It's beginning to sound a lot like a money-grab...

Album: Christmas
Artist: Michael Bublé
Label: 143 Records, Reprise
Release date: 21 October, 2011
Peak chart position/sales: (CAN) #1 (UK) #1 (AUS) #2, Gold (US) #2 (IRE) #2


RATING: 2.5/5


It seemed for a while there that the Canadian crooner was just going to tease us with tasters of his smooth renditions of Christmas favourites. Following the release of Let It Snow, a full-length album seemed a certainty; but it's not until now, strategically released in the few months before the holiday season, that a Christmas compilation has actually come into being. Let me just say that I don't usually hold my breath for Christmas albums. Usually a distastefully cheesy array of badly arranged carols accompanied by too many sleigh bells, they're never creative masterpieces. But this October I leapt at that "Pre-order" button like a...well, a Bublé fan, because Bublé's 2003 EP Let It Snow was just so. darn. good. Tastefully designed cosy jazz arrangements that added an element of sophistication and charm to the songs we hear every season - and I wanted MORE.


Disappointment punched me in the face on track 1. Track 1. It was just...boring. So I skipped nervously to track 2 and managed to pretend quite effectively that I was enjoying the pretty ordinary rendition of 'Santa Claus Is Coming To Town'. Track 3 however, a duet version of 'Jingle Bells' with the Puppini Sisters (and I just sound like I care know who they are) pushed me over the edge. Cheesy 'ad lib' and thin, stringy harmonies sent my finger to the skip button again. And again. And again. I was looking for something that would shower me with a whacking good dose of Christmas cheer and I didn't get it. From the standard 'White Christmas' duet, to the lamely humorous male arrangement of 'Santa Baby' to an epically yawn-worthy 'Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas', everything was heavily blanketed in a thick coat of 'meh'. And let us not speak of the cheese-soaked, personification of cringeworthy that is the token original track, 'Cold December Night'.


The main failing of this album is the arrangements. Lethargic, over-romanticised strings, producer Bob Rock's clangy electric piano sound, lugubrious horns...the list goes on in a series of uninspired, thin and tacky-sounding instrumental parts. But most surprising of all, these are paired with superbly underwhelming deliveries from Bublé himself. With the almost-notable exceptions of 'Holly Jolly Christmas' and 'Blue Christmas', there isn't an ounce of vibe or even real vocal prowess evident in any of these tracks. Sinatra favourites 'Silent Night' (complete with children's choir) and 'Ave Maria' (complete with odd Canadian/Italian accent) don't sound entirely comfortable for Bublé and Mariah Carey heartbreakers 'All I Want For Christmas For You' and 'Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)' sound constipated, whiney and halfhearted.

It's a tricky thing to sing Christmas carols. To say they're "overdone" would be an understatement. But a good singer can always put their own stamp on them. Or at least a bit of freaking vibe! The clincher of a letdown on this album is that Bublé sounds like he's just going through the motions - the album has a distinctly "one session" feel - and after the passion and energy on his previous release Crazy Love this just feels like a rushed, rip-off of a production. This is not an awful album. It is just so unremarkable it hurts.


Is it worth my $$$? -  I'm listening to the Jersey Boys Christmas album as I write this and wishing fervently that I had bought that instead. So the answer is obviously no. No. Just no. Not even as the boring present for your boss.


Listen to: Holly Jolly Christmas, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, Blue Christmas