King of Canada
Elvis Costello, accompanied by Steve Nieve, played a rapturously received concert at the Orpheum in Vancouver last night. The duo format gave both musicians room to stretch, play with the settings of songs from throughout Costello’s career and debut several ballads from his upcoming album "North". They closed the show with the title track, which oddly enough, doesn’t appear on the record; it’s described as a "special track available from the internet," but I can’t find it. The lyrics below are from www.elviscostello.info:
The East has that Englishmen
And the rising sun
The West has the open plains
And how they were won
On Independence Day
For all it’s worth
You can ring those southern belles
I’m going
North
Up where the rushing rivers run and salmon leap
I could even get there in my sleep
Give me the ice and snow
Time to go…
North
So run up a banner and we’ll stand underneath
You gave me a starry flag
For one with a leaf
I’m on the borderline
I jump back and forth
There’s nothing to stop me now
I’m heading…
North
Up where the polar bears and moose and geese will play
And some of them address you en français
Give me the ice and snow
Time to go…
North
And so I must leave you all
Alas and alack
And though we are parting now
I’ll always come back
So as the compass points
That’s where I’ll be
But if you could only see
The perfection of…
North
It’s something I will always carry in my heart
A place when dreams begin and life can start
Who cares what people know?
Let me go…
North