The Top 9 finalists received some professional advice from Stevie Nicks and they were able to select a song from their personal music heroes:
Colton Dixon chose to sing a song by Lifehouse. It was an emotional and heartfelt ballad that allowed him to convey the substance and the meaning of the song. You could tell that this inspirational song of worship truly means something to him.
Skyar Laine chose to sing a song by Miranda Lambert, Gunpowder and Lead. This is the kind of tough girl anthem that is perfect for her. The vocals were strong, but she wasn't quite putting the genuine punch in the lyrics like she knew what she was singing about.
Colton, Elise, and Phillip came together to perform the Fleetwood Mac classic, Landslide with Colton on lead vocals. It was flawless. Elise took the mic to sing Stevie's signature hit Edge of Seventeen. It was a perfect match for her sound and look. Then Phillip took lead vocals on Don't Stop and it was no big surprise that he butchered it.
Heejun Han chose to sing A Song For You by Donnie Hathaway. He claimed he was going to take things more seriously, but he's still a big fake and a phoney. There wasn't a shred of sincerity in a single note that he sang. Boring and forgettable.
Hollie Cavanagh chose to sing the debut single from the Supreme Miss American Idol, Season 4 winner, Carrie Underwood, Jesus Take The Wheel. Hollie served up the real deal with her outstanding and impressive vocal range along with an emotional connection that was completely convincing and true.
Deandre Brackensick chose to sing Sometimes I Cry by Eric Benet. This was a heartbreaking R&B ballad that was interpreted by Deandre like a seasoned professional. He has a smooth and sultry falsetto that is made to make a man melt! Mmmm Mmmmm Good!
Jessica Sanchez chose to sing Sweet Dreams by Beyonce. AMAZING! Beyonce may be her hero, but Jessica did this song even better than Beyonce ever did! She slowed it down to be a ballad and seriously showcased that could seriously become a bigger star than her hero.
Deandrea, Joshua and Heejun performed a medley of Michael Jackson hits including The Lady in my Life, Rock With You and P.Y.T. This a was perfect fit for Deandre to completely shine and put Joshua and Heejun in the place of back-up singers where they are a better fit.
Phillip Phillips chose to sing a song by Johnny Lang. This allowed him to show the world who is and what he can do. And this is all he can do. He openly admits that he has no range, versatility or ability to appropriately interpret a musical theme or adapt to a different style.
Joshua Ledet chose to sing Without You that was a world wide smash hit for Mariah Carey in 1993. His voice couldn't be more different than Mariah's, so he was totally able to make it his own and he jam-packed it with an over the top emotional punch.
Jessica, Hollie and Skylar performed a medley of Madonna songs including Like A Prayer, Borderline and Express Yourself. These popular hits sounded better with the wonderful voices of these three young girls than Madonna could have ever lip-synced on her own.
Elise Testone chose to sing Whole Lotta Love by Led Zepplin. Elise is an all out ROCK STAR. She exuded some full on credibility as she tore the roof off the place. HOT HOT HOT!
It was a great night of live music entertainment, but it's still easy to make my prediction for the bottom three. It has to be Skylar, Heejun and Phillip. But the one certain to be going home has to be Heejun. That sappy drivel he served us tonight was unbearable and a complete insult to the memory of Donnie Hathaway. It's best to get rid of Heejun now so he won't be disrespectful to anyone else.
Showing posts with label Led Zeppelin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Led Zeppelin. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
The Top 3 Perform
The Top 3 finalists will each perform three times tonight: 1. Their own personal song choice 2. a song selected by music producer Jimmy Iovine 3. a song selected by the judges. Pop music superstar Beyonce helped them work on their own personal choices:
Lonestar spent two weeks at #1 on the Billboard HOT 100 in 2000 with Amazed. Beyonce thought this song would allow Scotty McCreery to show more of his vocal range so he went for it full force. But even with throwing in some higher notes this song didn't feel like a natural fit for his style and personality.
Faith Hill had a hit in 1993 with Wild One and Lauren Alaina did her best to get over her nervous nature and sing her little heart out. Even Beyonce could notice that she is surrounded by uncertainty every time she tries to sing. She was doing her best to let go, but it came off as strained and screaming in a few places.
Led Zeppelin included What Is and What Should Never Be on their 1969 epic album Led Zeppelin II. Beyonce was very generous in praising the courage of Haley Reinhart for making this selection. Haley has many of the qualities necessary to be a star, including courage, but the fact remains that all the guts in the world isn't going to make up for the lack of talent. She is just a kid getting up there on stage and play acting.
Jimmy selected Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not by Thompson Square for Scotty. One of the best things to be said about an Idol finalist is that he sang the song better than the original and once again, that can not be said about Scotty's rendition. It was good, but it didn't come close to the fun and frolic to be found in the one we can see on CMT any time we want.
