Manchester Evening News, May 13, 1989

From The Elvis Costello Wiki
Jump to navigationJump to search
... Bibliography ...
727677787980818283
848586878889909192
939495969798990001
020304050607080910
111213141516171819
202122232425 26 27 28


Manchester Evening News

UK & Ireland newspapers

-

Elvis Costello


Paul Taylor

Apollo, Manchester

Most artists' material would not bear even cursory scrutiny in the unforgiving context of one man and his guitar. But Elvis Costello's tragic-comic repertoire shone for a full two hours.

It would not be over-dramatic to say that, from the biting sarcasm of his early between-songs chat to the numbing beauty of his Falklands war song, "Shipbuilding," Costello's knotty vocal cords took this audience from laughter to tears. This was the embodiment of the image on the cover of his album, Spike: the jester face of "The Beloved Entertainer," half black and half white.

The simplicity of the solo performance, if anything, improved on some of Costello's classics like "Watching The Detectives," "New Amsterdam," "Alison," "Accidents Will Happen" and "Oliver's Army." The latest album yielded yet more potent material in "Any King's Shilling," "Let Him Dangle," "Deep Dark Truthful Mirror" and "God's Comic."

Costello remains outrageously quotable. On Prince Charles: "If he got his hand out of our pockets and into his own, then we would not need the Prince's Trust". On Margaret Thatcher in his vitriolic song, "Tramp The Dirt Down"; "When they finally put you in the ground, I'll stand on your grave and tramp the dirt down."

On God, being interviewed by Esther Rantzen in Heaven: "He was reclining on this turquoise water bed full of tropical fish — two of every kind" and "God is one of the few people to have a Sky TV aerial ... He likes to know what the opposition is up to."

Costello's take-off of Manchester's "rock moaners" (Mr Morrissey, I Presume): "Oh, it's a grey day outside — I think I'll kill myself." The jester still has a quiver full of barbed commentaries, and his aim was never so true.


Tags: Apollo TheatreManchesterShipbuildingSpikeWatching The DetectivesNew AmsterdamAlisonAccidents Will HappenOliver's ArmyAny King's ShillingLet Him DangleDeep Dark Truthful MirrorGod's ComicMargaret ThatcherTramp The Dirt DownMorrissey

-
<< >>

Manchester Evening News, May 13, 1989


Paul Taylor reviews Elvis Costello, solo, Friday, May 12, 1989, Apollo Theatre, Manchester, England.

Images

1989-05-13 Manchester Evening News page 13 clipping 01.jpg
Clipping.

Page scan.
1989-05-13 Manchester Evening News page 13.jpg

-



Back to top

External links