A sing along version of Somebody To Love was a reasonable enough start, Candice getting the chance to show off and the two guys, as usual, almost unnoticed in the whole thing.
Top three - the judges pick Kree, Amber and Angie. The voters chose Kree, Angie and Lazaro!! Good grief!! What is happening? This is like a repeat of X Factor when Old Baloney kept getting through.
That has to be bad news for Burnell.
Carrie Underwood brings some class to the show. This Is Not Where It Ends is not the most commercial track she's sung but a pleasure to watch and listen to. She is such a great reminder of what this show can produce. Truly inspirational.
Candice stays safe. Amber too. So it's between Janelle and Burnell. Ryan asks for the judges' reaction and Nicky does her best but there's not really a great deal she can say. It had better be Burnell who is going home. Janelle certainly deserves to stay.
Burnell is bottom. He has a go at the song to be saved but I can't see that happening. It doesn't.
Friday, 5 April 2013
Thursday, 4 April 2013
The one with Amber in those jeans and the heels
Down to 7. That's 5 girls, Lazaro and Burnell. I can only assume that next week it'll be 6, 5 girls and Lazaro and then, finally, it will be a straight competition between the girls for the top spot.
So let's see how they get on tonight. It's rock night. I would be good to see some of them actually waking up and getting a bit excited perhaps.
Burnell starts with You Give Love A Bad Name. Hmmm. Seemed to me that he was just singing the words. No real rock feel to that at all. Accurate enough representation - and credit for that to the guy - but it was pretty bland. Just not his style and you could see he was acting a part!
Keith found it hilarious and noted how uncomfortable he looked. Unless one of the girls really drops the ball this evening that performance may well be Burnell's last. He really hasn't shone since the Live Shows started.
A duet between Angie and Lazaro, murdering Queen's Crazy Thing Called Love. Angie simply blew Lazaro off the stage and supported him all the way through from what I heard. This was not a good duet.
Kree has chosen a good track - Janis Joplin's Piece of My Heart. I remember Crystal Bowersox doing this or something similar some years ago and I have to say that Crystal was far more convincing. Kree was accurate and quite a smart presentation, but not as well acted as it could have been. Again, she was just singing the words, admittedly a lot better than Burnell's effort, but still not convincing. She should be perfectly safe, though, and is on track to win this from the comments and reviews tonight.
I don't know when The Letter became a rock track but it seems that Candice and Burnell will be doing it their way as the next duet. Strangely, this is a track that you could just sing and get away with as that's all The Box Tops did. It had some atmosphere which made it appeal so it shouldn't be difficult for these two to do reasonably well. The production was completely different - very bluesy and jazzed up at the same time. Burnell seemed like he was singing with his mum. Candice was doing her thing well enough and he just sang along. It was all neither one thing nor the other. Totally forgettable.
Janelle takes on a Billy Joel number. From the very start, this was excellent - she turned the track into something she could handle and this was the first performance of the night that I felt was even vaguely genuine. Nice job. I know everyone is putting Kree and Candice out front but I like her and see her in the final. Great reviews from all the judges.
Now Lazaro pulls the show back off track again and the producers must be so regretting pushing him forward and assuming the sympathy vote would bring the audience in. I think they're dropping off because Lazaro is simply not up to this. He has shown no signs of improvement at all. It's all very embarrassing and, of course, no-one wants to say the obvious. However, he seemed to have rehearsed this one well and managed Queen's We Are The Champions pretty well. That may well see off Burnell as there were no bad notes and generally he did a good job, entertainment-wise.
Amber, Janelle and Kree complete the secondary performances as a trio. Amber is on amazing heels and with some sexy clothes that made Kree look positively ancient! Nice enough job of another Billy Joel number, Janelle leading quite well and certainly maintaining a balance with Kree vocally. Amber didn't seem to suit the song so well but actually performed just as well so no harm done. Janelle has had a good night as she came across as the helpful and considerate one and was praising Amber and also the first to answer questions but not in a pushy way.
I Can't No Satisfaction is more like the sort of rock we want to see. Candice belts this out in pretty confident style but it seemed to be missing something. Well done, in tune and all good enough, just not inspiring. We gather that she has a broken toe so that explains why she didn't move around so much and may have appeared a little stiffer than usual. I still just rate that OK.
So what will Amber and Angie bring to the stage? Amber is first. What About Love is a good choice for her and she performs well. Another girl who can be trusted to deliver all the right notes and she is seriously good-looking on stage too. I think the judges will have seen more of the technical compliments than the average voter so whether they'll put her top of the list I don't know. I often feel she's the most vulnerable of the girls and yet also, possibly, the one with the best chance of future long-term stardom.
