This came out in 2003 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
Tired of teen-pop? Repulsed by rap-rock? Had enough of hip-hop? Don’t despair — not every new CD is aimed at the crotches of the underage set. Case in point: This self-titled debut from Vancouver neo-crooner Michael Bublé.
Like Harry Connick Jr. and, more recently, Robbie Williams, Bublé (pronounced Boo-blay) worships at the altar of Frank, Dino and Sammy on this solid and stylish 13-song effort, belting out standards like Fever, For Once in My Life, Summer Wind and Come Fly With Me over a sizzling jazz band (and the odd saccharine string section). But unlike Williams, Bublé skips the smirking campiness. And unlike Connick, he also jazzes up poppier fare like Van Morrison’s Moondance, George Michael’s Kissing A Fool, The Bee Gees’ How Can You Mend A Broken Heart and Queen’s Crazy Little Thing Called Love — though he coulda skipped the apple-polishing cover of executive producer Paul Anka’s sopfest Put Your Head On My Shoulder. But even if Bublé isn’t perfect — or the next Sinatra — he isn’t the next teen-pop balladeer either. And that’s good enough for now.
