*** BESPOKE SONGS, LOST DOGS, DETOURS & RENDEZVOUS: THE SONGS OF ELVIS COSTELLO

(Rhino)

No, not a tribute album, but an anthology of Declan MacManus compositions recorded by others over the past 20 years. Some will be familiar (Dave Edmunds's "Girls Talk"), but as the title suggests, many of the songs are rarities that Costello custom-tailored for other performers (some are songwriting collaborations, like Paul McCartney's "My Brave Face"), and many have never been performed by Costello himself (like June Tabor's "I Want To Vanish"). All point to Costello's remarkable versatility as a stylist (performers as different as Johnny Cash, Annie Ross, Rubén Blades, and the choral group Anúna are represented here, though there is a preponderance of traditional Irish and English folkies), as well as his renowned craftsmanship with melody and wordplay. Few of these interpretations can match Costello's own bitter mix of misanthropy and frustration, though in his detailed liner notes, a generous Costello consistently praises these versions as superior to his own. Highlights include For Real's "Unwanted Number" (from the Grace of My Heart soundtrack), Roy Orbison's "The Comedians," Billy Bremner's "Shatterproof," Robert Wyatt's classic "Shipbuilding" cover, and a ghostly "Almost Blue" by Chet Baker.

-- Gary Susman