Alison (song)

"Alison"
Single by Elvis Costello
from the album My Aim Is True
B-side"Welcome to the Working Week"
Released21 May 1977
Recorded1977
Genre
Length3:21
LabelStiff (UK)
Columbia (US)
Songwriter(s)Elvis Costello
Producer(s)Nick Lowe
Elvis Costello singles chronology
"Less Than Zero"
(1977)
"Alison"
(1977)
"(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes"
(1977)

"Alison" is a song written by and first recorded by Elvis Costello in 1977 for his debut album My Aim Is True on Stiff Records. Costello claimed the song was written as an ode to a woman he saw working at a supermarket, though he has remained vague on the meaning. Though Costello's single never charted, it has become one of his most famous songs.

Linda Ronstadt, who covered the song and released her version in 1979, had a moderate hit with it.

  1. ^ a b c Herbert, Geoff (18 June 2018). "Elvis Costello tour dates include Turning Stone, Buffalo concerts". Syracuse. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
  2. ^ "My Aim is True by Elvis Costello". Classic Rock Review. 10 August 2017. Retrieved 6 January 2022. while the more mellow "Alison" combines slightly jazzy guitars and soulful vocals. This great melancholy pop song was written about a checkout girl at a local supermarket and features the line which gives this album its title.
  3. ^ "Elvis Costello: My Aim Is True". Pitchfork. Retrieved 6 January 2022.