Elvis Costello Quotes

There is something kind of absurd about people who live in such a comfortable, cushioned, spoiled society tattooing themselves and piercing themselves to make them appear tribal. We`re trying to act like we`re some sort of tribe that`s been discovered in the mall.

Be nice to the British boy. I`m the only ally you have left.

Sometimes doing an old song is like returning to the text of a play. It`s not invalid, just because it`s old, otherwise nobody would be acting (William Shakespeare)--not to say that everything I do is Shakespeare!. But it`s inevitable that it changes its meaning or impact. That`s why I never really sing anything from a nostalgic point of view, because even if it`s 25 years old, it`s in the moment. That`s the beauty of live performance.

You can always say it could be better, but if you`re not careful with ambition, the next thing you know you`re sailing a statue of yourself down the river . . .

(on Van Morrison`s "Astral Weeks") It might be the best record of original thought that anybody`s ever made. It`s so completely unlike anything that went before it. And the vocal performances are the freest that I think Van ever recorded.

Writing about music is like dancing about architecture - it`s a really stupid thing to want to do.

It`s when you`re drinking and you`re not happy, that`s when you`ve got to worry. That`s when it`s gonna affect the way you look at things, because you`re probably drinking for the wrong reasons. And that`s when things start to get warped and you don`t think anything through.

I`ll never admit that I`m drunk. But we all drink. And sometimes it`s for the right reasons...to let your mind off the leash for a while and have a bit of fun, and then you don`t mind if you make a bit of a prat of yourself. And it doesn`t matter if you end up shouting at people, or have a punch-up or whatever, as long as you wake up the same person. It`s when you don`t want to wake up the same person that you`ve got a problem.

I`d been to Memphis before, but we stayed out of Memphis early on in the late 70s for obvious reasons. People were very sensitive about Elvis Presley, and my stage name obviously would be provocative to some people in that area at that time.

Obviously I got known for some other songs early on, and some of those were rock`n`roll songs. Some of them were melodic pop songs. And I`ve done lots of different things, as you know, but every so often I get drawn back.

You need a platform upon which to release an orchestral record, otherwise it`s just going to be an obscurity.

There are many critics who have an idealised version of where my strengths lie.

There`s no such thing as an original sin.

Maybe I just never learned my harmony part, because what everybody says sounds odd to them sounds perfectly natural to me.

I followed The Byrds a lot, and then when they did a country styled record it made me curious to know who these people were that they liked.

Obviously the people that I admired, like the Beatles, were really into rock`n`roll, but it was already a little past rock`n`roll when I started listening and making my own choices about music.

Really the only thing holding a lot of records together is the personality of the singer, and the will to write all of these different things.

And over the last ten years, after my work with the Brodsky Quartet, I had the opportunity to write arrangements for chamber group, chamber orchestra, jazz orchestra, symphony orchestra even.

You have to face the fact that I have no reputation as a composer; I have my reputation as a songwriter and a performer-and that opportunity came this summer, when I was invited to perform at the Lincoln Centre festival in New York... three nights.

And I don`t feel any form of music is beyond me in the sense of that I don`t understand it or I don`t have some love for some part of it.

Well, T Bone`s had a remarkable career as a producer since the time that we first worked together. He was dividing his time between recording and producing when we first met, and touring. We toured together and we were great friends.

Mention Hubert Sumlin, as well, because Hubert`s a great man, and again, you know, I don`t play the guitar very good, but when I`m playing this kind of music, I always have him in my mind. I wish I could play like Hubert.

I used to be disgusted; now I try to be amused.

But there are things in Il Sogno that the methods of The Delivery Man could never achieve.

I`ve been lucky to listen to lots of different types of music.

I believe that music is connected by human passions and curiosities rather than by marketing strategies.

Very similar experience happened last year when we released this album, North. It was on Deutsche Grammophon, it was very, very honest. It was the most honest record I`ve ever written.

My ultimate vocation in life is to be an irritant.

And obviously, when I started out, I had a little bit more curiosity than some, and went seeking out the original artists, or in some cases searching up country music.

Women hear rhythm differently than men.

Sometimes I write notes that I have difficulty singing.

I know that when I make a record like The Delivery Man as a contrast to even Il Sogno, this is going to reach a wider audience, because it communicates in that very direct way.

I find humming is very useful.

These are the sort of things that push you on in music - the curiosity, a passion for new ideas.

Well, I`ve had a lot of different experiences in music over the years. And not everything you do can satisfy everybody`s idealised version of you.

I found with this record I had to really be strong-willed, because in the past I`ve tended to tinker and add a thing or take a thing away, and nearly always been wrong.