To the Streets, Huh?

When he's not posing for pictures in turtlenecks and convincing photographers to use their mastery of Photoshop to make his blue eyes seem even more piercing, Michael McDonald is a purveyor of, well, blue-eyed soul. And that means that he's a white dude who croons "R & B-tinged" songs that are frequent players on Muzak and chart-toppers on adult contemporary stations. A long-time touring member of Steely Dan and a sometime player in the Doobie Brothers, McDonald has made a career out of being the soulful white guy, often belting out his Diane Warren-penned numbers from behind a piano and then making Motown-tribute records in an attempt to balance the blue-eyed with the soul. Though we'll give him soul points for singing at the Democratic National Convention a few weeks ago, he'll certainly have to make up some serious ground after an inherently blue-eyed performance with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. The performances start at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and will be less about the dirty sounds of Motown than about men in turtlenecks. However, the DSO will lend a soaring background to the husky voice of the man who melts the hearts of soccer moms everywhere, and the fabulous acoustics at the Meyerson Symphony Center, 2301 Flora St., will help lift your blue-eyed soul right outta the building. Buy tickets at dallassymphony.com.
Oct. 3-4, 8 p.m., 2008