Can't Help Falling in Love - Michael Bubl?, Creatore, Luigi
My Funny Valentine - Michael Bubl?, Hart, Lorenz
Mack the Knife - Michael Bubl?, Blitzstein, Marc
Fever - Michael Bubl?, Cooley, Eddie
You'll Never Know - Michael Bubl?, Gordon, Mack
For Once in My Life - Michael Bubl?, Miller, Ronald
Moondance - Michael Bubl?, Morrison, Van
A year after his slickly produced recording debut launched him on a meteoric course to stardom, this combo DVD/CD set chronicles Michael Buble's crowd-pleasing live performances before amphitheater-sized crowds on a triump... more »hant national tour. The audio portion kicks off with a pair of new studio recordings again reinforcing the 20-something Canadian heartthrob's 1950s-something artistic tack with mixed results: "Nice 'n' Easy" has a Sinatra-faithful jazzy swing; the overproduced, somnambulistic "Can't Help Falling in Love" evokes Perry Como more than Elvis. The remainder of the audio CD is comprised mostly of live versions of songs from Buble's debut, with his takes of "My Funny Valentine," "Fever," Van Morrison's "Moondance," and "Mack the Knife" again suggesting that Buble has an ear cocked wisely towards the Bobby Darin oeuvre. But with the notable exception of three elegant live-in-studio performances culled from Sessions@AOL, the live DVD does Buble's undeniably charming stage presence a great disservice. Intercut awkwardly with offstage comments by Buble and his band, the balance of that disc suffers from an MTV-inspired, cut/dissolve-every-three-seconds style that's intended to focus one's attention, but does exactly the opposite. If sudden stardom virtually guarantees that Buble's impossibly smooth, expressive voice seldom ventures very far outside the Sinatra/Darin mold here, hopefully he'll leverage that fame towards greater artistic challenges in the near future. --Jerry McCulley« less
A year after his slickly produced recording debut launched him on a meteoric course to stardom, this combo DVD/CD set chronicles Michael Buble's crowd-pleasing live performances before amphitheater-sized crowds on a triumphant national tour. The audio portion kicks off with a pair of new studio recordings again reinforcing the 20-something Canadian heartthrob's 1950s-something artistic tack with mixed results: "Nice 'n' Easy" has a Sinatra-faithful jazzy swing; the overproduced, somnambulistic "Can't Help Falling in Love" evokes Perry Como more than Elvis. The remainder of the audio CD is comprised mostly of live versions of songs from Buble's debut, with his takes of "My Funny Valentine," "Fever," Van Morrison's "Moondance," and "Mack the Knife" again suggesting that Buble has an ear cocked wisely towards the Bobby Darin oeuvre. But with the notable exception of three elegant live-in-studio performances culled from Sessions@AOL, the live DVD does Buble's undeniably charming stage presence a great disservice. Intercut awkwardly with offstage comments by Buble and his band, the balance of that disc suffers from an MTV-inspired, cut/dissolve-every-three-seconds style that's intended to focus one's attention, but does exactly the opposite. If sudden stardom virtually guarantees that Buble's impossibly smooth, expressive voice seldom ventures very far outside the Sinatra/Darin mold here, hopefully he'll leverage that fame towards greater artistic challenges in the near future. --Jerry McCulley
"This DVD was the first one released by Michael Buble, and I bought it in hopes of seeing some of his live performances. There are segments of performances, but the editing and fast, wild cuts from one angle to the next to the next to the next really detract from the overall effect. The performances get largely lost. What remains is a LOT of footage of Michael and his original bandmembers drinking, clubbing, gambling, womanizing, and generally acting like rowdy frat boys.
If you really want to be wowed and experience what a live Buble concert is like, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND "Caught in the Act". This DVD lives up to it's name as part of the PBS Great Performances series produced by David Foster. "Caught in the Act" is slick, glossy, flashy, enormously fun and absolutely true to the real experience. I've seen Buble perform live twice, and I can attest that "Caught in the Act" is just about as good as being there."
