11.08.2019
ELVIS COSTELLO AT THE BROWARD CENTER
Sun Sentinel: Ben Crandell: November 8th 2019
Poignant, emotional and energizing, it was a crowning moment near the end of an efficient 90-minute set in front of a packed house in the venue’s 5,500-seat Au-Rene Theater. Which was just as well, as the preceding time allowed the sound mix (muddy at the outset) and the crowd (somnambulant until halftime) to find their balance.
Elvis Costello & the Imposters’ Just Trust Tour takes its name not (exactly) from his under-appreciated 1981 album “Trust,” but rather the idea that fans who were curious about whether he would deliver their favorite songs would just have to … trust.
While this meant that many in the audience likely left without hearing at least one of their favorite numbers (ahem, “Shipbuilding”?), the show’s two-dozen songs offered an invigorating stream of old-school favorites and rarities from an admired 65-year-old performer who, if the applause was any indication, was equal to the expectations set by an audience of longtime fans.