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CHAUTAUQUA — Since his days as a 1970s London pub punk rocker, Elvis Costello has galloped through the vast American musical landscape. Delta blues, jazz and bluegrass have all influenced him during his three decades of music making.
And while Costello has always had Nashville leanings, it has never been more evident than with his latest album and tour, which stopped Saturday night at the Chautauqua Institution Amphitheater.
It was an all-string acoustic affair sans percussion for Costello and his ace six-piece band — the Sugarcanes. A fine selection of Costello's entire catalog got the country treatment — especially from premier dobro player Jerry Douglas and guitarist and harmonizer Jim Lauderdale.
The band opened with "Mystery Train," an old blues number famously covered by another Elvis — Presley. Shortly after, the band gave Costello-classic "Mystery Dance" a zydeco twist. On and on it went for nigh-on 30 songs. And it was sublime throughout.
Songs from Costello's latest release Secret, Profane and Sugarcane — produced by longtime collaborator T Bone Burnett — dominated, but favorites weren't ignored. To hear a slowed-down version of "Everyday I Write the Book" done with mandolin and accordion, for example, cast the song in a whole new light.
The setlist wasn't limited to old and new Costello material. He slipped in a Velvet Underground tune ("Femme Fatale") and a Grateful Dead number ("Friend of the Devil").
Costello made his six-piece band sound dark or funky and sometimes at the same time such as on "Red Cotton," which opened the encore.
Costello cut a dashing figure in a pinstriped suit and purple hat. He is one of the most influential and flat-out coolest musicians around. He's a prolific songwriter whose recent output such as 2004's The Delivery Man and 2008's Momofuku blazed new paths in his career.
British-born Costello has been an astute observer of American culture as far back as the mid-80s, with the album King of America (when he referenced ABC News and Coca-Cola). Now, he's traversing its Southern highways and digging in its rich musical history for inspiration. More power to him.
It should be noted that Saturday night's show was a fine way for the Chautauqua Institution to end its summer season of programming.
The venue, a treasure Costello affectionately referred to as "a beautiful wooden tent down by the lake," is so intimate a little girl could approach Costello and offer him a red flower, which he promptly placed behind his ear. It's a venue every Western New Yorker should experience and appreciate.
As I write this, Costello is 30 feet away, signing autographs, posing for pictures and chatting with fans after a two-hour-plus show. No other venue in the area offers this kind of unfettered access to the talent.
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