Martinez Tribune The website of the Martinez Tribune.
BY DANIEL GLUSKOTER
Rock’s original angry young man, part of the first wave of 70’s British punk, Elvis Costello delivered a hits laden performance Tuesday night at The Masonic on the fourth night of his Radio Soul! 2025 Tour, displaying the talents that have made him one of the most prolific songwriters of his generation.
Elvis Costello & The Imposters perform Tuesday night at The Masonic in San Francisco.
Nearly five decades ago Costello’s first two albums My Aim Is True and This Year’s Model introduced him to the music world with the force of a sledgehammer. Spawning boisterous hits like “Watching the Detectives,’” ”Mystery Dance,” “(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes,” “Pump It Up” and “Radio, Radio,” along with the timeless ballad “Alison,” the English singer songwriter was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame back in 2003.
The newly minted 70 year old, whose most recent studio album The Boy Named If, released in 2022, was his second this decade, is still consistently producing four star albums every time out. Costello is performing with The Imposters, his primary backing band since the release of 2002’s When I Was Cruel, featuring the multi talented Steve Nieve on keyboards, Davey Faragher on bass guitar, Pete Thomas on drums and special guest guitarist Charlie Sexton. Nieve and Thomas were also members of The Attractions, Costello’s band from the late seventies until 1996.
Costello has collaborated with the likes of Paul McCartney, Roy Orbison, Sting, Allen Toussaint and Burt Bacharach to name just an eclectic few. He’s performed and released classical music, country and folk along with piano jazz in addition to his better known rock resume, and bits of numerous genres were on display over the course of his two hour plus performance at The Masonic.
With the stated intention of emphasizing his songs from the period of My Aim Is True in 1977 to Blood & Chocolate in 1986 during the current tour, Costello seems to have formed the basis of a setlist including some of his best known songs from that era that he plays every night, while still leaving himself plenty of wiggle room to enjoy experimenting with different songs from his vast catalog that encompasses 33 studio albums along with the occasional cover.
“You can expect the unexpected and the faithful in equal measure. Don’t forget this show is “Performed by Elvis Costello & The Imposters,” an ensemble which includes three people who first recorded this music and two more who bring something entirely new. I want to bring these songs into the present day, once more, in the event they are ever pushed out of the way by the next number that I write,” the artist said before the start of the tour.
Opening with “I Hope You’re Happy Now,” an understated track from Blood & Chocolate, Costello sprinkled more obscure songs into the set throughout the evening, often so Dylanesque in
their improvised delivery that devoted fans in the audience were challenged to identify what song they were listening to. But make no mistake, in most instances those creative changes in arrangement and instrumentation were killer.
The set’s third song, “Watching the Detectives,” which followed “Mystery Dance,” was a perfect example. Under four minutes long on the studio version, Costello’s improv skills along with Nieve’s expertise on the organ and Thomas’ drumming stretched the timeless hit to close to almost double that length in a highly enjoyable manner.
Appearing sharply dressed in a dark sport coat over a deep purple shirt with a purple porkpie hat, Costello carried on a personalized conversation with the crowd throughout the evening, joking and telling stories when introducing songs. At one early juncture after “Waiting for the End of the World,” quickly showing his humor by reacting to an over boisterous fan by responding “Sorry, I’m speaking. Don’t fuck with dad while he’s at work.”
“No Dancing,” and “Brilliant Mistake” were highlights of the middle of the performance as Costello displayed his own talents on the piano before embarking on an acoustic set highlighted by a lovely version of Van Morrison’s “Domino” followed by “Red Shoes” and a stellar “Clubland” propelled by Nieve’s magical work on the keyboards.
A reimagined “Everyday I Write The Book” signaled the start of an all out assault of hits to end the set. “I Can’t Stand Up for Falling Down,” originally recorded by Sam & Dave in 1967 before Elvis & The Attractions further popularized it on 1980’s Get Happy, preceded “Alison” with Costello on electric piano. A funky “(I Don’t Want to Go to) Chelsea” provided a showcase for extended solos by each band member even further accentuated by Nieve’s rollicking piano licks.
The onslaught would continue with “Pump It Up” and “Radio Radio” before the more obscure “Night Rally” and “No Flag” set the stage for Costello’s customary closer. The anthem “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding,” was written by the great Nick Lowe while he was with Brinsley Schwarz in 1974 before Lowe collaborated with Dave Edmunds to form Rockpile and produced the likes of Costello, Graham Parker & the Rumour, The Pretenders and a man named Johnny Cash.
Costello’s tour continues at the Hard Rock Live in Sacramento on Thursday, followed by a pair of shows at The Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles this weekend.
