Elvis Costello — Lipstick Vogue (1978)

Tuning: Dadg

intro:                         <———     OCTAVE     ———>
g|——————————————————————||    |————————————————————————||
d|——————————————————: x4||    |—9,9—9———7—9,9——7—8—: x4||
a|—2,2—2——0—2,2—0—1—:   || OR |———————9——————9—————:   ||
D|———————4—————4————————||    |————————————————————————||

verse:

Don't say you love me.....             ...any doubt
g|——————————————————————||————————————————————|
d|——————————————————: x3||————————————————————|
a|—2,2—2——0—2,2—0—1—:   ||—2,2—2——0—2—0———————|
D|———————4—————4————————||———————4——————4—2—0—|

Sometimes I think that.....                                            ...cut it out
g|———————————————————————————————————————|——————————————————————————————————————|
d|———————————————————————4—5—6—7—5/7—7—8—|—9,9—9———7—9,9——7—8—9,9—9—7/9—9———————|
a|———3,3 3/4—4H5—4—5—6—7—————————————————|———————9——————9————————————————12—9———|
D|—5—————————————————————————————————————|———————————————————————————————————12—|

You say you're sorry.....              ...you don't mean it
g|——————————————————————||————————————————————|
d|——————————————————: x3||————————————————————|
a|—2,2—2——0—2,2—0—1—:   ||—2,2—2——0—2—0———————|
D|———————4—————4————————||———————4——————4—2—0—|

I wouldn't worry....                                       ...just like a human being
g|———————————————————————————————————————|———————————————————————————————————————|
d|———————————————————————4—5—6—7—5/7—7—8—|—9,9—9———7—9,9——7—8—9,9—9——7—9,9———7———|
a|———3,3 3/4—4H5—4—5—6—7—————————————————|———————9——————9———————————9——————9———7—|
D|—5—————————————————————————————————————|———————————————————————————————————————|

chorus:
It's you....
g|———————————————————||——————————————————————||—————————————————————————————————————|
d|———————————0———0—1—||—2,2—2——0—2,2—0—1—: x4||——————————5,4————————————————————————| {speedy}
a|———2,2—4,4———4—————||———————2—————2————:   ||—5,5,5,5,5———5—4—5—4,4,4,4,4—5,5,5,5—|
D|—5—————————————————||——————————————————————||—————————————————————————————————————|

It's you....
g|———————————————————||——————————————————————||———————————|————————————|————————————|
d|———————————0———0—1—||—2,2—2——0—2,2—0—1—: x4||—4,2,4,2,4—|4,4—2—4,4—2—|7,7,5—4—————| {speedy}
a|———2,2—4,4———4—————||———————2—————2————:   ||———————————|————————————|—————————7——|
D|—5—————————————————||——————————————————————||———————————|————————————|————————————|
          oh yeah.....
g|——————————————||———————————————————||——————————————————|
d|——————————————||——————————————————:||—7H9—7————————————|
a|—5,5,4——2—0—2—||—2,2—2——0—2,2—0—1—:||———————9——5——7——9—|
D|——————————————||———————4—————4—————||——————————————————|

Get to the slot machine....
g|——————————————————————||
d|——————————————————: x8||
a|—2,2—2——0—2,2—0—1—:   || { subdued }
D|———————4—————4————————|| ...that live wire

Maybe they told you....                   ...good way to kill them
g|———————————————————————————————————————||—————————————————————||—————————————|
d|———————————————————————4—5—6—7—5/7—7—8—||—9,9—9———7—9,9——7—8—:||—5—5—5———————|
a|———3,3 3/4—4H5—4—5—6—7—————————————————||———————9——————9—————:||———————7—7—7—|
D|—5—————————————————————————————————————||—————————————————————||—————————————|

{airy dramatic whatnot}
this builds with variation:
g|——————————————————|| stalker x2       |———————————————||——————————————————————||
d|—————————7—9—: see|| doub/trip ^* x2  |—————————7—9———||———————————7—9,7——: x4||
a|———5—7—9—————: —>>|| accel. x3        |———5—7—9—————7—||———5—7—8—9——————9—:   ||
D|—9————————————————||        then...   |—9—————————————||—9————————————————————||
  ^*  ^*  ^*
g||——————————————||——————————————||——————————|
d||—7—8—9,7——: x4||—9,7——7—8—: x4||—9————————|
a||————————9—:   ||————9—————:   ||——————————|
D||——————————————||——————————————||——————————|

=======================================================================================
                   {    drums and keys   }
 <————————————— nearly imperceptible play through, mostly guesswork =P ———————————————>