Angie closes the show. She needs something a bit special to make up for last week's shambles. I think she's smart enough to recognise that and also to take advice. Taking on Evanescence is a tough call. If anyone can do this, though, it's this girl and she does Wake Me Up Inside proud - just a little sexless, that's all. But then none of the acts really have any sex appeal - even Amber only scratches the surface - so in terms of voter appeal she should be safe.
So let's see how they get on tonight. It's rock night. I would be good to see some of them actually waking up and getting a bit excited perhaps.
Burnell starts with You Give Love A Bad Name. Hmmm. Seemed to me that he was just singing the words. No real rock feel to that at all. Accurate enough representation - and credit for that to the guy - but it was pretty bland. Just not his style and you could see he was acting a part!
Keith found it hilarious and noted how uncomfortable he looked. Unless one of the girls really drops the ball this evening that performance may well be Burnell's last. He really hasn't shone since the Live Shows started.
A duet between Angie and Lazaro, murdering Queen's Crazy Thing Called Love. Angie simply blew Lazaro off the stage and supported him all the way through from what I heard. This was not a good duet.
Kree has chosen a good track - Janis Joplin's Piece of My Heart. I remember Crystal Bowersox doing this or something similar some years ago and I have to say that Crystal was far more convincing. Kree was accurate and quite a smart presentation, but not as well acted as it could have been. Again, she was just singing the words, admittedly a lot better than Burnell's effort, but still not convincing. She should be perfectly safe, though, and is on track to win this from the comments and reviews tonight.
I don't know when The Letter became a rock track but it seems that Candice and Burnell will be doing it their way as the next duet. Strangely, this is a track that you could just sing and get away with as that's all The Box Tops did. It had some atmosphere which made it appeal so it shouldn't be difficult for these two to do reasonably well. The production was completely different - very bluesy and jazzed up at the same time. Burnell seemed like he was singing with his mum. Candice was doing her thing well enough and he just sang along. It was all neither one thing nor the other. Totally forgettable.
Janelle takes on a Billy Joel number. From the very start, this was excellent - she turned the track into something she could handle and this was the first performance of the night that I felt was even vaguely genuine. Nice job. I know everyone is putting Kree and Candice out front but I like her and see her in the final. Great reviews from all the judges.
Now Lazaro pulls the show back off track again and the producers must be so regretting pushing him forward and assuming the sympathy vote would bring the audience in. I think they're dropping off because Lazaro is simply not up to this. He has shown no signs of improvement at all. It's all very embarrassing and, of course, no-one wants to say the obvious. However, he seemed to have rehearsed this one well and managed Queen's We Are The Champions pretty well. That may well see off Burnell as there were no bad notes and generally he did a good job, entertainment-wise.
Amber, Janelle and Kree complete the secondary performances as a trio. Amber is on amazing heels and with some sexy clothes that made Kree look positively ancient! Nice enough job of another Billy Joel number, Janelle leading quite well and certainly maintaining a balance with Kree vocally. Amber didn't seem to suit the song so well but actually performed just as well so no harm done. Janelle has had a good night as she came across as the helpful and considerate one and was praising Amber and also the first to answer questions but not in a pushy way.
I Can't No Satisfaction is more like the sort of rock we want to see. Candice belts this out in pretty confident style but it seemed to be missing something. Well done, in tune and all good enough, just not inspiring. We gather that she has a broken toe so that explains why she didn't move around so much and may have appeared a little stiffer than usual. I still just rate that OK.
So what will Amber and Angie bring to the stage? Amber is first. What About Love is a good choice for her and she performs well. Another girl who can be trusted to deliver all the right notes and she is seriously good-looking on stage too. I think the judges will have seen more of the technical compliments than the average voter so whether they'll put her top of the list I don't know. I often feel she's the most vulnerable of the girls and yet also, possibly, the one with the best chance of future long-term stardom.
Angie closes the show. She needs something a bit special to make up for last week's shambles. I think she's smart enough to recognise that and also to take advice. Taking on Evanescence is a tough call. If anyone can do this, though, it's this girl and she does Wake Me Up Inside proud - just a little sexless, that's all. But then none of the acts really have any sex appeal - even Amber only scratches the surface - so in terms of voter appeal she should be safe.
