REVIEW

LEE MEAD

SOME ENCHANTED EVENING, POOLE LIGHTHOUSE

Former Any Dream Will Do winner Lee Mead is miles adrift from the familiar territory of reality TV stars.

If this solo tour of his Hollywood Golden Age album Some Enchanted Evening is anything to go by, he'll be eschewing stints in the Australian jungle or the Big Brother house for some time.

It took a while for Mead's charisma to shine through, starting off nervous but growing in stature as he interacted with the audience - even literally when demonstrating how as a 13-year-old he was pulled behind the bushes for a smooch with a 17-year-old who was '7ft 6ins or something'.

Ever popular with the audience were songs from the musical Joseph - the West End role Mead was plucked from obscurity to star in as winner of a BBC talent show 10 years ago.

But it was singing the musical standards Mead has hand-picked for his new album where he really shone, bringing a distinct air of Gene Kelly to Singin' In The Rain (especially with the dance moves) and channelling the courageous soul-baring spirit of Nina Simone in Feeling Good, a track he told us he wouldn't have been able to sing a couple of years ago while going through his marriage breakdown.

Special guest of the night was Mead's long-term friend Landi Oshinowo. The pair recently worked together in panto in Birmingham and it was a coup for the audience that Mead brought this sultry honey-voiced singer to Poole.

Complementing each other superbly on Almost Like Being In Love, Oshinowo deservedly stole the spotlight with her bravura performance of (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman.

Proving that he can transition between genres, Mead did pop ballad with aplomb in his version of Tom Baxter's Better, then carved out a future vision of himself as an older leading man, bringing Jan Valjean world weariness and subtle strength to Bring Him Home.

Based on this solo show, Mead will be on our radar for many years to come.

JOANNA DAVIS