Elvis Costello: Detour Live at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		4.0

Elvis Costello: Detour Live at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman February 13, 2016

Elvis Costello didn’t really have to take a stage name to sound more distinctive, for the oddly lovable and kind of patently peculiar singer songwriter was born as Declan Patrick MacManus, certainly not the most mundane name to make it big in the music business. Despite Costello’s long ranging success over several decades now, he’s never been one to follow the fads of the day, and his songbook by this point is full of rather distinctive tunes which are frequently quite unusual from a structural standpoint. Costello does what basically amounts to an “unplugged” set in Detour Live at LIverpool Philharmonic Hall (despite hauling out an electric guitar for such iconic tunes as “Alison”), offering an intimate more or less one man show (a couple of “guest stars” show up occasionally) that sees the artists moving through both hits and lesser known gems from his long career.

On a kind of funky set that includes a giant “television” which broadcasts a series of whimsical images, as well as a kind of living room with a comfy chair and floor lamp, Costello moves about and relates various anecdotes interstitially as he moves through a litany of material, including a couple of "unlikely suspects" like "Walkin' My Baby Back Home" and "If I Had a Hammer". Larkin Poe’s sister act of Rebecca and Megan Lovell provide some colorful support on some tunes.

Elvis’ set list for this concert includes:

Red Shoes
Watch Your Step
Accidents Will Happen
Church Underground
45
Shipbuilding
I Can’t Stand Up for Falling Down
Walkin’ My Baby Back Home
Ghost Train
When I Was Cruel No. 2
Watching the Detectives
If I Had a Hammer
Pads, Paws and Claws
That’s Not the Part of Him
You’re Leaving
Down on the Bottom
Blame it on Cain
Alison
A Good Year for the Roses
Side by Side
Jimmie Standing in the Rain
Peace, Love and Understanding
Golden Tom - Silver Judas

Elvis Costello: Detour Live at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Elvis Costello Detour Live at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Universal Music Group and Eagle Vision, an imprint of Eagle Rock Entertainment, with an AVC encoded 1080i transfer in 1.78:1. This is a nicely sharp and well detailed looking concert, one which benefits from relatively normal stage lighting conditions which help to prevent typical issues like posterizing and banding. Sharpness is good enough that it's quite easy to read the scrolling text on the "television" even when the camera is placed near the back of the hall. Close- ups can often provide a bit of uncomfortable detail, as when Costello begins perspiring as the concert moves along. Black levels are excellent, though shadow detail is a bit hazy at times, especially toward the wings of the stage.

Elvis Costello: Detour Live at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Elvis Costello Detour Live at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall features DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and LPCM 2.0 mixes (though once again Eagle Rock has authored the disc to default to the stereo track). Because so much of this concert is a solo act, there's not that much difference between the two tracks, and in fact in the solo pieces, the 5.1 track simply seems to slightly disperse the sound around the side and rear channels, leading to a slightly diffused sound. Separation is better delineated when Larkin Poe joins Elvis for a few tunes. Fidelity is fine on both tracks and there are no issues to address in this review.

Elvis Costello: Detour Live at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Bonus Tracks (1080i; 16:15) include Love Field, Either Side of the Same Town, Brilliant Mistake and Ascension Day.

Elvis Costello: Detour Live at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Elvis puts on a rather sweet and often funny show here, on a set that's as whimsical and unusual as Costello himself. His voice is just slightly raspier than usual, struggling at times to achieve his top notes, but his playing is wonderful and the song list is quite inviting. Recommended.