Episodes

  • — Dig it

    Ballyhoo, my friend. The passion project is doing something a little different today.

    My name is Remedy Robinson. And, for fun, this inaugural lyrics-only slow drag, let’s listen to brilliant lyrics of “The Boy Named If,” from the album of the same name, released in 2022. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

    I'm a lucky so and so

    A fortunate stiff

    You said you never knew me but I'm the one you want to be with

    If I tumble from a tightrope or leap from a cliff

    I won't be dashed to pieces

    I'm the boy named "IF"

    If I disappear and I slipper from your view

    I just step upon a crack and I won't come back

    Imagine me

    And I'll imagine you too

    In a hollow of the bed sheet

    Or a picture in a frame

    I'm vivid as a summer's day

    Then never seen again

    Who'll pay the taxman?

    Who'll place the blame?

    Who'll point into an empty room

    And whisper my name?

    If I disappear and I slipper from your view

    You will step upon a crack and I won't come back

    Imagine me

    And I'll imagine you too

    Take my hand

    We'll go to "Magic Lantern Land"

    Take my hand

    See the pictures they've projected

    Take my hand

    We'll fill our pockets up with sand

    Dance in frantic passes

    'Til the grains all turn to glasses

    Drums begin to navigate, the band strikes up a riff

    No one will believe you but the

    Boy Named If

    Who'll pay your entrance fee?

    Who'll leave a tip?

    Who'll say, "Listen here, Sunshine

    Don't you give me no lip"

    Who broke your favorite heart?

    Who stops and never starts?

    Who kiss you stupid?

    It must be something you did

    Who'll keep you satisfied after a lover's tiff?

    It must be some other guy not…

    The Boy Named If

    If I disappear and I slipper from your view

    You will step upon a crack and I won't come back

    Imagine me

    And I'll imagine you too

    Take my hand

    We'll go to "Magic Lantern Land"

    Take my hand

    See the pictures we've projected

    Take my hand

    We'll fill our pockets up with sand

    Dance in frantic passes

    'Til the grains all turn to glasses

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    Again, this has been a slow drag lyrics only reading of “The Boy Named If” from 2022’s album of the same name. Thank you for listening.

    And, of course, until next time, adieu my little ballyhoo

    Reference:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource: The Boy Named If https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=The_Boy_Named_If_(song)

  • Today’s slow drag is with “Country Darkness,” from “The Delivery Man,” released in 2004. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    “Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, Podcasts” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Podcasts

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    Slow Drag with Remedy on Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1f521a34-2ed9-4bd4-a936-1ad107969046/slow-drag-with-remedy-an-elvis-costello-appreciation

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “Country Darkness” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Country_Darkness

    “Country Darkness” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwp42y6I8m8

    Blade definition: https://appzaza.com/dictionary/blade

    Filament: https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/filament#google_vignette

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook of “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday” for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "Country Darkness" Lyrics

    This tattered document

    A mystery you can solve

    Some burnt out filament

    Flies buzzing around the bulb

    Country Darkness

    He thought of traveling

    Heard an approaching train

    Drown out his desperate pulse

    A song with no refrain

    Country Darkness

    She daydreams of forbidden sins

    There must be something more

    The prison she lives in

    The one with the open door

    A veil is covering

    A glistening cruel blade

    Suffer little children

    Repent, unfaithful maid

    Country Darkness

    She daydreams of forbidden sins

    There must be something more

    The prison she lives in

    The one with the open door

    A veil is covering

    A glistening cruel blade

    Suffer little children

    Repent, unfaithful maid

    Country Darkness

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  • Today’s slow drag is with “Tears before Bedtime,” from “Imperial Bedroom,” released in 1982. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    “Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, Podcasts” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Podcasts

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    Slow Drag with Remedy on Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1f521a34-2ed9-4bd4-a936-1ad107969046/slow-drag-with-remedy-an-elvis-costello-appreciation

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “Tears before Bedtime” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Imperial_Bedroom

    “Tears before Bedtime” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7v_inbXiPLQ

    “Tears before Bedtime” Alternative version https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wA8uLxyBF9I

    “Give up The Ghost” meaning https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/to-give-up-the-ghost#:~:text=Definition%20of%20'to%20give%20up%20the%20ghost'&text=If%20someone%20gives%20up%20the,what%20they%20are%20looking%20for.

    A chorus versus and hook: https://emastered.com/blog/hook-vs-chorus#:~:text=A%20chorus%20is%20usually%20preceded,make%20for%20a%20catchier%20tune.

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook of “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday” for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "Tears before Bedtime" Lyrics

    I know the name on the tip of your tongue

    And I know that accusing look

    Everybody knows I've been so wrong

    That's the problem and here's the hook

    Chorus:

    Tears before bedtime

    There'll be trouble tonight

    I don't want to talk about it anymore

    I don't want to have another fight

    I don't want to talk I don't want to fight

    How wrong can I be before I am right

    For the tears that you boo hoo hoo

    There can be no defense

    You say you'll forgive and forget

    But it's only a pretense

    (Chorus)

    Either you can leave the past behind

    Or give me something to disconnect my mind

    I sleep with my fists clenched tight

    When I don't lie awake all night

    I guess time gave up the ghost too late

    And the balance of our love

    Very soon turns to hate

    Darling your suspiciousness

    Tortures me at night

    But I can't excuse the cruel words

    That I use whenever we fight

    (Chorus)

    How wrong can I be before I am right

    Alternate Version Lyrics

    I see that strange look in your eyes once again

    And the name on the tip of your tongue is of a woman and not a man

    There’ll be tears before bedtime, they’ll be trouble tonight

    I don’t want to talk about it anymore, oh I don’t want to fight

    How wrong can I be before I am right?

    The pain that I’ve given you there is no defense

    You say you’ll forgive and forget but it’s only a pretense

    There’ll be tears before bedtime, they’ll be trouble tonight

    I don’t want to talk about it anymore, oh I don’t want to fight

    How wrong can I be before I am right?

    Either you can leave the past behind or give me something to discount mind

    I sleep with my fists clenched tights when I don’t lie awake all night

    I guess time gave up the ghost too late

    And the balance of our love

    Very soon turns to hate

    Suspicion and silence still torture my night

    And the cruel words of anger that run through all our fights

    They’ll be tears before bedtime, I’ll be trouble tonight

    I don’t want to talk about it anymore, I don’t want to fight

    How wrong can I be before I am right?

  • Today’s slow drag is with “Stella Hurt,” from “Momofuku,” released in 2008. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    “Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, Podcasts” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Podcasts

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    Slow Drag with Remedy on Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1f521a34-2ed9-4bd4-a936-1ad107969046/slow-drag-with-remedy-an-elvis-costello-appreciation

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “Stella Hurt” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Stella_Hurt

    “Stella Hurt” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W93e5f6py9U

    “Chekhov’s Gun” https://screencraft.org/blog/everything-you-need-to-know-about-chekhovs-gun/

    “Arcadia” https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/arcadia#:~:text=Now%20English%20speakers%20often%20use,%2C%20simple%2C%20or%20untroubled.%22

    Blue Birds Songs: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Eastern_Bluebird/sounds#

    “The Other End of the Telescope” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grIxnYllZxk

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook of “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday” for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "Stella Hurt" Lyrics

    You should wear your red galoshes

    Walking o'er the city pride

    Streets are paved with heaven's pennies

    Gutters full of suicides

    Teddy steadily fell from grace

    Somewhere near Arcadia

    Once she overheard a voice

    she didn't hear on the radio

    Velvet gloves and country clubs

    Were never going to hold her

    Ringing the necks of silly

    Southern belles

    Who wanted to scold her

    Don't bring me down

    I'm trouble bound

    Blue song

    Red Alert

    Who made Stella Hurt?

    Teddy soon dropped out of sight

    Turned up in another town

    Changed her name for the spotlight

    Singing like a blue bird in a sequin gown

    She finally fell and married well

    But I knew it wouldn't last

    Reversing back into the limelight

    No one ever saw her even half-plastered

    Don't bring me down

    I'm trouble bound

    Blue song

    Red Alert

    Who made Stella Hurt?

    Then she saw those soldier boys

    Throw their bonnets in the air

    Self-made men would pledge their fortunes

    And dream of her

    And dream of her...

    Generals in the commissary opened up a case of wine

    Checked the perfume of the cork

    Said "Made in 1929"...

    They used her up, to raise morale for money

    And Old Glory

    Her voice was shot beyond repair

    But this is not the last act of this story

    The night is black as cracked shellac

    Abandoned in an attic

    Stella is silent as the grave

    Until the needle drags her through the static

    Don't bring me down

    I'm trouble bound

    Blue song

    Red Alert

    Who made Stella Hurt?

  • Today’s slow drag is with “The Difference,” from “The Boy Named If,” released in 2023. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    “Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, Podcasts” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Podcasts

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    Slow Drag with Remedy on Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1f521a34-2ed9-4bd4-a936-1ad107969046/slow-drag-with-remedy-an-elvis-costello-appreciation

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “The Difference” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=The_Difference

    “The Difference” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tvg-OfP1LA

    Octameter: https://poemanalysis.com/poetic-meter/#:~:text=Octameter%20Octameter%20refers%20to%20a,patterns%20in%20English%20language%20verse.

