Clever and versatile enough to jump from punky power pop to country, soul, and numerous other sounds, Elvis Costello and The Attractions were one of the most iconic bands of the New Wave era. • The Attractions didn’t play on Elvis Costello’s 1977 debut, My Aim Is True, but they signed on for 1978’s This Year’s Model and remained the English rocker’s backing band through 1986’s Blood & Chocolate. • Before emerging as the “angry young man” of UK rock, Costello worked as a computer programmer for a cosmetics company. • Costello was banned from NBC’s Saturday Night Live after he and The Attractions abruptly changed songs during a December 1977 broadcast, performing “Radio Radio” instead of the agreed-on “Less Than Zero.” • The first eight albums Costello made with the Attractions peaked in the Top 10 of the UK charts. • Costello and The Attractions were UK chart fixtures throughout the late ’70s and early ’80s. Their biggest hit came with 1979’s “Oliver’s Army,” which peaked at No. 2. • In America, Costello and The Attractions managed only one Top 40 hit, with 1983’s “Everyday I Write the Book.” • In 2003, Elvis Costello and The Attractions were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.