Customer Reviews

Michael Buble Meets Madison Square Garden (CD/DVD)

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Michael Buble is a talented scamp and this CD/DVD set showcases his impish charm, rich-as-chocolate voice and unique song styling. The CD features 10 cuts from his December 5, 2008 concert in Madison Square Garden. This concert concludes his 40-city world tour and it is a joyful celebration of his talent and success. Buble has sung these songs before, but he has never sung them better. He makes each song uniquely his own - "Me and Mrs. Jones" is performed with rib tickling swagger, "I've got the World on a String" with infectious devilment and "Home" with poignant yearning. The entire CD is a delight. Of course it is too brief and some new material would have been much appreciated but taking into consideration the quality of these songs, this CD is not a bad bargain. (No lemons in the bunch.)

The DVD features 60 minutes of concert footage and includes two new songs, "Stardust" (with Naturally 7) and "You're Nobody Till Somebody Loves You." It also includes snippets of Buble's backstage life with the band, a bit of his professional history and a too brief meeting with his family, including his grandfather who turned him on to the standards and supported his youthful singing ambitions. The concert footage is good; it is fun to see Buble's playful rapport with his audience. He appears to be the rare artist who knowingly needs and appreciates his audience. His artistry is obviously nourished by the audience's enthusiasm. The back stage footage with the boys in the band confirms Buble's good guy reputation and the brief professional retrospective feels true and is somewhat touching.

What keeps this collection from being truly outstanding is its brevity. We want a CD that includes the whole concert and a DVD that showcases the entire event with back-story as an extra perhaps. (The cuts between songs on the CD are a bit rough and the voice over narration on the DVD is straight from Dragnet.)

Complaints aside - this set is a must have for any rabid fan.

I love Buble, but I was hoping to see a whole concert or most of one. The backstage footage is of Michael being playful with the crew, his band, his Grandpa; but as a fan I have seen similar backstage footage before in other Buble packages. The only footage that moved me was a re-visit to the N.Y. jazz club The Blue Note.

The footage of the actual concert was a repeat of the pop hits, with one remarkable exception- a performance by Buble with a group called Naturally 7. It makes me want to stand up & cheer, but reminds me of how great a dvd this could have been- an homage to GREAT MUSIC, which is what it should be about anyway. This DVD did not mark an event well;just Michael being cute, a little off-color,& a throwback to the Ratpack, without demonstrating the talent that makes him that caliber of a performer. This package is a bit self-indulgent of Buble to put out & for the first time ever with him, I feel like I wasted my money.

Treat yourself to Chris Botti in Boston insteadChris Botti in Boston (CD/DVD) - a full concert, with great performances by great musicians, who take themselves & the music seriously enough to create a memorable evening, to be watched again & again.

First of all, let me make it clear that this review is for the music only, which I downloaded. I didn't buy the CD/DVD, so therefore can't comment on the filmed portion. As a recorded documentation of a live concert, it leaves a little something to be desired. Don't get me wrong, I'm a true fan. Buble is the best interpreter of the standard since Harry Connick, and he sounds absolutely terrific here. Likewise, his rapport with the audience is genuine and unmistakeable. But there used to be a time when a live album was an event; two discs, two hours, new material. When did they, like this one, become stopgap measures to placate fans until the next album comes out? OK, it's enjoyable, the energy is infectious at times; but it's certainly not an indispensable addition to the Buble canon. Rabid fans will, no doubt, disagree. I'm getting impatient, however, with Mr. Buble's habit of releasing four songs here, six songs there. An artist of his caliber and talent (and one who sells as well as he) could and should be releasing a new album every year. Record companies are hurting, I get it, they need to make money any which way they can; but fans deserve more than the occasional bone, which is what this ultimately feels like.

Additionally, I can't remember when I've heard a live album so poorly produced. The cuts from track to track are at times abrupt and seem to have been made with a meat cleaver. Perhaps they're where the two additional songs (only available on the DVD) fit in. (And can someone tell me WHY they're only available on the DVD?) Also, the balance isn't always right, with Buble sounding sometimes farther away from the microphone than the audience.

Of course, if you have to own everything Buble records, you're going to get this album, and you may enjoy it more than I. But be forwarned that downloading isn't necessarily the way to go.

