Idol Chat 2008: The Finale
At last it's down to the final two! In an attempt I guess to freshen things up with the show, producers imposed a stupid boxing analogy onto the competition. I found it tiresome and really not appropriate. You can't judge singers that way. Anyway, that said, even before I get into the critical analysis of the performances, the night had a clear winner: David Archuletta. But unfortunately, I had late social plans last night and didn't get to watch the show until around 11 PM. By then I was too tired to write my critiques and this morning is just too busy at work to get away with writing a blog post, so it will have to wait till later today. Sorry. Stay tuned
UPDATE: Okay, now on to the critiques.
David Archuletta: "Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me" A perfect choice for David. His vocals, as usual, were spot on and for the first time I felt he really owned the stage. His confidence level seemed better than ever and he gave one of the most exciting performances of the competition. Excellent.
"In this Moment" The song was a little syrupy, but because David sings from such a pure, honest place he can get away with it. He was smart to choose a song that sat right in the meat of his voice and had a soaring vocal line. Very good.
"Imagine" The first time I heard he was going to sing this song I thought "Oh, no--it's a beautiful song with a beautiful sentiment, but it's not a showstopper" Plus there are the inevitable John Lennon comparisons. But, like the first time, he completely ran with this song. The vocals were beautiful, and again, the sentiment is one that clearly resonates with him. He was able to give in his vocals what the song lacks which is an almost plaintive cry of desperation to find this perfect world he is singing about. This was gorgeous and clearly David A was in it to win it this week.
David Cook: "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" Excellent song choice for David, but I can't help feeling that the raspy quality to his voice isn't a bit put-on. There is a disingenuousness about him. He managed to pump up his physical performance a bit by taking the stage, but still it didn't blow me away, although it was good.
"Dream Big" An unfortunate song choice. David had to fight to hold my attention with this one. Not a great song and a so-so performance.
"The World I Know" By this point in the competition, David seemed completely defeated. This song choice didn't help to get him out of it. I didn't get it. I didn't know the song and didn't really care to. A lackluster performance.
Prediction: David Archuletta will be the new American Idol
UPDATE: Total upset! David Cook wins. I'm not sure how really based on those performances last night. But then, these things are decided many weeks in advance. Apparently David Archuletta started coming in second to David Cook somewhere around mid season. I think maybe Archuletta's baby face and what some saw as false modesty may have grated on people's nerves (I've heard many people say that.) And that is the only reason I can think of why David Cook would have beat out David Archuletta. Go figure.
Labels: Idol
Idol Chat 2008 (Part 10)
I got home from work very late tonight, so I actually missed David
Archuletta's and most of
Syesha's first songs. But no matter, I don't necessarily need to see each contestant sing three songs to get the gist of how the competition is shaping up at this point. It was a pretty unspectacular night considering this was the semi-final round. As I mentioned in my last post, Entertainment Weekly seemed to sum up what amounts to Idol burn-out this year. Something is definitely lacking--proof of that is the fact that I haven't picked up the phone once this year to vote for my favorite singer.
Further contributing to my Idol fatigue, when I tuned in tonight, Randy and Simon were bickering and making the competition about them and their song choices for the singers rather than the singers themselves. The petty infighting is getting old by season 7. Also, and I can't stress this enough, I am SO SICK of Ryan
Seacrest gay baiting Simon all the time!
Seacrest is so paranoid of the gay rumors (or truths) circulating about him that he tries everything to deflect attention away from himself and on to others--usually Simon. He resorts to typical juvenile homophobic innuendo which is neither funny nor clever. It's just sad and smacks of desperation. Besides that, the youth of America is watching, Ryan. Please don't poison their minds with the same self-loathing that torments your own pathetically self-important little world.
In case you're wondering, I'm making reference to the fact that Simon had chosen the Roberta Flack classic "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" for David Cook. Ryan predictably tried to attack Simon's masculinity by implying that he chose the song because he's hot for David. These kinds of comments from Ryan have been going on for a couple of seasons now. (Ever since Terri Hatch outed him on David Letterman.) And I'm over it!
GLAAD or someone needs to call this guy out, I'm serious. It's really starting to ruin the show for me to have to listen to childish homophobic quips from the host of a show I have enjoyed for many years and has a HUGE gay following,
especially when someone as young as David
Archuletta, who could very well end up being gay, is listening in the wings. Shame on you, Ryan! Grow up and learn to play the gracious host.
Well. Now that I got that off my chest, here are my picks in order of preference based on the performances I saw:
David Cook: "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" was gorgeous! It was so different from anything we've seen from David before and it was impressive. This is exactly the kind of versatility and talent that American Idol is all about. However, by his second song he suffered from serious pitch problems with a song that seemed to peter out and had no ending. Besides that he seemed to be back to that same old affected, smarmy David from the beginning of the competition which seemed to follow him through his third song ("Don't Want to Miss a Thing"). Still, he's an exciting performer and has real musicianship and versatility which should place him among the final two.
Syesha Mercado: I only caught a bit of the Alicia
Keyes song that
Syesha performed, but it sounded great. She chose "Fever" for her second tune continuing her habit of choosing overused signature songs of other great singers. Further, "Fever" is not a song that ever shows a singer off well. It's a style piece which
Syesha had plenty of in this, staging the number like something from a musical rather than a pop tune. But it wasn't the kind of vocal showpiece we want to hear at this point and I'm not sure it's what the public is looking for in their American Idol. Her third song "Come Hit Me Up" (?), although not a great tune, was fresh and modern and young, a side
Syesha needs to show if she wants to go to the finals. Truth be told, she sings everything well. She is an exceptional singer with great talent and technique and seems to get better and better each week. But she may have plateaued this week--one week too soon.
David Archuletta: I've said it week after week: David has the voice of an angel. But his song choices this week were pretty bad. (I missed his first song though) It was nice to hear him sing an up-tempo song for a change ("With You") but it came off cute rather than sexy or genuine. Still, he sounded great. Finally he chose "Longer" by Dan
Fogelberg which I think is the song "light" radio stations use as an example of something too corny and old-fashioned even for them. It was nice and sweet and he sang it beautifully, but David showed us nothing new this week. Who knows, maybe it was the pressure of all the bad press about his father this week, but David didn't present a performance tonight worthy of being in the final two. And I love the kid.
Who Will Go: Syesha. Despite a lackluster performance from David A, I think it will be a David and David in the finals. The love has been with these two all season.
UPDATE: Well, as predicted,
Syesha goes home and it's a David/David finale. I think we all knew it would end up this way weeks ago. Still,
Syesha has a lot to be proud of. She was not one of the favorites coming into the competition but she met challenge after challenge and kept growing beautifully as a performer. Her notoriety from Idol will no doubt get her lots of Broadway offers and honestly I think she'd rather be Broadway star than a pop star anyway.
Labels: Homophobia, Idol
Rainy Monday Random Thoughts
Another drab rainy day here in New York (Friday was miserable, too). With little to inspire me on a day like this you're left to endure my random, unrelated thoughts as I sit here with my morning coffee.
Dunkin Donuts Coffee Rules: Scott and I remarked on the recent glut of Dunkin Donuts franchises popping up all over the city (giving Starbuck's and the new CapitalOne bank a run for their money). We noticed yesterday that there is a Dunkin' Donuts on the northbound side of Broadway between 96 and 97 Streets and another one on the southbound side between 95 and 96 Streets, because one shouldn't have to walk too far for a donut. I, for one, am doing my best to keep the new franchises in business at the expense of my waistline.
Idol Overload: Read an article in Entertainment Weekly about the somewhat less than exciting
American Idol season this year. The show has become formulaic and predictable. We know what the judges will say before they ever open their mouths, and with sites like "vote for the worst" and "dial idol" even the public has figured out how to manipulate the voting. On top of that, the buzz this morning is that David Archuletta is suffering the effects of an overindulgent stage-father.
Mr. Archuletta has been banned from the AI rehearsals and studios with the exception of the live tapings. Poor little David. But then again, maybe it will work in his favor with the voting public.
