Suvarna Garge (Editor)

Punch the Clock

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Released
  
5 August 1983

Length
  
45:19

Recorded
  
January–April 1983

Genre
  
New wave, power pop, ska

Label
  
F-Beat (UK) Columbia (US) Rykodisc (28 February 1995 Reissue) Rhino (9 September 2003 Reissue) Hip-O (1 May 2007 Reissue)

Producer
  
Clive Langer & Alan Winstanley, assisted by Gavin Greenaway & Colin Fairley

Punch the Clock is an album released in 1983 by Elvis Costello and the Attractions. It was Costello's eighth album, his seventh with the Attractions since 1978. The album featured Costello's first US Top 40 hit, "Everyday I Write the Book." It was produced by Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley, who also produced Costello's following album, Goodbye Cruel World.

Contents

In 2013, NME ranked it at number 345 in its list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Track listing

All songs written by Elvis Costello unless otherwise indicated.

Side one

  1. "Let Them All Talk" – 3:06
  2. "Everyday I Write the Book" – 3:54
  3. "The Greatest Thing" – 3:04
  4. "The Element Within Her" – 2:52
  5. "Love Went Mad" – 3:13
  6. "Shipbuilding" (Clive Langer, Costello) – 4:53

Side two

  1. "T.K.O. (Boxing Day)" – 3:28
  2. "Charm School" – 3:55
  3. "The Invisible Man" – 3:04
  4. "Mouth Almighty" – 3:04
  5. "King of Thieves" – 3:45
  6. "Pills and Soap" – 3:43
  7. "The World and His Wife" – 3:32

Bonus tracks (1995 Rykodisc)

  1. "Heathen Town" – 3:10
  2. "The Flirting Kind" – 3:00
  3. "Walking on Thin Ice" (Yoko Ono) – 3:52
  4. "The Town Where Time Stood Still" – 3:52
  5. "Shatterproof" (Demo) – 2:19
  6. "The World and his Wife" (Live) – 3:13
  7. "Everyday I Write the Book" (Live) – 2:21

Bonus disc (2003 Rhino)

  1. "Everyday I Write the Book" (Alternate version) – 2:22
  2. "Baby Pictures" – 1:30
  3. "Heathen Town" – 3:10
  4. "The Flirting Kind" – 3:00
  5. "Walking on Thin Ice" (Ono) – 3:52
  6. "Big Sister's Clothes/Stand Down, Margaret" (BBC Session) (Costello, Roger Chalery, Andy Cox, Everett Morton, David Steele, Dave Wakeling) – 5:17
  7. "Danger Zone" (BBC Session) (Curtis Mayfield)) – 2:18
  8. "Seconds of Pleasure" – 3:44
  9. "The Town Where Time Stood Still" – 3:33
  10. "The World and his Wife" (Solo version) – 2:44
  11. "Shatterproof" – 2:15
  12. "Heathen Town" (Demo version) – 2:17
  13. "The Flirting Kind" (Demo version) – 2:52
  14. "Let Them All Talk" (Demo version) – 2:14
  15. "King of Thieves" (Demo version) – 3:20
  16. "The Invisible Man" (Demo version) – 2:124
  17. "The Element Within Her" (Demo version) – 2:13
  18. "Love Went Mad" (Demo version) – 3:01
  19. "The Greatest Thing" (Demo version) – 2:25
  20. "Mouth Almighty" (Demo version) – 3:03
  21. "Charm School" (Demo version) – 2:17
  22. "Possession" (Live) – 2:29
  23. "Secondary Modern" (Live) – 3:02
  24. "The Bells" (Live) (Johnny Bristol, Marvin Gaye, Anna Gordy, Elgie Stover) – 4:14
  25. "Watch Your Step" (Live) – 3:22
  26. "Backstabbers/King Horse" (Live) (Leon Huff, Gene McFadden, John Whitehead, Costello) – 4:47

Note: The Rykodisc version has the original tracks and bonus tracks on one CD. The Rhino version has two CDs with the original tracks on the first CD.

Personnel

  • Elvis Costello – vocals; Epiphone, Gretsch and Fender guitars; Synclavier and Casiotone; all sounds and voices on "Pills and Soap"
    • The Attractions
  • Steve Nieve – Bösendorfer piano, Emulator, Fairlight CMI, Vox organ, Hammond organ, Synclavier
  • Bruce Thomas – Electric Wal bass guitar
  • Pete Thomas – Gretsch Drums, Sabian cymbals
    • The TKO Horns
  • Jim Paterson – trombone
  • Jeff Blythe – alto saxophone, baritone saxophone, clarinet
  • Paul Speare – tenor saxophone, flute
  • Dave Plews – trumpet
    • Additional personnel
  • Stewart Robson – trumpet & flugelhorn on "The World and His Wife"
  • Afrodiziak (Caron Wheeler and Claudia Fontaine) – backing vocals
  • Chet Baker – trumpet solo on "Shipbuilding"
  • David Bedford – string arrangements
  • Morris Pert – percussion
    • Technical
  • Phil Smee - sleeve
  • Nick Knight - photography

    • Charts

    Album

    Single

    References

    Punch the Clock Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA