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Sulky Girl

Elvis Costello
Version1
90

Chords in this song

Strum
D-DU-UDU
She  wears a wedding ring
 Her sister lent to throw them off
 the scent
 Just let them guess, is what they expect
 Who in the world has bitten  her neck?
 She4s discovered
 wearing last night4s dress
 The carnal and cunning, she couldn4t express
Who  do
 you think she4s trying to impress?
 
 I think  you4d better hold your tongue
 
 Although you4ve never  been that strong
 I4m sorry  to say  that I knew all  along
 You were no match  for
 that sulky girl
She  left her European town
 Before she let  that family down
 She couldn4t stand the
 Massacre game
 She
 dyed her hair and adopted another name
 With the  evidence of passing out
 Stamped on her hand, she glows
 in the dark
 
 He thinks she4s from another planet, oh
 I think  you4d better hold your tongue
 
 Although you4ve never  been that strong
 I4m sorry  to say  that I knew all  along
 You were no match  for
 that sulky girl
 
 Sulky  girl,  I4m  sure  you look a picture when you cry
 
 But threatening the silent treatment doesn4t qualify
 It4s like money in  the  bank
 Your expression is blank
 But while the chance appears
 You4ll be nearer to tears
 Sulky girl
 
Sulky  girl
He  said "Hello, my pretty flower,"
 Just trying out his tycoon power
 Avoiding the mirror, her pitying stare
 She said, "You4re mistaken, your money4s
 no good in here."
 Just some
 stupid little know-it-all
 Who thought she looked easy; he4s not that
 astute
He4ll  pay for
 the distance between cruelty and beauty
 
 I think you4d  better hold your tongue
 
Although  you4ve never been  that strong
 I4m sorry to  say that  I knew all along
 You were no match
 for that sulky girl
I
 won4t tell you again, what do you gain
 By
 blackening her name?
 
 She4s  smarter than you, oh, isn4t it a shame
 
 You4re  going to  lose that  sulky girl
 Sulky girl,
 I saw you practicing your blackmail faces
 Suddenly,
 your talking lika a duchess, but you4re still a waitress
 I saw through your pretence
 But in my defence
 There are a few events
I  think we4ll
 spare the censor
 Sulky girl
 Sulky girl
Sulky  girl
 This is my first posting of chords, please be gentle. :)
 Really, though, if you would like to debate any of my decisions, any input is
 appreciated.
 SULKY GIRL
 She wears a wedding ring her sister lent
 To  throw them off the scent
 Just  let them guess, it's what they expect
 Who in the world has bitten her neck?
 She's  discovered wearing last night's dress
 The  carnal and cunning, she couldn't express
 Who do you think she's trying to impress?
 
 I think you'd better hold your tongue
 Although  you've never been  that  strong
 I'm  sorry to say that  I knew all along
 You  were no match  for that sulky  girl
   (
  ?)
 
 see verse 1
 Sulky girl
 I'm  sure  you look a picture when you cry
 But  threatening  the silent treatment doesn't  qualify
 It's  like  money in  the bank
  (hold
  )
 Your  expression  is blank
  (hold
  )
 But while  the  chance appears
  (you get the idea)
 You'll be  nearer  to tears
  (still
  )
 Sulky girl (2x)
 
 same as bridge 1 except fade out on
 Sulky girl
 
 20% Amnesiac "Albatross!" Middle Class Twit
 EC loves to take a regular chord and play it with the third in the bass
 instead of the root-like a D with an Fon the bottom. I once read an
 interview with Paul McCartney where they asked him what it was about Brian
 Wilson's Pet Sounds that he drew on for inspiration during his Sgt. Pepper
 period, and he said "Brian would take a C chord and play a G in the bass."
 You can find these "5th in the bass" chords all through the songs of
 McCartney and Brian Wilson. I haven't transcribed that much EC yet, but I
 know he likes the 3rd and 7th quite a bit. Steely Dan & Co. take the whole
 thing even farther by putting notes in the bass which aren't even in the
 chord at all, like an F chord with a G in the bass going to a G chord with
 a C in the bass. Or an A chord with a G in the bass.
 But I digress! The chord is Sulky Girl is a D chord, but with an Fin the
 bass. At the beginning of the Bridge he sings: "Sul...ky Girl" and right on
 "Girl" he plays the D/Fchord. So D IS the right chord, but putting that
 Fin the bass is what makes it sound so cool. Then he does it again on
 "cry" in "when you cry". What happens after that is wild, and I'm not sure
 what the guitar is doing, but the bass is going C C E C F E C. I think the
 guitar is just playing C to F to C, switching to F when the bass does.
 What a great song-and as with most great songs, the bassline is a melody,
 not just a bunch of chord roots. The next part is great.
 It's like money in the bank (bass:
 
  )
 Your expression is blank (bass:
 
  )
 But while the chance appears (bass:
 
  )
 I think your chords are right, except maybe it goes C F C instead of F C
 F-my mail program has everything so mixed up that I can't tell what goes
 with what anyway.
 But I digress-when it goes to the little vamp on sulky girl, the bass
 player does the third in the bass trick again, this time on the C chord.
 The bass goes: G G F F E D C, with the E hitting right when the C chord
 comes in.
 Earlier in the song, on the chorus there's another hint of 3rd in the bass.
 On "hold your tongue" the bass plays FD G.
 The hardest part for me to hear is "never been that strong". The bass here
 is just wicked! My trick for picking out hard basslines is to record the cd
 onto a 2 speed tape deck at the slow speed and then listen to it at the
 fast speed. This makes Mssr. Costello sound like Alvin the Chipmunk, but it
 also brings the bassline up exactly one octave into the guitar's range and
 makes the pitches very clear. The only problem is when the bass starts
 playing really fast, like he's playing here.
 Oh-wait-there's the McCartney chord! On the "though" of "although" the bass
 is running up off of an E, so at the moment the guitar hits A, the bass is
 on E, the fifth.
 Here's another trick: rest your finger on pause and hit it right after he
 says "although" and let the sound of it roll around in your head in the
 ensuing silence. God I love Elvis Costello! Have you ever heard that song
 that Prince wrote called "I Love You More Than I Did When You Were Mine"?.
 It was covered by Cindy Lauper on her first album. Not that I'm a giant CL
 fan, mind you, but what she said "I know" in "I know....that you're goin'
 with another guy..." it killed me. I love that song. Anyway, "I know" is
 the exact same rhythm, notes and rhyme as "Although" in this song, but EC
 takes it a step further by putting the E in bass.
 But I digress. On "never been that strong" the bass player, I think, goes D
 D C B A G, so we've got D, D/C, G/B, and then he runs down to the root of
 the
 
 This is that 7th in the bass I was talking about. A D chord with a C in the
 bass. This kind of chord loves to have the bass go down one fret to a chord
 with the third in the bass: D/C to G/B. EC loves this progression and does
 all sorts of exceedingly clever things with it.
 But i digress-there's one more third in the bass chord right at the end of
 the chorus. When he sings "I'm sorry to say that you knew all along" the
 chords are like you have them, G A D G, but after the 2nd G chord comes the
 D/Fagain, on its way down to Emi A Emi F#mi.
 But wait! If anyone has actually read this far, HOW WOULD YOU INTERPRET THE
 LYRICS???

Source: Songsterr · Rights holder? Request removal.

Readable chord sheet for Sulky Girl by Elvis Costello

[Em]She wears a wedding ring

Her sister lent to throw them off     [Am]
the scent

Just let them guess, is what they expect

Who in the world has bitten[Em] her neck?

She4s discovered                                    [Am]
wearing last night4s dress

The carnal and cunning, she couldn4t express

[D]Who do                                              [G]                                                           [C]
you think she4s trying to impress?