Mothers Day 2008: My sister and I hosted our traditional Mother's Day brunch/lunch down in Asbury Park. The menu included: Mixed berry yogurt with granola, a selection of cheeses and salumi, vegetable frittata, roasted asparagus wrapped with prosciutto, lamb kabobs with chick pea and cous cous salad and lemon poppy seed cake with fresh berries for desert. Someone once accused our family of being "food obsessed". Yup. We're Italian. Deal. Mom was delighted.
Schadenfreude: I admit I take secret delight in the demise of Republican politicians like
Vito Fosella of Staten Island who was recently arrested for drunk driving, revealed to have a mistress in Virginia and a secret love child--what Saturday Night Live referred to the other night as "the trifecta". Not so much when it's a Democrat. Kudos to Fosella's wife, though, for not standing by his side through the embarrassing press conferences.
Superhero: Went to see the new blockbuster hit, Iron Man, on opening weekend at the Ziegfeld here in New York. All the nerds were lined up outside the theatre ahead of time. They applauded after the new Indiana Jones trailer and exclaimed with shock and delight at the surprise scene after the final credits of Iron Man. Gotta love comic book geeks. By the way, I'm as shocked as anyone that I LOVED this movie. (I'm not usually the Superhero movei type.) I highly recommend it.
Labels: Blogging, Idol, Politics, Pop Culture
Idol Chat 2008 (Part 9)
I'll admit the competition I was more interested in tonight was the primary races in Indiana and North Carolina. But I did manage to flip back and forth from CNN to Fox to catch the final four on American Idol. The contestants had to choose songs from inductees in the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame which pretty much gave them carte blanche to pick any song they liked. This point of the competition is usually one of the most exciting weeks, but sadly this season it seemed to fall short. Here are my picks from best to worst tonight:
Syesha: Seems to be in it to win it this week. She is the only one really going the extra mile to show her versatility and amp up her performance level. "Proud Mary" was a bold choice, once again, comparisons to a diva were inevitable, in this case Tina Turner. Still Syesha held her own all though she is no Tina. For her second song she chose the classic "A Change is Gonna Come" which she sang like a star, showing the beautiful soulfull side of her voice. She continues to grow and grow in the competition.
David Archuletta: "Stand By Me" was an excellent song choice for David and he delivered it with his usual vocal virtuosity, but I couldn't help wishing he would kick up his physical performance a notch, too. When he chose "Love Me Tender" for his second song I thought "oh, no, another ballad" but his simple, pure, honest performance was unmatched tonight. He understands when less is more and is not afraid to be completely vulnerable on stage which makes him one of the bravest performers left in the competition. This was beautiful.
David Cook: David gave us more of the same this week, which is not necessarily a bad thing. He is an adept performer and has the rocker image nailed down. However, he seemed to perform with an over-confidence in both songs this week that seemed to indicate that he doesn't think he really has to work so hard against his competitors. But I would advise him to beware of Syesha. As I said, she's in it to win it and it's starting to show.
Jason Castro: Poor Jason is so out of his element at this point. It's just sad. (Haven't I said that for the past 3 weeks though?) In his first song, "I Shot the Sheriff" he seemed to be trying for some kind of reggae feel as if to carve a niche for himself this late in the competition. But it was too little too late and just came off desperate. You'd think he would be able to pull of "Mr. Tambourine Man", the hippie-dippy style more suited to his demeanor, but he forgot the words and phoned in the performance. It's clear he doesn't want to be here anymore.
Who Should Go: JASON! He's becoming this year's Sanjaya.
UPDATE: Jason finally leaves the show. Thank you merciful heaven!
Labels: Idol
Idol Chat 2008 (Part 8)
It took a lot to muster some enthusiasm for the remaining contestants, especially after watching Carly Smithson do the post-Idol talk show circuit this week. Few of the singers left have the vocal chops Carly has and fewer still are as exciting a performer as she is. That said, I wasn't exactly thrilled to hear they were each going to sing two songs. Two Neil Diamond songs. Truth be told, I waited till the show was over and watched it on DVR fast forwarding through all the inane comments and interviews right to the performances. Here are my picks from best to worst.
David Archuletta--"Sweet Caroline" and "America" There is joy in his performances. You could tell he loved singing "Sweet Caroline" and it showed on his face and in the vocals. One note of criticism though: he riffed on the melody too soon. Rule of thumb, only riff after you've sung it straight once. We know the song, we like it, we want to hear the version we know. "America" could certainly have worked against him. It's overdone and reminds me of so much cruise ship work. That said, he took it and ran with it. His vocals were spot on and he gave it an original spin. It was an exciting performance. Very good.
Syesha--"Hello Again" and "Thank the Lord for the Night Time" Like any good student of Musical Theatre Syesha chose a ballad and an up-tempo. They both showed her off nicely. She is a beautiful singer. Unlike most of the other performers, she seems to grow every week. Also, she is not afraid to show some vulnerability and doesn't feel the need to hide behind a musical instrument. She did well with the second song, too, but I felt it was just a little bit safe. (I couldn't help imagining some one like Fantasia tearing up the stage with that song.) But even her safe performance beats the pants off some of the other singers.
David Cook. "I'm Alive" and "All I Really Need is You" David had an advantage in that vocally his style is not unlike Neil Diamond's. That said, I wasn't crazy about the first song. It was fine, just okay. By the second song he was back to the David that has gotten him this far in the competition. He completely rocked it. And as is always the case when David is at his best, he found his own voice with this performance--even if that voice is a bit shouted at times.
Brooke White--"I'm a Believer" LAME. Brooke turns in another amateur performance. And if there was ever a song not to be stuck behind a guitar it's this one. A missed opportunity and her inability to recognize that shows that her instincts as a performer are poor. "I am, I said" This was the best performance Brooke has turned in in weeks. She was wise to personalize the song. She seemed vulnerable, invested. But still, her vocals are only so good.
Jason Castro--"Forever in Blue Jeans", "September Morn" This kid is so out of his element at this point in the competition it's kind of sad. He doesn't seem invested at all, indeed, he seems to be pleading with the audience to cut him from the show. Boring, milquetoast, uninspired--for both songs.
Who Should Go: Jason. Please put this kid out of his misery.
UPDATE: Finally some justice--Brooke goes home. But how, how, how does Jason make it another week without being in the bottom two??? Never underestimate the power of the tween voting bloc I guess.
s
Labels: Idol
Idol Chat (Part 7)
Okay, I'm sorry this is so late. I've been insanely busy at work today and I had to seriously edit down the epic rant I wrote last night on this week's episode. It essentially turned out to be a critical analysis of the entire Lloyd Weber oeuvre. Anyway, fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy night. Here's the post:
Oh, the pretension! This week on American Idol the contestants were forced to sing the songs of Lord Andrew Lloyd Weber. LORD. They introduced her lordship with such fanfare on the show I fully expected him to enter wearing an ermine trimmed cape! From the very beginning of the show Ryan et al were going on and on about how this would be the toughest week ever in the history of American Idol as if they contestants were suddenly asked to perform Wagnerian song cycles or something. Yes, it was a tough week, but only because most of Weber’s music is so pedestrian it’s hard to pull of an interesting or fresh performance of it.
Oh. You might have noticed I have some strong opinions on the work of his lordship. STRONG. Not that he hasn’t created a couple of interesting, even relevant shows (Evita, Superstar), but let’s just say if you’re a fan, you might just want to stop reading now. It’s a long one anyway. I have a lot to say. A LOT.
On with the top and bottom 3—or the final 6 in this case.
Top Three
Carly Smithson. “Jesus Christ Superstar” This was a toss up for me for first place between Carly and Syesha. I gave it to Carly though because there seemed to be more at stake for her this week following a couple weeks in a row of uncharacteristic lackluster performances. But last night she came back stronger than ever--a clear standout of the evening. She can thank his Lordship for some excellent advice that got her out of her slump. ( Imagine if she had sung that other piece of drivel she chose? Good heavens!) The best benefit she got was choosing a song from a period of Weber’s work when he was writing from a place of true passion rather than commercialism. It’s an exciting song and Carly gave exciting, fresh performance. I thought she was great. GREAT.