Jimmy selected If I Die Young by The Band Perry for Lauren. This one got close to being better than the original from the vocal range stand point, but it fell short in the area of emotional connection. In addition, her performances are always marred by her lack of confidence.
Jimmy selected Rhiannon by Fleetwood Mac for Haley. Along with her lack of talent this performance showcased her complete lack of an interesting personality. Stevie Nicks is an iconic persona where Haley is just a mess.
The judges selected the Kenny Rogers #5 hit from 1979, She Believes In Me, for Scotty. He's such a good kid with a full deep bass that sounds pure and clean. It would be nice if he had some personality traits with some energy or a performance style that was interesting, but he's so bland. He did a very good job with the song, but he has no texture to his voice to really make it special.
The judges selected the 2000 Grammy winner for Best Country Song, I Hope You Dance, for Lauren. She's a really sweet girl that would be lots of fun to go shopping at the mall with, but she has zero stage presence. Even when she hits a few nice notes she still appears scared and unsure of herself. This truly is one of the best songs ever and Lauren was just going through the motions.
The judges selected Alanis Morissette's You Oughta Know for Haley. This song let her scream her heart out and it didn't matter that she has no talent. I didn't think it was possible, but Haley's version was even more dreadful than the awful original.
Now more than ever I am convinced that Haley is only on the show this season because of some high powered connection that bought her this opportunity. I can't even begin to be able to predict which two will make it to the finals as none of these three have completely won me over. So I'm just going go with the boy and girl next door team of Scotty and Lauren making it through and predicting that Haley will finally be taken out of the running. But what do I know??????
Lonestar spent two weeks at #1 on the Billboard HOT 100 in 2000 with Amazed. Beyonce thought this song would allow Scotty McCreery to show more of his vocal range so he went for it full force. But even with throwing in some higher notes this song didn't feel like a natural fit for his style and personality.
Faith Hill had a hit in 1993 with Wild One and Lauren Alaina did her best to get over her nervous nature and sing her little heart out. Even Beyonce could notice that she is surrounded by uncertainty every time she tries to sing. She was doing her best to let go, but it came off as strained and screaming in a few places.
Led Zeppelin included What Is and What Should Never Be on their 1969 epic album Led Zeppelin II. Beyonce was very generous in praising the courage of Haley Reinhart for making this selection. Haley has many of the qualities necessary to be a star, including courage, but the fact remains that all the guts in the world isn't going to make up for the lack of talent. She is just a kid getting up there on stage and play acting.
Jimmy selected Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not by Thompson Square for Scotty. One of the best things to be said about an Idol finalist is that he sang the song better than the original and once again, that can not be said about Scotty's rendition. It was good, but it didn't come close to the fun and frolic to be found in the one we can see on CMT any time we want.
Jimmy selected If I Die Young by The Band Perry for Lauren. This one got close to being better than the original from the vocal range stand point, but it fell short in the area of emotional connection. In addition, her performances are always marred by her lack of confidence.
Jimmy selected Rhiannon by Fleetwood Mac for Haley. Along with her lack of talent this performance showcased her complete lack of an interesting personality. Stevie Nicks is an iconic persona where Haley is just a mess.
The judges selected the Kenny Rogers #5 hit from 1979, She Believes In Me, for Scotty. He's such a good kid with a full deep bass that sounds pure and clean. It would be nice if he had some personality traits with some energy or a performance style that was interesting, but he's so bland. He did a very good job with the song, but he has no texture to his voice to really make it special.
The judges selected the 2000 Grammy winner for Best Country Song, I Hope You Dance, for Lauren. She's a really sweet girl that would be lots of fun to go shopping at the mall with, but she has zero stage presence. Even when she hits a few nice notes she still appears scared and unsure of herself. This truly is one of the best songs ever and Lauren was just going through the motions.
The judges selected Alanis Morissette's You Oughta Know for Haley. This song let her scream her heart out and it didn't matter that she has no talent. I didn't think it was possible, but Haley's version was even more dreadful than the awful original.
Now more than ever I am convinced that Haley is only on the show this season because of some high powered connection that bought her this opportunity. I can't even begin to be able to predict which two will make it to the finals as none of these three have completely won me over. So I'm just going go with the boy and girl next door team of Scotty and Lauren making it through and predicting that Haley will finally be taken out of the running. But what do I know??????
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
The Top 4 sing ROCK!
As the lead guitarist of Guns and Roses, tonights mentor, Slash, hit #1 for 2 weeks in 1988 with Sweet Child O' Mine. He then topped the charts again for 7 weeks in 1991 as the lead guitarist on Michael Jackson's Black or White. He clearly has the credibility to teach these finalists a thing or two...
