Elvis Costello Album

History repeats the old conceits
The glib replies the same defeats
Keep your finger on important issues
With crocodile tears and a pocketful of tissues
I'm just the oily slick
On the windup world of the nervous tick
In a very fashionable hovel

I hang around dying to be tortured
You'll never be alone in the bone orchard
This battle with the bottle is nothing so novel

So in this almost empty gin palace
Through a two-way looking glass
You see your Alice

You know she has no sense
For all your jealousy
In a sense she still smiles very sweetly

Charged with insults and flattery
Her body moves with malice
Do you have to be so cruel to be callous

And now you find you fit this identikit completely
You say you have no secrets
And then leave discreetly

I might make it California's fault
Be locked in Geneva's deepest vault
Just like the canals of Mars and the great barrier reef
I come to you beyond belief

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

I've got a feeling
I'm going to get a lot of grief
Once this seemed so appealing
Now I am beyond belief

(Repeat chorus)

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
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 hoo
There can be no defence
You say you'll forgive and forget
But it's only a pretence

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)

Giving you more of what for
Always worked for me before
Now I'm a shabby doll
What's going on behind the green elevator door
With just a shabby doll
There's a hit man facing
A compromising situation
With just a shabby doll
And a very neat line in character assassination
She's just a shabby doll

She's just a shabby doll
She's putting him off and putting you on
She's just the shabby doll
You're swearing upon you know in your heart
She's gone you know in your heart
She's just a shabby doll

There's a girl in this dress
There's always a girl in distress
She's just a shabby doll
She's so sure she's self-possessed
Then again she's half undressed
She's just a shabby doll

The boy that I used to be
Showed no sign of sympathy
For just a shabby doll
I have betrayed you and me
And paid for my own bribery
With just a shabby doll

(chorus)

He's the tired toy that everyone enjoyed
He wants to be a fancy man but he's nothing but a nancy boy
He's all pride and no joy

And being what you might call a whore
Always worked for me before
Now I'm a shabby doll
Untie the gag the cat's out of the bag
But won't show his claws
He's just a shabby doll

She said you must be joking
Some things are left unspoken
You're just a shabby doll
He's lying limp and soaking
He was openly broken
By just a shabby doll

(chorus)

All the bedroom lights go out
As the neighbourhood gets quiet
Everything in heaven and earth is almost right
But there's a wife whos wondering where her husband could be tonight
And when the phone rang only once she took a dreadful fright
Little things just seem to undermine her confidence in him
He was late this time last week
Who can she turn to when the chance of coincidence is slim
'Cause the baby isn't old enought to speak

There's been a long honeymoon
She thought too late and spoke too soon
There's no money back guarantee on future happiness
There's been a long honeymoon
If he's out on a date then her life's in ruins
She never thought her love could ever be as strong as this

All the movies and the papers
Feature the murders of lonely women
If he isn't in by ten she'll call up her best friend
Why doesn't he come home
Why does her friends phone keep on ringing
Maybe she should just pretend

(chorus)

So this is where he came to hide
When he ran from you
In a private detective's overcoat
And dirty dead man's shoes
The pretty things of Knightsbridge
Lying for a minister of state
Are a far cry from the nod and wink
Here at traitor's gate

'Cause the high heel he used to be has been ground down
And he listens for the footsteps that would follow him around

To murder my love is crime
But will you still love
A man out of time

There's a tuppeny hapenny millionaire
Looking for a fourpenny one
With a tight grip on the short hairs
Of the public imagination

But for his private wife and kids somehow
Real life becomes a rumour
Days of dutch courage
Just three French letters and a German sense of humour

He's got a mind like a sewer and a heart like a fridge
He stands to be insulted and he pays for the privilege

(chorus)

The biggest wheels of industry
Retire sharp and short
And the after dinner overtures
Are nothing but an after thought
Somebody's creeping in the kitchen
There's a reputation to be made
Whose nerves are always on a knife's edge
Who's up late polishing the blade

Love is always scarpering or cowering or fawning
You drink yourself insensitive and hate yourself in the morning