Syesha “One Rock and Roll Too Many” Well! It seems Miss Syesha has finally found her niche. She seemed much more suited to this genre than pop. Also, she went for a decidedly musical theatre approach to the song and made no apologies for it. It was a risk in a way, but it paid off. She delivered the song with all the glamour and sass of a real Broadway star. The judges seemed to respect that and in fact rewarded her for excelling in a style of music she is clearly passionate about. Following their comments, there was a look of satisfaction and relief on Syesha's face as if to say “Oh, good. It’s okay to be me” which I found sweet and touching. Syesha had proved to be an adept singer all along, but only recently has she begun to shine.
David Archuletta “Think of Me” His lordship was astonished that a boy would choose to sing this song. Why? The lyric is pretty general and non-specific—it’s not exactly “I Enjoy Being a Girl” (Although come to think of it, David would be pretty cute in that number, too.) His lordship pretends the lyric wasn’t purposefully left vague in the hopes that this banal little ditty would get recorded to death by singers of all types making him millions of dollars. David sang the song beautifully. He actually gave it some meat. But you know how Randy is always saying this kid could sing the phone book and make it sound good? This song is pretty close. He comes in third last night because you can only put so much lipstick on a pig.
Bottom Three
David Cook “Music of the Night” An uninspired song choice. Why didn’t someone steer this kid toward Judas in Superstar? He would have kicked ass. Instead he gave a bland performance of a bland song. Not good, not bad, neither passionate nor vulnerable. Just there. We can thank David’s song choice for giving us perhaps one of the most awkward moments in television history, however. Maybe David gave such a wooden performance because he was trying to resist the urge to vomit after having the lizard-like Lloyd Weber come on to him in his vocal coaching-- an incident that will undoubtedly scar him for life. That has to be one of the creepiest things I’ve ever seen on tv. Seriously.
Jason Castro “Memory” This doesn’t even deserve comment. This kid is so stupid it’s not even cute or funny anymore. “I didn’t know a cat was singing it.” Need I say more? Anyone who doesn’t know that singing “Memory” ANYWHERE sets you up to be a laughing stock is clearly a dullard of the highest order. It’s akin to singing “Feelings” on the Gong Show for crying out loud! This is the reason Jason bothers me so much as a performer, he’s pleasant enough, but there’s no spark of intelligence or creativity in him. He’s always got dull-eyed vacant expression. There’s nothing going on upstairs and that’s not interesting to watch.
Brook White “You Must Love Me” She chose a third rate song for the movie version of “Evita”. That was her first mistake which ultimately lead her to her second mistake, forgetting the lyric. Here’s what happened: it’s a bad song. There’s a reason people forget lyrics—usually it’s because they don’t work. Any playwright, for example, knows that if an actor trips up on the same line all the time, there’s probably something wrong with the line. And Paula is right! YOU MUST NOT START AND STOP! First rule of show business: The show must go on. Hello? This girl is an amateur. Her vocals are extremely mediocre. She can’t play the piano worth a damn. She hasn’t grown at all during the competition giving the same high school talent show level performance week after week. This is all she’s got folks. She’s not your American Idol.
Boy, do I sound cranky today or what? But it felt good to get all that out. Whew! I guess I owe his lordship (and his fans) a really nice Musical Moments post after this, huh. The next one--I promise!
WHO SHOULD GO: BROOKE!!!
UPDATE: Okay, this is the point in the season where I vow never to watch American Idol again. This is when the fan base for each singer is so strong it doesn't matter how good or bad the performances are (Jason? BROOKE?). The two best performances by far, Syesha and Carly, ended up in the bottom two. The only good thing about this is that we got to watch both of them again because there is no freakin' way I could have sat through that excruciating version of "Memory" again. Sadly, the unbelievably talented Carly Smithson goes home this week while Mr. "I-didn't-know-a-cat-was-singin'-it" and Miss Start-and-Stop-Amateur-Hour live to see another week. Where is the justice? It better be David and David in the final two or I swear I'm never watching American Idol again. And I meant it this time!
Labels: Idol
Idol Chat 2008 (Part 6)
This week the contestants on American Idol tried their hand at Mariah Carey songs. At first I was excited that Mariah would be acting as this week's mentor, but she didn't really deliver the way I hoped she would. First, there was that false "who-am-I-to-judge-just-ignore-what-I-say" modesty thing. Give me a break. That kind of feined humility is not attractive. Mariah, you're an accomplished singer/songwriter. You can certainly teach these kids a thing or two. Unfortunately, she didn't really impress me with her coaching notes either, with the exception of some advice on a alternate musical choices. She didn't seem to be all that invested in helping the singers out.
Anyway, here's my top and bottom three:
Top ThreeDavid Archuletta: "When You Believe" Phrasing issues--don't' breath in the middle of a sentence! He took Mariah's advice and went for some falsetto notes but seemed afraid of what might come out of his mouth. Otherwise, the kid has a glorious voice. He delivered yet again what we've come to expect from David: Strong, consistent vocals and an honest interpretation. I want to start seeing more sides of him though. How about an up-tempo?
Syesha: Outside of a couple of pitch issues, I thought she sounded great on "Vanishing". She looked gorgeous and not only sang technically very well, but for the first time she started to show some star quality. She clearly resonated and connected with the song. It showed.
David Cook: "Always Be My Baby" He was his smarmy affected self again this week and the arrangement of the song was dark and odd. But he's a good vocalist. He's interesting to listen to, even if he did shout a bit in the middle.
Bottom Three
Jason Castro: "I Don't Want to Cry" I've said this before: Jason seems to leave his performances up to chance. He gets out on stage looking like he has no idea what he's going to do or what is going to come out of his mouth. This time chance was in his favor. He did a decent job, but compared to the other singers left in the competition, he's a vocal lightweight. He just can't compare.
Kristy Lee Cook: "Forever" OUCH, some of those bottom notes were painful. But when she hit the refrain she wasn't bad. She looked gorgeous in that non-threatening way 13 year old girls aspire to look. And that's probably who is keeping her in the competition.
Brook White: "Hero" This was painful. Brooke should stop playing the piano. She's BAD at it. She is consistently distracted by the keyboard and her connection with the song and the audience suffers because of it. It's starting to feel like everything she does is the same old same old. Nothing new or interesting here. And some bad notes to boot.
Who Should Go: Well, any of my bottom three could go and I'd be fine with it. But frankly, this week I think Brooke deserves to go. Another sleepy, sub-par performance.
UPDATE: Well, it's goodbye to Kristy Lee Cook. While I think she's been in the competition on borrowed time these last few weeks, I did not think this was her worst performance. In fact, she has shown improvement week after week as opposed to some of the other singers who seem stuck in a rut. But I can't say I'm sorry to see her go. She seems like a nice kid though--pretty, too.
Labels: Idol
Idol Chat 2008 (Part 5)
My American Idol post is late this week because I wasn't able to watch the show Tuesday night. I finally caught it on DVR last night, fast forwarded through all of Ryan Seacrest's inane remarks and just got right to the songs. The theme this week is Inspirational songs to tie in with the big Idol gives back brouhaha. It's actually a really good theme because the songs have some meat to them and test a singer's performance mettle. Okay. On with my top and bottom three picks for this week:
TOP THREE:
David Archuletta-- "Angels" This is the first time we've seen David get behind the piano to sing. This always presents a challenge for a performer because there is literally a thousand pound obstacle in the way of his connection with the audience. David, however, has so much stage presence he seemed to shine from the piano bench despite his diminutive size. The vocal was effortless and the run he did at the end was absolute perfection; every note seemed to float in perfect cadence. This kid is unbelievably talented.
