Josh Groban, Harmony | Album Review 💿

Grammy-nominated traditional pop artist Josh Groban sounds incredibly harmonious on his eighth studio album, Harmony.

Classical crossover, easy listening, and vocal music, all of which fall into the ‘traditional pop’ characterization, aren’t genres one associates with innovative spirit.  No, the draw of such music is preserving classicism and bringing it into the present.  In the aughts and even parts of the 2010s, there was a sizable market for these musicians with old souls, including 🎙 Josh Groban. Groban, of course, has now been around the biz for some time, so, arguably, a new album by the   🏆 Grammy-nominated musician isn’t quite the big deal it once was.  Case in point is 💿 Harmony, which nabbed a top-20 debut which is respectable but not great.  Still, Harmony as an album finds Groban continue to excel in this traditional pop veins.  He makes covers sexy… or something like that. 

“The World We Knew (Over and Over)”

Groban commences Harmony harmoniously with ✅🎵 “The World We Knew (Over and Over).” He definitely does this Frank Sinatra standard justice with his gorgeous, refine pipes.  Furthermore, the arrangement and production (big band and strings) are absolutely grand.  We may be in 2020, but Josh takes us back in time while still sounding fresh.  After getting the jazz out of his system, Groban does a total about face covering ✅🎵 “Angels” by British pop standout, 🎙 Robbie Williams.  While we get nothing ‘brand new’ from this 23-year-old gem, as always, Groban sings it incredibly well, doing it total justice.  The gospel-tinged cues within the production are a great touch.

Speaking of gospel-tinged cues and soulfulness, ✅🎵 “Celebrate Me Home” has plenty of that working in its favor.  Perhaps Groban doesn’t supplant either the original (🎙 Kenny Loggins) or the memorable cover by 🎙 Luther Vandross, but he definitely reminds us just how timeless the song is. Furthermore, that gospel choir backing him contributes to the chills experienced while listening.  Three songs into Harmony, it’s all positive for Josh Groban.

“Shape of My Heart” 

The Harmony rolls right on with ✅🎵 “Shape of My Heart,” covering the legendary Sting.  “Shape of My Heart” ends up being a nice contrast to the grand “Celebrate Me Home.”  Furthermore, Groban gets a pretty sweet assist from 🎙 Leslie Odom, Jr. They sound particularly beautiful as they harmonize.  Moving beyond the sensational covers, Groban gives us an inspirational original, ✅🎵 “Your Face,” pegged as a “lockdown-driven spiritual song of hope”.  Josh is optimistic, despite the circumstances, asserting, “And I’ve never been one to pray / Losing trust and losing faith / But there is God in all of us / And I can see Her on your face.” Quite sweet and definitely fitting for times like these.

From there, it’s back to the covers for Josh.  He taps 🏆 Grammy-winner Sara Bareilles for a beautiful rendition of 🎙 Joni Mitchell’s 🎵 “Both Sides Now.” Bareilles is the perfect duet partner; her voice is tailor-made for this particular song.  Furthermore, as with Leslie Odom Jr., the chemistry is marvelous.  Groban goes solo once more on a chilling take on ✅🎵 “She,” courtesy of the late 🎙 Charles Aznavour.  Here he’s backed by more of those lush, emotional strings that help to make much of Harmony such an awesome listening experience.  Next, he covers the oft covered 🎵 “Impossible Dream,” which dates back originally to 1965.  As always, he nails it.  The most dramatic moments really stand out as Groban flaunts his immense skills as a classically-trained vocalist – he never belts yet delivers the power when music dictates such.

“The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face”

Honestly, it’s almost surprising it took Josh Groban this many albums in to bestow us with a cover of 🎵 “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face.”  Covered many times by numerous musicians, the definitive version is by far 🎙 Roberta Flock’s chilling take (🎙 James Blake covered it this year too). Over the course of four and a half minutes, as expected, we get an authentic, well-rounded interpretation by Groban.  From there, Groban unleashes 🎵 “It’s Now or Never,” a beloved 🎙 Elvis Presley gem. The result? Another classy, classic-sounding performance.

Much like “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face,” it’s quite surprising fans just now hear Groban covering the Bonnie Raitt staple, “I Can’t Make You Love Me.” At this point, “I Can’t Make You Love Me” has been covered so much, there’s little ‘new’ you can bring to it.  Even so, it’s never blasé when you hear someone with Groban’s talent sing this timeless ballad.  Harmony closes with only the second original song, “The Fullest.” Featuring Kirk Franklin, once again, Groban taps into gospel and those soulful vibes.  The best moments come when “The Fullest” truly develops to ‘the fullest’ – the bridge and beyond.

Final Thoughts 💭

All in all, Josh Groban delivers another well-rounded, enjoyable, traditional pop album.  The 10 covers are all solid, getting excellent vocals from Groban.  Both the originals are also worth listening to, particularly “Your Face.” Harmony isn’t game changing nor does it need to be.  We love traditional pop because it provides us with the nostalgia of the classics.  We love Groban because he’s a truly elite, gifted musician.  

✅ Gems 💎: “The World We Knew (Over and Over),” “Angels,” “Celebrate Me Home,” “Shape of My Heart,” “You Face” & “She”

🎙 Josh Groban • 💿 Harmony • 🏷 Reprise • 🗓 11.20.20

[📷: Reprise]