Review of concert from 2003-10-10: Manchester, Bridgewater Hall - with Steve Nieve
- Andrew Moorhouse

 

When Did I Stop Dreaming?

There’s that Tom Waits line that says ‘History puts a saint in every dream’ which I interpret as the rosy glow nostalgia can put on happy memories. Fortunately for me there have been a few saints in 2003. Solomon Burke at Manchester University in February an evening of great theatre featuring a man and his band (including a heavenly angel on harp) who kind of made up for the fact that I wasn’t around at the right time to see Marvin, Stevie, Smokey or Percy in their glorious prime. Laura Cantrell supported by the fabulous Paul Burch at the same venue in May – turning Manchester into Nashville, spilled beer, slide guitars and high lonesome sounds. Stacey Kent in Leeds bringing her interpretations of the Great American Songbook and hints of Billie with Lester Young in her distinctive style.

… and then Mr Costello. You’d think it would have palled somewhat over the years and the number of shows I’ve seen. Friends shake their heads in amused disbelief when I announce that yet again I’m off to see the man. The uninitiated ask if he’ll be doing ‘Oliver’s Army’, ‘Pump it Up’ and ‘She’. I wryly smile – how can you explain?

Perhaps you’ll say he might do ‘Good Year for the Roses’ for which Jerry Chestnut surely deserves a papal beatification rather than just one from my own personal history. Maybe you’ll hint that the magnificent Deep Dark Truthful Mirror will include You’ve Really Got a Hold On Me when the audience will get a chance to sing some of the poet’s finest couplets. You’ll say that there’ll be a lot of the new album played but, out of the CD player, the songs will become individual entities, distinctive and emotional. You’ll say that Costello is still turning out great songs in any number of styles (but let’s not label – music shouldn’t come with a predefined category or target demographic) and encourage them to take time to listen and hear not only the melodic quality of ‘Still’ and ‘Green Eyes Turn Blue’ but also the soulfullness of ‘Either Side of the Same Time’ (and he gives the song away!). You may say that “Surely you know that ‘Shipbuilding’ is a fantastic song” and that he sings it beautifully although he does end it rather strangely.

What you won’t predict, because even your dreams are not this hopeful, is that he’ll play ‘I’m your Toy’, the hall will hush, unheard pins may drop and the knock out lines arrive – “and I don’t want no one but you to love me, you know I wouldn’t lie, you know I’m not the kind of guy” and grown men will weep.

And not only that but more buried treasure will be unearthed – ‘Sleep of the Just’ and ‘Brilliant Mistake’ are greeted with swoons of bliss. Whilst a gung-ho ‘Girls Talk’ produces giggles and grins from those same grown men rendering them drop dead gormless (apologies if my alliteration gets the better of me sometimes – I am taking the tablets).

In the final encore ‘I Still Miss Someone’ is a heartfelt and touching obituary, peroration and eulogy to the great man but after the funeral comes the wake and whilst ‘Couldn’t Call it Unexpected’ couldn’t live up to it’s title, it’s faithless drama – ‘I’ll never believe in anything again’ – sent the Northern secular faithful home happy.

Elvis isn’t the only beloved entertainer who can do these things, Solomon can (If I can make a judgement on that), Stacey can, Johnny could, Laura, Paul and numerous others can and do. What makes Elvis special to me is the range of the material, the depth of the emotion, the quality of the song writing, the use of the voice and most of all the fact that he’s still pushing after 25 years and more. Let’s hope that we never have to ask ‘When Did I Stop Dreaming?’ and that the saints keep appearing.