Dangerous Amusements: the Elvis Costello playlist

Singer/songwriter Emma Swift counts Elvis Costello among her musical heroes and describes his songs as “a gateway into another kind of life”. Emma released Blonde on the Tracks , her acclaimed album of interpretations of Bob Dylan songs in 2020. In 2022, Costello picked out one of those recordings for inclusion on his jukebox for the opening of the Bob Dylan Archive. Emma tells me about receiving...

Top comedian and broadcaster Mark Lamarr joins me to open the fifth series of the podcast. Mark has starred in some of the defining UK television shows of the last three decades, including The Word, Never Mind the Buzzcocks and Shooting Stars. His acclaimed radio shows have showcased the depth of his love of music. Mark picks out some of his favourite Elvis Costello songs, standout gigs and recall...

In this second part of my conversation with producer and engineer, Steve Mandel , we chat about Wise Up Ghost, the album he created with Elvis Costello and The Roots. The record was released to critical acclaim in September 2013. It was produced by Costello, Questlove and Mandel, with Steve credited as a songwriter on all but one of the dozen tracks. In this episode, Steve talks us through Wise Up...

Steve Mandel is an audio engineer, producer and songwriter highly regarded for his work with The Roots. He first encountered his hero, Elvis Costello, while working on NBC’s Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, on which The Roots were the house band. Steve suggested they perform an old arrangement of Costello’s High Fidelity and took a stash of albums for Elvis to sign. They would go on to collaborate on...

Author and linguist Remedy Robinson hosts the brilliant Costello-themed podcast, Slow Drag With Remedy . Each episode is an “exploration and appreciation of the genius words, phrases and references found in each song credited solely to Mr Elvis Costello”. We chat about her love of Elvis’s lyrics and how that led to her launching the show. Remedy tells me how she became an EC fan, her favourite rec...

22 July 2022 is the 45th anniversary of Elvis Costello’s acclaimed debut album, My Aim Is True. Married father-of-one, Declan MacManus, was a computer operator from London and a prolific aspiring songwriter. Signed to Stiff Records, MacManus cut his first professional album at Pathway Studios, backed by Clover and produced by Nick Lowe. He never looked back. In this special episode to mark 45 year...

Science fiction author, critic and academic, Professor Adam Roberts , has been an Elvis Costello fan since hearing Blood and Chocolate. Our conversation about his love of Elvis also takes in poetry, the philosophy of Hegel and sex dungeons. Adam has picked out six of his favourite Costello songs for this season’s playlist and you can read his 2022 article on EC here .

In this second part of my conversation with producer Sebastian Krys , we chat about some of his favourite Elvis Costello songs. Sebastian picks out six Costello tracks for my playlist, including the recent song that stopped him dead in his tracks when Elvis sent him the demo. We also discuss some of the great EC gigs he's attended. Follow Dangerous Amusements on Twitter and Instagram . Visit my we...

Sebastian Krys is a multiple Grammy and Latin Grammy-winning producer and engineer. He’s worked with an incredible array of great artists, including Gloria Estefan and Shakira, and has co-produced Elvis Costello’s records since 2018’s Look Now. In part one of this two-part conversation, Sebastian tells me about his career in music and his ongoing collaboration with Costello, which has yielded a se...

As well as being a brilliant and prolific songwriter, Elvis Costello is a master of interpreting songs written by other people. In this bonus episode of the podcast, we put aside our playlists and the usual format to focus on some of the great Costello covers. To do that, I’m delighted to welcome back to the show a director, podcaster and radio host: Theo Delaney. Theo and I each pick five EC cove...

Author and music writer Libby Cudmore has been an Elvis Costello fanatic since being given a mix-CD containing Crimes of Paris. In this episode, Libby tells me how her love of Costello’s music has developed into an obsession and why you don’t want to be next to her at an EC gig. We chat about how Elvis’s music has inspired Libby’s work as a crime writer and she picks out five Costello tracks to co...

Music journalist and author Ian Winwood is an Elvis Costello obsessive. We chat about how his love of EC’s music began, the many and varied gigs he’s been to and why a Costello song was the soundtrack to his wedding day. Ian also picks out five of his favourite Elvis songs to add to my Ashtrays of Emotion playlist. We also talk about Ian’s terrific new book, Bodies: Life and Death in Music , in wh...

Pam Thurschwell is an academic, author and self-confessed “Costello trainspotter”. She tells me how early Costello songs like Green Shirt put their fingerprints on her teenage imagination, leading to a lifelong love of Elvis’s music. We discuss the articles Pam has had published about EC’s music and revisit some of the many Costello gigs she’s been to, including a memorable performance alongside h...

