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The Elvis Costello Wiki
a resource for Elvis Costello fans
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Elvis Costello on tour

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In December, Elvis will headline the annual charity concert of the Owen Hart Foundation which takes place in Calgary, Canada.

In February, Elvis will play solo shows in Oslo and Bergen in Norway and Helsinki, Finland - his first show in the city since 1978. He will also play four shows in Sweden - his first there since 2014.

In March, Elvis will play rescheduled solo shows in Denmark, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, additional shows in Belgium, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Norway and at least three solo shows in the UK.

More details of shows that have been announced are in the Gigography.

Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink

Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink


Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink — memoir by Elvis Costello.

It promises "his unique view of his unlikely and sometimes comical rise to international success, with diversions through the previously undocumented emotional foundations of some of his best known songs and the hits of tomorrow. The book contains many stories and observations about his renowned co-writers and co-conspirators, though Costello also pauses along the way for considerations on the less appealing side of infamy."

Order at Amazon and Amazon.uk. A Dutch language edition Trouweloze muziek en verdwijnende inkt was published on 1 December, 2015. A German language edition Unfaithful Music – Mein Leben was published on 9 November, 2015. Order the German edition at Amazon.de. An Italian language edition Musica infedele e inchiostro simpatico was published on 19 May, 2016. A Spanish language edition Música Infiel Y Tinta Invisible was published on 30 May, 2016. Order the Spanish edition at Amazon.es. A Swedish language edition Skamlös musik & bleknande bläck was published on 31 August, 2016. An English language paperback edition of the memoir has now been published. Signed and unsigned copies of the memoir have been on sale at recent shows.

Obituaries

Milo Lewis, Elvis' Production Manager, died at home, suddenly, on February 18, 2016, aged 61. Milo worked with Elvis throughout his career, and had been his production manager on tour since 1983. Elvis wrote an appreciation of Milo here. A West Ham Football Club scarf has been draped over an onstage monitor at recent shows as a mark of respect to Milo (who was a West Ham fan).

Allen Toussaint, the New Orleans composer, producer and performer, died on November 9, 2015 while on tour in Europe. He co-wrote and recorded The River In Reverse with Elvis in 2005, and subsequently toured and performed with Elvis in the US, Canada, Europe and Japan. His last concert appearance with Elvis was fittingly in New Orleans, in March 2015.

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MOJO Magazine 265 (December 2015)

MOJO Magazine 265 (December 2015) has an interview with Elvis Costello as its cover feature. The magazine also includes a 15-track CD, Costello: A Collection of Unfaithful Music, featuring various artists' songs selected by Elvis. Among the selections are Steve Nieve's cover of The Birds Will Still Be Singing from a forthcoming album.

Upcoming releases

Homestead Redemption

John McFee is re-recording 12 old Clover songs for their new album, Homestead Redemption. Elvis is going to sing a version of Mr. Moon on it. Clover's association with Elvis Costello goes back to My Aim is True, which John McFee, Sean Hopper, and Johnny Ciambotti, plus Micky Shine, played on.

Latest releases

Vinyl: Music from the HBO Original Series: The Essentials: Best of Season 1 released April 15, 2016

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A soundtrack album from the US HBO TV Series Vinyl was released on April 15, 2016. It contains a new EC recording of Back Stabbers - a song which he has previously performed in a medley with King Horse.

Order at Amazon and Amazon.uk

Detour Live At Liverpool Philharmonic Hall DVD and Blu-Ray released February 12, 2016

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A film and DVD release for concert footage from the June 2015 Detour show at Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool, England featuring Elvis solo and Larkin Poe. Watch the trailer. Shown at selected Cineworld Cinemas in the UK and in Eire on 2 November 2015.

The film is playing in a small number of cinemas in the United States in 2016. The film, memoir and soundtrack album for the memoir are said to form a "triptych". The DVD and Blu-Ray were released on February 12. Order at Amazon and Amazon.uk.

Unfaithful Music & Soundtrack Album released October 23, 2015

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The 38 track two-CD companion to Elvis' memoir covers his career from 1975 to 2013 and includes the unreleased tracks "I Can't Turn It Off" and "April 5th."

Order at Amazon and Amazon.uk.




Introducing Darlene Love

Introducing Darlene Love released September 18, 2015

The album Introducing Darlene Love (released  September 18, 2015) includes a new song written by Elvis Costello for Love, "Forbidden Nights," as well as a cover of his 1994 song "Still Too Soon To Know." Elvis and Darlene appeared on "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert" on US TV on October 12, 2015.

Listen to "Forbidden Nights" on YouTube/Vevo. Order the album at Amazon and Amazon.uk.


Lost On The River: The New Basement Tapes released November 11, 2014

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Elvis Costello is part of a group assembled by producer T Bone Burnett to create music for unheard 1967 Bob Dylan lyrics for Lost On The River: The New Basement Tapes, an album released on November 11, 2014. The deluxe CD is available to order here: AmazonAmazon.uk.

