Pop Music Reviews : Secada Strikes a Chord With His Fans

Want to feel out of place? Try being a guy at a Jon Secada show.

On Friday at the Universal Amphitheatre, Secada’s anguished romantic ballads and passionate crooning were geared to women--and was he ever getting his message across. That was clear from all the female fans swooning, shrieking and rushing the stage.

It was like being at a Tom Jones show 25 years ago, though the Cuban American heartthrob, making his L.A. headlining debut, took more of a suave, Julio Iglesias approach to performing, crooning ballads that made him out to be the sensitive, vulnerable, romantic type. Call it antiquated, hokey and maybe even sexist, but it sure worked. For two hours, the primarily female audience at the Amphitheatre was mesmerized.

In one sense, seeing Secada live is a revelation. On his overproduced, homogenized albums, his marvelous vocal skills--tremendous power, enormous range and a remarkably pure falsetto--are mostly buried. His show is a much better showcase for his voice, though on some of the arrangements his six-piece band and three backup singers were obtrusive and smothering.

While some of the songs had Latin touches and others showed strong jazz and soul overtones, it was mostly a straight pop show--heavy on the soaring, mawkish ballads such as “Eyes of a Fool” and “Stay.” He flashed enough versatility to make it clear that he could do a solid R&B; show or a first-rate jazz show (he has a master’s degree in jazz vocal performance from the University of Miami).

But right now he’ll only tease you with his versatility. Becoming a superstar pop balladeer is plainly his primary focus.