Leslie Odom Jr., the only man who could kill Lin-Manuel Miranda and earn best performance by an actor in a leading role in a musical at the Tony Awards for it, is now one of 2016’s hottest commodities. Along with man buns, Kanye tweets, Ahi tuna poke and Birkenstock sandals, the Hamilton star became a part of the national conversation in the current calendar year. However, while buns will eventually be sliced and Birks will soon be buried alongside male UGGs, Von Dutch hats and other various fashion skeletons of any man’s closet, Odom Jr. possesses the talent and range to remain in ascent. Complete with a collection of a sizzling, revamped show-tunes and baby-bottom smooth jazz, Odom’s self-titled debut album is a must listen for both the musical theater aficionado and lover of peaceful jams.
With ten songs running the course of 34 minutes, Leslie Odom Jr. provides an elegant and brief tour of his versatility through modernized classics. The album’s first track, “Look For the Silver Lining,” beautifully contrasts from the Jerome Kern written original popularized by Marilyn Miller’s performance in the 1929 film, Sally. On “Joey, Joey, Joey”, from Frank Loesser’s The Most Happy Fella, Odom Jr. sounds more like a smooth jazz Frank Ocean than the 1956 debut, “Smelling like/ Oregon cherries, or maybe/ Texas avocados, something like/ Arizona sugar beets/ The wind blows in and she sings to me/ ‘Cause I’m one of her ramblin’ kin.” Odom’s soulful, melodic crooning is akin to a slowed down “Thinkin Bout You,” a more than helpful hold-over until whenever Mr. Ocean decides to step back into the public eye and supply music.
Other highlights include Odom Jr.’s rendition of Ary Barroso’s internationally acclaimed “Aquarela do Brasil,” a sort of neo-samba so scintillating that it could play on a loop at any dinner gathering and not even garner a complaint from the grandparent who claims the level of volume in the room is at all times either too high or too low. “Cheer Up Charlie,” Odom Jr.’s try at the Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory classic, packs enough positive reinforcement to place a firm, unwavering smile on Tommy Lee Jones’ perennially stern face. Just replace “Charlie” with your own name and try and ultimately fail to remain negative as Odom Jr.’s soothing tone pours right into your heart singing “Cheer up Charlie/ Give me a smile/ What happened to the smile I used to know?/ Don’t you know your grin/ Has always been my sunshine?/ Let that sunshine show.” Let it show, like California summers — oh, let it show.
Odom Jr. deserves to be proud of his most recent work, a breezy and lovely listen for a musical theater novice like myself. At 34 years of age, it’s about damn time that the sunshine finally falls upon him. For anyone who has been blessed with the opportunity to see Hamilton live, or simply hear the soundtrack, it’s as equally refreshing as it is impressive to hear the lighter side of the man who brought such shear intensity and brilliance as the bitter rapper/singer known as Aaron Burr. A single sour moment or note is hard to come by throughout the 34-minute listen of Leslie Odom Jr., amidst a perfectly pitched year for the man who grants his name to the title. If you’ve already played the Hamilton soundtrack enough times that you now dream in historical rhyme, take some time and listen to a work worthy of additional accolades for the show’s budding superstar.
