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Some four years ago the bespectacled Costello and his band The Attractions rode the crest of the new wave to deserved acclaim and recognition. He soon established himself as both performer and songwriter of character and note.
Last week, at the Rainbow Theatre's 50th anniversary concert, he showed that, while the cutting edge of his performance may have become a shade blunted, he can still deliver the goods with style and power.
And, to use an athletic parallel, he has mellowed the show from a frantic sprint to a well-paced middle distance event. The songs varied from the old — "Watching The Detectives," "Radio, Radio," "I Don't Wanna Go To Chelsea" — to tracks from the Get Happy album such as "Temptation" to brand new material such as "Luxembourg."
Special guests (i.e. support band) for the evening were the Stray Cats, the much talked/written about rockabilly trio recently signed to Arista reportedly for an arm and a leg. Harking back to the archives, they go through the old routines proficiently, but originality is obviously not their forte.
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