Song · Elvis Costello & the Attractions
“The Only Flame In Town” by Elvis Costello & the Attractions
From the album Goodbye Cruel World (1984)
“The Only Flame In Town” by Elvis Costello & the Attractions appears on 11 radio countdowns from 4 stations between 1984 and 2005. It was first released in 1984 on the album Goodbye Cruel World. Its best result is #29 on the 91X Top 191 Songs of the 1980s (1989). In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #163 alternative song of 1984, #1,495 alternative song of all time and #435 of the '80s.
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Elvis Costello first wrote "The Only Flame in Town" as an old-fashioned torch song, but by the time it landed on Goodbye Cruel World in 1984 producers Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley had buffed it into shiny mid-'80s pop with the edges smoothed off. Daryl Hall of Hall & Oates adds his voice behind Costello, and the Attractions, Steve Nieve on keyboards, Bruce Thomas on bass and Pete Thomas on drums, play it light and bouncy.
It went out that July as the album's second single. Britain mostly shrugged, sending it only to 71, but America went for it, pushing it to 56 thanks to a popular MTV video built around a fake contest to win a date with the Attractions. Opinion has stayed split ever since, though some writers argue the glossy sound actually suits the song.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | 89 | KROQ Los Angeles, CA | KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1984 | 106 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 29 | 91X | 91X Top 191 Songs of the 1980s (1989) | 191 |
| 1999 | 549 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2000 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) | 2000 |
| 2000 | 549 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2001 Songs of All-Time (December 2000) | 2001 |
| 2001 | 549 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (December 2001) | 2002 |
| 2002 | 549 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2003 Songs of All-Time (December 2002) | 2003 |
| 2002 | 1238 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (July 2002) | 2002 |
| 2003 | 549 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2004 Songs of All-Time (December 2003) | 2004 |
| 2003 | 433 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) | 2044 |
| 2004 | 549 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2005 Songs of All-Time (December 2004) | 2005 |
| 2005 | 549 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2006 Songs of All-Time (December 2005) | 1994 |
Also listed as: The Only Flame in Town.
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