I couldn't wait to get this DVD/CD package and see a Michael Buble real complete concert, but alas this is not the complete concert. I was completely annoyed by the talking & 'stuff' in between every single song. By the time I was hoping he would at least sing two songs in a row without interruption, it was over! Then, the two 'extra songs', why did they have to be completely separate in a 'special features link?" Any good producer who knows anything about presenting a live concert would have just included the songs with the concert, it is completely chopped up anyway. The one song with Naturally 7 was wonderful, but they were not introduced at the beginning of the song and as soon as the music stopped, so did the video. You know they sang more than one song than that one with Michael, in the full and complete concert.

If I was in the audience for a concert that only lasted 12 songs, I would have really felt cheated. As it is, a 'live concert' DVD with only 12 songs is also being cheated. Michael, are you listening?????

You are wonderful, your songs, your band, your repor with the audience, for those who can't make it to your concerts, how about a complete concert on DVD, with new songs, covers of the great old songs and even with your hits!!!!!

I was counting the days until this came out & I am really disappointed!!! I thought They would show the whole concert like the other 2 But they only show 7 songs including 2 bonus songs & I feel ripped off I waited a whole year to hear something new from him & that's all I get Whatever!!! Hope he comes out with something better soon.I'm going through withdrawals!!!
Angel

P.S. Now these 2 Dvd's are worth the $$$ Caught In The Act (CD + DVD) Come Fly With Me (CD & DVD)

I love Michael Buble, but this DVD was a complete waste of money, I bought a concert, but got a lot of useless interviews with the behind the scene activity making the concert. There were maybe 5-6 songs actually taken from the concert. DO NOT BUY THIS DVD!

I love Michael Buble. I've been waiting for this DVD for the longest time. Planned a whole date night with my husband around it. I am seriously disappointed. IT'S NOT THE WHOLE CONCERT. It's only about six songs. I'm going to go to his website. There's a special edition there. I don't know if it's the whole concert, but it's longer than this. So this one was a total waste of money. I wanted to see him sing Lost, and Feeling Good. Neither are on the DVD, but on the CD. Hell I already had his CD.

This is a backstage. Good backstage, good news about him. But I believe Michael Bublé should inform his fans that this is not the full show, not if a thirds (or a fourth) of the show.
I think Michael Bublé is very good to let this happens and disappoint his fans.
Anyway - I knew all about it when I bought the DVD.
I thought that maybe, the other comments were too harsh on this DVD, but they weren't.
- I am still waiting for a GREAT DVD. This is not the one yet.

While I am a huge Michael Buble fan I was EXTREMELY disappointed in the DVD. I purchased this for my 17 year old nephew who really loves him as well but was shocked to find that the language he uses is less than stellar. This is definitely not a family friendly concert to watch in my opinion. I was also disappointed that you only actually get to see about 4 songs performed. If I could return this item, I would. It is not worth the money!

I doubt if anyone has an accurate total of the number of 78's, 45's, LP's, or CD's Sinatra released. It has to be in the hundreds, maybe thousands. With a small amount of research, Michael, you could surely find some new songs to record. Even the new ones (which most of us Sinatra fans have never heard of) that you record are second rate. Sinatra's repetoire included Gershwin, Porter, Berlin, Martin and Blane, Warren, Cahn and Van Heusen, Weill, Arlen...on and on...but how many more times are YOUR fans going to keep buying "Call Me Irresponsible", "Feeling Good", "Fever", "Come Fly With Me"? I swear, every CD you record or I attempt to buy is always full of repeats or previously recorded songs...not that they weren't good the first time you recorded them...but hiring a new A&R man would increase your sales and your popularity. I like your voice but I, as most of your fans, long for something different. You're in a rut...rehashing the same tunes on each new CD. Why should I continue buying them when I apparently have everything you know? If you're gonna revive the sounds of Sinatra and Bennett...pick out twelve NEW Sinatra songs. I didn't buy your Madison Square Garden CD as I think I already own five or six recordings of your "Call Me Irresposible"...each new recording sounds like the one before. Surely, I can't believe that your grandpa would continue to pick the same songs. If you want any more of my money...let's hear an entire CD of Sinatra songs and forget about the tuneless originals. Sorry kid, but they're just not that good. Even Sinatra couldn't make them sound great. Oh, well, you won a Grammy with the same old schlock...I guess, they're be MORE repeats on next year's CD. You're wasting your talent and our time and money!