Song · Elvis Costello & the Attractions
“(I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea” by Elvis Costello & the Attractions
Released 1978
“(I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea” by Elvis Costello & the Attractions appears on 4 radio countdowns from 3 stations between 1988 and 2022. It was first released in 1978. Its best result is #214 on the Live 105 Top 500 Songs of All-Time (Memorial Day 1988). In the combined RockLists rankings it is #3,447 alternative song of all time.
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"(I Don't Want to Go to) Chelsea" was the first single from This Year's Model, Elvis Costello's second album, cut with his backing band the Attractions. Nick Lowe produced it, and Radar released it in 1978. It followed "Watching the Detectives" into the shops and reached 16 in the UK.
Costello wrote it back when he was still working as a computer programmer, drawing the words from the movies he'd been watching and from trips to Chelsea as a kid. The music owes a debt to the Who and the Kinks, and what grabs you is Bruce Thomas's bass, pushed right up front. It came with a music video, critics have warmed to it over the years, and it has stayed a fixture of Costello's live shows.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Indie & Adult Alternative
All Rock Formats
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | 214 | Live 105 | Live 105 Top 500 Songs of All-Time (Memorial Day 1988) | 501 |
| 2002 | 1265 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (July 2002) | 2002 |
| 2003 | 687 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) | 2044 |
| 2022 | 616 | 90.9 The Bridge | 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '70s | 908 |
Also listed as: Chelsea; (I Don't Want to Go to) Chelsea; I Don't Want to Go to Chelsea.
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