    The difference between undertone and overtone https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/eb/qa/undertone-and-overtone

    What is an appositive: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/appositive

    Fiddlehead Reel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDYe6ZMs3K4

    Fiddlehead: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fiddlehead

    The Male Gaze: https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-the-male-gaze-5118422

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook of “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday” for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "The Difference" Lyrics

    I pulled a petal from the flower to tell just where my fortune fell

    About a boy beyond my caution before I lay beneath his spell

    And he said, "Do you know, do you know, do you, by chance, know wrong from right?"

    "Do you know, do you know, do you know what turns pleasure to plight?

    If you trust me, I know it may seem strange

    I'll show you the way down into the underworld"

    I did just what he asked me to

    Lifted my skirt to show him my shoe

    Upon a reel of the finest fiddlehead

    Light as the dance around Milady's bed

    The steps came faster at his insistence

    'Til he showed me all about the difference

    "It's not about the things I promised, it's not about the vow we broke

    If I am faithless or dishonest it's just the gaze that you provoke"

    And he said, "Do you know, do you know, do you, by chance, know wrong from right?"

    "Do you know, do you know, do you know what turns pleasure to plight?

    If you kiss me, at first it may seem strange

    I'll show you the way into another world"

    My father shamed me just like you

    Buried my name in a glass or two

    'Til he came to me in his darkest house

    He mistook me, took me for his spouse

    And my cries for a woman in the distance

    So, I took this knife to show him the difference

    'Til he came to me in his darkest house

    He mistook me, took me for his spouse

    And my cries for the woman in the distance

    So, I used this knife to show him the difference

  • Today’s slow drag is with “Lipstick Vogue,” from “This Year’s Model,” released in 1978. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    “Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, Podcasts” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Podcasts

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    Slow Drag with Remedy on Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1f521a34-2ed9-4bd4-a936-1ad107969046/slow-drag-with-remedy-an-elvis-costello-appreciation

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “Lipstick Vogue” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Lipstick_Vogue

    “Lipstick Vogue” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3sqZUMgcX4

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook of “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday” for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "Lipstick Vogue" Lyrics

    Don't say you love me when it's just a rumor

    Don't say a word if there is any doubt

    Sometimes I think that love is just a tumor

    You've got to cut it out

    You say you're sorry for the things that you've done

    You say you're sorry but you know you don't mean it

    I wouldn't worry, I had so much fun

    Sometimes I almost feel just like a human being

    It's you

    Not just another mouth in the lipstick vogue

    It's you

    Not just another mouth in the lipstick vogue

    Oh yeah

    Get to the slot machine almost dead on arrival

    Just hit me one more time with that live wire

    Maybe they told you you were only a girl in a million

    You say I've got no feelings

    This is a good way to kill them

    Select the control and then insert the token

    You wanna throw me away but I'm not broken

    You've got a lot to say, well I'm not jokin

    There are some words they don't allow to be spoken

    Sometimes I almost feel just like a human being

    It's you

    Not just another mouth in the lipstick vogue

    It's you

    Not just another mouth in the lipstick vogue

    Not just another mouth lost in the lipstick vogue (repeats)

  • Today’s slow drag is with “The Spell That You Cast,” from “National Ransom,” released in 2010. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    “Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, Podcasts” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Podcasts

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    Slow Drag with Remedy on Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1f521a34-2ed9-4bd4-a936-1ad107969046/slow-drag-with-remedy-an-elvis-costello-appreciation

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “The Spell That You Cast” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=The_Spell_That_You_Cast

    “The Spell That You Cast” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEYZTE8BDuE

    The Difference between You Got and You Have: https://preply.com/en/question/you-got-youve-got-43032#:~:text=“You%20have%20got”%20fully%20correct,missed%20too%20many%20days%20already.”&text=“You%27ve”%20(short,”%20(have%20is%20missing).

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook of “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday” for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "The Spell That You Cast" Lyrics

    The spell that you cast

    Well, it seems to be wearing off fast

    (The spell that you cast)

    Come back baby, cos I don't think that I can last

    (The spell that you cast)

    And I wonder whether

    You got some other kind of lover < grammar

    That you like to please

    Better than me

    Don't think I can take it

    How am I gonna break it?

    The spell that you cast

    The spell that you cast

    The spell that you've woven

    Well, it seems to be coming undone

    (The spell that you cast)

    Come back, Baby or at least tell me where you are going

    (The spell that you cast)

    And you know quite well

    That I'm not the jealous kinda fella

    But they look in your eyes

    And they're all hypnotized

    I'm gonna miss you madly

    'Cos I love you sadly

    The spell that you cast

    The spell that you cast

    Jimmy, come quickly ‘cos I feel quite sickly

    (Oh, the spell that you cast)

    You're like a gangster's Molly with a cannonade volley

    (Oh, the spell that you cast)

    (Oh, the spell that you cast)

    Here we go…

    Don't think I can take it

    How am I gonna break it?

