Elvis Costello - Alison

Introduction

0:00You're listening to Song Exploder, where musicians take apart their songs and piece by piece tell the story of how they were made. I'm Rishikesh Hirwe.

0:11I'm going to be on tour playing some shows this fall. I'm going to be in London on Wednesday, November 18th. I'm going to be performing solo at Rough Trade Records on Denmark Street, and I'm going to be in conversation about my music, moderated by one of my favorite actors and writers, Matthew Bainton. And a ticket to the show also gets you a copy of my album on vinyl or CD. And in December, I'm going to be on tour supporting S. Carey. We're going to be playing a bunch of shows in the Northeast U.S. So I hope to see you in one of those places. You can find all the details and get links to tickets at songexploder.net slash live. That's songexploder.net slash live.

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Becoming Elvis Costello

3:05Elvis Costello is a singer and songwriter whose career spans five decades and over 30 albums. He's a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He's won Grammy Awards and Ivor Novella Awards, a BAFTA, and he's on Rolling Stone's list of the greatest songwriters of all time. He put out his first album, My Aim is True, in 1977. And this month, he released a 49th anniversary edition of the album. So for this episode, I spoke to Elvis Costello about the making of the song, Allison, from that debut album. Coming up, you'll hear the isolated tracks from the original recording, as well as some additional parts that didn't make the cut.

3:46And in discussing the origin story of this song, we also ended up talking about the origin story of Elvis Costello himself. Could I just ask you to introduce yourself? What's your name?

4:21That's a good question, isn't it? I became Elvis Costello around the time that I wrote this song. So I don't know properly. I should answer that. Yeah. It's not something everybody has to say by way of introduction, you know. You should just answer the question. But I had adopted my great-grandmother's name, Elizabeth Costello, as we would say in Ireland. And I had decided that my given name, Declan, was just too confusing for people. They always wanted to amend it in some way, put a K in the middle of it, a D on the end of it. So I became DP Costello. And that looked pretty good on a poster, you know?

4:59It rolled off the tongue pretty well, as it just did then. And I was working. I was working in a day job. I was computer operator for a cosmetics company. I was 21. I was married to my first wife, Mary, and our young son had been born. It wasn't a very big apartment we lived in. So I would find the quietest place and play to myself. And I had been writing all the time. As I picked up the guitar, I was taking cues from all over the place.

5:29I became particularly enamored of songwriters who wrote lyrically complex songs, particularly Joni Mitchell, who wrote unprecedented romantic scenarios. And it all became part of the emotional desire to communicate something in my own voice. By the time I got to be, you know, 20, I thought maybe I had something. I'd been demoing when I had the opportunity. And I would take my little home recorded demo tape around every publisher and record company that would let me through the door, only to be told the songs were not of interest to them.

6:10Until the day that I arrived and knocked on the door of Stiff Records. This was an independent record company founded in the summer of 76. And I didn't realize that I was actually the first person to even try to do business with them. They had released one single. And I imagined it was a full working operation. And I found one very nice young woman who patiently took my tape and took my number and my name down. And I went away thinking, well, maybe I'll never hear from that again. But Stiff Records were the one place that showed an interest and wanted to see it through to see me record those songs.

6:48And at some point, the founders of the record label called me to the office. And I honest to God thought, they're going to tell me that they don't see anything in it, because that's what I'd been told repeatedly. And they said, oh, no, we're intending to release a record. But we've got something to tell you. And I said, well, what's that? And they said, we're going to change your name to Elvis Costello, not DP, as I had written on my demo tape. Elvis. You can imagine, I took a big deep breath when they said that, you know, I couldn't have looked less like Elvis Presley.

7:25So there was some humor and some insolence to that decision. But within a month, I was put in the studio with Nick Lowe, who had played in a band called Brinsley Schwartz that I'd broken up. And he was actually launching a solo career with Stiff's first release. When Stiff Records proposed Nick to be producer, I could not have been more delighted. You know, he was somebody I'd looked up to, kind of a songwriting hero. And I loved his bass playing as well. He played bass on the first session.

