"There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis" | ||||
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Single by Kirsty MacColl | ||||
from the album Desperate Character | ||||
B-side |
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Released | May 1981 | |||
Genre | Country pop | |||
Label | Polydor | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) | Barry Farmer | |||
Kirsty MacColl singles chronology | ||||
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"There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis" is a song by British singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl, which was released as the lead single from her debut studio album Desperate Character . The song was written by MacColl and Philip Rambow, and produced by Barry Farmer. It reached No. 14 in the UK Singles Chart and remained in the charts for nine weeks. [1] In the US, the song's British chip shop reference was changed to truck stop.
Norwegian singer Elisabeth Andreasson covered the song on her 1981 country album Angel of the Morning , with lyrics in Swedish by Hasse Olsson as "Killen ner' på Konsum svär att han är Elvis" ("The guy down Konsum swears he's Elvis"). [2]
On its release, Simon Ludgate of Record Mirror considered the song a "catchy little number" and "ultimately a tale of betrayal". He added, "Imagine Dave Edmunds singing a song by Chris Sievey and you'll get the idea". [3] Fred Dellar of Smash Hits considered the song "just an average sample of rocked-up country music" but commented on the "wonderful" title. [4]
Production
Other
Chart (1981) | Peak position |
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Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [5] | 37 |
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) [6] | 16 |
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [7] | 31 |
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan) [8] | 13 |
UK Singles (OCC) [9] | 14 |
"Perfect Day" is a song written by American musician Lou Reed in 1972. It was originally featured on Transformer, Reed's second post-Velvet Underground solo album, and as B-side of his major hit, "Walk on the Wild Side". Its fame was given a boost in the 1990s when it was featured in the 1996 film Trainspotting and after a star-studded version was released as a BBC charity single in 1997, reaching number one in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Norway. Reed re-recorded the song for his 2003 album The Raven.
"Fairytale of New York" is a song written by Jem Finer and Shane MacGowan and recorded by their London-based band the Pogues, featuring English singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl on vocals. The song is an Irish folk-style ballad and was written as a duet, with the Pogues' singer MacGowan taking the role of the male character and MacColl playing the female character. It was originally released as a single on 23 November 1987 and later featured on the Pogues' 1988 album If I Should Fall from Grace with God.
"Always on My Mind" is a ballad written by Wayne Carson, Johnny Christopher, and Mark James, first recorded by Brenda Lee and first released by Gwen McCrae in March 1972. Lee's version was released three months later in June 1972. The song has been a crossover hit, charting in both the country and western and pop categories. Elvis Presley's recording was the first commercially successful version of the song.
"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" is a 1957 folk song written by British political singer-songwriter Ewan MacColl for Peggy Seeger, who later became his wife. At the time, the couple were lovers, although MacColl was still married to his second wife, Jean Newlove. Seeger sang the song when the duo performed in folk clubs around Britain. During the 1960s, it was recorded by various folk singers and became a major international hit for Roberta Flack in 1972, winning Grammy Awards for Record of the Year and Song of the Year. Billboard ranked it as the number-one Hot 100 single of the year for 1972.
"They Don't Know" is a song composed and first recorded in 1979 by Kirsty MacColl. Though unsuccessful, the song was later recorded by Tracey Ullman in 1983. Ullman's version reached No. 2 in the UK and No. 8 in the US.
"Days" is a song by the Kinks, written by lead singer Ray Davies, released as a single in 1968. It also appeared on an early version of the album The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society. It now appears as a bonus track of the remastered CD. On the original Pye 7N 17573 label, the name of the song is "Day's" owing to a grammatical error.
"A New England" is a song written and recorded by Billy Bragg, included on his album Life's a Riot with Spy Vs Spy, released in 1983. It remains a signature song from the early years of Bragg's recording career.
"Terry" is a song by Kirsty MacColl, released as a single in October 1983, and charting at No. 82 in the UK the following month. It was her first release after returning to Stiff Records, and was the last in a run of poorly selling singles released between "There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis" and "A New England". The music video featured an appearance from actor and comedian Ade Edmondson, who played MacColl's rejected boyfriend who got her back after fighting off a rival man. The photo on the front sleeve features MacColl and Chris Heester.
"Don't Come the Cowboy with Me Sonny Jim!" is a song by British singer and songwriter Kirsty MacColl, which was released in 1990 as the fourth and final single from her second studio album Kite. It was written by MacColl and produced by Steve Lillywhite. The song reached No. 82 in the UK and remained in the charts for four weeks. A music video was filmed to promote the single, directed by Sarah Tuft.
You Caught Me Out is the second and final studio album by Tracey Ullman. It was released on Stiff Records in November 1984 throughout Europe. Unlike her 1983 debut album, this album was never released commercially in the United States.
Desperate Character is the first solo album of British singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl, released in 1981. The album was re-released in March 1985 as Kirsty MacColl, with three tracks replaced with other songs. The album has been remastered and received a CD release for the first time on 8 October 2012 on the Union Square Music label and features the original twelve track listing.
Kirsty Anna MacColl was an English singer and songwriter, daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl. She recorded several pop hits in the 1980s and 1990s, including "There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis" and cover versions of Billy Bragg's "A New England" and the Kinks' "Days". Her first single, "They Don't Know", had chart success a few years later when covered by Tracey Ullman. MacColl also sang on a number of recordings produced by her then-husband Steve Lillywhite, most notably "Fairytale of New York" by the Pogues. Her death in 2000 led to the "Justice for Kirsty" campaign.
"Walking Down Madison" is a 1991 song by Kirsty MacColl featuring Aniff Cousins. It charted at No. 23 on the UK Singles Chart and impacted a number of Billboard charts.
"He's on the Beach" is a song by British singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl, which was released in 1985 as a non-album single by Stiff Records. It was written by MacColl and Gavin Povey, and produced by Steve Lillywhite.
"All I Ever Wanted" is a song by British singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl, which was released in 1991 as the third and final single from her third studio album Electric Landlady. It was written by MacColl and Marshall Crenshaw, and produced by Steve Lillywhite.
Philip Rambow is a Canadian singer, songwriter, and guitarist, who fronted The Winkies, had a solo career, and worked with Brian Eno, Mick Ronson, and Kirsty MacColl among others.
"This Is Me" is a song by British pop duo Climie Fisher, originally released in August 1986 as their debut single, but did not break the top 100. After the success of "Rise to the Occasion" and "Love Changes (Everything)", it was re-released in May 1988 and charted at number 22 on the UK Singles Chart. The song features backing vocals by Kirsty MacColl. The music video was directed by Dieter Trattmann and shot at the Albert Wharf Studios in London.
"You Caught Me Out" is a song written by Kirsty MacColl, Pete Briquette and Simon Crowe. It was originally recorded by MacColl in 1979, with Liam Sternberg as the producer, but the intended single release later that year was shelved. In 2023, it was issued as a limited edition 7-inch single. Versions have also been recorded by Australian singer Christie Allen and British-American singer/actress Tracey Ullman.
"I Want Out" is a song by English rockabilly band Matchbox featuring Kirsty MacColl. It was released in 1983 as the third and final single from the band's sixth studio album Crossed Line (1982). It was written by Brian Hodgson, Ray Peters and Tony Colton, and produced by Hodgson.
"See That Girl" is a song by English singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl, released on 18 September 1981 by Polydor as the second single from her debut studio album, Desperate Character. It was written by MacColl and produced by Barry "Bazza" Farmer.