    The spell that you cast

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  • Today’s slow drag is with “Blame It on Cain,” from “My Aim is True,” released in 1977. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    “Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, Podcasts” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Podcasts

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    Slow Drag with Remedy on Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/1f521a34-2ed9-4bd4-a936-1ad107969046/slow-drag-with-remedy-an-elvis-costello-appreciation

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “Blame It on Cain” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Blame_It_On_Cain

    “Blame It on Cain” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfHaI7rVp9g

    “The Ticker’s Rise and Fall” https://www.thinkadvisor.com/2008/02/01/the-tickers-rise-and-fall/

    “Shallow Grave” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RN5qkhNHEKg

    “Good Luck Grin” https://stirredblog.com/2017/03/13/baldwin-bar/

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "Blame It on Cain" Lyrics

    Once upon a time, I had a little money

    Government burglars took it long

    before I could mail it to you

    Still, you are the only one

    Now I can't let it slip away

    So, if the man with the ticker tape,

    tries to take it, this is what I'm gonna say

    Blame it on Cain

    Don't blame it on me

    Oh, oh, it's nobody's fault

    but we need somebody to burn

    Well, if I was a saint with a silver cup

    and the money got low

    we could always heat it up or trade it in

    then the radio to heaven will be wired to your purse

    And then you can run down the waveband,

    coast to coast, hand in hand

    Bad to worse, curse for curse,

    don't be dissatisfied

    So, you're not satisfied

    (Chorus)

    I think I lived a little too long

    on the outskirts of town

    I think I'm going insane

    from talking to myself for so long

    Oh, but I never been acute

    But when they step upon your face,

    they wear that good look grin

    I gotta break out one weekend if I do somebody in

    But every single time I feel a little stronger

    they tell me it's a crime

    Well, how much longer?

    (Chorus)

    Blame it on Cain

    Please don't blame it on me

    It's nobody's fault,

    but it just seems to be his turn

  • Today’s slow drag is with “American Gangster Time,” from “Momofuku,” released in 2008. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    “Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, Podcasts” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Podcasts

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “American Gangster Time” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=American_Gangster_Time

    “American Gangster Time” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnRIKlVsk1w

    Flag Etiquette: https://www.vfw.org/community/flag-etiquette

    Flatter to Deceive idiom meaning: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/flatter-to-deceive#:~:text=to%20give%20the%20appearance%20of,just%20a%20lull%20in%20hostilities.

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "American Gangster Time" Lyrics:

    One, two, three, four

    Somewhere downtown a pretty girl kneels

    Offers her soft lips and a handful of pills

    Peels off her dress and then the rest of her skills

    It buys what she wants and the rest she just steals

    He speaks between deep swallows of rum

    While her head is beating like a big bass drum

    And she wishes he were mute and not just dumb

    When the trick asked her quick, "Did you come?"

    It's a drag

    Saluting that starry rag

    I'd rather go blind

    For speaking my mind

    Or use it just like a gag

    So, raise it in anger

    Just let it hang

    American Gangster Time

    He sits back and starts to invent

    All about some Saigon correspondent

    "'Til the carbine fell silent and spent

    I never knew it could be so eloquent"

    Next week there'll be some fashionable new sin

    For each harlot and each Puritan

    Pull off their wings stick them on a pin

    And just watch the money roll in

    It's a drag

    Saluting that starry rag

    I’d rather go blind

    For speaking my mind

    Or use it just like a gag

    So, raise it in anger

    Just let it hang

    American Gangster Time

    What you got hidden up your sleeve?

    The tracks of the train that were bidding you to leave

    When they say that you should flatter to deceive

    Don't count on any reprieve

    The hands of the helpless are raised

    Your dead little secrets are praised

    The people stand dumbstruck and dazed

    By the inches that you have erased

    It’s a drag

    Saluting that starry rag

    I'd rather go blind

    For speaking my mind

    Or use it just like a gag

    So, raise it in anger

    Just let it hang

    American gangster time

    Committing the perfect crime

    In American Gangster Time

    Here we go

    Bye bye

    American Gangster Time

  • Today’s slow drag is with “Lip Service,” from “This Year’s Model,” released in 1978. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    “Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, Podcasts” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Podcasts

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “Lip Service” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Lip_Service

    “Lip Service” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hE6oRbX4CLc

    “Grice’s Maxims” https://www.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/dravling/grice.html

    “Sharp Practice” meaning: https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/sharp-practice

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "Lip Service" Lyrics

    You left the motor running

    But I know you're so attractive

    Getting in some sharp practice

    You better not do anything reckless

    But if everybody is going through the motions

    Everybody is going through the motions

    Are you really only going through the motions?

