TV Review: Spectacle – Elvis Costello with Bruce Springsteen Part 1
By Laura Aguirre
It’s a conversation between London and New Jersey. The infamous singer-songwriter Elvis Costello sat down with the legendary rocker Bruce Springsteen on his show Spectacle: Elvis Costello with… The attention was geared toward Springsteen’s inspirations, his time on the Jersey Shore, and his humble beginnings.
The audience was filled with seasoned faces, all of whom were eager to see The Boss perform a song. After Springsteen talked about his road to stardom and made references to Bob Dylan, Costello asked him to play “Wild Billy’s Circus Story.” Costello, accompanied by Nils Lofgren and Roy Brittan (on accordion), played the song harmoniously, it was definitely one of the highlights of the night.
The two legends continued their chat in front of the audience at the New York’s Apollo Theater: talking about the second time the two met each other in Nashville during ’78. Springsteen teased Costello telling him that he once had said that his (Springsteen) music wasn’t romantic enough. The talk proved to be very enlightening. It felt as if two music theorists were teaching a course, but there was no boring moment. How could there be, with two golden gods on the stage?
“My music was always about identity, identity, identity,” Costello said, “Who am I? Where do I belong?”
The Boss said that his changes in music where due to him growing older and the different positions he was in. As an artists, he mentioned that he’s always been conflicted, and that is why he build something [songs] out of it.
The night ended with Costello and Springsteen singing a due of Sam & Dave’s “I Can’t Stand Up For Falling Down.” Costello seemed more energetic than Springsteen, jumping around and yelling into his mic. In the end, the audience stood up, clapping, as the two legends bowed onstage. The only thing wrong with this show was that I wasn’t there to see it live, other than that it was a great mix of insightful conversation and great performances.
If you missed the first airing of Spectacle: Elvis Costello with Bruce Springsteen, don’t worry, check out the schedule on the Sundance Channel website for a re-airing of the show.