The other members of the group are Rhiannon Giddens (Carolina Chocolate Drops), Taylor Goldsmith (Dawes), Jim James (My Morning Jacket), and Marcus Mumford (Mumford & Sons). The group - "The New Basement Tapes", made their first live performances via three national television appearances in the USA in November. They performed on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon on November 10, 2014, Ellen on November 14, 2014 and Jimmy Kimmel Live on November 19, 2014. They also played a concert in Los Angeles at the Montalban Theatre, and recorded a number of interviews and performances for radio broadcast.

According to the Los Angeles Times, "One intriguing facet of the current project is the collaboration among the participants. Each has come up with his or her own music for many of the lyrics, resulting in multiple versions of the same songs and allowing a perspective on the ways different artists respond to Dylan’s lyrics. Each artist takes the lead on the tracking of his or her song, and all provide suggestions and whatever instrumental and vocal support the others require, with Burnett overseeing final production."

Speaking to the London Evening Standard at an event in July to launch the album, Elvis said there had been a number of traps to avoid: "One is to go back in time, the other is to be intimidated and the third is to think that you are Bob and The Band because we're not. We're us, playing today with our own histories and our own preferences."

The making of the album is the subject of the documentary Lost Songs: The Basement Tapes Continued. A trailer for the documentary is available here

Five "lyric videos" have been released: Nothing To It (sung by Jim James), Married To My Hack (sung by Elvis), When I Get My Hands On You (sung by Marcus Mumford), Spanish Mary (sung by Rhiannon Giddens), and Liberty Street (sung by Taylor Goldsmith).

In an interview with Billboard Magazine published in August 2015 T-Bone Burnett commented: "Well, I’m thrilled with the way the recording sessions came out. That project was one of the most extraordinary events of my life, and I feel like it’s still a work in progress. We got five people that didn’t know each other together for 10 days and wrote and recorded 45 new songs. It was epic, and I don’t think that really came across yet. There’s a film we’re editing now that I think may end up being the definitive version of that whole event, a concert film we shot at the Montalban, where everybody backed each other up with a vengeance. It was a one-time, one-night-only show, and Marcus Heiny, who has done some stuff with us at Capitol before and has done a lot of stuff with Mumford and Sons, came and filmed it. It was guerrilla filmmaking, to be sure. I mean, we decided to do it that morning, practically. That show was really the fruit of the whole experience. By the way, there are another 20-some-odd songs that we haven’t released yet, and we might put out another album of that stuff next year. I look forward to being a steward of all of that material over the next several years."

Elvis and The Roots release Wise Up Ghost, September 2013

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Wise Up Ghost by Elvis Costello and The Roots was released on September 16, 2013 in the UK and September 17 in the US. Drummer Questlove tells Billboard: "We had 13 or 14 songs, but then we said, 'Ooh! Wait a minute! Let's replace four of these songs with four better songs! And now we have the tightest 12-14 song collection out of about 20 songs that we made."

A press release claimed a small number of test pressings were distributed as white labels on Record Store Day on April 20, but no copies have surfaced online, and a Rolling Stone article suggests the album was not completed until June 2013. A video for "Walk Us Uptown" was released July 22, 2013.

EC and The Roots were joined by Diane Birch and La Marisoul to preview songs from the album live on September 16, 2013 at the Brooklyn Bowl in New York City and appeared on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon the following night and on September 19, 2013. New York radio station WFUV (90.7 FM/wfuv.org) broadcast a recording of the full Brooklyn Bowl concert on September 17, 2013.

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On September 24 Elvis and Questlove joined David Dye on World Café on WXPN-FM to play a few tracks from Wise Up Ghost and talk about the recording of the album.

Wise Up Ghost is available on CD and vinyl. There is also a Deluxe CD version with three extra tracks. The CD is available here: AmazonAmazon.uk. The deluxe CD is here: AmazonAmazon.uk. The vinyl double album is here: AmazonAmazon.uk.

Wise Up: Thought, an EP of remixed tracks from Wise Up Ghost was released as a limited edition CD (2500 copies) on November 29, 2013 Record Store Day Black Friday. It was released digitally and on 10" vinyl on December 17. The EP contains seven tracks, five of them mixed by Karriem Riggins. More details here.

Recent appearances

2016

In November, Elvis appeared at the Vancouver Writers Festival to talk about his memoir Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink.

In October and November, Elvis & The Imposters played a dozen East Coast and Midwest shows in the US on the "Imperial Bedroom & Other Chambers” tour. Elvis recruited three backing singers for these shows. The shows used as backdrops new versions of Elvis' album cover artwork, which was also available to buy in a printed book format. A show in Pittsburgh was cancelled because the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra was on strike and Elvis chose not to cross their picket line to perform.

In October Elvis continued his 2016 DeTour with thirteen solo dates in the United States. These included Elvis' first show in Kansas since 1984. Larkin Poe supported, and in New Orleans and Nashville Elvis was joined by the Preservation Hall Jazz Band.

