elvis costello spinning wheel tour

Elvis Costello To Restage Legendary 1986 Spinning Songbook Tour

By Andy Greene

Andy Greene

This May Elvis Costello will finally answer his fan’s prayers by reviving the “ Spectacular Spinning Songbook ” for an American theater tour. Originally staged in 1986, the tour will feature a large wheel of 40 songs that is spun between songs to randomly determine the setlist.

According to a press release, the original wheel now resides at the (possibly fictional) Hartlepool Museum of Showbusiness Machinery, but a new one has been rebuilt from the original blueprints. Costello will be backed for the gigs by The Imposters, which features keyboardist Steve Nieve, drummer Pete Thomas and bassist Davey Fargher.

Photo Gallery: Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint At The Beacon Theater

The songs on the wheel will include hits, rarities and covers. An partial image of the wheel revealed in a press release lists “God Give Me Strength,” “Accidents Will Happen,” “Alison,” “Watching The Detectives,” “Puppet Girl” and “Almost Blue.” Select audience members will be asked to spin the wheel between songs, and they will have the chance to sit on-stage in the “Society Lounge” where “light refreshments” will be served.

Fox Host Says Maybe Trump Didn’t Realize Hitler’s Generals Were Nazis

Trump was enraged by funeral cost for 'f--king mexican' u.s. soldier: report, anti-trafficking activist tim ballard hit with human trafficking allegations in federal lawsuit, graham nash on coming to terms with david crosby's death, new csny live album.

Inside Elvis Costello’s Spectacle

The tour kicks off May 7th at the Grand Sierra Theater in Reno, Nevada and wraps up May 23rd at the Beacon Theater in New York City.

Cardi B Hospitalized, Cancels ONE MusicFest Show: ‘It Breaks My Heart’

• 'Don't Worry'
• By Charisma Madarang

Zayn Malik Reschedules Tour Dates Postponed After Liam Payne's Death

• back on track
• By Daniel Kreps

Drake Asked Chino Pacas to Write a Corrido About Him. They Ended Up Collaborating

• By Tomás Mier

Romy and Sampha Fall With Open Arms and Open Hearts on 'I'm on Your Team'

• In Your Corner
• By Larisha Paul

MisterWives Pre-Game Austin’s Biggest Music Festival with Rolling Stone and PATRÓN Tequila’s The Green Room

• By Matt Tighe

Most Popular

The true story behind 'the woman of the hour' dating show serial killer, serena williams’ daughters are beautiful in bows as they model for their mama in adorable new photos, ‘gladiator ii’ first reactions from early screening: "a total spectacle with a pulsating pace", deshaun watson achilles injury has contractual implications, you might also like, cardi b recovering in the hospital from medical emergency, cancels one musicfest show: ‘it breaks my heart’, ulla johnson to unveil custom-built in-store installations at neiman marcus northpark in dallas, the best yoga mats for any practice, according to instructors, 2025 oscars: best costume design predictions, wnba cba talks highlight sportico’s rise women’s sports event.

Rolling Stone is a part of Penske Media Corporation. © 2024 Rolling Stone, LLC. All rights reserved.

The Definitive Voice of Entertainment News

Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter

site categories

Elvis costello’s spectacular spinning songbook keeps his band and fans alike guessing.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer spoke with THR about the set list that has brought new life to his tours and features in his new live album.

By Jordan Zakarin

Jordan Zakarin

• Share on Facebook
• Share to Flipboard
• Send an Email
• Show additional share options
• Share on LinkedIn
• Share on Pinterest
• Share on Reddit
• Share on Tumblr
• Share on Whats App
• Print the Article
• Post a Comment

 Elvis Costello London - H 2011

Relentlessly prolific, fearlessly genre-bending and still a staple on the road,  Elvis Costello  makes trying to follow him a dizzying proposition. And that’s even before he brings the giant, spinning wheel onto the stage.

The British rock icon has made a career of defying expectations of the staid music establishment, garnering a loyal audience even as he jumped from pub to punk, new wave to jazz, piano ballads to orchestral numbers and back to rock again. And while he’s found ways to harness all those discordant sounds into playlists before, these days, he’s upping the live ante: enter the Spectacular Spinning Songbook, a massive wheel packed with different songs from throughout his career; spun after each performed number, Costello and his band the Imposters perform whichever song comes up next.

“The wheel just at least sort of gives them a glimpse at some of the options before we break their hearts,” Costello joked to The Hollywood Reporter before he performed at an event in support of the SeriouslyFun Paul Newman Foundation summer camps.

First introduced during a 1986 tour, when his discography was just a fraction of today’s offering, Costello brought back an even bigger version of the wheel to his stage show during last year’s Revolver Tour . Today marks the release of The Return of the Spectacular Spinning Songbook , a live CD and performance DVD recorded during a two-night stay at LA’s Wiltern Theatre during the Revolver jaunt. Spun by a kind of quasi-showgirl Vanna White , it serves as a career-spanning shuffle that keeps everyone guessing.