    Lip service is all you'll ever get from me

    Lip service is all you'll ever get from me

    Lip service is all you'll ever get from me

    But if you change your mind

    You can send it in a letter to me

    Don't make any sudden movements

    These are dangerous amusements

    When did you become so choosy

    Don't act like you're above me, just look at your shoes

    But if everybody is going through the motions

    Everybody is going through the motions

    Are you really only going through the motions?

    Lip service is all you'll ever get from me

    Lip service is all you'll ever get from me

    Lip service is all you'll ever get from me

    But if you change your mind

    You can send it in a letter to me

    But if you change your mind

    You can send it in a letter to me

    But if you change your mind

    You can send it in a letter to me

  • Today’s slow drag is with “The Man You Love to Hate,” from “The Boy Named If,” released in 2022. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “The Man You Love to Hate” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=The_Man_You_Love_To_Hate

    “The Man You Love to Hate” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZU9b4NOQBQ

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "The Man You Love to Hate" Lyrics

    I went to a theatre on Silhouette Street

    It had a taste of decay, and a scent of defeat

    All of the patrons in the pews were people that I'd killed or used

    The actors on the stage were equally skilled

    The players took turns in lighting the fuse

    One of them said "Now you must choose"

    A man of infamy or ill-repute

    And that's the one that we will execute

    None of that mob had turned up late

    They said, "You'd better concentrate”

    So, start the show, 'cos we can't wait for

    The Man You Love to Hate

    All of the patrons sitting on pews

    Were the shades of the ghosts of the once accused

    There was music that dragged in line and word

    Not a penny was spent, or a conscience was spared

    The hero's motives were never in doubt

    We laughed at the speeches that he would spout

    Suddenly there arose a shout

    Confessions simply tumbled out

    And marriage vows, that someone mumbled about

    None of that mob had turned up late

    They said, "You'd better concentrate”

    So, start the show, 'cos we can't wait for

    The Man You Love to Hate

    The closing act

    The first one billed

    Into the limelight thrilled

    The tale of a ship lured onto the rocks under

    The cover of darkness, the hold was plundered

    My mouth was parched my eyes red-rimmed

    My false light shone

    And my ghost light dimmed

    I went to a house on Silhouette Street

    Where I lived once and died once more

    Awoke a woman I once adored

    Her husband came to the door

    In a masquerade of dignity

    He said, "I'm pleased to meet you but you don't know me"

    She took my money and handed me the key

    The number on the fob was "999"

    She whispered that's your room and this is mine

    But that's a chamber that you can't afford

    It's one door down, next to the Emergency Ward

    None of that mob had turned up late

    They said, "You'd better concentrate”

    So, start the show, 'cos we can't wait for

    The Man You Love to Hate

    The Man You Love to Hate

    I'm a one party state

    The Man You Love to Hate

    The girl you used to care for

    Without a why or wherefore

    The country that I loved

    Is just a problem to solve

    Until we all disintegrate before

    The Man You Love to Hate

  • Today’s slow drag is with “Green Shirt,” from “Armed Forces,” released in 1979. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “Green Shirt” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Green_Shirt

    “Green Shirt” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilN9SpD6Y_Q

    The Somerton Man Mystery: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/have-scholars-finally-identified-the-mysterious-somerton-man-180980540/

    Quisling Clinic Photo https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Image/IM51270

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "Green Shirt" Lyrics

    There's a smart young woman on a light blue screen

    Who comes into my house every night

    And she takes all the red, yellow, orange and green

    And she turns them into black and white

    But you tease, and you flirt

    And you shine all the buttons on your green shirt

    You can please yourself but somebody's gonna get it

    Better cut off all identifying labels

    Before they put you on the torture table

    'Cause somewhere in the "Quisling Clinic"

    There's a shorthand typist taking seconds over minutes

    She's listening in to the Venus line

    She's picking out names

    I hope none of them are mine

    But you tease, and you flirt

    And you shine all the buttons on your green shirt

    You can please yourself but somebody's gonna get it

    Never said I was a stool pigeon

    I never said I was a diplomat

    Everybody is under suspicion

    But you don't wanna hear about that

    'Cause you tease, and you flirt

    And you shine all the buttons on your green shirt

    You can please yourself but somebody's gonna get it

    Better send a begging letter to the big investigation

    Who put these fingerprints on my imagination?