In September, Elvis played three solo shows in Japan with Larkin Poe, his debut shows in Macau and Taiwan and a show in Singapore.

In August, Elvis played the Ohana Festival in California.

In July Elvis and the Imposters played at the Henley Festival in England, Rock Zottegem in Belgium, at Bospop in the Netherlands, in Belfast, Bristol, Glasgow, Liverpool and London and outdoor shows in Dublin and Galway in Ireland. Elvis also appeared at the Newport Folk Festival where he played with Larkin Poe, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Dawes and Glen Hansard.

In June, Elvis appeared at the Songwriters' Hall of Fame, 47th Annual Induction and Awards Dinner in New York, NY, where he was inducted into the Songwriters' Hall of Fame alongside Tom Petty and the late Marvin Gaye.

After a short break for illness, Elvis' solo tour resumed on May 23 with seven shows in Italy and appearances in Switzerland and Spain in June. Larkin Poe played support on some dates.
In May, Elvis played five solo shows in England, supported by Larkin Poe. Elvis then canceled concerts in Antwerp, Paris, Utrecht, Aalborg, and Hamburg due to a "respiratory virus", before resuming Detour 2016 in Italy. The shows in Aalborg, Antwerp and Utrecht have been rescheduled for next year on March 4, March 12 and March 15 at the same venues. There is no word yet on whether the other cancelled shows (in Paris and Hamburg) will also be rescheduled, but it seems likely that they will, possibly as part of a longer European tour.

Elvis and The Imposters played an outdoor show at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. They were joined by The Crescent City Horns and Bob Andrews, keyboard player from The Rumour. Later that day Elvis played an unadvertised set with Preservation Hall Jazz Band at Preservation Hall.

In March and April, Elvis played solo shows in the USA, supported by Larkin Poe. In Santa Barbara he was joined onstage by John McFee and Jimmy Vivino. In Mesa, AZ he was joined by Nils Lofgren. Elvis debuted seven new songs from a project based on the 1957 film A Face In The Crowd. There is no word yet on when or how these songs may be recorded or performed again.

In Australia in January and February, Elvis gave a series of interviews to radio and TV stations in Sydney and Melbourne to promote the memoir.

2015

Elvis spoke at the memorial service for Allen Toussaint in New Orleans in November, and performed at a subsequent tribute concert.

Elvis has made numerous TV and radio appearances in the US, Canada and the UK to promote the release of his memoir - Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink.AmazonAmazon.ukPenguin Books.

Elvis and The Imposters played twenty shows supporting Steely Dan on their 2015 “Rockabye Gollie Angel Tour". At the show in Atlanta, GA, they were joined by Larkin Poe.

Elvis and the Imposters played three shows in the USA headlining in their own right, whilst also supporting Steely Dan on tour.

Elvis played a "Detour" solo tour in the UK in May and June, taking him through 21 towns and cities including many that he has not played for some time, and one or two that he has never played before. He was supported for some of these shows by Larkin Poe and his brother Ronan MacManus. His show in Liverpool was recorded for future DVD release. A tabulation of all the songs played on the Detour tour in the US and UK is here: Detour.

Elvis played a "Detour" solo tour in March taking him through 13 U.S. cities, starting in Boulder, Colorado on March 1st and ending in Fort Lauderdale on March 18th. He was joined by Larkin Poe for many dates and by Allen Toussaint for his show in New Orleans.

Elvis was one of the many stars who appeared in the Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special broadcast on NBC TV in the USA on 15 February. He also appeared at an after-party, held at the Plaza Hotel in New York, playing keyboards.

Elvis played solo at the Woman's Day Red Dress Awards show in New York, NY on February 10.

On 15 January Elvis made a surprise appearance at Davies Hall, in San Francisco to help celebrate Michael Tilson Thomas' 70th Birthday. He appeared alongside Boz Scaggs, Phil Lesh and Lars Ulrich to play the Beatles' song "Birthday". Elvis also narrated three performances of "The Soldier's Tale" by the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas.

Elvis appeared on one of final episodes of the Late Show With David Letterman, on April 23. He sang a medley of a Nick Lowe song - When I Write The Book , and his own song Everyday I Write The Book. He also played two solo shows in Seattle, WA in April.

In the UK in May, Elvis appeared on BBC TV's "The One Show" to promote the UK shows on his "Detour" solo tour.

2014

In November, Elvis joined the musicians involved in recording Lost On The River: The New Basement Tapes to promote the album through a series of appearances on TV and radio shows, and a live concert at the Montalban Theatre in Los Angeles. Elvis played three songs solo at a gala event at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York. On November 28 Pete Thomas appeared as a guest/contestant on "Spicks and Specks", a light-hearted music quiz show on ABC TV in Australia, telling stories from his life in music and playing a drum solo with rhythms from various Elvis Costello songs. It will be viewable online until December 28.

In October Elvis played a series of solo shows across Western Europe with support from Larkin Poe and Steve Nieve. He played a number of cities for the first time. The tour ended in London with a show where he was joined by Steve Nieve and shared the bill (and the stage) with Georgie Fame. The show was recorded by the BBC for radio broadcast, but none of it has aired.