(chorus)

Almost blue
Almost doing things we used to do
There's a girl here and she's almost you
Almost
All the things that your eyes once promised
I see in hers too
Now your eyes are red from crying

Almost blue
Flirting with this disaster became me
It named me as the fool who only aimed to be
Almost blue
It's almost touching
It will almost do
There is part of me that's always true
Always
Not all good things come to an end
Now it is only a chosen few
I have seen such an unhappy couple

Almost me
Almost you
Almost blue

You turn to the sinister when you get the boot
Sliding down the banister in your Sunday suit
Lying on a slag heap of blankets and magazines
She's only thirty-five going on seventeen
You'd better roll over and go to sleep if you don't come clean
And in every home there will be lots of time
I will be all yours you might have been admired
(And in every home there will be lots of time)
They say they're very sorry but you are not desired
Oh heaven preserve us
Oh heaven preserve us
Oh heaven preserve us
Because they don't deserve us

Holding your life in your hand
With an artificial limp wrist
And so a young blade becomes a has-been
Looking for a new twist

A year after the wedding he broke all their china plates
He's in prison now she's running with his mates
Sees him every Sunday
And he asks her where she's been
She's only thirty-five going on seventeen
She's going to cop a packet if he ever finds her
In between the sheets

(chorus)

Don't get smart or sarcastic
He snaps back just like elastic
Spare us the theatrics and the verbal gymnastics
We break wise guys just like matchsticks
What would the loved ones say
Your pride and joy is all blown up
What would the loved ones say
The bride and boy are barely grown up
You're not my particular poison
I've got nothing against you myself
You could have been a danger to the boys and girls
Now you're a danger to yourself

Oh what would the loved ones say
What would the loved ones say
Oh what would the loved ones say
What would the loved ones say

The ugly little scenes run round your bed
The ugly little dreams you get the needle and no thread
They stitched you up this time
They say you'll do
They bitch about your pretty face turning ugly on you

The butcher the baker and the bassline maker
Say you can leave her I can take her
You live your whole life like a minute or two later
One day its going to end sooner than greater

What would the loved ones say
He'll be remembered young and pretty
What would the loved ones say
Now he's a hit in every city
Now there's a name well never forget
There's one born every minute
Dont pin a medal on me yet
They might be waiting for you

(chorus)

I've been talking to the wall and it's been answering me
Oh darling how I miss you
I'm just the mere shadow of my former selfishness
I crave the silhouette of your kiss
With only the blue light of the TV on
Lip reading threats and false alarms
There's a boy somewhere holding hands with himself
And a girl in a window on the Reeperbarn
Whenever I put my foot in my mouth and you begin to doubt
That it's you that I'm dreaming about
Do I have to draw you a diagram?
All I ever want is just to fall into your human hands

With the kings and queens of the dance hall craze
Checkmate in three moves in your heyday
But the girls don't listen to your line anymore
Now you're part of someone else

On the factory floor and you still say "Wheres the action?"
Now you manufacture happiness
And get sold on the cheap for someone's satisfaction

(chorus)

All you toy soldiers and scaremongers
Are you living in this world sometimes I wonder
In between saying you've seen too much
and saying you've seen it all before

Tighter and tighter I hold you tightly
You know I love you more than slightly
Although I've never said it like this before

(chorus)

He saw no tears in her eyes
Say you wouldn't kid about it
She's telling all of those lies
She swore she'd never told before
But I doubt it
So he bit his tongue
And tried hard to capture his breath
When she said I waited all my life
For just a little death

Say you wouldn't kid about it
Say you wouldn't kid about it
Say you wouldn't kid about it

Sometimes he takes himself so seriously
She makes her movements mysteriously
Slow fast or furiously
It's a big responsibility
With a face full of mixed ability
Big dreams of elegance
Singing the leaving of Liverpool
And turning into Americans

Say you wouldn't kid about it
So what if this is a man's world
I want to be a kid again about it
Give me back my sadness
I couldn't hide it even if I tried girl

