POP REVIEW : No Wasted Moves From Julio Iglesias

Julio Iglesias: the most popular singer in the world?

If the record company hype is accurate and Spanish-born Iglesias really is the hottest-selling international performer since Elvis Presley and the Beatles, he wears the mantle with remarkable nonchalance.

Thursday night, in the first of a four-night run at the Greek Theatre, Iglesias worked an enthusiastic, overflow crowd with the easy grace of a performer who knows what his audience wants and gladly gives it to them.

Dressed in a pristine white linen suit , Iglesias sang a non-stop, two-hour program of songs in Spanish, English, Italian and French.

Barely moving from his spotlighted position at center stage, he made so few of the larger-than-life gestures common to his contemporaries that it was easy to underestimate his effectiveness. But, like the early Sinatra clutching and swaying with his microphone, Iglesias only had to spread his right hand passionately across his chest and delay his line for the skip of a heartbeat to draw squeals of emotion from his entranced listeners.

Much of the material in his program came from the new album, “Nonstop,” with “Never, Never” and “Too Many Women” receiving especially fascinating readings. Other highlights included a set of Spanish-language material from his earlier albums, Willie Nelson’s “Of All the Girls I’ve Ever Loved Before” and a moving version of the standard, “When I Fall in Love.”

At its best, Iglesias’ appealing, international style provided an explanation for his great popularity. But the total impact of his performance, like an evening in an exotic restaurant, suffered the inevitable artistic consequences of providing a menu that tried to be too many things to too many people.