It has been quite some time since I have heard a voice similar to Michael Ball and Colm Wilkinson of Les Miserables fame; Robert Cuccioli or Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde fame; and Michael Crawford of Phantom of the Opera fame – but I have. And, there it is, in the body of a 19 year old man who’s voice is aged far more than he has. Upon first listen I thought to myself – his voice doesn’t fit him. The cover shows a young man with curly hair, clean shaven, in fashionable clothes imported from Italy. He could be any member of any boy band if one were to judge simply on looks alone.
Most of us imagine operatic singers to be heavy set with lots of facial hair and their mouths open large enough to swallow a watermelon.
But Josh Groban is just any other ordinary young man – well, if you discount the mere fact that within a two year span he went from virtual unknown to singing with Celine Dion and Charlotte Church and performing at the 2002 Winter Olympic Closing Ceremony as well as two guest roles on Fox’s now canceled Alley McBeal. That and, being offered a recording contract produced by David Foster and paraded around town as a voice of the future.
Yeah, just any other ordinary young man.
I’ll be honest, I should not have perhaps groups Groban with the likes of Ball, Wilkinson, Cuccioli and Crawford. His voice equals theirs – but Groban has not and from all accounts and has not had the need to take the same path they have.
i.e. Musicals.
Groban’s music is hard to catalogue, it is definitely not pop, nor is it rock, or alternative, or country, or rap. (However in most music stores it will be found under Pop/Rock) But, it is not to be placed in the lump sum of classical, opera, new age, or world music either. It would seem that Groban is unclassified – a perhaps new genre that he didn’t event but one that he does fit in. A genre where music by one either expands multiple genres or just doesn’t stay true to one particular genre. In Groban’s first self-titled release he sings various songs ranging from foreign tracks in Italian and Spanish to more pop like but not so pop like tracks in English. His album is also part inspirational (The Prayer) but also part sad (If I Fall). His guest stars range from inspiration singer Charlotte Church to Irish band The Corrs. Heck, he even sings a song written and produced by Richard Marx.
The best classification I can give Groban is: slow, methodic, vocal inspiring music that touches your heart and soul without vibrating your inner bone structure. You won’t find any jams here, or any head banging, or any need to start dancing like N’Sync – but his voice will mean much more than any of them.
Groban begins the album with a foreign piece entitled Alla Luce Del Sole. The track begins with a few instruments and drums that have a very constant world beat to them. The track sounds similar to a piece by Dark Forest but without the chorus chanting – instead Groban soon introduces his voice which stays fair monotonous until the chorus kicks in where his voice is accompanied by a few female voices and both the music and the vocal increase in intensity. Groban gets a chance to expand his baritone voice a few octaves and shows off his ability to sustain a single note for long periods.
In Gira Con Me, Groban quiets down a bit relying on a simple piano and an oboe in the background. His voice is more restrained at first and only flows more freely during the chorus. In perhaps an odd choice David Foster midway through brings in a few electronic elements that being to mask Groban voice even though he does struggle to overcome their presence.
If you are a fan of Ally McBeal you’ll remember the song You’re Still You. Groban played a teenager in the series that was suing his prom date because she decided to dump him and go with someone else. In the end, Ally decided to go as his date to the prom where he was slated to perform a song. The final minutes of the show had Groban singing in front of his whole high school class which wowed both them and us as audiences alike. I’ve read many articles where viewers couldn’t believe that this actor, who looks like a teenager (and at age 19 it wasn’t much of a stress) could sing this powerful. You’re Still You is in English and is about looking up to another and with a treasured sense – and will make for a great wedding reception song (I should know, we have picked it to be one of those played at ours!).
Richard Marx’s makes a brief return to music – at least in my music collection by writing and producing To Where You Are which returns to the You’re Still You theme but this time doesn’t hold back at all in terms of emotions. The heart of You’re Still You lied in the chorus and the climatic finale – but in To Where You Are Groban doesn’t waste time getting to the chorus since it is not as important as what is said before it.
Whenever I listen to, To Where You Are I cannot help but to look up into the heavens and think about those who I love that have left this Earth. My financé thinks I would also be a great song for the wedding reception – but I’ll be honest that it is a little dark in tone and the words seems to express sadness – even if it is paying tribute to the love of those who can no longer be there. Groban’s voice flexes it’s muscles during this song and unlike many tracks on his album the instruments take a backseat and allow his voice to soar.
Let Me Fall is much darker but this is one of a few tracks where you’ll clearly hear the range and power of Groban voice. The music is slow and in the far background as Groban’s voice just soars and soars. There are even times where the music cuts out completely and it is up to Groban to not only sing but sing music. Although I have not ever seen a live performance, Let Me Fall is from Cirque du Soleil and in a way I could see how it fits within a circus performance. Only two things are misplaced on Let Me Fall. Rhys Fulber takes over production charges from David Foster and makes two very big mistakes at least in my book. Towards the end of the song he holds one of Groban’s notes using obvious electronic means and even adds in a little reverb. That destroys Groban’s natural voice since you can very clearly tell that it is not natural. Plus, throughout this song there are a few “blips”/mistakes that are made. At times an instrument just hits a note louder than all of it’s other note like the player leaned in too close to the microphone. These “accidents” would have easily been caught and re-mastered to continue the flow – but they are not.
Josh Groban finishes off his self-titled debut album with a duet with Charlotte Church performing the song The Prayer heard live during the 2002 Winter Olympics Closing Ceremonies. Now, I have never been a fan or Charlotte Church and in fact this is the first time I have heard her voice besides the 10 second clips heard during infomercials for her albums. My financé however did state that her voice has matured and deepened, so I’ll take her word on it. The Prayer is half in English and half in Italian (thanks for the tip angelabest) with Church handling most of the English and Groban interjecting in Italian. Towards the middle of the song however Groban does begin to sing in English as does his voice begin to sour. At the same time Church shows off her powerful vocal cords that have made her famous.
The album is filled with a nice blend between English language tracks and foreign tracks sung in both French and Italian. Groban had two different vocal coaches for each foreign language and his many years of study seem to have paid off. I couldn’t tell of any mispronunciation or gibberish – but then again, I am not fluent in either language. Overall, it is refreshing to hear a voice come from someone so young who is well able to converse many different styles and languages. It is especially refreshing to hear in the crowded spectrum of current music where the voice almost takes a back seat to how the person looks or their dance moves.
Side Note: Josh Groban has a website at: www.joshgroban.com. If you mistype it as joshgroben.com you will be taken to a porno site. Just an FYI.
The Tracks:
Alla luce del Sole
Gira con Me
You’re Still You
Cinema Paradiso (se)
To Where You Are
Alejate
Canto alla Vita featuring The Corrs
Let Me Fall
Vincent (Starry, Starry Night)
Un Amore per Sempre
Home to Stay
Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring featuring Lili Haydn
The Prayer with Charlotte Church
After hearing the extraordinary voice of 20-year-old Josh Groban, Ally McBeal creator/ executive producer David E. Kelley invited him to perform You r...More at Buy.com
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.