"Just a little bit of a change from the Armadillo World Headquarters"
It's not news that Elvis Costello, once New Wave's angriest young songwriter, has wanted to be Ol' Blue Eyes. And Nelson Riddle. And George Jones. And possibly also the Pogues, ABBA and Fletcher Henderson. Costello stretches out stylistically just to prove he can, and Tuesday at Bass Concert Hall, he -- along with the Austin Symphony Orchestra, guest-conducted by Alan Broadbent -- displayed his copious talents as a composer, songwriter and singer.
The program started with a 30-minute suite from "Il Sogno," the symphonic commission Costello composed for an Italian dance company's riff on "Midsummer Night's Dream." Costello briefly introduced the evening ("Just a little bit of a change from the Armadillo World Headquarters") noting that Puck was a "jazz fairy."
Somewhat betraying Costello's roots in rock, "Il Sogno" is a riffy piece, filled with identifiable hooks and phrases. Was there a drum kit back there? Costello noted that the authority figures were represented by the richer instruments, while martial beats and jazzy passages were saved for the proles. The opening sections felt a little two-dimensional, saved by light touches, such as a snake-charming saxophone solo and the occasional anxious melody. Ultimately, Costello's anthemic phrases and bookish strings built to a detailed conclusion.
Once Costello began the vocal portion of the evening, you remember why he gets away with all this. Not only are a nice percentage of the songs pretty good, but his voice has held up startlingly well for a dude whose been in the game nearly 30 years. Costello grabbed an acoustic guitar and opened with a bracing, angry "The River in Reverse," the excellent title track from this collaboration with Alan Toussaint, to be released later this year.
Joined by longtime Costello pianist Steve Nieve, Costello and the symphony set the man's song book on "maximum croon." Ballads such as "All this Useless Beauty" and a string quartet piece from "The Juliet Letters" stayed pretty much the same. The crowd really should have had a tumbler of scotch for "Almost Blue" and "My Flamer Burns Blue," while the dull "Veronica" was mercifully cranked up, "Watching the Detectives" became hard-swinging '50s TV jazz and "Alison" is still a slow dance for the ages. To his credit, the arrangement worked, avoiding the "Boston pops plays ELO" feel for something richer. Ol' Blue Eyes would have approved.
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
Music
ELVIS VIES TO BE CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD
It's not news that Elvis Costello, once New Wave's angriest young songwriter, has wanted to be Ol' Blue Eyes. And Nelson Riddle. And George Jones. And possibly also the Pogues, ABBA and Fletcher Henderson. Costello stretches out stylistically just to prove he can, and Tuesday at Bass Concert Hall, he -- along with the Austin Symphony Orchestra, guest-conducted by Alan Broadbent -- displayed his copious talents as a composer, songwriter and singer.
The program started with a 30-minute suite from "Il Sogno," the symphonic commission Costello composed for an Italian dance company's riff on "Midsummer Night's Dream." Costello briefly introduced the evening ("Just a little bit of a change from the Armadillo World Headquarters") noting that Puck was a "jazz fairy."
Somewhat betraying Costello's roots in rock, "Il Sogno" is a riffy piece, filled with identifiable hooks and phrases. Was there a drum kit back there? Costello noted that the authority figures were represented by the richer instruments, while martial beats and jazzy passages were saved for the proles. The opening sections felt a little two-dimensional, saved by light touches, such as a snake-charming saxophone solo and the occasional anxious melody. Ultimately, Costello's anthemic phrases and bookish strings built to a detailed conclusion.
Once Costello began the vocal portion of the evening, you remember why he gets away with all this. Not only are a nice percentage of the songs pretty good, but his voice has held up startlingly well for a dude whose been in the game nearly 30 years. Costello grabbed an acoustic guitar and opened with a bracing, angry "The River in Reverse," the excellent title track from this collaboration with Alan Toussaint, to be released later this year.
Joined by longtime Costello pianist Steve Nieve, Costello and the symphony set the man's song book on "maximum croon." Ballads such as "All this Useless Beauty" and a string quartet piece from "The Juliet Letters" stayed pretty much the same. The crowd really should have had a tumbler of scotch for "Almost Blue" and "My Flamer Burns Blue," while the dull "Veronica" was mercifully cranked up, "Watching the Detectives" became hard-swinging '50s TV jazz and "Alison" is still a slow dance for the ages. To his credit, the arrangement worked, avoiding the "Boston pops plays ELO" feel for something richer. Ol' Blue Eyes would have approved. --Joe Gross