Friday, 29 March 2013
The one where Kree gets the credit and Deven gets Lazaro'd
Janelle and Angie looking sultry in jeans and black tops. That'll help their Country votes! Now, by rights it should be Lazaro going home but we know he has all the girls' support out there so it should be between Burnell and Deven. I have a feeling, though, that one of the girls is going to be at the bottom of the list and also that the 'save' will be used,
The Top 8 sing-a-long emphasises the difference between the girls and three boys. It is still a bit sad and something they could usefully drop fairly soon, like next week.
Kree gets an endorsement from Aretha Franklin (arranged by Smokey Robinson). Quite a nice touch. Jimmy Iovine's summary tells it like it is and Candice, Janelle, Amber and Kree must share the top 4 positions this week, Angie's surprisingly bad performance putting her somewhat at risk. He seems to think that Deven and Burnell performed well in their individual rounds and would expect to see Lazaro going home. I still think we could be in for a surprise, with either Angie or poor Amber struggling for votes against Lazaro.
Colton Dixon has had a good year. I had to smile at the Ryan commentary announcing that his first album charted at #1 ... in the Christian Music and Gospel lists!! I would have been more than impressed with #43 on Billboard or US Top 100, or wherever he featured. Nice performance and another reminder of how rubbish this year's remaining boys are. I keep asking myself how it could have happened. Although he needed some work, I feel that Elijah could have brought something more modern to the show and, of course, Charlie Askew would have kept us entertained and, at least, had some star quality.
Candice and Kree, I think we can assume, are in for the long haul. Janelle will be safe this week but it'll be week by week for her from here with all the Kree love going on. Amber is lovely but i can see her just being ignored. Angie, talented as she most certainly is, may finish up as an older Carly Rose Sonenclar, on Broadway, getting rave reviews but not the Idol winner.
One Republic I Lose Myself Tonight - very smart performance with another (much further back contestant) Katherine McPhee joining them but not actually contributing as much as she might to the excitement. Still, a nice break.
Keith Urban gets a slot, too, in this busy show. He writes good Country rock numbers that flow along and have a good catch too. Nothing particularly memorable but preferable to listening to any of the boys again!
It must be time to get the votes. We only got the old-style Bottom 3 last week. Will we get the Top 3 and placings thereafter this week? No. Old style stuff again.
Candice -safe
Kree - safe
Janelle - safe
Angie - safe
Amber - my recording missed her announcement - it jumped to the Bottom three:
Burnell -he's safe
Lazaro - again, he scrapes through
Deven has the bottom position and, despite a pleasant ballad effort which Mariah loves, he isn't going to be this year's Idol and so I don't think he's worth the save. That would be better used should Lazaro put someone like Amber or Janelle in the danger zone (as I thought might have happened this week). For a moment I thought he'd got it but it wasn't to be.
The Top 8 sing-a-long emphasises the difference between the girls and three boys. It is still a bit sad and something they could usefully drop fairly soon, like next week.
Kree gets an endorsement from Aretha Franklin (arranged by Smokey Robinson). Quite a nice touch. Jimmy Iovine's summary tells it like it is and Candice, Janelle, Amber and Kree must share the top 4 positions this week, Angie's surprisingly bad performance putting her somewhat at risk. He seems to think that Deven and Burnell performed well in their individual rounds and would expect to see Lazaro going home. I still think we could be in for a surprise, with either Angie or poor Amber struggling for votes against Lazaro.
Colton Dixon has had a good year. I had to smile at the Ryan commentary announcing that his first album charted at #1 ... in the Christian Music and Gospel lists!! I would have been more than impressed with #43 on Billboard or US Top 100, or wherever he featured. Nice performance and another reminder of how rubbish this year's remaining boys are. I keep asking myself how it could have happened. Although he needed some work, I feel that Elijah could have brought something more modern to the show and, of course, Charlie Askew would have kept us entertained and, at least, had some star quality.
Candice and Kree, I think we can assume, are in for the long haul. Janelle will be safe this week but it'll be week by week for her from here with all the Kree love going on. Amber is lovely but i can see her just being ignored. Angie, talented as she most certainly is, may finish up as an older Carly Rose Sonenclar, on Broadway, getting rave reviews but not the Idol winner.
One Republic I Lose Myself Tonight - very smart performance with another (much further back contestant) Katherine McPhee joining them but not actually contributing as much as she might to the excitement. Still, a nice break.
Keith Urban gets a slot, too, in this busy show. He writes good Country rock numbers that flow along and have a good catch too. Nothing particularly memorable but preferable to listening to any of the boys again!
It must be time to get the votes. We only got the old-style Bottom 3 last week. Will we get the Top 3 and placings thereafter this week? No. Old style stuff again.
