Elvis Costello at the London Palladium - Life lessons

I went to see Elvis Costello at the London Palladium the other week. This was a stop on his more intimate than normal tour and he was accompanied by his long-time collaborator, key board genius Steve Nieve (pronounced like “naive”).

The London Palladium is a dated venue in Central London. All red plush and not at all rock n’ roll. But it fitted the “at home with Elvis” feel of the evening.

And the audience were exclusively weather-beaten Baby-boomers, like me.

Elvis bounced onto the stage and kicked off with a moody version of When I was cruel No 2 - distorted electric guitar and piano enhanced by the electronic beats of a young man in a boiler suit with a computer.

This was the prelude to an engaging evening of virtuoso performance.

I came away reflecting on some life lessons:

1. Don’t let age be an impediment

Elvis is 70 and has been in the business since he was a teenager. His first appearance on Top of the Pops was in 1977 when, to his chagrin, he was forced to mime and nearly burst blood vessels doing so. Since then he has produced an astonishing 33 Studio albums.

He brings remarkable energy to his performance - sitting for some songs, standing for others and running around for a few. His voice is strained at times as he seems to miss notes, but that only adds a touch of authentic vulnerability to his renditions.

He is not alone in keeping going into his 70s (think Rod Stewart and Mick Jagger) but he wears his age with beguiling ease.

2. Collaboration is precious

Steve Nieve has been playing with Costello on and off since 1978. He is a classically trained keyboardist and that is evident from his wonderful playing. He and Costello have a special mutual understanding and can evidently finish each other’s musical sentences. Partnerships like this are to be cherished - fulfilling for them and rewarding for any audience.

Nieve’s real surname, by the way, is Steve Nason. He was given the name Nieve by Ian Dury (of Blockheads fame) on tour in the late 1970s because Dury was astonished by the innocence of his question “What’s a groupie?”.

Aside from working with Nieve, Costello is a prodigious collaborator. He has, for example, written a dozen songs with Paul McCartney, had a songwriting partnership with Burt (Walk on by) Bacharach and produced, in 2013, an album together with the hip-hop group The Roots.

3. We need to evolve

Variety, it is said, is the spice of life. Indeed, according to a recent article by Tali Sharot and Cass Sunstein in the Harvard Business Review:

“If you feel bored or unfulfilled by a job you once relished, you might be succumbing to what scientists call habituation: our brain’s tendency to react less and less to things that don’t change so that what one brought you joy and meaning can stop doing so over time. The antidote is to pursue variety, both inside and outside work, since ample research shows that people are most engaged and satisfied when they are learning something new.”

Elvis Costello is living proof of this.

He moved, across the evening, from early pacy punky favourites like Oliver’s Army, via a rather moving cover of Aznavour’s “She”, to songs from an upcoming musical with the LIPA horn section. As one reviewer recently said: “…every show is different. Music of many genres pours out of him.” He also plays an extraordinary range of different guitars, including a rarely seen Kay Thin Twin K-161.

He is an inspiration to keep pushing the envelope. Sadly he did not play his “Every day we write the book” - which eloquently speaks to daily renewal.

4. We need stories

Costello is a natural raconteur. Throughout the evening he chats with the audience and weaves in stories about what he learnt from his dad, Ross McManus, the excitement and challenges of going on Top of the Pops at age 22 and the background to some of his songs. You learn more about the improbable journey of a restless, creative soul who maybe didn’t fit in but somehow found himself collaborating with Burt Bacharach.

The stories are key to the connection with the audience, which is key to the magic of the evening.

The best advice I ever had about public speaking was to remember just two things – energy and stories. If you are to have any chance of bringing the audience with you, you have to be energetic and illustrate the points you really want to land with stories and examples.

5. Mix up the pace of things

The first few songs were fast paced and then things slowed down. And then, to my surprise, on came the eight-piece LIPA horn section - I find that most live music occasions are enhanced by a trumpet and a sax. They started with a punchy version of Watching the Detectives and continued with a mix of fast pieces, enhanced by the boiler suited young man with the beats, and melodic offerings from Costello’s musical.

In holding your audience, as an entertainer or even as a presenter at a business engagement, you will benefit from terrain - reflective moments mixed with moments which will touch a nerve with a sense of excitement.

6. Appreciation matters

Costello was assiduous in appreciating Steve Nieve and boiler-suited Paul, and was genuinely thrilled by the LIPA horns, whom he introduced regularly by name. He also gave solo spots to trumpet, tenor sax and trombone. For him the evening was evidently a massive team effort.

Generally we are not great at appreciating others. In a work context a handwritten note or an email complimenting a colleague on a piece of work, copied to the boss, will make a big difference. I still remember, from my lawyering days, the note I got from one of my partners thanking me for the billings on a big piece of work.

As Tony Schwartz wrote in the Harvard Business Review:

“We’re all more vulnerable and needy than we like to imagine. Authentically appreciating others will make you feel better about yourself, and it will also increase the likelihood they’ll invest more in their work, and in you. The human instinct for reciprocity runs deep.”

7. Leave them wanting more

I kept waiting for Elvis to play my favourite of his songs, Alison. But he didn’t. So I’ll have to go and see him again soon in the hope that he will!

This reminds me of the adage that you should leave the stage when they still want more, not when they’ve had too much. You do see business leaders who hang on too long and lose the dressing room. Leaving when you are still ahead has a lot to recommend it.

8. Peace, Love and Understanding

There is much to be said for a rousing crescendo. And Costello delivered that with his fast-paced final song which left the audience at once uplifted and pondering the troubled state of the world today:

So where are the strong, and who are the trusted?

And where is the harmony, sweet harmony?*

‘Cause each time I feel it slippin’ away

Just makes me wanna cry

What’s so funny ‘bout peace, love and understanding?

Christopher Saul

Christopher Saul provides independent trusted advice to senior executives and key stakeholders within publicly quoted and privately owned businesses and professional service firms. His areas of focus are governance, succession and the moderation of differences.

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