Composition
The album's title track was described by Lewis as her "thinly veiled way of getting out of writing a strictly 'confessional' song," Lewis told Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune. "I may be a liar, or I may not be one." The song also referenced a childhood experience of Lewis', in which she experienced LSD at the age of 14.
"The Next Messiah", a nine-minute "ode to Barbra Streisand and the devil," was "tracked completely live, with all the transitions, and it's the most exciting thing I've ever been involved with in the studio. I wish the rest of the record had been more like that." The song is "actually three different songs that Johnathan Rice and myself wrote together," according to Lewis. "I happen to be a Barbra Streisand fan, and Barbra Streisand fancies a medley, so we discussed stringing the three songs together."
The album features a duet with Elvis Costello, "Carpetbaggers". The song was written by Lewis' boyfriend, Johnathan Rice, to be performed on the Rabbit Fur Coat tour, because they were lacking uptempo songs. Lewis wanted to "make it less country and a little more pop. So I emailed Elvis. He mentioned he had two new songs and would we be open to recording them." These songs became part of Costello's Momofuku.
She & Him's Zooey Deschanel provides backing vocals on a number of songs, while her bandmate M. Ward plays "a moody guitar part" on "Pretty Bird". Ward said that Acid Tongue is "the greatest record Jenny has ever made." There are a number of other collaborations on Acid Tongue; fellow Rilo Kiley member Jason Boesel, Davey Faragher of Costello's band The Imposters, Benji Hughes, Ana and Paz Lenchantin, Chris Robinson of The Black Crowes, and Jonathan Wilson all make contributions. The album features production credits from Lewis' boyfriend Johnathan Rice, Farmer Dave Scher, and Rilo Kiley producer Jason Lader.
Lewis's sister Leslie Lewis provides backing vocals on two tracks, while her father Eddie Gordon plays the bass harp and harmonica. "He was ill last year, so we started speaking to one another," Lewis told The Independent. "There were no hard feelings. He just wasn't around. Every couple of years I'd get a postcard from the road – a picture of him standing next to a giant ice-sculpture of a crab, in Alaska. He was a very mysterious character. But I thought this was the right time to bring him in." "The Next Messiah" was influenced by her father. "When someone isn't around you create what you imagine your father might be – 'a race-car driver, a four-leaf clover'," Lewis explained. Lewis has said that a lot of her inspiration, for both Acid Tongue and previous work, comes from her parents. Lewis also told The Independent, "I just don't know them very well. And I'm still trying to understand what happened and why. It's this blank slate, I can't even remember what happened. But for some reason, these two people are so incredibly strange and funny and beautiful and messed up, that I want to keep writing about them... and maybe figure out who I am in the process."
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