Singer Raye starts strong but falters with odd choices

COLLIN RAYE, E Center, Saturday.

Utah's rock 'n' roll first family proved they're also a little bit country Saturday night.

Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. and his wife, Mary Kaye, were on hand at the E Center Saturday night to personally welcome country singer Collin Raye. The special occasion was a benefit for the first lady's nonprofit organization, the Power in You, which aims to help junior high school students avoid self-destructive activities and build self-esteem through a teen mentoring program.

It was also a special night for Raye, who used the occasion to record his show for a live CD and DVD to be released at a later date. The Salt Lake Symphony joined Raye on stage to present many of his best-known songs with a new arrangement.

The first half of the show was dubbed the inspirational section to go along with the Power in You theme. Raye sang some of his best-known ballads, such as "The Gift," "A Mother and Father's Prayer" and "Love Me," which received a huge ovation.

The second half of the show was supposed to be more upbeat, but it never seemed to get into gear. Raye's eclectic set list went in too many directions and failed to generate any flow.

It was evident from the first half of the show with songs such as "I Know That's Right" and "I Think About You" that much of the crowd was ready to get up from their seats and dance. The second half seemed to be headed in that direction with "I Can Still Feel You," "Little Red Rodeo," "My Kind of Girl" and "That's My Story."

But those songs were mixed in with a unique set of covers such as the Disney classic "When You Wish Upon a Star," Don McLean's "And I Love You So," Randy Newman's "Marie," Joe Cocker's "You Are So Beautiful" and "Send in the Clowns" from Stephen Sondheim's Broadway show, "A Little Night Music," which stagnated any momentum that had been built. Raye sang well on each song, but they felt out of place at a country concert.

Other songs, however, such as Frank Sinatra's "The Way You Look Tonight" and Elton John's "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" came off well and were a nice addition.

Granted, it was a special night for Raye and for a good cause. But even for a man known for his ballads, the slow song selection seemed to be a bit too much.

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E-mail: preavy@desnews.com