http://www.ticketmaster.com/event/1C003 ... orcatid=60
Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint
Paramount Theatre-Oakland, Oakland, CA
Tue, Jun 20, 2006 08:00 PM
Internet Presale Info
Radio Presale:
Start: Thu, 03/30/06 10:00 AM PST
End: Fri, 03/31/06 05:00 PM PST
Onsale to General Public:
Sun, 04/02/06 10:00 AM PDT
Elvis/Allen play Oakland, CA, June 20
From listserv -
' King Hoarse (or Six Nights Seven Days)'
EC's June schedule with the Imposters and Allen Toussaint
includes one stretch of six concerts in seven days.
06-20 -- Tue -- Oakland
06-21 -- Wed -- Saratoga, CA
06-22 -- Thu -- Jacksonville, OR
06-23
06-24 -- Sat -- Aspen
06-25 -- Sun -- Seattle
06-26 -- Mon -- Vancouver
That week would seem rather ambitious, unless the mix of
Costello-to-Toussaint songs results in Elvis singing a little
less than usual.
.........noting that Mr Krall's Friday night off in Aspen could include a duet with the missus during her concert there that night.
' King Hoarse (or Six Nights Seven Days)'
EC's June schedule with the Imposters and Allen Toussaint
includes one stretch of six concerts in seven days.
06-20 -- Tue -- Oakland
06-21 -- Wed -- Saratoga, CA
06-22 -- Thu -- Jacksonville, OR
06-23
06-24 -- Sat -- Aspen
06-25 -- Sun -- Seattle
06-26 -- Mon -- Vancouver
That week would seem rather ambitious, unless the mix of
Costello-to-Toussaint songs results in Elvis singing a little
less than usual.
.........noting that Mr Krall's Friday night off in Aspen could include a duet with the missus during her concert there that night.
Going to Oakland of course too!
Will be meeting up with listers at Luka's Taproom preshow (if we can get in) If you'd like to give me a shout out or join up with us, I'll be available by cell 510-459-8338 on Tuesday.
Jill
Jill
From listerv-
http://www.kfog.com/morningshow/#calendar
Elvis will be the Morning Show guest tomorrow morning on KFOG...they
stream, so tune in and hear what Elvis has to say Pre-Oakland show!
http://www.kfog.com/morningshow/#calendar
Elvis will be the Morning Show guest tomorrow morning on KFOG...they
stream, so tune in and hear what Elvis has to say Pre-Oakland show!
-
Dr. Luther
- Posts: 475
- Joined: Tue Dec 07, 2004 3:25 pm
- Location: SF
From listserv -
Here is a link to an MP3 of the interview with Elvis and Allen! Go
down a little and click on their names.
http://www.kfog.com/morningshow/
Here is a link to an MP3 of the interview with Elvis and Allen! Go
down a little and click on their names.
http://www.kfog.com/morningshow/
From listserv-
01. PL&U
02. Monkey To Man
03. On Your Way Down
04. A Certain Girl
05. Clownstrike
06. Tears, Tears & More Tears
07. Tears Before Bedtime
08 Poisoned Rose
09. Broken Promise Land
10. Freedom For The Stallion
11. The River In Reverse
12. Who's Gonna Help A Brother Get Further?
13. Nearer To You (spelled "Nearer to Yo" on the typed setlist in a
tribute to Oakland
14. Deep Dark Truthful Mirror
15. Brickyard Blues
16. Bedlam
17. Dust
18. Watching The Detectives
19. I Can't Stand Up (For Falling Down)
20. High Fidelity
21. Pump It Up
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
22. Big Chief Variations (AKA Professor Longhair Medley)
23. Ascension Day
24. Wonder Woman
25. International Echo
26. Alison / Tracks of My Tears (lovely Flute and Horns on this
one...a little more enjoyable than the Strings version with the
Symphony!)
27. Clubland
28. The Greatest Love
29. Six-Fingered Man
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
30. That's How You Got Killed Before
31. Yes We Can Can
32. Fortune Teller
33. The Sharpest Thorn
Not 36 (yes I have setlist envy) but 33 and almost nonstop! I'm so
very thrilled with this tour! I asked Elvis if he were going to tour
with Allen in Europe and he replied no, that he was going to play with
the Metropole Orkest, but that was it unfortunately. He was really
nice and chatty and strangely calm afterwards, and that made me feel a
lot better since it's been ages since I've had a decent after show,
what with him having vocal problems and taking off early last year.
Big Sam was absolutely incredible and a great personality too! I was
able to say thanks afterwards and shake his hand.
All in all a really nice and different show! I hope that miracle
happens tomorrow and he plays "Let Them All Talk" it was even driven
home in the loo when a woman was singing the horns from LTAT
interdispersed with the Horns from "The Sharpest Thorn" Which brings
me to this one request. I want PoP to do a mash up of "Let Them All
Talk" and "Tears Tears and More Tears" or Tears cubed
That's all from me, so I now hand you over to Mike in the next seat
over...
Thanks Jill.....
I hadn't seen the setlists prior to this show (though I did know about
the A Certain Girl thing) so it was all pretty much a surprise for me.
And I was summarily blown away. Opening with PL&U was an interesting
move (I thought the show was over!), and getting Brickyard Blues and
That's How You Got Killed Before were definite highlights. As was the
aforementioned A Certain Girl, of course. Someone remind me to post
K-Doe's and Zevon's versions of that song when I get back for anybody
who hasn't heard them yet. And of course the GH!! tracks, which
always make anything better. This was also the longest EC show I've
seen, clocking in at around 2:40. The only other time I saw him
approach the 2 1/2 hr mark was Bumbershoot '96.
And Allen Toussaint, he got a sweet touch with the ivories.
Back to you, JillB.
Oh and I'm thinking Breeze got his nickname not only from his Alto Sax
skills, but he also has the breeziest blue eyes too (at least they
looked that way from where I was sitting!). Great time was had by
all, even the stage manager was boogeying down to the tunes! I wanted
to be on my feet a whole heck've a lot more, but the people behind me
might've gotten distressed, even though I wasn't exactly blocking
their view since I had an empty aisle behind me. Sadly enough a lot
of the Pit seats didn't sell, we had at least six empty to my left
So fans were kept from seats by scalpers banking on the fact that
they could resell them, or so I suppose.
That's all for now!
Jill (and Mr. LPSTD)
01. PL&U
02. Monkey To Man
03. On Your Way Down
04. A Certain Girl
05. Clownstrike
06. Tears, Tears & More Tears
07. Tears Before Bedtime
08 Poisoned Rose
09. Broken Promise Land
10. Freedom For The Stallion
11. The River In Reverse
12. Who's Gonna Help A Brother Get Further?
13. Nearer To You (spelled "Nearer to Yo" on the typed setlist in a
tribute to Oakland
14. Deep Dark Truthful Mirror
15. Brickyard Blues
16. Bedlam
17. Dust
18. Watching The Detectives
19. I Can't Stand Up (For Falling Down)
20. High Fidelity
21. Pump It Up
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
22. Big Chief Variations (AKA Professor Longhair Medley)
23. Ascension Day
24. Wonder Woman
25. International Echo
26. Alison / Tracks of My Tears (lovely Flute and Horns on this
one...a little more enjoyable than the Strings version with the
Symphony!)
