The Philadelphia Inquirer from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania • Page 162

8-J Sunday, March 16, 1986 The Philadelphia Inquirer New album shows Elvis Costello to be an artist in transition O- -o RIGHT NOW, PETITE LOBSTER TAILS ARE THE MAINE EVENT AT BOSTON. ONLY $11.95 Poprock topics 1 if i By Ken Tucker Inquirer Popular Uusic Critic King of America (Columbia) is not the place to start your Elvis Costello collection. Oh, it's a good record, occasionally an exciting one, but at least some of its pleasure depends on a considerable knowledge of the singer-songwriter's career. This is not encouraging in an artist still struggling, 10 years on, to break the confines of cult stardom. The ironies and in-jokes begin with the album title.

Costello is an Englishman who adores American pop music; he began his career in the wake of British punk rock circa 1976, but was never a punk himself his sense of craft and veneration for his forebears did not permit him to become as willfully crude as the punks. No, Costello did want to be a "king of America" in the sense that he desired rock stardom as a way to prove that his intricate style could be popular, that his music had appeal to the country that invented rock-and-roll. But except for "Every Day I Write the Book," a Top 40 hit single in 1983 du jour, popover and a trip to our Salad Pier. Make an evening at Boston your Maine event this week. Offer continues now through March 30, 1986.

Call for reservations. 1 he Boston Sea Party is celebrating with a special entree. For a limited time, we're serving sweet, tender Petite Maine Lobster Tails. Just $11.95. The price includes lour tails, potato, vegetable 6 HI Elvis Costello 10 years and still a cult figure 1854 East Marlton Pike, Cherry Hill, NJ 424-0153 2350 North Easton Road, Willow Grove, PA 657-3847 .0 and a song Costello now professes to despise a kind of a hack pop song, '-T-ill i he recently described it in Musician magazine), Costello has never achieved stateside success beyond at trading rave reviews and a devoted SEATS NOW AT BOX OFFICE BY PHONE CALL (215)238-9030 (OURGI BY PHONE 24 HOURS A DAY, 7 DAYS A WEEK) cult following.

A brilliant mistake In a not-so-roundabout way, it is I i. -w- I this situation to which Costello re turns again and again on King of America. "He was a fine idea at the I IUMMI LUCIE ARIMAZ 1 i time Now he's a brilliant mistake, he croons on the album's opening TUNE song. Brilliant Mistake, and its far" nearly impossible to think that Cos NELL TOM tello isn referring, on one level, to himself, to the wayward turns his CARTER DREESEN April 10-13 career has taken. GLLN CAMPBELL April 3-6 Costello concludes the first side of the album with "I'll Wear It Proud ly," in which he murmurs, "If they had a King of Fools, then I could wear that crown," and over the course of these 15 songs, there are many thinly veiled references to Allen Spivak and Larry Magid Present PATTI LA BELLE MARCH 29-iUSOLD OUT! Extended Engagement Due To Popular Demand! TICKETS AVAILABLE FOR: Sunday, March 23 9:30 PM $27.50 Wednesday.

March 26 8:30 PM $25.00 Thursday. March 27 8:30 PM $2500 Friday. March 28 8:00 11.30 PM $2730 Saturday. March 29 8:00 11:30 PM $27.50 Sunday. March 30 6:00 9:30 PM $27 50 tor sKimroom reservation call l-HOO-52o-293x the Tropiiana Bn Offue HO 4020 and all I irkwon locations To iharijr through Teitron.

all Philadelphia! 21 5627-0S 12. krsrvoOJ) 144-1770. Jetsev 1 2011 14 1-4200. Long Uland i5 lt) 7H 25oO. New York ity (212IH7-S8'W botched opportunities and failed am bitions.

Although he does his share of whining and offers his by-now-usual amount of precious puns, Costello's gifts haven left him by any means, Many of the melodies here from SUA NANA May 1-4 "Brilliant Mistake" to "Indoor Fire PAT COOPER April 24-26 works" to "American Without Tears' are lovely. Then, too, the music on Hllru lrn Vtiwd the album is more interesting than that on Costello past few releases He employs his usual back-up band, the Attractions, on only one cut; the rest of the time his accompanists include players as various as jazz bassist Ray Brown and Elvis Pres ley's former guitarist, James Burton For all this, however, the best new A Ramada Renaissance Hotel and Casino Iowa and the Boardwalk, Atlantic City, NJ 08401 Elvis Costello music isn't on this album at all it's to be found on the B-side of Costello's new single. The A-side is a cover of the Animals' old hit "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" MY ONE AND ONLY (as it appears in the context of King of America, it is just another supplicating howl to his fans). But the flip side is "Brand New Hairdo," a raw THE NEW GERSHWIN MUSICAL ALSO STARRING CHARLES tJONr COLES rocker that is completely, gloriously unlike the impeccable pop that domi 9 4 WEEKS ONLY! MARCH 25-APRIL 20 nates King of America. 1 SAVE ON ALL LONDON, PHILIPS AND DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON COMPACT DISCS, CASSETTES AND ALBUMS IN STOCK.

