Elvis Costello's 2011 Spinning Songbook Tour

A report on the Fox Theater show in Oakland, May 8, 2011.

Elvis and the Imposters kick off their performance sometime after 8:15 and quickly play three songs. A go-go dancer, who apparently goes by the name of Katya Valentina Valentine, gyrates in a groovy, tight cylindrical “cage” on the left side of the stage.

1. I Hope You're Happy Now
2. Mystery Dance
3. Radio Radio

After that 1-2-3 punch, we begin with the gigantic wheel, situated at stage right. Elvis, as Napoleon Bonaparte, invites a woman from the audience to spin the Spinning Songbook loaded with (mostly) song titles.

4. (I Don’t Want To Go To) Chelsea

Katya’s main job is to select and bring up audience members to spin the wheel. The chosen ones were mostly female, and the majority of them were game enough to dance around in the cage, although I wouldn’t be surprised if there was some sort of pre-selection process to weed out potential duds.

Also on stage, a few chairs and a table with beverages in case the wheel participants didn’t care to dance.

5. Bedlam
6. Beyond Belief

For the next song, Elvis recalls the reaction from his record people when he first presented it -- “What’s with the f___in’ beard?”

7. The Other Side of Summer
8. Temptation

An arrangement with just piano and vocal. All evening, it was very enjoyable listening to the variety of sounds coming from Steve Nieve’s multiple keyboards. Those cheesy tones from the early records were reproduced along with ear-pleasing piano and organ touches (like on “Spinning Wheel”, used as background music while audience members got ready to spin). Nice accordian imitation, too, on one of the songs.

“Temptation” was not on the wheel. Rather, The Spinning Songbook had rested on “Joanna.” I don’t exactly follow this, but Elvis said that Joanna rhymed with piano, which meant a piano song with Steve Nieve was to be played.

Oh, and titles in purple on the wheel are special. There’s one named “Happy” in which the audience will get to hear songs from the 1980 album Get Happy!! I read that a sealed envelope will be brought to the stage, determining what is to be played.

A woman celebrating her wedding anniversary spins.

9. The Long Honeymoon

Well, the title fits. The lady really got into the dancing.

10. (What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding?
11. Clubland

A younger couple spun the above two. Some people had two spins to help keep the show moving. Elvis spun once, too.

12. God's Comic
13. You Tripped At Every Step

Elvis moves the wheel so it lands on “Girl”, a purple selection.

14. Girl
15. Spooky Girlfriend
16. Sulky Girl
17. This Year's Girl
18. Party Girl

The above five are played uninterrupted, one after the other. Nice version of the Rubber Soul song. I wanted the song to go on, but it ended after Elvis’ slightly embellished rendering of the guitar solo…that even eighth-note staccato figure, if you know what I mean.

-Encore
19. Slow Drag With Josephine
20. Jimmie Standing In The Rain

The Spinning Songbook gets a rest, or perhaps Elvis sets it on “Napoleon Solo.” Elvis plays the above two alone with a hollow-body guitar. Great performance on these Tin Pan Alley-like tunes. At one point he sings a verse away from the mic, his voice unamplified. With the design of the Fox Theater, it made me think of another time. I just wish the sound was better in my nosebleed-level seat.

Elvis moves over to Steve Nieve’s piano, and the band comes back to join him on one that was on the wheel as “Pump It Up In 6/8.” Song #19 was also on the wheel, by the way as "Josephine."

21. Pump it Up/Busted

Snippets of other songs were played throughout the concert (that guitar melody that Elvis played before the third verse in “Clubland” is on the tip of my tongue), but in this case, Elvis segued right into a nearly full-blown “Busted”, the Ray Charles tune. Was that really 6/8 for “Pump It Up”? Sounded like brisk waltz-time to me.

-2nd Encore
22. I Can't Stand Up For Falling Down
23. High Fidelity

My memory’s failing me, but I’m pretty sure “Happy” didn’t come up on the wheel, if it was even spun, and there was definitely no sealed envelope.

-3rd Encore
24. Alison

Other selections on the wheel, in case you’re wondering:

Living in Paradise
Monkey To Man
The Element Within Her
I Want You
I Can Sing A Rainbow
Everyday I Write The Book
Turpentine
King's Ransom
And Your Bird Can Sing
Accidents
Shipbuilding
Black And White World
New Lace Sleeves
Detectives Vs. Hoover Factory
So Like Candy
Harry Worth
Brilliant Mistake
Earthbound
God Give Me Strength
Doll Revolution
Veronica
Let Me Roll It
The River In Reverse
Stella Hurt

The wheel changes a bit every show. For example, “The Other Side Of Summer” apparently wasn’t on the wheel for the opening tour date the night before in Reno.

 

Thanks for the memories! (i.e., for remembering all that!)

 

Am I reading it correctly?...is this "Let Me Roll It" the same song by Macca?

 

Probably (as there's no Elvis song by that title). The wheel in the 80s had Prince's "Pop Life" among other ringers.

 

So cool! This tour looks to be really fantastic. It's a pitty E.C has cancelled his dates in Brazil.

 

interesting to read this bit...as I've reported seeing this concept in the 80s, fun but loses steam waiting for wheel spins and takes away from the momentum of an elvis concert, sounds like he's aware of this and in a couple of spots steamrolls some tunes one after another to make it more rocking, energetic and gratifying without the lulls...sounds fun, so thanks for sharing that.

 

I'm gonna see this next week with my best ladylove when DPA MacManus takes Chicago by storm. Looking at this, I can't wait!!!!! Thanks for the positive review.

 

See you there! I'll be attending with my main squeeze as well..... Can't wait!

Praying for "Let Me Roll it" to turn up on the wheel. Elvis doing Paul doing John. What could be better!?

 

caught it last night in LA at the Wiltern Theater. EC was on fire; great mood and absolutely rusty-razor sharp guitar work; combination of sticking to what the wheel dictated and forcing the wheel onto something he liked.

Played a good deal of what is listed above, plus Let Me Roll It (McCartney), Leave My Kitten Alone, and a very brief quotation from The Kids Are Alright during Peace Love & Understanding. A really great show.

 

Thanks for the Reviews !! was hoping to see this in boston , just not sure we have the $$$$

 

Great review, Nitorodz.

 

here's a well written and accurate review from the Orange County Register of the LA Wiltern Show:

http://www.ocregister.com/entertainment/costello-300262-elvis-wiltern.html

 

I saw his 'Spectacle' episode that featured Smokey Robinson and it got me interested in EC all over again two years ago. Then he releases two hit-and-miss country albums and loses a lot of weight. Don't know what to make of the guy sometimes.

 

Saw the show last night. Obviously not your typical EC concert, as "The Spinning Songbook" angle is front and center. In many ways, it is a distraction, and quite gimmicky (obviously), but it's also a lot of fun. Attention to the wheel, in my opinion, makes EC and the Imposters not quite razor-sharp, as Elvis guides them through many a left turn.

And, of course, the wheel is rigged. One entry was "Detectives vs. Hoover Factory". Now, "Hoover Factory" is my favorite Costello b-side, and in my personal top 10 tracks from him, period. But there's no way in hell that asking the audience which they would rather hear in that match-up is going to result in "Hoover Factory" being played. At other points, Elvis would ever so gently nudge the wheel towards something he preferred.

I've seen Costello 50+ times, and I try to enter every show excited to hear the old warhorses. I knew going in this was sort of a "greatest-hits-but-not-touted-as-such" event. And as always with him, there were plenty of surprises. The Bangles, for one, reprising their guest spot from the "Spinning Songbook" tour in '86. Some interesting covers- including "And Your Bird Can Sing", and what I believe to be the first-ever performance of "Earthbound", which when I saw it on the board couldn't figure out what it could be at first! I went with someone who had never seen Costello live before, and was amused that she said her favorite part was when it was just EC's voice and an acoustic guitar. I remembered back to the days when Elvis was denounced if he didn't play a proper "rock 'n' roll" show. Now, I think he has just as many fans who would like to see him perform ballads, or an acoustical-based concert. So in one way, it appears that Elvis has finally made his eclecticism an advantage (for the non-diehards, the lifers like myself have always felt this way).