    You tease, and you flirt

    And you shine all the buttons on your green shirt

    You can please yourself but somebody's gonna get it

    You can please yourself but somebody's gonna get it

    You can please yourself but somebody's gonna get it

  • Today’s slow drag is with “The First to Leave,” from “The Juliet Letters,” released in 1993. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello’s birth name.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “The First to Leave” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=The_First_To_Leave

    “The First to Leave” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iS0dPEacnTY

    “The Dark Ensemble: Voice and String Quartet https://interlude.hk/the-dark-ensemble-voice-and-string-quartet-20th-century/

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "The First to Leave" Lyrics

    I should open with a kiss

    For if you're reading this

    You must have opened up your case

    And found this letter where I placed it

    In between the silk and lace

    There were other clues, like your walking shoes

    But I still refused to believe

    That you were meant to be the first to leave

    Everybody here sends you their love

    How could I forget you still walk above

    Or below

    Perhaps you'll never know this Purgatory

    We never could agree

    There's a thought, there's a pause

    No time to repent

    Eternally yours in a permanent Lent

    But if I should give you up

    If you're right and life just stops

    And I never see your face again

    Then from unearthly pleasures, proud and plain

    I shall abstain

    'Til you realize, my loss is your surprise

    Unless you know otherwise, then don't grieve

    You see I had to be the first to leave

  • Today’s slow drag is with “God’s Comic,” from “Spike,” released in 1989. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello’s birth name.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “God’s Comic” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=God%27s_Comic

    “God’s Comic” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajjBxMCMQQs

    “God’s Comic” Live https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0N6TfU54o8

    “Requiem” by Andrew Lloyd Webber https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3CG8pUpVjg

    “God is dead”: What Nietzsche really meant”: https://bigthink.com/thinking/what-nietzsche-really-meant-by-god-is-dead/

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "God's Comic" Lyrics

    I wish you'd known me when I was alive, I was a funny fella

    The crowd would hoot and holler for more

    I wore a drunk's red nose for applause

    Oh yes, I was a comical priest

    "With a joke for the flock and a hand up your fleece"

    Drooling the drink and the lipstick and greasepaint

    Down the cardboard front of my dirty dog-collar

    (Chorus:)

    Now I'm dead, now I'm dead, now I'm dead, now I'm dead

    And I'm going on to meet my reward

    I was scared, I was scared, I was scared, I was scared

    He might’ve never heard God's comic

    So, there he was on a waterbed, drinking a cola of a mystery brand

    Reading an airport novelette, listening to Andrew Lloyd-Webber's "Requiem"

    He said, before it had really begun, "I prefer the one about my son"

    "I've been wading through all of this unbelievable junk

    And wondering if I should have given the world to the monkeys"

    (Repeat Chorus)

    I'm gonna take a little trip down Paradise's endless shores

    They say that travel broadens the mind, till you can't get your head out of doors

    I'm sitting here on the top of the world, I hang around in the longest night

    Until each beast has gone to bed and then I say "God bless" and put out the light

    While you lie in the dark, afraid to breathe

    And you beg and you promise and you bargain and you plead

    Sometimes you confuse me with Santa Claus

    It's the big white beard, I suppose

    I'm going up to the Pole, where you folks die of cold

    I might be gone for a while if you need me

    Now I'm dead, now I'm dead, now I'm dead, now I'm dead

    And you're all going on to meet your reward

    Are you scared? Are you scared? Are you scared? Are you scared?

    You might have never heard, but God's comic

  • Today’s slow drag is with “The World and His Wife,” from “Punch the Clock,” released in 1983. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “The World and His Wife” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=The_World_And_His_Wife

    “The World and His Wife” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4wgrLmdVaI

    “The World and His Wife” Live https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KJTTmA_vvs

    “The World and His Wife” idiom: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/world-and-his-wife#:~:text=a%20great%20many%20people%2C%20especially,his%20wife%20will%20be%20there.

    “It’s a Living” idiom https://www.englishforums.com/English/ItsALiving/mkphd/post.htm

    “This is the life” idiom https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/this-is-the-life

    “Score Draw” https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/score-draw#:~:text=Word%20forms%3A%20plural%20score%20draws,the%20same%20number%20of%20goals.