We fight so frail
Making love tooth and nail
You gave me the kiss of my life
I might even live to tell the tale

(chorus)

I would have waited all my life
Just to make love out of something other than spite
But the beauty is the beast you're baiting
Should really be worth the waiting
You do something very special to
Mr. Average
Now the lamb lies with the lion
He's just a little savage

And so you turn your back on me
And all the hot air that only echoes stale tobacco

Actions speak louder now than words
By just a fraction
What's the use of saying I love you whe I'm drinking to distraction
We save our sanity
By saying such and such
After all its been discussed
You say you must be touched

(chorus)

I feel like a boy with a problem
I can't remember what I've forgotten
All because I slapped your face and made you cry
It's the last thing I want to do
Pull the curtains on me and you
Pull the carpet from under love
Pull the bow out of Cupid's view

You swore you wouldn't shout
It's not your punch then it's your pout
Days in silence try my temper
Nights spent drinking to remember
How memories are always tender

I crept out last night behind your back
The little they know might be the piece I lack
Came home drunk
Staggering words
I've had a drink
Invited some girls tonight
I've got a problem but let's go to bed
I can roll over and I can play dead
But here I am in the doghouse instead

I feel like a boy with a problem
I can't recall what I've forgotten
Sleeping with forgiveness in your heart for me

There's a young girl with her old man who's too sick to mention
She'll be turning twenty seven as she draws her widow's pension
But he couldn't catch a common cold he couldn't get arrested
Too terrified to answer back
Too tired to have resisted
Many hands make light work
Shorthand makes life easy
When he's out on night work
Make sure no one sees me
It all ends up in a slanging match with body talk and bruises
A change is better than a rest
Silly beggars can't be choosers

One of a thousand pities you can't categorize
There are ten commandments of love
When will you realise
There are ten commandments of love
I believe, I trust, I promise, I wish love's just a throwaway kiss
In this Pidgin English

If you're so wise use your lips and your eyes
Take it to the bridge she sighs

You go cheep cheep cheep between bulleyes and bluster
Stiff as your poker face
Keener than mustard
From your own back yard to the land of exotica
From the truth society to neurotic erotica

Silence is golden
Money talks diamonds and ermine
There's a word in Spanish
Italian and German
In sign language, morse code, semaphore and gibberish
Have you forgotten how to say it
In your Pidgin English?

(chorus)

Daddy's best girl in the world is not supposed to have a boyfriend
But she's never wanted at home
Other girls are allowed to wear their makeup
She sneaks out her lipstick powder and comb
She surrounds his name with hearts and flowers
Talks on the telephone for hours and hours
But with the bird in his hand
And two on a string
The words of love have an imitation ring
You little fool, you little fool
I suppose that your going to stay all night
You little fool
Don't look at me that way you know it isn't right
You little fool

They say no news is good news
The little girl wants information
Mother just gives her some pills to choose
And says go and use your imagination

Daddy's best girl in the world says just look what I have got
As she sits beside him on the high stool
With his arm around her neck snowball in one hand
And the other full of imitation jewels
She fingers a string of pearls
An imitation but he'll never know it
Imitation lashes flutter above
Looking for an imitation of love

You little fool
I suppose that your going to stay all night
You little fool
So don't look at me that way you know it isn't right
You little fool

I'm the town crier
And everybody knows
I'm a little down
With a lifetime to go
Maybe you don't believe my heart is in the right place
Why don't you take a good look at my face
Other boys use the splendour of their trembling lip
They're so teddy bear tender and tragically hip
I'm never going to cry again
I'm going to be as strong as them
They say they'd die for love
And then they live it out
They'll give you something to cry about
And suddenly you really fall to pieces

I'm the town crier
And everybody knows
I'm a little down
With a lifetime to go
Maybe you don't believe my heart is in the right place
Why don't you take a good look at my face
Other boys use the splendour of their trembling lip
They're so teddy bear tender and tragically hip

Love and unhappiness go arm in arm
Long suffering friends of your fatal charm
Isn't it a pity that you're going to get hurt
Just a little boy lost in a big man's shirt

Oh, well, now you're the girl I'm simply mad about.
Oh yes, I'm really glad it's been me. Oh yeah.
I hope that you've been getting ready,
'Cause I'm gonna ask you to go steady with me.
I got two eyes that happened by ya,
And when they saw you, they said they knew you were fine.
I got two lips that long to kiss you,
And when they speak, they say they wish you were mine.
Hey, sweet baby, oh don't you know that I am yours from head to toe.

