Music

Michael Bublé

Verus Ferreira
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His smooth singing style has been making waves in music circles not only around the world, but also in India, where he has a massive fan following. That's the cool and calm Michael Bublé (pronounced Boo-blay) who has a gift for making some of the greatest songs of all time entirely his own.

Born into a family of fishermen in the suburb of Burnaby in British Columbia, Bublé was close to his family, especially his grandfather with whom he developed a close relationship. His grandfather used to play classic songs from his heyday for young Michael, with the result that instead of listening to music of his days, Bublé was listening to old stuff from the 30's and 40's from Bobby Darin to great jazz vocalists including Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Rosemary Clooney and the like.

Bublé soon developed a love for his grandfather's music, their catchy tunes and great melodies. His grandfather, a plumber, supported young Michael's love for music. He started providing free plumbing services to musicians who would in return give his grandson stage time alongside them in local Vancouver clubs. Soon Bublé, who was just 17, was well known in music circles in his city and elsewhere too. As a teenager, Bublé honed his craft by singing in the musicals Red Rock Diner and Forever Swing.

Birthday: September 9, 1975; Height: 6 feet; Hair: Brown; Eyes: Green

This stroke of luck took him forward in a big way. An associate to former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney heard his performance and gave his CD to Mulroney. Mulroney had already heard of Bublé and his classic songs. He was so impressed that he asked Bublé to sing at his daughter's wedding, and introduced him to Canadian Grammy winning producer David Foster from Warner Brothers Records. At the wedding, the young singer performed the classic Mack The Knife. The producer and aspiring singer hit it off after that first meeting and the rest, as they say, is history.

Foster wasted no time in signing Bublé to his company 143 Records in 2001. But Bublé's big break still eluded him. It took years of training, rehearsing and track selecting for him to release his major-label debut. In 2003 the wait was finally over.

His self-titled debut became an instant hit on release, as he covered standards from a slew of legends like Van Morrison, Stevie Wonder, Paul Anka and Queen. The album consisted of jazzy takes on old standards like Fever, Put Your Head On My Shoulder, The Way You Look Tonight as well as newer classics like Van Morrison's Moondance and the Bee Gees' How Can You Mend A Broken Heart. His take on classics such as these wooed audiences, attracting them in droves to his many live performances when he went on a world tour immediately after the album. Towards the end of the year he released a holiday EP called Let It Snow.

Back from his successful tour, Bublé went right back to the studio, releasing the CD/DVD live compilation Come Fly With Me in 2004 and his sophomore album It's Time in 2005. It's Time reached No. 1 in Canada, Australia, Japan, and Italy, and the Top 10 in the U.S. and U.K. Bublé was also named Best New Talent at 2004's Juno Awards (the Canadian Grammys). Later that year he released the live album Caught in the Act. The holiday-themed album Christmas followed in 2006, with the studio effort Call Me Irresponsible in 2007 winning him a Grammy for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album.

Most of the albums featured both contemporary and older classics of legendary singers. On It's Time, he did a neat cover of Engelbert Humperdinck's Quando, Quando, Quando with dance diva Nelly Furtado. While many labelled him as a 'cover version singer', Bublé proved them wrong when he released an original self-penned song Home arranged by David Foster and Bill Ross. Everything, the first single off the album Call Me Irresponsible, became one of Bublé's biggest hits ever, reaching #1 on Billboard's Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks.

Michael Nominated for a Grammy
Michael Bublé Meets Madison Square Garden was nominated for a 2010
Grammy Award in the category of 'Best Traditional Pop Album'.

After a gap of two years, Bublé returned in 2009 with the live concert album/DVD Michael Bublé Meets Madison Square Garden which documents the singer's first-ever performance at the storied New York City venue. On his studio album Crazy Love Bublé continues with this genre-crossing approach. The first single off the album, Haven't Met You Yet, is currently doing the rounds of music channels. With this album, Bublé proves his aptitude not just for swing, but for pop music spanning several decades. We can't wait to hear his magic in India.

VERUS FERREIRA is a freelance journalist since the last 18 years. Passionate about music, he started writing for THE TEENAGER in 1992, soon after finishing college. In addition to this column, he reviews the latest music albums and movies as well. He also contributes to The Free Press Journal, The Afternoon, AV Max, Ragatorock.com and selects the in-flight audio entertainment for two international airlines.