27. Clubland
28. The Greatest Love
29. Six-Fingered Man
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
30. That's How You Got Killed Before
31. Yes We Can Can
32. Fortune Teller
33. The Sharpest Thorn
Not 36 (yes I have setlist envy) but 33 and almost nonstop! I'm so
very thrilled with this tour! I asked Elvis if he were going to tour
with Allen in Europe and he replied no, that he was going to play with
the Metropole Orkest, but that was it unfortunately. He was really
nice and chatty and strangely calm afterwards, and that made me feel a
lot better since it's been ages since I've had a decent after show,
what with him having vocal problems and taking off early last year.
Big Sam was absolutely incredible and a great personality too! I was
able to say thanks afterwards and shake his hand.
All in all a really nice and different show! I hope that miracle
happens tomorrow and he plays "Let Them All Talk" it was even driven
home in the loo when a woman was singing the horns from LTAT
interdispersed with the Horns from "The Sharpest Thorn" Which brings
me to this one request. I want PoP to do a mash up of "Let Them All
Talk" and "Tears Tears and More Tears" or Tears cubed
That's all from me, so I now hand you over to Mike in the next seat
over...
Thanks Jill.....
I hadn't seen the setlists prior to this show (though I did know about
the A Certain Girl thing) so it was all pretty much a surprise for me.
And I was summarily blown away. Opening with PL&U was an interesting
move (I thought the show was over!), and getting Brickyard Blues and
That's How You Got Killed Before were definite highlights. As was the
aforementioned A Certain Girl, of course. Someone remind me to post
K-Doe's and Zevon's versions of that song when I get back for anybody
who hasn't heard them yet. And of course the GH!! tracks, which
always make anything better. This was also the longest EC show I've
seen, clocking in at around 2:40. The only other time I saw him
approach the 2 1/2 hr mark was Bumbershoot '96.
And Allen Toussaint, he got a sweet touch with the ivories.
Back to you, JillB.
Oh and I'm thinking Breeze got his nickname not only from his Alto Sax
skills, but he also has the breeziest blue eyes too (at least they
looked that way from where I was sitting!). Great time was had by
all, even the stage manager was boogeying down to the tunes! I wanted
to be on my feet a whole heck've a lot more, but the people behind me
might've gotten distressed, even though I wasn't exactly blocking
their view since I had an empty aisle behind me. Sadly enough a lot
of the Pit seats didn't sell, we had at least six empty to my left
So fans were kept from seats by scalpers banking on the fact that
they could resell them, or so I suppose.
That's all for now!
Jill (and Mr. LPSTD)
http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/2006/0 ... nd_to.html
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Costello and Toussaint in Oakland
Michael Bazeley, 02:02 AM in Concerts
By Shay Quillen
Mercury News
Liverpool met New Orleans on Tuesday as Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint joined forces at Oakland’s Paramount Theatre. As on their new collaboration, "The River in Reverse," Costello took most of the lead vocals, while Toussaint added his trademark piano and some nifty new arrangements performed by the four-piece Crescent City Horns. The result was a generous 2½-hour show that highlighted both men’s songwriting acumen while paying tribute to Toussaint’s battered hometown.
Some of the Katrina-related material from the new album – Costello’s angry "Broken Promise Land" and the title track, for example – didn’t impress. But there was more than enough good stuff to satisfy anyone in attendance.
Costello and the Imposters kicked the evening off with Nick Lowe’s "Peace, Love and Understanding," a tad more restrained than usual, before welcoming the horns, guitarist Anthony Brown and finally Toussaint, who glided onstage halfway through "Monkey to Man" to warm applause.
The rest of the show interspersed material from the new album – a mix of some of Toussaint’s weightier vintage compositions and new ones by both men – with selections from both men’s voluminous catalogs. One treat was new Toussaint horn arrangements for nine older Costello tunes. While they weren’t quite as inspired as his brilliant work on the Band’s "Rock of Ages," they added a refreshing dimension to songs both familiar (an "Alison" featuring flute and soprano sax) and nearly forgotten (a terrific "The Poisoned Rose" from "King of America.")
Toussaint was an inspired accompanist throughout, and he also took the occasional turn on the mike, singing the irresistible 1961 hit "A Certain Girl" early on, and later delivering the ’70s-era "Play Something Sweet (Brickyard Blues)." Costello’s right-hand man, keyboardist Steve Nieve, mostly stuck to the Hammond B-3 organ, but he did take over the piano stool long enough during the encores for a sharp "Clubland" solo that seemed to please Toussaint. The horn section was first-rate, and charismatic trombonist "Big Sam" Williams in particular made a nice impression with his forceful solos.
Toward the end of the set, a couple of dark, dense numbers sans Toussaint hampered the good vibes slightly, but a string of Costello oldies starting with "Watching the Detectives" got the crowd back on its feet.
It was after 10:30 when the whole gang came out for one final set of encores, and the New Orleans party that had been threatening to break out all night finally erupted with the inevitable "Yes We Can Can" and a fun "Fortune Teller," before the show closed on a poignant note with the best of the new Toussaint-Costello collaborations, "The Sharpest Thorn."
It will be fun to see which favorites they pull out of the Toussaint songbag Wednesday at the Mountain Winery. I for one would love to hear Elvis take a crack at "Ooh Poo Pah Doo."
Contact Shay Quillen at squillen@mercurynews.com or (408) 920-2741.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ooh Poo Pah Doo
(J. Hill) (?- J.F.)
Yo-o-oh (yo-o-oh)
Yo-o-oh (yo-o-oh)
Wow! Yea-a-ah (wow, yea)
Now you people out there (hey)
& you people over there (hey)
Now standin' over there (hey)
& you there in the corner (hey)
& you people over there (hey)
& on the road (hey)
On the floor (hey)
The ceiling (hey)
All round the whole scope of the building!
I'm gonna tell you (what is it?)
About ooh poo pah doo
They call me the most
Ooh poo pah doo (ooh poo pah doo)
They call me the most (call me the most)
& I won't stop tryin' till I create disturbance in your mind
Wo I'm gonna
Create disturbance in your mind
Baby don't you know it's in your mind
Create disturbance in your mind
Baby don't you know it's in your mind
Wo oh oh oh oh wo oh oh oh
Yeah-eh-eh-eh (yeah-eh-eh-eh) (x4)
Wo oh oh oh oh wo oh oh oh
I'm gonna ring a few bells in your ear
Don't you know I'm gonna ring 'em ring 'em in your ear
I'm gonna ring a few bells in your ear
Don't you know I'm gonna ring 'em ring 'em in your ear
Wo oh oh oh oh wo oh oh oh
Yeah-eh-eh-eh (yeah-eh-eh-eh) (x4)
Wo oh oh oh oh wo oh oh oh
All right! (cheering, to fade)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.mp3.com/jessie-hill/artists/ ... raphy.html
( extract)
Best remembered for the classic "Ooh Poo Pah Doo," New Orleans R&B legend Jessie Hill was born in the Crescent City's Ninth Ward district on December 9, 1932. Raised alongside the likes of Eddie Bo, Oliver Morgan, and Prince La La, it was almost inevitable that he would pursue a career in music, and by his teens he was playing drums in bands fronted by Kid Arnestine and Freddie Domino. In 1951 Hill formed his own group, the House Rockers, with guitarist Little Eddie Lang and siblings Melvin and David Lastie on trumpet and saxophone. The group played local country & western bars for about a year, touring the northern U.S. in support of a drag troupe led by Bobby Marchan before splitting. Upon returning to New Orleans, Hill played drums behind Professor Longhair. No recordings of their collaboration exist, but according to observers, he was the most sympathetic and complementary percussionist Longhair ever enjoyed. He then served with Huey "Piano" Smith & the Clowns before forming a new version of the House Rockers in 1958. In addition to David Lastie, this lineup included guitarist Alvin "Shine" Robinson, bassist Richard Payne, and a drummer, John Boudreaux, which enabled Hill to focus solely on frontman duties.
