Todd Murray is a throwback to an earlier era when male singers with legitimate voices filled the airwaves.

Murray has a smooth baritone voice that echoes Robert Goulet’s, with the sweet elegance and tone of John Gary combined with a bit of swing to create an easy-listening, relaxed style that suggests a hint of Bing Crosby.

In fact, Murray sang two of Crosby’s standards in a show heavy on 1940’s music  — “Moonlight Becomes You” (Jimmy Van Heusen/Johnny Burke) and “Don’t Fence Me In” (Cole Porter/Robert Fletcher), putting the latter into an utterly modern context as a man’s reaction to a woman rushing him into a full-blown relationship after a single night of sex.

Murray turned inward with two strong ballads about loves lost — a moody rendition of “A Man Ain’t Supposed to Cry,” (Frankie Laine/Norma Gimbel/Irving Reid) and a haunting version of “Time” (Barry Kleinbort/Joseph Thalken).

He also sang about love fulfilled in “The Girl from Waco,” then changed tone to sing about the frustrations of a love turning sour with “It’s the Little Things” – both of which he wrote — ending up recounting the sweet rewards of long-term love in an eloquent “That’s All” (Bob Haymes/Alan E. Brandt).

Murray’s effortless style was especially winning on “Stardust” (Hoagy Carmichael/ Mitchell Parish), which he sang off-stage to open the show and again at the end, when he combined it with a fast-paced “Wrap Your Troubles in Dream.” (Harry Barris/Ted Koehler/Billy Moll).

He called on the whistling talents of his musical arranger, Dennis McCarthy, to accompany him from an audience mic on “Dream a Little Dream of Me” (Gus Kahn/Fabian Andre/Wilbur Schwandt), then invited him on-stage to play piano for “It’s the Talk of the Town” (Jerry Livingston/Al J. Neiburg/Marty Symes).

The show, directed by Clifford Bell, featured a trio of musicians — Jim Cox on piano, Domenic Genova on bass and Brad Wackerman on drums, all of whom performed well, though only Cox got some solo moments and verbal acknowledgement from Murray during the set.

Also backing up Murray’s vocals were a pair of “hot Toddies,” Alison Lewis and Andrea Press, who provided artful, melodious harmonies when called upon in just a handful of numbers, but who seemed under-utilized as they sat out most of the songs.

Todd Murray will repeat his show at M Bar June 18 and 19.

Elliot Zwiebach
Cabaret Scenes
May 30, 2009
www.cabaretscenes.org