Timmons making music as Las Vegan

Jeff Timmons came to Las Vegas for a couple of weeks and never left.

The 98 Degrees singer looked around while hosting the Chippendales male revue last summer. Like so many Southern California transplants, he liked what he could afford in the housing department and decided there was nothing he was doing in Orange County that he couldn't do here.

And now he's doing a little more. Timmons is the focal point of "Wired," a free show on Friday and Saturday nights in the Ovation club at Green Valley Ranch Resort.

"I just want to do music. I just want to keep performing in Vegas," he says of the show launching Friday, in which he will mix his own hits with pop covers, fronting a four-piece band helmed by Ken Logan.

"I'm singing songs that I sing in the shower, just like anybody else," Timmons says. He will share vocals with Tymara Walker, and DJ Freddy B will help further the party atmosphere.

"This city signifies not only my new life and career, but my new life personally, so I have an outside affinity for this place," says the 39-year-old singer.

As Chippendales kept adding weeks to his run last summer, Timmons and his wife, Amanda, decided to stay in Summerlin with their five youngsters (two from a previous marriage) ranging from 6 months to 13 years old.

While he waits to see which of his various projects will come to fruition - a 98 Degrees reunion, a radio show, a reality show - Timmons talked to Station Casinos entertainment head Judy Alberti about creating a live pop show aimed at women ages 21 to 40.

There's not much live music in town for that demographic, for a fairly obvious reason: Dance music is what the DJs provide in the nightclubs. Timmons agrees that some hits are "so processed with the vocal, I can't pull 'em off live. People are so used to hearing the Auto-Tune."

But he still finds plenty to cover, from the Bell Biv DeVoe chestnut "Poison" to Black Eyed Peas' "Don't Stop the Party." "People don't call my music organic, but when you sing it live it ends up being organic," he says.

The free show is a value for locals, but runs the risk of Timmons being labeled a lounge singer. He's not worried after Chippendales. Many reports incorrectly called him a male stripper, but in the end the job gave him some of the best press he's had.

With 98 Degrees, "despite the fact that we sold 15 million albums, we never got good reviews," he says, "because we were considered a boy band." ...

Las Vegas continues to provide reliable contestants for network talent contests. Wednesday night it was revealed that Dareian "Dare" Kujawa of Boulder City has made the Top 20 of "So You Think You Can Dance" on Fox.

And though it's still early going for "America's Got Talent," two local variety acts survived the earliest round of cuts to make the field of 48 contestants who compete when the NBC show goes live Monday. The Scott Brothers (Robert and Michael) have done their synchronized "optical illusions" for years in shows such as "Splash" and "Enter the Night."

Less seasoned on the Strip, but still calling Las Vegas home base, are Jarrett & Raja, the magic-and-piano team of Jarrett Parker and Raja Rahman. ...

From dirty jokes to audience empowerment at the Rio. Brad Tassell's "Comic Therapy" is one of the more unusual titles to test the waters in recent months. It's stand-up meets self-help, from the author of a novel about bullying.

After holding his own for a stretch at the Royal Resort, Tassell moves into the King's Room at the Rio (both overseen by comedy promoter Joe Sanfelippo) for a 4 p.m. daily show starting Sunday. ...

End the month the way you began it, with retro striptease! Or, if you missed the Burlesque Hall of Fame, today brings "The Dixie Evans Burlesque Show" to the downtown roof of Binion's. Icons such as Tempest Storm lend support to younger stars such as Kitten DeVille. You can get in for $15 at 8 p.m. ...

On-the-town Realtor Sam Wagmeister informs us today also is the last chance to catch venerable sax man Dewey Dorough, who wraps a weekly gig of about a year's tenure at the Cavalier Lounge, 3850 E. Desert Inn Road.

Dorough is headed to Idaho, but not before he most likely gets called up by the Oak Ridge Boys at the Golden Nugget next weekend. He toured with the group for 16 years. ...

If you missed Wednesday's Lifetime episode of "Coming Home," a reality show that reunited an Army specialist with his family at Nathan Burton's magic show, it can be found on the cable network's website. ...

Finally, while Clint Holmes conquers the cabaret scene in New York, it's up to Tony Sacca to bring "A Taste of Vegas" to Hollywood. The veteran local TV host plays the M Bar Hollywood on Friday if you happen to be in the neighborhood.

Contact reporter Mike Weatherford at
mweatherford@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0288.