The real Robert Plant may have moved on to winning Grammys for making country music with Allison Kraus, but the rocker who hit #4 in 1970 with Led Zeppelin on Whole Lotta Love was brought back in the form of Adam Lambert on the American Idol stage. This performance was live music at it's best. Adam has raised the bar so high above the other finalists that he should be unreachable. His voice resonated with passion, power and energy and he looked completely convincing in the role of glam rocker.
Janis Joplin ended up being a one hit wonder on the Billboard HOT 100 with her #1 smash Me and Bobby McGee hitting the top after her untimely death. Allison Iraheta has definitely brought the spirit of Janis to the American Idol stage every week, but tonight she literally channeled her with her rendition of Cry Baby. The vocals were raw and ached with an emotional punch. Allison never sounded better than she did tonight.
Danny Gokey and Kris Allen joined forces to sing the classic rock anthem Renegade that Styx took to #16 in 1979. The smooth vocals from Kris easily saved this from being a total mess. Danny was just screaming as usual and Kris added the exact right sound of harmonies to keep the melody listenable.
Kris Allen then had the chance to take the stage on his own with his version of Come Together (#1 for 1 week in 1969) by the Beatles. In just six years the Beatles accumulated 20 #1 hits on the Billboard HOT 100 and this song choice allowed Kris to show a different side of himself. He used an electric guitar and took it up more than a few notches than usual. While he was a little out of his element, he managed to save it with inherent talent and respect for the music.
With Danny Gokey's opportunity to sing solo on Aerosmith's #6 hit from 1976, Dream On, all of his shortcomings were pathetically exposed. The judges have built him up all season to make him think he can do anything, so you have to admire his effort. But he missed the mark on every aspect. He looked totally dopey in his little vest and suit pants. His voice completely lacks the range necessary for this kind of song so the high notes were just unpleasant shrieks and the rest of the song was just his usual screams. The last note was seriously embarrassing.
Foghat took Slow Ride to the top 20 in 1976. Adam Lambert and Allison Iraheta showed us with their duet of this song that they know how to see how high the bar has been raised and reach for it. Their vocals were a masterful blend of enthusiasm and talent. Wonderful rock and roll entertainment.
Adam genuinely set the bar very high with his performances tonight and Allison showed that she is up for the challenge to get up there with him. This theme was a little rough for Kris so he should end up in the bottom two with Danny. If people are voting to keep the talented singers with stage presence and recording star quality on the show, Danny Gokey should be the odd man out and he should finally be going home.
The real Robert Plant may have moved on to winning Grammys for making country music with Allison Kraus, but the rocker who hit #4 in 1970 with Led Zeppelin on Whole Lotta Love was brought back in the form of Adam Lambert on the American Idol stage. This performance was live music at it's best. Adam has raised the bar so high above the other finalists that he should be unreachable. His voice resonated with passion, power and energy and he looked completely convincing in the role of glam rocker.
Janis Joplin ended up being a one hit wonder on the Billboard HOT 100 with her #1 smash Me and Bobby McGee hitting the top after her untimely death. Allison Iraheta has definitely brought the spirit of Janis to the American Idol stage every week, but tonight she literally channeled her with her rendition of Cry Baby. The vocals were raw and ached with an emotional punch. Allison never sounded better than she did tonight.
Danny Gokey and Kris Allen joined forces to sing the classic rock anthem Renegade that Styx took to #16 in 1979. The smooth vocals from Kris easily saved this from being a total mess. Danny was just screaming as usual and Kris added the exact right sound of harmonies to keep the melody listenable.
Kris Allen then had the chance to take the stage on his own with his version of Come Together (#1 for 1 week in 1969) by the Beatles. In just six years the Beatles accumulated 20 #1 hits on the Billboard HOT 100 and this song choice allowed Kris to show a different side of himself. He used an electric guitar and took it up more than a few notches than usual. While he was a little out of his element, he managed to save it with inherent talent and respect for the music.
With Danny Gokey's opportunity to sing solo on Aerosmith's #6 hit from 1976, Dream On, all of his shortcomings were pathetically exposed. The judges have built him up all season to make him think he can do anything, so you have to admire his effort. But he missed the mark on every aspect. He looked totally dopey in his little vest and suit pants. His voice completely lacks the range necessary for this kind of song so the high notes were just unpleasant shrieks and the rest of the song was just his usual screams. The last note was seriously embarrassing.
Foghat took Slow Ride to the top 20 in 1976. Adam Lambert and Allison Iraheta showed us with their duet of this song that they know how to see how high the bar has been raised and reach for it. Their vocals were a masterful blend of enthusiasm and talent. Wonderful rock and roll entertainment.
Adam genuinely set the bar very high with his performances tonight and Allison showed that she is up for the challenge to get up there with him. This theme was a little rough for Kris so he should end up in the bottom two with Danny. If people are voting to keep the talented singers with stage presence and recording star quality on the show, Danny Gokey should be the odd man out and he should finally be going home.
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