7:56So they said, he will be producing. And you will have John McPhee on guitar. And I went, John, you mean the same John McPhee who was on Tupelo Honey by Van Morrison? That guy, you know, whose records I already had. His records as part of the band Clover? Clover, yeah. They'd made two records in the early 70s, which I owned. Then they said, well, we want to introduce you to the rest of Clover that could be featured on this. That is, Johnny Shambodee on bass, John McPhee was on the guitar, Sean Hopper on keyboards, and Mickey Shine, the drummer from Clover. I would play rhythm guitar.

8:33And I was sent to the place where they were rehearsing, which they were living in a house outside of London. Meanwhile, I didn't have a band, so I was completely astounded to be in the company of these people. I'd only played with very modestly skilled players up until that point. You know, I wasn't a very good guitar player myself. I'm still not.

Writing Alison

8:53But I could write the songs. This is maybe the last song written for My Aim is True. My guess it was written in 1977, before the last session of what became that album. And what prompted you to first write the song? Well, I saw a supermarket checkout girl who wore a look of disenchantment, just doing a mundane job, you know. And somehow, something about her expression made me think of this quality of disenchantment that somebody who was very, you know, that had a beauty, but one which was already kind of a little frayed by experience.

9:37That's what I saw. It was something you may have done yourself, that you see somebody and there's something about their appearance that draws your attention. And you try to work out their story. Like, how do they get, why is that expression on their face? I don't know whether you've ever played that game, but it's one that songwriters, I think, benefit from, is trying to imagine somebody else's experience. And I just focused on this one girl who had a slightly disenchanted look.

10:08And that's what the song is really about. That's the word, really, disenchantment. And I think that's how I came up with the name, because the name, Alison, wasn't a specific person, but I wanted a name that sounded like, not like a, you know, if you're called Ava Gardner, you know that that's the name of a dramatic person. It just sounds dramatic, you know. Alison somehow seems a sweeter name, and I thought there was more poignancy to it. It's, I don't say it was a younger girl's name, because that, it wasn't the thing I was trying to convey, but it just seemed innocent.

10:41And that's what I wanted. I wanted it to be somebody whose innocence was challenged, not in an inappropriate way, simply that the disappointment of life would be visited on this person who was at one time idealistic. There were demos for most of the other songs on the record, but there was never a demo for Alison. The only stepping stone to that song is this other, completely different composition, Imagination. The imagination is a powerful deceiver

11:16I'll go out of my mind if I'm losing your touch I had attempted to sing a number of songs written, say in 1975, in the intimate way that I heard lots of songwriters I admired perform. But what I was missing was that those songwriters had won the confidence of their audience to speak intimately like that. I had to learn how to speak up for myself, because I was playing clubs, and if you played something too restrained dynamically, they would just talk over you.

11:57Imagination was the first song that I wrote that could stop people, that could get attention. And weirdly enough, it wasn't an exciting rhythmic song, it was a ballad. So that's as close to a demo for Alison as I have. It's a different melody, it's a different lyrical perspective, but a similar theme. When it came time to record Alison, was there a specific approach that you wanted to take?

Recording the Eight Track

12:22You know, we had such modest resources. This sounds like name-dropping, but the very first occasion I met Bruce Springsteen in Nashville in the middle of 1978. We said horror lows, and then we were, both of us, I think, actually weirdly shy, and were looking at our shoes. And suddenly Bruce said, how did you get the sound on I Am Is True? And I said, no money, because that's the actual truth. You know, the reason why the record sounds immediate is because we didn't have either the means in terms of studio hours

12:56or even the format to over-elaborate the arrangements. This record, Alison, was recorded in Pathway Studios in Highbury and Islington, which was an eight-track studio, tiny room. And by the time we put the full band in there, there wasn't a lot of space for air, let alone anything else. You know, it's like, it was really small. And some of the sound is because of that intimate space. And you had to tell the story just with these eight channels.

13:30Drums are on two tracks. Bass is on one.

13:37Lead guitar is on another.

13:41My rhythm guitar is on another. And an electric piano.

13:49And my voice. In my dream, I wanted to have a motif in this song.

14:19And of course, that motif is actually provided by John McPhee, who's playing the lead guitar that's in the mix. I'm not gonna get to a sentimental Like those other sticker valentines Cause I don't know if you are loving somebody I only know it isn't mine He's either leading out or leading into every vocal phrase.

