Adam's Elvis Costello Page - This Years Model: Lyrics No Action

I don't wanna kiss you. I don't wanna touch. I don't wanna see you 'cause I don't miss you that much. I'm not a telephone junkie. I told you that we were just good friends. But when I hold you like I hold that bakelite in my hands,

there's no action, there's no action, there's no action. Ev'ry time I phone you, I just wanna put you down.

He's got the keys to the car. They are the keys to the kingdom. He's got ev'rything you need. It's a shame that he didn't bring them. I'm not a telephone junkie. If I'm inserting my coin I'm doing just fine. And the things in my head start hurtin' my mind. And I think about the way things used to be, knowing you with him is driving me crazy. Sometimes I phone you when I know you're not lonely, but I always disconnect it in time.

This Year's Girl

See her picture in a thousand places 'cause she's this year's girl. You think you all own little pieces of this year's girl. Forget your fancy manners, forget your English grammar, 'cause you don't really give a damn about this year's girl.

Still you're hoping that she's well spoken 'cause she's this year's girl. You want her broken with her mouth wide open 'cause she's this year's girl. Never knowing it's a real attraction, all these promises of satisfaction, while she's being bored to distraction being this year's girl.

Time's running out. She's not happy with the cost. There'd be no doubt, only she's forgotten much more than she's lost.

A bright spark might corner the market in this year's girl. You see yourself rolling on the carpet with this year's girl. Those disco synthesizers,
those daily tranquilizers,
those body building prizes,
those bedroom alibis,
all this, but no surprises for this year's girl.
All this, but no surprises for this year's girl.
All this, but no surprises for this year's girl.

The Beat

We're all going on a summer holiday Vigilante's coming out to follow me. Heard somebody say they're out to collar me. Anybody wanna swallow me?

It takes two to tumble. It takes two to tango. Speak up; don't mumble if you're in the combo.

On the beat, on the beat. Till a man comes along and he says, 'Have you been a good boy, never played with your toy? Though you never enjoy, such pleasure to employ.'

See your friends in the state their in. See your friends getting under their skin. See your friends getting taken in.

Well, if you only knew the things you do to me. I'd do anything to confuse the enemy. There's only one thing wrong with you befriending me. Take it easy. I think you're bending me.

I've been a bad boy with the standard leader. My neighbor's revving up his Vauxhall Viva.

On the beat, on the upbeat. Till a man comes along and he says, 'Have you been a good boy, never played with your toy? Though you never enjoy, such pleasure to employ.'

See your friends walking down the street. See your friends never quite complete. See your friends getting under their feet.

Oh, I don't want to disease you, but I'm no good with machinery. Oh, I don't wanna freeze you. Stop looking at the scen'ry. I keep thinking about your mother. Oh, I don't wanna lick them. I don't wanna be a lover. I just wanna be your victim. I don't go out much at night. I don't go out much at all. Did you think you were the only one who was waiting for a call

On the beat, on the upbeat. Till a man comes along and he says, 'Have you been a good boy, never played with your toy? Though you never enjoy, such pleasure to employ.'

See your friends treat me like a stranger. See your friends despite all the arrangements. See your friends Nothing here has changed. Just the beat.

Pump It Up

I've been on tenterhooks ending in dirty looks, list'ning to the Muzak, thinking 'bout this 'n' that. She said that's that. I don't wanna chitter-chat. Turn it down a little bit or turn it down flat.

Pump it up when you don't really need it. Pump it up until you can feel it.

Down in the pleasure centre, hell bent or heaven sent, listen to the propaganda, listen to the latest slander. There's nothing underhand that she wouldn't understand.

Pump it up until you can feel it. Pump it up when you don't really need it.

She's been a bad girl. She's like a chemical. Though you try to stop it, she's like a narcotic. You wanna torture her. You wanna talk to her. All the things you bought for her, putting up your temp'rature.

Pump it up until you can feel it. Pump it up when you don't really need it.

Out in the fashion show, down in the bargain bin, you put your passion out under the pressure pin. Fall into submission, hit-and-run transmission. No use wishing now for any other sin.