Candice -safe
Kree - safe
Janelle - safe
Angie - safe
Amber - my recording missed her announcement - it jumped to the Bottom three:
Burnell -he's safe
Lazaro - again, he scrapes through
Deven has the bottom position and, despite a pleasant ballad effort which Mariah loves, he isn't going to be this year's Idol and so I don't think he's worth the save. That would be better used should Lazaro put someone like Amber or Janelle in the danger zone (as I thought might have happened this week). For a moment I thought he'd got it but it wasn't to be.
Thursday, 28 March 2013
The one where Smokey Robinson looks quite young
The Music of Detroit is the theme this week and there's an intro from Smokey Robinson who provided the guidance for the last 8 contenders.
Candice gets a bundle of compliments from Jimmy and Smokey during rehearsals. She does her take on I Heard I Through The Grapevine. Some take it was too. One of the best versions I've heard! Superb. This girl is ready to record now. She is showing herself as a clear potential winner of this thing - in normal conditions, Of course, there's the Country vote to handle yet.
Kree and Janelle do a joint version of Madonna's Like A Prayer. Pretty nice and commercial. Randy and Nicky give Kree all the compliments and Janelle gets all the criticism from those two. Mariah takes ger time and actually makes the best observations, recognising that Janelle has something that appeals to the crowd even if Kree may have the better technicalities. There was a point at the end where Janelle's arm went up - that said it all for me. I wonder how they're all going to fit in duos or whatever?
Lazaro gets told to go out and do what he feels comfortable with by both Jimmy and Smokey. He picks For Once In My Life by Stevie Wonder. It's another from his album of well-rehearsed numbers and whilst he doesn't actually go anywhere with the song, it is one of his better performances. He could even survive with that. Which does beg the question Who goes?
Janelle now, on her own. You Keep Me Hangin' On could be good or it could go wrong. It's been done by so many people from The Supremes to Vanilla Fudge! She knows this well and had been working on her own version since age 14! And that was very very good. Mariah says that was her at her finest and anything the others had said had just been proved wrong! Super arrangement and quite brave, bringing out the darker side of the track which The Supremes missed. She even gets an 'in it to win it' from Randy.
Deven brings the beautiful Tracks Of My Tears to the stage. What a mess. He shouldn't have bothered and it's even worse when the master is right there trying to be polite and considerate. I would actually say that Lazaro deserves to stay this week - provided it's Deven that goes. This guy has been just disappointing in the Live Shows.
Amber, Candice and Angie do The Supremes I'm Going To Make You Love Me. Good job, especially Amber who just suits this era so well.
Burnell does My Cherie Amour. It should work well for him. My Cher Free Amour emerges at one point and it gets a little tedious - all at the same phrasing volume. He seems to remember to ease back at the la -l -la bit but then he's off again. Still the best guy by a mile but that still only puts him 6th.
Angie is doing Shop Around. Hope it works for her. This isn't a song for proper pronunciation or best diction, as Jimmy tells her. It didn't work well. She wanted to show another side to her but I don't think we need to see it and Mariah gives her good advice. She could have easily romped home this week with any number of Motown classics. Nicky gets it spot on too.
Ryan reminds us that Amber is trying to get out of the bottom three. Odd remark as the votes start all over each week. She does Lately and should do that well. She puts a lot in and does certainly do that well. Excellent reviews from the judges so something very wrong if she is still struggling tomorrow.
The three boys tried a Four Tops performance. Luckily, Deven rescued them as only he seemed to have a clue about what was going on! Hilarious and Nicky tells them off big time. Justifiably too.
Finally, Kree has the spot and the chance to seal the deal with the last spot and a good idea of what she needs to do to stay in. Aretha Franklin's Don't Play That Song was an excellent choice and everyone loved it.
Candice gets a bundle of compliments from Jimmy and Smokey during rehearsals. She does her take on I Heard I Through The Grapevine. Some take it was too. One of the best versions I've heard! Superb. This girl is ready to record now. She is showing herself as a clear potential winner of this thing - in normal conditions, Of course, there's the Country vote to handle yet.
Kree and Janelle do a joint version of Madonna's Like A Prayer. Pretty nice and commercial. Randy and Nicky give Kree all the compliments and Janelle gets all the criticism from those two. Mariah takes ger time and actually makes the best observations, recognising that Janelle has something that appeals to the crowd even if Kree may have the better technicalities. There was a point at the end where Janelle's arm went up - that said it all for me. I wonder how they're all going to fit in duos or whatever?
