Today’s slow drag is with “Distorted Angel,” from “All This Useless Beauty,” released in 1996. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello’s birth name. It’s a constrained, recursive, and thoughtful piece filled with contradictions and polarizations. Strange things seem to occur, somewhere behind the nursery door Though I was just a bit of a kid, it was the bit that she was looking for Now I don't know where to begin confessing The way she's making me feel it can't be a sin This sort of shadowy nighttime imagery sends the mind reeling; even the mere suggestion of an inappropriate touch can set our teeth on edge. Yet, with the soothing internal rhymes and plain-spoken quandary, this first verse disconnects from the real world and creates a shadowy oblique landscape in which to explore those complex emotions we’re given at birth with the hope we’ll figure it all out on our own. The double edged blade of sin has a simplistic beauty to it: to hate is a violation, to love is even more of a violation. The rest of the piece dutifully follows suit. I was taught to believe you were looking down on everyone And your benevolent face is beautiful to gaze upon Now I just don't know who to tell to go to hell Who put the old devil in the distorted angel? The polarization set down in the first verse continues into this second verse. The beauty, the comfort and safety take a stark turn with the rejection and questioning of long-held beliefs, or at least the siren call of a pretty face. It’s that shattering of innocence, perhaps, that drives us to kick and to question. Distorted Angel / Pure illuminated sweetness Frightening small children is just about your only weakness I thought that you would tell me what I'm living for But I can't see you anymore Unlike many of our slow drags, there hasn’t been much mention of rhyme scheme so far. Relying on a consistent aa/bb scheme, the poetry is nearly drowned out by the sheer imagery and intimate details explored in this piece. Each verse begins sweet, yet ends stark and frank. In addition to the rigid rhyme scheme, each verse fills, then breaks the heart in different yet familiar ways. I don't know what they did but I'm sorry if it made you cry And if there's any justice at all I'd be punished for it I'd surmise It will mark the spot very well where I fell Under the shadow of the distorted angel I’m always suspicious of apologizes that include the conditional word, “if,” yet in this instance it makes sense to offer a sort of condolence for something that is, to the speaker, unknown. Punishment for our sins seems to be one of the first lessons we’re taught, so of course there needs to be a penitence paid. The lament of “I don’t know who to tell to go to hell” of the second verse is now replaced with “it might mark the spot very well where I fell.” It’s this sort of parallel phrasing that folds back in on itself, both calling attention to the differences and remarking upon the similarities. In this case it’s the direction in which sinners and devils eventually head to. Beneath the shadow of the distorted angel Below the shadow of the distorted angel Angel As always, there are so many interpretations, but this well-crafted piece puts me in mind of Pieter Bruegel the Elder’s 1562 painting, “The Fall of the Rebel Angels.” — Dig it Again, this has been a slow drag with “Distorted Angel” from 1996’s “All This Useless Beauty.” Touted as a collection of covers, albeit covers of his own creations, the title track alone has 4 documented cover performers; with June Tabor doing it before, and others, such as Lush and David Driver, tackling it in succeeding years. Between the original release of “All This Useless Beauty” in 1996 and the bonus Rhino edition released in 2001, “Distorted Angel” is featured in three different iterations: the slightly menacing original, the stripped down frenetic demo, and the poignant version called the “tricky remix,” with an additional whispered underlying refrain throughout, “I love you more than trust, I love you more than pride, I love you more than shame.” In a recent Need2Know Music show, hosted by his brother, Ronan, Mr. Costello touched upon his notion of covers: 25:30 To be sure, this casual, unvarnished insights like this that seem to be part of what fuels the genius. I’ve always said, there isn’t a song, no matter how good, that Elvis Costello’s cover hasn’t made better. Look no further than “Don’t Let Me be misunderstood,” and “Days” for the evidence that backs up this brazen claim. I highly recommend listening to all three versions of Distorted Angel together. It just gets better and better. And that’s it for today’s slow drag, my friend. Thank you for listening. I encourage you to re-listen to Episode 9 of “Slow Drag with Remedy,” “Grace and Virtue,” a slow drag with the stunning song “All This Useless Beauty,” Episode 23, and “False and Lovely Modesty,” a slow drag with “Little Atoms.” Both episodes are slow drags with more gems from “All This Useless Beauty.” 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 |