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His voice was still strong, his presence, as always, understated, and the sound at Elvis Costello's Sunday night performance at Chateau Ste. Michelle winery in Woodinville was impeccable.
The show was slightly different than Costello's usual bombastic, full-throttle, non-stop barrage of song after song after song. The pace was still there, but gone was backup band The Attractions. There were no Imposters nor any Brodsky Quartet, though the latter joined Costello in making his most recent CD, a collection of ballads he calls North.
Instead, on stage was just Costello, in a black suit and looking half as heavy as he did a few years back at Bumbershoot. At his side was longtime keyboardist Steve Nieve, who manned a black grand piano.
Some in the crowd were surely expecting a taste of the new record, but there was none of that, either -- a pity because the venue, where colorful hot-air balloons drifted above and lilac-scentfilled the air, seemed built for the slower songs. Costello simply ran tactfully, and flawlessly, through the hits spanning his four-decade career.
There was "Accidents Will Happen," "Everyday I Write the Book," "Either Side of the Same Town," "45," "Brilliant Mistake," "Watching the Detectives," "Shipbuilding" and "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding." The sound system caught every nuance of his rasping and reaching voice. The system also caught the tumult and tenderness of Nieve's piano style.
Some of the ballads Costello did play came from his 1998 release, Painted From Memory, a generation-crossing collaboration with song-writing legend Burt Bacharach. But those songs were met with mild applause, and often fell secondary to crowd chatter as if he were a nobody playing a dive. Numerous bottles of wine floated between audience members who became increasingly loose-lipped during songs.
"So, you're all sloshed," Costello said wryly. Perhaps the audience felt entitled since they each coughed up between $60 and $90 per ticket.
Though Costello said little between songs, he, for the most part, captured the audience's attention with his lyrical litany, something any rapper would be impressed with. It was enjoyable to get lost in the storytelling of songs such as "Watching the Detectives" and "Shipbuilding."
The one ballad that had the crowd on their feet toward the end of the show was "Almost Blue." Nieve's playing was subtle and Costello's voice soared over the silent listeners. After the second encore, people were chanting for Costello's signature song, "Alison." But having played nearly two hours, Elvis had left the building.
Former Goodness singer Carrie Akre opened the night and was received warmly. The excruciating banter of KMTT-FM disc jockeys John Fisher and Mike West filled the intermission.
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