Call Me Irresponsible (CD - 2007)

Personnel: Antoinette Scruggs, Siedah Garrett, Carmen Carter (vocals); Graham Dechter, Dean Parks, Heitor Teixeira Pereira, Larry Koonse, Michael Landau, Keith Scott (guitar); Dave Sinclair (acoustic guitar); Joel Peskin (saxophone, background vocals); Frederick Fiddmont, Lee Callet, Rickey Woodard, Thomas R. Peterson (saxophone); Salvator Cracchiolo, Gilbert Castellanos, James Ford (trumpet); Daniel Kelley, John A. Reynolds, Steve Becknell, Joseph Meyers (French horn); Guy Nepus, George Bohannon, Maurice Spears (trombone); James Self (tuba); David Foster (piano, Fender Rhodes piano, keyboards); Gerald Clayton (piano, keyboards); Tamir Hendelman (piano, synthesizer); Greg Phillinganes, Michael Melvoin, Alan Chang (piano); Jeff Hamilton , Joe La Barbera, Josh Freese, Ralph Humphrey, Vinnie Colaiuta (drums); Marcelo Costa, Emil Radocchia, Paulinho Da Costa, Rafael Padilla, Donald Williams (percussion); Jochem van der Saag (programming); Daniel Fornero, Salvadore Lozano, Emily Blunt, Rev. Dave Boruff, Gary Foster, Alan Kaplan, Phil Teele, Rick Baptist, Wayne Bergeron, Bill Liston, Charles Loper, Bruce Otto, Bryan Lipps (background vocals).

Audio Mixer: Humberto Gatica.

Recording information: Capitol Studios, Hollywood, CA; Chartmaker Studios; Conway Recording Studios; Record Plant Recording Studios; Signet Sound; The Village, Los Angeles, CA; The Warehouse Studio; Westlake Recording Studios.

Photographers: Eric Ogden; Matt Taylor; William Claxton.

Unknown Contributor Role: Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra.

Arrangers: David Foster; Bob Rock; John Clayton; Johnny Mandel; Michael Bublé; Bill Holman; Alan Chang.

Michael Buble ranks among the best of the contemporary crooners working in a classic pop-vocal style, and his 2007 album, CALL ME IRRESPONSIBLE, further refines his suave, smooth style. With its finger-snapping big band arrangements, the album has its share of homage to Frank and Dino, both obvious cornerstones of Buble's music. But this isn't merely a retro exercise; the tunes, the production, and the overall feel are decidedly contemporary.

Stylistically adventurous versions of songs by Eric Clapton, Leonard Cohen, and Willie Nelson keep things lively, while "Everything," a Buble original, is one of the album's highlights. Still, cuts like the lead-off track ("The Best Is Yet to Come") and the old chestnut "I've Got the World on a String" will give listeners looking for some elegant, back-in-the-day pizzazz exactly that.

More than any of his contemporaries, vocalist Michael Bublé has bridged the gap between standards-oriented vocal pop and more contemporary pop vocals. Having perfected the mix on his superb 2003 effort, It's Time, which found the Frank Sinatra-influenced singer covering both "I've Got You Under My Skin" and Leon Russell's R&B ballad "A Song for You," Bublé wisely doesn't mess with a good thing on 2007's Call Me Irresponsible. Once again delving into a mix of swinging big-band numbers and classic pop hits such as the wickedly hip '60s standard "Comin' Home Baby" (featuring backing vocals from Boyz II Men), the album is a breezy, stylish good time. And while such cuts as "The Best Is Yet to Come" and the laid-back title track comfortably cast Bublé as a modern-day crooner consistent with his billing, the unexpected reworkings of contemporary pop songs often make the biggest impact. To these ends, his bossa nova duet with vocalist Ivan Lins on Eric Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight" and the reharmonized Willie Nelson perennial "Always on My Mind" work particularly well here, not as cheeky cabaret but as artfully crafted and devastatingly moving ballads. And it's not just the cover tunes that drive the album; on the contrary, much like the Bublé co-written ballad "Home" defined the mood of It's Time, his sparkling melodic pop original "Everything" helps make Call Me Irresponsible a truly welcome pop album by any standard. This CD was nominated for a Grammy award in 2007 as Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album, and "Everything" was nominated for Best Male Pop Performance. ~ Matt Collar minimize