Today’s slow drag is with “The Greatest Thing,” from “Punch the Clock,” released in 1983. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello. “The Greatest Thing” is an uncapped firehose of words and phrases that create a blur of sound as 264 of them spew out in the span of 3:02. Just another good reason to “turn it down to 33 and a third,” or, as I call it, “a slow drag with Remedy.” Everyone stopped when she walked into the room Isn't this the greatest thing Everyone own up but nobody could touch her Isn't this the greatest thing Punch the clock, keep boxing clever You'll be young enough forever Isn't this the greatest Isn't this the greatest thing Isn't this the greatest thing The greatest thing “Punch the clock, keep boxing clever.” Here’s another great example of how the names of Mr. Costello’s albums were typically based on a line in a song, as opposed to a title of a song itself. I’m paraphrasing here, but have heard that Elvis Costello never wanted to put so much pressure on one song. “All This Useless Beauty” was his first proper “title track.” And while a few more have been “title tracks,” his latest, “Look Now,” features a song called, “Don’t Look Now.” Old habits are hard to break, I suppose. By my count, there are somewhere around 6 true “title tracks” out of his 33 major albums. In addition to “All This Useless Beauty,” these include “Painted from Memory,” “When I Was Cruel,” “The Delivery Man,” “The River in Reverse,” and “National Ransom.” The song “North” appears as one of the three bonus tracks on the album of the same name. As always, check my math, I may have overlooked something. I heard some new confection Said we can't afford to feel affection 'Cos it's the latest thing In and out of matrimony Never once removed the Sony 'Cos it's a status thing So girls like that above described Are not to be so easily bribed With a white frock and a ring Punch the clock and in time you'll get pulled apart When you're married on paper and not in your heart Oh holy moly, try saying that verse five times fast, let alone singing it fast. Trying singing it once. The strangest sounds have come out of my mouth trying to sing these lines. And it only gets more complicated as the song progresses. “In and out of matrimony / never once removed the Sony,” all these years later, almost still rings true. Our love lives as dictated by how many material possessions we’re willing or unwilling to part with. But I won't be told that life with the one you love is sordid Just because some authority says you can't afford it And it's the greatest thing, and it's the greatest thing Oh, it's the greatest Isn't this the greatest thing The greatest thing Sordid/afford it. The words might come fast, but they still come with genius as well. Punching the clock, going through the daily grind, doing what we’re told to do, doing what we think our societies want us to do, seems to have a high risk of certain disaster. Taking your own advice, on the other hand, not believing what you’re being fed, can be, well, the greatest thing. Since nights were long and days were olden Woman to man has been beholden But since then times have been changing She sends back his tribute of a rose And says this ring is better suited to the nose you're always fingering I punch the clock and it's OK I know a girl who takes my breath away And it's the greatest Isn't this the greatest thing Isn't this the greatest thing The greatest thing, the greatest thing Oh, you better believe, the weird noises created when trying to keep up with the astounding linguistic turns of this verse. “And says this ring is better suited to the nose you’re always fingering” can get lost in the barrage of words syllables that fly by. Olden/beholden/rose/ok, these rhymes create a pleasant yet difficult phonological landscape to navigate. And it's the greatest Isn't this the greatest thing Isn't this the greatest thing The greatest thing, the greatest thing This dynamite piece is so fast and furious that it’s little surprise, according to the Elvis Costello wiki page, it hasn’t been performed live very often. To compare, “Alison” has over 1,600 known live performances. “The Greatest Thing,” has only 102 live performances, the last in 1984, one year after the album was released. It’s an astounding piece with an excellent sound (when not trying to sing along with it), and a wonderful moral that might not have been exactly believed at the time of recording, hence the rush job. As mentioned in episode 17 of “Slow drag with Remedy,” entitled “The Quickening Art,” Malcolm Gladwell in episode 7 of his first season of “Revisionist History,” entitled “Hallelujah,” mentions Elvis Costello’s 1984 album, “Goodbye Cruel World,” the album released the year after “Punch the Clock.” He mentions “The Deportees Club” in particular, which he decried as “angry and loud,” and <gasp>: “awful.” Trust that you will never hear words even close to those come out of my mouth about anything Elvis Costello. That said, Malcolm Gladwell makes a point that the slowed down solo demo version of “Deportee,” released as part of the Rhino’s re-release of “King of America,” does create a different sound. This is nothing new, of course, as we’ve seen this in reverse with “Imperial Bedroom’s” “Town Crier.” Both versions have their appeal, although the slower one, with the lovely violins, seems to have a deeper impact. As the legendary drummer, Pete Thomas, said at the 2020 Grammy Awards: “I think why we didn’t win back then was cos we played everything too fast, so we slowed it down a bit.” I suppose that is my wish for with “The Greatest Thing.” I’d love to hear a slowed down version, just to see what would happen. It’s dynamite the way it is, don’t get me wrong, but perhaps it would benefit from time and distance. — Dig it Again, this has been a slow drag with “The Greatest Thing” from 1983’s “Punch the Clock.” It’s a joy to hear each word, to linger over their placement and to mull their meanings. It’s a song of keen observation, of how uncomfortable issues of love can be, so we might as well dispense with them as quickly as possible, like running through the sprinklers. And that’s it for today’s slow drag, my friend. Wasn’t that fun? I loved it. I encourage you to re-listen to Episode 11 of “Slow Drag with Remedy,” “Blow the Whistle on The Whole Design,” a slow drag with “King of Thieves,” another gem from “Punch The Clock.” So, until next time, adieu, my little ballyhoo. Comments are closed.
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AboutSlow Drag with Remedy is an Elvis Costello podcast appreciation. It's an exploration of linguistics, language, poetry, and clever wordplay as framed by the peerless poetry of the modern-day master, Elvis Costello. Slow Drag by Song
Poor Napoleon Alibi Church Underground The Big Light Georgie and Her Rival Joe Porterhouse No Hiding Place 20% Amnesia All This Useless Beauty Let Him Dangle King of Thieves Damnation's Cellar Stripping Paper Pidgin English Riot Act Bedlam The Quickening Art Luxembourg Chemistry Class Living in Paradise My Mood Swings Waiting for the End of the World Little Atoms Two Little Hitlers Crimes of Paris You Tripped at Every Step Needle Time Men Called Uncle Peace in Our Time The Loved Ones I Almost Had a Weakness Our Little Angel Invasion Hit Parade Turpentine Miracle Man A Voice in the Dark The Greatest Thing Satellite Hand in Hand Clubland Tart Glitter Gulch Stations of the Cross Science Fiction Twin Possession This Sad Burlesque Flutter and Wow Soul for Hire After the Fall Blue Chair Monkey to Man Mouth Almighty Watch Your Step ...This Town... Distorted Angel Worthless Thing No Dancing Miss Macbeth Charm School Poor Fractured Atlas Brilliant Mistake My Little Blue Window Suspect My Tears Coal Train Robberies Fish 'n' Chip Papers I Hope You're Happy Now Man Out of Time 13 Steps Lead Down Go Away Sweet Pear The Name of This Thing is Not Love Jimmie Standing in the Rain The Deportees Club The Birds Will Still Be Singing Starting to Come to Me Pay It Back Five Small Words Pretty Words Radio Silence Human Hands Night Rally I'll Wear It Proudly Motel Matches Drum and Bone Harpies Bizarre Nothing Clings Like Ivy Why Won't Heaven Help Me Next Time 'Round The River in Reverse A Room with No Number Clown Strike The Invisible Man My Most Beautiful Mistake All the Rage The Town Where Time Stood Still Episode of Blonde e of Blonde No Flag A Slow Drag with Josephine That Bridge I Burned Sour Milk Cow Blues You Little Fool Spooky Girlfriend Suit of Lights There's a Story in Your Voice Dishonor The Stars The Other Side of Summer Mischievous Ghost They're Not Laughing at Me Now White Knuckles Honey, Are You Straight or Are You Blind? Black and White World The World and His Wife
God's Comic The First to Leave Green Shirt The Man You Love to Hate Lip Service American Gangster Time Blame It on Cain The Spell That You Cast Lipstick Vogue The Difference Stella Hurt Tears before Bedtime |