Taking Sides: Andy Partridge vs. Elvis Costello

Anyway, it's easily Partridge. Not just in the music stakes up to present times, but a history of nicer headwear too.

It's so not a bad album. Liked it better than "King of america" and everything after it, mostly.

What worries me more was the thought of what EC thought was wrong with it in retrospect, and what the "now I like it better" version would have been like...

I'll take EC.

Costello obviously gets loves to stay in the public eye with a lot of weak and indulgent showboating, while XTC pretty much stayed in Swindon. Costello definitely plays the part of a celebrated "pop legend." But if you were just to add up a list of each guy's 25 best songs (anyone? anyone?) it would be no contest.

curiously, I have never been a huge fan of "Senses Working Overtime". I'd ask, name one Costello song that can touch "1000 Umbrellas" (which, now that I think of it, sounds like the best song Costello didn't write for the Juliet Letters!)

End thread now.

"Dear God" is my least favorite Partridge song, especially since "Season's Cycle" has a much better and more in character take on religion ("Everybody says join our religion, get to heaven/I say 'Well thanks but bless my soul, I'm already there'"). Too bad that's still the song many people know them for. (The skiffle demo on Fuzzy Warbles 5 is pretty good though.)

and while we're at it, I do want to say that Nonsuch, Pumpkinhead notwithstanding, is prime Partridge. Stuff like Humble Daisy, That Wave, Wrapped In Grey is as good as anything he's done

Not quite as underrated as Partridge though. XTC would have deserved to be one of the biggest names in rock history.

"Dr Luthur's assistant" would make a fair starting point for a Costeello psychedelic album. But it'd have to improve after that one.

Partridge, on the other hand, is—at his best—as good or better a songwriter/craftsman than Costello — but his stuff doesn't cut as deep for a lot of people (then again, he's never become insufferable either). Which is to say that while Partridge's songs are more probing and nuanced, his concerns and aesthetic are less universal than Costello's.

As I said, this is a really uncomfortable comparison. I can't escape the feeling that we're pitting a major artist against a cult artist.

king horse

I can't escape the feeling that we're pitting a major artist against a cult artist.

Yeah, but that's what everyone's saying - it's ridiculous that Costello's a household name because he was in Austin Powers, while Partridge is "that guy who got stagefright." At least in th States, I feel like Costello is a cult artist who suddenly and weirdly became a mainstream celebrity, but I don't think that most people who recognize him from his CD at Starbucks could name or sing more than five of his songs.

But the result is that they're in very different places now. Again, as songwriters, I'll take Partridge 8 or 9 times out of 10, just b/c I like his aesthetic more.

that's actually one of Costello's down points afaic - he seems to take great pains to align himself with The Great Songwriters of the Past. I'm sure he loves that music, but wow, it doesn't make his own material any more tuneful, and kind of makes him seem like the Nick Apollo Forte of the rebellious singer-songwriter circuit.

Partridge, on the other hand, while seemingly addicted to hip pop sounds from 1966-68, seems eternally bent on turning left where the public expects right. His remoteness is doubtlessly a big part of this - he has no care (or instincts) for appeasing anyone, least of all his bandmates or (former) record label!

partridge was always too enamored with his own cutesy cleverness. most of the time, XTC rocked out enough (or had the right arrangements) to keep that tendency in check, or at least balance it out. around Oranges & Lemons, though, they fell over.

it's quite telling that their far-and-away best album (Skylarking) is the one andy partridge hates the most.

and andy partridge would never have let himself be as emotionally unguarded as costello on "Pidgin English" (or most of Imperial Bedroom, for that matter).

I'm not always in the mood for that, and tend to look for more restraint and linearity in my pop. So in that sense, Partridge's quirk frequently obfuscates the brillance of his lyrical concepts and his melodies. And Costello's rococo, labyrinthine melodies and wordplay come off as too precious and self-aware.

It's obvious that both artists purposely set out to cultivate those musical traits. When it works, it's astounding. I've had more success trudging through the XTC catalogue than EC's. So I'm voting for Andy Partridge.

Maybe that's because of the critical canon had Costello came out with a bang and was pegged as a "major artist" by 1982 or so (what does Austin Powers have to do with anything?), whereas Partridge had to slough off Barry Andrews' organ before really focusing. Not sure.

Still, the reason any of this is relevant to this debate is that both Partridge and Costello are classicists in some ways. The difference is where Costello used his talent to make alter the status quo, making these pop culture statements a la the "Radio, Radio" SNL performance, Partridge seemed more interested in examining pre-existing forms. In that sense, Partridge is kind of the heir to Ray Davies.

I dunno if that clarifies things any, but it certainly helps me understand why I have a hard time comparing the two — they both just had totally different aims (however true they might've been).

