British rock star Elvis Costello, accompanied by
Emmylou Harris, performed "Gathering Flowers for the Master's Bouquet"
at his show on Sunday night at the Wolf Trap in Vienna, Virginia. I
thought the song was great, and I'm embarrassed to admit I didn't realize it
was a Stanley Brothers' song until I read the review in the Washington
Post. The review is copied below.
Jeff Root
Fairfax, Virginia
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Elvis Costello and Company At Wolf Trap: All in Good
Time
Tuesday, August 2, 2005; Page C02
Elvis Costello's concert Sunday night at Wolf Trap was a test of
endurance: His three-hour set included a 10-song encore and a 13-song country
mini-set with guest Emmylou Harris.
But even with such a lengthy nod to Nashville, the night was
typical Costello: earnest vocals, tightly executed arrangements as his backing
band, the Imposters, followed his every speeding guitar riff, and a casual
sense of humor. In introducing Merle Haggard's "Tonight the Bottle Let Me
Down," he joked that earlier in life his mission was "to rid the world of
alcohol -- by drinking it!"
While Costello's fervent energy built momentum through his set,
some of the evening's best songs were exercises in restraint. He, Harris and
bassist Davey Faragher clustered around a single microphone to sing the
Stanley Brothers' "Gathering Flowers for the Master's Bouquet," accompanied
solely by Costello's guitar and a violin. And Costello's mellow vocals
harmonized seamlessly with Harris on a cover of Chris Hillman and Gram
Parsons' "Wheels."
Not surprisingly, there were several tributes to Parsons, Harris'
partner early in her career, from a tender duet of "Love Hurts" to a
majestically melancholy version of the Rolling Stones' "Wild Horses," which
Parsons recorded with his Flying Burrito Brothers. But even in a set so packed
with covers, Costello's own material was the most memorable, as he closed the
night with his passionate antiwar song "The Scarlet Tide," with a haunting
plea to "bring the boys back home."
-- Catherine P.
Lewis
