Elvis on Elvis

June 2, 2002

A second opinion about the Elvis Costello show at UCLA, this time from Mr Costello himself:

The next show was part of my absurdly named Artist-in-Residence season at UCLA. Lets get this straight. I am not living on the campus, neither am I teaching, just two of the misconceptions that this title seems to have inspired. The Ackerman Ballroom had all the charm and mystery that I recall from seeing Steppenwolf play at Liverpool University in 1971. It was a dark, airless shoe-box, so naturally it was perfect for our purposes. It was also briefly illuminated by the first of our opening acts, The Like. True to say that this teenage group contains Pete Thomas daughter Tennessee on drums and our pal Mitchell Frooms daughter, Charlotte on bass and vocals but they more than deserved their place on the bill. The line-up is completed their companion, Z, on lead vocals and guitar and their songs have great charm and melodic invention. It was a big show for the gals and they did themselves proud and seemed to win new admirers.

This is excerpted from Elvis Costello’s fairly substantial tour journal. Also journaling is The Attractions’ keyboard/piano/accordian/theremin genius Steve Nieve. I’m not quite sure why Steve’s is in PDF format and requires a password, but it is worth the small effort if you’re an Elvis Costello and the Attractions fan.

Posted in From Blown Speakers