Sublime showcase of the new Voice
Tom Harrison | Melbourne, Australia | 07/17/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Michael Buble is taking the music world by storm - weaving his way through the masses of manufactured two-bit pop 'stars' and the hip-hop onslaught, and proving that big band jazz vocalists can still make it in the 21st century.
This DVD also proves that it is possible to watch such music on film and not lose complete interest in the genre. Buble is the sort of guy record companies must live for - good looking, crowd-grabbing, popular, youthful, and then there's that little matter of his voice. This concert DVD is focused solely on Michael Buble, and rightly so. The guy is a master. He oozes personality and class, and has you in the palm of his hand once he's warmed up.This DVD is very well produced, combining live stage performances and interviews with Buble and his band members. Unlike some music DVDs that do this, the interviews do not cut into the music, and all tracks are shown in full. The interviews show an insight into the man behind the microphone, and Buble is displayed as a fun, humorous, easy-going guy - much like his singing.
The audio is very good, except in some parts where Buble sings very softly and words are hard to understand, but he quickly breaks out into his trademark blow-you-away finishes, so this is not too bad.
The visuals are very good. Filming a concert where all the crowd remain in their seats, and there is not a lot of electricity coming from them other than end-of-song applause means the star must be entertaining. And Buble does not fail, especially since the editing is done with shots fading in over the top of each other to keep things interesting - lots of angles, crowd shots, band member focus, and an effective use of black & white footage in parts. Very clear, and quality watching.
The CD is an extra bonus, with previously unreleased tracks and some live stuff - just more incentive to buy this item if you're umming and aahing.Great stuff for Buble fans - it'll only consolidate your love for the man and his voice. Much recommended."
Buy the CD, wait for a better DVD!!
Angela Lang | 08/13/2005
(3 out of 5 stars)
"I bought this DVD after the last CD, which I LOVE and haven't stopped listening to since I got it, which is why I was all the more dissappointed by the horrible production in the DVD. The "live" video parts are just a horrible mesh of fade-in, fade-outs, b&w, cut to another take... enough to give you motion sickness! (and I love mtv, so its not that). the music is fantastic, but i would advice to buy a cd instead and wait for a better dvd to come out. he does come through as a pretty nice guy in the short inverview bits, but even those are with a camera thats jumping every which way in a moving car (thank god for traffic lights, at least when the car stops the camera stays still). advice to michael: stay AWAY from whoever edited this horrible thing.
the live cd it comes with is not bad, though..."
DVD is several concerts in one
Jan Claire | Oakhurst, CA USA | 04/05/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"A great idea to have a DVD that's also a CD, that's also a "Special Features" with recording-studio footage of his Live on AOL concert appearance. Best thing about Michael? It isn't just a young guy hyping the comeback of "big band music". Nope. This guy's surrounded with equally young expert band members, and they all are obviously really into the music, the sound, and the legends behind that music. Arrangements by David Foster and friends are outstandingly crisp. The concert footage is full of sound bites, and I found it interesting that the songs are multiple-cut from among several concerts - South Africa, England, others, some in black & white, others in color, and are well edited together so you can enjoy a whole song but see it performed in multiple places. Interesting, fun, and always fresh and interesting.
I've purchased copies for friends, and they're all glad they found about about Michael's incredible devotion to great music new and old. The George Michael song, Kissing a Fool, is a winner! Don Costa's arrangement of For Once in My Life sizzles."
Well done DVD nice bonus CD ....
Jan Claire | 04/28/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Forget about the reviews saying the editing on the DVD is amateurish...its very cool and very artistic....yes, there are three bonus tracks from AOL.sessions which are more in keeping with what these complaining viewers would like...overlit TV talk show (daytime) productions......and they are also good, but its a very well paced program and very hip. If you are still lamenting the loss of mono and are confused by stereo you may want to avoid this product as more than one camera was used to film this series of performances ....and its switch from color to black and white might make you wonder if your set is broken....or actually wonder how you got color depending on your vintage. The songs are great , the singer is excellent and the program enoyable...."