Customer Reviews

Josh Groban

5 star:		(911)
4 star:		(97)
3 star:		(26)
2 star:		(19)
1 star:		(16)

 

 

I must admit, this is probably the first classical record I've bought in many a year- I usually listen to alternative rock. Like many others, I first heard Josh Groban sing on 'Ally McBeal', and was completely stunned by his voice. Once in a very great while a voice like his comes along... his range, his depth of emotion, and just the sheer beauty of his voice are far beyond his years. I agree with others who've reviewed this that 'The Prayer' would be much better if he'd done it without Charlotte Church- although it was probably a smart move by the record company and got him greater exposure. I could also live without The Corrs on 'Canto All Vita'- great song until they come in! Josh could sing 'Happy Birthday' and it would move me to tears. I literally cannot listen to this album all the way through without crying ('To Where You Are' gets me every time!).

I look forward to many more beautiful records- someone give this kid a Grammy!

Is he singing about ravioli? I wouldn't know, I don't speak Italian. I wouldn't care if he was, his Italian songs are so beautiful and romantic as well as those in English and Spanish. This is an extremely talented young man with an exceptional gift. A voice beyond his years and beyond belief. I don't know if it's possible to wear out a CD, but if so, I'm well on my way.
I have played this CD over and over and I truly never tire of it.
Josh sings with such maturity and such feeling it filters thru your ears and into the soul. If you really love a beautiful voice, treat yourself to this CD. . The only track I can criticize is The Prayer with Charlotte Church, I feel her voice is too weak to blend with Josh's. It would have been better for him to go solo. I can't recommend this CD highly enough.

I don't watch "Allie McBeal. First heard this gentleman when I was in a bookstore and heard a familiar Cirque de Soleil song from the show "Quidam". Song is "Let Me Fall". "Who is that??" I asked the clerk. "Josh Groban." Same question, "Who is that??" Same answer, "Josh Groban", and a finger pointed at his CD. Bought it, loved it, recommend it to anyone blown away by a beautiful voice. His voice is angelic.
I agree with the other reviewers who feel he is mismatched with Charlotte Church; Sarah Brightman would be a better choice.
One small quibble; I think his voice is too powerful and too strong to sing Don McClean's song, "Vincent". This song, probably my unsophisticated choice for most beautiful song ever written, has been a favorite for thirty years. It seems better suited to Don McClean's fragile tenor.

Its been awhile since the U S has had a Baritone it could brag about, but we have one now. Josh Groban has shown that at age 20, he is way ahead of schedule as a superstar and should be providing us with album after album of classic pieces for decades. His debut album is already at #2 with Amazon and if it has been classified as classical or classical crossover instead of pop, he would have been the first in either of those aforementioned categories to achieve that ranking on Amazon. The only negative aspect of this album is his duet with Charlotte Church, one of the most over-hyped singers in history. Church needed Josh on her album but he doesn't need her on his as she is clearly not in his class. If he wants to team up in the future, possibly joining Bryn Terfel and another Baritone to form the 3 Baritones would be really exciting. In the meantime, enjoy one of the most refreshing male voices to emerge on the U.S. music scene in quite some time.

What a find. For someone so young, his voice has a wonderfull warmth and passion. The album is for the most part wonderful, with his English pieces being his showcase. The foreign language songs, which grow on you with each listening, tend to be a bit too modernized to match his voice and don't tend to reach the same level of passion as the English. As with any young singer you notice a few inperfections, but still a joy to listen to over and over. The biggest disappointment is the duet between Mr. Groban and Ms. Church. Her performance is horrible, lacking the ability to match the quality of his voice in color, expression, range or power. Age is not helping her young voice.

There was a question asked some time back and that was, "would America ever find another Bryn Terfel. Well, the answer is right her in this CD, and that answer is YES! His name is Josh Groban and he is destined to join the ranks of some of the great voices of our time. His versatility is also aptly demonstrated in this CD as he travels from classical to show to pop. The only correction I would have made in the selections herein would have been to delete the duet he does with Charlotte Church on "The Prayer". Miss Church's school-girl like voice has absolutely no congruency with Josh's, thus the number sounds like a father/daughter rendition with only the father's voice standing out. But if you can tune out Miss Church's singing, you are left with a great "solo" rendition by Josh.

I cannot tell you how refreshing it is to have an American voice like Josh Groban's enter upon the music scene. He is certainly destined to be one of the great singers in history and this CD should be the first of at least a couple dozen. Most impressive is his range and the various genre of music he can sing with equal brilliance. As some others have mentioned, I am also of the opinion he should not do duets with singers like Charlotte Church. The only thing memorable about "their" song, The Prayer, was Josh's voice. They do not harmonize and it sounds like a grown man singing with a little girl despite the fact they are only about 4 years apart in age. Josh has done some beautiful duets with Sarah Brightman and Lara Fabian and should stick with these legitimate divas. Josh's voice on the "Prayer" duet was the only good thing about Charlotte Church's album and her voice the only negative item on Josh's. Puting that aside, this will be one of the top albums of 2001-2002 - all genres.

This CD was a long time coming. It seems that Josh has been out there forever on Ally McBeal, Brian Boitano's Skate America, as well as PBS duets with Sarah Brightman and Lara Fabian. Finally however, we have a CD and what a magnificent work it is. I'm not sure, however, that I would characterize Josh's voice as pure Baritone. I think it is more in the area of Mezzo/Tenor. In any case we have a product of the good ol USA who is destined to be one of the great voices of the world, IN ANY GENRE. While I would have classified this album as classical crossover rather than pop, it will satisfy the appetite's of the most finicky of listeners. And to think that Josh is only 20. By listening to him you would think he is a veteran of the Metropolitan Opera Company.

The only shotcoming of this album is Josh's "duet" with Charlotte Church on the song Prayer. Charlotte sounds like a little girl here and her voice does not blend at all with Josh's. Besides after her horrible comments about the 9/11 tragedy, she has become bad news in the music industry and Josh is best served by avoiding her whenever possible. However not even CC can keep this CD from a 5-star rating. After weting my appetite, I'm ready for Josh's next album. BRING IT ON.

Having grown tired of radio fare and being a 37 y.o. seeking the beauty most popular music has lost, I've been tuning into musicians and singers that have more depth and soul. I fear that Groban, might someday go the way of other "Pop" singers who sing to flaunt their range and not to express the beauty of the song. Still, Groban is far from that in this beautiful work. As others have said, duets are not the proper expression for Groban. Church and the Coors detract from both the timbre and emotion of his voice. Thankfully, these are only two of the tracks and all the other tracks are "Just Josh". I am looking forward to his next release. Haunting and spiritual and peaceful.

Josh Groban's new album is a lush, melodic, and refreshing production although somewhat over-orchestrated. His incredibly clear voice, with an awesome range, is sometimes overwhelmed by his orchestral background. I would hope more attention would be paid in future recordings to featuring his voice - unadorned by unnecessary orchestration and, perhaps, more simply produced.
When I listened to his recording, I was reminded of earlier recordings by Jane Olivor, especially those in which she was quite unaffectedly and beautifully accompanied by a cello; absolutely breathtaking. Her voice and interpretation were the featured components. I would like to see Mr.Groban pursue that manner of presentation. I particularly liked his version of "Vincent" - pure, simple, direct - a truly haunting rendition.
Two criticisms, though - forget teaming up with Charlotte Church; he doesn't need her "fame" to advance his career. And...it would have been nice to have translations of the Italian and Spanish presentations. I am looking forward to his next album with great anticipation