     [D]                        [G]
I th[C]ink you4d better hold your tongue
     [D]                     [G]
Although you4ve nev[C]er been that strong

I4m s[D]orry to s[G]ay that I knew al[C]l along

You were no [Am7]match for        [D]                     [Am]                             [Bm]
that sulky girl

[Em]She left her European town

Before she le[Am]t that family down

She couldn4t stand the
Massacre game
She                                                [Em]
dyed her hair and adopted another name

With th[Am]e evidence of passing out

Stamped on her hand, she glows
in the dark
        [D]                                                [G]    [C]

He thinks she4s from another planet, oh

[D]                        [G]
I th[C]ink you4d better hold your tongue
     [D]                     [G]
Although you4ve nev[C]er been that strong

I4m s[D]orry to s[G]ay that I knew al[C]l along

You were no [Am7]match for        [D]                     [Am]                             [Bm]
that sulky girl

   [C]      [G] [Am]                 [Em]                   [C]
Sulky[G] gir[F]l, I[Bb]4m su[F]re you look a picture when you cry

    [C]           [G] [Am]              [Em]                  [C]     [G]   [F]   [Bb]   [F]

But threatening the silent treatment doesn4t qualify
[C]
It4s like money in[F] the[Bb] bank[F]
[C]
Your expression is blan[F]k   [Bb]        [F]
[C]
But while the chance appears [F]     [Bb]          [F]
[G]

You4ll be nearer to tears
Sulky girl [C]     [Bb]          [F]
  [G]       [C]
[Bb]Sulky[F] gir[Em]l

[Em]He said "Hello, my pretty flower,"

Just trying out his tycoon pow[Am]er

Avoiding the mirror, her pitying stare

She said, "You4re mistaken, your [Em]money4s
no good in here."
Just some                               [Am]
stupid little know-it-all

Who thought she looked easy; he4s not that
astute
[D]He4ll pay for                                 [G]                                      [C]
the distance between cruelty and beauty

     [D]                        [G]
I think y[C]ou4d better hold your tongue
     [D]
[G]Although you4ve never be[C]en that strong

I4m sorry [D]to say th[G]at I knew all alo[C]ng

You were no matc[Am7]h                [D]                              [G]                                      [C]
for that sulky girl

[D]I                        [G]                                      [C]                                                 [D]
won4t tell you again, what do you gain
By           [G]                           [C]
blackening her name?
                                [D]            [G]
S[C]he4s smarter than you, oh, isn4t it a shame
             [Am7]
Yo[D]u4re going t[Am]o lose t[Bm]hat sulky girl

[C]      [G] [Am]
Sulky girl,     [Em]                          [C]                                      [G]                                          [F]                                              [Bb]                                                   [F]
I saw you practicing your blackmail faces
[C]      [G]              [Am]
Sudden[Em]ly,                       [C]                                 [G]                                           [F]                                               [Bb]                                                    [F]
your talking lika a duchess, but you4re still a waitress
[C]
I saw through your pre[F]tenc[Bb]e    [F]
[C]
But in my defence          [F]              [Bb]                   [F]
[C]
There are a few events[F]    [Bb]         [F]
[G]I think we4ll
spare the censor
Sulky girl [C]     [Bb]          [F]
[G]        [C]   [Bb]   [F]

Sulky girl
[G]Sulky gir[C]l   [Bb]        [F]

This is my first posting of chords, please be gentle.   :)
Really, though, if you would like to debate any of my decisions, any input is
appreciated.

SULKY GIRL

She wears a wedding ring her sister lent

T[Bm]o throw them off the scent

J[Em]ust let them guess, it's what they expect

Who in the world has bitten her neck?

S[Bm]he's discovered wearing last night's dress

T[Em]he carnal and cunning, she couldn't express

Who do you think she's trying to impress?

 [A]                                    [D]    [G]

I think you'd better hold your tongue

A[A]lthough you've never b[Bm]een th[A]at stro[G]ng

I[A]'m sorry to say th[D]at I knew all alo[Bm]ng

Y[G]ou were no mat[A]ch for that [D]sulky girl[Bm]

 [G] (
 [Em]?)
 [A]          [Em]        [F#m]

see verse 1

Sulky girl

I[G]'m sure[D] you look a picture when you cry

B[Em]ut threaten[Bm]ing the silent t[G]reatment [D]doesn'[F]t q[C]ual[F]ify

I[G]t's like[D] money i[Em]n the bank [Bm]                   [G]                         [D]                               [F]                                  [C]                                     [F]                                           [G]
 (hold
 [G])
Y[F]our[C] ex[F]pressi[G]on is blank
 (hold
 [G])
B[F]ut [C]whi[F]le the[G] chance appears
 (you get the idea)
Y[F]ou'[C]ll [F]be nea[D]rer to tears
 (still
 [D])
Sulky girl (2x)

