Over 3,000 people saw Elvis last night.
He wasn't in a shopping mall. He was in Rec Hall, singing and talking about everything from Wendy's to Bret Easton Ellis to sin.
Elvis Costello's two-hour concert featured live versions of his songs like "Alison," "Accidents Will Happen" and a pumped-up version of "Pump it Up." His between-song patter was a one on one conversation with the audience about vegetarianism, cat noises and Geraldo's interview with Charles Manson.
Opening act Nick Lowe, a long-time sidekick of Costello, said just because the concert was acoustic, "this isn't a folk show."
"I don't even know what they do at folk shows," Lowe continued. "Sit cross-legged and look sensitive?"
Costello greeted the audience by welcoming the "dead heads," referring to the Grateful Dead show last night in Pittsburgh that the Costello fans obviously missed.
"What the hell, they never play any of my songs anyway," he said.
From behind his Buddy Holly-like face, complete with a receding hairline and sideburns, he told stories about his songs, and accompanied himself on an electrically amplified acoustic guitar.
His own songs were interspersed with covers of the Beatles' such as "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away," and "Revolution" as well as parts of Prince's "Sign 'O' The Times" and the Monkees' "Last Train To Clarksville." He threw in a little of Dexy's Midnight Runners, too.
He commented on his being a vegetarian, saying, "I don't eat meat. I don't eat anything I didn't kill myself."
Lowe joined Costello onstage for a duet of "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding" and then Costello picked various audience members to "pick a sin," which was a yellow flag attached to a red satin heart on stage. After picking a sin, the audience members got to request songs for the encore.
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