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The best part of 40 years after first hitting the charts, Elvis Costello remains one of Britain’s finest songwriters and performers.
His latest tour sees him mining the rich vein of his varied writing and recording career in a show that brings him closer to his audience than ever before.
Backed by The Imposters (effectively The Attractions minus bass player Bruce Thomas), Costello launches the show with frenetic versions of "I Can’t Stand Up For Falling Down," "Uncomplicated" and "High Fidelity" that get the St David’s Hall audience out of their seats from the off.
There follows almost two and a half hours of brilliance on a stage dominated by a giant spinning wheel covered in song titles that audience members are invited up on stage to spin.
Costello and co then play whatever song the wheel stops on.
So we get the hits – Oliver’s Army," "Radio Radio," "Pump It Up," "Watching The Detectives," "Good Year For The Roses" – interspersed with newer songs like "Jimmie Standing In The Rain" and "A Slow Drag With Josephine."
Costello also plays a spellbinding version of "Shipbuilding" and a vicious "Tramp The Dirt Down," along with long forgotten album tracks from his collaborations with Sir Paul McCartney ("So Like Candy" from the Mighty Like A Rose album) and Burt Bacharach ("I Still Have That Other Girl" from Painted From Memory), the latter highlighting the richness that maturity has brought to his voice.
A tremendous show from one of Britain’s true giants of the rock era.
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