COSTELLO THE OLD NEW WAVER CAN STILL PUMP IT UP

Bristol Evening Post, 11 September 2002

Elvis Costello and The Imposters; Bristol Academy

ELVIS Costello's long-awaited return to Bristol comes at a time when his world tour has brought unexpected riches for the New Wave songsmith.

With his latest album, When I Was Cruel, heralded as his best in years, Costello finds himself the man of the moment again, 25 years after he first burst onto the scene.

This sell-out show at the Academy clearly brought the memories flooding back for his older fans, and he seemed pleased to be back on the same site as the old Top Rank venue, where "we played just after The Sweet and just before Sham 69".

At 48, Costello may not be the gangly young punk he was, but his passion for performance is undiminished and there's clearly still fire in his belly.

Backed by an excellent band - featuring bassist Davey Farragher and former Attractions Steve Nieve (on keyboards, melodica and theremin) and Pete Thomas on drums - Costello played a 27-song set that covered his entire career.

With such an impressive and extensive back catalogue, it was inevitable that he would slip in quite a few tracks from the new album and although songs like 45, Tear Off Your Own Head (It's A Doll Revolution) and Spooky Girlfriend went down well, the less accessible 15 Petals sounded clumsy and pretty impenetrable.

Of the new material, it was the epic version of When I Was Cruel, with its beat box and loops, and the brilliant Alibi that served as a reminder of what Costello is capable of.

Those fans who simply wanted to relive their youth with the adrenaline rush of his 70s pop songs were not disappointed, with Watching The Detectives, (I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea, Radio Radio, Pump It Up and Oliver's Army all getting an airing.

But Costello has always been far more than a writer of great threeminute pop songs, and the classic Good Year For The Roses, the timeless Alison and the haunting Shipbuilding were perfect examples of why he is rated as such a great songwriter and balladeer.

And just as the show looked like coming to an end after two-and-a-half hours, he plucked out one final, showstopping gem - a mesmerising version of I Want You, Costello eerily spotlighted against a blue backdrop, wrestling with his guitar.

After a quarter of a century, Costello proved that he still has as much energy and stamina as artists half his age.

Star rating ****

Thanks to John Foyle