|
Elvis Costello proved once and for all last night that the ferocity and excitement of rock 'n' roll has nothing to do with voltage or technology. Accompanied only by his own acoustic guitar, the British songwriter sang with such uncompromising passion that the show was rock 'n' roll at its purest — even if the impact was muted by the awful acoustics of George Washington University's Smith Center.
Reverting to the thick-framed glasses and baggy dark suit of his early Buddy Holly look, the 33-year-old Costello paired several of his songs with classic covers to create revealing medleys.
For instance, "New Amsterdam" segued into the Beatles' "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away," and "This Town" segued into the Animals' "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood." "God's Comic," which Costello described as an "interview between God and Tom Brokaw," was drawn out into a long version complete with a nasty swipe at Andrew Lloyd Webber and a stand-up comic monologue.
The first encore featured two songs on a electric guitar, and the second encore reunited Costello with his first and best producer, Nick Lowe. They sang two Everly Brothers-style duets: Elvis Presley's "Marie's the Name of His Latest Flame" and Lowe's "What's So Funny ('Bout Peace, Love and Understanding)."
For the third encore, Costello returned in a tacky jacket and introduced himself as a game-show host, Monsignor Napoleon Dynamite, who invited audience members to come up to a seven-foot-tall satin heart and pick out banners that represented "the 13 new deadly sins," such as "the sin of awesomeness" and "the sin of doing lunch." For each sin, Costello sang an appropriate song — from "Alison" to "Tramp the Dirt Down."
Opening the show was Lowe, who also played a mostly solo set. Lowe's biggest gift is his ability to get the most out of other musicians, so he's not a good candidate for a solo concert. Still his catchy, quirky tunes suggested an ironic version of Ricky Nelson, and he introduced three unrecorded songs, including the witty rockabilly raver, "Everything About You Is Refrigerator White."
Looking like an aging Teddy Boy with his combed-back gray hair and turned-up jeans cuffs, the 40-year-old Lowe was joined on "I Knew the Bride (When She Used to Rock 'n' Roll)" by Maryland guitarist Bill Kirchen, formally of Commander Cody & the Lost Planet Airmen.
| 
