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Direct from Vegas: Sinatra show comes to Sidney

Bruce Hammond and his Electrifying Band perform Sept. 23 at the Mary Winspear Centre
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Bruce Hammond brings his take on the music of Frank Sinatra to Sidney, direct from Las Vegas, on Saturday, Sept. 23 at the Mary Winspear Centre. (Submitted)

Bruce Hammond is coming up to Sidney from Las Vegas with a show paying tribute to some of the best music of Frank Sinatra — and he’s doing it his way.

Direct from Las Vegas: Frank Sinatra, features Hammond in the lead role of the famous singer and actor who was a member of the Rat Pack in the 1950s and ’60s. Hammond will be working with a live band on stage at the Mary Winspear Centre’s Charlie White Theatre on Sept. 23, capturing some of the magic of Sinatra’s timeless music.

In an interview with the News Review, Hammond said he’s been performing Sinatra’s music for seven years, stating in a show called Shades of Sinatra. It used to go on stage at the Clarion Hotel in Vegas, which would later implode, he said, to make way for the ‘new’ Vegas. Hammond points out that her performances of Sinatra’s music is not an impersonation of the man, but a tribute to his music and the style in which it was delivered.

“You’re going to see and hear a live band,” he said, “a group of musicians backing me up, live horns, very powerful to have that right in front of you. It’s a high-energy show and these music arrangements are hot.”

Direct from Las Vegas: Frank Sinatra is Hammond’s own traveling show. He also performs with another Vegas-based outfits that revive that sound. About three years ago, he became part of The Rat Pack Show, cast as Sinatra. It was during that time he said he rounded out his performing calendar with his own tribute to the singer, which he tours around the west-central U.S. and Canada.

For Hammond, The Rat Pack Show is considered a pinnacle of performance for anyone in that genre.

“It’s the show many people are familiar with and it’s the biggest tribute. It made me a Vegas headliner.”

But his love of the music and how it affects people, has him touring outside of Vegas and that’s the show he’s bringing to Sidney next week.

“It’s a Sinatra concert, with tributes to Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Junior,” he said, adding he will perform individual songs and medleys of 30 of their greatest hits.

Hammond said there has always been something special about the music of Frank Sinatra.

“When the music starts up, you see the audience’s faces light up. They know this music. It’s familiar to so many people and it resonated in their lives. They have personal stories that they associate with this music. Some people grew up with it, others grew up with their parents listening to it. It stirs up memories.”

Hammond arrives in Sidney the day before the performance and said it will give him and the band time to work out the music and rehearse.

“It’s a pretty tight group of musicians, they play for a lot of the acts that come up there,” he said.

Hammond added people can expect a classy and fun evening.

Direct from Vegas: Frank Sinatra is at the Mary Winspear Centre Sat., Sept. 23 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available at the Mary Winspear box office at 250-656-0275 or online at marywinspear.ca.