Michael Buble: Blue Christmas

I never used to have much time for ol' bubbles, but his recent albums have included some rather good new arrangements, including what seems set to become a classic Cry Me A River with its ultra-dramatic opening.

Buble is seemingly trying to repeat that success on his christmas album with the new orleans-style reworking of Blue Christmas. The arrangment seems to me to be better than Buble's vocals, which doesn't seem dynamic enough here. But the reworking is still interesting and highly effective.

I heard this on the radio today, and thought it was quite superb -- Buble' can be terrific, and mostly delivers the goods on stage and offers some solid studio work. He's certainly came on in leaps and bounds since relying too often on charts arranged for Frank Sinatra, and has offered some splendid, new interpretations of more than a few classic songs. This is good stuff from him, and his Christmas album is proving immensely popular.

I heard this on the radio today, and thought it was quite superb -- Buble' can be terrific, and mostly delivers the goods on stage and offers some solid studio work. He's certainly came on in leaps and bounds since relying too often on charts arranged for Frank Sinatra, and has offered some splendid, new interpretations of more than a few classic songs. This is good stuff from him, and his Christmas album is proving immensely popular.

Indeed, the arrangements he uses now seem to hark back to that golden era of vocal swing in the 50s but at the same time gives the songs and the genre a contemporary feel. And us Brits are apparantly treated to a 90 minute tv christmas special from buble in a week or two. No doubt, as per ITV's custom, it will be with a celebrity audience with pre-scripted comments and more than a dose of saccharine, but the music will no doubt be superb - and how long has it been since a singer was showcased in a traditional TV Chirstmas special here in the UK?

I heard this on the radio today, and thought it was quite superb -- Buble' can be terrific, and mostly delivers the goods on stage and offers some solid studio work. He's certainly came on in leaps and bounds since relying too often on charts arranged for Frank Sinatra, and has offered some splendid, new interpretations of more than a few classic songs. This is good stuff from him, and his Christmas album is proving immensely popular.

Indeed, the arrangements he uses now seem to hark back to that golden era of vocal swing in the 50s but at the same time gives the songs and the genre a contemporary feel. And us Brits are apparantly treated to a 90 minute tv christmas special from buble in a week or two. No doubt, as per ITV's custom, it will be with a celebrity audience with pre-scripted comments and more than a dose of saccharine, but the music will no doubt be superb - and how long has it been since a singer was showcased in a traditional TV Chirstmas special here in the UK?

Must be a season for music specials on ITV, as there was a Beyonce show on saturday past and a Justin Bieber special is forthcoming this saturday night. Beyonce's show was terrific, and played close to the An Evening With format, with a host (Steve Jones) and (pre-scripted) questions coming from the audience. She is one incredible performer, however -- a finer female vocalist hasn't come on the music scene in the past 40 odd years.

I can't recall what the last Christmas music special was on UK TV, but I'm sure there's something slipping our minds, and likely by Cliff.

I heard this on the radio today, and thought it was quite superb -- Buble' can be terrific, and mostly delivers the goods on stage and offers some solid studio work. He's certainly came on in leaps and bounds since relying too often on charts arranged for Frank Sinatra, and has offered some splendid, new interpretations of more than a few classic songs. This is good stuff from him, and his Christmas album is proving immensely popular.

Indeed, the arrangements he uses now seem to hark back to that golden era of vocal swing in the 50s but at the same time gives the songs and the genre a contemporary feel. And us Brits are apparantly treated to a 90 minute tv christmas special from buble in a week or two. No doubt, as per ITV's custom, it will be with a celebrity audience with pre-scripted comments and more than a dose of saccharine, but the music will no doubt be superb - and how long has it been since a singer was showcased in a traditional TV Chirstmas special here in the UK?

Must be a season for music specials on ITV, as there was a Beyonce show on saturday past and a Justin Bieber special is forthcoming this saturday night. Beyonce's show was terrific, and played close to the An Evening With format, with a host (Steve Jones) and (pre-scripted) questions coming from the audience. She is one incredible performer, however -- a finer female vocalist hasn't come on the music scene in the past 40 odd years.

I can't recall what the last Christmas music special was on UK TV, but I'm sure there's something slipping our minds, and likely by Cliff.

A Bieber special???? Goodness! Not quite sure what to say about that really. Although I do have to give the lad credit for singing live on the X Factor on sunday night when apparantly seasoned pro Kelly Rowland badly mimed her effort. Having said that, his was a surprisingly subdued performance compared to his one last year on the same show. Rather worryingly, I do like his version of Silent Night, despite the rather odd phrasing.