Oh, I got a little heart inside me beating
And when it speaks it keeps repeating your name all the time.
You better watch out 'cause of what I say
Cause baby, don't you know that I ain't playing a game?

Hey, sweet baby, oh don't you know that I am yours from head to toe.
All the way down from the top to the ground, sweet baby.

I got two legs and I got two feet that always take me to your street
Everyday, all the time.
No matter which way I try to go, my legs and my feet
They seem to know the way.

Hey, sweet baby, oh don't you know that I am yours from head to toe.
All the way down from the top to the ground. Hey, sweet baby.
I am yours from head to toe. Sweet baby.

Every night you'll find me in the only world I own.
It's a crowded place that's filled with people all alone.
It's a place that I could write a book about.
When they let you in, you'll find there's no way out.
There you don't get in, 'cause there's no way out
There's just no way out.
No way out when your in a world of broken hearts,
in a world of broken hearts,
of broken hearts,
of broken hearts.
Those who enter here are told to leave their dreams behind.
You may never get to sleep again, but you don't mind.
It's a place that I could write a book about.
When they let you in, you'll find there's no way out.
There you don't get in, 'cause there's no way out
There's just no way out.
No way out when your in a world of broken hearts,
in a world of broken hearts,
of broken hearts,
of broken hearts.

In a world of broken hearts,
in a world of broken hearts,
in a world of broken hearts,
of broken hearts,
of broken hearts...

Wait until the light goes out,
I don't want to be seen about,
maybe we could find a place to go.
Find a crowded place where they don't care about your face,
or if your name is even Santa Claus or Joe.
I'll be right at home if they leave me alone.
That's why I only operate at night time.
Wait until the clock strikes ten,
it'll all start happening then.
Baby, just you wait and see.
We can have a little party, laugh and sing and everything,
I know you'll like it, just you wait and see.
Maybe first we'll dig a movie,
then we'll hit they high spots feelin' groovy.
That's why I only operate at night time.
The right time is the night time.
I wait `til it's late and I can concentrate,
making love by the light of the moon.
So when it's way past nine, get ready for a swinging time,
`cause I don't know where to draw the line.
We can have a little party, laugh and sing and everything,
I know you'll like it just you wait and see.
Maybe first we'll dig a movie,
then we'll hit the high spots feelin' groovy.
That's why I only operate at night time.
Night time. (x5)

He will break your heart, if you go with him.
Tear it all apart, and that would be a sin.
I'm really mystified, I even sat right down and cried.
I'm the one that needs you, I love you constantly.
Answer me, I need you, I'm waitnig patiently.
I'm really mystified, I even sat right down and cried.
Darling, if I let you go by, I'll be living in a dream of emptiness.
The feeling in my heart, my mind and my soul,
if you would surely cure my loneliness.
He will break your heart, if you go with him.
Tear it all apart, and that would be a sin.
I'm really mystified, I even sat right down and cried.
Darling, if I let you go by, I'll be living in a dream of emptiness.
The feeling in my mind, my heart and my soul,
if you would quickly cure my loneliness.
He will break your heart, if you go with him.
Tear it all apart, and that would be a sin.
I'm really mystified, I even sat right down and cried.
Ooh Yeah, mystified.
Really mystified.
Really mystified.