Pump it up until you can feel it. Pump it up when you don't really need it.

Little Triggers

Little triggers that you pull with your tongue. Little triggers. I don't wanna be hung up, strung up, when you don't call up.

Little sniggers on your lips. Little triggers in your grip. Little triggers. My hand on your hip.

Thinkin' all about those censored sequences, worryin' about the consequences, waiting until I come to my senses. Better put it all in present tenses.

Worryin' about the common decency when it is only a question of frequency when you say O.K. But I gotta cheek to be sayin' you're tired of me when you don't even weaken these

You Belong To Me

What are you girls gonna tell your mother? I don't want to hear another word about young lovers or hiding your boyfriend in the cupboard. She's been to see the doctor, so you hope that she recovers.

You act dumb. You say you're so numb. You say you don't come under his thumb.

Don't wanna be a goody-goody. I don't want just anybody. No, I don't want anybody saying 'You belong to me. You belong to me.'

Your eyes are absent, your mouth is silent; pumping like a fire hydrant. Things you see are getting hard to swallow. You're easily led, but you're much too scared to follow.

You've been warned. You're going to get torn. No uniform is gonna keep you warm.

Hand In Hand

No, don't ask me to apologise. I won't ask you to forgive me. If I'm gonna go down, you're gonna come with me

You say 'Why don't you be a man about it, like they do in the grown-up movies?' But when it comes to the other way around, you say you just wanna use me. Oh, you and you wonder whether it's gonna be syndicated. You sit with your knees together. All the time your breath is baited.

Hand in Hand. No, don't ask me to apologise. I won't ask you to forgive me. If I'm gonna go down, you're gonna come with me

Don't you know I got the bully boys out changing someone's facial design, sitting with my toy room lout, polishing my precious china Don't you know I'm an animal? But don't you know I can't stand up steady? But you can show me any kind of hell that I don't know already.

Hand in Hand. No, don't ask me to apologise. I won't ask you to forgive me. If I'm gonna go down, you're gonna come with me Hand in hand, hand in hand, hand in hand...

(I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea

Photographs of fancy tricks to get your kicks at sixty-six He thinks of all the lips that he licks And all the girls that he's going to fix She gave a little flirt, gave herself a little cuddle But there's no place here for the mini-skirt waddle Capital punishment, she's last year's model They call her Natasha when she looks like Elsie I don't want to go to Chelsea

Oh no it does not move me Even though I've seen the movie I don't want to check your pulse I don't want nobody else I don't want to go to Chelsea

Everybody's got new orders Be a nice girl and kiss the warders Now the teacher is away All the kids begin to play

Men come screaming, dressed in white coats Shake you very gently by the throat One's named Gus, one's named Alfie I don't want to go to Chelsea

Oh no it does not move me Even though I've seen the movie I don't want to check your pulse I don't want nobody else I don't want to go to Chelsea

Photographs of fancy tricks to get your kicks at sixty-six He thinks of all the lips that he licks And all the girls that he's going to fix She gave a little flirt, gave herself a little cuddle But there's no place here for the mini-skirt waddle Capital punishment, she's last year's model They call her Natasha when she looks like Elsie I don't want to go to Chelsea

Oh no it does not move me Even though I've seen the movie I don't want to check your pulse I don't want nobody else I don't want to go to Chelsea

Lip Service

You left the motor running. But I know you're so attractive. Getting in some sharp practice. You better not do anything reckless.

But everybody is going through the motions. Everybody is going through the motions. Are you really only going through the motions?

Lip service is all you'll ever get from me. Lip service is all you'll ever get from me. Lip service is all you'll ever get from me. But if you change your mind you can send it a letter to me

Don't make any sudden movements. These are dangerous amusements. When did you become so choosy? Don't act like you're above me; just look at your shoes.