In September, Elvis and The Imposters played an outdoor show at the Mountain Winery in Saratoga, CA and an indoor show at Sonoma State University, CA. Elvis played two shows with Steve Nieve, Dennis Crouch and Karriem Riggins backed by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra at the Hollywood Bowl. He played a show in Ann Arbor in Michigan, where he was unable to finish a show in June due to sickness. Elvis appeared on the Norwegian/Swedish TV Chatshow "Skavlan" with Anni-Frid Lyngstad from ABBA. He played solo shows in Tampere in Finland, Randers in Denmark on and Malmö in Sweden.

Elvis and The Imposters played the Bumbershoot festival in Seattle, WA on 30 August.

In July, Elvis played four solo shows in the UK in Swansea, Manchester, London and Bexhill-on-Sea and played a festival in Peer in Belgium. At the London show he was supported and joined on stage by Larkin Poe and the MacManus Brothers. Whilst in London he met journalists to promote Lost On The River:The New Basement Tapes.

In June Elvis played a thirteen-date North American solo tour. He also appeared at Massey Hall in Toronto and at the Montreal Jazz Festival. His concert in Ann Arbor, MI was rescheduled to 8 September as he was unable to finish the show there due to illness.

On 5 June Elvis appeared again on the Late Show With David Letterman and played a new song: The Last Year Of My Youth. He also appeared on the Morning Joe TV show to promote his forthcoming shows at Carnegie Hall in New York.

On 2 June, Elvis compered the 2nd PEN New England Song Lyrics Awards For Literary Excellence at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library And Museum in Boston, MA. This year the ceremony honoured Randy Newman and Kris Kristofferson. EC performed a song with Rosanne Cash. T Bone Burnett and Allen Toussaint also performed.

On 2 May EC played a solo show in Dubai as part of the "Blended" concert series, on the same bill as his wife Diana Krall.

In April EC and the Imposters played festival dates in Australia - the West Coast Blues & Roots Festival in Fremantle, Australia with a guest appearance from John McFee; the 25th Annual Byron Bay Blues Festival and the Deni Blues and Roots Easter Festival. They also played shows in Melbourne and Sydney before going on to New Zealand where they played a show in Auckland and the inaugural Queenstown Blues & Roots Festival. The Imposters also recorded tracks with Australian artist Heath Cullen.

EC and Steve Nieve joined other Irish and Anglo-Irish artists in a Ceiliúradh (Celebration) at the Royal Albert Hall in London to mark the first state visit to England of the President of Ireland. The show was broadcast in Eire, live on the radio and later on TV. Highlights from the show were broadcast in the UK on BBC4 on 13 April.

In March, EC and the Imposters played a show in Atlantic City, NJ. EC and The Roots with La Marisoul played a show in Port Chester, NY and two shows at the opening of the Brooklyn Bowl in Las Vegas, NV on 15 and 16 March. He also made a guest appearance with Jackshit during their show at McCabe's Guitar Shop in Santa Monica, CA. Elvis also recorded an interview for Newstalk ZB radio in New Zealand, to promote his shows in that country.

In February EC and The Imposters played a corporate conference at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, NV.

2013

In December The Spectacular Spinning Songbook visited Japan for the first time with Elvis and the Imposters playing three shows in Tokyo and one in Osaka. The third night's show in Tokyo was broadcast on subscription television.

In November Elvis played a solo tour of the North East states of the USA. Over the course of 19 shows he played 201 different songs, including many that he had never played solo before. A listing of all the many different songs played on this tour is here.

In October, Elvis played the Bridge School Benefit in Mountain View, California on the 26th and 27th. He also appeared at a charity concert 'Right To Rock' in New York, NY with Steven Van Zandt and Darlene Love.

In September, Elvis appeared at a concert at Town Hall, New York, NY, featuring music from the Coen Brothers' film Inside Llewyn Davis. He played three songs with different artists including T-Bone Burnett, Punch Brothers and The Secret Sisters.

EC played two songs at the second annual Global Citizen Festival in Central Park, New York, NY on the 28th

Elvis played three songs at the launch of the Apple IPhone 5, at Apple Campus in Cupertino, California. One of the three songs was Radio Soul which had not been played since he performed it with Flip City in 1975.

In August Elvis and the Imposters made a short tour of Norway playing four dates there and played a show in Monaco.

In July Elvis and the Imposters played festivals and theatres in Belgium, England, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Spain, and Switzerland. This included a free show in Hyde Park, London.

Elvis made a return appearance at the annual Glastonbury Festival where he played the main (Pyramid) stage on the same night as The Rolling Stones. As is traditional, Elvis included a song - Out Of Time - by the headlining act in his set. His whole set was broadcast live online by the BBC. Parts of it were also shown on TV.

Elvis toured Ireland with The Imposters playing Cork, Derry/Londonderry as part of the celebrations of that city being UK City of Culture 2013 and at the Westport Festival where he was joined on stage by Glenn Tilbrook.

