Though actually it's just Elvis. He played all the instruments, then when the Attractions tried to play their version it didn't come out so well so they stuck with his original. It's fitting as it seems to be a song about loneliness as much as anything else. It's a tale of three cities; the one he's in (New York), the one he's just come from (London), and the one he started out in (Liverpool). It's about looking right at home but feeling like an exile. It has an air to it that seems different to me from any other Costello song I know. It's lyrics are an example of how rock can approach poetry in terms of making concise, indelible, emotional statements. It's two minutes nineteen seconds long. Respect!
'You're sending me tulips mistaken for lilies
You give me your lip after punching me silly
You turned my head till it rolled down the brain drain
If I had any sense now I wouldn't want it back again
You give me your lip after punching me silly
You turned my head till it rolled down the brain drain
If I had any sense now I wouldn't want it back again
New Amsterdam it's become much too much
Till I have the possession of everything she touches
Till I step on the brakes to get out of her clutches
Till I speak double dutch to a real double duchess
Till I have the possession of everything she touches
Till I step on the brakes to get out of her clutches
Till I speak double dutch to a real double duchess
Down on the mainspring, listen to the tick tock
Clock all the faces that move in on your block
Twice shy and dog tired because you've been bitten
Everything you say now sounds like it was ghost-written
Clock all the faces that move in on your block
Twice shy and dog tired because you've been bitten
Everything you say now sounds like it was ghost-written
New Amsterdam it's become much too much
Till I have the possession of everything she touches
Till I step on the brakes to get out of her clutches
Till I speak double dutch to a real double duchess
Till I have the possession of everything she touches
Till I step on the brakes to get out of her clutches
Till I speak double dutch to a real double duchess
Back in London they'll take you to heart
After a little while
Though I look right at home
I still feel like an exile
After a little while
Though I look right at home
I still feel like an exile
Somehow I found myself down at the dockside
Thinkin' of the old days of Liverpool and Rotherhithe
The transparent people who live on the other side
Living a life that is almost like suicide
Thinkin' of the old days of Liverpool and Rotherhithe
The transparent people who live on the other side
Living a life that is almost like suicide
New Amsterdam it's become much too much
Till I have the possession of everything she touches
Till I step on the brakes to get out of her clutches
Till I speak double dutch to a real double duchess'
Till I have the possession of everything she touches
Till I step on the brakes to get out of her clutches
Till I speak double dutch to a real double duchess'
Songwriters
Costello, Elvis
Costello, Elvis
Published by
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
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