Gimmicky Rick Astley Justifies All the Ridicule

Mojo Nixon dubs him a “pantywaist” (in the memorably raucous teen-pop put-down song, “Debbie Gibson Is Pregnant With My Two-headed Love Child”). Elvis Costello slagged him off in passing during a recent concert without even bothering to get his name right.

With all these forces of hipness aligned against him, perhaps Rick Astley deserved some of the sympathy due an underdog as he walked on stage Friday night at the Pacific Amphitheatre in Costa Mesa. But, in a tedious, sometimes oafish performance, the British R&B;/dance-pop crooner squandered any immunity from ridicule.

Instead of projecting an engaging personality on his first American tour, Astley offered gimmickry. Worst of all were bad joke routines and bits of pantomime in which he seemed intent on making a buffoon of himself. The nadir came when Astley tried to get laughs by chasing the bum of one of his female backup singers. You’d think that a would-be soul man would try to emulate Ben E. King instead of Benny Hill.

Martika, who opened, may be somewhat slight of voice, but the recently chart-topping Los Angeles-based teen made up for it with energy and a fetching personality in an enjoyably catchy set.