I’ve said before that I like Elvis Costello doing country better than Elvis Costello doing almost anything else. And here’s another song that supports that opinion.
‘Starting to Come to Me’ is treated like a throwaway on All This Useless Beauty. It’s tucked away toward the end of the album, a rare upbeat track on a record full of portentous ballads. But this is the song that hit me first and has stayed with me more than any other on the album.
From its opening notes — a sort of carnival sound mixed with Dylan’s ‘Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts — it ropes me right in. Steve Nieve’s piano is perfectly playful throughout, Elvis nails the lead vocal, the backing vocals kick in just right to really sell the chorus… everything clicks over the course of its 2 minutes and 44 seconds.
I don’t know if I’m alone in this opinion — maybe this song is a fan favorite — but I’d rank ‘Starting to Come to Me’ among the best things Costello has recorded in the past 20 years.
Your new career would probably end like this
All that professional lipstick pressed into an amateur kiss
Farewell to the studied lines and carefully broken hearts
The overpowering perfume and the glimpse of her garter
Mingling with the sweet smoldering scent of the martyr
Well it’s starting to come to me
Starting to come to me
So you began to recognize the well-dressed man that everybody loves
It started when you chopped off all the fingers of those pony skin gloves
Then you cut a hole out where the lovelight used to shine
Your tears of pleasure equal measure crocodile and brine
You try to laugh it off saying I knew all the time…
But it’s starting to come to me
Starting to come to me
Sometimes you bring me down to play reluctant confidant
You say you may reward him if he gives you what you want
But these are days to treasure and to hold
They are much too precious to be sold
You’d probably play the pirate if you weren’t so busy digging up the gold
Now you could tell he wanted you ’cause you almost taste it on his breath
But you always cheated life just like the bold dare-devil cheated death
Incidentally, late last night your understudy finally got what you deserve
In private she’s seductive but in public she’s prim, porcelain and nervous
Afraid someone will recognize the shame in her eyes
You’ve still got your dignity or the next best disguise
You never know when to say no and when to compromise
But it’s starting to come to me
Starting to come to me
Starting to come to me
Meet Me In Montauk 
this is one of my favorites – among the funniest, most biting lyrics he’s ever written, in my opinion. i always sing along loudly when i hear it (consider that a warning…) š
You would characterize this as a country song? I disagree. But I do agree that it is a very good song.
It never occurred to me to classify this as anything but country (or at least Elvis Country), mostly because of the bass line and the similarity to the Dylan song.
Looking quickly online, it seems others have classified the song as a “Stax style,” referring to the Stax sound from artists recording on Stax Records in Memphis from the 60’s and 70’s—basically a Memphis infused R&B sound, Otis Redding being one of their more popular artists.
I saw that one. Also saw one calling it country. š
I don’t know this song at all, though I’m smiling thinking of Heather singing loudly along with Elvis. Clearly, it will have to be added to the playlist of one of our reunion events this October š
Meanwhile, I have to agree with Dana that I wouldn’t think of classifying this song as country in a million years. Perhaps I have too narrow a definition of what country music is, but this song wouldn’t fit even my broadest category.
Regardless, I like it!
the chord structure and resemblance to lily rosemary and the jack of hearts make this most definitely country