OTTAWA - Michael Buble doesn't have a Sinatra complex. He doesn't do the Chairman of the Board, he barely even sings any of Sinatra's tunes.

And neither does he have to hitch his wagon to that old horse. The lounge-singing dude from Vancouver made a sold-out Scotiabank Place swing harder than last call at the Bilaggio last night. And for a couple hours, made the hockey rink, and more than 9,000 fans feel all warm and cozy

Because he wears a suit and likes to croon classics on a barstool, some music writers have saddled Buble as the second coming of the Rat Pack. Why I don't really know. The guy is so hip, it hurts. Not in a hokey Dean Martin way, more Brad Pitt. Sure, he's got class, but he still likes to at least give the impression that he doesn't take himself seriously.

At the same time, there was never any doubt who the guy who's name was on the marquee was. Backed by a small but tight orchestra, Buble delivered a gorgeously theatrical performance that balanced velvety smooth vocals with a rakish sense of humour into an entertaining night out with the girls.

Buble's teasing started shortly after opening with a sexy cover of Cohen's I'm Your Man.

"I didn't know ladies could even make," he joked at the squealing fans before doing a couple shots from his new album Call Me Irresponsible, It Had Better Be Tonight and Me and Mrs. Jones.

"I'm sorry guys, there's far too much testosterone here to sing these wimpy, wuzzy songs to," Buble barked in mock shame, "But if I keep singing love songs, you know what you'll be doing in a couple hours" before launching into a fairly convincing impression of Elvis Presley doing That's Alright Mama.

But being a shameless flirt, it's impossible to take the guy seriously.

Until he sings. That's when things get pretty serious.

Buble's setlist was thick with standards such as Call Me Irresponsible, That's Life, Save the Last Dance and Always on my Mind, a couple of his own hit songs such as Home and Everything and a lot of musical high-schticking with the band.

Every singer's got their own version of Fever and Buble's smoldered hot.

He also did an entertaining duet with his sweet-singing trombone player on Try a Little Tenderness.

Most impressive of all was his encore, performing Song For You without a microphone.

That takes guts.

And just to show what a hands-on guy he is, Buble ventured out onto the floor to pose for pictures.

Classy guy, that Buble. No wonder the world loves him.

Opening the show was an a cappella group from New York City called Naturally 7.

This highly skilled and streetwise septet of vocalists prefer to call what do "vocal play," a fancy term for the imitations of drums, guitar, harmonica and DJ they do on a wide-ranging set including songs by Simon and Garfunkel, Mr. Mister and their encore, Phil Collins In the Air Tonight.