The origins of "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" reportedly lie with a local pianist known only as Big Four. A drunk who played the club Shy Guy's Place for booze and tips, he once performed the song with the House Rockers in attendance, and Hill scribbled the lyrics and melody on a paper sack, later fleshing it all out with an intro cribbed from Dave Bartholomew. Its dubious evolution notwithstanding, "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" remains one of the classics of New Orleans R&B. A nonsensical yet rollicking call-and-response workout that perfectly captures the energy of French Quarter life, it was honed to a fine edge on-stage before Hill cut a demo that he shopped to local labels, among them Joe Ruffino's Ric and Ron imprints. Ruffino passed, but recommended Hill pitch Joe Banashak's Minit, which agreed to book session time at Cosimo Matassa's Cosimo's Studio. The resulting date would prove the first production credit notched by the great Allen Toussaint, and upon its early 1960 release, "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" first emerged as a favorite at Mardi Gras. Eventually, the single broke nationally, selling 800,000 copies on its way to cracking the Billboard R&B Top Five and the pop Top 30. Hill took the House Rockers on a national tour that culminated with an appearance at New York City's legendary Apollo Theater, but his accounting practices so angered the other members of the band that it dissolved prior to a performance in Washington, D.C.
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Costello and Toussaint in Oakland
Michael Bazeley, 02:02 AM in Concerts
By Shay Quillen
Mercury News
Liverpool met New Orleans on Tuesday as Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint joined forces at Oakland’s Paramount Theatre. As on their new collaboration, "The River in Reverse," Costello took most of the lead vocals, while Toussaint added his trademark piano and some nifty new arrangements performed by the four-piece Crescent City Horns. The result was a generous 2½-hour show that highlighted both men’s songwriting acumen while paying tribute to Toussaint’s battered hometown.
Some of the Katrina-related material from the new album – Costello’s angry "Broken Promise Land" and the title track, for example – didn’t impress. But there was more than enough good stuff to satisfy anyone in attendance.
Costello and the Imposters kicked the evening off with Nick Lowe’s "Peace, Love and Understanding," a tad more restrained than usual, before welcoming the horns, guitarist Anthony Brown and finally Toussaint, who glided onstage halfway through "Monkey to Man" to warm applause.
The rest of the show interspersed material from the new album – a mix of some of Toussaint’s weightier vintage compositions and new ones by both men – with selections from both men’s voluminous catalogs. One treat was new Toussaint horn arrangements for nine older Costello tunes. While they weren’t quite as inspired as his brilliant work on the Band’s "Rock of Ages," they added a refreshing dimension to songs both familiar (an "Alison" featuring flute and soprano sax) and nearly forgotten (a terrific "The Poisoned Rose" from "King of America.")
Toussaint was an inspired accompanist throughout, and he also took the occasional turn on the mike, singing the irresistible 1961 hit "A Certain Girl" early on, and later delivering the ’70s-era "Play Something Sweet (Brickyard Blues)." Costello’s right-hand man, keyboardist Steve Nieve, mostly stuck to the Hammond B-3 organ, but he did take over the piano stool long enough during the encores for a sharp "Clubland" solo that seemed to please Toussaint. The horn section was first-rate, and charismatic trombonist "Big Sam" Williams in particular made a nice impression with his forceful solos.
Toward the end of the set, a couple of dark, dense numbers sans Toussaint hampered the good vibes slightly, but a string of Costello oldies starting with "Watching the Detectives" got the crowd back on its feet.
It was after 10:30 when the whole gang came out for one final set of encores, and the New Orleans party that had been threatening to break out all night finally erupted with the inevitable "Yes We Can Can" and a fun "Fortune Teller," before the show closed on a poignant note with the best of the new Toussaint-Costello collaborations, "The Sharpest Thorn."
It will be fun to see which favorites they pull out of the Toussaint songbag Wednesday at the Mountain Winery. I for one would love to hear Elvis take a crack at "Ooh Poo Pah Doo."
Contact Shay Quillen at squillen@mercurynews.com or (408) 920-2741.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ooh Poo Pah Doo
(J. Hill) (?- J.F.)
Yo-o-oh (yo-o-oh)
Yo-o-oh (yo-o-oh)
Wow! Yea-a-ah (wow, yea)
Now you people out there (hey)
& you people over there (hey)
Now standin' over there (hey)
& you there in the corner (hey)
& you people over there (hey)
& on the road (hey)
On the floor (hey)
The ceiling (hey)
All round the whole scope of the building!
I'm gonna tell you (what is it?)
About ooh poo pah doo
They call me the most
Ooh poo pah doo (ooh poo pah doo)
They call me the most (call me the most)
& I won't stop tryin' till I create disturbance in your mind
Wo I'm gonna
Create disturbance in your mind
Baby don't you know it's in your mind
Create disturbance in your mind
Baby don't you know it's in your mind
Wo oh oh oh oh wo oh oh oh
Yeah-eh-eh-eh (yeah-eh-eh-eh) (x4)
Wo oh oh oh oh wo oh oh oh
I'm gonna ring a few bells in your ear
Don't you know I'm gonna ring 'em ring 'em in your ear
I'm gonna ring a few bells in your ear
Don't you know I'm gonna ring 'em ring 'em in your ear
Wo oh oh oh oh wo oh oh oh
Yeah-eh-eh-eh (yeah-eh-eh-eh) (x4)
Wo oh oh oh oh wo oh oh oh
All right! (cheering, to fade)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.mp3.com/jessie-hill/artists/ ... raphy.html
( extract)
Best remembered for the classic "Ooh Poo Pah Doo," New Orleans R&B legend Jessie Hill was born in the Crescent City's Ninth Ward district on December 9, 1932. Raised alongside the likes of Eddie Bo, Oliver Morgan, and Prince La La, it was almost inevitable that he would pursue a career in music, and by his teens he was playing drums in bands fronted by Kid Arnestine and Freddie Domino. In 1951 Hill formed his own group, the House Rockers, with guitarist Little Eddie Lang and siblings Melvin and David Lastie on trumpet and saxophone. The group played local country & western bars for about a year, touring the northern U.S. in support of a drag troupe led by Bobby Marchan before splitting. Upon returning to New Orleans, Hill played drums behind Professor Longhair. No recordings of their collaboration exist, but according to observers, he was the most sympathetic and complementary percussionist Longhair ever enjoyed. He then served with Huey "Piano" Smith & the Clowns before forming a new version of the House Rockers in 1958. In addition to David Lastie, this lineup included guitarist Alvin "Shine" Robinson, bassist Richard Payne, and a drummer, John Boudreaux, which enabled Hill to focus solely on frontman duties.
