Pop : Familiar Bennett Still Charms

There are much worse things that have resulted from hype than the fact that Tony Bennett, thanks to some shrewd maneuvering, is suddenly the crooner du jour of Generation X.

A somewhat youthful contingent did turn out for his show on Saturday at the Universal Amphitheatre, though the nearly full hall was mostly full of Generations R through V, the older-timers getting a chance to hear Bennett’s “Unplugged” act without having to figure out which channel MTV is on.

Over the course of two sets and 25 tunes, Bennett steered a steady course not too unfamiliar to anyone who has picked up his new “Unplugged” album; that is, the song intros were basically verbatim, the set list was three-quarters identical, and “Old Devil Moon” would have been the opener whether or not there was a full one outside.

Yet when a singer this accomplished announces that “I put together the finest American popular songs I could think of this evening” and can match his boast, familiarity hardly breeds contempt. If Bennett’s geniality is like the Beatles to feisty Sinatra’s Stones, the jilted lovers of many generations have him to thank for honey-dripping the heartbreak in such weepers as “When Joanna Loved Me” and “I’ll Be Seeing You,” classics that combine wistfulness and wit.

But it’s his lighter side that’s the indelible part of Bennett’s stage persona. The 68-year-old singer seemed eager to prove how undiminished his breath control is, resulting in a lot of big finishes you couldn’t begrudge him too much given the easygoing, casual charm of the rest of his delivery. The Ralph Sharon Trio provided the best of all possible supports, as always, with a brush-twirling snare solo from drummer Clayton Cameron a deserved crowd favorite.