14:49He's never playing at the same time as I'm singing. Which, given that it's a live take, And what he plays as a complement to the vocal melody is so perfectly chosen. You couldn't really praise him enough. It's a really tremendous piece of spontaneous interpretive playing.

15:12John was kind enough to write a reminiscence of playing on this track For the liners of this new 49th anniversary edition. And he's so self-effacing even to this day I mean, he's in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame And yet he's still kind of Well, I just tried to do what I thought felt And I just listened to the song and played that. More with Elvis Costello

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16:49For zero platform fees on every sale. Your music, your earnings. I think the lyrics of Alison are quite specific. So they're not borrowed cliches from romantic songs, are they? There are many songs that work effectively doing that. I Will Always Love You, for instance, Which is a really beautiful sentiment and it's a beautiful song. But there's a particular skill which I don't have To communicating very deeply felt things in simple language.

17:21And I tended to look for the contrary view of romantic entanglement. And I remember arriving at the lyric, It's just painting a picture of meeting somebody years later After the love affair. And then it's lamenting all these things While sort of kind of sounding a little bit critical. You know, I hear you let that little friend, You know, they're like,

17:52I say, yes, you chose that guy. You thought he was better than me. You know, it's that, you know, feeling of disappointment. Well, I see you got a husband now Did you leave your pretty fingers lying in the wedding cake? You used to hold him right in your hand I bet it took all he could take If there were a photograph of the scene

18:22Where the song is taking place, What would it look like? What's the setting? I think it would be at a party. You know, it would be at a party And the lights would be low. And maybe in that darkness, A gesture of, you know, welcoming Could be mistaken for a caress. So the singer could be observing something That he reads into the significance of it Much more because it's under low light. And maybe there's some doubt About those two people in the scene that he's observing.

18:52That's, you know, why it's sort of The first verse is sort of tearing down Alison or the person in it That it's directed to's lover, you know, Or husband or whoever he's supposed to be. He doesn't really know. But in time, I think by the time the song Gets the second verse, That disappointment is in oneself. I think somebody better put out the big light Cause I can't stand to see you this way Alison

19:26I know this world is killing you Oh, Alison My aim is true My aim is true The disappointment is that of the singer Because he realized that something has happened between them That the singer is responsible for

19:58So that's why he's saying my aim is true I know this world is killing you You know, it's not I'm gonna kill you And some people heard that in the lyric And I always said, you're reading this all wrong It ain't a murder ballad It's quite the opposite It's a love song But it's a regretful love song My aim is true It takes a lot for me to even say this Because I never unpicked all of these emotional things

20:30I was writing very fast I was 21 The ideas were all new I had no audience that I knew of So I didn't have any self-consciousness About what the audience was expecting from me I just was singing stuff that I imagined And hopefully was from some part of the heart Even the doubtful heart, you know And that's what you hear in Alison I know this world is killing you

21:02Oh, Alison The chorus is musically influenced by a Tom Bell song For the group you call the Spinners The group we call the Detroit Spinners Because there was already a Spinners in England So they had to add Detroit to the front of their name A record called Ghetto Child Life ain't so easy When you're a ghetto child So you can hear, you know, the

21:34I know this now You know, that stutter to the admission That I know that love is not eternal And perhaps it's me that's going to be the cause of your heartbreak The singer is saying that, you know That halting way As if you were almost struggling to get the words out So I thought that Tom Bell song was a beautiful one And that's how you learn By imitating and perhaps failing to copy something exactly

22:06You end up with your own sort of idea Everything on Alison is live The only thing that's overdubbed is the vocal harmony At some point

Adding Strings and Radio Play

22:23I guess this must have happened later in 1977 Around the time that we were preparing My Misdrew for the American release On Columbia Records Somebody Like perhaps a radio promo guy Somebody said We could get this played on FM radio If it had strings on it And of course we had no money for a string section So the idea was proposed That we try and put a string synth on it Which were in their infancy I have to say These were not the kind of sounds you would have now

22:55Or would have just a few years later In the early mid 80s This was a ghastly sounding instrument And here's the other thing In order to achieve this The tape had to be transferred From 8 track to 24 track Which means we were accepting The loss of quality To come over from 8 track to 24 Allowing us to have a few more tracks to play with In an attempt to make it a little warmer

