Martin wows ’em (again!) in Vegas

Curtain-raisers:

* Director Joey Romero texted that I forgot to include Regal Matriarch Mother Lily on the list of showbiz ladies married or linked to basketball players. Mother Lily has been married for almost 40 years now to Remy Monteverde, who was one of San Beda’s star players in the late ’50s. Also missed out: Matet and Mickey Estrada, who recently lost their second child (born premature), and Rio Locsin and Padim Israel.

* Could it be true that the son of a comedian will be an unwed father soon? The expectant mom is not from showbiz.

* The 16th mid-year convention of the Philippine Academy of Family Physicians (PAFP) will be held at the Waterfront Hotel in Cebu on Sept. 8 to 10.

* * *

Now you see him, now you don’t.

When last "sighted" back home recently, Martin Nievera had his hands – and, ehem, mouth – full grappling with certain domestic issues during the press launch of his new album, When Love is Gone (released by EMI Records).

You know, is it true that he has stopped giving his ex-wife Pops Fernandez and children Ram and Robin financial support? (Actually, even if he denied it, Martin didn’t have to dignify that non-issue with a comment. All he should have said was, "It’s none of anybody’s business!") And is it true that he and Pops are reconciling (don’t you wish they would?)? "No," said Martin, "not so," although they remain the best of friends now and have just gone on a Mediterranean cruise with their sons and other relatives.

Anyway, when last heard of, Martin was in Las Vegas for yet another concert, entitled Unforgettable, where, as usual and as expected, he again wowed the crowd.

Let’s "relive" that unforgettable Vegas concert via the following review entitled What a Night! by Lydia Macresh (a copy of which was e-mailed to Funfare by Martin):

A capacity crowd of 2,000 people – Filipinos, Americans, Las Vegas residents and out-of-town fans – crowded into the Rio Pavilion at the Rio Hotel in Las Vegas to catch Unforgettable, the special one-nighter starring Philippine concert performer, recording and television star Martin Nievera. Many of them came two hours before show time. Some rushed in straight from the airport from places like Chicago, Texas, New York and New Jersey.

The lights dimmed a little after eight o’clock. The crowd went wild.

Screams and thunderous applause greeted the carefully-edited video that depicted Martin’s 23-year showbiz history. Amazing! What a career! And his star keeps rising.

Martin opened with his signature On the Right Track. He made contact with the crowd with The Way You Look Tonight. We almost didn’t recognize his old reliable Tonight, re-arranged for a jazzy big band sound. Very Las Vegas!

Martin turned the spotlight on 51 Filipinas who recently responded to the need for teachers in Las Vegas. As his salute to them, he did an incredibly beautiful medley of She, Wildflower and his enormous hit, Be My Lady.

The audience swooned and sighed with Martin’s rendition of Ikaw, a George Canseco melody that captures your emotions. Later in the show, Martin did other Tagalog tunes like Ikaw Lang Ang Mamahalin and his heartbreaking hit Kahit Isang Saglit.

Highlight of the two-hour concert was a tribute to the Las Vegas Strip. To the tune of Mr. Bojangles, Martin sang about Mr. Las Vegas, Wayne Newton. Martin admitted being star-struck! He also did a warm tribute to Clint Holmes, another Las Vegas headliner who is now a personal friend and fan; and a great impression of Johnny Mathis doing Chances Are. He crooned like Frank Sinatra with I’ve Got You Under My Skin, reprised Elvis Presley’s Can’t Help Falling In Love With You and ended the medley with Sammy Davis’ What Kind Of Fool Am I. The applause was deafening, People were up on their feet with his last note.

In the audience that night was Wayne Newton’s wife Kathleen, his daughter- and son-in-law. Clint Holmes rushed in after his own show at Harrahs. Recording star Sheena Easton was there from the start. She is also a big Martin fan. We saw the Society of Seven and Lani Misalucha.

Martin’s Josh Groban segment featured You’re Still You, To Where You Are and The Prayer. It was precious.

Guest artist that night was the sexy Korean songstress Jenevi, first seen with Martin at the Golden Nugget last year. She joined him on stage for a naughty version of Sway. Jenevi entertains the troops in Iraq as part of Wayne Newton’s USO tour.

A Michael Bublé medley was highlighted by a video of Martin and Bublé on stage together in the Philippines, where Bublé visited Martin’s opening at Onstage and did a little Moondance with him.

The great surprise number was a swing rendition of Michael Jackson songs. It was hard to believe how good Billie Jean, Beat It, Bad and The Way You Make Me Feel sounded, a la Martin Nievera.

Martin’s passion for family was showcased in a combination of songs dedicated to his sons, Robin and Ram. He spoke of sacrifice and of the perils of show business on the family. There were many misty eyes as he sang his own composition I’ll Be There For You, which combined with Michael Bublé’s latest hits Home and I’m Already There.

No Martin Nievera concert would be complete without Louie Ocampo’s Say That You Love Me. The audience sang with him, waving lit-up cell phones in the air.

The grand finale was a Broadway medley – arias from The Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables, Cats, Miss Saigon and West Side Story. Martin absolutely shines when he does Somewhere. The medley ends with Jekyll and Hyde’s dramatic This Is The Moment.

People were on their feet. Hundreds of fans rushed to the front of the stage armed with cameras, wanting to touch Martin, shouting for an encore.

Martin came out one more time, elated and visibly moved by the response, and sang his monster hit, You Are My Song. We could hardly hear him above the din of the fans. Finally, the curtains closed. It was over.

After the show, Martin entertained hundreds of fans for over two hours at the foyer of the Pavilion, signing autographs, posing for pictures, meeting old friends and making new ones.

What a night!

Unforgettable? You bet it was.

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