[Repeat bridge and chorus]

But if you change your mind you can send it a letter to me But if you change your mind you can send it a letter to me But if you change your mind you can send a little letter to me

Living In Paradise

I don't like those other guys looking at your curves I don't like you walking round with physical jerks Everything they say and do is getting on my nerves Soon the will be lucky to be picking up the perks

'Cause when they pull the shutters down and throw up in the dark, they'll find that all the dogs outside bite much worse than they bark.

Here we are living in paradise, living in luxury. Oh, the thrill is here but it won't last long You better have your fun before it moves along And you're already looking for another, fool like me.

I call you Betty Felon 'cause you are a pretty villain And I think that I should tell them that you'd make a pretty killing 'Cause meanwhile up in heaven they are waiting at the gate saying 'We'd always knew you'd make it, didn't think you'd come this late'.

And now it's much too dangerous to stop what you've begun When everyone in paradise carries a gun

[Chorus]

Later in the evening when arrangements are made, I'll be at the keyhole outside your bedroom door. 'Cause I'm the first to know whenever the plans are laid that never go further than floor to floor.

You think that I don't know the boy that you're touching, but I'll be at the video and I will be watching

[Chorus]

Lipstick Vogue

Don't say you love me when it's just a rumour Don't say a word if there is any doubt. Sometimes I think that love is just a tumour; you've got to cut it out.

You say you're sorry for the things that you've done. You say you're sorry but you know you don't mean it. I wouldn't worry. I had so much fun. Sometimes I almost feel just like a human being

It's you not just another mouth in the lipstick vogue It's you not just another mouth in the lipstick vogue oh yeah.

Get to the slot machine almost dead on arrival Just hit me one more time with that live wire Maybe they told you you were only a girl in a million You say I've got not feelings; this is a good way to kill them.

Select the control and then insert the token You wanna throw me away but I'm not broken. You've got a lot to say. Well I'm not joking. There are some words they don't allow to be spoken. Sometimes I almost feel just like a human being

It's you not just another mouth in the lipstick vogue

Night Rally

I would send out for assistance but there's someone on the signal wire And the corporation logo is flashing on and off in the sky They're putting all your names in the forbidden book I know what they're doing but I don't want to look

You think they're so dumb, you think they're so funny Wait until they've got you running to the Night rally, night rally, night rally

Everybody's singing with their hand on their heart About deeds done in the darkest hours That's just the sort of catchy little melody To get you singing in the showers

Oh, I know that I'm ungrateful I've got it lying on a plate And I'm not buying my share of souvenirs You can stand to attention You can pray to your uncle Only get that chicken out of here Everyone gets armbands and 3-D glasses Some are in the back room And they're taking those night classes

You think they're so dumb, you think they're so funny Wait until they've got you running to the Night rally, night rally, night rally

Radio Radio

I was tuning in the shine on the light night dial doing anything my radio advised with every one of those late night stations playing songs bringing tears to me eyes I was seriously thinking about hiding the receiver when the switch broke 'cause it's old They're saying things that I can hardly believe. They really think we're getting out of control.

Radio is a sound salvation Radio is cleaning up the nation They say you better listen to the voice of reason But they don't give you any choice 'cause they think that it's treason. So you had better do as you are told. You better listen to the radio.

I wanna bite the hand that feeds me. I wanna bite that hand so badly. I want to make them wish they'd never seen me.

Some of my friends sit around every evening and they worry about the times ahead But everybody else is overwhelmed by indifference and the promise of an early bed You either shut up or get cut up; they don't wanna hear about it. It's only inches on the reel-to-reel. And the radio is in the hands of such a lot of fools tryin' to anaesthetise the way that you feel

[Chorus]

Wonderful radio Marvelous radio Wonderful radio Radio, radio...

