Today’s slow drag is with “All the Rage” from “Brutal Youth,” released in 1994. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello’s birth name. If it were possible to release a dose of venom into the air and then surround it with the alluring scent of honeysuckle that you just couldn’t help but breath in, then it would strike the same ambivalent emotions that you’ll find in “All the Rage.” Deadly yet melodic, hopeless yet civilized. Unrelenting yet forgivable. Forgivable because we all blurt out our feelings, good and bad, from time to time, but never with such aplomb. The mastery of it all; “All the Rage” is a confrontational piece that is tinged with the angst of finally putting into words what should have been said a long time ago. The result is a barrage of cleverly intertwined insults that blur the line between what’s fashionable, what’s popular at the moment, and what really infuriates us. As the man says, still, it’s all the rage. The twitching impulse is to speak your mind I'll lend you my microscope and maybe you will find it Is it in that ugly place that's just behind your face? Where you keep my picture still Despite the fact that you had me replaced Mind, find, behind. This piece starts with familiar, sturdy end rhymes, all the while lacing the front half of the lines with enticing low frequency words, such as twitching/microscope. The notion of such small items and smallness repeats throughout. “That ugly place.” Mr. Costello certainly uses that tinged word sparingly. It certainly packs a punch, doesn’t it? “That ugly place that’s just behind your face.” An ugly mind, ugly thoughts? Not even in what is arguably his most unveiled temper tantrum, the immutably earnest, “How To be Dumb,” with its line, “funny though people don’t usually get so ugly ‘til they think they know what they want,” goes for the proverbial jugular like “All the Rage” does. And it does so as it speaks barely above a whisper. There is something odd about the entire dumping process that demands each party wipe each other from their memories, wouldn’t you say? I cannot think of a more impossible task. Say "Goodbye" Baby can't you act your age? You know why I'm going to give it to you straight Although I'll never be unhappy as you want me to be Still it's all the rage It isn’t often, or ever, that I make reference to anyone else’s words, phrases, or songs when speaking of Mr. Costello and his fine canon of genius work. I’ll make a rare exception this time, however, due to this piece’s title, “All the Rage.” It puts me in mind of the sizzling 1984 “General Public” debut album of the same name. The song, “Tenderness,” in particular, seems to run down the same vitriolic avenue, with such lyrics as, “I don’t know where I am, but I know I don’t like it. I open my mouth and out pops something spiteful. Words are so cheap, but they can turn out expensive.” Mr. Costello’s version, of course, keeps ratcheting the tension up. I'll probably play along left to my own devices Spare me the drone of your advice The sins of garter and gin confession may delay You know the measuring pole, the merry boots of clay I've heard it all before, you'll say it anyway This first line, “I’ll probably play along left to my own devices” has always captured my imagination and befuddled me a bit. It seems to be conveying the exact opposite of what we might do given half a chance. Left to your own device means you’re able to do what you want, without being controlled by any outside influences. So, why then, play along? Nevertheless, the torrent of rage continues with barbs such as “spare me,” and “you’ll say it anyway.” The images sandwiched between these lines, including words such as “sin,” “confession,” and “clay,” keep the verse held down in the dirt. This is more certain than a staring contest. There’s little risk of blinking in this piece. Alone with your tweezers and your handkerchief You murder time and truth, love, laughter and belief So don't try to touch my heart, it's darker than you think And don't try to read my mind because it's full of disappearing ink And there it is, of course, the brilliant line that went on to become even more impactful when it was used as part of the title of Mr. Costello’s 2015 memoir, “Unfaithful Music and Disappearing Ink.” I love this line so much, particularly because Mr. Costello has chosen to use the word “full,” rather than the word “written in.” The possibilities seem far more extensive this way. This verse’s first line seems to be able to go either way, I think. Perhaps it is detailing a femme fatale’s tools of the trade, or, hear me out, it could very well serve as an underhanded swipe at underendowed masturbation. Could this mean the piece is from a woman’s point of view? This isn’t unheard of in Elvis Costello land, of course. Or, could this mean, instead of a monologue diatribe, this piece is actually a pithy dialogue? This is also not unheard of in Elvis Costello land. I have no answers, just giddy speculation. No matter what, these lines live on and on, always remaining oblique enough to keep them sounding fresh. Who could ever be angry with such a clever piece of writing? Although I'll never be unhappy as you want me to be Still it's all the rage — Dig it Again, this has been a slow drag with “All the Rage” from 1994’s “Brutal Youth.” This is a somber, biting piece that sounds as if they are words that have been waiting a long time to be said. A torrent of spiteful emotion infuses each cutting remark. Even the chorus, repeated verbatim three times, isn’t playing around. It stays constant and unflinching as the verses around it. Conspicuously absent is the patented mitigated word play Mr. Costello indulges in. Each chorus in this piece remains stoic and unwavering. What remains is little ambiguity, as in, “Say goodbye.” “Although I’ll never be unhappy as you want me to be.” Wow, it’s no wonder that “All the Rage” remains a brilliant piece of entertaining malice. And that’s it for today’s slow drag, my friend. Thank you for listening. Other gems from “Brutal Youth” you’ll enjoy a Slow Drag with are episode 8, “The Word She Wanted,” that’s a slow drag with “20% Amnesia,” episode 26, “Before You Start to Cry,” that’s a slow drag with the beautiful “You Tripped at Every Step,” episode 45, “The Gallery of Attempted People,” that’s a slow drag with prophetic “Science Fiction Twin,” and episode 93, “The Humble and the Mighty,” that’s a slow drag with “Clown Strike.” 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, “All the Rage”: http://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php/All_The_Rage “All the Rage”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Kf-yeojmjY “Tenderness”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XegL32Btzs 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 |