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It wasn't until Elvis Costello began to sing the chorus from Elvis Presley's "Suspicious Minds" that I realized something special was happening. The reference came during Costello's own classic "Alison" near the end of his packed set at The Backyard on Sunday night. While the moment itself was bizarrely surreal, it's what fans have come to expect from the musical chameleon during his 25-year career.
Over the last decade, Costello has collaborated with songwriter Burt Bacharach and experimented with classical music, jazz and soul. Yet, Costello has returned to the biting lyrics and sharp melodies of his earlier work on this year's When I Was Cruel and the resulting world tour. While nobody would mistake the Elvis Costello at the Backyard for the angry young man who penned the classic 1977 album My Aim Is True, Costello and his backing band The Imposters actually sounded more vitriolic than media-darling openers Phantom Planet.
Emerging from backstage to a bizarre yodeling version of the "William Tell Overture," Costello proceeded to rip through classics like "Accidents Will Happen" and the superb "Green Shirt." While his older tunes sparkled live, it was actually new songs like "Spooky Girlfriend" and "45" that most benefited from the live treatments of longtime Costello keyboardist Steve Nieve. Costello introduced the Latin-influenced "Spooky Girlfriend" as the tale of a deluded Svengali who turns out to be just another show-business weasel.
After playing several standout tracks from When I Was Cruel, Costello launched into "I Can't Stand Up for Falling Down" and "High Fidelity" from his soul record Get Happy. Known for his erudite lyrics and biting wit, even crowd-pleasers like "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes" and the dub heavy "Watching the Detectives" sounded fresh and inspired in the hands of the elder statesmen of new wave.
Returning for one of several extended encores, Costello produced an acoustic guitar for excellent country-inflected version of "Indoor Fireworks." The highlight of the show came during a detour from the country torch ballad "Deep Dark Truthful Mirror" when Costello led the audience in a sing-along version of Smokey Robinson's classic "You Really Got A Hold on Me."
By placing his own canon of considerable pop masterpieces next to the work of artists like Smokey Robinson, Costello demonstrated how strong his own songwriting is. From albums like This Year's Model and Imperial Bedroom to Sunday's show, Costello has continued to build a repertoire of classics as strong as any of the great songwriters of pop music. Elvis Costello proved to the audience, who have often heard their own stories through his songs, that though he may not be as renowned as his namesake, his songs are just as powerful.
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