And then there was a moment I think many on this board would get a kick out of- Elvis was jokingly talking about the more risque moments of the show, and that if certain city ordinances were broken, there would be fines in excess of $10,000, up to $1M, and the tour would be bankrupt; the payoff quip- don't let this happen, or "...you'll pay a fortune in re-issues!" Made me chuckle, as I was reading an archived thread here of members bemoaning when the EC catalog was re-released for the umpteenth time (of which I've collected every series...sigh).

 

Is this coming to the UK? I'm so glad he included 'You Tripped In Every Step', one of his most overlooked songs.

 

I'm catching the show in Montclair, NJ on Wed... can't wait.

 

I was at the May 12th Los Angeles show, this was my 53rd time seing Elvis perform. I saw all the original "Spinning Songbook" shows in London 25 years ago, and this was just as much fun. Elvis looks to be in great shape, very slimmed down.
The show was being filmed, so hopefully a "Spinning Songbook' DVD or Blu-ray is in the works.
The Bangles showed up to join Elvis & the guys on Tear Of Your Own Head, Girl (The Beatles), The Next Time Round & Out Of Time (The Stones).
Later he did a version of Purple Rain. If I remember correct he covered Prince's Pop Life back at the original shows in 1986.

Elvis & The Bangles:

 

Chicago gets invaded by the King of America TONIGHT!! I can't wait...

(sorry, I know this post is more noise than signal, but think of it as a creative way to say, "bump!")

 

So I assume there is no opening act? (I hope not).. and about how long does the show last? (2hours?)

 

See you there!!!!

 

The Spinning Songbook show at the Chicago Theater last night was terrific.

After an opening set of songs that the Go-Go dancers could groove to ("I Hope You're Happy Now," "Doll Revolution," "Mystery Dance," etc.), the first song that someone from the audience spun the wheel to was "45." (That was treat for me since I recently turned that age....)

Highlights of the evening were "Alison/Tears of a Clown", Lennon's "Girl," "Peace, Love, Understanding/Purple Rain", "River in Reverse/This Wheel's on Fire," and an extended jam (at various tempos and with audience participation) of the Stones' "Out of Time."

Elvis lost his voice doing a solo version of the the recent song, "Slow Rag with Josephine." But he was in good spirits throughout, especially when in "impresario mode" during the wheel spins.

He and the Imposters performed for about 2.5 hours.

 

It appears that Elvis has bronchitis. He, from all reports, has postponed tonights show in Montclair, NJ. I was supposed to go. Hope he reschedules soon on a day I can make it.

Just my luck. Seems like everytime I have tickets for costello, something happens and I don't end up going.

 

I'm going next week, to the last show at the Beacon, NY. That's pretty impressive, considering my location. What can I say ... like the Beach Boys I get around.

I saw him last month as well (minus the spinning songbook) in a land more downunder than most.

 

Just an FYI for those who don't know. Elvis has rescheduled his missed Wellmont show in Montclair, NJ for Oct 5 (I have tickets so I will be going on the rescheduled date). Then he went ahead and added a second show for Oct 6. He is also playing the United Palace Theater in NYC on Oct 1. (not sure if he is going to add anymore dates).

Anyway, since I am on vacation that week (because I was already going to two shows at the Wellmont, Explosions in the Sky on 10/3 and Bryan Ferry on 10/4) this works out great. I got pre-sale tickets today for his added show at the Wellmont on 10/6. So I will be going to the Wellmont 4 days in a row. Luckily I live close to the theater.

Looking forward to that week, and the two back to back Elvis spinning songbook shows.