It’s a Love Offering between
star and audience as
Andy Williams charms packed-house at
the Fabulous Fox with Christmas show
By Daniel Hines
Publisher
America’s Seniors at
www.TodaysSeniorsNetwork.com
When we
interviewed Andy Williams before his coming to St. Louis’
Fabulous Fox Theater for his Christmas show tour, we were
struck at how genuinely likable this guy is. But we were
wrong…he’s not just likeable, he’s loveable and he took
advantage of every opportunity to reach out to an audience
ready—even anxious-- to reciprocate during his show at the
Fox.
It was my
first time to see the venerable star, something that I now
regret delaying for so long knowing that he was, all this
time, only a few hours away at his theater in Branson where
he performs 150 shows each year.
From the
moment he steps on stage, Andy exudes a quiet charm that is
endearing. His mellow speaking voice has not changed over
the years, and as he proceeded throughout the evening, the
sound engineers seemed to overcome some early mixing
difficulties and Andy’s voice grew increasingly stronger and
rich.
Add to this
his wonderful phrasing and what must be absolutely the
greatest set of lungs in any 78-year-old around (he held
some of the notes for up to what seemed to be about 8 beats,
never wavering) and all the ingredients are there for a
memorable evening.
Of course,
Andy sang all of his wonderful hits, but many of the
highlights were from unexpected numbers.
He showed
his sense of humor when he did his ‘Christmas Rap’
(claiming to be really the first white rapper), complete
with a Mr. T-type chain necklace, styled sun glasses and
even a ball cap which appropriately he wore backwards.
Andy is not
ashamed of his growing older. He delivered a series of
jokes about growing older in a low-keyed, but funny manner.
And, as promised, he did not try to overdo anything, but
instead was being just himself.
The result
was an intimate look at a truly gifted performer.
There were
other highlights, most notably the outstanding tap dancing
of the Williams Brothers, no relation to Andy although he
did introduce them as his (Soul) brothers. Unfortunately,
it was difficult to fully appreciate their skill because a
series of monitors of some sort lined the stage, obstructing
the full view of the dancers’ feet.
We said
Andy’s voice, always excellent, seemed to grow stronger
throughout the show. That’s fitting because the show’s
ending, in which he was joined by a local church choir, in
leading the audience in a number of Christmas songs (no PC
worries here, thank God!) was a unique treat.
Afterwards,
we were privileged to be able to meet Andy in a special
‘greeting’ room where we were joined by about 30 other
people. It is gratifying to report that up close and
personal, Andy, who had just concluded a 2 ½ hour show, was
as warm and charming as he had been on the stage.
During the
show, he joked that President Reagan once said Andy’s voice
was a national treasure. Actually, it’s Andy that is a
national treasure, a talented performer who conveys style
and grace to his performances and life.