Elvis Costello Makes Bold Comparison Between Taylor Swift and Bob Dylan

Elvis Costello had some kind words to share about Taylor Swift’s talent as a songwriter when he made a podcast appearance earlier this month.

The “Alison” singer was reflecting on his musical career and artistic influences in a Nov. 17 episode of Rockonteurs with Gary Kemp and Guy Pratt when he began speaking about the importance of weaving “an element of craft that comes after the desire to express these rawer emotions” into the songwriting process.” He referenced Joni Mitchell’s 1971 album Blue as one such example that featured “an incredibly subtle craftsmanship” before shifting his attention to Bob Dylan.

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While elaborating on “the sense of revelation and invention” in songwriting, Costello, 70, pointed to Dylan’s album Blood on the Tracks as a source of personal inspiration. “One minute, they seem to be very raw emotion, the next minute they’re clearly invention,” Costello said of the songs included on Dylan’s 1975 album. “And that keeps you guessing, and it keeps the song interesting. I learned the lesson from all of those writers.”

Costello then drew a bold comparison between the “Like a Rolling Stone” songwriter and Swift. “I’m not just trying to say this to be down with the kids—but it’s also what makes Taylor Swift speak to people,” Costello said. The “Cruel Summer” songstress “understands the necessity of taking personal experience” and expressing that experience in a way that is relatable to her listeners, he explained.

“That’s why she’s able to sustain communication with her audience in quite that way,” Costello said. Though he acknowledged that many musicians are able to carve out ways to communicate with their listeners, he referred to the pop superstar as “just the most successful one that you can cite.”

In contrast with Swift, the Grammy Award winner said he has “always known I was not comfortable with just simply saying like, ‘Here’s my diary. Let’s set that to music.’”

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