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Etta James; Solomon Burke

 (Hollywood Bowl; 17,306 seats; $95 top)

By PHIL GALLO

Presented by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Assn. Reviewed Aug. 13, 2008.
 
Bands: (EJ) Etta James, Bobby Murray, Josh Sklair, Dave Matthews, Kraig Kilby, Jimmy Z, Danto James, Sammento James; (SB) John Wargo, Stoney Dixon, Rudy Copeland, Allen DeVille, Michael Harris, Daniel Hoffman, Keith Ladinsky, Sam Mayfield, Mandale McGee, Phil Ranelin, Carle Vickers, Simona Mana, Raffaella Stripe, Solomon Burke Jr., Candy Burke. Also appearing: Paolo Nutini.
 

Two legends threw no curveballs into their standard sets at the Hollywood Bowl and one came out like a warhorse and the other emerged as vital and current. Etta James, slimmed down via surgery from what she says was 500 pounds, took a seat and played sassy and sensual all night; Solomon Burke, in a sparkling black suit, red shirt and white tie, sat on his throne and delivered a riveting hour that spanned the past 45 years. Fine as James was, this was King Solomon's night.

James, 70, and Burke, 68, made their careers straddling the fences of genres, and Burke's newest disc, "Like a Fire," released last month by Shout! Factory, again finds him fusing country, pop and blues, albeit in a setting that's safe for Adult Contemporary radio. Burke performed the title tune, composed by Eric Clapton, and while he added dynamics to the recorded version, it clearly did not have the lived-in feel of the other material, even the songs he recorded six years ago on the remarkable "Don't Give Up on Me." (The title track and Tom Waits' "Diamonds on My Mind" made it into the 45-minute set.)

With his time onstage reduced, Burke's show felt more focused, achieving a better connection between his early hits from the mid-'60s, "Cry to Me" and "Down in the Valley"; material from his previous three albums; and his tributes to late comrades (Sam Cooke, Louis Armstrong), a portion of the program that can overwhelm. Burke was seated for the duration of the show, his baritone pitch perfect, rich in emotion and unblemished by time.

James' voice remains effective; she finds notes quickly and without error, but cuts a fair number of them short. After her Roots Band paid tribute to the late Isaac Hayes by playing "Theme From Shaft," she chose a rough-and-tumble program that included Randy Newman's "You Can Leave Your Hat On," "Tell Mama" and Jimmy Reed's "Baby What You Want Me to Do," all of which were performed with lewd looks, suggestive poses and innuendo. A string quartet joined her for a sultry "At Last," her capacity for romance intact.

Paolo Nutini opened the evening with an assortment of songs that borrowed from a long list of influences -- Louis Prima to Gram Parsons. A likable personality onstage, he needs a tighter focus.