Features
The Pick-Up Artist
Elvis Costello has been touring with his group, The Imposters, since late January in support of his album The Delivery Man. But if you see him at the end of April, you may get a surprise treat – seeing Costello playing with a new band called The Pick-Ups.
The revised line-up features sweet-voiced Los Lobos guitarist David Hidalgo replacing Imposters pianist Steve Nieve.
This isn’t the first time that Costello and the multitalented Hidalgo have worked with each other: Hidalgo appeared on Costello’s 1986 album King of America; Costello also sang on Los Lobos’ The Ride, which was released last year.
The dates for Hidalgo’s appearances with Costello will be April 24 in Baltimore, April 26 in Norfolk, Va., and April 27 in Athens, Ga.
Costello says to expect some surprises from The Pick-Ups, as this will be the first time that he has played in the standard two-guitar configuration since 1980.
The change in line-up comes as Nieve, Costello’s long-time collaborator, will head back to London for a few days. Nieve is currently doing some recording sessions for his opera, Welcome to the Voice, and had to be in London on a few dates during Costello’s tour with The Imposters.
With plenty of experience in the world of orchestral music, Costello was sympathetic to the scheduling conflict.
“Steve was only able to schedule several key singers on these particular days and I know how tricky the process of realizing something like this can be. We wish him well with the sessions,” he said.
Costello recently released his first classical work, Il Sogno, last September. He is currently working on an opera based on the life of Hans Christian Andersen for Copenhagen’s Royal Theatre.