We go from yesterday’s classic song of the day with old Elvis (Presley) to today’s song with new Elvis (Costello). The song is “Oliver’s Army” and Elvis Costello released it as a single in the UK in February of 1979. It went all the way to #2 on the UK Singles chart and #4 in Ireland—which is fitting, because the song is about The Troubles in Northern Ireland.
That’s right, Elvis Costello wrote “Oliver’s Army” about the then-ongoing conflict in Northern Ireland between the Protestants (who wanted Northern Ireland to stay in the UK) and the Catholics (who wanted independence). Mr. Costello had recently traveled to that country and was disturbed by the sight of young British soldiers patrolling the streets of Belfast. The lyrics comment on the socio-economic disparities of war—how the poor do the fighting so the rich can benefit. As Mr. Costello later noted:
“I made my first trip to Belfast in 1978 and saw mere boys walking around in battle dress with automatic weapons. They were no longer just on the evening news. These snapshot experiences exploded into visions of mercenaries and imperial armies around the world. The song was based on the premise ‘they always get a working class boy to do the killing'”
“Oliver’s Army” is, without a doubt, the best cut on Mr. Costello’s Armed Forces album—which may be his best album. The song has a melody you can’t get out of your head and fast-moving chords that contrast perfectly with his politically trenchant (if controversial) lyrics. Also, there’s great ABBA-esque piano from Steve Nieve and self-propelled backing by Pete Thomas on drums. This is why I listened to so much Elvis in and after college. Terrific stuff.
As to that controversy, it’s all about a single phrase: “white n****r.” To most here in the U.S., the n-word is an extremely offensive racial slur and a “white n****r” is a demeaning term for a lower-class white person. In Northern Ireland, however, the phrase has a totally different meaning, instead referring to the Irish Catholics in that country. Thus the following phrase in “Oliver’s Army” makes better sense, at least from the sense of a Protestant sympathizer (although Elvis was not a Protestant sympathizer himself):
Only takes one itchy trigger
One more widow, one less white n****r
By the way, the “Oliver” in the song’s title refers to English statesman and politician Oliver Cromwell who, in 1649, led the Parliamentarian army that conquered Ireland during the English Civil War. In the contemporary instance, “Oliver’s army” were the English troops “defending” against the Protestant rebels in Northern Ireland. Elvis was a clever and observant writer—even if the average American was almost entirely ignorant about The Troubles and its history at the time.
So here’s your daily bonus video of the day, Elvis Costello’s official music video for “Oliver’s Army.” He was a very angry young man back then.
