Elvis Costello stopped by The Late Show With Stephen Colbert on Friday night (January 21) to deliver a pair of performances including an impromptu medley.
The singer-songwriter released ‘The Boy Named If’ – his new album with The Imposters – last week (January 14), which features the singles ‘Farewell, OK’, ‘Magnificent Hurt’ and ‘Paint The Red Rose Blue’.
The Imposters are comprised of Steve Nieve (keyboards), Pete Thomas (drums) and Davey Faragher (bass/backing vocals).
During Costello’s appearance on the US late night chat show, he and the band performed a standalone rendition of ‘Magnificent Hurt’ followed by a surprise medley that combined ‘Farewell, OK’ and his 1978 cover of Nick Lowe’s ‘(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love, And Understanding’.
You can check out Costello’s performances below:
In addition to the performances, Costello sat down with Colbert for a three-part interview which saw him discuss the new album, working with Paul McCartney, Peter Jackson’s recent Beatles documentary Get Back, defending Olivia Rodrigo and more. You can see his chat with Colbert below.
Produced by Sebastian Krys and Costello, and released on EMI, ‘The Boy Named If’ – the full title of which is actually said to be ‘The Boy Named If (And Other Children’s Stories)’ – was released on CD, vinyl, cassette, download and streaming. There were also some numbered and signed, 88-page “Hardback Storybook Edition” versions.
Costello and the band recently announced that they’ll be heading out on a UK tour in support of the new album. ‘The Boy Named If’ tour kicks off at the Brighton Dome on June 5, 2022 before wrapping up at London’s Hammersmith Eventim Apollo on June 23. Charlie Sexton will also join Costello and co. on the 13-date tour.
Support comes from Ian Prowse, who will be performing songs from his upcoming album ‘One Hand On The Starry Plough’.