Episode 5 :: "Well Heaven Knows What Fills the Heart," a Slow Drag with "Georgie and Her Rival"9/2/2020
A fleeting glance or a stifled laugh that language has the ability to capture even when we’re merely eavesdropping with our eyes closed. That is the power of Elvis Costello’s poetry.
His music is beyond belief, his voice echoes around the world. Lush and expansive, it’s always been about the words for me. His words create worlds that are, at once, alien and so, so familiar. That’s why lingering over the genius of the poetry itself is an incredibly rewarding activity. This is an appreciation of the peerless poet and modern day master, Elvis Costello. Thank you for listening. Please, subscribe and tell your friends. ---- Today’s slow drag is with a gem from “Mighty Like a Rose,” released in 1991. The songwriting is credited to Mr. Costello’s birth name. Categorized as a “dialect song,” “Mighty lak’ a Rose” is a 1901 song composed by Ethelbert Nevin, taken from the poetry of Frank Bebby Stanton. “Sweetest little feller, everybody knows, don’t know what to call him, but he mighty like a rose.” As with a few album titles before, “Get Happy” and “Trust” come to mind, the line, “mighty like a rose” appears nowhere in any song on this album. Famously, It would be another five years, in 1996, 17 studio albums in, when there’d be an actual, proper “title track” for one of his releases. This is a small point, I know, but I think it’s just another great example of how EC’s poetic world is layered with defiance, tangents, and singularity that provides historical, musical, as well as life lessons. Funny what you might come across on the internet. I have no confirmation that this is true, but on a Muppet fan site, of all places, complete with illustration, “Mighty Lak’ a Rose” is said to be about new parents trying to decide what to name their new baby. It’s remarkable how many far-flung recesses of popular culture this old song seems to have found itself. No matter where it is heard, “Might Lak’ a Rose” is a sober song that’s sung with a sort of joyless respect. Frank Sinatra and Petula Clark have both recorded it. Clark sang it during a 1942 air raid in London, when she volunteered to help keep others calm in the Criterion Theatre. She was 9 at the time. As of 2019, Clark is 86 and still touring. Sinatra died in 1998, on the same day as the “Seinfeld” finale. In addition to their flawless voices, Elvis Costello and Frank Sinatra have another indelible feature in common: epitaphs that can never be extricated from their DNA. Of course, Sinatra was 53 when he sang “My Way,” and Elvis Costello was younger than 23 when he penned his immortal lines, but still. ---- The gem that we’ll do a slow drag with today with from “Mighty Like a Rose” is “Georgie and Her Rival.” Again, my intention is appreciation, not explanation. That said, I think this is an intricate story that puts the characters on trial, yet never makes a judgment, let alone convicts them. It’s a love affair, a power play, a maddening yet romantic series of exchanges. Tell me if you agree Georgie grew to hate her name, it sounded like a tiny man And the one she had said "I can't see you, but I'll call you whenever I can" Two lines in and the story is well set up. Georgie is angry, but is it really because of her name, or is it her current flame she’s mad at, and she’s just too ladylike to direct it outward? The “I’ll call you whenever I can,” even by today’s digital standard, remains precarious and presumptuous. This tips the scale of power, to be sure. Or am I reading too much into this? Well, let’s add the next two lines and see what happens: Sometimes the phone would ring, when she was half-asleep A voice would drag her down with its suggestions Who’s the tiny man now? Though she often felt cheated, she never felt cheap There isn’t even a hint of eye rolling at the thought of yet another ill-matched couple, at it again, bickering or playing silly lover’s games, just a narrative of what is unfolding. We intuitively understand the underlying dynamics of such a relationship. It cannot be overstated how so many of his female characters are strong, three dimensional, and rarely mere objects of scorn or desire in order to fill up a three minute rock and roll song. You get both sides of the story. That’s why: Well heaven knows what fills the heart And makes you feel so alive It's impossible to tear apart Georgie and her rival Exactly. God only knows why love interests create adversarial situations, but if it fulfills something inside of them, you know there’s no stopping the chemical reaction. If we haven’t done this ourselves, we all know someone who has. It’s commiseration, not accusation. It was half-past February, and he hadn't called since New Year's Day Maybe he'd found another woman to say those words no chapel girl should say He did say he’d call whenever he could. The waiting is always the most difficult part, isn’t it, but Georgie seems to have gotten on with her life. Her mother would phone and always keep her talking She'd try to be polite, making faces But somewhere in the back of her mind, her rival was stalking I love the imagery of “making faces.” We all do it, but never seem to wonder if the person on the other end is doing the same thing. Let’s also take time to consider the support Georgie seems to have. Is her mother simply chatty? Or