Michael Johns--"Dream On" I don't understand the judges' lukewarm reception of this song. Randy complained of pitch problems, but I really didn't hear any. Granted he was the first singer of the night and I was still getting settled with my note pad and snacks when he started singing, but usually an off-pitch note will stick out like a sore thumb to me, so if there were pitch issues, they were insignificant. He was also criticized for song choice, Simon saying that the rock style didn't suit him. What? Since when is Michael Johns not one of this year's rocker boys? Isn't this the kid who got on the show by singing Bohemian Rhapsody? I thought he sang it great. He seemed confident and comfortable on stage and the falsetto notes at the end were fabulous! He took a risk going for them and it paid off. I thought he was great.
Syesha--"I believe" I had trouble coming up with a number three this week. There were a bunch of performers who sort of fell in the middle range. I chose Syesha because technically she sang this song very well. She has a very pretty voice and sounded great on this throughout. The problem with Syesha is her song choices. Choosing a Fantasia song was not smart, just like last week when she invited comparisons to Whitney Houston. Part of talent is choosing the right song. My complaint with Syesha is the same every week; she sings well, but she's not a star. There's just something lacking in her presence.
BOTTOM THREE
Kristy Lee Cook "Anyway" Even though this was a good performance for Kristy, again, her pitch is terrible which is why she's in my bottom three again. BUT, she chooses the right song week after week and as I said, that's part of talent, so she does have some. There was a lyric in the song she sang though that sort of summed up Kristy's performance for me "Tomorrow they'll forget you ever sang." Yeah. That's pretty much it.
Jason Castro "Over the Rainbow" Jason's long hair and ukelele evoked images of Tiny Tim for me. I was waiting for him to start singing Tiptoe Through the Tulips, but he sang Over the Rainbow instead. He chose a very distinct overplayed arrangement by a singer with a very distinct voice, one that due to its richness and character makes the song work. But Jason has no richness or character to his voice or anything else. He barely has an intellect. This was another low-ball, derivative performance. I'm convinced he has no desire to win this thing.
David Cook "Innocent" Ick! Ick! Ick! I hated this song. It was weird. The vocals were bizarre and disjointed. He was so pretentious and smug I felt like throwing up. This guy takes himself too damn seriously. One of the worst of the night by far.
WHO SHOULD GO: Jason Castro. He's just not in the same league as the other singers. Even Kristy Lee manages to choose good songs, but Jason seems checked out of this competition and so he should go. Bub-bye.
UPDATE: Whoa! Total upset! Michael Johns goes home. Way too prematurely if you ask me. But then I think his appeal is an older market, not the one that is voting right now which explains why Jason Castro is still around and not even in the bottom three tonight.
Labels: Idol
Idol Chat 2008 (Part 4)
We've waited years for this and at long last Dolly Parton acted as mentor to the American Idol kids. While she was a little too good-hearted to offer any real criticism, she brought to the table her considerable catalogue of songs from which the contestants could sing. Across the board they all did well this week--even the ones who are usually lousy--so for a change I was hard pressed to pick a bottom three rather than a top three. But I managed:
TOP THREE
Carly Smithson--"Here You Come Again" This girl has such beautiful tone to her voice and proved this week that she's not just a rocker chick. She is a wonderful, sensitive ballad singer as well. The arrangement was great and made me forget all about the Dolly Parton version. She's is a smart competitor choosing songs that show off different sides of her considerable versatality week after week.
David Archuletta--"Smokey Mountain Memories" I said it before and I'll say it again--this kid has the voice of an angel! The first three notes out of his mouth put other singers whole performances to shame. He was wonderful. He's just got "it".
David Cook--"Little Sparrow" I'm chagrinned to include Mr. Smarmy among the top three for the third week in a row. He is not without talent. His song choices are smart, the arrangements unique and he consistently turns in a good performance. The same was true this week. He's good. I guess he's growing on me. It helps that he got a haircut and finally got rid of the Liza Minnelli spit curls.
BOTTOM THREE
Ramiele--"Do I Ever Cross Your Mind" I didn't have a problem with the vocal on this so much as I did with her uncomfortable performance. She lacks the polish on stage that should come with a sound as mature as hers. She had no idea what to do with this song. She was trying to look cool or something but singing a full-out, down-home country song so she just looked lost. Commit to the style!
Brooke White--"Joline" I expected a lot from this but was disappointed. Brooke has a lovely presence on stage and a nice voice but not much else. She should stop trying to play an instrument while she sings. She's not a good enough musician--it seems to get in the way every week. I wanted to hear this in a higher key, it sat in an unspectacular place in her voice and she didn't seem to connect with the lyric much at all.
Syesha--"I Will Always Love You" Syesha committed a cardinal sin of American Idol: She sang a Whitney song. Bad move. She looked great and honestly the performance wasn't bad at all, but she was inviting comparisons to Whitney Houston with this and frankly she can't compete. She is very pretty, sings well and looks good on camera, but there's no star quality here.
WHO SHOULD GO
Based on last night's performances, Ramiele should go. It's only a matter of time anyway. But I wouldn't mind seeing Kristy Lee or Jason Castro get the boot either. They were both decent this week tho.
UPDATE Well, I got two out of the bottom three. Maybe I gave Kristy more credit than she deserved. As I predicted--Ramiele goes home.
Labels: Idol
Idol Chat 2008 (Part 3)
Sadly, this proved to be another lack-lustre week on American Idol. The singers had to choose songs from the year they were born which made me feel incredibly old. Very few of the singers seemed to resonate with their material which made it hard to choose any stand-out performances. Also, this early in the competition the singers haven't really stepped up their game. They are just trying to make it to the next week. It's only after almost all of them have spent a week in the bottom three that you start to see who's in it to win. So, on with my top three and bottom three picks for the week:
TOP THREE
Michael Johns "We are the Champions" Finally Michael lives up to his potentional. Perfect song choice. Great presence. He seemed like a star tonight. I'm so glad--I was beginning to worry about him.
David Cook "Billy Jean" David gets extra credit for taking a risk with a really wierd three quarter arrangement that I thought for sure was doomed when I first heard it. But he pulled it off. It was a really strong performance. I was impressed. I do find him smug and affected though which could be his demise in the end. And I'm really over the
Valerie Cherish yoga bow.
Carly Smithson "Total Eclipse of the Heart" Great vocal. She's got a great stage presence but I could have used a little more commitment in this performance. Still, even Carly on a bad day ranks among the top three for me.
BOTTOM THREE
Jason Castro --I forget the name of the song because the performance was so forgettable. This kid has nothing to offer except a pretty face and a nice presence. But to quote what Simon always says: "it's a singing competition". He just doesn't have a good voice. It's weak and breathy. He's not a good vocalist.
Ramiele--"Alone" I believe Ramiele has a good voice, but she never seems to bring anything fresh or new to her performances. She seems to lack the sophistication that should accompany a mature sounding voice like hers. I know she was sick this week, but this just seemed like a lot of screaming to me. She probably over-rehearsed and wore herself out. I'm getting a little tired of her.
Kristy Lee Cook--"Proud to be an American" This was Kristy's best week by far, but she still ranks among the bottom three for me for the sole reason that she has serious pitch problems. There are moments that are absolutely agonizing to listen to. I give her credit for a brilliant song choice, though. She knows it's the country bloc that's keeping her in the competition and to use the anniversary of the war to manipulate the audience into voting for her was a wise strategic move.
Who I'd like to see go: Jason Castro. This one-trick pony has worn out his welcome with me. He will live to see another week though because he's precisely the kind of non-threatening pretty boy the 13 year-old girls voting out there love.
UPDATE: Well, Chikezie is out. I'm sorry to see him go because there is no denying he is a great vocalist. He's also very likable. But where I think Chikezie fell short was as a performer. He came on like gangbusters a couple of weeks ago with a great arrangement, tried unsuccessfully to repeat it the following week, then changed gears with a rather old-fashioned R&B ballad this week. He seemed to be searching for his niche but never quite found it.
Labels: Idol
Idol Chat 2008 (part 2)
Last night on American Idol the theme was expanded from Lennon and McCartney songs to the entire Beatles
oeuvre. Clearly the producers of AI are satisfying their six year hunger for the song rights that were heretofore unattainable. While these are the standards of the rock era and an excellent test for any up and coming artist, week two of Beetles songs revealed the contestants' second-choices songs and which made for less exciting performances across the board.
