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AMHERST — From the moment he walked out in his gray sharkskin sport coat, strapped on a guitar, and lit into "Accidents Will Happen," it was clear that Elvis Costello was ready for a great show.
Maybe it was the challenge of performing solo that inspired him, but for whatever reason, Elvis played 25 songs, did three encores, and sang with an unconditional commitment that immediately captivated a sellout crowd at the Fine Arts Center. Halfway through his second tune, "Stranger in the House," Elvis was sweating so much you thought he might undo the top button of his multi-colored shirt.
Elvis Costello is justifiably known as a great songwriter, but at last night's concert his singing stole the show. His glottal, high-in-the-throat voice is no classic instrument, but he has learned how to apply it perfectly to his songs. On tunes like "Riot Act" and "New Amsterdam," Elvis displayed a superb control of dynamics and the dexterity to shade the remarkable phrases in the middle of his lines.
He delivered Ray Charles soul cries on "Green Shirt" and George Jones country swerves to "Tonight the Bottle Let Me Down." When he gave Bob Dylan's "I Threw It All Away" the Costello treatment, you could really hear how expressive and distinctive his voice has become.
"I'd like you to welcome Elvis Costello and his guitar army," laughed Elvis motioning to the nine guitars lined up on stage. He only played three of the guitars (one electric, two acoustic) and occasionally used the grand piano on stage and a small electric keyboard. The crowd loved his big hits like "Everyday I Write the Book" and "Alison," but Costello also played a half dozen songs from his new album, as yet unreleased. These included a put-down of cable TV called "Worthless Thing," a typical Costello battle of the sexes called "The Only Flame In Town," and a gentle ballad called "Love Field."
His final song of the night was a new one, "Peace in Our Time," played on electric piano. It is an ironic commentary, comparing the hollow Chamberlain peace pact to life in Thatcher's England. As with his song "Shipbuilding" ( written during the Falkland escapade), "Peace In Our Time" is an indication that Costello's commitment is growing politically as well as musically.
Opening the show for Elvis Costello was T Bone Burnett, a tall Dylan-esque performer and acclaimed songwriter in his own right. Burnett came out and did a show biz "King of the Road" a cappella, then played his superb arrangement of "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend," that Emmy Lou Harris has lifted intact. He performed his cinematic songs of despair ("Fatally Beautiful") and his string of spiritual koans ("Trap Door"). Unfortunately the crowd was unfamiliar with Burnett's music and they were openly rude if not downright hostile to this amusing, thoughtful musician. T Bone soon gave up bucking the tide of audience indifference and finished his set prematurely.
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