Pop Music : Natalie Cole Offers Selections From Her Father’s Songbook

It should come as no surprise to Natalie Cole that her recent Grammy-winning “Unforgettable” album--a tribute to the songs of her father, Nat King Cole--sometimes suffers in comparison to the originals.

Natalie, it should be obvious, is no Nat.

Still, the younger Cole showed herself to be a talent on Friday at the Pacific Amphitheatre, where an 80-minute journey down dad’s memory lane yielded a performance that was alternately powerful, romantic and giddy.

Backed by a core quartet of musicians plus full orchestra, the singer not only lovingly restored the songs that are her father’s legacy, she infused them with her own life and tender recollections.

Cole handled the more frivolous, pop-oriented parts of her father’s catalogue far better, as a rule, than she did the sweeping romantic chestnuts. She scatted with abandon and grabbed hold of every swinging rhythm her orchestra could furnish--even asking them to reprise a good number of the more rollicking passages. Her rapid-fire, staccato delivery on “Orange Colored Sky” was so full of life it practically leaped off the stage, and a playful rendition of the silly-but-lovable “The Frim Fram Sauce” was a highlight.

When she did tone things down, it wasn’t always for the better.

She managed a credible version of “Mona Lisa,” set to flamenco guitar and violins, but it was hardly the memorable, otherworldly quality of the original. Ditto for most of the other ballads.

Joyous and moving?

Sure.

Unforgettable?

Not nearly.