Veronica - Elvis Costello, 1989

 
 

Is it all in that pretty little head of yours
What goes on in that place in the dark
Well I used to know a girl and I could have
sworn that her name was Veronica
Well she used to have a carefree mind of her
own and a delicate look in her eye
These days I'm afraid she's not even sure if her
name is Veronica

[Chorus]
Do you suppose, that waiting hands on eyes,
Veronica has gone to hide
And all the time she laughs at those who shout
her name and steal her clothes
Veronica
Veronica

Did the days drag by, did the favours wane
Did he roam down the town all the time
Will you wake from your dream, with a wolf at
the door, reaching out for Veronica
Well it was all of sixty-five years ago
When the world was the street where she lived
And a young man sailed on a ship in the sea
With a picture of Veronica

On the "Empress of India"
And as she closed her eyes upon the world and
picked upon the bones of last week's news
She spoke his name out loud again

[Chorus]

Veronica sits in her favourite chair and she sits
very quiet and still
And they call her a name that they never get
right and if they don't then nobody else will
But she used to have a carefree mind of her
own, with devilish look in her eye
Saying "You can call me anything you like, but
my name is Veronica"

[Chorus]

 
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This song is for anyone who's ever watched their mother or grandmother grow into that twilight age. The love you feel only increases as her faculties gradually diminish; she is a proud woman who deserves respect right up until the very end. This little gem of a song was co-written by Paul McCartney, but the inspiration for the artist was his grandmother, who unfortunately suffered from Alzheimer's.

Declan Patrick MacManus, better known to the world as Elvis Costello, was born in London, England in 1954. He released his first album, My Aim is True an 1977. With his trademark Buddy Holly glasses, and backup band, The Attractions, he achieved modest success with Punk/New Wave hits Alison, Less Than Zero, and Watching the Detectives.

Elvis appeared on Saturday Night Live in December '77, and in what I thought was rather contrived, stirred up some controversy. He started to play his number one hit Less Than Zero, but suddenly stopped, and switched to Radio, Radio, an anti-commercialization, anti-big business song. By today's standards the whole thing is silly, but SNL ending up banning him from the show for 12 years...their loss.

Into the 1980s, Elvis Costello settled down, and even "matured" as a recording artist. By 1990, he was collaborating with the famous '60s pop songwriter Burt Bacharach, and in 2003, he married Canadian jazz singer and pianist Diana Krall. Mr. Costello also has a minor film career going, usually staring as himself. Notable are Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, and 200 Cigarettes.

Besides this wonderful song from 1989, I will always remember his late 70s period, were Elvis Costello songs underscored my days at York University.

Check out the video here.