				                                     <— Select the control.... {on 5th}
g|—————————————————————————||———————————————————————||———————————————————————||
d|—9—9—9—7—7—7—————————————||———————————————————: x4||———————————————————: x8||
a|—————————————9—9—9—5—7—9—||—2,2,2,0,1—2—0—2—0—:   ||—1/2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2—:———||
D|—————————————————————————||———————————————————————||———————————————————————||
                                                      <—— ghostly punch  ——>
g|———————————————————————————————————||———————————————————————||
d|———————————————————————————————————||———————————————————: x2||
a|———————————————————————————————————||—2,2,2,0,1—2—0—2—0—:   ||
D|—5——————————————————2——————————————||———————————————————————||
                                                                           .....spoken
=======================================================================================
Sometimes I almost feel just like a human being
g|———————————————————————————————————————||—————————————————————||
d|———————————————————————4—5—6—7—5/7—7—8—||—9,9—9———7—9,9——7—8—:||
a|———3,3 3/4—4H5—4—5—6—7—————————————————||———————9——————9—————:||
D|—5—————————————————————————————————————||—————————————————————||

It's you....
g|———————————————————||——————————————————————||—————————————————————————————————————|
d|———————————0———0—1—||—2,2—2——0—2,2—0—1—: x4||—————————————————————————————————————| {speedy}
a|———2,2—4,4———4—————||———————2—————2————:   ||—5,5,5,5,5—5,5,5,5,5—4,4,4,4—4,4,4,4—|
D|—5—————————————————||——————————————————————||—————————————————————————————————————|
                                  ....lipstick vogue

It's you....
g|———————————————————||——————————————————————||—————————————————————2,2——————————————|
d|———————————0———0—1—||—2,2—2——0—2,2—0—1—: x4||—4,2,4,2,4—4,2,4,2,4————5—4—2—————————| {speedy}
a|———2,2—4,4———4—————||———————2—————2————:   ||——————————————————————————————5—4—2—0—|
D|—5—————————————————||——————————————————————||——————————————————————————————————————|
                                  ....lipstick vogue

Not just another mouth, the last of the lipstick vogue
g|——————————————————————||——————————————|
d|——————————————————: x8||—5——————3—————|
a|—2,2—2——0—2,2—0—1—:   ||———5——————3———|
D|———————4—————4————————||—————5——————3—|


This is not so much a skeleton, though I am missing some things.
It's mostly good, I practice it slower with hammerhead @ 100bpm and the measure is
k`h`k`h`k`h`k`h`
909bd & openhh

Please post corrections in comments section, thank you.

Tabbed by [email protected]

About Elvis Costello

Declan Patrick MacManus (born 25 August 1954), known by the stage name Elvis Costello, is a British singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the New Wave musical genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader than that of most popular songs. His music has drawn on many diverse genres; the critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine describes him as a "pop encyclopedia," able to "reinvent the past in his own image".

How to Read Bass Tabs

Bass tablature (tabs) is an easy way to learn songs without needing to read traditional sheet music. Here’s a quick guide to understanding the symbols and techniques commonly found in tabs:

1. The Basics

Strings and Frets:
Each line in a tab represents a string on your bass:
- The top line is the highest-pitched string (G on a 4-string bass).
- The bottom line is the lowest-pitched string (E on a 4-string bass).
Numbers on the lines indicate which fret to press. For example:
```
G|-------------------|
D|-------------------|
A|---3---------------|
E|-------------------|
            
```
This means you play the 3rd fret on the A string.

2. Common Techniques

Hammer-On (h):
Play the first note by picking it, then press down on a higher fret with another finger without picking again.
```
G|-------------------|
D|-------5h7---------|
            
```
Pull-Off (p):
Pluck a note and then "pull off" your finger to let a lower fret ring.
```
G|-------------------|
D|-------7p5---------|
            
```
Slide (/ or \):
Move your finger up (/) or down (\) the fretboard while maintaining pressure.
```
G|-------------------|
D|-------5/7---------|
            
```

3. Advanced Techniques

Bend (b): Push the string up or down to raise the pitch. Example: G|-------7b9---------|
Vibrato (~): Shake the string slightly after playing a note to create a vibrating sound. Example: G|-------7~----------|
Muted Notes (x): Rest your finger lightly on the string without pressing a fret and pluck for a percussive "click" sound.

4. Rhythm and Timing

Tabs don’t always indicate timing, so listen to the song while reading the tab. Wider spaces between numbers mean longer pauses, while closer numbers indicate quicker notes.

5. Slap and Pop

Slap (s): Strike the string with the side of your thumb for a percussive sound.
Pop (p): Pull the string away from the fretboard and let it snap back.

Practice Makes Perfect

Tabs are a great tool to learn songs, but mastering the techniques takes practice. Listen carefully to the original track and play along to lock in the rhythm. Don’t rush — smooth, accurate playing is more important than speed. Happy jamming! 🎸

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Elvis Costello — Lipstick Vogue bass tabs