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.
I Almost Had a Weakness
Elvis Costello Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I threw them on the fire
And I burned the photographs that you had enclosed
God they were ugly children
So you're the little bastard of that brother of mine
Trying to trick a poor old woman
'Til I almost had a weakness
Bit your uncle Joe
Hit him on the forehead with a knife and a fork
(she) said that he looked like the devil
Then she said..."pass the vinegar," I'm beginning to think
(that) I'm the only one who hasn't taken to the drinking of it
Though I almost had a weakness
It pains me to mention
These delicate concerns
While I have to tolerate you family jewels
I really mustn't grumble
(Cause) when I die the cats and dogs will jump up and down
And you little swines will get nothing
Though I almost had a weakness
The song "I Almost Had a Weakness" by Elvis Costello is a tale of a dysfunctional family with poor communication, extreme feelings, and secrets. Elvis portrays a woman who is dealing with her family members in a sarcastic and ironic way. In the opening lines, the woman thanks someone for flowers but then proceeds to burn the photos that they had enclosed. The references to the "ugly children" reveal that the woman had some extensive history with the person who had sent her the flowers. The following lines, "So you're the little bastard of that brother of mine, trying to trick a poor old woman" suggest some past problems in the family. Elvis's use of an insult towards a family member shows that the woman's relationships with her relatives are not healthy or respectful.
Elvis Costello is known for his frequent use of satire and irony in his songs, and "I Almost Had a Weakness" isn't any different. In the second verse, he tells the story of cousin Florence and her tendency to harm uncle Joe. The lines "She said that he looked like the devil, then she said, "Pass the vinegar," I'm beginning to think/I'm the only one who hasn't taken to the drinking of it" demonstrate how the family has an unorthodox way with words and handling their issues. Florence's assessment of uncle Joe's appearance shows how their interactions are driven by frank but hurtful judgments.
The third verse involves the woman lamenting the fact that she had to put up with the family's issues. The woman states that she has to deal with their "delicate concerns," which could indicate her awareness of their problems yet refusal to bring them up. When Elvis says, "While I have to tolerate your family jewels, I really shouldn't grumble," he is referring to the family's inheritance. He suggests that getting the inheritance when the matriarch dies would be the only redeeming quality of being related to them. It's a comedic portrayal of how families who can be so different are sometimes brought together solely because of their shared bloodline.
Overall, "I Almost Had a Weakness" by Elvis Costello is a quirky song that highlights the intricacies of familial relationships such as communication issues, secrets, and mixed feelings. It's a satirical and ironic take on how people who share blood sometimes have unhealthy relationships.
Line by Line Meaning
Thank you for the flowers
I am being sarcastic, as I did not appreciate the flowers you gave me
I threw them on the fire
I disposed of the flowers by burning them
And I burned the photographs that you had enclosed
I destroyed the pictures that you included with the flowers
God they were ugly children
The children in the photos were not attractive
So you're the little bastard of that brother of mine
You are the illegitimate child of my brother
Trying to trick a poor old woman
You are attempting to deceive an elderly woman
'Til I almost had a weakness
I was nearly tempted to believe your lies
Last week cousin Florence
Recently, my cousin Florence
Bit your uncle Joe
She physically attacked your uncle Joe by biting him
Hit him on the forehead with a knife and a fork
She used cutlery to assault him on the forehead
(she) said that he looked like the devil
Florence claimed that Joe resembled the devil
Then she said...'pass the vinegar,' I'm beginning to think
Florence changed the subject and asked for vinegar, indicating she may be intoxicated
(that) I'm the only one who hasn't taken to the drinking of it
Florence thinks everyone has been consuming vinegar except for herself
Though I almost had a weakness
Despite this strange behavior, I was almost tempted to join in
It pains me to mention
I am hesitant to bring up these sensitive topics
These delicate concerns
The issues I am discussing are sensitive and require careful handling
While I have to tolerate you family jewels
I must put up with your obnoxious behavior and personality
I really mustn't grumble
Despite this, I should not complain
(Cause) when I die the cats and dogs will jump up and down
I take comfort in the fact that no one will mourn my passing
And you little swines will get nothing
Furthermore, you will not receive any inheritance from me
Though I almost had a weakness
Despite everything, I was almost tempted to give you something after all
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ELVIS COSTELLO, MICHAEL HENRY THOMAS, IAN DEREK BELTON, PAUL MARTIN CASSIDY, JACQUELINE LUCY KATHERINE THOMAS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind