Today’s slow drag is with “Glitter Gulch,” from “King of America,” released in 1986. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello’s birth name. “Glitter Gulch” is one of the rare Elvis Costello gems that might just be “about” something. As ever, however, whether Mr. Costello provides the roadmap to his thesis or not, the result yields a mighty oak with many limbs from which to swing from. Enter Madam X painted in a shocking pink spangled dress Her teeth are perfect but her mouth is loose Rubbing their hands together she persuades them that it's better to confess Which unpleasant fate they'd like to choose Perfect teeth in a loose mouth. Money grubbers. Dress/confess, loose/choose. These contradictions paint a grand picture. Put down in an a/b a/b rhyme scheme, this first verse makes us feel clever for being able to guess the scenario painted for the listener. Every step might be your last Money signs are in your eyes, sucker You've been taken in this time You might just get out alive if you're lucky All the vultures tuning in to Glitter Gulch Are looking in on you / And they're hungry There is terrific slant rhyme going on in this chorus, mixing up the /u/ and /l/ sounds like the utter pro that he is: last/sucker/lucky/vultures/looking/alive/hungry. It provides a wonderfully melodic sound as discordant truths are told. “Money signs are in your eyes, sucker” is a quick hit and run gibe that barely registers as an insult as chorus moves along. Straight forward and a little tawdry, we’ve all been witness to this sort of spectacle, most likely on daytime television, home sick from school maybe. Only, this world is a glitzy nighttime grown up version, Vegas style. Old Vegas style. We’re talking Vegas Vic and his wife, Vegas Vickie, the cowgirl who once graced the front of the “Glitter Gulch” Strip Club on Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas. Fremont Street as a whole was said to have been dubbed “glitter gulch,” for its narrow street that was “lined with taller and taller neon signs for the casinos.” He stood five feet tall in his elevator shoes and stovepipe hat He was known by several different names Prompted by Madam X he answered all their questions And then after that he said I'm sick and tired of stupid games Famous for his loquacious lyrics, we nevertheless hear in these few lines a great demonstration of how well Mr. Costello is able to use an economy of words to quickly set up or sum up a situation. Our contestant, he’s a short man, style all his own, mysterious in his own way, with a temperament that is jovial until his luck runs out. Just like Madam X’s description before him, we see these characters, or at least our versions of these characters, vivid in our minds. They are both there to serve their own purposes. Chaotic words from a very orderly mind; with two verses and one chorus in, this is shaping up to have a familiar structure of many Elvis Costello songs: introduce her, introduce him, then let the fireworks commence. We've got prizes if you can afford Some small humiliation before you get your reward And I'd rather be an outlaw than an in law to you And to live my life in miserable poverty Than to have to grovel to have some dream home hovel So watch me while I get away with prime time robbery Afford/reward, as well the sly slant rhyme of poverty/hovel that tucks into robbery at the end is wonderfully frenetic. It’s this sort of fame that comes at us at a dizzying rags-to-riches speed. It is nothing but a game show, a quiz show, filled with fine prizes, but it always comes with a catch, doesn’t it? The audience is already informed that our contestant in the elevator shoes has missed the mark, now we hear from the velvet throated announcer or emcee, perhaps. There’s been excitement aplenty, but what happens after the lights dim and the audience goes home is much more salacious and far more interesting. As he enters Madam X he thinks of red raged faces and the sweet greenbacks He climbed upon his honey and he covered her with money As they do their victory dance He thinks I hope they choke upon their laughter tracks We can all go straight to hell while we howl down the whole hotel The final twist: Madam X and the emcee were in cahoots this whole time? A surprise ending that’s nothing of a surprise, but what a great acerbic reveal of the realities of stardom and boredom. It’s a dirty little scene that the camera will never see. Every step might be your last Money signs are in your eyes, sucker You've been taken in this time You might just get out alive if you're lucky All the vultures tuning in to Glitter Gulch Are looking in on you / And they're hungry — Dig it Again, this has been a slow drag with “Glitter Gulch” from 1986’s “King of America.” It’s a wonderfully cynical piece that nevertheless seems so glamorous and glitzy that who cares? It details a fun time and place that we all love to immerse ourselves, regardless of the seedier side that might exist. Let me say this: without a dud, or a piece for padding, or even a middling piece in this entire album, it’s a wonderful dilemma choosing which song to slow drag with when it’s “King of America’s” turn on the slate of podcast episodes. 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 |