Maurice Hines is captivating.  Simple and serious and glorious.  He is exuberant and bursting with life and possibilities. 

Oh yeah – he can sing and dance too.

Hines has been dancing since he was five – and he will tell you that amounts to 64 years of being in show business.  And in that time he has been weathered like a fine piece of leather.  His skills and his knowledge combine at this time in his life to produce a man who cannot just sing a song.  Hines weaves a story.

Actually he does more than that – he is a craftsman who gives you an entire tapestry with each song.  For instance Love the One You're With – by

Stephen Stills – I had never heard these lyrics before:

Well there's a rose in the fisted glove

And eagle flies with the dove

And if you can't be with the one you love honey

Love the one you're with

Oh I know the song and thought I knew the lyrics – but I didn’t.  And it took Maurice Hines to make me slow down and smell the coffee.

He does this with each of his numbers – Charlie Chaplin’s Smile becomes a life motto that gets shined every day.  Hine’s tributes are just that – he includes the men who inspired him – Frank Sinatra, Joe Williams, Nat King Cole.  These are giants, and Hines tributes match their stature note for note.

Hines is backed up by the phenomenal Sherrie Maricle and her Divas.  This is not a band – it is a flat out orchestra featuring two trumpets, a trombone, three saxophones, bass, piano and Ms. Maricle on drums.  I don’t think I have ever seen so many different mutes in one sitting.  Their sound is equal to Hines and brings back the big band essence with a precision that is positively delicious.

He closes his show as he begins it, by thanking us for making the trek through the cold winter night and for making his evening.  He is having fun, he tells us over and over again.  And you get the feeling that you, personally had something to do with it.

But that is what all great performers do – they make you believe that they love you.  Because they do. 

Maurice Hines is stellar.  This is a glorious evening that you should fit into your schedule!!

And you can get a little taste of him here.  http://54below.com/wordpress/?artist=maurice-hines

Through December 29th 54 BELOW is located at 254 West 54th Street. Tickets and information are available a twww.54Below.com.

A note on 54 Below:

Designed by Tony Award winner John Lee Beatty and architect Richard Lewis, lit by Tony Award winner Ken Billington, and with sound by Tony Award nominee Peter Hylenski, 54 BELOW features an in-your-living-room intimate relationship between its performers and audiences. Tony Award winner Scott Wittman serves as creative consultant and MAC Award Winner Phil Geoffrey Bond serves as director of programming. André J. Marrero is the Executive Chef of the new venue, which provides a food and beverage menu from early evening through the wee hours of the morning that is worthy of the world-class entertainment on the stage. Bringing together his love of the arts with his passion for cooking and hospitality, Chef André has created a market driven contemporary bistro menu that includes ingredients sourced from all over the world.

54 BELOW is managed by Tony Award winning producers Tom Viertel, Marc Routh, Richard Frankel, and Steven Baruch. 54 BELOW features up to three shows nightly and has audio and video recording capabilities. The cover charge ranges from $5-$85.