Elvis Costello & The Imposters Announce 2023 Australian Headline Dates

Elvis Costello has announced a trio of Australian headline performances for 2023. News of the shows come two weeks on from Costello being named as one of the headline acts for the 2023 edition of Bluesfest.

To cap off the 2023 Easter long weekend, Costello will play three headline dates with longtime backing band The Imposters. He will perform two shows at the Sydney Opera House on Sunday, 9th and Monday, 10th April, followed by an appearance at Melbourne’s Palais Theatre on Thursday, 13th April.

Elvis Costello – ‘Alison’

The 2023 tour will be Costello’s first Australian visit since 2014, and follows on from a handful of records released in recent years, including 2020’s Hey Clockface, and this year’s A Boy Named If. In a statement released alongside the announcement, Costello noted that it has been 12 years since his first appearance at Byron Bay Bluesfest, and as such, he is looking to ensure his latest Australian visit will be one to remember.

“There is nothing that jolts a show alive so much as stack of strong new songs but we recorded The Boy Named If while locked away in our lairs and hideaways, so bringing those songs to the stage has made the hits and highlights of the songbook ring out anew,” he said.

Costello also revealed that Bob Dylan’s touring guitarist Charlie Sexton will be joining them for the tour. “The Imposters and I are not bringing any vaudevillian contraptions with us on this occasion,” he said. “But we will be joined by [Sexton] and a stack strong recently recorded songs that have caused the hits and headlines of the repertoire to either ring out anew or fight for their place in the show.”