|
What a genial figure Elvis Costello cuts. It takes a palpable effort to recall the grim creature of '77, the one with the stone face and the reptile glare and the tracks of toad-sweat down forehead and cheeks..
Who saw him then and could forget the spastic menace brought to "Watching The Detectives", the astonishing, elaborate melodrama of the way he performed "I'm Not Angry", when the original Stiff tour reached The Lyceum? Those were the days of Costello as Mr Revenge-And-Guilt, operating from the safe shelter of the persona of a worm turned Homicidal.
These days, that persona seems to have been drawn with strokes so broad as to seem almost cartoonish, comical in its exaggeration.
Where he and The Attractions once got their heads down and rushed defiantly through a set seemingly constructed to include as much unfamilar (and unintroduced) material as possible, your 1980 Costello presents a carefully sequenced programme of new and old material (one for one, most of the time), introduces the songs, smiles and even provides a few moments of mirth by appearing in baggy khaki pants and a pink leather jacket.
The principal reason for dwelling on bygone days is the fact that - at the Rainbow Theatre's 50th Anniversary concert - Costello performed more of his early material than he actually did when the stuff was relatively fresh. After transcending his past work by launching a new phase with "Get Happy!!" , Costello re-adapts songs like "Alison", "Less Than Zero" and "You Belong To Me" into the canon of his performing repertoire by interpreting them with a renewed vigour and freshness, without even a hint of the mechanical or the slightest taint of "obligation" - you know, give 'em the old stuff 'cause they like it best.
| 
