Pitchfork

Elvis Costello must either be a world class pack rat, or he's got a master archivist somewhere in his bloodline. (Or, um, he has a greedy record company.) How can he keep pulling out B-sides, rarities, and other musical ephemera to back the seemingly endless campaign of reissues of his older albums?

This Year's Model, Costello's second album and first with the Attractions, will be given a "deluxe" double disc reissue March 4 on Hip-O/UMe. The original album-- complete with all tracks from both the U.S. and UK versions-- is backed by 11 less-known tunes, demos, and live cuts. It will be packaged with a live bonus disc, culled from a February 1978 concert in Washington D.C.

Still, This Year's Model is a hell of a record, no matter what you pin to its hind quarters. Produced by Nick Lowe, it's laden with Costello classics like "Radio, Radio" and "Pump It Up", and it's no wonder it went on to top the Village Voice's 1978 Pazz & Jop albums poll. Heck, some website I know even gave the 2002 incarnation of the disc a perfect score, and I hear they hate everything.

Elvis Costello's website refers to this year's This Year's Model as "the mother of all editions", so I wouldn't expect another reissue for at least, oh, six more years or so.

This Year's Model - deluxe edition:

Disc one:

01 No Action
02 This Year's Girl
03 The Beat
04 Pump It Up
05 Little Triggers
06 You Belong to Me
07 Hand in Hand
08 (I Don't Want to Go to) Chelsea
09 Lip Service
10 Living in Paradise
11 Lipstick Vogue
12 Night Rally
13 Radio, Radio
14 Big Tears
15 Crawling to the USA
16 Tiny Steps
17 Running Out Of Angels (demo)
18 Greenshirt (demo)
19 Big Boys (demo)
20 Neat Neat Neat (live)
21 Roadette Song (live)
22 This Year's Girl (alternate Eden Studios version)
23 (I Don't Want to Go To) Chelsea (alternate Basing Street Studios version)

Disc two: Live at the Warner Theater, Washington, DC, February 28, 1978:

01 Pump It Up *
02 Waiting for the End of the World *
03 No Action *
04 Less Than Zero *
05 The Beat *
06 (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes *
07 (I Don't Want to Go to) Chelsea *
08 Hand in Hand *
09 Little Triggers *
10 Radio, Radio *
11 You Belong to Me *
12 Lipstick Vogue *
13 Watching the Detectives *
14 Mystery Dance *
15 Miracle Man *
16 Blame It on Cain *
17 Chemistry Class

* previously unreleased