Send us your Revolver Tour photos.

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Looking for a place to upload your Revolver tour photos? We'd be glad to add them to the wiki. Send us your pics of EC, the band, the Spinning Songbook, the Hammer Of Songs, the Go-Go cage, the venue marquee, plus photos or scans of ticket stubs, flyers, posters, news clippings. Let us know which concert they're from and we'll add them to the concert page. Email submissions to:

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If you're planning to live-tweet the setlist, give us a heads up so we can watch for it. Feel free to email live concert pics too. We'll get them posted as soon as we see them.  

In May and June Elvis toured the UK with The Imposters and "The Spectacular Spinning Songbook" on the '13 Revolvers tour. He played 18 dates, including three consecutive nights at London's Royal Albert Hall. See the Fan Forum for details. A tabulation of all the songs played on the Revolver tour in 2011, 2012 and 2013, and the songs that have featured on the Spectacular Spinning Songbook is here: The Revolver Tour.

On 26 May, Elvis and the Imposters appeared at the Sasquatch! Festival in Quincy, WA near Seattle. He was joined onstage by Natalie Bergman, half of American indie rock band Wild Belle. See the Gigography for full details of this and other shows listed above.

On 17 May, Elvis appeared at the 12th annual "A Great Night In Harlem" show at the Apollo Theater, in New York City, NY. He sang with Macy Gray and others.

On 11 May, Elvis and the Imposters played a one-off show at the Paramount Theatre in Austin, Texas.

On 30 April, Elvis appeared at a A Tribute to Toussaint - a fundraising concert in New Orleans, honoring Allen Toussaint. The show was taped by Louisiana Public Broadcasting for future broadcast.

On 10 March, Elvis appeared with Clare Bowen at a T J Martell Foundation gala concert to honour T Bone Burnett and Vince Gill, at the Hutton Hotel, Nashville, Tennessee.

On 7 March, Elvis appeared at Carnegie Hall in New York for a charity concert honouring the music of Prince. He performed with Princess and The Roots who were the house band for the event. Elvis played a smaller rehearsal show at the City Winery in New York on 6 March, as a warm up for the Carnegie Hall show.

On 28 February, Elvis and The Imposters played at a charity event at Madison Square Garden in New York to raise funds for Teen Cancer America.

In January and February "The Spectacular Spinning Songbook" visited Australia for the first time as part of a seven date tour. Five shows formed part of the "A Day on the Green" season, where Elvis and The Imposters were supported by Sunnyboys, Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons and others. The remaining two dates in Melbourne and Sydney were Spectacular Spinning Songbook shows in theatres. Elvis and The Imposters also headlined a show at The Civic in Auckland, New Zealand in January, his first concert in that country since 1999.

2012

Elvis and The Imposters appeared at 'A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Cure Parkinson's' benefit concert in New York on 10 November. They played a set with "The Spectacular Spinning Songbook", including a couple of songs with Michael J. Fox. See the Gigography for details.

Elvis appeared again at the annual Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival and played two shows with Jim Lauderdale and Bill Kirchen for the Sixth Annual Richard de Lone Special Housing Project benefit Concert on 6 October. On 16 October, Elvis appeared at the Little Kids Rock benefit concert in New York, NY, honoring Steven Van Zandt.

The Return Of The Spectacular Spinning Songbook

On 5 December 2011 Hip-O records released a limited-edition box – only 1,500 numbered copies worldwide – culled from the two dates Elvis and The Imposters played at Los Angeles’ Wiltern Theatre in May 2011. The set includes a CD of 16 performances from both nights. An accompanying DVD showcases the second show on May 12 including a guest appearance from Susanna Hoffs. The box set also features a 10″ EP with an additional four songs, a 40-page hardbound book of photos and Costello’s journal entries while on tour, a 20″ x 30″ poster, a limited edition tour postcard and a commemorative card signed by Costello himself.

On his own website Elvis has complained that the box set is over-priced (at around 268 US Dollars) and suggests that such a sum could be better spent on a Louis Armstrong box set. The Hip-O box set is here: AmazonAmazon.uk. The Louis Armstrong box set is here: AmazonAmazon.uk

A CD only version of this album and the accompanying DVD have now been released at a more affordable price. These were scheduled for release on 24 January, then 6 March, and were finally released on 2 April 2012. You can order the CD here: AmazonAmazon.uk and the DVD here: Amazon

The video trailer for the DVD release can be viewed here YouTube.

National Ransom

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Elvis Costello's album National Ransom was released on October 25 2010 internationally and November 2 2010 in the U.S, but the digital download offered on www.nationalransom.com became available on October 24 2010. It was recorded with producer T Bone Burnett in Nashville and Los Angeles over an 11 day period earlier in 2010.

Musicians include all members of The Imposters and The Sugarcanes, plus Vince Gill, Marc Ribot, Buddy Miller, and Leon Russell. Elvis told Scotland's The Herald, "The ensemble ranges from two players to nine pieces and while some songs are very intimate and quiet, others are not."