Lazaro gets told to go out and do what he feels comfortable with by both Jimmy and Smokey. He picks For Once In My Life by Stevie Wonder. It's another from his album of well-rehearsed numbers and whilst he doesn't actually go anywhere with the song, it is one of his better performances. He could even survive with that. Which does beg the question Who goes?
Janelle now, on her own. You Keep Me Hangin' On could be good or it could go wrong. It's been done by so many people from The Supremes to Vanilla Fudge! She knows this well and had been working on her own version since age 14! And that was very very good. Mariah says that was her at her finest and anything the others had said had just been proved wrong! Super arrangement and quite brave, bringing out the darker side of the track which The Supremes missed. She even gets an 'in it to win it' from Randy.
Deven brings the beautiful Tracks Of My Tears to the stage. What a mess. He shouldn't have bothered and it's even worse when the master is right there trying to be polite and considerate. I would actually say that Lazaro deserves to stay this week - provided it's Deven that goes. This guy has been just disappointing in the Live Shows.
Amber, Candice and Angie do The Supremes I'm Going To Make You Love Me. Good job, especially Amber who just suits this era so well.
Burnell does My Cherie Amour. It should work well for him. My Cher Free Amour emerges at one point and it gets a little tedious - all at the same phrasing volume. He seems to remember to ease back at the la -l -la bit but then he's off again. Still the best guy by a mile but that still only puts him 6th.
Angie is doing Shop Around. Hope it works for her. This isn't a song for proper pronunciation or best diction, as Jimmy tells her. It didn't work well. She wanted to show another side to her but I don't think we need to see it and Mariah gives her good advice. She could have easily romped home this week with any number of Motown classics. Nicky gets it spot on too.
Ryan reminds us that Amber is trying to get out of the bottom three. Odd remark as the votes start all over each week. She does Lately and should do that well. She puts a lot in and does certainly do that well. Excellent reviews from the judges so something very wrong if she is still struggling tomorrow.
The three boys tried a Four Tops performance. Luckily, Deven rescued them as only he seemed to have a clue about what was going on! Hilarious and Nicky tells them off big time. Justifiably too.
Finally, Kree has the spot and the chance to seal the deal with the last spot and a good idea of what she needs to do to stay in. Aretha Franklin's Don't Play That Song was an excellent choice and everyone loved it.
Friday, 22 March 2013
The one where you realise how old-style this Series seems!
How much we need the Jimmy Iovine summary! He talks such sense and cuts out a lot of the rubbish that the judges (Keith Urban excepted) deliver after the performances.
Amber gets the Seacrest invite but it's only to run a recording from rehearsals when she was giggling at the ridiculous smoke machine making her performance impossible. It's ad time so she has to sit down again. If she were top 3 material this week then he should have told her. That was not well handled.
Next, in fact we get one of those forgettable sing-a-long spots with the 4 guys doing a crap version of Gotta Get You Into My Life.
Paul Jolley gets pulled back. He has some silly Name Day certificate presented to him and also the news that he is in the bottom three..
Casey Abrahms shows the guys what they should have done with a great and refreshing version of I Saw Her Standing There. He's looking strange but there's talent all right!
The five remaining girls show how good they are by avoiding disaster with Here There And Everywhere which was a brave shot requiring absolutely precise tuning.
Deven is also in the bottom three.
Lazaro really ought to be joining Paul and Deven. This feeling sorry business is getting a drag. He is not in the bottom three, though. Lovely character but I can see his continuing story taking so much time and space away from the others.
Jessica Sanchez returns to the Idol stage and presents her single with Ne-yo. It's nothing like as catchy as the brilliant Jump In whihc never did get released but that'll do well and was an interesting reminder, following Casey, of just how straight, respectable and nice the current competitors are. There are some fine voices and talent but the mix hasn't yet shown us true originality to stand out. If anything, whilst Kree and Angie get the credit for singing and writing, it's Janelle and Amber who have the personalities and are coming over best. (Candice wins anyway.) This is the year of the serious, planned assault on the show, to win and make money, have kids, retire. No Casey or Jessica here this year.
Time for the votes:
Paul's out. That's wrong. Amber was also bottom three which is also wrong.
Paul does a good, sold version of Alone which is ideal for his range and style. It won't save him, though.
Amber gets the Seacrest invite but it's only to run a recording from rehearsals when she was giggling at the ridiculous smoke machine making her performance impossible. It's ad time so she has to sit down again. If she were top 3 material this week then he should have told her. That was not well handled.
Next, in fact we get one of those forgettable sing-a-long spots with the 4 guys doing a crap version of Gotta Get You Into My Life.
