POP AND JAZZ REVIEWS : Macias’ Infectious Beat Rocks Shrine

Enrico Macias may not be a household name to American audiences, but he managed to draw a full house at the 6,000-seat Shrine Auditorium on Saturday.

One of the most popular French entertainers of the past 25 years, Macias was performing in Los Angeles for the first time since 1984. He moved easily through a 2 1/2-hour program, generating shouts of enthusiasm after the first two or three bars of each number.

Macias’ warm-sounding voice and articulate lyricism were especially effective on the French love songs in his program; like Yves Montand, he brings a rakish quality to his readings that adds a sly whimsy to nearly every phrase. But Macias is far more than a ballad singer. Working in five or six different languages, he touched upon flamenco, rai , Neapolitan and Israeli music--among many others. And he did it with style, substance and an infectious rhythmic energy.

Best of all were Macias’ originals, a set of tunes ranging from love ballads to political anthems: “Suzy,” a sweetly tender piece written for his wife; “L’Enfant de Mon Enfant” composed for his grandfather; “Un Berger Vient de Tomber,” written in memory of the late President Anwar Sadat of Egypt (who brought Macias to Cairo in 1979 to sing at a concert for peace); and his first major hit, “Adieu Mon Pays,” for more than two decades a spirited musical rallying point for emigrants who--like the Algerian-born Macias--were forced to leave the countries of their birth.