A promotional single from the album: I Lost You was released internationally on October 18 2010.

Visit ElvisCostello.com for more details. AmazonAmazon.uk

A digital 4 track EP, National Ransack, with tracks from the National Ransom Sessions was available as a pre-order Bonus. The offer was found on www.nationalransom.com. The album can be purchased as mp3, flac or Apple lossless downloads in addition to CD and vinyl. Three tracks are delivered immediately when download is purchased. This version of the album excluded the Japanese/iTunes bonus track I Hope. It is now available for download.

An alternate version of the title track has been posted on YouTube with an accompanying video under the title "The Return Of The Imposter". This has been promoted through Twitter and other social media and has featured in some of Elvis' solo concerts. See it here: YouTube.

National Ransack

National Ransack was released as a 7" vinyl EP on December 21, 2010 according to the National Ransom website. It contained the songs previously available digitally through www.nationalransom.com.

Other news

  • Elvis is one of 12 composers who have written pieces inspired by chapters of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, which was published 150 years ago (in 1865). These pieces were performed at a concert in Crear in Argyll in Scotland, by Ashley Wass (piano) and Matthew Trusler (violin) with Jamie MacDougall (narrator). Elvis's piece relates to Chapter 5: Advice from a Caterpillar.
  • On 9 November 2013, BBC TV aired a ninety minute long biographical documentary of EC called "Mystery Dance". A sixty minute version has also been aired in the UK and France. More details are here. The documentary maker - Mark Kidel, talks about his work here. It is hoped that the documentary will air on BBC America at some point.
  • On 25 October 2013, Elvis received an Honorary Degree from the New England Conservatory in Boston, MA. Prior to this he took part in a workshop with some of the Conservatory students on songwriting, and gave a public lecture. More details are here.
  • Whilst at the Sasquatch! Festival, in Washington State, Elvis joined with Mumford & Sons to record a version of "The Ghost Of Tom Joad" which was filmed for One.org. A video recording of that performance is available here.
  • On 7 May 2013, Elvis moderated "SiriusXM's Town Hall with Burt Bacharach" which featured Bacharach answering questions from a studio audience about his life and celebrated career. You can see some of the interview session here and here. Burt suggested that work was in hand with Chuck Lorre, creator of “Two and a Half Men” and “The Big Bang Theory", to write a musical based on the album Painted From Memory. This may involve Elvis and Burt writing new material.
  • Elvis was in the news following the death of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Bradford MP George Galloway wrote “Tramp the dirt down” on his Twitter feed - the name of the 1989 song in which Elvis attacks Lady Thatcher. The song, from the album Spike, which was never released as a single reached #2 in the Amazon.uk pop MP3 download chart.
  • Steve played a series of shows in the USA and Australia in 2014 in which he played his versions of Elvis Costello songs under the title "Steve Nieve plays Elvis Costello".

Pomp & Pout: The Universal Years

Hip-O released the compilation Pomp & Pout: The Universal Years February 08, 2011 (U.S.). No release date for the UK has been announced. This collection was originally scheduled for release in August 2010, but appears to have been delayed to avoid a clash with promotion for National Ransom. AmazonAmazon.uk

Spectacle season 1 DVD now available, season 2 aired

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Season One of Elvis' TV series Spectacle: Elvis Costello with... was released on DVD and Blu-ray on November 17 '09 in the US and Canada. The series is also available from iTunes US, which has a free excerpt featuring Elton John and Diana Krall available in HD or standard definition.

Season Two aired in the US from December 9 '09 with guests including Bono, The Edge, Neko Case, Jesse Winchester, Sheryl Crow, Ron Sexsmith, Ray LaMontagne, Lyle Lovett, John Prine, Levon Helm, Allen Toussaint, Nick Lowe, Richard Thompson, and Bruce Springsteen. It is available to purchase on DVD and Blu-Ray (see below).

Season 1

Season 2

The Costello Show series

The Costello Show, a series of live CDs from the archives, began with the September 29 '09 reissue of Live At The El Mocambo and continues on January 12 '10 with the complete Hollywood High concert from 1978.

Secret, Profane & Sugarcane

Secret, Profane & Sugarcane is the album Elvis Costello recorded in Nashville between March 31 and April 2, 2008. It was released on June 2, 2009 on the Hear Music label.

Appearance on Other Artists Albums

Elvis sings on one track *"Funny Little Tragedy" on the recent Gov't Mule album Shout released on Blue Note records on 24 September. Order here: Amazon


Elvis appears on Jamey Johnson’s recent album which is a collaborative celebration of Hank Cochran’s music. Elvis and Jamey duet on “She’ll Be Back”. Livin’ for a Song: A Tribute to Hank Cochran also includes appearances by Willie Nelson, George Strait, Alison Krauss,and many others, each singing a duet with Johnson.