As with last week here are my top and bottom 3:
TOP THREE David Archuleta--"The Long and Winding Road" After a shaky performance last week the
wunderkindt was back in top form. I know there are some who are already suspect of his "aw shucks" humility, but to me it's sincere. This kid is a star. He has the voice of an angel. He picked the perfect song. His performance was simple, pure and vulnerable--exactly the right tone for the song. He was right on point throughout.
Carly Smithson--"Blackbird" She gave a great hard-rock performance of "Come Together" last week only to turn around and show a beautiful vulnerable side this week. She revealed a rich deep register that we had not heard before and still managed to find the height of the song as well. This was beautiful. I have a feeling this girl can sing anything. A consummate pro.
David Cook--"Day Tripper" I'm very surprised to be putting David Cook in the top three because I really don't like him. I find him smarmy and affected. I detested his interpretation of "Eleanor Rigby" last week for reasons I could write a thesis on, but this week I kinda liked him. He chose the perfect song and arrangement. I could have done without that weird voicebox thing and frankly, his guitar playing does him no favors. It ended up looking like an uncomfortable prop. But I thought he sounded good and he sold the song and the style well.
BOTTOM THREE
Kristy Lee Cook--"You've Got to Hide Your Love Away" This was painful. Her pitch is all over the place. She consistently sang the same wrong note through the entire song. Hopeless. She is beautiful though.
Michael Johns--"A Day in the Life" It pains me to put Michael Johns in the bottom three because I think he's really cute and pretty talented, but he chose the wrong song for the second week in a row. It's not worth it to cut a song like this down to a minute and a half. He has a habit of choosing songs that are sentimental to him but don't necessarily show him off very well. He claims to have a deep emotional connection to them, but it almost seems like those connections are too fresh or painful to reveal in a performance. He needs some distance from these songs and to revisit them in five years.
Jason Castro--"Michele Ma Belle" I guess Jason's beautiful performance of "Hallelujah" from a couple weeks ago was a fluke because he hasn't been able to deliver since. He gave a pretty bad performance last week and this week was even worse. Jason is the kind of guy who is very cute and charming but feels he doesn't need to do anything else. He seems to let his performances happen by chance, giving no thought to the lyrics or emotion of the song. He was boring. He didn't even sound good. He'll be around for a while thought because 12 year old girls think he's cute.
WHO SHOULD GO?
Kristy Lee Cook Oh, please, God, put her out of her misery. The only reason she's lasted this long is because Danny Noriega and David Hernandez were too gay for prime time. But the party's over--it's time to go, Kristy.
UPDATE: Sadly, one of the most unique contestants to ever appear on American Idol goes home tonight--Amanda Overmeier. Unfortunately, she probably had a little too much edge for middle America. They prefer a marginally talented bland Barbie doll--So Kristy Lee Cook lives to see another week. Oy.
Labels: Idol
Idol Chat 2008!
And so it begins! Another season of American Idol for me to review, dissect and speculate. With apologies to my non-Idol watching readers, I love this stuff so please indulge me. Anyway, let's launch into it, shall we?
The theme this week was Lennon and McCartney songs, a first-ever for American Idol. I believe till now the rights to many of those songs have been tied up in litigation or were being held hostage by Michael Jackson or some such non-sense. At any rate, it was long overdue and provided the contestants a wealth of excellent materials to choose from. All in all it made for an entertaining evening.
While the number of contestants remains high, I will restrict my comments to who I think are the top three and the bottom three of the night. That said, I was hard pressed to choose a top three despite the judges gushing that this is the most talented crop of singers on the show to date. True, I think the bar has been raised across the board, but I didn't find that there were three clear top contestants last night. But I'll take a stab at it:
TOP THREE:
Chikezie--I'm as surprised as anyone to be naming Chikezie as one of the top three. Frankly I thought he should have been ousted in favor or Danny Noriega last week. But, like Hillary Clinton on the eve of the New Hampshire primary, he finally found his voice. The arrangement of turning "She's a Woman" into a country tune, then taking off 180 degrees in the other direction as a hard-rock tune was quite a risk. It paid off in spades for him though as he managed to pull off the transition seamlessly.
Carly--The Irish lass sang "Come Together" an atypical Beatles tune with risky lyrics for primetime, but she breathed new life into it by committing to the hard-rock nature of it. Also, being a woman, she offers a new perspective on the song. Performed like a pro--one of the best of the night.
Amanda--Another class-A rocker chick singing "You Can't Do That". I put her in the top three by default--I felt she was only slightly better than the rest of the pack last night. She is unique, committed and interesting, but I want to start seeing more variety from her.
BOTTOM THREE
Syesha--"Got to Get You Into My Life" Perhaps it was because she was the first to perform on the new stage and all, but she seemed overwhelmed by the space. The arrangement was a watered down 70s variety show version of the song and the performance milquetoast. Unimpressive.
David Hernandez-- "She was Just 17". Poor David Hernandez has had a hell of a week with rumors swirling around about his gay-stripper past. (And they tried to make us believe he used to work in a pizza parlor!) That said, the poor boy was trying way too hard. There was no bite to the song. It was a cheesy, lame arrangement. Karoake.
Kristy Lee--"Eight Days a Week" Oy. This was bad. She took the suggestion to go country too literally. The song didn't quite work with this "Hee-Haw" arrangement and she spent a lot of the time fighting the old rhythms. Perhaps she deserves credit for taking a risk, but in this case it didn't pay off.
Who Should Go? Kristy Lee--definitely. She probably should have been gone already but her pretty face (and possibly a strong block of country enthusiasts) have kept her in the competition. But it's time to go.
UPDATE: Well, my bottom three were spot on, but unfortunately David Hernandez is out. (No pun intended) I think his exit from the show is a bit premature. I suspect he was the victim of bad publicity. Pity.
Labels: Idol
The Last Idol Chat
As much as I like Jordin and Blake, I have to say this was perhaps the dullest American Idol finale to date. We all know who should have won the competition and that's Melinda. This finale would have been far more exciting with her presence in it. But oh well, she was eliminated. Go figure the how the American public votes. I've been trying since 2000! But I will say without Melinda, the playing field was pretty even between Blake and Jordin, and so the outcome isn't necessarily obvious. And now, on with the critique:
Round 1Blake graciously volunteered to sing first starting with "You Give Love a Bad Name." He was heavy on the beatboxing, but as it turned out it was his only opportunity to do so all evening. At first I wanted to see him have more fun with it, but he got there by time he started strutting around with the mic stand. But I'm sorry, no one does the one-handed mic stand strut better than Bo Bice. Blake was good though. A strong start to the competition.
Jordin chose to start with Christina Aguilera's "Fighter." Her vocals were great on this, but I don't think it was the best song choice for her. Jordin's strengths are her youth, sunniness and vitality. This song didn't play to any of those. The theme off it was dark, and that's not the quality that earned her a place in the finals.
Round 2Blake started off round 2 with "She Will Be Loved," a great choice for him. His voice is suited for it and he sang it pretty well. He was a bit unsupported going into the falsetto and I worried about his pitch however. His presence is charming though and all in all it wasn't bad. But as Simon said, it's not the kind of safe, middle-of-the-road performance we expect to see in the finals.
Jordin's second song was Martina McBride's "With a Broken Wing." See my critique for round 1.
Round 3Every year for the Idol finale they make both singers sing the winning song in this lame song writing competition they have. It's always one of these schlocky, sentimental ballads about making a dream come true, or in this case "This Is My Now." It invariably ends up being much better suited for one of the singers over the other and ends up doing the other one in. (Again, I bring up Bo Bice.) This was certainly the situation with
Blake. He was clearly out of his element and seemed uncomfortable with this song. I mean, where was he gonna beat box with that thing? It wasn't his style but he did the best he could with it.