Clearly, Costello is an artist in PER PRICES 4 PERF. SCHEDULE: Ems at (in IFicem Presi nmMiiiui um Hrk 7 ini transition. Having broken with the Attractions and employed a new pro Mats, at 2 00: Sun. Mats, at 3 00 Orcti. 4 Mea $40.

Bale. $32 50. 25. Special Thou Mat. March 27 at 2 00: COMPACT DISC mo.

mux. cm urcn a mu; jjs: sale. JJU. zz.bU. ducer (the L.A.-based singer-song Hit M0UP (S(WII08 IB OK MOM CALL IJISI Mi cn it i i nrin.

2SoFP writer T-Bone Burnett), he is CASSETTES AND ALBUMS. FORREST THEATRE 1114 Walnut Street. Philadelphia. PA 19107 searching for a new sound. And in recent interviews he has announced that he has legally changed his name, back to the one he was born with: Declan MacManus.

It's doubtful that King of America will alter Cos- GuberGross Productions Presents Lli A ION (111 I I I -M I aaaaaaaaaaaw 1 tello-MacManus' commercial stand Swing Low, WW BEETHOVEN Symphonies 1 2 at ing in this country his music's bwee Ctiartol i i more baroque He's Got The Whole HOGWOOD combination of passion and fussiness is at odds with everything else on the radio but no matter what he does next, it will be worth hearing. I. World In His Hands Statidin' In The I. I U.AIUMY (M CI1I SIC x5 Need 01 Prayer favorites PINNOCK jdL ENGLISH CONCI The new Walter Hill movie Cross A DlUS roads, which opened Friday, starts 12 more off with great promise. Hill, one of the rare directors who actually en joys and knows something about pop ular music, commences his film with LIBERAGE a live-action reproduction of Tom Wilson's remarkable cover painting for Robert Johnson, King of the Delta Blues Vol.

2. The cover depicts John THE BEST OF MOZART I vr.AntMi son recording his revolutionary THE LAST ROMAN 1 K. joieiTAi.r.-- Marrintr Davis xademy of St. Martin blues songs in a makeshift studio a hotel room, in fact on Nov. 23, 1936.

Hill's version captures this set Chopin, Moar i A a. Rachmaninov. rn PHILIPS Wed. Hosted by ting perfectly the blues artist, supremely confident about his music but timid in front of a microphone, plunking out a few guitar chords and TUES. MARCH 18 thru SUN.

MARCH 23 lues Thuu. (8 00). Sun. (3 00). Thurs.

(2 00), $16 00: Sot. (8 00), Sun. (7 00), $20 00 PASSION then losing himself in song. An old conflict 3 jy However, as soon as our putative DOM DeLUISE Necpolitan Love Songs LuiuON hero, played by Ralph Macchio, appears on screen, the movie falls apart. As a Juilliard student in thrall nun re CNOITAL AUDIO I 2 3QQ ALL SIGNATURE, PRIVILEGE, SEQUENZA, EACH FESTIVO AND TREASURY JUBILEE CASSETTES AND ALBUMS.

QQ ALL LONDON TREASURY, PHILIPS EACH CLASSETTES AND DG MUSIKFEST CLASSICAL CASSETTES. PHVLLIS DILLER Sale ends March 23, 1986. out the old high versus low culture conflict: Should he play Mozart or the blues? Given everything that has preceded it including a ludicrous, bor-dering-on-racist scene in which the fate of modern blues is decided in a face-off between two white guitarists playing execrable hard rock it's shocking that Macchio attains his triumph in the movie by adding a little Mozart to his blues. In the context of Crossroads, this decision reduces Robert Johnson to the status of oddball novelty. Walter Hill couldn't possibly have meant us to interpret it this way, but he is going to have people coming out of Crossroads thinking that the blues is entertaining enough stuff, but it just doesn't cut it as legitimate art.

Making a bad movie is one thing; perpetuating a destructive high-culture myth is something altogether worse. WED. APRIL 2 thru SAT. APRIL 5 Thurt. (8 30).

$18.00: Fri. (8 30). Sat. (5 00 ft $20.00 The MILTON BE RLE MART HA RAY! Show originally scheduled for Thurs. April 24 has been cancelled due to the illness of Martha Raye.

Please return tickets to point of purchase for refund. Entertainment Now! PENNSYLVANIA; Anjmev9133 I nnrintrTr-T-im-riii niiiftintr fli -inniini Mir Trlon rrtnnTriuum rrhigniriMma ifnig Prussia Plan: law mm -Park City Mall: PMarMpnts-Tne Ganery at Market East. 11A Crxwnut Strt Rooamot BtvrJ I Cotf man Ave Plymouth Mxtlng-Plymouth Meeting Mult: Sprlngfiald-Spnngtield Mall DELAWARE: WWnHtuui-Coocora Ma Mjfm uim I JtrvatJ: Burtmgwn-buninqton teenier Cnarry HKKierry Mill Mall: DavfforO-Ueot'orrj Mall. Snooping Center Morrastown-Morrestown Mall. Voornaaa TrjNfiarap-Echelon Man..