23:26Because of the tension between my voice And the subject matter And this comparatively strained music I think there's a track of harmonies as well Yes, there's two tracks actually Let's hear that I'd like to hear that You sort of hear how it sounds A little bit more Californian With that harmony in there I mean, can I say the E word here? It's kind of a dangerously eagle sounding thing

23:57You know, once you add that in I was kind of allergic to that kind of music completely But I think it was put on a single Just a few And then we said No, this is just too terrible But you know We were trying to play the game of like Let's see if we can infiltrate FM radio You know, or even AM radio at that time That didn't happen For 1977 to go with a ballad as your single

24:29Was a little bit of a bold choice Because it put you in competition With all the ballad singers Who were already in the hit parade Like Kenny Rogers or Rod Stewart All these people that were You know, it was a world away from what we were doing And when it was released as a single It bombed, you know It came out And a couple of nice things were said In reviews But it didn't catch the public's imagination at all Linda Ronstadt's cover of this song Was by far and away

25:00The best known recording of Alison And the only one that was successful And I was terribly rude about it When it came out And I'm really ashamed of that now Because she sings the hell out of the song She sings it so beautifully But you know what I didn't like Was when it hit the chorus

25:32Instead of John McPhee It was an alto saxophone Something about that alto saxophone Put me in a world that I couldn't accept At that time I was so possessive about my own songs I just couldn't accept it But I got to apologise to Linda face to face For being sarcastic about the recording I apologised from the stage of the Hollywood Bowl By saying, you know I just want to say this is for Linda And sang Alison, you know

26:03Because, you know, I was a brat I was 22, 23 By the time that her recording came out So that was the song Finally reaching a wider audience It wasn't my version of it initially It was never a hit in England It was never a hit as a single in America But it did, weirdly enough, register with people Which is why we're here talking about it Isn't it, you know Strange And because the song actually speaks about time passing That's probably been in my favour, hasn't it?

26:34Because I actually live long enough To look back on these things That happen in this song The way it's described in the lyric Ah, see what I did there? I made it possible to sing this song for longer You know And now, here's Alison

The Full Song and Credits

27:03By Elvis Costello In its entirety Oh, it's so funny To be seeing you after so long, girl And with the way you look I understand that you were not impressed But I heard you let that little friend of mine Take off your party dress

27:36I'm not gonna get too sentimental Like those other sticker valentines Cause I don't know if you were loving somebody I only know it isn't mine Alison I know this world is killing you

28:10Oh, Alison My aim is true Well, I see you got a husband now And leave your pretty fingers lying in the wedding cake You used to hold him right in your hand I bet he took all he could take

28:41Sometimes I wish that I could stop you from talking When I hear the silly things that you say I think somebody better put out the big light Cause I can't stand to see you this way Oh, Alison I know this world is killing you

29:15Oh, Alison Oh, my aim is true My aim is true My aim is true My aim is true My aim is true

29:47My aim is true My aim is true My aim is true My aim is true My aim is true

30:17My aim is true.

30:22My aim is true.

30:27Visit songexploder.net to learn more. There are some notes that go along with the episode, and you'll also find links to buy the 49th anniversary box set of My Aim Is True. This episode was produced by me, Craig Ely, Mary Dolan, Kathleen Smith, and Tiger Biscop. The episode artwork is by Carlos Lerma, and I made the show's theme music and logo. Song Exploder is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX, a network of independent, listener-supported, artist-owned podcasts.

30:58You can learn more about our shows at radiotopia.fm. If you'd like to subscribe to my newsletter, you can find a link to that on the Song Exploder website. And you can also get a Song Exploder shirt at songexploder.net slash shirt. I'm Rishikesh Hiraway. Thanks for listening.

31:27There's a great show here on Radiotopia called Only If You Get Caught. It's a podcast that's dedicated to taking a closer look at cheating scandals. This season, they're covering stories like the rise and fall of FTX and Sam Bankman-Fried. Plus, they investigate why people keep cheating at marathons, despite getting nothing out of it. What can cheating scandals teach us about the world? Listen and find out. Only If You Get Caught, hosted by Patrick Redford and produced by Alex Sujong-Loughlin, from Defector Media and Radiotopia.

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