James Blunt, like most of us, has a job. He’s a pop star, a pianist-guitarist who sounds a bit like Rod Stewart and writes songs in the superficially intimate narrative stylings of Dashboard Confessional.
Blunt is very good at his job. That’s not to say he’s good, but he is very good at his job – something the Brit proved Saturday night at Magness Arena as he and a four-piece band rolled through a solid if uninspired set of blues-, rock- and pop-inspired adult contemporary music.
Blunt knows all the right moves, and he knows what to say. More importantly, he knows all the right things to sing – especially if he’s talking to/writing about a woman. It doesn’t take much to examine the sentiment behind his breakout hit, “You’re Beautiful.”
Compliment her. It’s part of the courting process. And musicians – especially those of Blunt’s ilk – rely on courting as much as any Chad out on a Saturday night.
Saturday’s set was predictable, starting from the opening trio of “Breathe,” “Billy” and “High” and closing via his bland and uninspired cover of the Pixies’ “Where Is My Mind” in the encore. But it was consistent with who Blunt is and what his job entails.
The show moved along at a casual pace, which was key because he’s a casual guy in his red T-shirt and jeans. The music sounded surprisingly solid. The University of Denver venue could have been his biggest enemy, given its history, but the sound was reliable and rarely flinch-inducing.
But it was Blunt’s band that set the tone high. The organ was loud and potent – brassy even. The backup vocals were stirring and especially powerful given their ability to recreate the album’s layering and texturing.
“Cry” went over huge with the mostly female crowd, as did “Goodbye My Lover,” which displays Blunt’s penchant for the Meat Loaf-styled theatrical and overdramatic. He gave an entire chorus to the crowd to sing on its own, and the closing plead, “I’m so hollow,” rang empty.
He was much better covering Supertramp’s “Breakfast in America,” a whimsical offering that ditched his sensitive skin for a sillier and less pretentious armor. Capping the 90-minute set, “Beautiful” had him back in his place, rocking the day job, pleasing the masses. And surely his bosses at Atlantic are as happy as the fans were on Saturday night.
Ricardo Baca can be reached at 303-954-1394 or rbaca@denverpost.com.
