EC & The Imposters play West Coast Bluesfest - Apr 17 2011

[sweetest punch]

Red Shoes: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MlQlvurAgg
Pump It Up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNEKCvwoLuc

[dpannell]

Elvis was in fine form. As he generally does in a Festival show, he mainly played his hits, and the audience really responded. His voice was in great shape, and the Imposters showed they've lost none of their power. A notable song was "A Slow Drag with Josephine", which Elvis played solo on a small acoustic, demonstrating a level of dexterity with his fingering that seems quite new. He's been practicing! His self-proclaimed status as the Little Hands of Concrete seems to be a thing of the past. Just as in recent publicity photos, he looked slimmer than he has since about 1978. Something else he's been working at, I imagine.

The high quality of Elvis's perfomance was only made to look better by what followed. Michael Franti was execrable, and Bob Dylan was huge disappointment. Dylan's band was fantastic, but Dylan himself ... well, I'm sorry, but I think he should give it up. His once-great voice has diminished to just a strained scratchy croak. There were indications that he was heading this way on Together Through Life, but it's got much worse. I had never previously thought at a concert that the audience singalongs were better than the main act! Mostly he just sort of spoke the song, rasped them, really, with just an occasional attempt at singing a note. It was painful to witness. Why he wants to perform in public in this greatly reduced state is beyond me.

[bronxapostle]

Dylan himself ... well, I'm sorry, but I think he should give it up. His once-great voice has diminished to just a strained scratchy croak. Mostly he just sort of spoke the song, rasped them, really, with just an occasional attempt at singing a note. It was painful to witness. Why he wants to perform in public in this greatly reduced state is beyond me.

well...this is THE WAY it's been for going on 25 years now. the NEVER ENDING tour is just Bob traipsing along doing what he does best...barking out his sixteen songs for the night in garbled blurbs in a somewhat musical tone backed by a fine band.

[Man out of Time]

Gallery of 11 photos from this show by Tony Lendrum:

http://www.theaureview.com/photos/west- ... -11?page=3

including this one of Steve:



Also this review by Simon Clark:

http://www.theaureview.com/perth/west-c ... 17-04-2011

"It was then across to the Park Stage for Elvis Costello and the Imposters. With a full hour and fifteen minutes at his disposal, Costello managed to dig through his considerable back catalogue and play a variety of tracks, from the very well known to some rarities. Having only seen him in solo guise previously, it was great to finally see him backed by his band. Despite a few early mixing issues, Costello offered up one of my personal highlights of the festival, replete with funk, folk, and rock, and a mean whistling solo. Certain songs garnered more of a reaction from the crowd than others, with well known tracks like "Allison", "Watching the Detectives", and "Pump It Up" getting the biggest cheers. Set highlights for me would have to be the aforementioned "Allison" (with added "Suspicious Minds"), a particularly rocking take of "Radio Radio", and new track "A Slow Drag With Josephine" (featuring the aforementioned whistle solo). The latter just featuring Costello on acoustic highlights his versatility as a performer, moving from band leader to troubadour with a practiced ease. Though to be fair, it can’t be that hard to lead a band of the Imposter’s quality. They were top notch throughout, with some sublime keys and organ from Steve Neive, some quality and solid drumming from Pete Thomas and some great backing vocals from bassist Davey Faragher. It was on this solid musical platform that Costello was able to add his trademark vocals and some great guitar work. With a varied but quality set, Costello proved why he is considered to be one of the world’s top musicians."

MOOT