Category: American Idol (Page 52 of 56)

Yes, folks, I’m back from Austin. Thanks to Mike Wazowski for pinch-hitting while I was swilling beers, eating barbecue, soaking in all the great music and riding elevators with Wayne Coyne not once, but twice. But alas, we must get back to work this week, and for me that means enduring a 2 hour episode of “American Idol.”

So this past week it was Barry Manilow’s turn to tutor the young crop of remaining talent, as they prepared to perform songs from the 1950’s. Since Manilow just released a record of 50’s tunes, he was a good choice for the job, and seemed to actually like what he was doing and give good advice even though he still looks like a limp-wristed version of Joe Montana.

There was one problem with the performances last night, and that is that there were too many great ones. Picking someone to be voted off will be much easier than picking a favorite, but that’s okay because all we have to do is eliminate one contestant per week. Here is the Vandalay recap:

THE GOOD

Mandisa kicked off the evening by singing “I Don’t Hurt Anymore” and was just awesome. Simon even said she was sexy. I don’t know if I’d go that far….I mean, I look at Mandisa and I get hungry for a grilled cheese sandwich. But man, can she sing.

Paris Bennett sang “Fever” and it was a great song choice. Paris is showing us every week that she’s got what it takes to possibly win it all.

Chris Daughtry sang an alt-rock version of Johnny Cash’s “Walk The Line.” Mr. Manilow commented that Chris knows his strengths, and he was right. What a haunting, riveting, powerful version….this dude could also win the whole thing.

Katharine McPhee sang Ella Fitzgerald’s “Come Rain or Come Shine” and Simon commented that she was becoming a star. I agree….Katharine is a dark horse because she just delivers every week and has one of the best natural voices in the competition. That, and she’s definitely easy on the eyes.

Kellie Pickler did Patsy Cline’s “Walking After Midnight” and it was a way better outing than when she tried to sing Stevie Wonder. Kellie is hanging around, and just might have enough to reach the final four or five.

THE IN-BETWEEN

Taylor Hicks wore a gray suit to match his gray hair….look, I’ve got really light skin but you don’t see me walking around in a Good Humor Man outfit. His performance of “Not Fade Away” was pretty bland, and Simon even called it “a mess.”

Lisa Tucker sang “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” and for the first time, we really noticed the age difference between Lisa and the power of someone like Mandisa. She was boring, off key and as Randy Jackson said, “just aight.”

Kevin Michael Hall (yes, Mike, that was a brilliant gloss) sang “When I Fall in Love.” This was another weird song choice because dude is only 16, but he sounded okay. I do wonder why he had his right hand in his pocket the whole time…..was he getting wood while singing to Paula Abdul and trying to cover it up?

Elliott Yamin sang “Teach Me Tonight” and it was pretty boring, or at least I thought so. Simon said that vocally it was “fantastic.” Sorry Simon, that was not in the class of some of the better performances last night.

Ace Young sang “In the Still of the Night” and actually sounded decent. But still, he’s going to be exiting soon, I can just sense it.

THE BAD

Ladies and gentleman, it is going to be no surprise this week to bid farewell to Bucky Covington. Bucky sang Buddy Holly’s “Oh Boy,” and all I have to say is “OH BOY, THAT SUCKED.” He was all over the place and Simon accurately referred to it as “pointless karaoke.” Dude, you are outclassed in this competition and last night proved it. Now go eat some mashed potatoes and corn.

Let’s see if Vandalay can continue to be a prophet while finding out what ever happened to Long Duck Dong…..

Last night’s “American Idol” show featured a bigger stage, bigger backing band, more lights and more fanfare. Judge Paula Abdul said this season was the most talked about on the streets, and for good reason–the talent is better than it’s ever been. Or at least there is no clear-cut favorite to win it all.

This time it was Stevie Wonder Week for all the contestants. Not only did they have to choose a song by the living legend, they got to hang with him and have him coach them on their vocals. Some of the contestants were overwhelmed with emotion as they worked with Mr. Wonder, and who woudn’t be?

But then we had the performances. Last night there were quite a few mediocre showings and a few clunkers. Here’s the Vandalay recap:

THE GOOD

Katharine McPhee sang “Till You Come Back To Me,” a song Stevie wrote that was made famous by Aretha Franklin. And though Katharine wore a dress that once again made her look pregnant, she brought it vocally. Simon even compared her at this stage of the competition to Kelly Clarkson.

Taylor Hicks did a great job with “Livin For the City,” a perfect track for the gray haired wonder, and Paula said it best: “You had everyone smiling.”

