The Delivery Man
ELVIS COSTELLO
Album Title: The Delivery Man
Producer(s): Dennis Herring, Elvis Costello
Genre: POP
Label/Catalog Number: Lost Highway 0002593
Release Date: Sept. 21
Source: Billboard Magazine
Originally Reviewed: October 09, 2004
In chasing his muse, Elvis Costello has gone down many a genre road. Despite
occasional misses, these varied excursions have proved interesting, if not
classic additions to his canon. "The Delivery Man"—the yin
to the yang of the simultaneously released classical work "Il Sogno"—proves
he can, nearly 30 years into his career, explore roots rock with rewarding
results. Despite lacking a promised cohesive narrative thread, this Southern-drenched
song cycle has plenty of merit. Its loose arrangements and inspired execution
recall past album-length tangents: There's cacophonous avant-garde ("Button
My Lip"), gritty roadhouse ("There's a Story in Your Voice"
with Lucinda Williams), Nashville legacy ("Country Darkness"),
yelping punk blues ("Bedlam"), a dark and spooky character study
(the title track) and heartbreak balladry ("Heart Shaped Bruise"
with Emmylou Harris). Welcome, worthy and wonderful.—BAJ