We report complex magnetic, magnetoresistance (MR), and magnetocaloric properties of ${\mathrm{Gd}}_{4}\mathrm{RhAl}$ and ${\mathrm{Tb}}_{4}\mathrm{RhAl}$, forming in the ${\mathrm{Gd}}_{4}\mathrm{RhIn}$-type cubic structure. Though the synthesis of the compounds was reported long ago, to our knowledge, no attempt was made to investigate the properties of these compounds. The present results of ac and dc magnetization, electrical resistivity, and heat-capacity measurements down to 1.8 K establish that these compounds undergo antiferromagnetic order initially, followed by complex spin-glass features with decreasing temperature. These characteristic temperatures are as follows: for the Gd case, ${T}_{N}=\ensuremath{\sim}46\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}\mathrm{K}$ and ${T}_{G}=\ensuremath{\sim}21\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}\mathrm{K}$, and for Tb, \ensuremath{\sim}32 and \ensuremath{\sim}28 K, respectively. Additionally, there are field-induced magnetic effects, interestingly leading to nonmonotonic variations in MR. There is a significant MR over a wide temperature range above ${T}_{N}$, similar to the behavior of the magnetocaloric effect (MCE) as measured by isothermal entropy change (\ensuremath{\Delta}S). An intriguing finding we made is that \ensuremath{\Delta}S at the onset of magnetic order is significantly larger for the Tb compound than that observed for the Gd analog near its ${T}_{N}$. On the basis of this observation in a cubic material, we raise the question of whether the aspherical nature of the $4f$ orbital can play a role to enhance MCE under favorable circumstances---a clue that could be useful to find materials for magnetocaloric applications.