Paul Jolley gets pulled back. He has some silly Name Day certificate presented to him and also the news that he is in the bottom three..
Casey Abrahms shows the guys what they should have done with a great and refreshing version of I Saw Her Standing There. He's looking strange but there's talent all right!
The five remaining girls show how good they are by avoiding disaster with Here There And Everywhere which was a brave shot requiring absolutely precise tuning.
Deven is also in the bottom three.
Lazaro really ought to be joining Paul and Deven. This feeling sorry business is getting a drag. He is not in the bottom three, though. Lovely character but I can see his continuing story taking so much time and space away from the others.
Jessica Sanchez returns to the Idol stage and presents her single with Ne-yo. It's nothing like as catchy as the brilliant Jump In whihc never did get released but that'll do well and was an interesting reminder, following Casey, of just how straight, respectable and nice the current competitors are. There are some fine voices and talent but the mix hasn't yet shown us true originality to stand out. If anything, whilst Kree and Angie get the credit for singing and writing, it's Janelle and Amber who have the personalities and are coming over best. (Candice wins anyway.) This is the year of the serious, planned assault on the show, to win and make money, have kids, retire. No Casey or Jessica here this year.
Time for the votes:
Paul's out. That's wrong. Amber was also bottom three which is also wrong.
Paul does a good, sold version of Alone which is ideal for his range and style. It won't save him, though.
Thursday, 21 March 2013
The one where we see how restricted some people's radio channels must have been
Billed as Our Top Nine take on the Fab Four. Unbelievable how many contestants (and a judge!) didn't know the Beatles' tracks they were given. So it was no contest really. If they'd really wanted to take on the Beatles, here's what one of them should have done:
The 11th slot on the Idol Tour goes to Aubrey Cleland. I guess Charlie doesn't cut it with voting people over there. I still think he'd have been great on the shows - especially tonight.
Kree starts with her fairly predictable With A Little Help From My Friends. Well sung and she seems just totally reliable, performing naturally. She strikes me as the one who could be around all the way through but never quite exciting anyone. The judges give her credit galore and she's clearly a favourite of theirs now.
Burnell tackles Let It Be. He says he doesn't know the track so you do have to wonder two things. One - so why choose it!?? Two - where on Earth has he been and which station does he tune in to day by day? I reckon Jimmy fixed this one as it has the gospel stuff and works well with his tone. I still find the way he does low notes quite disconcerting. Good, but still a but uninspiring.
Mariah finally has a dress that suits her. Well dome make-over team in that area.
Amber picks She's Leaving Home. Nice track. This girl keeps surprising me. She doesn't look old or big enough for such great voice and notes and is really making her mark on the show. Mariah says she didn't know the song. Amber didn't know the song. God what is going on. Randy was annoyingly and quite rudely dismissive saying that she 'ended well.' Keith was the one to give her the credit she needed. Thank heavens someone seems to care. Best track so far tonight, but it's fair to say that none of the three have been at all bad!
Lazaro seems to know what he's doing - a great song My Life. The start is dreadful. No, he can't do this any more, folks. Lovely fellow but he does struggle with the notes and his breathing. He ended a lot better than he began but this is not Idol material. Time to go, even though I'm sure he won't.
Mariah is polite and talks about courage a lot. Keith is all technical, another way to avoid saying anything bad. Nicky is honest and great, telling him off. Randy - hey, he comes straight out with it and says that was his worst performance ever. Lazaro makes some excuses about only learning the song the day before. Hmmm.
Candice should wake us up. A track from Abbey Road they say. Come Together. Another fine choice when there may have been many simpler and more popular alternatives. That was impressive. Again. Boy this woman is on the final road all right. Just great. She takes the lead with that.
Paul seems to live in the middle of nowhere and construction techniques are greener than green which is nice. He does Eleanor Rigby. That's difficult. Well done to him for that. He has a slightly annoying tone at the start and you get the feeling that he's trying hard to get things right, which he did but without as much connection as I wanted. He looks like a classic cruise ship entertainer and somehow I can't see him getting far. He's done well and makes some interesting choices, seldom lets us down but still No 8 or 9 in this competition is a great prize for him. He shouldn't be at risk this week but could be for all the wrong reasons.
Angie chooses, or someone does, Yesterday. So many people have done this. I can't think of anyone who have done it that well, though. Another brilliant performance. Someone has finally sorted her hair - not sure about the colour change, though. Great comments from Randy, in particular. She has to be another potential finalist.