Jordin clearly benefited from the song style here and she gave a powerful and honest performance. One thing Jordin is not afraid to do is become emotionally invested in a song. Her very real tears and the emotional break in her voice were so affective they may have won her the competition. She gave a beautiful performance of the song.
Who will be the next American Idol: Jordin
RESULTS UPDATE: JORDIN WINS!
Labels: Idol
Love Notes for Fantasia
As you may or may not know, Fantasia Barrino, American Idol Season 3 winner known simply as Fantasia now, opened recently as Celie in
The Color Purple on Broadway. In the wake of an Oscar winning performance by Jennifer Hudson whom she defeated for the title of American Idol and replacing Broadway actress LaChanze in the Tony winning role she created, Fantasia had a couple of tough acts to follow. Here are some of her reviews.
She’s pretty terrific. So terrific that this earnest but mechanical musical is more effective and affecting than it was when it yawned open a year and a half ago at the Broadway Theater... Fantasia exudes a sweetness, simplicity and honesty that gives it a core of authentic feeling.
--Charles Isherwood, New York Times
That she could sing, we knew... But that she could act . . . and act so wonderfully. So tenderly, so touchingly, so effortlessly. That came as a surprise. I'm talking, if you haven't guessed, about Fantasia, who has taken over so commandingly the role of Celie in the musical "The Color Purple" at the Broadway Theatre.
--Clive Barnes, NY Post
(Fantasia) establishes a direct line of communication with the audience that's fortified whenever she sings, whether it's the touching lullaby "Somebody Gonna Love You," sung to the infant about to be snatched from her arms, or the triumphant affirmation of her existence "I'm Here." And when her immersion in her sister Nettie's letters from Africa prompts her to cut loose in choreographer Donald Byrd's tribal dance, a surge of affection pulses through the house, as if the entire audience were proud parents of an awkward child stepping forward to shine.
--David Rooney, Variety
Fantasia Barrino - high-school dropout in ninth grade, single mother at 17, "American Idol" winner in 2004 - makes a phenomenal stage debut as Celie in "The Color Purple."Much as fellow "Idol" discovery Jennifer Hudson swept into the Oscar books as Effie in "Dreamgirls," the 22-year-old known as Fantasia steps confidently into the demanding role in which LaChanze won last year's Tony Award. With a startling mixture of subtle delicacy and raw power, she dares us to take our eyes off her.
--Linda Winer, NY Newsday
Wow. How many Broadway veterans would kill for reviews like that? Good for her!
Labels: Idol, Pop Culture, Theatre
Idol Chat (Part 10)
Well, here we are again. Down to the last three very deserving performers. They're all good so I don't have that much to say except that the jury is still out as to who the final two singers battling it out for the title of American Idol will be.
This week each singer performed three songs, one selected by one of the judges, one selected by the producers and one chosen by thesingers themselves. It made for an interesting if not completely spectacular evening. Here's the rundown. I'll try to be brief--for me anyway.
Jordin Sparks: Her first song was "Wishing on a Star" chosen for her by Simon. This was a disappointment. While her vocals were beautiful, mature and controlled, the cool jazzy arrangement gave her no emotional or vocal meat to work with. It's a mood song, not a dramatic or vocal powerhouse which is what Jordin does best.
Jordin's second song was "She Works Hard for the Money" originally sung by Donna Summer. You'd think that Jodin would be great singing anything by Donna Summer, but I felt she was just a little too young to connect with the meaning of this song. She seemed to be playing "at" it rather than really resonating with it. Again, her vocals are wonderful, but that Jordin "spark" we've become accustomed to was missing.
For her last tune Jordin chose "I Who Have Nothing" the powerhouse ballad she did so well with during British Invasion week. She sang this as beautifully as she did the first time, even kicking up the vocals a bit at the end by improvising an extra high note. But this was perhaps not the best choice of song following her previous two. We didn't get to see that vibrant, youthful energy this week that only she brings to the competition. It's a shame. I still love her though.
Blake Lewis: Paula chose for Blake "Roxanne," the 80s hit by the Police. This seemed a logical choice for him. More than once Blake has conjured up visions of British 80s pop crooners. But for some reason he never got there with this song. He didn't seem to be enjoying himself and the instinctively sexy Blake couldn't seem to find the sex in the song. It was a dull but adequate performance.
For song number two, the producers chose "This Love" and Blake was back! He was completely in his comfort zone with this song and it allowed him to give the kind of exciting, well rounded performance we look forward to from him every week.
For his third song Blake chose "When I Get You Alone" managing to top his previous performance. It showed off all his strengths. It was sexy, current, rhythmic and musical. This was a great note to end on for Blake.
Melinda Doolittle: Melinda started with "I Believe in You and Me" originally sung by Whitney Houston and chosen for her by Randy. It was a challenge she rose to with ease. Once again, Melinda relies on the dramatic meat of the song to fuel her stellar vocals. You can't lose with that combination.
Next, the producers gave Melinda "Nut Bush City" to perform as her second number. It's amazing how easily Melinda can assume the role of that Tina Turner style rocker chick at the drop of a hat. As I've said before, this comes from her history as a back up singer where one must imitate, blend with and assume the style of anyone she happens to be singing with. She gave a great performance.
For song number three Melinda chose "WOMAN," an excellent choice for her. The bluesy style, the era, the sentiment are all well suited to Melinda's talents. I only wish the arrangement was a little longer to give her more of a chance to drive home the message of the song and allow her to play with the riffs a bit more. But I did like the way she brought the back up singers center stage for the end of the song.
Best Performer of the Night: Melinda Doolittle. No surprises.
Weakest Performer of the Night: Jordin Sparks, but only because of song choices.
Who will go: This is a toss up. IfK voters base it on last night's performance I'd have to say Jordin will go because Blake was the stronger of the two this time. On the other hand, if voters take into account Jordin's body of work over the season, she could end up in the finale with Melinda. Personally I think they are both deserving of it. It's just a matter of personal taste.
RESULTS UPDATE: OMG!!! TOTAL UPSET! THE BIGGEST UPSET IN IDOL HISTORY! How could Melinda not be in the final??? I suspect that people thought she'd be safe and didn't bother to vote. Everyone knew it would be a close call between Blake and Jordin so they got all the votes. I called in for Melinda, though. Twice.
Labels: Idol
Idol Chat (Part 9)
It's down to the final four best singers on American Idol and yet this had to be the worst week to date this season. The only thing that kept the show from being a complete snooze-fest was the rapid fire pace the show was forced to keep in order to give all four singers a chance to sing two songs each. The theme was the music of the BeeGee's. At first I didn't think this would make for such an abysmal week, but after an entire evening of these unspectacular, mundane, boom-chicky, easy listening dirges I realized that the the only reason these songs were ever hits is because of the BeeGee's distinctive, gimmicky, falsetto sound.
I know this theme was chosen long before the producers knew there would be three incredible black divas in the final four, but I felt it was a SIN not to have this week be 70s disco week instead of the BeeGees. Like last week, this music is too distinctive to one particular group and not suited for female singers. Here's my critique--fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night.
Melinda: Started with "Love You Inside and Out." Barry Gibb was surprised she chose it because the song was written for a falsetto and not a woman. To which I would have said "Well, DUH, Barry, ALL your songs are written for a falsetto." What choice did she have? Melinda proved herself a competent singer with this song which we already knew, but she didn't necessarily impress with it. As things shaped up though, this turned out to be one of the better performances of the night.
For her second song she chose "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart." I've always hated this song but I thought if anyone could make me like it, it's Melinda. It has the potential to be kind of a bluesy torch song. Well, she did the best she could with it. It wasn't Melinda, it's the song. The only interesting part of the whole thing was the key change, obviously put in by the musical director to bring some kind of excitement to this awful song.
Blake: Okay, as Randy would say, "I gotta give him props, yo" for trying to do something interesting with "You Should Be Dancing" but I think the lesson learned here is that there is such a thing as too much beat box. To his credit, he chose to sing by beat boxing the most interesting thing in the original recording, that is, the horn parts between the repeated line "you should be dancing, yeah." It didn't quite work though, partly because his pitch was off in places and also because he seemed to be working too hard to make it exciting.