 [G]    [F]    [C]    [D]

same as bridge 1 except fade out on

Sulky girl

 [G]    [F]    [C]    [D]

20% Amnesiac                  "Albatross!"                 Middle Class Twit

EC loves to take a regular chord and play it with the third in the bass
instead of the root-like a D with an F
interview with Paul McCartney where they asked him what it was about Brian
Wilson's Pet Sounds that he drew on for inspiration during his Sgt. Pepper
period, and he said "Brian would take a C chord and play a G in the bass."
You can find these "5th in the bass" chords all through the songs of
McCartney and Brian Wilson. I haven't transcribed that much EC yet, but I
know he likes the 3rd and 7th quite a bit. Steely Dan & Co. take the whole
thing even farther by putting notes in the bass which aren't even in the
chord at all, like an F chord with a G in the bass going to a G chord with
a C in the bass. Or an A chord with a G in the bass.

But I digress! The chord is Sulky Girl is a D chord, but with an F
bass. At the beginning of the Bridge he sings: "Sul...ky Girl" and right on
"Girl" he plays the D/F
F
"cry" in "when you cry". What happens after that is wild, and I'm not sure
what the guitar is doing, but the bass is going C C E C F E C. I think the
guitar is just playing C to F to C, switching to F when the bass does.

What a great song-and as with most great songs, the bassline is a melody,
not just a bunch of chord roots. The next part is great.

It's like money in the bank (bass:
 [C]  [E]  [C]  [F]  [E]
 [C])
Your expression is blank (bass:
 [C]  [C]  [E]  [F]  [E]
 [C])
But while the chance appears (bass:
 [C]  [C]  [F]  [C]
 [F])

I think your chords are right, except maybe it goes C F C instead of F C
F-my mail program has everything so mixed up that I can't tell what goes
with what anyway.

But I digress-when it goes to the little vamp on sulky girl, the bass
player does the third in the bass trick again, this time on the C chord.
The bass goes: G G F F E D C, with the E hitting right when the C chord
comes in.

Earlier in the song, on the chorus there's another hint of 3rd in the bass.
On "hold your tongue" the bass plays F

The hardest part for me to hear is "never been that strong". The bass here
is just wicked! My trick for picking out hard basslines is to record the cd
onto a 2 speed tape deck at the slow speed and then listen to it at the
fast speed. This makes Mssr. Costello sound like Alvin the Chipmunk, but it
also brings the bassline up exactly one octave into the guitar's range and
makes the pitches very clear. The only problem is when the bass starts
playing really fast, like he's playing here.

Oh-wait-there's the McCartney chord! On the "though" of "although" the bass
is running up off of an E, so at the moment the guitar hits A, the bass is
on E, the fifth.

Here's another trick: rest your finger on pause and hit it right after he
says "although" and let the sound of it roll around in your head in the
ensuing silence. God I love Elvis Costello! Have you ever heard that song
that Prince wrote called "I Love You More Than I Did When You Were Mine"?.
It was covered by Cindy Lauper on her first album. Not that I'm a giant CL
fan, mind you, but what she said "I know" in "I know....that you're goin'
with another guy..." it killed me. I love that song. Anyway, "I know" is
the exact same rhythm, notes and rhyme as "Although" in this song, but EC
takes it a step further by putting the E in bass.

But I digress. On "never been that strong" the bass player, I think, goes D
D C B A G, so we've got D, D/C, G/B, and then he runs down to the root of
the
 [G]

This is that 7th in the bass I was talking about. A D chord with a C in the
bass. This kind of chord loves to have the bass go down one fret to a chord
with the third in the bass: D/C to G/B. EC loves this progression and does
all sorts of exceedingly clever things with it.

But i digress-there's one more third in the bass chord right at the end of
the chorus. When he sings "I'm sorry to say that you knew all along" the
chords are like you have them, G A D G, but after the 2nd G chord comes the
D/F

But wait! If anyone has actually read this far, HOW WOULD YOU INTERPRET THE
LYRICS???

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