Complicated Shadows: The Life and Music of Elvis Costello

Elvis Costello is undoubtedly one of the most important and challenging musicians of the last thirty years, and this definitive biography paints a detailed portrait of an intensely private, complex and creatively restless individual. It draws on a wealth of new primary research, including exclusive interviews with nearly fifty people from all stages of Costello's life and career : schoolmates, friends, members of his earliest bands Rusty and Flip City, former lovers, members of The Attractions, producers, collaborators and numerous fellow musicians.
Complicated Shadows unearths many previously unknown details about Costello's childhood in London and Liverpool and his early years as a struggling musician, as well as his turbulent personal life. It also reveals the circumstances surrounding his marriages to ex-Pogues bassist Cait O'Riordan and jazz singer Diana Krall, and the bitter break-up of his long-term backing band, The Attractions. Using the recollections of those who were there at the time - the majority of whom have never spoken publicly before - the book contains a full examination and analysis of the entirety of Costello's vast and varied musical output, both in the studio and onstage.

The progeny of a trumpet player grandfather and a big band vocalist father, Costello was destined to be a star musician by osmosis, if not genetics. Born Declan Patrick MacManus in 1954, the future Buddy Holly clone was raised by a West London family understandably supportive of his early rock leanings. Though "gawky and comically knock-kneed," the young Brit was performing in Liverpool clubs by 18, honing his anti-establishment persona by 22 and on the verge of conquering America by 25-a lightning fast rise deftly recorded by freelance journalist Thomson. A knowledgeable critic, Thomson skillfully interweaves articulate criticism of Costello's musical evolution into his biographical narrative, and unsentimentally details the thrice-married lyricist's dips into infidelity, drug use and egomania (including the artist's infamous song switcheroo on Saturday Night Live in 1977 and his unceremonious firing of his back-up band, the Attractions, in 1987). And while Thomson assumes that readers will have a certain familiarity with the composer's oeuvre and influences, he also writes clearly enough for Costello novices. And he's not without a sense of humor; while discussing the heyday of glam rock, he explains that Elvis wasn't a believer because he had "neither the physique nor the eyelashes for that." In all, this is an engrossing and lively account of an equally animated personality.
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Despite an eclectic quarter-century career in which he has essayed, with varying success, musical genres ranging from country to classical, Elvis Costello remains best known as the angry young geek who burst on the late-seventies scene as the public personification of punk. Since then he has evolved into an imaginative composer, brilliant lyricist, and powerful vocalist who enjoys a critical reputation quite surpassing his limited commercial success. Although a devotee, Thomson is clear-eyed about Costello's missteps, and he doesn't skirt embarrassments like Costello's dalliance with ubergroupie Bebe Buell and the notorious, career-derailing incident when he made a racist remark about Ray Charles during a drunken argument. Even the most hardcore fan will learn something from Thomson's extensive research, particularly about Costello's heretofore veiled pre-Elvis days as an aspiring pub-rocker. If the early years, when Costello and bandmates indulged in drugs and sex on the road, are more interesting than his relatively staid later career, Costello's restless exploration and experimentation help keep the narrative compelling throughout. Gordon Flagg
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