Jamie Cullum, so young, so talented.

(From Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Byline: Tina Arceo-Dumlao

JAMIE Cullum is often referred to as "Sinatra in sneakers," perhaps because he is only 23. But Cullum packs his music with attitude that certainly would have caught the attention of Ole Blue Eyes himself.

Cullum's music immediately reels you in from the first notes of the irresistible piano hook he uses in his take on "You and the Night and the Music," the first of the 13 tracks in his debut album, "Pointless Nostalgic," recorded in 2001 and produced by London-based Candid Records.

The young British pianist, singer, arranger and composer then effectively conveys his sense of longing and angst in his interpretation of the Vernon Duke and Ira Gershwin classic "I Can't Get Started."

Cullum easily moves from the classics, including "Devil May Care," "You're Nobody Till Somebody Loves You" and "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning," to his own compositions, "Pointless Nostalgic," co-written by his elder brother, Ben, who is also his musical idol, and the sarcastic "I Want to be a Pop Star" and some modern songs such as the Radiohead original "High and Dry."

While a growing number of young artists, such as Michael Buble and Robbie Williams, have effectively brought back the classic songs from the era of the Rat Pack to a whole new audience, Cullum is a cut above them because he not only sings, which he does very well. He also arranged almost all of the tracks in the album, except for "Devil May Care," "Too Close for Comfort" and "Looking Good."