Friday, Sept. 19, 2003 | 9:16 a.m.
Who: Gene Pitney.
When: 8 p.m. today through Saturday.
Where: Stardust's Wayne Newton Theater.
Tickets: $48.90.
Information: (702) 732-6325.
Rating (out of 5 stars): *** 1/2
Gene Pitney's debut performance on the Las Vegas Strip is a tribute to one of the top recording artists and songwriters of the '60s and '70s: Gene Pitney.
But for a couple of side trips, including two of Harry Belafonte's hits ("Jamaica Farewell" and "Scarlett Ribbons"), Pitney sang Pitney for almost 90 minutes at the Stardust's Wayne Newton Theater.
He could have gone another 90 minutes and not exhausted his discography of popular songs.
The fans who almost filled the 950-seat theater would not have minded. They came early and they wanted to stay late, but, alas, Pitney left them wanting more.
Pitney will be at the Stardust through Saturday.
A tuxedo-clad, 12-piece band, which included a violin, horns and rhythm section, gave the show the feel of a major concert. Pitney, a perfectionist, refuses to accept anything less.
Before Pitney made his appearance, the band performed a Broadway-like overture, a medley of some of his greatest hits.
After the overture, Pitney bounded onstage and wasted no time launching into his string of familiar songs that brought forth a cascade of memories from four decades ago.
Along the way Pitney shook hands with those sitting ringside, acknowledged his roomful of admirers and made small talk.
Pitney began the evening with "Twenty Four Hours from Tulsa," a 1964 No. 1 song penned by the legendary writing team of Burt Bacharach and Hal David, who collaborated on a number of tunes sung by Pitney.
He closed his debut Strip performance with "Town Without Pity," the 1962 smash recording that became his breakthrough hit.
In between, he sang "Mecca" ('63), "Backstage" ('66), "Looking Through the Eyes of Love" ('66), "It Hurts to be in Love" ('64), "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" ('62) and more than a dozen others.
He sang both a medley of the hit songs he wrote for himself and a medley of hit songs he wrote for others: Rick Nelson's "Hello Mary Lou" ('61), the Crystals' "He's a Rebel" ('62) and Bobby Vee's "Rubber Ball" ('62).
Pitney said the only hit song he wrote entirely and sang was 1961's "Love My Life Away."
The room of mostly middle-aged and older fans applauded, often wildly, after each familiar song. Many of them mouthed the words along with Pitney.
There wasn't a lot of conversation during the performance save for a pause in the middle of the production in which an affable Pitney acknowledged gifts and cards received backstage from fans.
While he occasionally interacted with the audience, Pitney was busy most of the evening swinging from hit to hit.
Pitney's performance was almost as flawless as his personal appearance -- trim and fit, white hair closely cropped, nattily dressed in a sharp black suit and a black crew-neck shirt.
The only problem in the evening was an overly bright spotlight that seemed to annoy the singer.
Even though he had only rehearsed with the orchestra once before, he and the musicians meshed perfectly, and gave the appearance of having performed together for years.
Unlike some vocalists who have been in the business for more than 40 years, the 62-year-old Pitney still has a remarkable, distinctive voice that he has managed to preserve over the decades.
Besides his heartfelt songs, he is personally charming, and seems to have as much fun performing today as he ever did.
Tonight and Saturday will be the last opportunity to catch Pitney's polished performance, at least for a while.
Pitney's only other local appearance was the July Fourth weekend in 1997 in a parking lot at Texas Station. He says he might perform in Vegas again, if there is a demand.
Judging from the reaction of fans at his debut, this should not be his last hurrah on the Strip.com
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