Review: JOHN LLOYD YOUNG Rocks Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal for the Eighth Consecutive Sellout Engagement

Actor/singer John Lloyd Young, best known for his Tony-winning portrayal of Frankie Valli in the original Broadway musical Jersey Boys and for his performance in the 2014 film, has performed eight record-breaking sell-out headlining engagements at Sterling's Upstairs at the Federal since October 2014. His December 29th performance was once again sold out, with people waiting in line outside in the bitter cold for hours, and was attended by fans from all over the world, including a small Asian contingent from Japan and Germany. It is absolutely amazing to see how enthusiastically the fans respond to his first entrance onstage, and how they scream and stand up after many of the show's songs. He is revered and idolized almost as much as yesteryear's Elvis or Michael Jackson.

When I first reviewed him in October 2014, I had the following to say, "...if you have never heard his angelic tenor voice that glides smoothly and effortlessly into high-octave falsetto, you are missing a rare treat. He has a one.of.a.kind style that sets him apart from every male singer on the music scene today with a quiet, personable charisma and stellar stage presence that keep you hanging on to every note, every phrase."

With a three-piece band and fine musical direction from Tommy Faragher at the piano, who also supervised Young's CD My Turn, the December 29th set featured selections from the CD with one rarely performed song added - "Say No More" sung originally in 1969 by Roy Orbison. This time around he changed the order of some of the songs, sang a few different selections than he did the first time I saw him, and...included a few original compositions which adds another dimension - that of songwriting - to his list of talents. He did very little talking, but what was said was choice, like for example about Dennis Lambert, the "Rhinestone Cowboy" composer who lent him a batch of songs to listen to in Florida - which influenced him greatly in the writing of his own composition "Alone Together".

He made almost immediate contact with his audience toward the beginning with "In the Still of the Night" by traveling through the house from front to back, taking the ladies' hands, shaking hands with the gentlemen and sitting on a couple of laps to croon. Nice personal touch! On the flip side he later put on a pair of shades "for privacy" and wore them through a couple of numbers. I like a fun and self-deprecating sense of humor!

Highlights of the evening included: his opener "My Prayer" followed by, from Jersey Boys, his now signature tune: "Can't Take My Eyes Off You". Other beautiful moments came with love songs "Ebb Tide", "Hurt" then another same themed break-up tune "Hurt So Bad". There followed the gorgeous "Unchained Melody", Smokey Robinson's falsetto "Ooh Baby Baby", the beautiful but obscure Gene Pitney hit "Just One Smile", "Show and Tell", and the deliciously wild and groovy "Sherry", with audience joining in on a few bars.

In the newer section, he included the Mandarin hit "Ming Ri Tian Ya" (If Tomorrow Comes), a sad tune about a dying man who bemoans his fate, Lambert's song "You Take My Faith Away", Tommy Faragher's "Almost There" and his own "Alone Together", co-written with musical partner, musical director Faragher. The tunes are more contemporary in sound and style than the 60s hits, but there's that flavor of lost love and desperation still hanging on. The Mandarin was my favorite, and I must add, he played a good deal of it to the Asians sitting at the front table, to honor them. He wrote out several words on paper in Japanese, which he held up, to express his gratitude for their being there. He also gave these to the ladies as a token/souvenir of his admiration.

John Lloyd Young is an undeniable super-talent with a one.of.a.kind vocal instrument and personable, friendly style that will keep you listening. Don't miss him if you get the chance to see him perform live; if not, buy the CD, put it on the stereo, put your feet up, close your eyes and allow yourself to be transported to 60s neverland.

(photo credit: Lily Lim)

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