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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.
The Delivery Man
Generally favorable reviews
Based on 21 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 15 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album >
Album Info
Label: Lost Highway
Release Date: 21 September 2004
Discs: 1 disc
Genre(s): Adult Alternative, Rock
Summary
Elvis has returned to the land of rock--or at least, country-flavored rock, as he's joined on several tracks by Lucinda Williams and Emmylou Harris. It's his second disc to feature (and first to credit) his new backing band, The Impostors, who look an awful lot like his former backing band, The Attractions, save for the addition of bassist Davey Faragher.
Also By This Artist: North Secret, Profane & Sugarcane When I Was Cruel
Also On The Web: Official Artist Site
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Mojo
Songs terrific, band sensational, and -- big plus -- Costello's voice late-developing way beyond that pinched whine into an instrument of substance and character. [Oct 2004, p.97]
PopMatters
This is a classic Costello record... arguably his most cohesive, magnetic collection of songs since Blood & Chocolate and the highlight of his middle-age years.
Read Full Review >Entertainment Weekly
The album delivers, all right, if not all the time. [24 Sep 2004, p.105]
Rolling Stone
Even the ballads... bristle with force. [28 Oct 2004, p.99]
The Guardian
He sets tales of sexual double dealing and domestic violence to a sound somewhere between the two albums he made in 1986: the Americana of King Of America meeting the over-amplified rawness of Blood and Chocolate.
Read Full Review >All Music Guide
It never feels as urgent as his prime work, but it's at once his most accomplished and visceral record as a veteran rocker.
Read Full Review >Blender
It's Costello at his most emotionally direct. [Oct 2004, p.118]
Dusted Magazine
It’s been ages since he’s sounded this self-assured, or this much at home.
Read Full Review >Stylus Magazine
Fortunately, the good songs outnumber the bad; unfortunately, the veteran Costello has made the rookie mistaking of frontloading the disc.
Read Full Review >Drawer B
The Delivery Man is a solid, albeit slightly over-learned and patronizing, collection of bluesy rock.
Read Full Review >Paste Magazine
Staggered between full-on rockers like "Needle Time," "There’s A Story In Your Voice", and "Bedlam," the softer material sounds excessively genteel.
Read Full Review >Pitchfork
Often, Costello just sounds prissy and uptight in these more relaxed environs.
Read Full Review >ShakingThrough.net
It convincingly exhibits the breadth of affection Costello has for homegrown American musical forms, but lacks a tight-enough center to stand among his sturdier, more disciplined works.
Read Full Review >Q Magazine
There's still heart and soul in that funny old voice. [Nov 2004, p.118]
Uncut
A strong and lusty country-punk album placing him in Tom Waits or Neil Young territory. [Nov 2004, p.104]
Playlouder
A collection of rehashed moments from his brilliant though patchy career, a sowed together patchwork of pastiche.
Read Full Review >Austin Chronicle
Ultimately, in no uncertain terms, this Elvis sounds like an impersonator.
Read Full Review >New York Magazine
[It] doesn’t help in pinpointing the moment Costello veered into self-parody, but it does catalogue nearly everything that’s become impossible to take about him.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this album is 8.6 (out of 10) based on 15 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Shawn J gave it a9:
There are a couple of tunes that put me to sleep, but I can't stop listening to the others.
Clara C gave it an8:
Listening to this album feels like returning to King of America, Blood & Chocolate -- even a little bit of Imperial Bedroom. I don't love every cut, but mostly I've been seduced by Elvis' voice, songwriting and especially lyrics, in a way that I haven't been since those classics came out.
Joey M gave it a 9:
The last Costello album that I enjoyed as much as this one was "Painted from Memory," his collaboration with Bacharach. I have enjoyed his work the most in the last two decades when he has focused on pushing his own limits. I felt that the last couple of turns with the Attractations were forced "returns to form" with a couple of good songs and I didn't much care for "North" at all. This collection, on the other hand, has some of his finest lyrics, bravest musical turns and sharpest delivery in recent memory. Well worth a listen!
Dan F gave it an 8:
I find the brash, noisy stuff suits his talents less than the ballad stuff, like "Nothing Clings like Ivy," which is the strongest song on the album for me.
dazzer w gave it a 9:
Awesome! Sone of the recent reviews defy belief
Rob S. gave it an 8:
I'll be listening to this one for a few weeks at least. There are some very, very nice performances of strong songs here - not just from EC, but Emmylou Harris has got a better song to sing in "Heart Shaped Bruise" than anything on her last album. The highlight of the album is another duet, "There's A Story In Your Voice" with Lucinda Williams. I can't believe how good he sounds in tandem with Lu doing that drunken/spastic vocal thing she occasionally lets loose on her own albums. It's cool and funny and one of those songs I keep playing over and over. "Either Side of the Same Town" and "Country Darkness" are other highlights for me. On the whole, the songwriting on The Delivery Man is much freer and less affected than on When I Was Cruel. And I thought North was dreadful, both the songwriting and his singing. I'm pleased with EC's rebound here.
