Elvis Costello (born Declan Patrick MacManus) is one of the most chameleon-like, respected, and prolific figures in contemporary music history. He emerged in the late 1970s as a leader of the British New Wave, but his career has defied categorization thanks to an endless musical curiosity.
His alias is a clever combination of two different worlds: Elvis: A direct homage to Elvis Presley, the pioneer of rock and roll. Costello: The maiden name of his great-grandmother, which his father (big band musician Ross McManus) had previously used under the stage name Day Costello.
Although he started with the sharp, urgent, punk-adjacent sound of My Aim Is True (1977), he has experimented with nearly every genre across his 30+ studio albums
Elvis Costello is releasing a special box set to celebrate the 49th anniversary of his iconic debut album.
Costello joked in the liner notes that waiting for a traditional 50th anniversary felt too much like turning the album into a “venerable object locked in a display case.” He preferred the “improper fraction” of 49 years to more accurately capture the raw, urgent energy of when Declan MacManus transformed into Elvis Costello.
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