‘Higher’: Michael Bublé breathes fresh life into his musical style in 1st album in 3 years

Michael Bublé

When it comes to the work that goes into producing his records Michael Bublé—ever meticulous about his craft—sees to it that he’s on top of things.

But for his coming 11th studio album, “Higher,” the Canadian music artist relinquished some of the creative control, and opened himself up to new collaborators and experiences that could potentially add another dimension to his sound. And he’s glad he did. The result, he said, is a “fresh,” “ambitious” collection of songs that will take the listeners on an “unexpected ride.”

“Before making this record, my musical director, Alan Chang, said to me, ‘Hey, Mike, you have been making records for 20 years. You have sold a lot of records. People like the records… So, wouldn’t it be interesting to to not hold it [the next album] so close and not to micromanage, and just let these people help you, so that it’s a fresh sound for the audience?’” Michael related in a recent virtual conference arranged by Warner Music Philippines for Southeast Asian entertainment press.

While he admitted that the suggestion hurt his “feelings a little bit” at first, he remained receptive. The star crooner, who’s known for his easy listening love ballads, swinging jazz tunes and his renditions of standards, threw caution to the wind and “put it in the hands of some of the greatest musicians in the universe.”

Letting go

And he “has never been more excited to complete an album.”

“I let myself go… And honestly, it was the best thing I could ever do, because it didn’t just breathe new, fresh life into the style of my music—it made it fresh for me,” Michael said. “I think they’re (the listeners) going to feel the joy and the excitement… I was so open to working with new people and trying different things.”

“Higher,” which will be released on March 25, is Michael’s first studio album since “Love” (2018), and is produced by Greg Wells and Bob Rock, along with Alan Chang, Jason Goldman and Sir Paul McCartney. The tracklist includes a duet with Willie Nelson on the song “Crazy,” renditions of McCartney’s “My Valentine” and Bob Dylan’s “Make You Feel My Love.”

The lead single, on the other hand, is the self-penned “I’ll Never Not Love You”—the music video of which is a sequel to that of his 2009 song “Haven’t Met You Yet.”

“Whether it was sitting down to write with Ryan Tedder and Greg Wells; recording three songs in one day with my pal Bob Rock along with 40 of the most amazing musicians off the studio floor who hadn’t played music in the past 15 months; dancing around laughing, and crying in my underwear in my home studio when a song sounded just right—every moment felt magical or felt like the universe was conspiring to bring me to this moment, 20 years into this amazing ride I have been on,” he said.

Michael Bublé

Live in the moment

He couldn’t quite explain it, he said, but everything simply … worked. “I don’t know how, I don’t know why, but the concepts met. Execution just worked and I am going to try as best I can to live in the moment,” said the 46-year-old singer-songwriter.

During the interview, Michael gave a preview of three tracks from the album. But that was just scratching the surface. “You have heard nothing yet… I’m not kidding… There’s so much more on this record and I could talk to you all day about it. But the proof will be in the pudding. I promise you you’re going to be surprised with the texture. I was ambitious,” he said.

Excerpts from the interview:

On his lead single, “I’ll Never Not Love You”:

It’s about promising to someone that they can trust you, give you their vulnerability, that you won’t hurt them, that they can be reassured that it’s safe to fall in love. Because it’s scary to fall in love. Love has a great cost, especially when you really love someone; you’re putting yourself at risk. And the song is saying, risk it on me and I will love you forever.

The music video for “I’ll Never Not Love You” is said to be the sequel to that of “Haven’t Met You Yet.” What made you decide that this was finally the right time for a followup, why did you not do it earlier?

I don’t think I chose that. I think it chose me. And I think the truth is we all went through a pandemic when it was difficult to make music. And then before that, I had to go through, you know, with my son, just taking care of my family. (His eldest son, Noah, had to undergo chemotherapy after being diagnosed with liver cancer. He’s now fully recovered.)

The truth is, when I put my last record “Love” out, I wasn’t sure if I was ready to come back. I was still hurting. But now I feel so good. I’m so good in my heart and satisfied that I just felt so open, so happy to make hopeful and beautiful music, and I felt like I needed it. I feel like the world needed it in a way.

How does it feel to do a duet with Willie Nelson? Why did you choose “My Valentine” among Paul McCartney’s many songs?

Willie Nelson was one of my favorite singers. And one of my favorite records from the Great American Songbook was “Stardust.” And when I think of Willie Nelson, I think of Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. I think of the great interpreters and singers that are able to personify us. To be honest, he always reminded me more of Louis Armstrong, because he had such a distinct and unique voice… He puts the story across emotionally… It was an honor.

“My Valentine” didn’t just have me covering a Sir Paul McCartney song. He produced it for me. To know that someone who I admire so much has trusted me to hold his art and to interpret a song that means so much to him [means a lot to me]. He wrote it for his wife. He told me so many times that it was something so special to him and that it was an honor and a privilege for him to take me under his wing… That’s why “My Valentine” was so important for me.

How special is this project considering it’s your first album after more than three years and amid a pandemic?

They’re all special. I promise you that not one note that has left my lips has ever just given away without thinking or being passionate. They’re all important. They’re all my babies. The pandemic in a strange way made it a little easier for me to connect with people, because people were willing to do Zoom calls. And all of a sudden, I was being introduced to people I have never worked with before.

I found that a lot of the record was made with me kind of walking around the house with my kids, singing with me. The idea for the song “Higher” came from my 8-year-old son while I was bathing my kids in the shower. (He had two other kids with wife, Luisana Lopilato: Elias, 6, Vida, 3. A fourth one is on the way.)

On how his perspective in life and music has changed amid the pandemic:

Perspective is everything. What I found interesting was that when the pandemic hit… I felt like every single person from every country—it didn’t matter if you’re young, old, rich, poor, gay, straight, Black, white—were all scared and anxious. Our mental health became an issue.

And I just felt like … we need to cling to each other for hope… There’s so much negativity and so many things that drive us apart, and I was really hoping that I could be a small part of bringing people together.