Smokey Robinson Spectacle: Elvis Costello with... : Season 1 Episode 13
SundanceTV 1h 00m int(0)
Aired: February 25th, 2009 @ 9:00 PM EST on SundanceTV
Lucky number 13, the final curtain call of the season on Elvis' vibrant and truly unique interview and performance driven magical mystery musical tour, closes with a true American master : Smokey Robinson. The Motown icon reminisces about fifty years as a singer, songwriter, producer and record executive. Along the way he sings some of the classic tunes he created and forged into the very fabric of the American soul. As a juicy extra, Smokey, reports the Sundance web site, "also sings a surprising cover made famous by Norah Jones". The show, and the season, concludes with a bit of trans-Atlantic history : an Elvis-Smokey "duet performance of Smokey's classic You've Really Got a Hold on Me". That song, a 1962 hit single by The Miracles, and later a 1998 Grammy Hall of Fame inductee, made its way across the ocean where The Beatles acquired a copy and added it to their show early in 1963. It was the first track recorded for their second album With the Beatles. Much of their early success was founded on Smokey and Motown magic, just as, years later, a young Declan Patrick MacManus (aka Elvis Costello) was inspired by the magic of The Beatles to begin forging his musical adventure. Elvis says that, due to scheduling difficulties, he isn't certain if they'll be a second season of Spectacle. Here's hoping that it works out, because this season has been one hell of a wild, sweet magical ride.