"Spectacle: Elvis Costello With..." Preview: U2 Talk Paul McCartney

Spectacle: Elvis Costello With.. returns for its second season on the Sundance Channel this Wednesday, December 9th with U2's Bono and the Edge joining the My Aim is True singer-songwriter for an intimate conversation about the recording of some of the band's biggest hits, a performance of some obscure U2 tracks and a show-ending "mash-up" of Costello and the Imposters with the No Line on the Horizon pair. In this exclusive preview of Wednesday's show, Bono and the Edge talk about how a studio visit from Paul McCartney inspired the group to change their method of recording, as Beatles' classics like "Eleanor Rigby" were quickly recorded in mere three hours sessions.

Bono and the Edge stopped by the Spectacle set at Toronto's Masonic Temple during their recently concluded 360° Tour. Other artists will grace Costello's stage this season include Sheryl Crow, Neko Case, Levon Helm, Nick Lowe, Richard Thompson, Ray LaMontagne and, in a special season-ending two-part episode, Mr. Kennedy Center Honors himself, Bruce Springsteen. For more clips from Wednesday's season premiere, airing 10pm on Sundance, check out the Spectacle site.

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

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