The origins of "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" reportedly lie with a local pianist known only as Big Four. A drunk who played the club Shy Guy's Place for booze and tips, he once performed the song with the House Rockers in attendance, and Hill scribbled the lyrics and melody on a paper sack, later fleshing it all out with an intro cribbed from Dave Bartholomew. Its dubious evolution notwithstanding, "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" remains one of the classics of New Orleans R&B. A nonsensical yet rollicking call-and-response workout that perfectly captures the energy of French Quarter life, it was honed to a fine edge on-stage before Hill cut a demo that he shopped to local labels, among them Joe Ruffino's Ric and Ron imprints. Ruffino passed, but recommended Hill pitch Joe Banashak's Minit, which agreed to book session time at Cosimo Matassa's Cosimo's Studio. The resulting date would prove the first production credit notched by the great Allen Toussaint, and upon its early 1960 release, "Ooh Poo Pah Doo" first emerged as a favorite at Mardi Gras. Eventually, the single broke nationally, selling 800,000 copies on its way to cracking the Billboard R&B Top Five and the pop Top 30. Hill took the House Rockers on a national tour that culminated with an appearance at New York City's legendary Apollo Theater, but his accounting practices so angered the other members of the band that it dissolved prior to a performance in Washington, D.C.
-
verbal gymnastics
- Posts: 13656
- Joined: Wed Jun 11, 2003 6:44 am
- Location: Magic lantern land
-
Who Shot Sam?
- Posts: 7097
- Joined: Tue Jun 03, 2003 5:05 pm
- Location: Somewhere in the distance
- Contact:
Time for a visit to the States verbal.verbal gymnastics wrote:Well that's cheered my day up no endjohnfoyle wrote:From listserv-
I asked Elvis if he were going to tour
with Allen in Europe and he replied no, that he was going to play with
the Metropole Orkest, but that was it unfortunately.
Mother, Moose-Hunter, Maverick
-
verbal gymnastics
- Posts: 13656
- Joined: Wed Jun 11, 2003 6:44 am
- Location: Magic lantern land
-
Who Shot Sam?
- Posts: 7097
- Joined: Tue Jun 03, 2003 5:05 pm
- Location: Somewhere in the distance
- Contact:
http://www.contracostatimes.com/mld/cct ... 869515.htm
Eddie Ledesma/Times
Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint bring powerful New Orleans blues to Oakland.
Posted on Wed, Jun. 21, 2006
CONCERT REVIEW
Elvis Costello, Allen Toussaint bring powerful New Orleans blues to Oakland
By Tony Hicks
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
It was just short of an Amen. And that's not bad, considering some think this whole collaboration between Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint is a stretch.
It's not. The English pop Renaissance man and the famed New Orleans soul pianist brought their unique, Katrina-inspired collaboration to Oakland's Paramount Theatre on Tuesday night. And while there were few moments that made one want to leap to one's feet, it was a mostly smooth trip through intersecting musical styles. While Costello garnered most of the attention, as frontman of the project and the bigger celebrity, most of the set was clearly on Toussaint's turf of roots soul and blues.
Costello loves going out of what appears to be his normal bounds. Because so many artists immediately went right to the aid of New Orleans' musicians after last year's devastating hurricane, this effort may have seemed forced. Seeing it live made it much more natural.
Much of the material from the 21/2-hour set came from the pair's new record "The River in Reverse." After Costello and his Imposters properly warmed up the crowd, opening with "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding?" out came the four-piece Crescent City Horns to pump up Costello's "Monkey to Man," while Toussaint sauntered out about halfway through.
With the full band assembled, the musicians got right down to business on "The River in Reverse's" opening, mid-tempo blues chunker "On Your Way Down." Costello was clearly enjoying his foray into American roots, pushing his voice when presented with the chance, on songs like "Freedom for the Stallion." The arrangements were tight, with the horns packing extra punch for the older Costello songs. While there were ups and downs, and not everything worked well, there was still plenty of high points.
"Tears, Tears and More Tears" was as buoyant as Lyle Lovett's best live moments, splicing blues with gospel. "Broken Promise Land," had a tinge of the revivalist by the end, with Costello yelling the line "In the name of the father and the son, in the name of gasoline and a gun," playing to the political leanings of the crowd.
Costello's "Poisoned Rose," was a nice surprise; another example of how a change of scenery can do wonders for a song otherwise buried in a big back catalog.
Toussaint was content sideman for most of the night, though it was a great treat to see him pull out a big version of "Yes We Can Can," at the Paramount -- appropriate considering Oakland's Pointer Sisters made it one of their first big hits more than 30 years ago.
Toussaint disappeared for a few songs toward show's end, which may have contributed to a deflated vibe, though the audience did get up for Costello's "Watching the Detectives" and "Pump it Up." Toussaint returned with Costello for a bare-bones "Ascension Day," then with the full band on a rocking "International Echo." The pair put together a stunning new arrangement for "Alison," quieting it down and highlighting the song's feel with some selected, well-done sax and flute.
They brought everyone up out of their seats for the encores, including Toussaint's "Fortune Teller," and the perfect send-off from the new record, "The Sharpest Thorn." People were still humming it in the parking lot after the show -- always a good sign.
Tony Hicks is the Times' pop music critic. Reach him at 925-952-2678 or thicks@cctimes.com.
Eddie Ledesma/Times
Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint bring powerful New Orleans blues to Oakland.
Posted on Wed, Jun. 21, 2006
CONCERT REVIEW
Elvis Costello, Allen Toussaint bring powerful New Orleans blues to Oakland
By Tony Hicks
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
It was just short of an Amen. And that's not bad, considering some think this whole collaboration between Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint is a stretch.
It's not. The English pop Renaissance man and the famed New Orleans soul pianist brought their unique, Katrina-inspired collaboration to Oakland's Paramount Theatre on Tuesday night. And while there were few moments that made one want to leap to one's feet, it was a mostly smooth trip through intersecting musical styles. While Costello garnered most of the attention, as frontman of the project and the bigger celebrity, most of the set was clearly on Toussaint's turf of roots soul and blues.
Costello loves going out of what appears to be his normal bounds. Because so many artists immediately went right to the aid of New Orleans' musicians after last year's devastating hurricane, this effort may have seemed forced. Seeing it live made it much more natural.
Much of the material from the 21/2-hour set came from the pair's new record "The River in Reverse." After Costello and his Imposters properly warmed up the crowd, opening with "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding?" out came the four-piece Crescent City Horns to pump up Costello's "Monkey to Man," while Toussaint sauntered out about halfway through.
