Punch the Clock
Punch the Clock | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 5 August 1983 | |||
Recorded | January–April 1983 | |||
Genre | New wave, power pop | |||
Length | 45:19 | |||
Label | F-Beat (UK) Columbia (US) Rykodisc (28 February 1995 Reissue) Rhino (9 September 2003 Reissue) Hip-O (1 May 2007 Reissue) | |||
Producer | Clive Langer & Alan Winstanley, assisted by Gavin Greenaway & | |||
Elvis Costello and the Attractions chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Blender | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Chicago Tribune | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Entertainment Weekly | A[4] |
Mojo | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Rolling Stone | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Sounds | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Uncut | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Village Voice | B+[10] |
Punch the Clock is the seventh album by Elvis Costello and the Attractions, released in 1983.[11][12] It was Costello's eighth album, his seventh with the Attractions since 1978. The album featured Costello's first US Top 40 hit, "Everyday I Write the Book." It was produced by Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley, who also produced Costello's following album, Goodbye Cruel World.
It was ranked as the number 1 "Album of the Year" for 1983 by NME;[13] thirty years later, the magazine ranked it at number 345 in its list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time".[14]
Critical reception[]
In The Village Voice's annual Pazz & Jop critics poll for the year's best albums, Punch the Clock finished at #11.[15] Trouser Press called the album "another tour de force."[16]
Track listing[]
All songs written by Elvis Costello unless otherwise indicated.
Side one
- "Let Them All Talk" – 3:06
- "Everyday I Write the Book" – 3:54
- "The Greatest Thing" – 3:04
- "The Element Within Her" – 2:52
- "Love Went Mad" – 3:13
- "Shipbuilding" (Clive Langer, Costello) – 4:53
Side two
- "T.K.O. (Boxing Day)" – 3:28
- "Charm School" – 3:55
- "The Invisible Man" – 3:04
- "Mouth Almighty" – 3:04
- "King of Thieves" – 3:45
- "Pills and Soap" – 3:43
- "The World and His Wife" – 3:32
Bonus tracks (1995 Rykodisc)
- "Heathen Town" – 3:10
- "The Flirting Kind" – 3:00
- "Walking on Thin Ice" (Yoko Ono) – 3:52
- "The Town Where Time Stood Still" – 3:32
- "Shatterproof" (Demo) – 2:19
- "The World and his Wife" (Live) – 3:13
- "Everyday I Write the Book" (Live) – 2:21
Bonus disc (2003 Rhino)
- "Everyday I Write the Book" (Alternate version) – 2:22
- "Baby Pictures" – 1:30
- "Heathen Town" – 3:10
- "The Flirting Kind" – 3:00
- "Walking on Thin Ice" (Ono) – 3:52
- "Big Sister's Clothes/Stand Down, Margaret" (BBC Session) (Costello, , Andy Cox, Everett Morton, David Steele, Dave Wakeling) – 5:17
- "Danger Zone" (BBC Session) (Percy Mayfield) – 2:18
- "Seconds of Pleasure" – 3:44
- "The Town Where Time Stood Still" – 3:33
- "The World and his Wife" (Solo version) – 2:44
- "Shatterproof" – 2:15
- "Heathen Town" (Demo version) – 2:17
- "The Flirting Kind" (Demo version) – 2:52
- "Let Them All Talk" (Demo version) – 2:14
- "King of Thieves" (Demo version) – 3:20
- "The Invisible Man" (Demo version) – 2:124
- "The Element Within Her" (Demo version) – 2:13
- "Love Went Mad" (Demo version) – 3:01
- "The Greatest Thing" (Demo version) – 2:25
- "Mouth Almighty" (Demo version) – 3:03
- "Charm School" (Demo version) – 2:17
- "Possession" (Live) – 2:29
- "Secondary Modern" (Live) – 3:02
- "The Bells" (Live) (Johnny Bristol, Marvin Gaye, Anna Gordy, Elgie Stover) – 4:14
- "Watch Your Step" (Live) – 3:22
- "Backstabbers/King Horse" (Live) (Leon Huff, Gene McFadden, John Whitehead, Costello) – 4:47
Note: The Rykodisc version has the original tracks and bonus tracks on one CD. The Rhino version has two CDs with the original tracks on the first CD.
Personnel[]
- Elvis Costello – vocals; Epiphone, Gretsch and Fender guitars; Synclavier and Casiotone; all sounds and voices on "Pills and Soap"
- The Attractions
- Steve Nieve – Bösendorfer piano, Emulator, Fairlight CMI, , Hammond organ, Synclavier
- Bruce Thomas – Electric Wal bass guitar
- Pete Thomas – Gretsch Drums, Sabian cymbals
- The TKO Horns
- Jim Paterson – trombone
- Jeff Blythe – alto saxophone, baritone saxophone, clarinet
- Paul Speare – tenor saxophone, flute
- Dave Plews – trumpet
- Additional personnel
- Stewart Robson – trumpet & flugelhorn on "The World and His Wife"
- Afrodiziak (Caron Wheeler and Claudia Fontaine) – backing vocals
- Chet Baker – trumpet solo on "Shipbuilding"
- David Bedford – string arrangements
- Morris Pert – percussion
- Technical
- Phil Smee - sleeve
- Nick Knight - photography
Charts[]
Album
Year | Chart | Position |
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1983 | Billboard Pop Albums | 24 |
Single
Year | Single | Chart | Position |
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1983 | "Everyday I Write the Book" | Mainstream Rock | 33 |
1983 | "Everyday I Write the Book" | Pop Singles | 36 |
1983 | "Pills and Soap" | UK singles[17] | 16 |
References[]
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Punch the Clock – Elvis Costello / Elvis Costello & the Attractions". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 20 December 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2014.
- ^ Wolk, Douglas (March 2005). "Elvis Costello: Punch the Clock". Blender. Archived from the original on 4 February 2005. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
- ^ 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.
- ^ White, Armond (10 May 1991). "Elvis Costello's albums". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 21 October 2015. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
- ^ Doyle, Tom (November 2018). "Band Substance". Mojo (300): 59.
- ^ Connelly, Christopher (1 September 1983). "Punch The Clock". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 14 December 2020. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
- ^ 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.
- ^ Pouncey, Edwin (30 July 1983). "Time is on my side". Sounds.
- ^ Wilde, Jon (October 2003). "High fidelity". Uncut (77): 132–33.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (11 November 1983). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 16 June 2016.
- ^ Browning, Boo (14 August 1983). "Elvis Costello's 'Punch the Clock'". Archived from the original on 21 June 2020. Retrieved 18 June 2020 – via www.washingtonpost.com.
- ^ Holden, Stephen (9 August 1983). "Rock: Elvis Costello and His Band". Archived from the original on 20 June 2020. Retrieved 18 June 2020 – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ "Albums and Tracks of the Year". NME. 2016. Archived from the original on 14 November 2011. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
- ^ "Rocklist.net....NME: The 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time : October 2013". Rocklistmusic.co.uk. Archived from the original on 4 January 2017. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ "The 1983 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. 28 February 1984. Archived from the original on 1 June 2019. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
- ^ "Elvis Costello". Archived from the original on 19 June 2020. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
- ^ "pills and soap | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. Archived from the original on 14 December 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
External links[]
- 1983 albums
- Albums produced by Alan Winstanley
- Albums produced by Clive Langer
- Columbia Records albums
- Elvis Costello albums
- F-Beat Records albums
- Hip-O Records albums
- Rhino Records albums
- Rykodisc albums