After almost four decades in the music business, Elvis Costello has earned the right to reflect on his vast catalog.
His recent solo tour Detour saw the singer/songwriter in raconteur mode, telling stories concerning his family and career while playing famous and lesser-known tunes. Armed with a guitar (and periodically accompanied by members of the group Larkin Poe), Costello performed against a backdrop resembling a vintage TV. Images of his parents flickered behind him as the singer described their role in shaping his artistic talent.
Elvis Costello Detour: Live at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall Featuring Larkin Poe, a video documentary of this unique show, finds Costello performing in front of an ebullient hometown crowd, reinterpreting favorites and dusting off more obscure album tracks. Fans will appreciate this up-close look at an innovative and singular composer and performer.
Leading the audience through his early career, Costello strums an acoustic guitar as he sings classics such as “(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes” and “Watch Your Step,” a slight amount of wear creeping into his voice. Just when one thinks Costello’s voice may have changed with age, he comes roaring back with blistering renditions of “Shipbuilding” and “I Can’t Stand Up for Falling Down,” the latter inspiring Elvis Costello to rise from his seat while playing piano. Strapping on electric guitar, he blazes through a version of “Watching the Detectives” that rocks even harder than the original recording.
To further prove the strength of his vocals, he steps away from the microphone toward the end of the National Ransom track “Jimmie Standing in the Rain” to belt out a line from the Depression Era song “Brother, Can You Spare A Dime?” A hush falls over the crowd as his voice reaches the farthest corners of the auditorium, this stirring rendition proving that poverty and hopelessness unfortunately permeate generations.
Interestingly, he indeed includes detours through songs that shaped his youth, performing a charming rendition of “Walking My Baby Back Home” and a surprisingly mournful reading of “Side by Side.” Later, a mid-’60s video of Costello’s father performing “If I Had A Hammer” with his dance band also plays in the background, with his son joining in on the final verse in the present day. Longtime fans will delight in Elvis Costello performing rare album cuts and underrated singles such as “45,” “When I Was Cruel No. 2” (which gains more power live), and “Golden Tom-Silver Judas.”
Two members of Larkin Poe, who worked with Costello on the 2014 album Lost On The River: The New Basement Tapes, join him for tracks including “Blame It on Cain” and “Pads, Paws and Claws” — the latter a product of Costello and Paul McCartney’s late ’80s and early ’90s collaborations). While they provide pleasant backing on other songs such as “A Good Year for the Roses,” they are not essential to the show’s success. The final track before the encore, “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding,” would have benefitted more from Costello’s guitar and vocals alone rather than additional harmonies.
Throughout his career, Costello has defied easy categorization, and Detour: Live at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall further demonstrates this fact. Drawing from jazz, country, rock, soul, and folk, Costello has created highly personal (and, at times, biting) commentaries in his lyrics. The DVD, Blu-ray, and digital download showcases the artist in a reflective mood, celebrating his past endeavors while suggesting that he is far from retirement.
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