With the full band assembled, the musicians got right down to business on "The River in Reverse's" opening, mid-tempo blues chunker "On Your Way Down." Costello was clearly enjoying his foray into American roots, pushing his voice when presented with the chance, on songs like "Freedom for the Stallion." The arrangements were tight, with the horns packing extra punch for the older Costello songs. While there were ups and downs, and not everything worked well, there was still plenty of high points.
"Tears, Tears and More Tears" was as buoyant as Lyle Lovett's best live moments, splicing blues with gospel. "Broken Promise Land," had a tinge of the revivalist by the end, with Costello yelling the line "In the name of the father and the son, in the name of gasoline and a gun," playing to the political leanings of the crowd.
Costello's "Poisoned Rose," was a nice surprise; another example of how a change of scenery can do wonders for a song otherwise buried in a big back catalog.
Toussaint was content sideman for most of the night, though it was a great treat to see him pull out a big version of "Yes We Can Can," at the Paramount -- appropriate considering Oakland's Pointer Sisters made it one of their first big hits more than 30 years ago.
Toussaint disappeared for a few songs toward show's end, which may have contributed to a deflated vibe, though the audience did get up for Costello's "Watching the Detectives" and "Pump it Up." Toussaint returned with Costello for a bare-bones "Ascension Day," then with the full band on a rocking "International Echo." The pair put together a stunning new arrangement for "Alison," quieting it down and highlighting the song's feel with some selected, well-done sax and flute.
They brought everyone up out of their seats for the encores, including Toussaint's "Fortune Teller," and the perfect send-off from the new record, "The Sharpest Thorn." People were still humming it in the parking lot after the show -- always a good sign.
Tony Hicks is the Times' pop music critic. Reach him at 925-952-2678 or thicks@cctimes.com.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.c ... type=music
Chronicle photos by Kurt Rogers
Costello, Toussaint keep New Orleans in the forefront
- Joel Selvin, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
San Francisco Chronicle, USA
It would take some surly rock star from England to remind us Colonials of our own natural resources.
But Elvis Costello doesn't normally pull audiences to their feet at the end of every song. At the Paramount in his joint performance Tuesday with New Orleans music great Allen Toussaint, he was getting standing ovation after standing ovation for songs the audience had largely never heard before in an evening they won't soon forget.
With four brash and splashy horns, an extra guitarist and maestro Toussaint on the Steinway grand and vocals, Costello revamped his customary razor-sharp rock quartet into a full-blown New Orleans rhythm and blues orchestra. Not only did this luminous ensemble play the material from the recently released joint album by Costello and Toussaint, The River In Reverse, but Costello had Toussaint write new arrangements for nine of his other older songs -- from well-known pieces such as "Clubland" to songs that Costello allowed he and the band had forgotten about such as "Tears Before Bedtime" from his 1982 album, Imperial Bedroom.
Although Toussaint has been the dominant figure on the New Orleans R&B scene since Fats Domino stopped having hits, his work is not popularly known outside that endangered city. His arrangements not only graced the many '60s R&B hits he wrote and produced in New Orleans studios, but they brought figures such as Paul McCartney or The Band to New Orleans to work with him.
With their collaboration born from a series of benefits last fall in New York City, where lifelong New Orleans resident Toussaint is currently living while he rebuilds his destroyed home in his swamped neighborhood, Toussaint and Costello bring the specter of Hurricane Katrina and the disaster of New Orleans onstage with them. The four-man horn section, Toussaint's guitarist Anthony "AB" Brown, and Toussaint himself are actual victims of the storm. Costello certainly brought the subject powerfully alive with his song "River In Reverse," an angry ballad he wrote specifically to perform at one of last year's benefits with Toussaint.
Costello clearly relished the experience, staying onstage almost three hours, playing a generous 34 songs and sometimes acting like little more than just another fan with the best seat in the house as he glowed watching Toussaint weave his spell.
And Toussaint is truly an under-appreciated, virtually undiscovered gem. If anything good has come out of Katrina at all it is the increased national profile his career has received as a result of benefit albums he has appeared on, television appearances including last year's Grammys (too bad the knucklehead announcer couldn't get his name right), the first such appearance in his near 50 years in the record business, since he got his start putting piano parts on Fats Domino records while the '50s rock and roll star was on tour. He has long been a national treasure, just unknown outside New Orleans and record business circles.
Wearing a conservative tailored suit, socks and sandals, he presided over the keyboard with a dignity and authority uncommon outside the classical world. When he returned for an encore with his solo piano musings on the works of Professor Longhair, another little known New Orleans pianist, long dead, "Me and Tipitina," Toussaint held the crowd in the palm of his hand as he waltzed them through a piece that can only best be described as chamber R&B. He spun delicate and airy glissandos that hung in the air like lace.
Costello, standing by the side of the piano as entranced by what he was hearing as anybody, then explained that he asked Toussaint to transpose that piece and he wrote lyrics to the music to create a song called "Ascension Day," which they performed like they were in a cathedral. It was a solemn, sublime moment of artistic transcendence; the meeting many worlds, blending into one heartbeat, a profound convergence that held the standing crowd hushed.
Costello has been on an amazing creative roll in the past few years. He is still performing his first ballet score with symphony orchestras across the country and did an album with a 52-piece jazz orchestra with Charlie Mingus and Billy Strayhorn covers mingled with new versions of his old tunes. He has collaborated in the recent past with R&B songwriter Jerry Ragavoy, who co-wrote "Piece of My Heart," and, even more memorably, did an entire album with Burt Bacharach, Painted From Memory, in 1998.
But with Toussaint, Costello has really unearthed something special. Songs off their album such as the obscure "Who's Gonna Help the Brother," "Tears, Tears and More Tears," or "Nearer To You" were pure Toussaint classics, lingering forgotten in his massive back catalog. How Freedom For the Stallion has been lying around unused for all these years is a complete mystery; it's not as if the Pointer Sisters, Glen Campbell, Labelle and others haven't had big records with Toussaint. In the record business he hasn't been an unknown since Al Hirt made a No. 1 record out of his instrumental Java in 1964.
But his stunning remakes of Costello's songs were the treasures of the evening. He made "Poisoned Rose" sound like a forgotten Fats Domino blues. He gave "Clubland" this big, booming Cubano riff, which Costello keyboardist Steve Nieve matched on the piano, while Toussaint took over the organ for the sassy, brassy version. His supple, sweet high harmonies softened the sometimes harsh sound of Costello's gritty delivery. It was the big, billowing, seductive sound of Toussaint -- Elvis at the fore -- that had them jumping out of their seats.
The fans that came Tuesday may have been making a leap of faith since the new album has only been out a couple of weeks and has hardly been pounding from the radio anywhere or selling off the front counter at Tower Records. But Costello has tapped something very potent and vital in this historic collaboration.
With the future of the city itself something of a question mark, Costello and Toussaint are keeping New Orleans culture on the front lines. And it never needed to be there more.
