Hetty O'Hara Confidential

Album: Hey Clockface (2020)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "Hetty O'Hara Confidential" is a saga of a vindictive gossip columnist rendered obsolete by social media. Costello said of the old-school writer's undoing to Billboard: "It's one of the great dangers of the speed of communication, being faster than the ability to reason."
  • Costello pithily described the song's storyline as "the tale of a tattler who outlives her time."
  • Released as the follow-up Hey Clockface to "Hey Clockface/How Can You Face Me?," both songs share a similar furious synthetic percussion and were recorded at Suomenlinnan Studio in Helsinki, Finland.
  • Costello also produced the track and is credited with Mouth, Hammond Organ, Fender Jazzmaster, Upright Piano, Rhythm Ace and All Other Noises. The song was recorded and engineered by Eetü Seppälä and mixed in Los Angeles by Sebastian Krys.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Gary Brooker of Procol Harum

Gary Brooker of Procol HarumSongwriter Interviews

The lead singer and pianist for Procol Harum, Gary talks about finding the musical ideas to match the words.

Don Felder

Don FelderSongwriter Interviews

Don breaks down "Hotel California" and other songs he wrote as a member of the Eagles. Now we know where the "warm smell of colitas" came from.

Allen Toussaint - "Southern Nights"

Allen Toussaint - "Southern Nights"They're Playing My Song

A song he wrote and recorded from "sheer spiritual inspiration," Allen's didn't think "Southern Nights" had hit potential until Glen Campbell took it to #1 two years later.

Donnie Iris (Ah! Leah!, The Rapper)

Donnie Iris (Ah! Leah!, The Rapper)Songwriter Interviews

Before "Rap" was a form of music, it was something guys did to pick up girls in nightclubs. Donnie talks about "The Rapper" and reveals the identity of Leah.

Al Kooper

Al KooperSongwriter Interviews

Kooper produced Lynyrd Skynyrd, played with Dylan and the Stones, and formed BS&T.

Emilio Castillo from Tower of Power

Emilio Castillo from Tower of PowerSongwriter Interviews

Emilio talks about what it's like to write and perform with the Tower of Power horns, and why every struggling band should have a friend like Huey Lewis.