Song Lyric Saturday: “Everyday I Write the Book”


Welcome to 
Song Lyric Saturday, a new feature for my NaBloPoMo month of March–and it may make occasional appearances even after that’s over, but we’ll see how it goes. I’m not a big fan of short stories in traditional form, but when they’re set to great melodies and last for under four minutes, sometimes they really work for me. 

In addition to one of my favorite book blogs (hi, Gayle!), I associate “Everyday I Write the Book” with the fact that every day I read a book (or at least a few pages of one)–and almost every day for the past five years, I’ve written a blog post which may or may not have been inspired by a book. And even if I didn’t have all those pleasant associations with it, it would still be one of my all-time favorite songs. I may have spent a good chunk of my life in Memphis, but when it comes to Elvis, I prefer Costello to Presley.

Don’t tell me you don’t know what love is
When you’re old enough to know better
When you find strange hands in your sweater
When your dreamboat turns out to be a footnote
I’m a man with a mission in two or three editions
And I’m giving you a longing look
Everyday, everyday, everyday
Everyday I write the book
Chapter One – we didn’t really get along
Chapter Two – I think I fell in love with you
You said you’d stand by me in the middle of Chapter Three
But you were up to your old tricks in Chapters Four, Five and Six
And I’m giving you a longing look
Everyday, everyday, everyday
Everyday I write the book
The way you walk
The way you talk, and try to kiss me, and laugh
In four or five paragraphs
All your compliments and your cutting remarks
Are captured here in my quotation marks
And I’m giving you a longing look
Everyday, everyday, everyday
Everyday I write the book
Everyday I write the book
Don’t tell me you don’t know the difference
Between a lover and a fighter
With my pen and my electric typewriter
Even in a perfect world where everyone was equal
I’d still own the film rights and be working on the sequel
And I’m giving you a longing look
Everyday, everyday, everyday
Everyday I write the book

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