Paris Bennett sang “All I Do” and was strong as usual. The judges made note of Paris’ confidence and the fact that, at 17 years old, comes off like a seasoned veteran.

Chris Daughtry did well with his song choice too, taking on “Higher Ground,” and effectively combining the Stevie version with the Red Hot Chili Peppers version and sounding great in the process. Simon even said Chris could have a hit single with that song right now.

THE IN-BETWEEN

Ace Young redeemed himself this week after that incredibly limp-wristed Michael Jackson song a week ago. He sang “Do I Do” and while his Scott Stapp hairstyle is still annoying, the dude sounded a lot better this time and seemed to pick the right song. Randy and Simon said it was mediocre overall, and I agree.

Elliott Yamin sang “Knocks Me Off My Feet” and even Stevie Wonder said he’s got a great, natural voice. Talk about an endorsement. Elliott did a decent job but just didn’t wow anyone, and that probably included most of America.

Mandisa took on “Don’t You Worry” and it was one of her worst performances yet, though still pretty good by everyone else’s standards.

Bucky sang “Superstitious” and it wasn’t bad overall. He had some balls to his voice though at times had a little too much of that Creed-esque “pickle in mouth” vocal thing going on. Simon said Bucky’s hairstyle reminded him of Jessica Simpson–hey, that’s better than looking like Scott Stapp, isnt’ it?

Lisa Tucker was very good as usual but not quite on par with the four great performances of last night. Lisa sang “Signed, Sealed, Delivered” and if anything, she did a good job of commanding the audience’s attention.

THE BAD

Kellie Pickler, what happened to you? Well, Kellie was a bit out of her element. First of all, she had to wear a nice dress instead of jeans, and secondly, she is a country girl and wasn’t used to singing anything with soul. Kellie sang “Blame It On The Sun” and was pretty much all over the place. Randy said it was like a “non-event” and Simon, who we all know digs this chick, said it was boring. But somehow Kellie’s good looks and quick-witted charm are going to take her a few more rounds.

Melissa McGhee sang “Lately” and messed up the lyrics both in her session with Stevie Wonder and on the stage last night. Simon said it was her best performance yet and Paula said her voice is soothing (soothing? like a carton of smokes maybe). Anyway, Melissa wasn’t awful but still not good enough for mediocre in my book.

Then there is Kevin Covais, who proclaimed himself a sex symbol before performing. Well, maybe to little girls like the ones that came up and hugged him. Anyway, Kevin showed why he soon will be homeward bound by doing “Part Time Lover.” Somehow this kid makes you want to root for him, but he’s just not in the same class as most of remaining contestants. He does get points for snapping back at Simon though:

Simon: “That was appalling.”

Kevin: “That’s okay, I wasn’t expecting much from you.”

Freaking hilarious. If anything, Kevin and Kellie could probably host their own comedy show after they get booted off.

So here’s the deal…I have to pick one contestant for elimination……I think it should be Kevin, though I don’t believe it will be. In fact, both Kevin and Kellie have too much of the cute factor going on. Melissa McGhee, meanwhile, is the odd one out and will be eliminated this week. Stay tuned America….

Last night was the final results show on “American Idol” to determining the top 12 finalists in the competition. There were some surprises…..actually some big surprises. But more on that in a minute…..

The show started with a performance from last season’s runner-up, Bo Bice. Look, I thought Bo was better than Carrie Underwood and should have won, but last night he sang his new single, “The Real Thing,” and just wasn’t very good. And it’s not all his fault. But can someone tell me why producers make folks like Bo and Kelly Clarkson sing songs that are out of their range? Dude was straining so bad I thought he was going to have an aneurism. And he tried to cover it up by flipping his mic stand around like a wild man. Bo, you’re awesome, but be careful out there.

So on to the eliminations. No surprise that the first chick to go home was Kinnik Sky. After she butchered that Alicia Keys tune she left little doubt. Painfully, they made us hear her sing it again. Let’s all be thankful for mute buttons.

For the guys, Will Makar had the lowest number of votes. I can’t say I’m surprised by the choice, because America doesn’t want another Clay Aiken and certainly not one that doesn’t sing as good. He turned in a boring performance Wednesday night and it showed in the voting.

Then the girls got up there again, and it came down to Melissa McGhee and Ayla Brown. Then Ryan Seacrest delivered the news to Melissa that she was in the top 12, and that Ayla was going home. Look, Ayla wasn’t that great the other night but she was a way better singer than Melissa. All I can think of is that Marlboro rigged the voting because they are surely getting ready to offer Melissa an endorsement deal.

