Lenox — With a little bit of luck, Tanglewood will hear Nick Lowe’s 70s anthem “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding?” for the second year in a row this summer. But this time, the performance could come from either Lowe himself or from his protege, Elvis Costello, the headline act at Tanglewood on Saturday, July 1. Lowe recorded the song with his band Brinsley Schwarz in 1974, but it was Costello who propelled the song into immortality when he included it on his Lowe-produced 1979 album “Armed Forces,” delivered, according to Janet Maslin of Rolling Stone, “with a sincerity bordering on desperation.” It has since become one of Costello’s signature songs and has been performed by everyone from Bruce Springsteen to Stephen Colbert.
Lowe told AARP in 2020, “I’ve written quite a lot of songs, and most of them are, frankly, forgettable.” (He is obviously not referring to his hit “Cruel to Be Kind.”) But he acknowledges that “What’s So Funny” is in a category of its own. “I feel like I had nothing to do with it … It’s really odd. It really does feel like it’s like, uh, ‘Auld Lang Syne’ or ‘Happy Birthday to You.'”
Lowe has produced records for The Pretenders, Johnny Cash, Carlene Carter, Graham Parker, Wreckless Eric, The Damned, and others. But he is probably best known for producing five Elvis Costello releases, starting with 1977’s “My Aim Is True,” the album that put Costello on the map.
When Elvis Costello and the Attractions were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003, Sir Elton John famously remarked that “Elvis Costello took the literacy of folk music and broke it wide open against the ragged edges of punk.” Sir Elton understood that he would need strong metaphors if he wanted to say anything meaningfully descriptive of Elvis Costello. But that was two decades ago, and Costello has been reinventing himself—seemingly every few moments—ever since. He has been performing in public for over 50 years, solo, and with various ensembles electric and acoustic. He is the composer and lyricist of over 600 published titles, including 15 songs co-written with Paul McCartney and a GRAMMY-winning song co-written with Burt Bacharach. His innumerable collaborations include projects with with Allen Toussaint, the Brodsky Quartet, and T Bone Burnett. His forays into the classical music world may be lesser known, but they include collaborations with the Royal Danish Opera and Twyla Tharp with the Miami City Ballet. He is the author of “Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink,” a memoir of over 600 pages that has been translated into six languages.
The Imposters include Costello’s longtime Attractions bandmates Steve Nieve on keyboardist and Pete Thomas on drums. They are joined by Davey Faragher, bassist for The Imposters since 2001, and guitarist Charlie Sexton, formerly with Bob Dylan’s band. (They make a big deal out of putting Sexton’s name on the bill for the simple reason that he actually is a big deal, and you’ve heard of him if you’ve spent any time in Austin, Texas. He has had his own hit records. Read his bio.)
Tickets for Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe will go on sale Thursday, April 6, at 10 a.m. here.