Deven goes for The Long And Winding Road. Never liked this one much. His singing this time matches Burnell's and is better if you don't look at him. The track suits him but, like the road, never really gets anywhere I felt happy with. Mariah is right behind him. This is someone who simply hasn't shone since making the Live Shows. I don't see him as any long-term performer we'll be paying to hear in years to come.
I do wish the crowd would shut up in the middle of tracks. What is this need to applaud and interrupt whatever is seen as the 'high point' of the song?
Janelle closes with I Will which is not the sort of track you'd expect someone to pick given the whole Beatles catalogue to select from. That was a nice, honest Country track which everyone likes. Randy has it down as one of the best of the night. I was impressed and reckon this should pull her back up from a low position last week. She certainly looks fabulous. So far, Kree seems to have stolen her Country vote. She needs that back and this week may be her chance.
I like the review at the end and here's how I reckon they finished up.
9th Lazaro tired and boring
8th Deven very boring
7th Burnell odd noise
6th Kree trying too hard
5th Paul something good going on there
4th Amber just a little more emotion needed
3rd Angie not as good second time around
2nd Janelle nice, this works for her
1st Candice attacking the competition
I may change my mind again tomorrow, of course!
The 11th slot on the Idol Tour goes to Aubrey Cleland. I guess Charlie doesn't cut it with voting people over there. I still think he'd have been great on the shows - especially tonight.
Kree starts with her fairly predictable With A Little Help From My Friends. Well sung and she seems just totally reliable, performing naturally. She strikes me as the one who could be around all the way through but never quite exciting anyone. The judges give her credit galore and she's clearly a favourite of theirs now.
Burnell tackles Let It Be. He says he doesn't know the track so you do have to wonder two things. One - so why choose it!?? Two - where on Earth has he been and which station does he tune in to day by day? I reckon Jimmy fixed this one as it has the gospel stuff and works well with his tone. I still find the way he does low notes quite disconcerting. Good, but still a but uninspiring.
Mariah finally has a dress that suits her. Well dome make-over team in that area.
Amber picks She's Leaving Home. Nice track. This girl keeps surprising me. She doesn't look old or big enough for such great voice and notes and is really making her mark on the show. Mariah says she didn't know the song. Amber didn't know the song. God what is going on. Randy was annoyingly and quite rudely dismissive saying that she 'ended well.' Keith was the one to give her the credit she needed. Thank heavens someone seems to care. Best track so far tonight, but it's fair to say that none of the three have been at all bad!
Lazaro seems to know what he's doing - a great song My Life. The start is dreadful. No, he can't do this any more, folks. Lovely fellow but he does struggle with the notes and his breathing. He ended a lot better than he began but this is not Idol material. Time to go, even though I'm sure he won't.
Mariah is polite and talks about courage a lot. Keith is all technical, another way to avoid saying anything bad. Nicky is honest and great, telling him off. Randy - hey, he comes straight out with it and says that was his worst performance ever. Lazaro makes some excuses about only learning the song the day before. Hmmm.
Candice should wake us up. A track from Abbey Road they say. Come Together. Another fine choice when there may have been many simpler and more popular alternatives. That was impressive. Again. Boy this woman is on the final road all right. Just great. She takes the lead with that.
Paul seems to live in the middle of nowhere and construction techniques are greener than green which is nice. He does Eleanor Rigby. That's difficult. Well done to him for that. He has a slightly annoying tone at the start and you get the feeling that he's trying hard to get things right, which he did but without as much connection as I wanted. He looks like a classic cruise ship entertainer and somehow I can't see him getting far. He's done well and makes some interesting choices, seldom lets us down but still No 8 or 9 in this competition is a great prize for him. He shouldn't be at risk this week but could be for all the wrong reasons.
Angie chooses, or someone does, Yesterday. So many people have done this. I can't think of anyone who have done it that well, though. Another brilliant performance. Someone has finally sorted her hair - not sure about the colour change, though. Great comments from Randy, in particular. She has to be another potential finalist.
Deven goes for The Long And Winding Road. Never liked this one much. His singing this time matches Burnell's and is better if you don't look at him. The track suits him but, like the road, never really gets anywhere I felt happy with. Mariah is right behind him. This is someone who simply hasn't shone since making the Live Shows. I don't see him as any long-term performer we'll be paying to hear in years to come.
I do wish the crowd would shut up in the middle of tracks. What is this need to applaud and interrupt whatever is seen as the 'high point' of the song?
Janelle closes with I Will which is not the sort of track you'd expect someone to pick given the whole Beatles catalogue to select from. That was a nice, honest Country track which everyone likes. Randy has it down as one of the best of the night. I was impressed and reckon this should pull her back up from a low position last week. She certainly looks fabulous. So far, Kree seems to have stolen her Country vote. She needs that back and this week may be her chance.
