For the month of October, I’m selecting a song each day from the decade that has the most meaning to me: the 80s. It was the decade that I grew up in. The period of time where I discovered my love for music — and explored many different genres. For the next 31 days, I’ll highlight a handful of songs that I truly loved and that were representative of the decade. #31DaysOf80sSongs
Elvis Costello is one of those artists that I can honestly say I never sought out proactively. I never counted down the days until his next album release nor have I been to a single show of his. But every once in a while when I hear his songs, the music grabs me with his distinct baritone voice and unique melodies. Songs like “Pump it Up”, “Alison” and “Watching the Detectives” were important steps in my journey as an avid music listener. And one of Costello’s most impressive and most memorable songs is “Everyday I Write the Book”.
It’s a song that he wrote in about ten minutes, which seems like a miracle when you think about the melody he created to go along with a highly creative song that draws a convincing parallel between romance and novels. The lyircs are, hands down, my favorite part of the song. But the next most distinct element, in my mind, are the backing vocals by Afrodisiac, featuring Caron Wheeler. The harmonies and background parts are golden, and give us a glimpse into Wheeler’s long, storied career as a stellar vocalist, from her work on Erasure’s “Chains of Love” to her work with Soul II Soul.
“All your compliments and your cutting remarks are captured here in my quotation marks.”