is she providing a welcome, if not slightly irritating distraction? Even when distracted, it can be so hard to let something, or someone, go. There’s a battle of wills going on between these rivals, but again: Well heaven knows what fills the heart And makes you feel so alive Now it’s Georgie’s move Her rival would always wait till the eighth or ninth bell He'd be desperate anyway and drunk as well An unwanted ringing phone is a funny thing, isn’t it? We used to get so quiet until it stopped. Now we just hit “reject.” Now the battle’s really getting complicated, just like love. Georgie gives in, hangs up with her mom, who, as mentioned, was probably trying to keep her from calling her “rival,” only to find but he’s not giving in either, no matter vulnerable he is to her advances. That agonizing distance before first ring and last minute when pride might come before the fall. But, what’s in it for Georgie? She seems to have blinked first. Well, she’s in much more control of this situation than a mere promise to call “whenever I can.” She’s called his bluff, maybe. She knows exactly what she’s doing. She always liked to hurt him to prove he was prepared To love her anyway that she wanted So she could tell which she preferred There is so much insight shined on the machinations of a love affair or idealized flirtation that is hard to not internalize, hard to not smile or cringe at, depending on your own personal situation. I’ve had opportunities to both cringe and smile at this passage. Is it possible to be so calculating when it comes to affairs of the heart? Is it possible to not be calculating? But you’ll never guess what he does next. I figure since what comes next is slightly scandalous, I might as well excite the senses by framing it in the form of a piece of gossip. He sat up with his address book trying to think what mood he's in His finger traced past Georgie's name to someone who needed less persuading Georgie might as well be a Chinese takeaway menu in a stack that her rival sifts through. The honesty of his actions, however, makes it difficult to condemn, or even truly form an opinion about him and his behavior. Pressuring Georgie is a fool’s errand, he’s learned, not even silly telephone games have worked, so instead of continuing to be a creep with her, he’s attempting to move on to someone more apt to take the bait. The more I learn about Georgie, the more I like and slightly fear her. The more I hear about her rival, the more I appreciate his honesty, regardless of its ambiguity or intention. Georgie knows her mind, and by extension, so too does her rival. In reality, neither one has done anything right. Neither one has done anything wrong. There is either no villain in the piece, or there are two. The honesty of motivation makes it difficult to condemn or applaud each either’s actions. The way the words are framed, there is no reason to come to either conclusion. The radio plays a lover's symphony "The number you have dialed has been re-directed" Now she puts him on the speaker-phone whenever she has company A number that’s been redirected typically goes to a new destination. If so, Georgie seems to have quite literally, moved on. Who’s the company, though? If it’s her mom, then it seems only fair to share how she’s not caved to her rival’s suggestions; if so, they’re probably both making faces together. It’s always fun to be in cahoots. If the company is another love interest, then it might be cruel and unnecessary, but it was made clear how much she liked to hurt him in order for make him love her. Perhaps she is trying this on with a new “rival,” at the exact moment she is doing it to her speakerphone boyfriend. We always seem to want what we cannot have. Regardless, having the upper hand always feels good. Well heaven knows what fills the heart And makes you feel so alive It’s impossible to tear apart Georgie and her rival This entire piece swirls around the maddening intricacies of romantic phone calls. They are as tricky as we think they are: making the first move, or waiting for someone else to make the first move, taking control, giving up control, gossiping, questioning true intentions, and if I may be so bold, a little bit of patented revenge. I wonder if Georgie and her rival ever even met in person. ---- Dig it Again, this has been a slow drag through “Georgie and Her Rival,” from 1991’s “Mighty Like a Rose.” It’s a disarmingly candid and likeable look into a romance that a lesser poet might have felt compelled to draw battle lines for. But simply, who knows why people do the things they do? Who can judge? We’ve all done it. It’s such a likeable song, so upbeat, vivid, and generous in its assessment of the human species. So, until next time, Adieu, my little ballyhoo.
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Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA Twitter: https://twitter.com/slowdragremedy Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_with_remedy/ Email: [email protected] Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag ---------------------- “Mighty Lak’ a Rose”: https://songofamerica.net/song/mighty-lak-a-rose/ Muppet Fan site illustration: https://muppet.fandom.com/wiki/Mighty_Lak%27_a_Rose A Petula Clark interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eA6tZeX5PKo 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 |