I've noticed that too - and I'm curious to know what influence such artists as Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe might have had on the genre at the time.

I know what you mean, but I usually think of them as embodying more of a post-punk sensibility, although I think Nick Lowe straddles the two eras time-wise. If I'm not mistaken the dB's somewhere mention the early incarnation of the band with Peter on keyboard as being influenced by the Attractions.

Yes - I had heard that too. Peter: Were these guys a musical influence for you at the time?

Well, probably more instrumentation-wise rather than songwriting. We certainly adored This Year's Model and all the Nick Lowe stuff, especially Rockpile.