Maybe Johnny Mathis is used to it by now.
His every move was greeted with adulation at his tour stop at the Winspear Opera House on Thursday night. The intake of breath was audible as he came to the stage to a standing ovation, at first almost lost among the orchestra that flanked his band.
The reception was well-earned. And chances are, if you know anything at all about the singer, the set list is already running through your mind. The dapper 79-year-old, who had his first and possibly most enduring hit in 1957 with “Chances Are,” sang two songs before addressing the audience.
"I'm going to sing some of my favorites. Some of the songs," he said, and then feigned falling asleep on his feet and snoring to laughter, "you've heard before."
Every standard was like new in his hands, some greeted with the omnipresent "Woo!" that you get from crowds on morning TV. "Wild is the Wind," on which he was the original recording artist, was actually hopeful in his hands. "When I Fall in Love" was lovely, each note like a falling leaf (indulge me).
Proof of his enduring appeal was the makeup of the audience. Some of the "Woo" tributes came from Arlington's Jennifer Jackson, who spent most of the night with her palm pressed toward the ceiling (and part of it singing unsolicited backup on "Wonderful, Wonderful").
Jackson was at the show with her family, including her daughter, Audrey, and her sister, Katie Morrow (also singing unsolicited backup). Morrow explained that they've listened to Mathis all their lives.
"It's how he woke us up on Saturday mornings," she said, nodding to their father, Ric Morrow.
"He's like watching satin," said their mother, Lynne. Ric Morrow agreed: "He's unique."
Audrey, all of 11, admitted she wasn't an entirely willing participant in the family outing, "but he's good," she said. "I want him to sing 'Maria'."
The 20-minute intermission gave folks time to breathe. They needed it after a laugh-filled mid-set routine from comedian-guitarist Gary Mule Deer that had kept them glued to their seats. When he started up, the orchestra and band left the stage to go to "El Fenix, for nachos."
There's a reason the singer is on so many soundtracks: His voice can set any mood. Even his rough edge was smooth; the one crack was more like effect on an affecting "Shenandoah."
His four-song ode to composer Henry Mancini, a longtime pal, flowed right into "Moon River," on which his voice did all of the heavy lifting. Melody is Mathis' thing. You can sing that way, too, when you're in the hands of a capable and trusted conductor such as Scott Lavender. And then there was showstopper "The Twelfth of Never," which was completely captivating.
He was rewarded with a robust yell of "Johnny," quickly followed by another "Woo!"
Every hero needs a theme song. His just happens to be applause.
Dawn M. Burkes is a staff writer and editor for The Dallas Morning News. Follow her on Twitter at @DawnBurkes.
