Invasion Hit Parade

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Now that you set everybody free
Whatcha gonna do about me?
Don't want to be treated like some poor grateful clown
I'd rather go back to the sweet underground
Where I can tell the time by the colour of my skin
And I know my neighbour 'cos he's the one, yes he's the one
Who always turns me in

A woman works the tunnel in the middle of the night
Picking up every lost object in sight
Handbags, toupees, lost legs and fingernails
The black market eats up all your failures
Her transistor offers no salvation or regrets
No pool, no pets, no cigarettes
Just non-stop Disco Tex and the Sex-o-lettes

(chorus):
There's no name, no name for the place
Or pain we'll cause you again and again
If you do not cooperate with the Invasion Hit Parade

The liberation forces make movies of their own
Playing their Doors records and pretending to be stoned
Drowning out a broadcast that wasn't authorised
Incidentally, the revolution will be televised
With one head for business and another for good looks
Until they started arriving with their rubber aprons and their butcher's hooks

(chorus)

They're hunting us down here with Liberty's light
A handshaking double-talking procession of the mighty
Pursued by a T.V. crew and coming after them
A limousine of singing stars and their brotherhood anthem
The former dictator was impeccably behaved
They're mopping up all the stubborn ones who just refuse to be saved

(chorus)

Invasion Hit Parade
Written byDeclan MacManus
Performed byElvis Costello
Produced byMitchell Froom, Kevin Killen & D.P.A. MacManus
MusiciansD.P.A. MacManus - vocals
Ross MacManus - trumpet
Elvis Costello - big stupid guitar, little foolish organ, electric guitar
Larry Knechtel - grand piano
Pete Thomas - drums
T-Bone Wolk - bass
Marc Ribot - electric guitar
Mitchell Froom - Chamberlain
Costello-Froom-Ribot - "Radio Hail, Hail Freedonia Breakthrough"
Recordedlate 1990-early 1991, Ocean Way, Hollywood & Westside Studios, London
ReleasedMay 10, 1991
AlbumsMighty Like A Rose, 1991
PromosMalice And Magic (Japan), 1994
Length5:31

First known performance:
May 25, 1991, Santa Barbara, CA
Last known performance:
May 27, 2016, Florence, Italy
     (14 known performances)


Alternate versions

Invasion Hit Parade (Home Demo)
Performed byElvis Costello
MusiciansElvis Costello - vocals, all instruments
Recordedca. 1990, Elvis' home
ReleasedNovember 18, 2002
AlbumsMighty Like A Rose (Rhino reissue), 2002
Length4:18

Invasion Hit Parade (iTunes Originals Version)
Performed byElvis Costello
MusiciansElvis Costello - vocal, guitar
RecordedMarch 2007, Vancouver
ReleasedJune 19, 2007
DownloadsiTunes Originals, 2007
Length4:33
Mighty Like A RoseMLAR album cover large.jpg

ITunes OriginalsITunes Originals.jpg

Covers

Erich Sellheim home studio production, sung in German 2020 YouTube

Internal links

External links