Artist: Elvis Costello
Podcast: The First Ten Years
Available for free at the iTunes store
Elvis Costello’s podcast, three episodes into the ten episode series, is thoughtful, if not slow, but exactly what the music industry needs from podcasts. Filled with clips from early albums and Costello waxing on his past, his music family and how he believes Elvis is merely a cultural image and has had no discernable impact on American music.
This is generally the kind of musical nugget that is best left for the fanatics. Music documentation has become so standard in America that it seems you need some form of documentary to be considered important anymore, even artists who have never been huge on the publicity train (Dylan) need a new documentary every year or two. But there is something special in Costello’s delivery, something charming and intimate about not having narrators, pictures and opinions, just Costello whispering in your ear in the coffee shop, in the car, at home. Point being, that, while it certainly is for Costello fans, it’s engaging enough to bring you to Costello if you’re not a fan. Clips from his songs, his lack of head spinning name-dropping, and his ability to draw you into this period in music history. This isn’t just about him, he was a part of something in the 70’s and he lets you know that, talking about seeing the early punk bands of London taking off, the aging legends of early rock-n-roll, and watching what was happening in the American rock scene from across the sea.
This series is a great introduction to a long prolific career of one of the most influential Londonites of the last 3 decades. Great bits about the London scene in the 70’s, Costello recording in the studio, trying to get started by stopping by studios and trying to audition in person for a job, just carrying an acoustic guitar. Easily worth the five minutes it’ll take you to download the three episodes you’ve missed.
The First Ten Years has only just begun, episode 4 is available for download July 10. A complete list of release dates for The First Ten Years podcast is available at myspace.com/elviscostello