For his next song Blake chose "This is Where I Came In" and frankly, I wish he had stayed out. The song is terrible and Blake relied on the other crutch in his bag of tricks: the British 80's pop crooner sound a la Sting. Not a wholly inappropriate choice for this song, that is if one must sing it.
LaKisha: Proving that her appalling lack of originality all these weeks hasn't been a fluke, she chose perhaps the most obvious BeeGee's song ever: "Stayin' Alive." By choosing this she automatically opens herself up to comparisons of the original which, for this song, every single viewer watching can easily conjure up without even thinking about it. Also, in her coaching Barry Gibb instructed her on the correct melody to sing which she seemed fine with but then went on stage and made up her own thing. The watered down tempo didn't help either.
For her second choice Lakisha chose "Run To Me" and as Paula would say, she looked great! Again, the song is boring and the only thing that saved it was a well placed key change. She did the best she could with it considering the material.
Jordin: Jordin's first performance of "To Love Somebody" proved to be the most exciting of the evening. Jordin was able to bring the youthful fresh take she's become known for to this old pop tune. I think the key should have been raised though since the song has a decent release and could have shown off her voice better. Instead she had to rely on riffing higher notes for that. But at least she was smart enough to make that choice.
Her second song was "A Woman in Love," of Barbra Streisand fame. It seemed an obvious choice since it's one of the few songs by the BeeGee's actually written for a woman. At first I thought she would do well with it. I always thought the Streisand version was whiny and screechy and again Jordin did her best but there's just not enough meat to the song to make it interesting. The key was probably the original which was just a little too high making her strain for all those belted high notes. As a result her pitch suffered a bit. A valliant effort nonetheless.
Best Performance: Jordin
Worst Performance: Blake
Who Will Go: LaKisha or Blake, but I'm leaning toward LaKisha.
RESULTS UPDATE: Well, I was right, LaKisha goes home. I thought it was odd they saved all the best BeeGee's songs for a medley performed by the remaining four tonight. It reminded me that the BeeGee's did in fact have some decent tunes. But what was up with that sound? Yikes!
Labels: Idol
Idol Chat (Part 8)
The music of John Bon Jovi was a curious choice for this week's Idol theme, not only because there isn't a full fledged rocker left in the remaining bunch of singers, but because his music doesn't exactly appeal to the American Idol viewing demographic. Gay men and 13 year-old girls hardly ever listen to Bon Jovi, right Katie? More than that, Bon Jovi's music is so very specific and only works for a very particular kind of performer. The singers would have been better served if the theme was '80s Rock rather than the music of just one band. I was slightly encouraged though during Mr. Bon Jovi's opening remarks to the kids when he advised them to take his music, make it their own and tell the particular story that the music tells to them. If only he meant that.
And now, this week's contestants in review:
Phil Stacey: Not only had the advantage of already being familiar with the song "Blaze of Glory," but had a big enough voice to carry it off plus years of practicing in the mirror for this very moment. I was glad to see that Phil was able to bring the commitment of that bedroom mirror performance to the stage and act out his rocker dream come true for us. But I think it was clear he was acting. Once again he would have been wise not to start in the audience since clearly he's not comfortable being close to them. The moments where he tried to relate to a girl in the audience and even Randy were his only missteps in his performance. Overall, Phil was good.
Jordin Sparks: I knew Jordin was in trouble when her first words to Bon Jovi were "Oh my gosh, my mom is gonna flip out!" OUCH! Even I felt the sting of that one. It was an uphill battle from there as the very talented otherwise adept Ms. Sparks struggled to find some resonance with "Living on a Prayer," perhaps one of the best known songs in the Bon Jovi oeuvre. For all of his advice of "making the song your own" Bon Jovi didn't even change the key for Jordin. It sounded very much to me like she was singing it in his key, rather than hers. She could have sung that song at least a step or two higher, perhaps even as much as a third. It would have sat in the brilliance of her voice and sounded much better. The performance was rough and not her finest hour. I still think she is one of the most talented singers in the competition, but this was an inopportune week to have an off performance.
LaKisha: In one of Bon Jovi's better coaching moments he was able to explain to LaKisha what the song "If I'm Not Right" means. And in one of LaKisha's better moments, she actually listened to him! She gave a pretty good performance but the entire time I was thinking, this is how she should have sung "Stormy Weather." But like Jordin, she could only do so well with the song singing in what sounded like a male key in her own octave.
Blake: Once again, for all of his "make it your own" talk, Bon Jovi was highly skeptical of Blake's very original take on "You Give Love a Bad Name" and dare I say even unsupportive. Knowing he's not a rocker, Blake wisely brought back the beat box in a big way, reminding us of his unique talent after a couple of weeks of pretty tepid performances. His timing was perfect and his performance was spot on. The key to an exciting performance is taking risks, going the extra mile and committing 150% to it. Blake proved to me again why I considered him one of the front runners behind Melinda for so many weeks.
Chris Richardson: Okay, I'm getting really tired of the Justin Timberlake comparisons and judging from the look on his face when dopey Ryan Seacrest said "I'm here with Justin Timberlake," so is Chris. That said, I give credit to Chris for trying his absolute damnedest to pull of a rock tune like this. He did all he could with it but unfortunately I think Chris was a casualty of bad theme week. It's just not his style. This could be it for him.
Melinda: Proving that she can sing absolutely anything, Melinda channelled Tina Turner for her performance of "Have a Nice Day." Knowing that the song would not show off the tessatura of her voice Melinda very wisely chose to color the vocals with rocker style rather than rely on her magnificent pipes. She completely committed to the role of the rocker chick convincing everyone watching that that is who she is, but of course we know she is so much more. Another great performance--true star quality.
Best Performance: Blake and Melinda
Worst Performance: It breaks my heart to say it, but Jordin.
Who will be voted off: Unfortunately, two of my favorites, Jordin and Chris.
RESULTS UPDATE-- So, two of the boys go home this week. I was slightly surprised about Phil because he seems to have struck a cord with the country music community which can be a formidable fan base. Plus he's got the military thing going for him and tonight he just happened to mention that his Daddy was a preacher. I'm not worried one bit about Phil's career, Nashville will eat him up with a spoon.
Speaking of eating with a spoon, my adorable Chris Richardson also goes home this week. This was not so much of a surprise as Chris has been in the bottom three on more than one occasion this season. My favorite moment tonight was when Blake and Chris declared themselves "best friends." Chris went a step further and said he would gladly go home for Blake. I'll admit I had to rewind and watch this moment several times. They are SO doing it. That's all I'm sayin'.
Labels: Idol
Idol Chat (Part 7)
Okay, so this week is the big "Idol gives back"
bru-ha-ha. Very nice. Touching. Of course Ryan could have shaved for the occasion, but that's just me. We went to Africa, New Orleans and even had a case of the warm
fuzzies with Simon feeding the hungry in downtown LA. This meant that the song choices for the contestants this week were inspirational in sentiment. For the most part all the contestants did pretty well, and as Simon said, the competition has begun in earnest. Of course he didn't say so, but I think he was implying that with you-know-who behind us, the show has regained its credibility. So, on with tonight's performances.
Chris Richardson--Sang "Change the World"--beautifully! When he started there was a nice, quiet, easy confidence to him. He sang with honesty and conviction. And then like the Chris of old, he kicked it up vocally on the refrain for a really first rate performance.
Melinda--Sang Faith Hill's "There Will Come a Day." Beautiful, strong, pure, original. Melinda is a star.
Blake--Sang John Lennon's "Imagine." With a theme like tonight's, "Imagine" is a bit of a cliche. It is too familiar and almost impossible to divorce from the John Lennon version. Also, while the lyrics may be appropriate for the theme, musically the song is one level. It's just a little too simple and easy, especially when your competition is going to be pulling out all the vocal stops. That said, Blake gave a very honest, lovely performance of the song, albeit a bit dull.
