Charlie Romo

An Evening with Charlie Romo

The Green Room 42, NYC, August 20, 2021

Reviewed by Bart Greenberg

Charlie Romo blames his passion for music from the ‘40s and ‘50s on his upbringing in a large Brooklyn Italian family who made music was a big part of their lives. Despite his youth, he has absorbed the sounds and the feel of the music of Dean Martin, Tony Bennett, and Frank Sinatra, as well as the sounds of Paul Anka and The Big Bopper. His delivery of the music and lyrics is flawless, given his smooth, confident voice and his perfect diction. He is very eager (perhaps too eager) to please and connect with his audience.

He brought along a terrific group of musicians (Matt Baker, music director and piano; Boots Maleson, bass; Daniel Glass, drums; Jack Cavari, guitar; and Dan Pearson, woodwinds), who provided great back-up throughout and really heated up the stage when given any chance at all. The evening kicked off with “Charlie’s Overture,” a taste of what was coming musically (though given the length of the show, it might have been wiser to drop it and go directly to Romo’s entrance number, the swinging “Moon Dance” with a great arrangement.

Romo also invited Anaïs Reno to the stage.
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This amazing 17-year-old is showing up all over town as a “guest star” in various shows. Her throaty voice and understanding of lyrics far beyond her life experience is arresting. Here, she received two spots—“Would You Believe,” offering skilled torching combined with immaculate phrasing, and a red hot “Caravan.” Any artist has to be very confident in their own talents to include this star in their show.

The songs the star delivered varied from “Put Your Head on My Shoulder” to “I Can’t Give You Anything but Love, Baby” to a Vic Damone treatment of “On the Street Where You Live.” Romo wisely avoids the trap of trying to imitate any of his artistic influences, even when doing lengthy medleys devoted to Dean Martin material or to songs from the Buddy Holly/Ritchie Valens tour. Where the singer fails is in sliding across the surface of his material, never digging deeper into his lyrics to personalize them or even play with them—no surprises. What is on the sheet music is what the audience hears. Through his music, his audience knows no more about him when they leave than when they came in.

Still, Romo certainly throws a great party. Audience participation is encouraged. He comes out into the audience to make contact with his fans. Eagerly, he points out his parents and his future in-laws in attendance.; no one is excluded from the fun. The only thing missing is the personalization of the songs.