Big Tears

Everyone is busy with the regular routine The sniper just takes his aim Everyone is window shopping, no one is amazed Even if he hit you, you'd still think it's just a graze You go to a movie, you go to a show You think that you're living, you don't really know

Big tears mean nothing You can count them as they fall Big tears mean nothing When you're lying in your coffin Tell me who's been taken in

Oh, you talk about the new boss automatic clause But of course they make it all up for you Always fascinated by the weird edge of town Come home disappointed every time they put you down Laughing with the old boys, saying that it's all noise

I suppose big tears mean nothing You can count them as they fall Big tears mean nothing When you're lying in your coffin Tell me who's been taken in

All the buttons of my overcoat They have fallen off one by one You wouldn't even like me if you'd never had a drink You wouldn't even like me if you never stopped to think Standing in the shadow, turning wives to widows

Don't you know big tears mean nothing You can count them as they fall Big tears mean nothing When you're lying in your coffin Tell me who's been taken in Tell me, me or yous been taken in Tell me, tell me, tell me

Crawling To The U.S.A.

I thought I would go to the sea and shrink down very tiny And slide inside the telephone wire that runs under the briny Till I found there is a way of crawling to the U.S.A.

You had better not go too far There's one way out, there's only one way Leave your mother and your father Crawling to the U.S.A.

Saw it late one night on a secret channel It's farther on along the tunnel It's way beyond the final station That's the one they never mention

You had better not go too far There's one way out, there's only one way Leave your mother and your father Crawling to the U.S.A.

You don't have to pay them that much You had better bring your lunch It's undercover, around the houses Up your skirt and down your trousers

You had better not go too far There's one way out, there's only one way Leave your mother and your father Crawling to the U.S.A.

She said, "I catch you taking liberties and they do not impress me Attach me to your credit card and then you can undress me Everybody is on their knees except the Russians and the Chinese

You had better not go too far There's one way out, there's only one way Leave your mother and your father Crawling to the U.S.A.

Running Out of Angels

They say they're running out of angels They say I'm running out of time Oh you don't have to be lucky It is easier than trying, now they're bringing down a Hammer on anything that sells I suppose you're a winner Because they're running out of angels

And all the lies upon the tongues of all the girls upon the rails Will ruin any man who moved too soon All except the one who seems to know more than she tells You know she looks just like an angel but she sings so out of tune

They say they're running out of angels They say I'm running out of time Oh you don't have to be lucky It is easier than trying, now they're bringing down a Hammer on anything that sells I suppose you're a winner Because they're running out of angels
Oh

Green Shirt

There's a smart young woman on a light blue screen Who comes into my house every night. And she takes all the red, yellow, orange and green And she turns them into black and white.

But you tease, and you flirt And you shine all the buttons on your green shirt You can please yourself but somebody's gonna get it

Better cut off all identifying labels Before they put you on the torture table

'Cause somewhere in the "Quizling Clinic" There's a shorthand typist taking seconds over minutes She's listening in to the Venus line She's picking out names I hope none of them are mine

But you tease, and you flirt...

Never said I was a stool pigeon I never said I was a diplomat Everybody is under suspicion But you don't wanna hear about that

'Cause you tease, and you flirt...

Better send a begging letter to the big investigation Who put these fingerprints on my imagination?

You tease, and you flirt...

You can please yourself but somebody's gonna get it You can please yourself but somebody's gonna get it

Big Boys

I am starting to function In the usual way Everything is so provocative Very very, temporary

I shall walk (I shall walk) Out of this place (out of this place) I shall walk Out on you 'Cause you go silly If she's willing Trying so hard to be like the big boys

So you take her to the pictures Trying to become a fixture Inch by inch trying to reach her All the way through the second feature Worrying about your physical fitness Tell me how you got this sickness, Oh ohhhh..

I was caught in the suction By a face like a truncheon I was down upon one knee Stroking her vanity

I was stuck on a hammerhead I came alive and left for dead As my face returned to red Choking on my pride and pity

We can talk (we can talk) Until your face is blue ('til your face is blue) We can talk but she'll get to you After you've been loved and hated By the ones you've watched and waited Found that they were overrated

She'll be the one - when the party's over She'll be the one - when the girls have gone home She'll be the one - that you'll wish you'd held onto She'll be the one - but it's too late for you to She'll be the one - who knows all your history She'll be the one -

So you can cross her off your list And you try so hard And you try so hard And you try so hard To be like the big boys, oh.