Elvis Costello". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 10 June 2016. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
  3. ^ a b Birch, Will (15 August 2019). Cruel To Be Kind: The Life and Music of Nick Lowe. Hachette UK. ISBN 9781472129147. Archived from the original on 13 December 2020. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
  4. ^ a b Wolf, Carlo. "Spike - Elvis Costello". Goldmine. No. 227.
  5. ^ a b Mullholland, Garry (September 2007). "Elvis Costello". Q Magazine.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Elvis Costello and the Attractions (2002). Blood & Chocolate (CD liner notes). Los Angeles: Rhino Entertainment. R2 78355.
  7. ^ a b Melis, Matt (10 October 2018). "10 Times Elvis Costello's Aim Was True". Consequence of Sound. Consequence Holdings, LLC. Archived from the original on 27 February 2019. Retrieved 13 March 2019.
  8. ^ a b Costello 2015, p. 450.
  9. ^ a b Wolk, Douglas (March 2005). "Elvis Costello: Blood & Chocolate". Blender. Archived from the original on 4 February 2005. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
  10. ^ a b c Costello 2015, p. 449.
  11. ^ "God-Jesus". engrish.com. 2002. Archived from the original on 25 April 2009. Retrieved 13 December 2010.
  12. ^ Willman, Chris (16 July 2004). "New cult comedy stumbles upon fluky name mistake". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 19 June 2024.
  13. ^ "Blood & Chocolate - Elvis Costello". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
  14. ^ Mason, Stewart. "An Overview Disc - Elvis Costello". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
  15. ^ Costello, Elvis (1995). An Overview Disc (CD liner notes). Peter Doggett. Salem, Massachusetts: Rykodisc. RCD 20282+1.
  16. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Blood & Chocolate [Rhino Bonus Disc] - Elvis Costello". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
  17. ^ "Uncomplicated". The Elvis Costello Home Page. Archived from the original on 9 July 2020. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
  18. ^ Costello 2015, p. 451.
  19. ^ The Billboard 200 20 December 1986
  20. ^ Kot, Greg (2 June 1991). "The Sounds Of Elvis, From San Francisco And Beyond". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 7 December 2015.
  21. ^ a b White, Armond (10 May 1991). "Elvis Costello's albums". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 21 October 2015. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
  22. ^ Doyle, Tom (November 2018). "Band Substance". Mojo (300): 59.
  23. ^ Eccleston, Danny (March 2002). "Elvis Costello & The Attractions: This Year's Model / Blood & Chocolate / Brutal Youth". Q (188).
  24. ^ Sheffield, Rob (2004). "Elvis Costello". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). London: Fireside Books. pp. 193–95. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. Archived from the original on 13 December 2020. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
  25. ^ Roberts, Chris (April 2002). "Sweet Nerd of Youth". Uncut (59).
  26. ^ a b Christgau, Robert (31 March 1987). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on 7 May 2013. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
  27. ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195313734.
  28. ^ "The 1986 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. 3 March 1987. Archived from the original on 24 November 2020. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  29. ^ Robert Dimery; Michael Lydon (7 February 2006). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die: Revised and Updated Edition. Universe. ISBN 0-7893-1371-5.
  30. ^ Colin Larkin (2000). All Time Top 1000 Albums (3rd ed.). Virgin Books. p. 169. ISBN 0-7535-0493-6.
  31. ^ Elvis Costello and the Attractions (1986). Blood & Chocolate (LP artwork). New York: Columbia Records. FC 40518.

Bibliography[edit]

External links[edit]

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