It Had Better Be Tonight (recorded by Michael Buble): SATB Choral Octavo

Alan Billingsley captures the swagger and rhythmic drive of the Bublé recording while making the arrangement genuinely singable across four parts. The Latin percussion colors and syncopated rhythms push a choir beyond straight ballad territory without requiring extensive percussion instrumentation, making it both exciting and practical to mount in a concert setting.

Smooth, confident, and unmistakably sophisticated. The piece has the glamorous ease of a Sinatra-era vocal, wrapped in Latin percussion colors and contemporary harmonic writing that keeps it from feeling like a throwback. There's real swing underneath the polish.

Choirs with secure rhythm sections and at least some jazz or contemporary music experience will thrive with this arrangement. It works for intermediate to advanced SATB ensembles looking to program contemporary material with serious harmonic interest and a recognizable recording as reference.

• Lock the rhythm section into the backbeat and shuffle feel from the opening; a loose interpretation will drain the Latin edge the arrangement depends on.
• Balance the solo moments (which the arrangement likely features) against ensemble passages so the soloist doesn't disappear into the texture even when all four parts are singing.
• Lean into the Mancini-Mercer sophistication of the lyrics; this is smooth and cool, not cutesy. The vocal delivery should reflect the confidence of a seasoned vocalist.
• Use the recorded accompaniment strategically during rehearsal to lock tempos and feel, then pull singers away from it well before performance so they're not dependent on the track in concert.

This pairs beautifully in a jazz or pop-influenced concert set, especially alongside other Mancini or Great American Songbook material. Its modern recording source and upbeat energy also make it an effective closer or pre-encore piece that sends audiences out smiling.

• Singing with swing and rhythmic precision in a shuffle feel
• Balancing blend and texture in Latin-influenced jazz voicings
• Reading and executing syncopated rhythmic patterns across multiple voice parts
• Interpreting lyrical sophistication and vocal character in a contemporary choral context