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When life throws you a sudden train, make train music.
That's a lesson Elvis Costello taught last Sunday during the highlight of a remarkable Chevrolet Amphitheatre concert.
Seconds after finishing a duet with his touring partner, Emmylou Harris, Costello heard the shrill whistle from a Norfolk Southern train approaching on the tracks that run parallel to the Station Square venue.
Joking that they had finished the song in the nick of time, Costello made an off-the-cuff remark about how he probably should sing a train song. Spectators chuckled, the train roared by, and Costello's grin grew wider as he pondered the idea. Then the eclectic rocker surprised everyone by launching into the opening verse of "Mystery Train," an old R&B number by Little Junior Parker.
Without missing a beat, Costello's terrific band, the Imposters, climbed aboard, with drummer Pete Thomas thumping out a train-like rhythm, while bassist Davey Faragher and organist Steve Nieve supplied "Mystery Train's" locomotive thrust. Though initially caught off guard by this departure from the setlist, Harris began cooing backing harmonies as the toe-tapping song chugged along, drawing enthusiastic cheers from a crowd realizing they were witnessing a masterful improvisation.
Those are the moments that turn great concerts into unforgettable ones.
Dressed dapperly in a brownish suit over a lilac shirt and matching tie, the 50-year-old Costello and his band began the nearly three-hour concert with a 35-minute set that included New Wave nuggets like "Chelsea," "Radio, Radio," and "Everyday I Write the Book."
The silvery-haired Harris then strolled onto the stage, looking smashing in a wine-colored top and jeans. For the next dozen songs, her angelic vocal stylings blended well with Costello's slightly ragged voice throughout a countrified set that featured "Tonight the Bottle Let Me Down," a George Jones cover, and Harris' soulful "Red Dirt Girl," her semi-autobiographical song of growing up in Birmingham, Alabama.
Harris left the stage as Costello and the Imposters played songs from last year's Delivery Man disc, including a blazing run through "Bedlam," a smoldering take on the bluesy title track, and the cheeky crowd-pleaser "Monkey to Man."
The set ended splendidly with the rousing "Pump It Up," followed tenderly by "Alison," for which Costello invoked that other Elvis by softly inserting a few verses from "Suspicious Minds."
Harris returned for a lengthy encore that included a song by her mentor, alt-country legend Gram Parsons. A goosebump moment came a song later, as Costello and Harris hauntingly harmonized on "Wild Horses," which the Rolling Stones had written for the late Parsons to record.
On tour together for just two weeks, Costello and Harris were an incredible pairing.
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