Email Joel Selvin at jselvin@sfchronicle.com
Chronicle photos by Kurt Rogers
Costello, Toussaint keep New Orleans in the forefront
- Joel Selvin, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
San Francisco Chronicle, USA
It would take some surly rock star from England to remind us Colonials of our own natural resources.
But Elvis Costello doesn't normally pull audiences to their feet at the end of every song. At the Paramount in his joint performance Tuesday with New Orleans music great Allen Toussaint, he was getting standing ovation after standing ovation for songs the audience had largely never heard before in an evening they won't soon forget.
With four brash and splashy horns, an extra guitarist and maestro Toussaint on the Steinway grand and vocals, Costello revamped his customary razor-sharp rock quartet into a full-blown New Orleans rhythm and blues orchestra. Not only did this luminous ensemble play the material from the recently released joint album by Costello and Toussaint, The River In Reverse, but Costello had Toussaint write new arrangements for nine of his other older songs -- from well-known pieces such as "Clubland" to songs that Costello allowed he and the band had forgotten about such as "Tears Before Bedtime" from his 1982 album, Imperial Bedroom.
Although Toussaint has been the dominant figure on the New Orleans R&B scene since Fats Domino stopped having hits, his work is not popularly known outside that endangered city. His arrangements not only graced the many '60s R&B hits he wrote and produced in New Orleans studios, but they brought figures such as Paul McCartney or The Band to New Orleans to work with him.
With their collaboration born from a series of benefits last fall in New York City, where lifelong New Orleans resident Toussaint is currently living while he rebuilds his destroyed home in his swamped neighborhood, Toussaint and Costello bring the specter of Hurricane Katrina and the disaster of New Orleans onstage with them. The four-man horn section, Toussaint's guitarist Anthony "AB" Brown, and Toussaint himself are actual victims of the storm. Costello certainly brought the subject powerfully alive with his song "River In Reverse," an angry ballad he wrote specifically to perform at one of last year's benefits with Toussaint.
Costello clearly relished the experience, staying onstage almost three hours, playing a generous 34 songs and sometimes acting like little more than just another fan with the best seat in the house as he glowed watching Toussaint weave his spell.
And Toussaint is truly an under-appreciated, virtually undiscovered gem. If anything good has come out of Katrina at all it is the increased national profile his career has received as a result of benefit albums he has appeared on, television appearances including last year's Grammys (too bad the knucklehead announcer couldn't get his name right), the first such appearance in his near 50 years in the record business, since he got his start putting piano parts on Fats Domino records while the '50s rock and roll star was on tour. He has long been a national treasure, just unknown outside New Orleans and record business circles.
Wearing a conservative tailored suit, socks and sandals, he presided over the keyboard with a dignity and authority uncommon outside the classical world. When he returned for an encore with his solo piano musings on the works of Professor Longhair, another little known New Orleans pianist, long dead, "Me and Tipitina," Toussaint held the crowd in the palm of his hand as he waltzed them through a piece that can only best be described as chamber R&B. He spun delicate and airy glissandos that hung in the air like lace.
Costello, standing by the side of the piano as entranced by what he was hearing as anybody, then explained that he asked Toussaint to transpose that piece and he wrote lyrics to the music to create a song called "Ascension Day," which they performed like they were in a cathedral. It was a solemn, sublime moment of artistic transcendence; the meeting many worlds, blending into one heartbeat, a profound convergence that held the standing crowd hushed.
Costello has been on an amazing creative roll in the past few years. He is still performing his first ballet score with symphony orchestras across the country and did an album with a 52-piece jazz orchestra with Charlie Mingus and Billy Strayhorn covers mingled with new versions of his old tunes. He has collaborated in the recent past with R&B songwriter Jerry Ragavoy, who co-wrote "Piece of My Heart," and, even more memorably, did an entire album with Burt Bacharach, Painted From Memory, in 1998.
But with Toussaint, Costello has really unearthed something special. Songs off their album such as the obscure "Who's Gonna Help the Brother," "Tears, Tears and More Tears," or "Nearer To You" were pure Toussaint classics, lingering forgotten in his massive back catalog. How Freedom For the Stallion has been lying around unused for all these years is a complete mystery; it's not as if the Pointer Sisters, Glen Campbell, Labelle and others haven't had big records with Toussaint. In the record business he hasn't been an unknown since Al Hirt made a No. 1 record out of his instrumental Java in 1964.
But his stunning remakes of Costello's songs were the treasures of the evening. He made "Poisoned Rose" sound like a forgotten Fats Domino blues. He gave "Clubland" this big, booming Cubano riff, which Costello keyboardist Steve Nieve matched on the piano, while Toussaint took over the organ for the sassy, brassy version. His supple, sweet high harmonies softened the sometimes harsh sound of Costello's gritty delivery. It was the big, billowing, seductive sound of Toussaint -- Elvis at the fore -- that had them jumping out of their seats.
The fans that came Tuesday may have been making a leap of faith since the new album has only been out a couple of weeks and has hardly been pounding from the radio anywhere or selling off the front counter at Tower Records. But Costello has tapped something very potent and vital in this historic collaboration.
With the future of the city itself something of a question mark, Costello and Toussaint are keeping New Orleans culture on the front lines. And it never needed to be there more.
Email Joel Selvin at jselvin@sfchronicle.com
http://lilmikesf.blogspot.com/2006/06/e ... -beat.html
Too top it all off, last night I got a chance to catch Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint on their River in Reverse Tour, and it was a truly great & classy show with all the necessary show biz trappings.
The Paramount Theater in Oakland is just a fabulous old Art Deco building with way high ceilings & ornate decor that's been magnificienly restored and kept up...
Just being there at The Paramount makes ya feel special, and I guess the fact it costs the better part of 100 bucks to get in the door and sit within seeing distance keeps the regular old riff raff out. The acoustics were terrific, at least where I was up near the front half of the venue, can't speak for the balcony rats y'know.
At first ol' Elvis & The Imposters opened up with a frisky version of Nick Lowe's "What's So Funny About Peace Love & Understanding?", which got the crowd hyped.
Then Mr McManus would occasionally threaten to overwhelm the proceedings and put me to sleep wih his bleating & foreboding balladeering... I got the feeling he liked to hear the sound his own voice quite a wee bit...
But just whenever all hope appeared to be lost, and I would start nodding out, Mr. Allen Toussaint & the Crescent City Horn section featuring the mighty Big Sam on trombone would save the night. Their infectious New 'awlins style grooves just could not be subdued, and would elevate a song out of the park even if ol Elvis was intent on strapping his personality into each and every one that got played.
Don't get me wrong, I appreciate Elvis bringing Toussaint along for the ride, and of course sharing his mysteriously huge fan base, but we surely could've been given a few more peeks into Toussaint's vast repertoire, or at least a couple more of his hits, with his own cool, casual & silky smooth southern vocalizings.
I swore after a bit of glissando on the keys he was gonna bust into "Southern Nights", the song Glen Campbell had a huge late 70's Toussaint hit with.. but it just wasn't to be.
I guess since ol Allen seems a little shy, most folks just don't know who the heck he is...
Last time i saw him out here was in 1997 I think, and he was on a week long stint playing an intimate solo set in a jazz club/sushi bar that was in a converted house/ on the edge of Berkeley to around 50 or so folks a night.
