Elvis Costello has put an impressive coda onto the end of 2005, a year which has already seen the release of a special edition of his latest album, 'The Delivery Man,' his 'Live in Memphis' concert DVD, a CD of his performance on Marian McPartland's "Piano Jazz" show, 'The Right Spectacle,' a DVD collection of his music videos, the Rhino re-release of his celebrated album 'King of America,' a performance on the Today Show's outdoor concert series, and a full-length US tour. Elvis' busy schedule of performances this fall include an opera, a Broadway Gala, a tribute concert to Sam Cooke, and a performance at the Grand Ole Opry. 2006 promises to be an equally diverse busy year, with tour dates with Steve Nieve planned for Australia, Asia and the US.

Costello has penned "The Secret Arias," an opera based on the life of writer Hans Christian Anderson and his love for the Swedish soprano Jenny Lind. The opera debuted the weekend of October 8 at the Copenhagen opera house, with Costello himself taking two of the lead roles. The Independent of London declared that "...in "He Has Forgotten Me Completely", a haunting piece sung with style by soprano Gisela Stille and with a hallmark Costello continuo of keyboards and cello, he has a cracker" (10/17/05).

On Oct. 31, Broadway toasted Costello as Molly Ringwald and a host of other past and present stars of the theater presented "Brilliant Mistake: Broadway Sings Elvis Costello" at the Gerald L. Lynch Theater in New York. Costello himself also performed in the show, which benefited the Friends In Deed HIV/AIDS crisis center.

On November 5, Costello will perform in a tribute concert to Sam Cooke presented by The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Case Western Reserve University. The concert at the State Theater in Cleveland, OH, is the cap to The American Music Masters' Series' weeklong celebration of Cooke's music. Costello joins a bill which already includes Aretha Franklin, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Solomon Burke, and Otis Clay.

Finally, on November 18 and 19, Costello and Emmylou Harris will team up for a performance at The Grand Ole Opry at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN. The pair performed a series of tour dates earlier this year, which the Newark Star-Ledger praised for its smooth blend of Harris' "gossamer tone" with Costello's "richly burnished voice" (7/21/05).

Related Links:
Elvis Costello bio, photos, album reviews & more...