Imperial Bedroom

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Imperial Bedroom
Studio album by Elvis Costello & the Attractions
Released	July 2, 1982
Recorded	1982
Genre	Rock
Length	50:48
Label	F-Beat Records (UK) Columbia Records (U.S.) Rykodisc (August 30, 1994 Reissue) Rhino Records (November 19, 2002 Reissue)
Producer(s)	Geoff Emerick
Professional reviews
All Music Guide link Robert Christgau (B+) link Rolling Stone link Stylus Magazine (not rated) link
Elvis Costello & the Attractions chronology
Almost Blue (1981)	Imperial Bedroom (1982)	Punch the Clock (1983)

Imperial Bedroom is a 1982 album by Elvis Costello and the Attractions. It was the second Costello album, following Almost Blue, not produced by Nick Lowe, the production duties handled by erstwhile Beatles engineer Geoff Emerick. "I wanted to try a few things in the studio that I suspected would quickly exhaust Nick's patience," as Costello put it in the liner notes to the 1994 Rykodisc reissue.

It was voted as the best album of the year in The Village Voice Pazz & Jop critics poll. In 1998 readers of Q magazine named it the 96th greatest album ever. In 2003, the album was ranked number 166 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. [1]

"Imperial Bedroom" is also the title song from this album, although it was cut from the original release and only included on the expanded reissue editions.

Contents 1 Track listing 1.1 Bonus tracks (1994 Rykodisc) 1.2 Bonus disc (2002 Rhino) 2 Personnel 3 Charts 4 External links

[edit] Track listing

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.

All songs written by Elvis Costello unless otherwise indicated.

1. "Beyond Belief" – 2:34
2. "Tears Before Bedtime" – 3:02
3. "Shabby Doll" – 4:48
4. "The Long Honeymoon" – 4:15
5. "Man Out of Time" – 5:26
6. "Almost Blue" – 2:50
7. "...And in Every Home" – 3:23
8. "The Loved Ones" – 2:48
9. "Human Hands" – 2:43
10. "Kid About It" – 2:45
11. "Little Savage" – 2:37
12. "Boy with a Problem" (Costello, Chris Difford) – 2:12
13. "Pidgin English" – 3:58
14. "You Little Fool" – 3:11
15. "Town Cryer" – 4:16

[edit] Bonus tracks (1994 Rykodisc)

1. "From Head to Toe" (Smokey Robinson) – 2:34 produced by Elvis Costello
2. "The World of Broken Hearts" (Mort Shuman, Doc Pomus) – 3:01 produced by Elvis Costello
3. "Night Time" (Patrick Chambers) – 2:52 produced by Elvis Costello
4. "Really Mystified" (Tony Crane, John Gustafson) – 2:03 produced by Elvis Costello
5. "I Turn Around" – 2:09 produced by Elvis Costello
6. "Seconds of Pleasure" (Version 2 of The Invisible Man) – 3:43 produced by Elvis Costello
7. "The Stamping Ground" – 3:09 produced by Elvis Costello
8. "Shabby Doll" (Early version) – 4:18 produced by Elvis Costello
9. "Imperial Bedroom" – 2:47 produced by Elvis Costello

[edit] Bonus disc (2002 Rhino)

1. "The Land of Give and Take" (Early version of Beyond Belief) – 3:05
2. "Tears Before Bedtime" (Alternate version) – 3:03
3. "Man Out of Time" (Alternate version) – 3:43
4. "Human Hands" (Early version) – 2:44
5. "Kid About It" (Alternate version) – 3:18
6. "Little Savage" (Alternate version) – 3:07
7. "You Little Fool" (Alternate version) – 2:59
8. "Town Cryer" (Fast version) – 2:15
9. "Little Goody Two Shoes" (Alternate version) – 3:10
10. "The Town Where Time Stood Still" (Alternate version) – 2:57
11. "...And in Every Home" (Rehearsal) – 3:12
12. "I Turn Around" – 2:09
13. "From Head to Toe" (Robinson]) – 2:34
14. "The World of Broken Hearts" (Shuman, Pomus) – 3:01
15. "Night Time" (Chambers) – 2:52
16. "Really Mystified" (Crane, Gustafson) – 2:03
17. "The Stamping Ground" – 3:09
18. "Shabby Doll" (Demo version) – 4:18
19. "Man Out of Time" (Demo version) – 3:27
20. "You Little Fool" (Demo version) – 3:11
21. "Town Cryer" (Demo version) – 3:03
22. "Seconds of Pleasure" (Demo version) – 3:19
23. "Imperial Bedroom" – 2:47

[edit] Personnel

• Elvis Costello – vocals, guitar
• Steve Nieve – piano, organ, orchestrations
• Bruce Thomas – bass
• Pete Thomas – drums

[edit] Charts

Album

Year	Chart	Position
1982	Billboard Pop Albums	30

[edit] External links

• "Masterpiece?" - essay by Connor Ratliff

• Elvis Costello (1994). Introduction. In Imperial Bedroom (p. 1) [CD liner notes]. Salem, Massachusetts: Rykodisc.

Elvis Costello
Albums
My Aim Is True | Spike | King of America | Brutal Youth | Mighty Like a Rose | Kojak Variety | North | Il Sogno
Elvis Costello and The Attractions
This Year's Model | Armed Forces | Get Happy!! | Trust | Almost Blue | Imperial Bedroom | Punch the Clock | Goodbye Cruel World | Blood and Chocolate | All This Useless Beauty
Elvis Costello and The Imposters
When I Was Cruel | Cruel Smile | The Delivery Man
Collaborations
The Juliet Letters with The Brodsky Quartet | Terror & Magnificence with John Harle | Painted from Memory with Burt Bacharach | The Sweetest Punch with Bill Frisell | For the Stars with Anne-Sofie von Otter | My Flame Burns Blue with The Metropole Orkest | Piano Jazz with Marian McPartland | The River in Reverse with Allen Toussaint
Live albums
Live at the El Mocambo | Deep Dead Blue | Costello & Nieve
Soundtracks
G.B.H. | Jake's Progress
Collections
Taking Liberties | Ten Bloody Marys & Ten How's Your Fathers | The Best of Elvis Costello & The Attractions | Out of Our Idiot | Girls+£÷Girls=$&Girls | 2 ½ Years | The Very Best of Elvis Costello and The Attractions 1977-86 | Extreme Honey | The Very Best of Elvis Costello | Singles, Vol. 1 |Singles, Vol. 2 |Singles, Vol. 3
Categories
Elvis Costello albums | Elvis Costello songs