Elvis and The Sugarcanes, Nokia Theatre TX Sept 02 FREE TICK

[Richard]

Due to a scheduling conflict I have a spare ticket to Wednesday's concert.

Elvis Costello & the Sugarcanes
Nokia Theatre at Grand Prairie, Texas

Section/Aisle 205

Ticket = $69.50
Convenience Charge (HA!) = $12.67

Total to you = $0 FREE!

If you or someone you know would enjoy the show & is local to the Dallas/Fort Worth area let me know. The ticket is yours. It would be awful to let it go to waste!

[bronxapostle]

i'll say...nice of you RICHARD! the GIFT of music. wish i was local. best, b

[legman open to offers]

Thanks Richard. Sorry you can't make the show. I have a couple extra tix I just posted for sale on craigslist

[sweetest punch]

Setlist from wiki: http://www.elviscostello.info/wiki/inde ... nd_Prairie

Setlist
01. Mystery Train
02. My All Time Doll
03. Mystery Dance
04. Down Among The Wines And Spirits
05. Blame It On Cain
06. Femme Fatale
07. The Delivery Man
08. The Butcher's Boy
09. Poor Borrowed Dress
10. Indoor Fireworks
11. Hidden Shame
12. Condemned Man
13. Friend Of The Devil
14. (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes
15. Don't You Lie To Me
16. Sulphur To Sugarcane
17. Everyday I Write The Book
Encore 1
18. Complicated Shadows
19. The Part Of Him You're Leaving
20. Why Don't You Love Me (Like You Used To Do)?
21. Alison - including He'll Have To Go; with child guitarist Jaden
22. The Crooked Line
23. Happy
24. (What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding?

[scielle]

http://www.pegasusnews.com/news/2009/se ... ptember-2/

GRAPEVINE — Elvis Costello brought his "Sulfur, Profane and Sugarcane" tour to North Texas tonight, featuring country-tinged originals and reworkings of some of his classic songs.

It was tragic, really, that so few people turned out for this remarkable show. The top level at Nokia was empty, and the wings of the floor were blocked off to create an intimate, livingroom setting for the couple thousand enthusiasts who showed up.

Strangely, I must be the fairway of the demographic for such a show, as I seemed to know everyone in attendance, from local media folk to, well, local media folk. Elvis must have a very distinct demographic.

The crack band was made up of Nashville session players and country luminaries like Jerry Douglas and JIm Lauderdale. They worked their way through two hours-plus of standards, reworkings of Costello classics and new songs.

Given such a generous set, it is hard to feel shortchanged, but it was the shortest of the tour so far, by an hour. However, always the master editor, Costello only cut the more subdued of his new songs, favoring covers like "Mystery Train" and "Friend of the Devil," alongside original reworkings of classics like "Allison," "Angels Want to Wear My Red Shoes," and "Mystery Dance."

The overall theme for the night was classic Americana, featuring dobro, fiddle, upright bass, steel guitar and accordion.

Costello managed to bust out a couple of all-new songs, but stuck closer to his standards. Despite the stripped-down ethos, perhaps the best numbers were those, like "The Delivery Man," where he plugged in.

That said, the show had he vibe of a living room concert -- if that living room was in a palace. It featured a master at the peak of his powers, backed by a superlative band

[keithdylan]

"two hours plus?'

The guy needs to check his watch. If it made it two, it was just barely.

[Mike Boom]

It was pretty much exactly two hours. I was amazed at the small crowd. REM pulled a much bigger crowd a few months ago and even Flight of the Conchords packed the place (the power of TV I guess.) Its kindof a shame when a comedy band gets a bigger crowd than one of the greatest songwriters in rock n roll history.

