Not your typical diva

Divas are a dime a dozen (well, sorta), but a group of four handsome devils dubbed Il Divo, who sing like angels, are rare birds indeed (well, for sure). Not to worry, you'll be able to catch them tomorrow, June 16, when they wing into the Ford Amphitheatre at the Florida State Fairgrounds in Tampa.

Fans of Katie Melua will be pleased to know that the up-and-coming diva is a featured guest for all of the cosmopolitan quartet's 2006 World Tour concert performances. The pert Georgia native (Asia, not the U.S. state) has generated a following for her debut album "Piece by Piece," but the creative singer-songwriter's newest CD "Call Off the Search" is climbing the charts for her original songs "The Closest Thing to Crazy" and "My Aphrodisiac is You."

That said, the multinational quartet, composed of Spanish baritone Carlos Marin and Swiss tenor Urs Buhler, along with French singer Sebastien Izambard and American tenor David Miller, are on a world tour that looks to boost album sales and set records that surpass their self-titled debut album. Incidentally, that Il Divo album sold more than 5 million copies and beat Led Zeppelin's 25-year record for a number one album without one hit single.

The quartet's 2006 World Tour kicked off in Holland April 20, then swept through Europe and the Mediterranean with a final stop in Hungary May 23. Then, back across the pond to commence the U.S. leg of the tour June 14 and 15 at the Mizner Park Amphitheatre in Boca Raton, followed by a zip across the Everglades to their Tampa Bay debut Friday, June 16 at the Ford Amphitheatre in the Florida State Fairgrounds.

Concert groupies who favor lawn seating will be disappointed to learn that this is a Pavilion-only show, so leave the beach chairs and blankets at home. Did I mention that this generation's "fab four" was hatched after Simon Cowell (oh yes) heard a CD of Andrea Bocelli performing his signature aria, Bellini's "Con Te Partiro (Time to Say Goodbye), and decided to go one better and create a classically trained group etc., etc.? Now you know the rest, hmmm. Oh yes, their June 28 performance at the Greek Theatre, in Los Angeles, will be filmed live for release as a DVD.

The quartet's musical repertoire ranges from vocal and classical pop to classical crossover sung in a very romantic style, then classed-up and translated into Italian, Spanish or Portuguese — a ploy that made their multi-platinum album a top hit in 13 countries! No wonder, because it boasted not only a cover of Toni Braxton's "Unbreak My Heart" but also (be still my heart) Old Blue Eyes' classic "My Way." 'Nuff said!