I like the review at the end and here's how I reckon they finished up.
9th Lazaro tired and boring
8th Deven very boring
7th Burnell odd noise
6th Kree trying too hard
5th Paul something good going on there
4th Amber just a little more emotion needed
3rd Angie not as good second time around
2nd Janelle nice, this works for her
1st Candice attacking the competition
I may change my mind again tomorrow, of course!
Saturday, 16 March 2013
The one where Charlie and Aubrey get another chance and Nicky doesn't go home.
Ryan starts by saying there'll be a sing-off between one guy and one girl. I'm hoping I didn't hear that correctly. Not that it matters - it will be a guy going tonight, however they work it.
Another odd tweak by the producers has Ryan telling them how many votes they got in their home territory. I'm not sure how useful that is. More interesting is the announcement of who is in the Top 3 each week - a bit like X Factor USA's ranking but without a more specific rank.
He starts with Deven, Janelle and Candice. Candice is in the Top 3. Deven and Janelle aren't. I thought Janelle might have been but imagine two of the other girls must have pushed her out.
My last article ended with: So, who will America throw out in Week 1? I would put Lazaro, Curtis and Deven in the Bottom Three but suspect it will be between Paul and Deven. I don't know if we'll get a Bottom Three as such now - it looks like we will get the 4-10 ranking with the 10th going home.
Some huge bloke comes on and gives Kree a key to some place in Texas. So will there be some award each week for the others? That was odd, especially as his back, covered in some equally gigantic tan coloured jacket almost filled the screen. Kree is also the second person in the Top 3.
Eh?? Now I'm confused, Charlie is back!!?? Oh, the 'sing off' Ryan was talking about appears to be between one girl and one guy who were rejected at the Top Ten stage. God, this is confusing! He sings Sky Blue Diamonds beautifully - a straight act from this guy with a stunning tone and that was extremely good, far, far better than any of the guys last week. That was his own song too - a brave move and it would be so good if he does get on to the Live Tour.
Oh boy, my other favourite, Aubrey Cleland, is the other contestant for this spot, On My Own she delivers nicely - and I do like her voice and looks - but she gets some notes wrong and it really doesn't match Charlie's performance. She does pull things back a bit at the end but I fear that she won't get back in. Now, I am still assuming that someone will be going home tonight, with 11 going on the American Idol tour instead of ten, including whoever gets kicked off tonight.
Last year's winner, Phillip Phillips does his new single Gone Gone Gone. He hasn't had any success over here in the UK but he sounds remarkably like Mumford & Sons who are now really popular here so perhaps he could break through now. It's a professional and naturally great performance. I still think Jessica should have won and would have been a more internationally successful representative of this show but the guy certainly has his fans over the water with 'quadruple platinum' for Home based on USA sales alone.
Lazaro and Angie. One has made it into the Top 3. Angie is the third member of that group. Three girls in the Top 3. That figures. I'd have five girls in the Top 5 from last night's efforts. Lazaro apparently beat her in Florida. Interesting. Presumably he's polled well across the States so won't be in the risk zone this week.
I am still trying to figure out what's going on. I guess the judges will be deciding between Charlie and Aubrey for the Idol Tour space but will they also be back in the Live Shows? The judges will also, presumably, be deciding between the two lowest ranking on the votes list too, with one going home.
4th Lazaro! Good Grief - that makes him the #1 Guy, even with a very average performance
5th Amber
6th Janelle
7th Burnell
8th Paul!
So it's Deven and Curtis in the bottom two, which was what I'd initially thought but I reckoned Curtis would have had a lot of gospel support.
9th Deven!
10th Curtis!
Wow. I didn't expect that. So now I figure out how this works: the bottom performer will sing again but will only get to continue if all four judges use their one and only 'save' in the series to keep him in. Nicky has already said that she's going home if he goes home. My guess is that they'll agree to keep him, recalling all the OTT comments they made in the past, especially Randy's, and that will be the end of their ability to save anyone else.
I was wrong again. Randy says that they were not unanimous! Nicky wants extra time but she doesn't get it. I am expecting at any moment a change of mind or even rules but no, he's gone. It wasn't a great version of the annoying I Believe I Can Fly. He had bags of passion but the fact that the public haven't taken to him does say something and all credit to whoever did vote against him to preserve that valuable option for someone who really could win but trips up one week.
I was also wrong again about the Charlie - Aubrey thing. Maybe there's a vote going on for them which we'll find out about next week.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)