Anywho, I went into the show pretty much blind , hadnt read a set list havent even heard the new album apart from a couple of tracks, and I was pretty much blown away. I was trying to remember how many times Ive seen the man over the years, and figure its around 10 maybe, and this definitely one of the best. Great band, great arrangements of the old songs, Cain, Mystery Dance, and beautiful beautiful Everyday I Write the Book. Hell, he's even developed a few stage moves, jigging around and being overall extremely lively. Other highlights were All Time Doll the reworking of Femme Fatale, Indoor Fireworks, a stunning Delivery Man and Butchers Boy, new song Borrowed Dress with music by Jim Lauderdale and words by EC, a great version of Keefs Happy and a crooned Alison to a little kid in the audience who was wearing a litte hat and carrying a guitar like a mini Elvis and who big Elvis got up on the stage.
Fantastic show, he is wildly on form.

[scielle]

Another review:

http://www.dfw.com/117/story/171449.html

"The small, mostly appreciative crowd seemed to get into it, though, especially when Costello threw in wild cards like the Rolling Stones' Happy, Hank Williams' Why Don't You Love Me and a faithful cover of the Grateful Dead's Friend of the Devil. It was a little harder to get into the several new songs that haven't been recorded yet, especially with a sound mix that often buried Taylor's accordion.

And those who stuck it out through the encore -- not an easy thing to do on a school night when the headliner isn't leaning on his "hits" -- were treated to the cute if surreal spectacle of Costello serenading a guitar-wielding toddler named (I think) Jaden, who was brought on stage during Alison, which Costello sang gorgeously and, which if you listen closely, isn't kids' stuff. (The child remained onstage during the encore, but got a lot less shy about his guitar-wielding when the spotlight was turned off of him.)"

[sweetest punch]

http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/dc9/200 ... o_at_n.php

Elvis Costello at Nokia Theatre

Better than: just about anything else on my plate on a Wednesday evening

​Pretty close to 8:15, the lights inside the Nokia Theatre went down and onto the stage strode legendary singer/songwriter Elvis Costello, along with his current collaboration of sidemen, the unit dubbed The Sugarcanes.

As Costello and his drum-less sextet launched into "Mystery Train" (one of five cover tunes), many in the late-arriving audience struggled to find their seats, unfortunately causing several ounces of over-priced beer to be wasted on the floor of the venue.

But the large numbers of tardy concertgoers certainly did not seem to distract Costello nor his talented ensemble. The singer mixed several nuggets from early in his lengthy career in with material from his recent roots rock effort Secret, Profane and Sugarcane.

Played in the same rootsy style as his new songs, Costello's older material sounded fine with banjos, mandolins and accordions doing the work The Attractions used to do. "Mystery Dance," "Blame it on Cain," "Alison," "(What's so Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding," and "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes" all thrilled the relatively large audience, even if the songs lacked a bit of propulsion.

More interesting were two new songs--and I'm not talking about songs from the new album, but actually tunes Costello has written on this tour. "Borrowed Dress," a beautiful duet with guitarist Jim Lauderdale, was quite possibly the best song of the evening. The cover choices dazzled, too; among them were the Velvet Underground's "Femme Fatale" and "Happy" from the Rolling Stones.

Costello's voiced sounded powerful throughout the entire two-hour show, and his banter with the audience seemed authentic and polite. By the end of Costello's 20-plus-song set, I felt like I just had a fine meal with my favorite uncle.

Critic's Notebook

Personal Bias: My favorite Costello album is King of America and I was a bit disappointed that he did only one song from that record, the lovely "Indoor Fireworks." Considering that King of America is an effort in a similar rootsy vein to the new album, the exclusion of a song like "Brilliant Mistake" was peculiar.

Random Note: When Costello told the crowd, "I've heard Grand Prairie is a cool place to be," someone in the audience yelled, "No it isn't."

By The Way: Some woman brought her guitar-slinging toddler on stage during "Alison" and there were some groans of discomfort as Costello sang "You let that little friend of mine take off your party dress" to a four-year-old.

