Elvis Costello
Punishing Kiss
I favor a good punishing kiss
It helps pass the lonely afternoons
Another stiff drink, wipe off that lipstick
For when you reach a certain age
All the most villainous men
Can be found on channel ten
And I make them dance
In attendance
'We will be back in a minute or two'
And he will punish that girl
Oh, I forget the reason
Just look at me, I'm lost in a social whirl

She was never so witty
Always struggling to be full of fun
'On weekdays
From mid-day to one'
In a little black cocktail dress everyone hates
She'll be saving the world in between fashion plates
I know what she gets up to in the back of that black limousine
And I find myself shouting at the screen

I think that it's time to turn over
They say it's harmless, I know
A hundred-ten percent certain
Virtually real
If you need something to feel
Then favor a punishing kiss
It helps chase the wasted afternoons
The flowers and the pearls
The long-lost relations
That love sick tom-boy comes in bloom
All the pointless heartache
That seems to belong in my blue room
Can't stand the suspense
The endless embraces
When each episode lends a silly pretense
Say I can turn away when I will never miss
It starts with a joke
And ends with a punishing kiss