LOOKING IN ON: ENTERTAINMENT

Jerry Fink, Las Vegas Sun

Monday, April 2, 2007 | 7:12 a.m.

Canadian crooner Matt Dusk gained national recognition in 2004 when he starred in the realty TV series "The Casino," which was taped at the Golden Nugget and aired on the Fox Network.

Would he do it again? He hesitated before answering.

"It depends on who's doing it and what the premise is," Dusk, 28, said. "I'm not going to actively pursue a reality TV show because they're not very real.

"Overall it was a positive experience. It got me exposure, I met a lot of people in Vegas I became good friends with, but at the same time a lot of people didn't take me seriously because of the series. They didn't see me as a musician first, just a character being marketed by a recording label."

First and foremost, Dusk is a singer. Sis debut album, "Two Shots," was released two years ago.

Tonight he'll celebrate the U.S. launch of his second album, "Back in Town," with a show and a party at the Las Vegas Hilton's Shimmer Cabaret. (Joe Piscopo, who has been playing the Shimmer Cabaret Sundays through Tuesdays, is taking tonight off.)

Dusk, who lives in Las Vegas part-time, has been touring for two years, mostly in Canada and Europe. His last gigs here were in November 2004 at the Hilton and June 2005 at the Nugget.

After the show, he's going back on the road, opening a monthlong U.S. tour for Italian singer Patrizio Buanne.

"We both have a love for the crooning classics, and at the same time doing original music," Dusk said. When he finishes the tour with Buanne, Dusk will go to Germany and Austria, and then back to the United States for a "grass-roots tour in the smaller markets."

Dusk recorded "Back in Town" at Capitol studios in Los Angeles in January 2006. It was released in Canada and Europe last summer.

"It's just coming to the States now," he said. "And I'm really, really happy to be back down here."

He says at the launch party he will perform with his five-piece combo, singing classic songs, swing and original music.

"Singing is what I love to do," Dusk said. "This, for me, is a holiday."

Details: 9 tonight; Las Vegas Hilton's Shimmer Cabaret; $29.95

So, more Mr. Nice Guy

New Jersey native Joe Piscopo, who will be at the Hilton's Shimmer Cabaret through the end of April, really is a nice guy.

Just ask 69-year-old Barbara Beckenstein, who owned a dry-cleaning business in Closter, N.J., for 20 years before moving to Las Vegas 14 years ago.

"He lived close by, in Alpine. He and Eddie Murphy," Beckenstein said. "Joe's then-wife and little boy, Joey, used to come into the store, and my husband would take them into the back to show them how things were done."

Mrs. Piscopo (Nancy Jones) found out the Beckensteins' son, Billy, enjoyed "Saturday Night Live."

"Especially Joe Piscopo and Eddie Murphy," Beckenstein said. "And lo and behold, I don't know if he or his wife came in with the tickets for the whole family to go to the show." Afterward, the Beckensteins were escorted backstage to meet Piscopo and Murphy.

"They were so hospitable," she said.

Piscopo gave her son the SNL jacket he was wearing.

"Can you imagine what that meant to a 10-year-old?" Beckenstein said.

She said she hasn't gone to Piscopo's show at the Hilton.

"I'm close to 70, my husband's gone, it's hard to see at night," she said.

Beckenstein said she had a couple of other famous customers: Yankees pitcher Jim "Catfish" Hunter and catcher Thurman Munson. Billy still has the baseballs the late Yankee stars signed for him.

Details: 9:30 p.m. Sundays through Tuesdays, dark Wednesdays through Saturdays; Las Vegas Hilton's Shimmer Cabaret; $39.95; 732-5755

Fantasizing

Stephanie Jordan, vocalist with the "Fantasy" topless show at the Luxor, keeps her clothes on during her performances, but she's as sexy as any of the show's stars. She manages to be provocative and sensual without baring all, except for her soul when she sings.

Fans can check out Jordan on Thursdays when she performs as part of the "Unplugged" series, hosted by guitarist Michael Soli at the House of Blues.

Details: 8:30 p.m. Thursday , doors open at 7:30 p.m.; House of Blues, Mandalay Bay; Free