Josh Groban in Concert (with Bonus DVD) Music

Average Rating:

I just got this CD/DVD combination package for Christmas and I absolutely love it. As others have mentioned above and before me, this package contains all the songs from his double-platinum debut recording, plus the previously unavailabe and LOVELY rendition of Oh, Holy Night (the best version I've heard of this song to date, and as it is my all time FAVORITE Christmas carol, I've heard a LOT of versions of this piece.). Also included is the very good piece "Broken Vow" and the heart-touchingly lovely tune "For Always" In this case it's a solo version of the tune originally sung as a duet between Josh and Lara Fabian on the soundtrack for Steven Spielberg's move A.I. (Artificial Intelligence). I love the fact that Josh does it solo here AND that John Williams comes to conduct onstage (a highlight for me to see on the DVD). Lara Fabian paired very well with Josh on the original version of the song but here Josh proves (as we fans already knew) that he has the power to make the song stand on his own and to me it is even MORE beautiful when he does it by himself because another singer doesn't "distract" you from listening to Josh sing the piece. Again, it is not that Lara Fabian was a bad duet partner for Josh, she was great, but Josh is great just by himself on this. :)

As to the other pieces on the album.... I do not mind that these are, by and large, the same pieces as the ones on his debut album. Why? Because I LOVE THOSE SONGS! Every single one of them!I could listen to them millions of times and not get tired! Josh is THAT good. I'm a guy and guys are not supposeed to show emotion, right? We're supposed to suck it up and "be men". We're not supposed to cry? Well, guess what? Josh Groban has many times had me in tears, and I love it, so there you have it! :P

In my humble opinion, the songs on this CD/DVD package are sung at times, not always, a little different than they were on the debut album by Josh. What do I mean by that? Well, this is my opinion, but while the tempo did not vary much, (the songs were sung at the same pacing, naturally) they seemed to at times be sung a little softer than on the original debut recording. Did this matter ultimately? No it did not, because each word and note was crystal clear and powerful. Even at a softer tone, each song still carries the same power to touch the heart and carress it and carry it along.

I do have one thing to say. Please be aware that this is not a complaint, but to me personally I did not like Angie Stone (Josh's duet partner on "The Prayer" here) as much as Charlotte Church. YES I'm aware that Josh overpowers Charlotte and stands above her, but to me Angie Stone, while having a good voice indeed, proved to be a distraction and I found myself wishing that Josh would have either done the song himself (as he did with "For Always" here) or found another duet partner for it. (He did it with Celine Dion once before this. I also happen to think that Anne Buckley (From Michael Flatley's Lord Of The Dance and Feet Of Flames would make an excellent duet partner for Josh. She has that kind of soft, elegant regal voice that would, in my own humble opinion, compliment and fit Josh's own warm and rich and powerful voice perfectly.) Not withstanding this, this version of The Prayer is still beautiful and does not take away from the power or integrity of this lovely and beautiful CD/DVD package.

I'm sorry for digressing a bit there in the above paragraph. In short I will say this. I do not give myself (yet) the title of a "Grobanite", but Josh Groban IS my favorite male singer hands down bar NONE! If you are a fan of his , you owe it to yourself to get this. If you are not a fan of his this package or his debut recording will make a fan of you very quickly if you give them even a fair chance to do that. It is a real treat to see him do the songs live which have earned him a devoted fanbase around the world, and a rightful place as one of the best singers and most beautiful voices of our generation. Peace and God bless you and yours. Always.

One last note. Rumors abound of a new Josh Groban album coming next year. On that I do have one thing to say. Come on, Josh! Hurry up! More! More! MORE! (Just kidding, take your time wth it, I'm sure it will be wonderful, and God willing I will be able to get a chance to get one and listen to it to my heart's content. :) And oh how content my heart will be to do just that. :) :) :) :)

I would highly recommend this CD/DVD for your collection!