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "The World and His Wife" Lyrics

    The family circle gathers 'round from very far and near

    To pass around the same remarks they passed away last year

    The little girl you dangled on your knee without mishap

    Stirs something in your memory and something in your lap

    Chorus:

    But it's a living

    This is the life

    For the world and his wife

    The world and his wife

    The kissing cousins slip outside to cuddle and confess

    She says sweet nothing at all, it's much more of a mess

    The conversation melts like chocolate down their open jaws

    As the juniper berry slips down just like last night's drawers

    (Chorus)

    To tell the truth our Mum ran off with someone else's father

    Went for two weeks' holiday in Taramasalata

    Daddy went out with the rubbish and he kept on walking

    Between Mum and the walls

    God only knows who does the talking

    (Chorus)

    But late time in the evening through the tears and fol-de-rol

    Come the sentimental feelings for the lure of vitriol

    Longing thoughts go hankering for the old home overseas

    With a blindfold and a national anthem sung in different keys

  • Today’s slow drag is with “Black and White World” from “Get Happy!”, released in 1980. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    Transcription: https://slowdragwithremedy.weebly.com/

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “Black and White World” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Black_And_White_World

    “Black and White World” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRDl6YvXhiw

    “Black and White World” Demo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMLZi9v-RFM

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "Black and White World" Lyrics:

    I was looking at the black and white world

    It seemed so exciting

    If you'd only put me back-to-back with that girl

    When the night's inviting

    With just a little lighting

    There'll never be days like that again

    When I was just a boy and men were men

    You never go from moment to moment

    You're the living double of a single fiction

    You're very colorful with your compliments

    As you feel the finger's friction

    It's a freeze-frame till it’s real life

    You don't want to look

    'Cause you've seen the film and you've read the book

    I was looking at the black and white world

    Trying to name some pin-up

    Those days she was just a beautiful girl

    Now she's framed and hung up

    I thought she was young

    Up until I saw her last night in close detail

    Though they all fade away when you're so pale

    It's more than just a physical attraction

    It starts with a face and ends up a fixation

    But you're never gonna feel a fraction

    Of the way it used to work on your imagination

    When you were looking at the black and white world

  • Today’s slow drag is with “Honey, Are You Straight or Are You Blind?” from “Blood and Chocolate,” released in 1986. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello’s birth name.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “Honey, Are You Straight or Are You Blind?” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Honey,_Are_You_Straight_Or_Are_You_Blind%3F

    “Honey, Are You Straight or Are You Blind?” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqeSNPJ1bIY

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "Honey, Are You Straight or Are You Blind?"

    Who do you see when you turn your eyes down?

    Who do you see when I'm not seeing you?

    The news is out all over town

    And all these girls are taking turns at being you

    Chorus:

    Well, well, well

    You'd better make up your mind

    Honey, are you straight or are you blind?

    She's coming in between us, you know that she is

    I'm not holding on to her but one of us is

    My hands are in my pockets, my face is in a book

    She could walk 'round naked and I wouldn't sneak a look

    (Chorus)

    Honey, are you straight or are you blind?

    Honey, are you straight or are you blind?

    Honey, are you straight or are you blind?

    Honey, are you straight or are you blind?

    She walked in and your eyes flew out the door

    You squeezed my hand until the circulation ceases

    She's just a doll like so many more

    She's the kind of doll that you'd like to pull to pieces

    (Chorus)

    Well!

    Well, well, well

    You'd better make up your mind

    Honey, are you straight or are you blind?

  • Today’s slow drag is with “White Knuckles” from “Trust,” released in 1981. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slow_drag_remedy/

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “White Knuckles” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=White_Knuckles

    “White Knuckles” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbZ6TkpflKc

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “Wave a White Flag” https://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php?title=Wave_A_White_Flag

    “Wave a White Flag” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJwALX5riiU

    “I need him like the axe needs the turkey” saying from “The Lady Eve.” https://melanienovak.com/2020/09/02/the-lady-eve-i-need-him-like-the-axe-needs-the-turkey/

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "White Knuckles" Lyrics:

    White knuckles came down to put the frighteners on

    I believe she's the one that he's got his heart set on

    It doesn't matter if your face doesn't fit

    There's no charge for changing it

    Oooh ooh

    What are you doing

    You see right through him

    You don't have to take it when he gets cruel

    White knuckles on black and blue skin

    You don't have to take it so you just give in

    White knuckles sweatin' on the headboard

    Never found out what the kisser was for

    Losing face with the boys while she's whispering in his ear

    They never found out why they called it laughing gear

    Maybe they weren't loved when they were young

    Maybe they should be hung by their tongues

    Oooh ooh

    Under the blankets with the body jerk

    He needs her like the axe needs the turkey

    Thinking of après of this fancy footwork

    White knuckles on black and blue skin

    Didn't mean to hit her but she kept laughing

    White knuckles sweatin' on the headboard

    Never found out what the kisser was for

    There's always someone new to toy with when the penny drops in the slot

    Now it's a petty crime on the news at nine

    But it's all she's got

    Love on the never never dreams don't come cheap

    I don't close my eyes when I go to sleep

    Oooh ooh

    It gets right under your skin

    It makes you as miserable as sin

    You don't have to take it so you just give in

    White knuckles on black and blue skin

    Didn't mean to hit her but she kept laughing

    White knuckles sweatin' on the headboard

    Never found out what the kisser was for

    White knuckles on black and blue skin

    You don't have to take it so you just give in

    White knuckles sweatin' on the headboard

    Never found out what the kisser was for

    Why you don't come round anymore

    Mother said

    He's using you

    Sister said

    I told you so too

    When he goes to your head

    You took it to be true

  • Today’s slow drag is with “They’re Not Laughing at Me Now” from “Hey Clockface,” released in 2020. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Instagram: slow_drag_remedy

