Today’s slow drag is with “Mouth Almighty,” from “Punch the Clock,” released in 1983. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello. It’s a frenetic piece that pedals in self-flagellating charm that laments the failings of others as seen through the narrator’s own unbecoming behavior. Complicated, sure, but that’s what makes Elvis Costello a precious gem and the slow drag the perfect tempo to explore the complicated shadows of his genius turns of phrases. This town belongs to you and your tricks of confidence All the pavements for miles around are littered with your footprints Now every girl I get close to seems to be wearing your perfume And the clock strikes the letters of your name Both midnight and noon One striking verse in, and already the mind races with implications. The reason the narrator knows that miles of pavement are “littered” with “your” footprints is, conceivably, because he’s been walking those same streets, tormented in that familiar way of remembrance and regret. The heartbreak and self-destructive tendencies are as old and as recognizable as desire itself. Now, if it weren’t for that one quick swipe at the intended’s character, this first verse, filled with nimble slant rhymes, would move many past acquaintances to reconsideration. Yet, the tricks of confidence, a clever, strategically half-cloaked way to expose a con artist, nullifies any pure sentimentality of forlornness. In short, I can’t stop thinking about you and it’s all your fault. Confidence/footprints, perfume/noon: aspiring and establish poets alike, take note of these internal and end sound combinations. It’s not enough to evoke a maddening scene that feels familiar to us all, it has to do so with surgical precision. But I used to shoot my mouth off Till you'd had enough of me Once or twice nightly I know I've got my faults And among them I can't control my tongue But if you didn't believe me Why did you have to leave me With my mouth almighty The sly allusion to both a profession and an over-indulgence, as well as a confession wrapped in an accusation, all housed in 8 short sharp lines, is a joy to unpack. Admitting our shortcomings should be as good as correcting our shortcoming, or so the logic seems to suggest. I told you this would happen, so why were you so surprised when it did? Singing nightly, a controlled retelling of memorized lines could be the once at night activity that is then repeated with the unbridled babbling that takes place afterward. Mouth almighty, that's what I've got Mouth almighty, telling you what's what Mouth almighty I wish I'd never opened my mouth almighty Wish I'd never opened my mouth almighty Wish I'd never opened my mouth almighty “That’s what I’ve got, telling you what’s what.” There is an understated brilliance in these repeated words; it’s not just a chorus that repeats, it’s the internal wording that clashes, and then smashes together to create a sound of its own off the back of an idiom that means to inform someone of true facts. That’s what he’s got alright. Self aware flaws aside, there’s already room for a bit of self pity. So, I threw away the rose and held on to the thorn Crawling round with my crooner cufflinks and my calling card cologne But the realization of being replaced starts to tell tales across my face Without a soul to talk to or a hair out of place What a great way to nearly reference, but then go one better than the old expression of “all dressed up with nowhere to go.” Having made the wrong choice, feeling the pain, wandering the streets, haunted by the remnants of a busted relationship, only brings more words and stories to mind, dooming our narrator to hopefully repeating the same sequence of events the next time he opens his mouth almighty. Very often it is others’ pain where our pleasure is found. But I used to shoot my mouth off Till you'd had enough of me Once or twice nightly I know I've got my faults And among them I can't control my tongue But if you didn't believe me Why did you have to leave me With my mouth almighty — Dig it Again, this has been a slow drag with “Mouth Almighty” from 1983’s “Punch the Clock.” It’s a fun piece that proves why a slow drag can be so entertaining. Even at this tempo, it went by pretty fast. The striking wordplay that captures the complication of so many relationships is sparked by the nuanced self-loathing and lashing out that runs throughout this ultimately harmless and cheerful sounding ditty. In a word, it’s what’s what. And that’s it for today’s slow drag, my friend. Thank you for listening. 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,” Episode 38, “His Tribute of a Rose,” a slow drag with “The Greatest Thing.” Both episodes are slow drags with more gems 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 |