Elvis Costello has announced the release of “King Of America & Other Realms”, a six-disc Super Deluxe Edition box set, which celebrates and explores the songwriter’s lifelong love, fascination, and influence of American music, spanning his many albums and inspired collaborations with some of the most celebrated musicians, songwriters and producers in this music, including his long-time creative partnership with T Bone Burnett.
Compiled by Elvis Costello, “King Of America & Other Realms”, which will be released on 1st November 2024 via UMe, traces Costello’s musical travels from Hollywood – where the “King Of America” album was recorded – to a brand-new take on that album’s opener, ‘Brilliant Mistake’, recorded in Cape Fear, NC in early 2024, via Costello’s recording adventures in New Orleans, Oxford and Clarksdale, Nashville and Memphis. Comprising 97 tracks plus a newly self-penned 35-page essay illustrated with numerous rare and never-before-seen photos in a 57-page booklet, the set is housed in a 12” x 11.5” package with a cover shot by Terence Donovan.
The six discs are made up of:
- a new 2024 remaster of “King Of America” from the original master tapes of the T Bone Burnett-produced album;
- a disc of solo demos from 1985, including never previously released demos cut at Red Bus Recording Studios in London in the months prior to the “King Of America” sessions in Hollywood and mixed from newly discovered multitrack tapes;
- a 17-song Royal Albert Hall concert from 1987 in London with a band billed as The Confederates, featuring guitarist James Burton and bassist Jerry Scheff from Elvis Presley’s legendary TCB Band, drummer Jim Keltner, keyboardist Benmont Tench of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and T-Bone Wolk (accordion and mandolin); and
- a three-disc compendium of recordings and collaborations from across the last four decade, featuring studio recordings – spanning the studio albums “Spike” (1989, Hollywood and New Orleans), “The Delivery Man” (2004, Oxford, MS), “The River In Reverse” (2006, Hollywood and New Orleans), “Momofuku” (2008, Los Angeles), “Secret, Profane & Sugarcane” (2009, Nashville), “National Ransom” (2010, Los Angeles and Nashville) and “Look Now” (2018, Hollywood, New York City) –together with a slew of previously unreleased demos, outtakes and live recordings including collaborations with Emmylou Harris, Lucinda Williams and Allen Toussaint amongst others.
In addition to the Super Deluxe Edition box set, “King Of America & Other Realms” will also be available as a 2CD set with the new 2024 remaster of the album on CD1 and highlights from the box set on CD2, including studio recordings, demos and live recordings. The new remaster of “King Of America” will be available separately on both 140-gram black vinyl as well as limited edition 140-gram gold nugget colour vinyl, exclusively via ElvisCostello.com, uDiscover Music and Sound of Vinyl.
You can pre-order ”King Of America and Other Realms” here.
The set is being previewed with the 2024 remastered version of ‘Indoor Fireworks’ which you can listen to below.