At least with Costello's Army in effect, he gets a big full house to hear hm tickle those ivories...
If yer still in the regions and geographically able to catch these guys on this tour, then do make an effort check it out. Elvis is obviously enthusiastically aglow about sharing the stage with a dignified legend like Allen. Costello also makes a few pointed political commentaries that are certainly not unwarranted considering this collaboration was brought on by chance via the horrible aftermath of Katrina, where Toussaint survived a retchid week trapped at the Superdome.
Onstage, Costello plays many of his old crowd pleasers like Alison & Pump It Up with new flourishes & funkier filled out arrangements by Toussaint. Allen himself plays a Steinway baby grand throughout most of the show in his stylish socks & sandals, occasionally beaming like a proud parent.
Too top it all off, last night I got a chance to catch Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint on their River in Reverse Tour, and it was a truly great & classy show with all the necessary show biz trappings.
The Paramount Theater in Oakland is just a fabulous old Art Deco building with way high ceilings & ornate decor that's been magnificienly restored and kept up...
Just being there at The Paramount makes ya feel special, and I guess the fact it costs the better part of 100 bucks to get in the door and sit within seeing distance keeps the regular old riff raff out. The acoustics were terrific, at least where I was up near the front half of the venue, can't speak for the balcony rats y'know.
At first ol' Elvis & The Imposters opened up with a frisky version of Nick Lowe's "What's So Funny About Peace Love & Understanding?", which got the crowd hyped.
Then Mr McManus would occasionally threaten to overwhelm the proceedings and put me to sleep wih his bleating & foreboding balladeering... I got the feeling he liked to hear the sound his own voice quite a wee bit...
But just whenever all hope appeared to be lost, and I would start nodding out, Mr. Allen Toussaint & the Crescent City Horn section featuring the mighty Big Sam on trombone would save the night. Their infectious New 'awlins style grooves just could not be subdued, and would elevate a song out of the park even if ol Elvis was intent on strapping his personality into each and every one that got played.
Don't get me wrong, I appreciate Elvis bringing Toussaint along for the ride, and of course sharing his mysteriously huge fan base, but we surely could've been given a few more peeks into Toussaint's vast repertoire, or at least a couple more of his hits, with his own cool, casual & silky smooth southern vocalizings.
I swore after a bit of glissando on the keys he was gonna bust into "Southern Nights", the song Glen Campbell had a huge late 70's Toussaint hit with.. but it just wasn't to be.
I guess since ol Allen seems a little shy, most folks just don't know who the heck he is...
Last time i saw him out here was in 1997 I think, and he was on a week long stint playing an intimate solo set in a jazz club/sushi bar that was in a converted house/ on the edge of Berkeley to around 50 or so folks a night.
At least with Costello's Army in effect, he gets a big full house to hear hm tickle those ivories...
If yer still in the regions and geographically able to catch these guys on this tour, then do make an effort check it out. Elvis is obviously enthusiastically aglow about sharing the stage with a dignified legend like Allen. Costello also makes a few pointed political commentaries that are certainly not unwarranted considering this collaboration was brought on by chance via the horrible aftermath of Katrina, where Toussaint survived a retchid week trapped at the Superdome.
Onstage, Costello plays many of his old crowd pleasers like Alison & Pump It Up with new flourishes & funkier filled out arrangements by Toussaint. Allen himself plays a Steinway baby grand throughout most of the show in his stylish socks & sandals, occasionally beaming like a proud parent.
-
verbal gymnastics
- Posts: 13656
- Joined: Wed Jun 11, 2003 6:44 am
- Location: Magic lantern land
I would absolutely love to but it's not feasible I'm afraid.Who Shot Sam? wrote:
I have an extra ticket for the NY Beacon show on the 11th (wife can't make it). You're welcome to it!
I get the feeling that I am going to miss out on this show in the same way that we missed out on the Emmylou Harris shows last year. It is a real shame as these concert reviews have been fantastic.
Who’s this kid with his mumbo jumbo?
-
martinfoyle
- Posts: 2502
- Joined: Tue Jun 03, 2003 5:24 pm
- Location: Dublin, Ireland
- Contact:
If its any consolation to others overseas a, hopefully good, recording of this show is torrenting here.
-
martinfoyle
- Posts: 2502
- Joined: Tue Jun 03, 2003 5:24 pm
- Location: Dublin, Ireland
- Contact:
I thought of the above when I read this hilarious piece in the GuardianHe was really
nice and chatty and strangely calm afterwards, and that made me feel a
lot better since it's been ages since I've had a decent after show,
what with him having vocal problems and taking off early last year.
http://arts.guardian.co.uk/features/sto ... 80,00.html
I attended both the Oakland and Saratoga shows and I must say, both were excellent. The Bay Area weather was perfect and combined with the summer solstice, insomnia, and booze - the shows had good energy - at least for me. I had moments of hyperactivity and wanderlust at the Saratoga show, but I survived. I think the open space and seeing an ex-bf with some girl I didn't know had something to do with it. Oh yeah, and the margaritas didn't help much either!
What I appreciate most about this tour/collaboration is Allen Toussaint. Some of AT's songs - Freedom For The Stallion, Who's Gonna Help Brother Get Further? - represent a period of American history hardly recognized and often defined in one chapter of an American History school book. The Harlem Renaissance, Langston Hughes, Tales of the Middle Passage, Frederick Douglass - come to mind when I hear AT's lyrics. What is so disappointing is that the lyrics still apply today. Black men are killing their own brothers in major U.S. cities. White men are robbing hard working citizens of their freedom and future. The fourth estate has become a PR engine for the government and corporations, etc.
Anyhow, enough freedom of expression -
Concert highlights - Play Something Sweet, Wonder Woman, Sharpest Thorn
The funk was happening. I just wish more people in the crowd would have appreciated it.
What I appreciate most about this tour/collaboration is Allen Toussaint. Some of AT's songs - Freedom For The Stallion, Who's Gonna Help Brother Get Further? - represent a period of American history hardly recognized and often defined in one chapter of an American History school book. The Harlem Renaissance, Langston Hughes, Tales of the Middle Passage, Frederick Douglass - come to mind when I hear AT's lyrics. What is so disappointing is that the lyrics still apply today. Black men are killing their own brothers in major U.S. cities. White men are robbing hard working citizens of their freedom and future. The fourth estate has become a PR engine for the government and corporations, etc.
Anyhow, enough freedom of expression -
Concert highlights - Play Something Sweet, Wonder Woman, Sharpest Thorn
The funk was happening. I just wish more people in the crowd would have appreciated it.
-
verbal gymnastics
- Posts: 13656
- Joined: Wed Jun 11, 2003 6:44 am
- Location: Magic lantern land
At least we now know why he won't be touring Europe around November as originally mooted given that Mrs EC will be in the advance stages of her pregnancy. Not that that's any excuseverbal gymnastics wrote:Well that's cheered my day up no endjohnfoyle wrote:From listserv-
I asked Elvis if he were going to tour
with Allen in Europe and he replied no, that he was going to play with
the Metropole Orkest, but that was it unfortunately.
