For a good while now, a friend of mine has been
pushing me to give Michael Buble’s album It’s Time a listen.
Usually, I get all sorts of recommendations from friends, which
makes listening to all of them impossible. In this case, given her
enthusiasm, It’s Time found its way onto the iPod. What I
ended up hearing was mostly good.
Obviously, Mr. Buble’s biggest influences are
crooners such as Sinatra and Bobby Darin. When he channels those
artists, It’s Time really takes off. I’m a fan of this sound
— the big band sound, that is, with horns everywhere and good
orchestral arrangements. Buble, or rather David Foster, makes good
on this promise enough times on the disc to make it a success.
Most appealing throughout the disc is Buble’s silky
smooth voice. This style of music is almost nonexistent in the
current music scene, so to hear it coming from this young pup is a
welcome surprise. While he may identify too closely with his heroes
sometimes, his voice is unique enough to distance himself from his
idols. For example, “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” is essentially the
same version Sinatra sang, and there are times when you can hear
Ol’ Blue Eyes in there, but it’s still mostly Buble.
It’s Time consists almost exclusively of cover songs,
but there a few that one wouldn’t expect to find here. The Beatles
classic “Can’t Buy Me Love” is completely redone in a swing
fashion, and that freshness makes the track truly enjoyable. Buble
also delivers a heartfelt version of Stevie Wonder’s “You And I,”
one of the seminal tracks from Talking Book. While
listening, it was not difficult to picture Buble leaning against a
piano on a black-lit stage, with just a solitary stage light
illuminating him. This image permeates throughout the whole album,
driving home a connection with Buble’s predecessors.
Where the disc goes wrong is when Buble records
straight pop ditties. Although Foster’s production makes them sound
great, they lack inspiration. “Home” is a song anyone could hav
recorded, while “Quando, Quando, Quando,” a duet with Nellly
Furtado, just lacks a spark. It’s a shame that Buble decided to
play down to the level of today’s pop instead of maintain his usual
high standard.
More than anything else, Michael Buble shows here
what tremendous talent he has. Just the fact It’s Time has
sold as well as it has in 2006 is a testament to that. This is an
album that can cater to both the youth and the “youth deprived,” as
we call them in our house. That is certainly reason enough to give
this disc a listen.