[And No Coffee Table]

Elvis and the kid

In my review of Elvis Costello's show Wednesday night at Nokia Theatre, I mentioned Jaden, a little boy who was brought onstage during Elvis' encore. Clad in a cowboy hat and wielding a pint-size guitar, Jaden -- who I guessed correctly was 2 -- was a little shy when the spotlight was on him during Alison, but once the spotlight was off, the kid was jammin' off to the side of the stage, strumming his guitar and whirling it above his head as if he was Pete Townshend's Mini-Me.

Jaden's mom, Shauna Butterfield of Arlington, asked in the comments section if we had pictures. Unfortunately, we don't -- our photographers are usually allowed to shoot only the first three songs or so, and they're long gone before the encore. (But Jaden got his picture taken backstage with EC, and although I am generally not starstruck, in this case I am soooooooo jealous.)

"Jaden turned 2 in May and has loved Elvis since he was a year [old]," Shauna told me in an e-mail. "He started watching [Sundance Channel's Spectacle and that was it!! He sits for hours, sets up his microphone, gets his hat, guitar and even his drum set and sits and teaches himself to play, watching everything he does!! It's crazy. I try to get him to watch anything else but he won't have it! he know the words to his songs and everything it really is amazing how into it he is for being so young!!"

I've been an Elvis Costello fan ... let's see here ... oh, yeah, 16 times as long as Jaden has been alive. I've followed EC since his debut album, My Aim Is True, in 1977. So I'm a little biased here, but I've gotta say, when 2-year-olds like Jaden have tastes that good, it gives me hope for the future of our youth.

[legman open to offers]

Can't help thinking the small crowd screwed us out of some songs, looking back at the Austin setlist.

I had a hell of a good time. The Delivery Man was awesome. EC made a comment that Grand Prairie was so fancy, and he had brought an electric guitar, however it only had 4 strings. Not being a guitar guy, I think it was a tenor guitar. TDM and Indoor Fireworks were definite highlights.

I enjoyed the show sitting next to Noiseradio, along with Oliver's Army Band keyboard player Chris. We downed several frosty beverages, and and found some harmonies to sing along. Also, good to run into TX Fan after the show.

loto

[sweetest punch]

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent ... aff33.html

Concert review: Elvis Costello covers the American musical spectrum in Nokia Theatre performance

I wish I could take credit for this, but it was, in fact, my husband who perfectly characterized the Elvis Costello concert Wednesday night at Nokia Theatre. "It wasn't what he usually does," Jim mused as we left the theater, which was about half-full for Costello's gig. "But then, it's never what he usually does."

Elvis Costello can be counted on to entertain and surprise his audience. Exactly. Costello simply doesn't do "usual." He may have made his name as an "angry-quirky young man" New Wave rocker in the late 1970s, but at 55, he has moved into a place where boundaries are just a fleeting memory.

If you had to label his new CD, Secret, Profane & Sugarcane, you could call it country-Americana and come pretty close. But the album, and Wednesday's concert, also had strong elements of bluegrass, blues, soul and jazz. He may be British, but Costello's got the whole American melting pot thing going on, at least musically.

Dressed in a natty blue suit and purple fedora and backed by the fabulous six-piece Sugarcanes band, he sang several songs from the new CD, including the swinging but slightly creepy "Sulphur to Sugarcane" (it just begs to be an end-title song for True Blood), the beautifully mournful "Down Among the Wine and Spirits" and the darkly upbeat "Complicated Shadows."

There were also nods to rock, with takes on the Rolling Stones' "Happy" and the Grateful Dead's "Friend of the Devil." The set showcased his guitar virtuosity; he played five different instruments during the show, both acoustic and electric, and extended guitar licks were added to many songs.

He offered lots of his trademark wry wit, musing that he "knew he was back in Texas when someone offered me a bison sandwich. Without mustard." He also paid tribute to his father, "the real musician in the family," who once told him, "Never look up to a note. Always look down." Costello admitted, "I have absolutely no idea what that means, but I try to follow his advice."

