Elvis , solo, plays Jacksonville , FL March 14 2015

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johnfoyle
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Elvis , solo, plays Jacksonville , FL March 14 2015

Post by johnfoyle »

Who's going?
blureu
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Re: Elvis , solo, plays Jacksonville , FL March 14 2015

Post by blureu »

Planning to go.
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And No Coffee Table
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Re: Elvis , solo, plays Jacksonville , FL March 14 2015

Post by And No Coffee Table »

http://jacksonville.com/entertainment/m ... w.facebook

Elvis Costello, solo at the Florida Theatre: 'I like a place that's got a good few ghosts'

By Matt Soergel Thu, Mar 12, 2015 @ 8:42 pm | updated Fri, Mar 13, 2015 @ 7:31 am

It turns out Elvis Costello has a thing for the Florida Theatre. The grand old palace in downtown Jacksonville is his kind of place — somewhere, he reckons, that might just have “a good few ghosts.”

In 2004 he played with only longtime keyboard player Steve Nieve as accompanist. In 2010 he brought the rootsy Sugarcanes with him. In 2012, he was back, rocking with the Imposters, go-go dancers and the Spectacular Spinning Songbook, a giant roulette wheel of songs.

Saturday, he’s all by himself, as part of his Detour tour.

Those who have followed Costello all these years know that’s a fine way to see him. He spins stories — he’s a natural storyteller — and chooses from his vast catalog of songs.

I got 10 minutes with him on the phone a little while ago. He was genial and talkative, so much so I could hardly get a word in (I did not complain). Though I did get to tell him about the time the other Elvis played there 59 years ago.

Here’s some of what Costello said, lightly edited for length:


Are you still having fun?

Absolutely. I mean, the Florida Theatre, that’s one of the great halls. It’s a tremendous hall. The minute you walk in there you know that something good’s going to happen. When we book a tour, I sort of say, “How many of these ones can we get into?”

Sometimes as you get across the country, you’ve got to play some places that lack a bit of atmosphere, but when you’ve got a place like that, you’re hoping that everybody continues to realize what they’ve got under their nose there. Sometimes those places go under because they want a shiny new place, but I think it’s got the atmosphere where anything can happen in there. I remember when we played there with the Sugarcanes, it was as good a night as we had on tour.

Tell us about playing solo.

I’ve got a few surprises, which I don’t want to give away. I’m trying to make this an evening where the songs can appear in unexpected ways: Make the older songs seem new and the new songs sound like the future.

Every night’s different?

It changes quite a bit. Over the last couple of years I’ve been playing a lot of solo shows. This is about the fourth or fifth run of these types of shows. I’ve given (the tour) the title of Detour, which gives you an indication of the way I approach the songbook.

I can play five songs from one specific record, all joined together, or I can find connections between the stories in two or three songs that might be written 20 or 30, 40 years apart.

I know if I have that in my head, I’m much more likely to be alive to all the possibilities in the songs. That’s what I’m trying to do. I don’t want to sing old songs for cheap applause — I want to sing them because they matter to me. And I want to sing the new songs because they mean something to me. If you haven’t heard them yet, you will.

Is there something that’s stayed constant throughout these 30 or more years in your music, something you’re trying to get at?

You know, I suppose there is, but you have to give just enough thought to all of this. You give too much, it locks up the feeling. You have to go with your instincts — you analyze it too much, it gets too calculated, like you’re trying to come up with a formula for a new miracle career. That’s not what I’m doing.

I’m singing songs, and it’s recognizing, I suppose, the experiences you once had that generated those feelings for that song. In the moment, you might pick up the song again; otherwise you would put some songs away and never return to them.

I like (quiet) songs that make people sit forward in the chair a little bit and listen, and other songs where there’s no choice — you’re going to hear it anyway because it’s loud. I’ve got electric guitars, all sorts of ways to keep it from being the same thing all the way through.

And you get to do it all in the Florida Theatre.

I’m not sure who’s played there over the years, but you can think of anybody you like and you can probably imagine them on that stage. Maybe I’ll bring my megaphone and sing some Rudy Vallee songs. That’s the kind of thing that I like. I like a place that’s got a good few ghosts, and you think about the way people sang and why they were singing. You just need some songs and an audience, that’s all you need.

You know, Elvis Presley played there once, with a judge watching him to make sure he didn’t move his hips too much.

(Laughs.) Well, I’m going to bring a judge, just in case.
johnfoyle
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Re: Elvis , solo, plays Jacksonville , FL March 14 2015

Post by johnfoyle »

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Elvis Presley performs at one of his two concerts at the Florida Theatre on August 10 & 11, 1956.

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http://www.vintag.es/2014/11/rare-photo ... certs.html
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And No Coffee Table
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Re: Elvis , solo, plays Jacksonville , FL March 14 2015

Post by And No Coffee Table »

From setlist.fm:

01. (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes
02. Blue Minute
03. Watch Your Step
04. Accidents Will Happen
05. Ascension Day
06. Church Underground
07. 45
08. Baby It's You
09. Come The Meantimes
10. Shot With His Own Gun - on piano
11. Just A Memory - on piano
12. Shipbuilding - on piano
13. Walkin' My Baby Back Home - seated
14. Ghost Train - seated
15. Waiting For The End Of The World - seated
16. Florida Key - seated
17. Everyday I Write The Book
Encore 1
18. Watching The Detectives
19. TV Is The Thing (This Year)
20. Veronica
21. Jimmie Standing In The Rain
Encore 2
22. Alison
23. Pump It Up
24. This Year's Girl
25. (What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding?
Encore 3
26. Side By Side - on piano
27. I Can't Stand Up For Falling Down - on piano
johnfoyle
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Re: Elvis , solo, plays Jacksonville , FL March 14 2015

Post by johnfoyle »

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blureu
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Re: Elvis , solo, plays Jacksonville , FL March 14 2015

Post by blureu »

Another wonderful show. Many highlights as you can tell by reading the set list. Just a Memory! The start and end time was 8:13/10:21 if anyone wants to include on the wiki. Was this the first performance of Florida Key by EC?
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And No Coffee Table
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Re: Elvis , solo, plays Jacksonville , FL March 14 2015

Post by And No Coffee Table »

blureu wrote:Was this the first performance of Florida Key by EC?
Yes, assuming you don't count the tiny bit of rehearsal footage in the documentary.

With three shows left in Florida, there should be three more chances for someone to record it.
johnfoyle
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Re: Elvis , solo, plays Jacksonville , FL March 14 2015

Post by johnfoyle »

From Andy Cohen , via facebook


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