Every day he writes the book: Elvis Costello to publish memoir

In his almost 40-year career, Elvis Costello has gone from “Watching the Detectives” to casting “Complicated Shadows.” Soon, fans of the artist formerly known as Declan Patrick MacManus will be able to read his life story in his own words: Costello will release his first book, a memoir, this October.

NME reports that Penguin imprint Blue Rider Press will publish “Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink” on Oct. 13. A news release describes the memoir as “his story, written himself, rich with anecdotes about family and fellow musicians, introspective about the creation of his famous songs.”

It won’t be the first time the rocker has written extensively about his work, however. As Rolling Stone notes, Costello “previously penned a 60,000-word reflection on his music and career in 2001 when Rhino reissued his 1977-1996 catalog.” Those reissues are hard to find, though, and the magazine notes that the essay has never been published outside those albums.

The Penguin news release promises that Costello will delve into his past “instances of bad behavior,” which might be referring to a 1979 incident in Columbus, Ohio, in which he used a racial slur when referring to musicians Ray Charles and James Brown. The rock legend was also famously banned from “Saturday Night Live” in 1977 after playing, without the show’s permission, his anti-corporate rock ode “Radio Radio.” (The ban was later lifted, and Costello played the song with the Beastie Boys 22 years later on the show.) Costello’s latest album, released in 2013, was “Wise Up Ghost,” a collaboration with the Roots.

“Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink” is available for preorder at the Penguin website.