Swank singing will fill the air at a lakeshore concert in Hammond.
“Sinatra Forever” salutes the music and swagger of Frank Sinatra at a 7 p.m. Saturday show in Wolf Lake Memorial Park.
Accompanied by a 24-piece orchestra, veteran Las Vegas entertainer Rick Michel is set to dish classic songs made famous by “Ol’ Blue Eyes.”
Brassy fare such as the “Theme from New York, New York” will help set fond memories in motion.
“It’s not an impersonation show, it’s an interpretation; nobody can fill his shoes,” Michel said in a phone interview this month. “It’s an interpretation of Frank Sinatra’s music and his style. I give information out to let people know a little insight of what he was all about.”
Michel pointed to the lush sound that his “symphonic orchestra” brings to the performance.
“We have four first violins, four second violins, two violas, two cellos,” the 63-year-old baritone noted.
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Additionally, the orchestra boasts a sizable horn section, piano, bass and drums, according to Michel.
“I’m flying in my musical director from Las Vegas,” said Michel, alluding to Greg Bosler.
“He plays piano and he’s a great conductor,” Michel said. “He actually was Patti Page’s musical director for many years.”
Michel likewise noted that Bosler “played for Frank Sinatra,” while also writing musical charts “for me that are exact replicas of Frank Sinatra’s charts.”
Michel said it’s “the sound” that separates his show from the bevy of other Sinatra-homage presentations and tribute artists.
“I mean, you close your eyes and it’s Frank Sinatra,” Michel said of the audio atmosphere his performances evoke.
Michel points to “the authenticity of the arrangements” that help fuel numbers such as “My Way,” “Come Fly With Me” and “Strangers in the Night.”
Known as the “Chairman of the Board,” Sinatra’s approach to handling a song involved technical aspects.
“It was breath control, it was phrasing,” Michel said.
The singer met Sinatra several times.
Following encounters with the legend in the 1980s, another took place.
“I got to meet him again in ’95, three years before his death; he was very gracious,” said Michel, relating that he was photographed with Sinatra and his wife.
Michel said Sinatra heard him sing, and complimented him.
The iconic vocalist left behind a mammoth catalog of recorded songs that allows Michel’s audiences to remember the crooner in many ways.
“There is so much material to choose from that I can continue adding new Sinatra songs to my show for years to come and never get to them all,” Michel said on his website, www.rickmichel.com.
He has done his Sinatra salute often in an entertainment mecca.
“I’ve been performing in Las Vegas since 1981,” said Michel, who lives in the Nevada city.
He also has a house in Mexico, just south of Cancun, along the Caribbean Sea.
A well-traveled performer, Michel has made the rounds of Vegas nightspots, including stops at the legendary Sands Hotel and Casino, and the Desert Inn, which have both been razed.
Having stated for the record that he thinks Sinatra “was the most articulate of all the pop and standard singers,” Michel has not confined his salute to the legend to numerous Vegas stops.
“I moved on to other countries: Canada, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, New Zealand,” said Michel, citing the global reach of his Sinatra act.
The seasoned singer said a key to performing Sinatra songs well lies in the ability to give lyrics their proper attention.
“You have to feel the song; the words have to have meaning,” Michel explained.
Those attending his Saturday show at the Wolf Lake Memorial Park Pavilion can bring chairs, blankets, picnic baskets and food.
Michel’s “Salute to Frank Sinatra” has become more than a one-time event for Hammond.
New people get exposed to a bygone era’s brand of classic music, according to Jill Gajewski, Wolf Lake coordinator for the Hammond Port Authority.
As Gajewski sees it, Michel’s show is a cost-effective, all-ages entertainment happening.
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“It’s a cheap evening out,” she said.
Gajewski also points to the level of international standing that Michel brings to Hammond.
“Rick flies all over the world,” she said.
Gajewski cites the response of Hammond audiences to his Sinatra tribute.
“People rave about his show; people just seem to love it,” the Hammond resident said. “It is a great show.”
Bob Kostanczuk is a freelance writer for the Post-Tribune.
‘Sinatra Forever: A Salute to Frank Sinatra’
Where: The Pavilion at Wolf Lake Memorial Park, 2324 Calumet Ave., Hammond
When: 7 p.m. June 17
Admission: $10; children 12 and younger free
Information: 219-937-7942, http://www.wolflakepavilion.com