Music Monday: I’ve Been to a Marvellous Party by The Divine Comedy

Music Monday is a meme that was created by Drew from The Tattooed Book Geek. Bjørn and I will pick a song alternatively on each Monday and share our thoughts about them. Bjørn’s pick this week is I’ve Been to a Marvellous Party by The Divine Comedy.

In 1998, Neil Tennant (Pet Shop Boys) curated an album of Noël Coward covers. You might not know who Noël Coward is – one of the greatest songwriters of the early 20th century. The idea behind the album was to create modern versions of those old songs. Some went the safe route, like Shola Ama’s ‘Someday I’ll Find You’ which is basically a torch song with orchestral arrangement. Others did quite odd things, such as Suede’s ‘Poor Little Rich Girl’ which ranks there with their finest records. And then there was The Divine Comedy, the lovechild of Neil Hannon and many other people, updating a 1939 song for the Nineties with eurohouse beats courtesy Trouser Enthusiasts (possibly the best name ever). It shouldn’t work. Noël was probably spinning in his grave at approx. 130 revolutions per minute. But it’s also probably the gayest song ever recorded by a straight Irish singer. (Feel free to correct me if there are more Irish singers who can camp the hell out of ‘everyone’s heeere and froightfully gay, nobody cares what people say’ better than Neil Hannon.)

Start listening. Remain unsurprised for a bit – so far, so old-fashioned. Raise your eyebrows around 0:50. Pass out from excessive fabulousness at 1:01. Be revived by the lyric “Poor Millicent wore a surrealist comb made of bits of mosaic from St. Peter’s in Rome”

Now I must say,
it’s the most extraordinary experience
Not for everybody,
I suppose it must have something to do with sun and all that
And I wouldn’t understand it anyplace else but Riviera
Not sure if it’s even legal
You know, quite for no reason
I’m here for the Season
And high as a kite
Living in error
With Maud at Cap Ferrat
Which couldn’t be right
Everyone’s here and frightfully gay
Nobody cares what people say
Though the Riviera
Seems really much queerer
Than Rome at it’s height
Yesterday night

I went to a marvelous party
With Nounou and Nada and Nell
It was in the fresh air
And we went as we were
And we stayed as we were
Which was Hell
Poor Grace started singing at midnight
And didn’t stop singing till four
We knew the excitement was bound to begin
When Laura got blind on Dubonnet and gin
And scratched her veneer with a Cartier pin
I couldn’t have liked it more

I couldn’t have liked it more!

I went to a marvellous party
We played the most wonderful game
Maureen disappeared
And came back in a beard
And we all had to guess at her name
Cecil arrived wearing armor
Some shells and a black feather boa
Poor Millicent wore a surrealist comb
Made of bits of mosaic from St. Peter’s in Rome
But the weight was so great that she had to go home
And I couldn’t have liked it more

I went to a marvelous party
I must say the fun was intense
We all had to do
What the people we knew
Would be doing a hundred years hence
We talked about growing old gracefully
And Elsie who’s seventy-four
Said, “A, it’s a question of being sincere
And B, if you’re supple you’ve nothing to fear”
Then she swung upside down from a chandelier
And I couldn’t have liked it more

People’s behavior
Away from Belgravia
Would make you aghast
So much variety
Watching society
Scampering past
You know, if you have any mind at all
Gibbon’s divine Decline and Fall
Well, it sounds pretty flimsy
No more than a whimsy
By way of contrast
On Saturday last

I went to a marvelous party
We didn’t start dinner till ten
And young Bobbie Carr
Did a stunt at the bar
With a lot of extraordinary men
Dear Baba arrived with a turtle
Which shattered us all to the core
The Grand Duke was dancing a foxtrot with me
When suddenly Cyril screamed “Fiddledidee”
And ripped off his trousers and jumped in the sea
And I couldn’t have liked it more

I’ve been to a marvelous party
Elise made an entrance with May
You’d never have guessed
From her fisherman’s vest
That her bust had been whittled away
Poor Lulu got fried on Chianti
And talked about esprit de corps
Maurice made a couple of passes at Gus
And Freddie, who hates any kind of a fuss
Did half the Big Apple and twisted his truss
Ha! Ha!
I couldn’t have liked it more!