Veronica (song)

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"Veronica"
Single by Elvis Costello
from the album Spike
Released	1989
Format	7"
Recorded	1987-1988
Genre	Rock
Length	3:09
Label	Warner Bros.
Writer(s)	Elvis Costello, Paul McCartney
Producer	Elvis Costello, Kevin Killen, T-Bone Burnett
Elvis Costello singles chronology
"A Town Called Big Nothing" (1987) "Veronica" (1989) "Baby Plays Around EP" (1989)

"Veronica" is a single from Elvis Costello's 1989 album Spike, co-written by Costello with Paul McCartney. The song "Veronica" was co-produced by T-Bone Burnett and Kevin Killen, and features Paul McCartney on his trademark Höfner bass. In 2004, Entertainment Weekly voted it as one of Costello's top ten greatest tunes.^[1]

The song focuses on an older woman who has experienced severe memory loss. Costello's inspiration for this song was his grandmother, who suffered from Alzheimer's. When talking about the song on a VH1 interview, Costello reminisced about his grandmother having "terrifying moments of lucidity" and how this was the inspiration for "Veronica".

"Veronica" was also Costello's highest-charting Top 40 hit in the United States, peaking at #19 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, #1 on its modern rock chart, and #10 on its mainstream rock chart.

[edit] Music video

"Veronica" and its accompanying video depicts an aged woman, probably nearing the end of her life in a retirement home, engaging in detached reminiscences from her life from young girl to young womanhood (played by Zoe Carides). The video for "Veronica" featured Costello delivering a spoken-word monologue to the camera, and occasionally singing the song softly over the original vocal track from the recording. The video earned an MTV Video Music Award nomination for Best Male Video.

[edit] External links

• Veronica at Allmusic

[edit] References

Preceded by "I'll Be You" by The Replacements

Billboard Modern Rock Tracks number one single March 18, 1989 - March 25, 1989

Succeeded by "The Mayor of Simpleton" by XTC