LaKisha--Once again Lakisha suffers from an appalling lack of originality choosing to sing the signature song of yet another winning American Idol for the second week in a row. This time she chose Fantasia's "I Believe." The arrangement was left in Fantasia's key and therefore too low for
LaKisha, she was sharp in the
beginning verses. Once again comparisons are inevitable, if there is one audience NOT to sing past Idol winner songs for, it's the Idol audience! We're all too familiar with Fantasia's version which was better, frankly. The judges said as much as well.
LaKisha has a great voice, but really lacks the instincts to be a great, original performer.
Phil Stacey--I missed the title of his song because Scott called just then. Anyway, it was a Garth Brooks tune that he sang very well. I did think he sounded a bit throaty and pushed in places, but he did well with it overall. He's got a great voice. It's just a matter of whether his look gets in the way for you. It does for me. So there you go.
Jordin--Sang "You'll Never Walk Alone." When I simply heard the song choice I got
verklempt and I was a mess from that point on. Taking a HUGE risk by singing a traditional
showtune,
Jordin committed emotionally to the song and delivered an extremely powerful, spectacularly moving vocal. This girl never misses now. She is so exciting to watch. Love her!
Best Performance--Melinda and
Jordin.
Worst Performance--
LaKisha.
Bottom Three --Blake, Phil,
LaKisha.
Who Will be Voted Off--
LaKisha, too many missed steps in a row. But it could be Phil, too.
RESULTS UPDATE: No one goes home. It was charity night. Either that or they were so happy that Sanjaya is gone they let everyone else stay another week.
Labels: Idol
Idol Chat (Part 6)
In light of the Virginia Tech tragedy it may seem absurd to discuss things like American Idol. I do plan to address the Virginia Tech situation in a forthcoming post but it's taken a few days for me to process. Stay tuned. On the other hand, shows like American Idol provide a very necessary distraction at times like this. Besides being an hour of music and variety entertainment, it's about young people the same age as those Virginia Tech students pursuing their dreams and on the brink of what could be a very positive life-changing opportunity for them. We should celebrate that. It's easy to write AI off as a silly reality show, except that it actually produces real results having started many promising careers for its young contestants. Now, on to last night's show.
It was country week this week. The celebrity coach was Martina McBride, an excellent Coutnry singer who proved to be a rather unimpressive coach. Country is an important style for the contestants to sing since many of the American Idol alumni have gone on to have pretty successful country music careers, even if they didn't win the competition. Take Kellie Pickler for example, whose first album debuted at number 9 on the Billboard charts and topped the Country charts. The album went gold in four months. However, Country is a very specific style and not everyone can or should sing it. The reason for Kellie's success is not that she has such a fabulous voice, it's nice enough, but it comes from a real emotional place. That kind of connection is essential to the style and can often trump what otherwise might be a mediocre song. It must come from the singer's soul. It's sort of like Soul music for White Trash, if you will. (I'm probably going to catch hell for that, but oh, well. Sorry.)
Here's my review of the contestants:
Phil Stacey--Well, Phil has finally found his genre. He sounded fabulous start to finish singing Keith Urban's "Where the Blacktop Ends." He truly has the best voice of the men left but continues to struggle against an awkward appearance and stage presence. At least he spared us another silly hat this week. It also did not help that someone must have suggested he go into the audience during his performance which he was obviously was extremely uncomfortable with. As a performer, allow me to let you in on a little secret: EVERY PERFORMER IN THE WORLD DREADS GOING INTO THE AUDIENCE! And you can't do that kind of thing if you don't commit to it 100%. Someone needs to be telling these kids that. Also, it distracted him from really being able to connect emotionally and physically to the song wearing an expression of terror on his face the entire time. The judges didn't seem to notice this, and their praise may have earned him another week on the show. Also, the Country music industry will snap this kid up. He's got the military connection going for him, too, and you know how they love that.
Jordin Sparks--She certainly does! She continues to spark week after week. At first I found the way she handled Martina McBride's "A Broken Wing" was with more of a soul style than country. But by the end of it I didn't care. She sounded fabulous. Looked beautiful and unlike LaKisha, took the very wise advice of the coach, struck a strong stance and delivered the song. Jordin has excellent instincts and is obviously a smart kid. She is quickly becoming my underdog favorite. The way things are shaping up, it could come down to Jordin and Melinda in the final two.
Sanjaya--Appropriately singing Bonnie Raitt's "Let's Give Em Something to Talk About" but in Sanjaya's case, no one was talking about love. This was his worst performance to date. Absolutely painful to watch and listen to on every level. He sang the entire song out of tune and his attempts at flirting with the female back-up singers and Paula were pathetic and embarrassing. What I also noticed this week is that Sanjaya seems to have lost his spark. I think the strain of all the negative attention on him is starting to show. I don't know how much longer this kid can continue to smile in the face of adversity and public humiliation. I worry about him, I really do.
LaKisha--sang Carrie Underwood's "Jesus Take the Wheel" and God help the audience that had to listen to it! Once again she proved that talent is about more than just having a good voice. It involves good instincts, which LaKisha has not, and the wisdom to listen and learn from those who know more than you, which LaKisha also has not, disregarding the coach's comments week after week. This song was an odd choice given the fact that it's the signature tune of one of the most successful Idol winners, besides the fact that it also happens to be the worst kind of saccharine, Hallmark card, manipulative song writing out there. I hate it! LaKisha floundered through it, not knowing how to approach Country style, and even struggling with pitch. She was jarringly off when she went into the chorus. If LaKisha was smart--which she's not--she should have treated the song as a complete Gospel number and she could have gotten away with it. But then she would have been criticized for not getting the style. But who cares? Black girls don't need to sing Country.
Chris Richardson--More whiny unsupported singing from my adorable Chris who chose to sing "Mayberry." The song was too big for him. It's full of strong, homespun images that you can't sing in a thin nasal voice. It's got to come from your gut. He struggled with pitch through the whole song as he did in his coaching, which Martina McBride was unable to help him with. The kid has no breath support when he sings--teach him how to do it! Watching that made me crazy. All in a all a pretty lousy performance which could mean the end of the road for Chris, in which case my heart will die a little. Sigh.
Melinda Doolittle--SO SMART! When I heard she chose to sing "Trouble is a Woman" I thought BRILLIANT. It gave Melinda a chance to show off a really fun, sassy side of herself. She even understood the country style and was able to approximate it vocally. But then as a back-up singer you have to be able to understand, recognize and duplicate a wide range of musical styles. She's a pro. Another impeccable performance by Miss Doolittle. LOVE HER!
Blake--Oy! Country music is just NOT his style. Looking painfully out of place wearing an argyle sweater singing Tim McGraw's "When the Stars go Blue" he couldn't even approach the vocal style required for the song. Blake also struggles with support issues, so in a country tune which is about scooping up to the pitches for stylistic affect, you're just going to sing flat if you don't have the right support. This was his worst performance so far, but thankfully Blake has many other talents that will see him through the competition.
Best Performance--Melinda of course, but that's getting boring to say. So I'll also say Jordin.
Worst Performance--Sanjaya. Heaven help us.
Who Should Go--Once again Sanjaya. Could it be any clearer after this week?
Who Will Go--Sadly it could be Chris Richardson. Phil may have saved himself with a pretty good showing this week. I think we're still doomed to suffer through another week of Sanjaya, however.
RESULTS UPDATE--At last, SANJAYA GOES HOME! I don't mean to seem mean-spirited when I say that Sanjaya got as far as he did in the competition for reasons other than his talent or charisma. The fact that he made the top 24, then the top 12 are achievements he should be able to be proud of. But instead, the growing negative attention that his presence drew week after week from people with questionable and cruel motives, who are not even associated with the show, turned that achievement into something ugly and demeaning. Just yesterday Sanjaya suffered the ultimate humiliation of being name
"Girl of the Day" by Maxim magazine, a notoriously sexist, trashy men's magazine. I, for one, am glad Sanjaya can finally go home and try to make sense of this whole experience and begin to process and heal from it.
Labels: Idol
