Today’s slow drag is with “Night Rally,” from the original UK release of “This Year’s Model,” released in 1978, and then from the compilation cassette “Taking Liberties,” released in the US in 1980. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello. In a modern world where it’s difficult to fathom such matching, swapping, and trading of particular songs, we should just be thankful that this little doomsday time capsule has now found its way to all shores, shoulders, and ears. It’s a history lesson that also provides a chilling glimpse into the future, if only we don’t listen. I would send out for assistance but there's someone on the signal wire And the corporation logo is flashing on and off in the sky They're putting all your names in the forbidden book I know what they're doing but I don't want to look What starts with a line that finds no rhyming partner, then uses a slant rhyme of wire/sky takes on an aa/bb structure as it rounds out the verse with a solid end rhyme of book/look. These words have been set down in such a way that suggests science fiction is blending with ugly truths. It would be easy, and probably a little misguided, to assign specific meaning to each of the allusions embedded in this woeful piece. Instead, it seems logical to rely on our own internal definition of what a corporation logo represents in a society, and what exactly is a forbidden book. The effect is a holistic experience that serves as the rightful castigation of nationalism and other right-wing extremism. You think they're so dumb, you think they're so funny Wait until they've got you running to the Night rally, night rally, night rally I once thought of this chorus as a dystopian view of the world, until I realized how rather short sighted I’d been. You don’t have to be political to notice the dull echo of atrocity that reverberates throughout. To quote another barn burner of Mr. Costello’s, “history repeats the old conceits. The glib replies, the same defeats.” Everybody's singing with their hand on their heart About deeds done in the darkest hours That's just the sort of catchy little melody To get you singing in the showers Some truths are remarkably universal and painfully personal. These lines are presented in such a way that captures the absurdity and the horror of how small gestures of patriotism can turn into acts that are far beyond rational comprehension. The double meaning found in this last line, “singing in the showers,” is a thinly veiled, blinding example of the depth of depravity there is in the world. This is not merely history, it’s an ever-looming threat. Oh, I know that I'm ungrateful I've got it lying on a plate And I'm not buying my share of souvenirs You can stand to attention You can pray to your uncle Only get that chicken out of here Everyone gets armbands and 3-D glasses Some are in the back room And they're taking those night classes “Lying on a plate,” could be considered part of an idiom, or at least a busted idiom, as was one of Mr. Costello’s early calling cards, regarding something that is very easily given away. Coupled with the straightforward word, “ungrateful,” and the mind reels with its many implications. To the uninitiated, this verse could very well feel as if it’s been written within the last few years. A more apolitical person, such as myself, might not have seen any of the seemingly obvious correlations that are much more on the surface when viewed with a keener eye. As I go through this slow drag, however, it’s obvious all the warning signs have been there all along; I’d just not bothered to be privy to it. Let it be said, however, that even in my ignorance, I knew this piece was more than mere young man’s angst. You think they're so dumb, you think they're so funny Wait until they've got you running to the Night rally, night rally, night rally — Dig it Again, this has been a slow drag with “Night Rally” from 1978’s “This Year’s Model.” I know I’ve hedged on this piece, feeling uncomfortable to dive deeper into each meaning. And that’s been by design. There are so many important comments and points made throughout this piece on subjects that are far bigger than all of us, I’m happy to just present the fine-tuned words that lead us to a chance to learn from the past. There is a summary, however. In a comment thread found on songmeanings dot com, there was one comment that seemed to place this piece in its proper perspective without getting the details wrong, which I’m afraid to do. Written by user name “ThunderCow,” the true zeitgeist of “Night Rally” can be summed up thusly: “It’s about the dangers of Nationalism, peppered with images and references to Nazism. It’s a masterpiece of wit and construction. The “forbidden book” is simply the records that fascist regimes always keep on their enemies. “Wait until they've got you running to the Night Rally" is the warning that you too might join them when they get big enough. The "singing with the hand on the heart" is how fascist regimes–or any regime–has their own propogandist songs. The "singing in the showers" is a clever double meaning, with reference to the showers in the Nazi extermination camps. There's also the reference to armbands (worn by Nazis).” And that’s it for today’s slow drag, my friend. Thank you for listening. Another gem from “This Year’s Model,” you’ll enjoy is “Polishing My Precious China,” it’s a slow drag with “Hand in Hand.” These are the only two episodes covered so far with material from “This Year’s Model.” I wonder why that is? So, until next time, adieu, my little ballyhoo. Show Notes: ---------------------- Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA Twitter: https://twitter.com/slowdragremedy Email: [email protected] Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag ---------------------- References: Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “Night Rally”: http://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php/Night_Rally “Night Rally”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1BanwTz8_Fk The evolution of the song meaning comment thread: https://songmeanings.com/songs/view/3530822107858655549/ Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday” https://www.amazon.com/Most-Terrible-Time-Life-Thursday-ebook/dp/B07XLXS5PL/ref=sr_1_1?crid=Y4SGCT62WPEK&dchild=1&keywords=the+most+terrible+time+in+my+life+ends+thursday&qid=1608873405&sprefix=The+Most+Terrible+Time+in+%2Caps%2C195&sr=8-1 Comments are closed.
|
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 |