Review of concert at 1999-12-10: London, Royal Festival Hall
Elvis Costello & Steve Nieve
- Roz Brown [goddess_roz@hotmail.com]

 

WOW!!! GIG OF THE MILLENIUM!!!

 

And so many highlights. Where do I start?? I think this has been my fave show to date. So many oldies in there!! I think the Sydney shows earlier in the year focussed on the Bacharach album, and they were brilliant shows, but this one was just amazing. To hear 'Riot Act', 'Man Out of Time', 'Uncle', 'Clubland', 'Shipbuilding' and of course 'I Want You' was just awesome. Those songs alone made it for me. Steve was going wild in some parts! He was strumming the strings inside the piano for a harp like sound during 'I Want You' and banging down the lid for the keys during 'Green Shirt'. The lighting during 'Green Shirt' was great (green of course!) and during 'God's Comic' was a kind of eerie white light up black curtains.

During 'Alibi Factory' they played in the dark! And I've always loved the piano on 'Olivers Army'. This is going to be hard to top!!!

New stuff is good too. The songs from 'The Delivery Man' have been written by EC, but he said he doesn't know whether it will be him or someone else (or others) singing.

Sorry to rub it in, but that was 'Gig of the Millenium' for me!!!