"Love ya back" was Natalie Cole's message to her large and appreciative audience Saturday night at the Fox Performing Arts Center.

Although Cole claimed to be suffering from a cold, it didn't seem to diminish her ability to communicate on a heart level. Or hit high notes.

The 90-minute plus concert roughly broke into three parts: the first devoted to the Great Amercan Songbook and such artists as Frank Sinatra and Jack Jones; the second more concentrated on her father, Nat "King" Cole; and the third drawn from the "Natalie Cole archive" dating back to "Mr. Melody," from 1976.

Cole is now better known for singing music from her father's generation, but as well as she does it, it's a kick to hear her cut lose on the R&B stuff.

Cole, who recently turned 60, performed with her right arm in a sling, according to the Hollywood Reporter she had a household accident.

No matter. She made a striking entrance in a sliver, sequine-covered cocktail dress with matching, nose-bleed high heels that had Valentine's Day red soles and a matching rhinestone-covered microphone. Even the sling glittered.

The stage itself was dressed to the nines, and the curtains never closed so the audience could take it in before the concert. It featured diaphanous drapes lit with purple filters in front of a black background.

A trio of Nat "King" Cole hits -- "That Sunday, That Summer," "Smile" and "Unforgettable" -- had audience members on their feet -- and whipping out forbidden cameras to take flash photos.

A few minutes later, Cole got everyone else standing and swaying to her signature "This Will Be (an Everlasting Love)," her closing number. For an encore, she did the inspirationally-tinged "Our Love." She dedicated it to family members in the audience, including her son, and "my other family" -- everybody else there.