Elvis appears on the soundtrack album of the horror musical Ghost Brothers of Darkland County - a collaboration between Stephen King, John Mellencamp and T-Bone Burnett. The album was released in both single CD and CD + DVD deluxe format, on 4 June 2013, via Hear Music and is available here: AmazonAmazon.uk.


Elvis appeared on Furthur live album recorded in New York City on March 27 2011


Elvis plays guitar on Lucinda Williams' album - Blessed released March 2011 AmazonAmazon.uk


Elvis guests on the Jazz Passengers album, Reunited, released on October 12, 2010. AmazonAmazon.uk


Elvis sings on new Bill Kirchen album, May '10. AmazonAmazon.uk


Elvis guests on the Amy Allison album, Sheffield Streets. Stream the entire album on Bandcamp.com


Elvis guests on a Rosanne Cash album, Oct. 09


New Elvis recording in The Invention Of Lying

The Ricky Gervais film The Invention Of Lying included Elvis' version of Sitting, the 1972 hit by the artist formerly known as Cat Stevens. There has been no word about a soundtrack album. Blu-ray: AmazonAmazon.uk, DVD: AmazonAmazon.uk

John Peel box set

Kats Karavan: The History Of John Peel On The Radio, a 4CD box set released on October 26 '09 in the UK, included High Fidelity from a BBC session recorded 1980-02-25. AmazonAmazon.uk

Magazine Appearances

Elvis and Questlove are on the cover of the German edition of Rolling Stone magazine dated September 2013. Inside there is an article previewing Wise Up Ghost.


Colbertshow.jpg

Stephen Colbert hosted a Christmas special in 2008 on Comedy Central. “A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All!” was shown on Nov. 23 as a one-hour program and featured musical performances by artists including John Legend, Elvis Costello, Toby Keith, Willie Nelson and Feist.[[1]]


Something Borrowed, Something New The Perfect Union of Elvis Costello and Jenny Lewis Filter, Holiday '08[[2]]


Elvis is this year's model yet again.'- The Nation, Aug.'08

Long, thoughtful , very informed analysis of all things Costello . Quote- he gives us a place to find parts of ourselves in his seemingly endless catalog of beauty and bile



Stingelvis.jpg

Welcome To The Voice see also New Releases

Elvis Costello and Sting appeared in a limited engagement of Welcome To The Voice in Paris. The engagement took place at the historic Théâtre du Châtelet in Nov. '08.


A Night at the Opera with Sting and Elvis[[3]]

Sting Barks, Elvis Costello Rasps in Paris Pop Opera Premiere[[4]]


Costello/Tharp ballet,Los Angeles, Oct.24-26'08

LA Weekly[[5]] Los Angeles Times[[6]] The Orange County Register[[7]]

Nightspot, a ballet with choreography by Twyla Tharp and a score by Elvis Costello opened on March 28, 2008 at Miami's Carnival Center for the Performing Arts.

Elvis writes about Nightspot

'Elvis Costello's richly atmospheric score,..swells and swirls with emotion, taking audience and dancers along for a heart-snapping ride.'

'Exploring love's dark side', Miami Herald , March 29 '08[[8]]

'...a spectacularly bad-ass ballet'

'Tharp and Costello's NIGHTSPOT: Shocked and Awed',Miami New Times, March 29 '08[[9]]


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New book: Elvis Costello (Icons of Pop Music)

Dai Griffiths' book Elvis Costello (Icons of Pop Music) is an in depth examination of many facets of Elvis' career, along with witty asides like "Costello is Marmite on slightly burnt toast."


Special Guest - Elvis Costello

Elvis guests on some albums.

  • Jenny Lewis's Acid Tongue features a duet with Elvis,'Carpetbaggers'.
  • Charlie Haden's Family and Friend's Rambling Boy features Elvis singing Hank William's You Win Again.
  • Lucinda Williams' Little Honey includes a duet with Elvis on Jailhouse Tears.
  • Folie A Deux by Fall Out Boy (released December 16th 2008) features Elvis on the track What A Catch, Donnie. Elvis takes lead vocal for a few lines (lasting 13 seconds) at about the 3:00 minute mark in the song.
  • An album by the Latin/Tango group Bajofondo Tango Club called Mar Dulce (originally released in Argentina, 3 September 2007, re-released 15th July 2008), features Elvis providing the lead vocal on a great track entitled Fairly Right

2008 EC Fender Jazzmaster.jpg

Elvis Costello on Fender.com

In conjunction with the offering of the Elvis Costello Jazzmaster guitar, Fender.com has added Elvis Costello to its lineup of Fender Artists.

The guitar, a reproduction of his Jazzmaster as it was at the time My Aim Is True was recorded, has its own page as well.




The Elvis Costello Heritage Trail

A fan walks the streets of Elvis' U.K. upbringing.


Momofuku

Momofuku, by Elvis Costello and The Imposters, was released April 22 '08 (on vinyl) and May 6 '08 (on CD).