Who’s this kid with his mumbo jumbo?
http://feed.insnews.org/v-cgi/feeds.cgi ... id=1961518
Album, Tour Pay Tribute to Toussaint
Jul 02, 08:54 AM
By Shay Quillen, San Jose Mercury News, Calif.
Jul. 2--He's never been a star, but for hard-core music fans, the name Allen Toussaint is held in reverence.
Over a 40-year career, the New Orleans native has left an indelible mark on the music scene as a writer ("Working in a Coal Mine," "Southern Nights"), producer (LaBelle's "Lady Marmalade," the Meters), arranger (the horn parts on the Band's live "Rock of Ages"), and an effortlessly funky pianist and singer.
In the chaotic days after his city was decimated by Katrina, Toussaint crossed paths with the world's most visible music geek, Elvis Costello. The two shared the stage at various post-hurricane fundraisers, and the English fan talked the New Orleans master into joining forces.
The result is an album -- "The River in Reverse" -- and a tour that is letting mainstream America finally attach a name to a distinctive musical voice they've heard for decades.
When the show hit Oakland's Paramount Theatre last month, as on "Reverse," Costello took most of the lead vocals, while Toussaint added his trademark piano and some nifty new arrangements performed by the four-piece Crescent City Horns.
The result was a generous 2 1/2-hour show that highlighted the two men's songwriting acumen while paying tribute to Toussaint's battered hometown.
Some of the Katrina-related material from the new album -- Costello's angry "Broken Promise Land" and the title track, for example -- didn't impress. But there was more than enough good stuff.
Costello and the Imposters kicked the evening off with Nick Lowe's "Peace, Love and Understanding" before welcoming the horns, guitarist Anthony Brown and finally Toussaint, who glided onstage halfway through "Monkey to Man" to warm applause.
The rest of the show interspersed material from the new album -- a mix of some of Toussaint's weightier vintage compositions and new ones by the pair -- with selections from their voluminous catalogs. One treat was new Toussaint horn arrangements for nine older Costello tunes.
Toussaint was an inspired accompanist throughout, and he also took the occasional turn on the mike, singing the irresistible 1961 hit "A Certain Girl" early on, and later delivering the '70s-era "Play Something Sweet (Brickyard Blues)."
Costello's right-hand man, keyboardist Steve Nieve, mostly stuck to the Hammond B-3 organ, but he did take over the piano stool long enough during the encores for a sharp "Clubland" solo that seemed to please Toussaint.
Toward the end of the set, a couple of dark, dense numbers sans Toussaint hampered the good vibes slightly, but a string of Costello oldies got the crowd back on its feet.
It was after 10:30 when the whole gang came out for one final set of encores, and the New Orleans party that had been threatening to break out all night finally erupted with the inevitable "Yes We Can Can" and a fun "Fortune Teller," before the show closed on a poignant note with the best of the new Toussaint-Costello songs, "The Sharpest Thorn."
Surely no one left the auditorium that day without an appreciation for Toussaint's singular talents. Yet tellingly, for his one moment alone in the spotlight that night, the self-effacing artist chose to pay tribute to the music that inspired him as a young man in the Crescent City.
As Costello looked on with evident admiration, Toussaint expertly played a medley of passages associated with New Orleans piano great Professor Longhair. The infectious melodies, laid-back virtuosity and irresistible rhythmic drive connoted New Orleans as surely as beignets and cafe au lait at the Cafe du Monde.
Contact Shay Quillen at squillen@mercurynews.com or (408) 920-2741.
Album, Tour Pay Tribute to Toussaint
Jul 02, 08:54 AM
By Shay Quillen, San Jose Mercury News, Calif.
Jul. 2--He's never been a star, but for hard-core music fans, the name Allen Toussaint is held in reverence.
Over a 40-year career, the New Orleans native has left an indelible mark on the music scene as a writer ("Working in a Coal Mine," "Southern Nights"), producer (LaBelle's "Lady Marmalade," the Meters), arranger (the horn parts on the Band's live "Rock of Ages"), and an effortlessly funky pianist and singer.
In the chaotic days after his city was decimated by Katrina, Toussaint crossed paths with the world's most visible music geek, Elvis Costello. The two shared the stage at various post-hurricane fundraisers, and the English fan talked the New Orleans master into joining forces.
The result is an album -- "The River in Reverse" -- and a tour that is letting mainstream America finally attach a name to a distinctive musical voice they've heard for decades.
When the show hit Oakland's Paramount Theatre last month, as on "Reverse," Costello took most of the lead vocals, while Toussaint added his trademark piano and some nifty new arrangements performed by the four-piece Crescent City Horns.
The result was a generous 2 1/2-hour show that highlighted the two men's songwriting acumen while paying tribute to Toussaint's battered hometown.
Some of the Katrina-related material from the new album -- Costello's angry "Broken Promise Land" and the title track, for example -- didn't impress. But there was more than enough good stuff.
Costello and the Imposters kicked the evening off with Nick Lowe's "Peace, Love and Understanding" before welcoming the horns, guitarist Anthony Brown and finally Toussaint, who glided onstage halfway through "Monkey to Man" to warm applause.
The rest of the show interspersed material from the new album -- a mix of some of Toussaint's weightier vintage compositions and new ones by the pair -- with selections from their voluminous catalogs. One treat was new Toussaint horn arrangements for nine older Costello tunes.
Toussaint was an inspired accompanist throughout, and he also took the occasional turn on the mike, singing the irresistible 1961 hit "A Certain Girl" early on, and later delivering the '70s-era "Play Something Sweet (Brickyard Blues)."
Costello's right-hand man, keyboardist Steve Nieve, mostly stuck to the Hammond B-3 organ, but he did take over the piano stool long enough during the encores for a sharp "Clubland" solo that seemed to please Toussaint.
Toward the end of the set, a couple of dark, dense numbers sans Toussaint hampered the good vibes slightly, but a string of Costello oldies got the crowd back on its feet.
It was after 10:30 when the whole gang came out for one final set of encores, and the New Orleans party that had been threatening to break out all night finally erupted with the inevitable "Yes We Can Can" and a fun "Fortune Teller," before the show closed on a poignant note with the best of the new Toussaint-Costello songs, "The Sharpest Thorn."
Surely no one left the auditorium that day without an appreciation for Toussaint's singular talents. Yet tellingly, for his one moment alone in the spotlight that night, the self-effacing artist chose to pay tribute to the music that inspired him as a young man in the Crescent City.
As Costello looked on with evident admiration, Toussaint expertly played a medley of passages associated with New Orleans piano great Professor Longhair. The infectious melodies, laid-back virtuosity and irresistible rhythmic drive connoted New Orleans as surely as beignets and cafe au lait at the Cafe du Monde.
Contact Shay Quillen at squillen@mercurynews.com or (408) 920-2741.
From listserv-
Some neat pix of the 6/20 Oakland show can be found here:
http://www.livedaily.com/photos/236-1.html
Some neat pix of the 6/20 Oakland show can be found here:
http://www.livedaily.com/photos/236-1.html