Elvis Costello

Though singer-songwriter Elvis Costello rose to fame during the English punk movement in the 1970s, he surpassed the limitations of the genre through his fascination for other musical styles, from American country and blues to reggae, jazz and classical composition, as well as his highly literate, often biting lyrics. Costello's early work with his crack backing band, the Attractions, bristled with passion and venom on songs like "Oliver's Army," "Watching the Detectives" and "Pump It Up," but he also showed an exceptional capacity for quieter material, displaying a jazzman's delivery on songs like "Alison" and "Almost Blue." Costello's fortunes rose and fell during the 1980s and 1990s as he explored various genres and sounds, but by the new millennium, his body of work was so vast and his adventurous spirit so well-loved that his experiments were welcomed by a dedicated audience of listeners. To that end, he released albums of country, folk, jazz and even orchestral works, while still remaining true to his rock-n-roll roots, all of which underscored his status as one of popular music's most accomplished and protean talents. Though his recorded work slowed down in the 2010s, Costello remained an active live performer and published his acclaimed memoir Unfaithful Music and Disappearing Ink in 2015.