Born in St Mary's Hospital, Paddington in London, Costello is the son of trumpeter, vocalist and band-leader Ronald (“Ross”) MacManus and record store manager Lillian Costello. His family had roots in Merseyside and he moved to Birkenhead at age 16, with his mother, when his parents separated. While he is better known as 'Elvis Costello', a stage name referring to the legendary Elvis Presley suggested by Stiff Records manager Jake Riviera, he has used many other aliases, including 'The Imposter' and 'Napoleon Dynamite'.
In the early 1970s Costello was a participant in London's pub rock scene with the group Flip City. Then in 1977 along with fellow Pub-Rockers Nick Lowe and Ian Dury he made his first releases on the independent label Stiff, tailoring his work towards the burgeoning punk, power pop, and new wave scenes. From 1980's Armed Forces onwards, however, other influences including soul, country, 1960s pop, and classical music began to re-emerge, and he soon became established as a unique and original voice. His output has been wildly diverse: one critic has written that "Costello, the pop encyclopedia, can reinvent the past in his own image".
His prolific and varied 30-year career has been marked by two constants: sharp songwriting and musical restlessness. The latter has seen him dabble in almost every musical form, from country to jazz to orchestral. This stems from the fact that, at heart, Costello is a fan. His desire to work with his musical heroes has attracted collaborators as diverse as Burt Bacharach and Paul McCartney, Anne Sofie von Otter, Allen Toussaint, Aimee Mann, Bill Frisell, and Brian Eno.
But his most successful partners were his long-term band The Attractions. They comprised Steve Nieve (keyboards), Pete Thomas (drums) and Bruce Thomas (bass). Between 1978 and 1983, this outfit produced a peerless series of albums: This Year's Model; Armed Forces; Get Happy!!; Almost Blue; Trust; Imperial Bedroom and Punch the Clock.
These recordings drew on styles spanning soul, country and western and commercial pop. It was only with 1984's Goodbye Cruel World that Costello started to stumble. An album he concedes was one of his worst, it ushered in a period which produced interesting music but lacked the consistent quality of his halcyon days. Interestingly, although he enlisted the other Elvis's band for King of America in 1986, it was a reunion with The Attractions and former producer Nick Lowe that produced his best album of the late 1980s in the form of the scabrous Blood and Chocolate.
The following albums, Spike and Mighty Like a Rose were uncompromising and difficult solo works, as was the string quartet collaboration The Juliet Letters in 1993. It was only reconvening the Attractions for Brutal Youth the following year that gave his fans another glimpse of what first attracted them to him: punchy, angry pop songs, tightly played by an impeccably taut ensemble.
Since then, Costello has become a career dilettante, true to his inner musical quest, but never again returning to heights he scaled in the early 1980s. Maybe the best work of this latter period was 1998's Painted from Memory. This joint effort with Burt Bacharach matched restrained writing from Costello with stately Bacharach arrangements.
Subsequent career nadirs such as the tune-free North (2003), and instrumental orchestral works such as Il Sogno (2004) led many long-term admirers to conclude that Costello had retained his integrity at the expense of his real musical strengths. However, he has given occasional evidence of his former fire. The ballsy bar-room atmosphere of the collaborative The Delivery Man (2004), suggests that he is still capable of giving his fans what they want, in between his more esoteric experiments.
Elvis is married to jazz vocalist Diana Krall and they have twin sons.
*Upon the film's release, it was noted that the name "Napoleon Dynamite" had originally been used by musician Elvis Costello, most visibly on his 1986 album Blood and Chocolate, although he had used the pseudonym on a single B-side as early as 1982. Filmmaker Jared Hess claims that he was not aware of Costello's use of the name until two days before the end of shooting, when he was informed by a teenage extra. He later said, "Had I known that name was used by anybody else prior to shooting the whole film, it definitely would have been changed ... I listen to hip-hop, dude. It's a pretty embarrassing coincidence." Hess claims that "Napoleon Dynamite" was the name of a man he met around the year 2000 on the streets of Cicero, Illinois while doing missionary work for the Mormon Church.
Costello believes that Hess stole the name: "The guy just denies completely that I made the name up... but I invented it. Maybe somebody told him the name and he truly feels that he came about it by chance. But it's two words that you're never going to hear together." To date, Costello has taken no legal action against the film.