Toward the end, he charmed the audience by bringing a child of perhaps 2, wearing his own jaunty black hat and carrying a teensy guitar, up onstage during an encore number. Costello, ever polite, seemed completely unfazed at being upstaged by a totally rockin' toddler.




-------------------------------------

http://www.star-telegram.com/entertainm ... 86564.html


Costello branches out with success at Nokia Theatre show


Whenever pop artists mess with their signature sound in concert, they’re taking a risk of chasing people to the beer stand or, worse, chasing them out well before the show ends, disappointed and upset that they’d just blown some major bucks.

But Elvis Costello fans should expect risk by now: He has spent a good deal of his 30-year-plus career exploring different genres, whether it be classical, late-night crooning, Burt Bacharach pop or the bluegrass-inflected material on his latest album, Secret, Profane and Sugarcane.

That album’s sound — which borrows from bluegrass via Jerry Douglas’ dobro, Mike Compton’s mandolin and Stuart Duncan’s fiddle, but isn’t really bluegrass — dominated Costello’s performance Wednesday night at Nokia Theatre. But the show branched out well beyond that album.

Costello and the Sugarcanes (the above musicians along with guitarist/vocalist Jim Lauderdale, bassist Dennis Crouch and accordion player Jeff Taylor) played a few songs from the new CD, leaning hard on its best cuts, such as Hidden Shame, which Costello wrote for Johnny Cash; the ribald Sulphur to Sugarcane; and the lovely Changing Partners.

But it was clear from the opening number, a rollicking version of the other Elvis’ Mystery Train, that Costello was going to mix things up. He quickly got around to a reworking of Mystery Dance, off his debut album, My Aim is True, and the countrified version added irony and detracted sting from what was originally an angry song about sexual confusion.

There were other rearrangements of old material, and although they were all intriguing, the new instrumentation served some songs better than others. (What’s So Funny ’Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding, which closed the show, worked especially well, but the redone versions of Blame It On Cain and Every Day I Write the Book, came off more as curios than revelations.

The small, mostly appreciative crowd seemed to get into it, though, especially when Costello threw in wild cards such as covers of the Rolling Stones’ Happy. And those who stuck it out through the encore were treated to the cute if surreal sight of Costello serenading a guitar-wielding toddler named Jaden, who was brought on stage during Alison.

But this was part of Costello’s relaxed, jovial mood throughout the night, during which he cracked wise several times about playing in Grand Prairie, about the frigid temperatures in the theater and about advice from his father. Anyone who has watched his Sundance Channel show Spectacle knows how the former "angry young man" has become more like an amusing, intellectually curious uncle.

If he wants to gather a bunch of friends for front-porch versions of his and others’ songs, well, it might not be for everyone, but it’s hard to hold it against him.

[TX_Fan]

Can't help thinking the small crowd screwed us out of some songs, looking back at the Austin setlist.

I had a hell of a good time. The Delivery Man was awesome. EC made a comment that Grand Prairie was so fancy, and he had brought an electric guitar, however it only had 4 strings. Not being a guitar guy, I think it was a tenor guitar. TDM and Indoor Fireworks were definite highlights.

I enjoyed the show sitting next to Noiseradio, along with Oliver's Army Band keyboard player Chris. We downed several frosty beverages, and and found some harmonies to sing along. Also, good to run into TX Fan after the show.

I think you're right legman on the short song list...EC punished us for not filling the Nokia. I was with a friend who saw him at the Beacon Theater in NY on this tour...he did 2 encores and 31 songs. 3 songs jump out of that set list that I really wanted to hear...Little Palaces, Brilliant Mistake & American Without Tears. I also was thinking that "Sleep of the Just" would have played well with this band/tour. Come to think of it...Elvis should let me do the set list each Dallas area visit

That said, it was still a great show! Those were also my favorites...Indoor Fireworks and what great version of Devivery Man!
See you next time legman...we still need to get that golf outing going soon!

[sweetest punch]

Elvis and kid Jaden perform Alison: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iR16edXwa4