Still, this was not the shocker of the evening. While going through the remaining guys, I watched Ryan tell lispy Kevin and Ace that they were advancing to the finals. That left Gedeon and Bucky…..now, Bucky was one I had suspected would be eliminated because he wasn’t very good, but I thought Gedeon was at least good enough for the final 12. But Bucky was the one to advance, maybe because he had the hillbilly vote or because America was frightened by Gedeon’s bright smile. I’ll say this to Gedeon—dude, you got robbed.

So there you have it. Here are the final 12, in order according to the Vandalay Power Rankings:

1. Mandisa
2. Chris Daughtry
3. Paris Bennett
4. Lisa Tucker
5. Taylor Hicks
6. Kellie Pickler
7. Katharine McPhee
8. Elliott Yamin
9. Ace Young
10. Kevin Covais
11. Melissa McGhee
12. Bucky Covington

Oh, but first…….what the hell were the Brittenum twins doing back? They were both in the studio audience wearing matching white outfits….what happened to the orange jumpsuits and what were they doing there? Bizarre.

So we’ll see you next week…..my first choice for elimination as we count down the final 11 weeks has got to be Bucky Covington. Ma’s Diner had better stock up on sweet tea.

Vandalay, OUT.

Last night the dudes took to the stage in “American Idol” and, quite like the ladies on Tuesday night, there were a lot of mediocre performances. When the competition gets down to the final rounds, a mediocre showing or poor song choice can mean a ticket home, and that could definitely be the case for a few of last night’s performers.

Here is my recap of the good, the band and the in-between:

THE GOOD

There was really only one performance last night worthy of guaranteed advancement to the next round, and that was everyone’s favorite gray-haired boy, Taylor Hicks. Taylor sang the Doobie Brothers’ “Takin’ It To the Streets” and it was the perfect song for him because he’s got that whole Michael McDonald/Joe Cocker thing going on anyway. Simon said Taylor stood out last night and he definitely did.

THE IN-BETWEEN

If I could give out B-pluses, that’s what I’d give both Gedeon and Chris. Gedeon sang “When a Man Loves a Woman” and did a nice job with it. Randy Jackson called Gedeon an “old soul” because he’s like a throwback to the early Motown era, and Simon declared him interesting enough of a performer to continue on.

Chris sang Seether’s “Broken” and while he obviously has the best voice among the guys, he just turned in an effort that was not up to the bar he set last week.

Will Makar sang a James Taylor song and, while he has a nice voice too, just turned in a performance that makes you start looking around the room and decide if it’s time to paint the walls. That, and he seems to be cut from that Clay Aiken mold….strong voice, not raspy, wussy style. Not that it’s a bad thing to shoot for, but it just seems a bit tired to me.

Elliott “Abe Lincoln” sang Bryan Adams’ “Heaven” and while Paula and Randy loved it, I agreed completely with Simon, who said it was a “cop-out.” It was just safe, uninteresting and well below Elliott’s capabilities.

THE BAD

This is going to be hard for me because I wanted there to be two clear-cut favorites for elimination, but alas, there are three that could go home.

Lispy Kevin made a comment in his video piece that he’s a fan of Kanye West, then cut to the live action…..and dude sang Don McLean’s “Vincent.” Folks, there isn’t a more limp-wristed song ever written. Kevin has a nice enough voice, but he’s just not top 12 material.

Bucky sang a country song and I’m going to admit to not knowing what it was….it’s a good genre for the blond hillbilly but compared to some of the in-betweens, it was a forgettable performance.

Then there is Ace, who sang Michael Jackson’s “Butterflies.” You know what, scratch what I said about “Vincent.” This is the most limp-wristed song ever. And is it just me, or did Randy and Paula check their ears at the door? They both loved this dude’s performance, which went back and forth between falsetto and full voice but not without being all over the place. Bottom line: Ace sucked last night….Simon said parts were not great, but here’s hoping America saw what I did, and that’s that the whole performance was just awful.

So there you have it. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that Bucky and Kevin will be going home, and that America will be stupid enough to agree with Randy and Paula about Ace. For the girls, look for Melissa McGhee to rejoin her friend Heather Cox at their, errr, day job at the Foxy Unicorn and for Kinnik Sky to also take a hike. It’s always fun to see how it shakes out….oh, and my man Bo Bice performs tonight and will show America that they made a mistake last season.

Vandalay, OUT.