Sometimes I try so hard to resist, you say you will and I say you won't.
Sometimes I think that you don't exsist and sometimes you don't.
Pinch me 'cause I don't believe it.
Kiss me 'cause it feels like a hit.
I turn around and you're not there.
Why must it always be the less I see of you, the more I care?
You're determined to make me as miserable as you can.
You're like Harry Houdini or the Invisible Man.
Count 10 and then down again.
9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Doing everything they say shouldn't be done,
more fun than you can have with your clothes on.
Pinch me 'cause I don't believe it.
Kiss me 'cause it feels like a hit.
I turn around and you're not there.
Why must it always be the less I see of you, the more I care?
You're determined to make me as miserable as you can.
You're like Harry Houdini or the Invisible Man.
I turn around and you're not there.
Why must it always be the less I see of you, the more I care?
The less I see of you, the more I care.
The less I see of you, the more I care.

Seconds of Pleasure
You say you don't desire me,
she's only a hired hand,
now you are tired of me.
Expensive care is meaningless,
feeling nothing and caring less.
Cut off at the pass,
she knows where you were headed,
she wants double-time or a temporary wedding.
And the lucky girl leads a life of leisure,
though she? with forty-five years
for seconds of pleasure.
I thought I knew you too well,
now I find the man is a mystery,
and the promises you made
are really only ancient history.
Everyday goes by without a hitch,
you say the urge becomes an itch.
You say that I'm no go for you, that's rich,
or am I being bitchy?
And the lucky girl leads a life of leisure,
though she forty-five years
for seconds of pleasure.
And the hands on the clock move so precisley,
You say you only kissed her once or twice.
You didn't do it for love, you didn't even do it with stealth.
I can't help you now,
I can't help myself.
Commited to life and then commuted to the outskirts.
I was living for thirty minutes at a time
with a break in the middle for adverts.
You treat me like a piece of human furniture.
You say when? you sad soul,
if you can look all that you like,
but I won't let you touch and poke.
And the lucky girl leads a life of leisure,
though she's forty-five years
for seconds of pleasure.

The stamping ground,
The stamping ground.
All your old gang
still hang around.
Coming in with the same blokes,
going home with the same jokes,
if you ever go missing
I know where you'll be found :
the stamping ground.
The big fella on the front door knows your face.
The barman pretends that he's saved you a place,
but when your back is turned
they say she's older than she tells.
I could stand the main attraction,
but not the clientele.
The stamping ground,
The stamping ground.
All your old gang
still hang around.
Coming in with the same blokes,
going home with the same jokes,
if you ever go missing
I know where you'll be found :
the stamping ground.
Everybody knows
evrybody's trouble,
who comes in alone,
who leaves as a couple.
When they seen you coming, babe,
they act like they're pleased to meet you.
Say "It's very nice to know you,
but I wouldn't want to be you."
The stamping ground,
The stamping ground.
All your old gang
still hang around.
Going home with the same blokes,
going home with the same jokes,
if you ever go missing
I know where you'll be found :
the stamping ground.
You talk like you don't have a brain in your head.
You act like you don't have a care in your bed.
Th lights are on,
there's no one home,
it scares you to death.
You stamp on anyone who stops to take a breath.
The stamping ground,
The stamping ground.
All your old gang
still hang around.
Going home with the same blokes,
going home with the same jokes,
if you ever go missing
I know where you'll be found:
the stamping ground. (x5)

How long do I have to wait?
Before I can tell you the things I've been wanting to say
How long must I hesitate?

I know it makes sense but it's hard for me to stay away
But if this is how it has to be
Maybe it's just a feeling
That I could name
But I'd probably best blame...impatience

You can't miss - what you've never known
It's quite absurd how you started disturbing me so
Sometimes - when I am all alone
I lose my senses
I have no defences to go

But if this is how I lose my heart
Then I shall just embrace that
My pulse is racing still
I'm secretly thrilled
By the laughter that tumbled
And the tears that I spilled
As far as I know no one ever got killed
By impatience

Tell me - is there danger still?
I took no heed so a word might as well be deed
Although - I'd really like to see you now
I'm almost certain it can't be accomplished with speed

So, if this is how I'll bide my time
Then I will set it down
Til we lose our caution
I'll honour your order
'Cos it's such sweet torture
To carry this torch
In the light of temptation
Beyond conversation and all expectation
Pausing a moment or two just to mention...
Impatience