Jessica Simpson - Reality Tour Live

Jessica Simpson, positive role model? She may not know what's inside a Chicken of the Sea can, but Reality Tour Live, her first concert DVD, shows that the singer, who's known for celebrity tabloid headlines and as the co-star (with husband Nick Lachey) of a show (Newlyweds) said to establish a new standard for dumb blondes, is not so dumb after all. In fact, Simpson reveals herself to be a more-than-capable entertainer, treating her droves of young, mostly female fans to a show that might best be described as wholesome, in a sexy but never raunchy kinda way. She may play on her image as a pratfall-prone dizt (especially in an opening Spinal Tap moment which finds her unable to locate the stage at Los Angeles' Universal Amphitheater), but the girl can sing--and without the melismatic excess displayed by most of her pop tart peers. Along with delivering the hits (including the single "Angels," with a video that's part of this DVD package, and her remake of Berlin's "Take My Breath Away"), Simpson chats close-up with some fans, gives lots of love to her family, and dispenses homilies of the "success comes from within" variety; pretty standard stuff, but it seems earnest enough, and the crowd adores her. Her pop-soul croonings are no threat to Aretha Franklin, but if she can develop a distinctive musical style, find a few better songs, and eliminate some of her vocal affectations, Jessica Simpson could become a talent to be reckoned with. --Sam Graham