Michael+buble

Vocalist Michael Bublé's 2013 studio album, To Be Loved, is a slick and classy Bob Rock-produced affair that follows up his hit 2011 holiday album, Christmas, and once again showcases the Canadian crooner's take on swinging pop music. Most longtime Bublé fans will have a sense of what to expect here and, in that sense, should be quite pleased with the album. As with previous Bublé releases, To Be Loved finds the vocalist tackling a handful of American Popular Song standards and some more contemporary pop covers. This time around, Bublé even peppers the album with a few very vintage '60s soul-sounding numbers. To these ends, Bublé kicks things off with a brightly swinging take on "You Make Me Feel So Young," turns in a neo-soul version of the Bee Gees "To Love Somebody," and digs deep into Smokey Robinson's "Who's Lovin' You." Also adding flavor here are a few guest appearances including duets with actress Reese Witherspoon, Bryan Adams, and the Puppini Sisters.

love is Bublé's first release of any kind in two years, following his eldest son Noah being diagnosed with liver cancer, which he has said made him consider "never returning to music". He later returned to write and record songs in the studio as his son's condition improved. On his approach to the album, Bublé stated: "My end game for the new record was to create a series of short cinematic stories for each song I chose and have it stand on its own." Once the rough outline of his album concept was formed he pitched the idea to his band members while they were visiting his Vancouver home for a casual jam session and video games.

Buoyed by the popularity of the hit contemporary pop ballad "Home," singer Michael Bublé's 2005 album, It's Time, clearly positioned the vocalist as the preeminent neo-crooner of his generation. Bublé's 2007 follow-up, Call Me Irresponsible, only further reinforced this notion. Not only had he come into his own as a lithe, swaggering stage performer with a knack for jazzing a crowd, but he had also grown into a virtuoso singer. Sure, he'd never drop nor deny the Sinatra comparisons, but now Bublé's voice – breezy, tender, and controlled – was his own. It didn't hurt, either, that he and his producers found the perfect balance of old-school popular song standards and more modern pop covers and originals that at once grounded his talent in tradition and pushed him toward the pop horizon.