NBC's Today show, 9:00 AM
Leads: NBC's Today show, 9:00 AM
22 July 2005
NBC News: Today
(Elvis Costello and Emmylou Harris performing on the
plaza)
KATIE COURIC, co-host:
And we're back with more of TODAY on this Friday
morning. And you have been listening to wonderful
music, two people who make beautiful music together,
Elvis Costello and Emmylou Harris.
Hey, you guys. Thank you so much for coming by this
morning. It's always great to see you.
Ms. EMMYLOU HARRIS: Sure.
Mr. ELVIS COSTELLO: Thank you.
COURIC: Now, you guys are touring--oh, by the way, you
met Lester, didn't you, Elvis and Emmylou?
Mr. COSTELLO: Yeah, we did, yeah.
LESTER HOLT, co-host:
And we've got our TODAY show guitar. We'd love to have
you guys autograph to--to...
Mr. COSTELLO: Right there next to the Backstreet Boys.
That's...
COURIC: Yeah, we'll get to that in just a second.
HOLT: OK.
COURIC: But first, let's--we didn't get to talk to
both you earlier, and you all are on tour for two
weeks together, along with guitarist Larry Campbell,
right?
Mr. COSTELLO: Yeah, Larry. He's joined us on fiddle
and mandolin and...
Ms. HARRIS: Larry.
COURIC: A multitalented musician, Larry, over there.
Mr. COSTELLO: Yes.
COURIC: Tell me how you all joined forces in the first
place.
Mr. COSTELLO: Well, Emmy and I performed together on a
bill with George Jones about 25 years ago, but we...
Ms. HARRIS: Yeah.
COURIC: Wow.
Mr. COSTELLO: ...didn't get to sing that night, so
I've been--I've been looking forward to it for a long
time.
COURIC: And what is it about the two of you and your
voices that seem to--to blend so well together and
your musical taste too?
Ms. HARRIS: Well...
Mr. COSTELLO: Well, I--I mean, Emmylou, in my opinion,
she's a wonderful songwriter and singer but also is
the greatest living harmony singer, I believe, so I
embarrass her by saying that.
Ms. HARRIS: Well, Elvis makes it easy. It's great to
sing with him. He's such a fantastic singer and puts
so much passion in everything he does.
COURIC: And he's so eclectic too, right, Emmylou?
Ms. HARRIS: I think we both share a love of different
kinds of music. And so it just--it's--it's just easy,
you know? It's just--he opens his mouth and sings, and
I'm just right there.
COURIC: Right there with him.
HOLT: So you appear on--on his new album and then you
got your own? I mean, your own...
Ms. HARRIS: It's a compilation of--of songs from the
past plus one new track. But Elvis was kind enough to
invite me to sing on "The Delivery Man," which is such
an amazing record, so...
HOLT: It's an amazing album. How's your...
Mr. COSTELLO: And we got to do a lot of the songs from
Emmy's compilation in the show...
Ms. HARRIS: Yeah.
Mr. COSTELLO: ...so Emmy takes lead, and I stand back
and play a bit of guitar and--and--and sing a little
harmony here and there.
Ms. HARRIS: Yeah.
Mr. COSTELLO: And we do, as you heard, on
the...(unintelligible).
Ms. HARRIS: Yeah.
HOLT: And you sup--performed before with Gram Parsons,
and I understand you're a big fan.
Mr. COSTELLO: Well, that--it was the records that
Emmy--Emmylou sang on with Gram that really turned me
onto the--the real soul in country music. Because
growing up in England, a lot of the songs that were
country songs were novelty songs, and when I heard
Gram's work first, I--I started to get curious about
George Jones, Merle Haggard and--and more about Johnny
Cash.
Ms. HARRIS: Yeah.
Mr. COSTELLO: And--and that's where the trail starts.
You know, the Louvin Brothers, the Stanley Brothers.
You know.
COURIC: Well...
Mr. COSTELLO: So into the big depth of American music.
COURIC: ...it--it's so much fun to--to watch you both
perform together. Not only do you have "The Delivery
Man," you have another CD released on the same day?
Mr. COSTELLO: Yeah. That's a--that's a--that's a
different matter. That's an orchestral record called
"Il Sogno." It's a--it's a version of "A Midsummer
Night's Dream." It's instrumental. But it's pretty.
Ms. HARRIS: I know. He's the hardest working man in
show business.
COURIC: He's--I know. Not only hardest working, but I
mean so multitalented.
Ms. HARRIS: Absolutely.
Mr. COSTELLO: And we have--and we have a DVD that we
recorded in the Hightone Cafe in Memphis where we had
a ball. And Emmy came into the club and everybody
hushed and we did some of the ballads that
you'll--you'll hear if you come to see us play.
COURIC: Well, great.
Mr. COSTELLO: We're playing right through until the
31st of the month. So check it out.
COURIC: Well, thanks again for coming in.
Ms. HARRIS: Yeah.
Mr. COSTELLO: It's a pleasure.
COURIC: Emmylou Harris, Elvis Costello.
Mr. COSTELLO: It's good to see you again.
COURIC: And Diana Krall, Elvis' wife, who I'm a huge
fan or, and she's doing well.
Mr. COSTELLO: Yeah, she's--yeah, she's doing great.
COURIC: Just finished a Christmas album, right?
Mr. COSTELLO: Christmas record. A swinging Christmas
record and heartbreaking at the same time.
COURIC: Well, send her our love. She's terrific.
All right, thanks again to all of you.
Mr. COSTELLO: Thanks.
COURIC: And thanks to the whole band.
Ms. HARRIS: Great.
HOLT: Hey, we want to get...
COURIC: And--go ahead. I'm sorry, Lester.
HOLT: I was going to say we need to go inside and get
another check of the news. For that we turn to Natalie
Morales.
COURIC: And, Natalie, as you read the news I'll get
Elvis and Emmylou to sign our guitar.
NATALIE MORALES, anchor:
All right, OK. We'll check back with you in a little
bit. Thank you. And good morning to you.