Armed Forces (album)

Reception

Janet Maslin in a 1979 review in Rolling Stone felt the album was a "killer in several senses of the word"; remarking on the brief, energetic songs with dense and sometimes overly-clever but snappy lyrics. Maslin felt that Costello "wants to be daring, but he also wants to dance". Robert Christgau in a 1979 review in The Village Voice felt Costello was using words to "add color and detail to his music" rather than as "a thinking, feeling person"; though he approved of the "intricate pop constructions", and found the album overall to be "good" but not "great". Both reviewers felt the album was more densely or richly produced than the two predecessors.

In a retrospective commentary for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine felt that Armed Forces is a more "detailed and textured pop production" than Costello's first two albums, making the music more accessible, though the lyrics are "more insular and paranoid". Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune, in his 1991 review, called the album "Costello's 'political' record, and also one of his most irresistibly melodic." Matt LeMay, in a 2003 review for Pitchfork Media, also commented on the production, which he felt was "extravagantly layered with dense instrumentation and rich, effusive textures" which "often serves to conceal, rather than reveal the nuances of Costello's songwriting"; and concluded that "the greatest strength of Armed Forces may be the same thing that makes it less viscerally powerful than Costello's two prior records – its songs absolutely demand to be appreciated for their craftsmanship". LeMay argued that the album marks the point at which Costello found his role as a songwriter.

In 2000 Q magazine placed Armed Forces at number 45 in its list of the 100 Greatest British Albums Ever. In 2003, the album was ranked at number 482 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time", and then in 2012, was moved to number 475 on an updated list. The album was also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Track listing

All songs written by Elvis Costello.

1. "Accidents Will Happen" – 3:00
2. "Senior Service" – 2:17
3. "Oliver's Army" – 2:58
4. "Big Boys" – 2:54
5. "Green Shirt" – 2:42
6. "Party Girl" – 3:20

1. "Goon Squad" – 3:14
2. "Busy Bodies" – 3:33
3. "Sunday's Best" – 3:22
4. "Moods for Moderns" – 2:48
5. "Chemistry Class" – 2:55
6. "Two Little Hitlers" – 3:18

Live at Hollywood High promo single

1. "Accidents Will Happen" (Live) – 3:18
2. "Alison" (Live) – 3:08
3. "Watching the Detectives" (Live) – 5:51

Reissues

There was a Rykodisc reissue in 1993, and a Rhino reissue in 2002. The Rykodisc version contains the original album and bonus tracks on one CD; the Rhino version has two CDs – disc one contains the original UK album plus "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding?" and disc two contains bonus tracks.

1993 Rykodisc reissue bonus tracks

Personnel