I’m sitting eating a chimichanga today and among a barrage of Top 40-ish radio hits, I hear a familiar bass riff leading into the unmistakable keyboard swirl of Steve Nieve. My God, Elvis Costello’s “Pump It Up” in a burrito establishment?! Now, normally I’m all for Elvis Costello music in public establishments; the guy is surprisingly underrepresented in this area. In fact, the most common Elvis-related piece of music I’ve heard in public is his co-composition with Paul McCartney, “My Brave Face.” This is always in supermarkets, oddly enough. I supppose someone figures the lyric “I’ve been breaking up dirty dishes and been throwing them away” is going to remind someone to buy Cascade (or paper plates). Actually, you’d think “Veronica” would be a good choice for supermarket shopping. It’s another collaboration with McCartney, but it’s far catchier and infinitely more poignant. It was recorded around the same time, too. Jesus Christ people, that was his biggest selling album, ever. But somehow, Costello keeps getting the shaft from even the muzak people. Anyway, hearing “Pump It Up” while eating cheesy bits of chicken made me think of one thing: The DJ at a club I go to will play this song but no other Elvis tunes. I suppose since DJs make their reputation by reading the crowd and playing what they want to hear, this means there is some clamor from the public for this particular song. Sadly, I seem to think a lot of this comes from drunken morons who think they’re really listening to the inferior rip-off of “Pump It Up” by Escape Club (“Wild Wild West,” in case you forgot). I come here today to embolden you with more knowledge of the great tunesmith of Costello. I’ve already mentioned how “Veronica” is perfect for roaming supermarket aisles, but say you want to just rock out on the dance floor. How about “No Action.” the lead-off track from Costello’s second album. The bass and drums seethe under the verse while the guitar periodically rings in like stabs of energy. Once the chorus comes around, the whole band just pounds away making this song just rock like no other. Try it. How come nobody ever plays “Alison” anymore? Somehow, this song transcends everything Costello put on his first album and has rightfully been recognized as a beautiful ballad. Everyone goes nuts when he plays it in concert, but I never hear it anywhere else. And what happened to that brief time when you heard “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace Love and Understanding” on all the commercials for “Lost In Translation?” Nobody seems to have picked up on how awesome that song is since then. Oh, maybe it’s too straight. It’s got no irony. Still a damn good song. As I’ve recently been discovering in depth, Elvis Costello has an AMAZING back catalog. Almost all his albums are worth owning, but a couple are absolutely essential. Seriously, if you like new wave music in the least, buy the album “This Year’s Model.” You won’t regret it. And if you lean more toward Stax and Motown, buy “Get Happy!!”, which has so many catchy tunes, you’ll never be able to pick a favorite. But if you take one thing away from my rant today, consider this: Just say no to “Pump It Up”!
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