“I think it makes it more fun for everybody. It has a lot of fun in the show, but when you’re doing the show, if you get a serious song, which you can, or a blues song, you try to sing it for what it’s worth,” Costello said. “There’s no point if the whole thing was just a satire. Obviously, we have a dancing girl who is terrific; she has a great sense of humor about it. We’re obviously not going to suddenly turn ourselves into that singing and dancing routine.”

Of course, while Costello and the Imposters aren’t becoming a vaudeville act, it does mean that they have to be extra prepared for the shows; they’ve got more than 150 songs that will pop up over a given tour, with tones liable to shift at any time, an ironic consequence of his wide-ranging career. And for fans, it means accepting that their favorite songs may not get played, and getting excited to experience tunes with which they hadn’t been familiar.

“It’s the same as every show you go to; you go hoping you hear certain songs, but you also hope that you hear the songs played well,” Costello said. “So, the songs are chosen in an intelligent way when I program the set, or whether they’re chosen randomly, which means that we have to drop right into them, we have to react to the idea of them right away. That actually creates a different kind of tension and excitement for us in playing them and hopefully that communicates to the audience.”

Costello sets out on a 13-date tour of North America next week, followed by two months in Europe. And while those dates are concrete, what will happen at those shows will be a surprise.

Related Stories

Elvis costello, the roots, macy gray celebrate robert johnson at the apollo: concert review, thr newsletters.

Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day

More from The Hollywood Reporter

Sabrina carpenter arrests millie bobby brown for being “so hot” at atlanta concert, jon stewart criticizes media for focusing on trump’s absurd stunts over “enemy from within” rhetoric, dave chappelle and killer mike to join forces for co-headlining u.s. tour — with no phones allowed, city of hope gala delivers an elton john set, david blaine’s magic and surprise cameo by celine dion, insane clown posse’s violent j hands juggalo vote to kamala harris with ‘daily show’ endorsement, harris and trump’s much-hyped podcast appearances aren’t transforming the election: poll.

Home » Jazz News » Recording

Elvis Costello's Spectacular Spinning Songbook Revival Delights Fans and Press

Continue Reading...

Upbeat Mood by Music Soup

Better Angels by Peter Bernstein

One Another Day

Win a Blu-ray, DVD or Digital Copy of the Medeski Martin & Wood Documentary, Not Not Jazz

• Song of the Day

Una Última Vez

Roddy ellias, weekly newsletter, get more of a good thing.

Caz Plak To Release Don Cherry & Okay Temiz's Music For Turkish Theatre On Vinyl

Muralist Paints Tubaist

Flutist Yulia Musayelyan Contemplatively Melds Latin American Folk Sensibilities With Modern Jazz...

Announcing Top Five Finalists Of The 13th Annual Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition

The Spirit Of Jazz Vocal Gymnast Al Jarreau Revived In Rare Lost Live Recording From 1976 In...

For Your Grammy Consideration: Guitar-virtuoso Roman Miroshnichenko Presents 'Almanac'

'The Jazz Omnibus: 21st-Century Photos And Writings By Members Of The Jazz Journalists Association'...

Louis Stringer: Set To Star At The Prestigious 2025 South Beach Jazz Festival

Annapolis Hosts Global Rhythm And Groove In November

Presenting The New Album 'Penuka' From Ivan Mazuze: A Contemporary Jazz Exploration Of Arab And...

Quatuor Hot Club De Suisse! - Pierre Omer's Swing Revue Announce Spanish Tour Dates And More

Lou Gramm: His Journey to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

'Terry Gibbs Dream Band, Vol. 7: The Lost Tapes, 1959' To Be Released October 11 (CD), November 8...

Get more of a good thing.

More Access

• Content Plug-Ins

For Musicians

• Rates and Options
• Advertising Tips
• Place Order

Privacy Policy | We do not sell or share your personal information. © 2024 All About Jazz & Jazz Near You . All rights reserved.

Join Our Community or Welcome Back!

• Member? Sign in

Forgot it? Reset it . Click the eye icon to show your password.

Membership has its privileges. Learn more .

Welcome to All About Jazz!

Explore all about jazz & jazz near you.

• Jazz Albums
• Album Reviews
• Jazz Musicians
• Contest Giveaways
• Jazz Pictures
• Radio & Podcasts
• Video of the Day

• Livestreams
• Venue / Clubs
• Venue Finder
• Musician Finder
• Teacher Finder
• Events By City
• Weekly Newsletter
• Getting Started
• Help Wanted

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories and includes a local jazz events calendar.

Notification