Elvis Costello and his band pull off a deft bit of alchemy with Club Date - Live in Memphis, a 2004 show that mixes some of his oldest songs with some of his newest. That's quite a range, as Costello has been at it since the mid-'70s (as have drummer Pete Thomas and keyboardist Steve Nieve, who were once Attractions and are now Imposters); performing for a lucky few hundred souls at the Hi Tone Cafe, he dusts off several chestnuts from the early days, including "Mystery Dance," "Pump It Up," "Alison," and "Radio Radio," all of which sound great. In fact, although Costello is decades past the angry young man period that spawned those classics, the guy still knows how to rock, with a raunchy sound dominated by his own elementary but effective guitar playing and Thomas' tireless pounding.
The quartet (bass player Davey Faragher is the fourth member) also draws heavily on The Delivery Man, performing no less than ten tunes from the CD that was his most recent at the time of this gig. Meanwhile, Emmylou Harris turns up for three duets (plus one bonus track) with Elvis, among which are Gram Parsons' "Wheels" and Johnny Cash's "I Still Miss Someone;" the pair sound good, albeit a little too quavery for some tastes. A nearly hour-long documentary in which Costello and Thomas visit some Memphis landmarks (as well as Oxford, Mississippi, where The Delivery Man was recorded) rounds out a great-looking (in High Definition), great-sounding disc sure to satisfy the faithful--and many others as well.
--Sam Graham