  • Amazon - 2LP + download code, released 22 April '08
  • AmazonAmazon.uk - CD, released 6 May '08
  • Amazon - download, released 6 May '08

Word interview

David Hepworth's interview with Elvis conducted on February 16th 2008 appeared in the April '08 edition of The Word Magazine - FULL TEXT



This Year's Model Deluxe Edition, 2008

This Year's Model: Deluxe Edition released March 4 '08

Shore Fire Media had the details of the reissue. Disc 2 included the complete show from 1978-02-28 at the Warner Theatre in Washington, DC.



Covers And Collaborations - The Number Ones Album, 2008

Elvis covers The Searchers

Elvis and Amsterdam recorded The Searchers' 1964 hit Don't Throw Your Love Away for Covers And Collaborations - The Number Ones Album, released February 4, 2008 in the UK. Listen to the song now at Amsterdam's MySpace page.


for the official Elvis Costello website visit:
ElvisCostello.com
Elvis Costello dot-com 2010-10-18.jpg


   Upcoming appearances   
elvis-costello.wun.io/events
APR
Thu Mar. 28 Byron Bay Tickets
Fri Mar. 29 Byron Bay Tickets
Sun Mar. 31 Sydney Tickets
Mon Apr. 1 Sydney Tickets
Tue Apr. 2 Sydney Tickets
Thu Apr. 4 Melbourne Tickets
Mon Apr. 8 Tokyo Tickets
Tue Apr. 9 Tokyo Tickets
Thu Apr.11 Osaka Tickets
Fri Apr. 12 Tokyo Tickets
JUN
Sun Jun. 2 Troutdale Tickets
Tue Jun. 4 Airway Hts. Tickets
Thu Jun. 6 Seattle Tickets
Sat Jun. 8 Bend Tickets
Mon Jun. 10 Saratoga Tickets
Wed Jun. 12 Lincoln Tickets
Fri Jun. 14 Santa Barbara Tickets
Sun Jun. 16 San Diego Tickets
Tue Jun. 18 Los Angeles Tickets
Fri Jun. 21 Rancho Mirage Tickets
Sun Jun. 23 Las Vegas Tickets
JUL
Thu Jul. 4 Toronto Tickets
Sat Jul. 6 Highland Park Tickets
Mon Jul. 8 Detroit Tickets
Wed Jul. 10 Philadelphia Tickets
Fri Jul. 12 Uncasville Tickets
Sun Jul. 14 Boston Tickets
Tue Jul. 16 New York Tickets
Thu Jul. 18 Holmdel Tickets
Sat Jul. 20 Bethel Tickets
Mon Jul. 22 Gilford Tickets
Thu Jul. 25 Vienna (VA) Tickets
SEP
Thu Sep. 5 Glasgow Tickets
Sat Sep. 7 Gateshead Tickets
Sun Sep. 8 Manchester Tickets
Wed Sep. 11 Liverpool Tickets
Sat Sep. 14 Cardiff Tickets
Sun Sep. 15 Oxford Tickets
Tue Sep. 17 Bristol Tickets
Wed Sep. 18 Poole Tickets
Sat Sep. 21 London Tickets
Sun Sep. 22 London Tickets
Tue Sep. 24 Ipswich Tickets
Wed Sep. 25 Wolverhampton Tickets
Fri Sep. 27 Dublin Tickets
Sat Sep. 28 Dublin Tickets
Mon Sep. 30 Dublin Tickets
OCT
Tue Oct. 1 Dublin Tickets


Rough Notes

Rough Notes — memoir by Bruce Thomas. Thomas was "prompted
Rough Notes
to write Rough Notes when a friend told him: 'There’s only one history of rock …and pop and you were there!' It follows his career from the paper-round he did to buy his first guitar and see the Beatles — all the way through to his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003 …and beyond. He recalls his time as bass player with Elvis Costello and the Attractions — setting the record straight on the so-called feud between him and the singer — and includes accounts of working with Paul McCartney, touring on Elton John's private jet,..." Available at Amazon and Amazon.uk.


La Santa Cecilia: Treinta Dias

La Santa Cecilia Treinta Dias album cover.jpg

Treinta Dias — Elvis guests on the Grammy winning album by La Santa Cecilia released on April 30 2013. Preview the new song at RollingStone.com; order the CD from Amazon or Amazon.uk.

In Motion Pictures

In Motion Pictures album cover.jpg

In Motion Pictures — a collection of fifteen Elvis Costello songs that have appeared in films — was released November 19 2012 from Universal. It is available at Amazon or Amazon.uk. More details at Direct Current.



Support the Wiki and Fan Forum
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The Elvis Costello Wiki and Fan Forum are non-profit and volunteer-operated by fans in their spare time. Donations help pay server and equipment costs.


Random Quote:

"Solo shows are inevitably the most intense because it's you and the audience and nothing else," ... "More than in any other type of concert you might play, the lyrical content is important in a solo performance because when you don't have the distraction of a big arrangement, or the volume of a band, you're making the feeling and the meaning of a song really the key."”.

Elvis, Nov.'13 - Hartford Courant, CT


Featured Picture:
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Buffalo News, November 2015. Illustration by Adam Zyglis



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