In stirring collaboration with New Orleans' r&b singer, songwriter, arranger, pianist and producer Toussaint, Costello is at full strength in this bountiful, well-crafted set of syncopated soul with dark undercurrents.  Full text...

Mostly recorded live with members of Costello's backing band, the Imposters, in New York, The River in Reverse is an urgent, soulful collection brimming with songs such as "Tears, Tears and More Tears" and "Freedom for the Stallion" that are as much a celebration of a great man's music as a gut-level reaction to Hurricane Katrina.  Full text...

The album is roughly divided between covers of old Toussaint songs and new tunes written by both men, and Costello sounds at home in Toussaint's steady-rolling supper-club funk.  Full text...

Most impressive is the exultant "International Echo", a celebration of how the togetherness inculcated by youthful exposure to rock'n'roll bridges continents and cultures.   Full text...

This album is best heard through audio equipment tweaked to suppress the excesses of Elvis Costello's strained bleat.  Full text...

A polished set with no huge surprises, but Costello’s regular band, the Imposters, team up impressively with Toussaint at the piano and the Crescent City Horns, and Costello is in fine voice.  Full text...

The River In Reverse represents the first major sessions to take place in New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina. Conceived after Elvis Costello met Allen Toussaint during a benefit concert in New York, where Toussaint currently lives while his home is rebuilt, this album is proof that it takes a lot more than a hurricane to break the musical spirit of New Orleans.  Full text...

The River In Reverse is a dark, passionate work that channels its rage toward redemptive joy.   Full text...