College-radio hits, you mean. XTC has never had anything like a Hot 100 Singles chart hit. Elvis Costello has had several, two of which actually hit the top 40 ("Everyday I Write the Book" and "Veronica").

Elvis Costello: 11 top 10 UK albums (last 1994); 13 US top 40 albums (last 2004)
XTC: 1 top 10 UK album (1982); 0 US top 40 albums

XTC

Singles:
17 XTC Making Plans For Nigel Sep 1979
32 XTC Generals And Majors / Don't Lose Your Temper Sep 1980
31 XTC Towers Of London Oct 1980
16 XTC Sgt. Rock (Is Going To Help Me) Jan 1981
10 XTC Senses Working Overtime Jan 1982
33 XTC The Disappointed Apr 1992
Albums:
38 XTC White Music Feb 1978 Notes
21 XTC Go 2 Oct 1978 Notes
34 XTC Drums And Wires Sep 1979 Notes
16 XTC Black Sea Sep 1980 Notes
5 XTC English Settlement Feb 1982 Notes
38 XTC The Big Express Oct 1984 Notes
28 XTC Oranges And Lemons Mar 1989 Notes
28 XTC Nonsuch May 1992 Notes
33 XTC Fossil Fuel - The XTC Singles Collection 1977-1992 Sep 1996 Notes
40 XTC Wasp Star - Apple Venus Volume 2 Jun 2000 Notes

Singles:
15 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Watching The Detectives Nov 1977
16 Elvis Costello & The Attractions (I Don't Wanna Go To) Chelsea Mar 1978
24 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Pump It Up May 1978
29 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Radio Radio Oct 1978
2 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Oliver's Army Feb 1979
28 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Accidents Will Happen May 1979
4 Elvis Costello I Can't Stand Up For Falling Down Feb 1980
30 Elvis Costello Hi Fidelity Apr 1980
36 Elvis Costello New Amsterdam Jun 1980
6 Elvis Costello A Good Year For The Roses Oct 1981
28 Elvis Costello Everyday I Write The Book Jul 1983
25 Elvis Costello I Wanna Be Loved / Turning The Town Red Jun 1984
33 Elvis Costello Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood Feb 1986
31 Elvis Costello Veronica Mar 1989
22 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Sulky Girl Mar 1994
19 Elvis Costello She Jul 1999

Albums:
14 Elvis Costello My Aim Is True Aug 1977
4 Elvis Costello This Year's Model Apr 1978
2 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Armed Forces Jan 1979
2 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Get Happy! Feb 1980
9 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Trust Jan 1981
7 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Almost Blue Oct 1981
6 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Imperial Bedroom Jul 1982
3 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Punch The Clock Aug 1983
10 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Goodbye Cruel World Jul 1984
8 Elvis Costello & The Attractions The Best Of Elvis Costello - The Man Apr 1985
16 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Blood And Chocolate Sep 1986
5 Elvis Costello Spike Feb 1989
5 Elvis Costello Mighty Like A Rose May 1991
18 Elvis Costello & The Brodsky Quartet The Juliet Letters Jan 1993
2 Elvis Costello & The Attractions Brutal Youth Mar 1994
21 Elvis Costello Kojak Variety May 1995
28 Elvis Costello & The Attractions All This Useless Beauty May 1996
32 Elvis Costello with Burt Bacharach Painted From Memory Oct 1998
4 Elvis Costello The Very Best Of Elvis Costello Aug 1999 Notes
17 Elvis Costello When I Was Cruel Apr 2002 Notes
27 Elvis Costello The Very Best Of Elvis Costello Aug 2004 Notes

According to another source (M. C. Strongs "Great Alternative and Indie Discography), "Skylarking" hit number 90 wheareas "Dear God" didn't chart at all, neither in its own right nor as the original b-side to "Grass".

(yeah, I should have noted that "Mayor of Simpleton" charted in the Hot 100. As for the others: I remember XTC [and Costello] got lots of love on college radio; "King for a Day," "The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead," "Dear Madam Barnum" were big parts of my early college days).

Not changing my vote, just saying. By the way, I went to Costello's house once (to visit Mary, not Declan, he was out) and saw his collection of dictionaries. He had too many dictionaries, including about eight rhyming dictionaries. I think this is a serious flaw, and I think you can hear it in his songs.

You end up marrying your one sparking line with a rhyme to end with the word "wallpaper" instead of modifying your sparkling line to something better.

But I digress.

Therefore, Costello.

While I agree that Partridge is better, I feel that some of Costello's material also has that sophisticated production thing about it, particularly "Imperial Bedroom", also some of his underrated Warner material. ("Brutal Youth")

is this a categorical dismissal of rhyming dictionaries (It doesn't sound like it is, but whatever)? I mean, T.S. Eliot, Thomas Hardy, and Yeats used them too, if that helps.