I’m joined by Neal Davies for the final episode of 2021. Neal tells me about the book he’s writing about Elvis Costello in the mid-‘80s: King of America, Blood and Chocolate, the pseudonyms and the questions of identity. We chat about his interview with Bruce Thomas and show some love to Goodbye Cruel World. Along the way, Neal recalls the dozens of EC gigs he’s been to – including a backstage vis...

Composer and musician Chris Mercer joins me to talk about the music of Elvis Costello. Chris recalls buying his first Costello album and how it completely changed his musical standards. We explore the “intricate, dense” lyrics of the EC songbook and why Chris considers Elvis to be one of the great melodists of our time. The host of the brilliant Take It Away: The Complete Paul McCartney Archive Po...

As a member of the TKO Horns, Geoff Blythe toured with Elvis Costello and the Attractions and performed on several tracks on the 1983 album, Punch the Clock. Geoff tells me about the sessions, going on the road with the Attractions and recording the promo video for Let Them All Talk . Along the way, Geoff recalls recording with Nick Lowe and Allen Toussaint and an encounter with Yoko Ono’s bodygua...

What a treat it was to catch up with award-winning author and former UK Home Secretary Alan Johnson to talk about his love of Elvis Costello’s music. An EC fanatic since hearing (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes, Alan tells me why he feels such an affinity with the man he credits with his personal lifetime achievement award. We chat about some of Alan’s favourite Costello songs and the tape of...

Kitten Kuroi is a singer, songwriter and activist who has performed live with Elvis Costello and the Imposters on a number of tours. She also recorded vocals for the 2018 album, Look Now, which won a Grammy for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album at the 62nd Grammy Awards. Kitten tells me about her earliest musical influences and how she came to Elvis’s attention for the Imperial Bedrooms and Other C...

Legendary music PR Glen Colson worked on Elvis Costello’s record releases and tours in the late-1970s. Glen tells me all about those early days – the stunts, the arrests, the tours and the music. We chat about life at Stiff Records and the assorted cast of characters Glen’s encountered during his career, including Ian Dury, Nick Lowe and Syd Barrett. Glen’s also added five songs to our Dragging th...

Georg Purvis is the author of On Track: Elvis Costello and the Attractions . Having previously published books on Pink Floyd and Queen, Georg explores every song and album recorded by Costello between 1977 and 1986. In this episode, Georg tells me about writing the book and his own experiences as an Elvis Costello fan. He picks five of his favourite EC tracks for our playlist , including the song...

Artist and painter WS Cranmore is my first transatlantic guest on the podcast. skOt recalls hearing Elvis Costello’s music for the first time and tells me how one of EC’s songs changed his life. We discuss Costello’s album artwork and the key to creating a memorable LP or single sleeve. skOt also tells me of his shock when Elvis got in touch to buy one of his paintings… Check out the playlist of C...

Music journalist Paul Stokes (NME, Q, MOJO, BBC Radio 6 Music) takes us on a trip down Rocking Horse Road as we talk about his love of Elvis Costello’s music. We chat about the Costello record that changed his life and look back at some of the many Elvis gigs he’s been to over the years. Paul tells us about his experiences of interviewing EC for different music magazines and producing an appearanc...

Jason Carty is one half of the terrific Beatles podcast, Nothing Is Real . A winner of the coveted Beatle Brain of Ireland competition with his co-host, Steven Cockroft, Jason is also a huge Elvis Costello fan. We discuss some of Jason’s favourite Costello songs, the many and varied EC gigs he’s attended and he recalls meeting the man himself during his Dublin days. And, of course, we can’t talk t...

Boyd Hilton is a top TV and film journalist, entertainment director for Heat magazine and contributing editor at Empire. He’s also a huge Elvis Costello fan. In this episode, Boyd picks five EC songs for our playlist , recalls his earliest Elvis experiences and tells us about transatlantic trips to watch Costello live. We also discuss Costello’s stint as a TV host on Spectacle, a show Boyd was tip...

I'm delighted to welcome comedian, actor, writer and TV presenter Jo Brand to the podcast. We talk about her love of Elvis Costello's music and discuss the five songs she's added to our Dragging the Lake playlist. Jo tells me about appearing alongside Elvis on the BBC's Fantasy Football League and demonstrating her Costello party piece on television. We also discuss comedy, decorating and "toffee...