Elvis Costello and Elton John to Make a Television 'Spectacle'
Two of the most respected musicians in the world will collaborate on an extraordinary new television series.
"Spectacle: Elvis Costello with..." is hosted by its namesake and produced in conjunction with Sir Elton John's Rocket Pictures. Elton John will be one of the program's Executive Producers.
The series begain airing in 2008 on CTV in Canada, Channel 4 in the UK and Sundance Channel in the US. FremantleMedia Enterprises, will handle sales of the show to the rest of the world.
Conceived to provide a forum for in-depth discussion and performance with the most interesting and influential artists and personalities of our time, the show fuses the best of talk and music television.
"Spectacle: Elvis Costello with..." is an unpredictable and unprecedented television experience. The series of 13 one-hour programs features everything from intimate one-on-ones with legendary performers and notable newcomers to thematic panel discussions, with a variety of performance elements including unique collaborations, acoustic and impromptu "illustrative" demonstrations of the creative process, and some original interpretations of others' songs by Costello.
Everybody's Crying Mercy
Elvis Costello Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I wonder bout some things I've heard
Everybody's crying mercy
When they don't know the meaning of the word
A bad enough situation
Is sure enough getting worse
Everybody's crying justice
Toe to toe
Touch and go
Give a cheer
Get your souvenir
People running round in circles
Don't know what they're headed for
Everybody's crying peace on Earth
Just as soon as we win this war
Straight ahead
Knock em dead
Pack your kid
Choose your hypocrite
Well you don't have to go to off Broadway
To see something played absurd
Everybody's crying mercy
When they don't know the meaning of the word
Nobody knows the meaning of the word
When they don't know the meaning of the word
Nobody knows the meaning of the word
Nobody knows the meaning of the word
The lyrics to Elvis Costello's song "Everybody's Crying Mercy" showcase the confusion and complexity of the world we live in. The song opens with Costello expressing his disbelief in the things he has seen and the rumors he's heard. He then goes on to point out the way people cry out for mercy and justice, without truly understanding what those words mean. This suggests a world that is full of chaos and confusion, where people are quick to take sides and fight for their beliefs without fully examining what they are doing.
As the song progresses, the lyrics become even more pointed. Costello talks about how things are constantly getting worse, yet people are still cheering and buying souvenirs. He also points out that people are just running around in circles, unsure of what they are really fighting for. Despite this, everyone seems to be crying out for peace on Earth, but only after they've won their own personal wars.
Overall, the lyrics to "Everybody's Crying Mercy" are a scathing critique of the modern world. They suggest that people are quick to take sides and fight for what they believe in, but they often do so without really understanding the implications of their actions. This leads to a world that is full of confusion and chaos, where everyone is crying for mercy and justice, but no one truly knows what those words mean.
Line by Line Meaning
I can't believe the things I've seen
The singer is in awe of what he has witnessed.
I wonder bout some things I've heard
The singer is skeptical of some rumors he has heard.
Everybody's crying mercy
People are begging for leniency or compassion.
When they don't know the meaning of the word
However, they don't truly understand the concept they are invoking.
A bad enough situation
Things are already quite dire.
Is sure enough getting worse
And the situation is deteriorating further.
Everybody's crying justice
People want fairness and equality.
Just as long as there's business first
But this is only true if it's profitable.
Toe to toe
People are confronting each other aggressively.
Touch and go
The outcome is uncertain.
Give a cheer
People are excited and hopeful.
Get your souvenir
But they are also interested in self-promotion or profit.
People running round in circles
People are confused and directionless.
Don't know what they're headed for
They lack a sense of purpose or destination.
Everybody's crying peace on Earth
People are demanding an end to conflict and violence.
Just as soon as we win this war
But only if they can achieve victory first.
Straight ahead
Proceeding directly towards a goal.
Knock em dead
Achieving overwhelming success or victory.
Pack your kid
Preparing to leave and take care of one's family.
Choose your hypocrite
Deciding which dishonest or insincere leader to follow.
Well you don't have to go to off Broadway
You don't have to look far to find ridiculousness or absurdity.
To see something played absurd
Such absurdity is a regular occurrence.
Nobody knows the meaning of the word
Despite everyone's pleas, people still don't comprehend the word they use.
When they don't know the meaning of the word
This is a recurring problem.
Nobody knows the meaning of the word
Sadly, no one truly understands what they want or need.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Mose Allison
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind