Today’s slow drag is with “Why Won’t Heaven Help Me?” from the Grammy Award winning, “Look Now,” released in 2018. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello. A lush, rolling, and entreating piece, “Why Won’t Heaven Help Me?” is offered up as a question, but doesn’t seem to care about the answer, embedding suspicions of its own before merely languishing in its own reverie. Up there with so many other Elvis Costello creations, this piece is destined to get stuck in your head. I set off alarms and fire off flares Cause sometimes they answer prayers I'm listening I wait for some distant bell to ring This is the first of three stanzas that follow the same pattern, yet focus on potentially different sentiments; at least they might feel disjointed, not exactly relating to each other. These assertions, nevertheless, flow effortlessly, or so Mr. Costello makes it seem, into two sets of repeated choruses that follow each of these narrations. Flares/prayers, listening/ring create the blueprint for a soothing aa/bb rhyme scheme that relies on an artful elongation of the last word in the third line. These lead-ins to the chorus fit together so well, that it’s worth repeating this first verse to hear how nicely these elements actually do fit together. I set off alarms and fire off flares Cause sometimes they answer prayers I'm listening I wait for some distant bell to ring Why won't heaven help me? (Far, far away) Why won't heaven help me? (It's so hard to say) Why won't heaven help me? Hey you out there! Even if you dare Take care of your wishes If you find they do come true You may regret that too There is so much charm running through this sequence. Could it be as easy as the squeaky wheel gets the grease? Make as much noise as possible and then hope that guidance comes? I’d say it’s childish in its hope, but really, no one ever seems to grow out of this internal monologue. It’s the only thing that keeps us going forward sometimes. Now for the catchy, orchestral chorus that populates this piece, “why won’t heaven help me?” The lines in between might be used as a space to insert the answer. Not here, though, at least not anything comforting and enlightening. Nevertheless “far, far away” and “it’s so hard to say” sound neither pitying or defeatist. They’re simply observations that separate the question that could be considered rhetorical. The delivery of which seems to convey zero self pity or passion. Well, at least not compared with other plaintive questions, such as “Why must I be so lonely?” from “I Wanna Be Loved,” or the question title, “Honey are you straight or are you blind?” from “Blood and Chocolate.” Or how about the unforgettable twang of “I want you”? The final chorus threaded into this first stanza is wonderfully uplifting-sounding, like we have come to expect from Mr. Costello, of course. “Hey you out there!” is inviting rather than confrontational. It sounds like good advice from someone who knows. What follows reminds me of what they say about answered prayers and how more tears are shed over them than the unanswered prayers. Then again, there is an implication that prayers are little more than wishful thinking. After this first stanza and chorus, two more lines of “why won’t heaven help me?” are asked before sliding into the next scenario. The second vignette follows the same aa/bb structure, just before repeating its infectious chorus. Remember the thrill that followed praise While dressed for a lover's gaze The moment when You saw through the lies of older men Why won't heaven help me? (Far, far away) Why won't heaven help me? (It's so hard to say) Why won't heaven help me? Hey you out there! Even if you dare Take care of your wishes If you find they do come true You may regret that too Praise/gaze, when/men, holding the word “when” in the third line to fit the structure, just like “listening” above. The craftsmanship that goes into the deceptively simple piece is part of why I think it warrants a loving slow drag. While the first verse concerned itself with listening for distant bells, this second stanza seems to have gone in a different direction. I was toying with the notion that the line “you saw through the lies of older men” might be considered a non sequitur, but have instead suspected the entire verse could be an overheard conversation in a restaurant or in a train station, rather than a continuation of the first verse. What do you think? And of course, the charming “hey you out there!” helps to infuse the stanza with an air of joy, as strange as that might sound. It really does get stuck in your head in the most pleasing way possible. I sensed this was wrong but take my word I thought somehow I'd be spared Alone again Believe what you want of me till then Why won't heaven help me? (Far, far away) Why won't heaven help me? (It's so hard to say) Why won't heaven help me? Hey you out there! Even if you dare... Take care of your wishes If you find they do come true You may regret that too Word/spared, again/then, elongating the word “again” in the third line, just like each verse before. Perhaps there isn’t much here that I should be impressed by, it is poetry, it’s supposed to do that. I know, but maybe it’s the discipline, or the creativity that tickles me so much. Now that we’ve done a slow drag with all three verses, would you say that they comprise 3 one act plays? Or are they 3 acts of the same play? It feels as if I can *almost knit them all together, before I lose the thread entirely. It’s slippery, taunting, and so charming how its true intent keeps obscuring. “Believe what you want of me till then” is another line that follows in the footsteps of “hey you out there!” There’s no malice, passion, or anger. The matter-of-fact delivery, in a way, could give it a sinister feel if you’re so inclined. — Dig it Again, this has been a slow drag with “Why Won’t Heaven Help Me?” from 2018’s Grammy Award winning “Look Now.” It’s a rare Elvis Costello feat to have only roughly 120 unique words in an entire 3:22 minute piece. By way of comparison, the rowdy “Luxembourg” from “Trust” romps through 205 unique words (not including the chorus) in 2:25. It’s almost as if it’s a glimpse into how he imagines other songwriters write their cute little ditties. And while this piece proves inscrutable after a fashion, and don’t get me wrong, I do adore this piece, it does also remind us how fortunate we are to have otherwise dense, complicated, and challenging pieces to continually mull over. It’s a joy every time “Why Won’t Heaven Help Me?” proves itself to be an infectious earworm that washes over you and threatens to stays all day. And that’s it for today’s slow drag, my friend. Thank you for listening. Another gem from “Look Now” you’ll enjoy a slow drag with is episode 13, “Not Quite Against My Will,” it’s a slow drag with “Stripping Paper.” I’m really looking forward to diving deeper into more pieces from this acclaimed album. As always, thank you for helping to get the word out about this little passion project. Truly, it means the world. 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, “Heaven Won’t Heaven Help Me?”: http://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php/Why_Won%27t_Heaven_Help_Me%3F “Why Won’t Heaven Help Me?”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOolSuOkdiY 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 |