Welcome to my new series called Perfect Songs: A Feelings-Based Analysis of Songs You Should Listen to Many Times Throughout Your Life. What makes a perfect song? I don’t know, it’s just a feeling. Fortunately for you, my feelings are really smart and can immediately identify a perfect song every time with 100% accuracy so there’s no point in trying to debate. Just accept that my feelings are correct and enjoy the songs ok? First up…
Beyond Belief - Elvis Costello & The Attractions (from the album Imperial Bedroom)
Elvis Costello is a jazzy man at heart so he knows how to write a melody. It’s bouncy and covers the whole map. He’s up. He’s Down. He’s all around. Jazzy! He knows how to write lyrics, too. He probably likes beat poets, I don’t know. See you’ve got poetic lyricists like Dylan who sometimes cram so many words into one line you can’t help but wonder if they just don’t want people to sing along. Calm down, I love Dylan, don’t call the cops on me. Then you’ve got pop-poets like Costello who can write meaningful lyrics that are an instrument of their own: “And now you find you fit this identikit completely.” Bouncy!
“My hands were clammy and cunning
She's been suitably stunning
But I know there's not a hope in Hades
All the laddies cat call and wolf whistle
So called gentlemen and ladies
Dog fight like rose and thistle”
This song sneaks through the door, tip-toes through the house, rummages through your belongings, then trashes the place. This song will smash your lamps before you know it’s in your living room. And you’ll be grateful! Because you hated those lamps! Next thing you know you’re throwing your own vases into the wall.
You like weird noises? Me too. We’ve got lots of whirring and chirping in this song. Tiny UFOs landing in your fashionable hovel.
Nobody wants to talk about song structure except songwriters and NERDS. So I’ll keep it brief and say this song has almost no structure. It’s a two-parter. The chorus (if you can call it that) doesn’t come in until the last 40 seconds, and that’s where we stay through the fade. And it’s not like any old fade. As the volume decreases, the reverb increases. We’re beamed up after a meager 2.5 minutes.
The people that hold the most power are the ones that can write a lethally catchy tune and give us less than three minutes of it (SZA, hello???)
While you’re here, let me tell you about my show coming up on June 1st. I’m playing with Lore Noir and Stephanie Strange at The Six Below Midnight on SE Belmont in Portland. Doors at 8:30, show at 9pm. I’ll be taking the stage last. Get your tickets here.
Beyond Belief,
<3 Tonya
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