    Email: [email protected]

    Bluesky Social: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “They’re Not Laughing at Me Now” http://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php/They%27re_Not_Laughing_At_Me_Now

    “They’re Not Laughing at Me Now” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_uR6jvQKAI

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "They're Not Laughing at Me Now" Lyrics:

    Tell me, how does it feel?

    In the hour of deception and the moment of pretend

    To be scorned by those rank and those unkind strangers

    You were fool enough to call your friends

    Will you say as the curtain descends?

    "They're not laughing at me now"

    When the last of the garlands and laurel crowns and fine bouquets have all been swept away

    You were lost in the smokescreens and cavalcades and accolades instead of traitor's pay

    Where will you find the courage to say?

    "They're not laughing at me now"

    You could shake my hand

    If I could unfold my fist

    If I were a gentleman

    If I were a Christian

    But I wouldn't risk it

    Why would you?

    You know my name now

    And it's "Mister" to you.

    Now we're back at the start, no forgiveness in your heart, you turned your coat and asked me to turn my cheek

    And it's all in a language that I can understand but never bring myself to speak

    I'll leave it to you, if you dare

    It's a peal too appalling to bear

    I wonder if you're here or you're there

    They're not laughing at me now

  • Today’s slow drag is with “Mischievous Ghost” from the Rhino reissue of “Mighty Like a Rose,” released in 2002. It was originally released as part of the “Bringing It All Back Home” soundtrack, released in 1991. The songwriting is credited to Elvis Costello’s birth name. This episode has been requested by a loyal and astute fan who believes “Mischievous Ghost” was the impetus for Mr. Costello’s dalliance with long hair, as he seems to have spent much time “in the blank hillsides” of Ireland himself at the time.

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    Show Notes:

    Appreciation written, produced, and narrated by Remedy Robinson, MA/MFA

    Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/slowdragwithremedy.com

    Email: [email protected]

    Podcast music by https://www.fesliyanstudios.com

    Rate this Podcast: https://ratethispodcast.com/slowdrag

    References:

    Elvis Costello Wiki Resource, “Mischievous Ghost” http://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/index.php/Mischievous_Ghost

    “Mischievous Ghost” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfbsGZvdNbk

    Unmask Us, Elvis Costello on “Mischievous Ghost” https://unmask.us/songwriters-c-e/elvis-costello-p5/

    The Vibrato Debate: https://www.newsounds.org/story/43709-the-vibrato-debate/

    The Scottish Bagpipes, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xl9240HWXBU

    Purchase “The Most Terrible Time in My Life…Ends Thursday”

    Listen to the audiobook for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq7n1pN8D1Y

    "Mischievous Ghost" Lyrics

    She came dancing right before my eyes

    She said she came to warn me

    Before it dawned on me

    I went walking on the blank hillside

    Where the sunset falls

    Where the sunset dies

    She gave me love / she told me lies

    That most mischievous ghost

    She was in disguise, she was in disguise, she was in disguise

    He started to whistle, they bought him a flute

    He was talking in tongues, they swore he was mute

    He scoffed and blasphemed, they said it was beautiful

    Busted a button, they bought him a suitcase full

    They colored him cricket and laced him up tight

    As he drew on their days, resurrected his nights

    He raved in the dark, he went out in a blaze

    "There you go," they said, "he's good for nothing and lazy"

    With scandal and shame, they slandered his name

    They told him to freeze, they damned him to roast

    Disappointed that he passed away peacefully

    Never dying to be a mischievous ghost

    They dug him up quick with a polish and lick

    They powdered him up till he only looked sick

    The hinge in his backbone would bend to applause

    But his dancing was not quite as lively of course

    These are the rewards immortality affords

    Bullied and bribed and beaten to bliss

    Parroting slack sentimental laments

    Of going away and not being missed

    With scandal and shame, they slandered his name

    They told him to freeze, they damned him to roast

    Disappointed that he passed away peacefully

    Never dying to be a mischievous ghost

    With the green beer and the shamrock tattoos

    Singing his songs of the battles we lose

    And "Will ye come home again," so we can murder you

    What would you do if they took his word

    With forty-eight million to join in the toast

    Move over my darling mischievous ghost

    Mischievous ghost