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Music To My Ears: The Tortoise & The Hare

Season Eight Finale

The Top 2 In The Home Stretch:

Adam Lambert & Kris Allen

Some have called it a "David and Goliath" finish, but I prefer to think of it as the proverbial tortoise and hare. Because, before seeing any of the Finale performances, it seems to me that this best characterizes the journeys of these two top-quality competitors.

Adam, the star from the start, blasting out of the gates and capturing the crowd's attention with his over-the-top performances, soaring range and powerhouse vocals.

Kris, overtaking other contestants one by one and earning the respect of just about everyone for his quiet confidence, consummate musicianship, and interpretive skill.

It's come down to two guys from the original Group 2: BFFs who share nail polish and, up until this week, a room in the AI Mansion but other than that, two guys who couldn't be less alike. The extrovert versus the introvert. The flamboyant showman rocker versus the singer-songwriter balladeer with a pop star edge. Both highly emotive and both stylists, but in completely different directions.

It's going to be a GREAT show. The only question is, does the hare get edged out by the steady tortoise, or does he put in a final sprint to the finish? Why do I think that of everyone, it matters much more to us, than it does to either of them?

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Three performances from two Idols and the shortest recap I've ever written:

Adam: Reprise of Mad World was exceptional--better than the first time he did it, with new staging and costuming that brought a different feeling and intensity to it. There was less a feeling of isolation, which in fact matches the lyric of the song better, and more one of danger, maybe even repressed anger. An interesting effect; a powerful performance.

Kris: I'm SO glad he chose Ain't No Sunshine (I had heard he was contemplating Heartless or Falling Slowly). This was the song that originally turned people's heads towards Kris, so it was a perfect pairing with Mad World, which in many ways did the same for Adam. Loved the grand piano; Kris plays guitar very differently than piano, and so the choice of instrumentation is crucial and, one gets the feeling, a deliberate expression of his musicianship. Ain't No Sunshine on the grand piano gave it a more majestic feeling. Beautiful, heartfelt vocal, and with the occasional a capella and piano-only moments, he was able to bring a real intimacy to it on that big stage.

Round One: TIE (seriously, I'm not copping out: both were very, very strong)

Adam: A Change Is Gonna Come--iconic song, but too much theatrical over-acting, too little connection and too much screaming (for my taste) that overshadowed the message (song needs more subtlety than he could bring to it), but technically gorgeous.

Kris: What's Goin' On--I loved it. Great, great song choice for him, and he brought his Kris-ness to it. Judges: NOT FAIR to criticize him for not doing an appropriate song for "this night, this stage," given that it was Simon Fuller's choice, not Kris's. Vocal was spot on, Kris brought out the message of the lyrics well, belting out key lyrics: "War is not the answer / only love can conquer hate". You got the feeling he meant it. Connected with it. This is what he does best. Lost it a bit in the middle, where the song meanders into humming, nonsense syllables and the ending wasn't particularly powerful.

Round Two: ANOTHER TIE (again, not trying to sit on the fence, both strong songs but flawed performances in some ways)

No Boundaries (or as I like to call it, Kara's Krapfest -- I swear if this woman writes this kind of dreck for Jason Castro, it will be a travesty). Adam got through it and brought all the melodrama to the surface. Is that a good thing? Probably not. Will it matter? Probably not. He made a very rangy song sound easy, and/or brought his range and power to it to make the song itself sound better and more challenging than perhaps it is. (I guess I don't get my wish of seeing him do "Magic Rainbow" in a feather boa and sparkles. Oh well ... another time, another place maybe.) LOL

Kris's No Boundaries was a disaster all round. Key wrong, he missed some words, he was clearly uncomfortable, judges were kind to point out the rest of his remarkable journey to help him feel good about that final performance which WILL stick in people's minds and will likely make the difference in tomorrow's outcome, if all else is equal (including the ex-Danny vote being a non-issue).

Round Three: Adam

On first two songs, I would have put Adam and Kris in a dead-heat. On third one, Adam out-sang and out-performed. There will be the oh-so-obvious and sour-grapesy stuff about the song having clearly been written for Adam (and Danny?). It's a shame it comes down to this after such a long string of great performances from both of these guys: the crappy coronation song is the differentiator.

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Overall -- Adam and Kris picked their best and reminded us of why they ARE the final two standing.

Simon Fuller: kudos to you for picking two very socially relevant songs for these two contestants, whom everyone and their uncle have been trying to pit against each other in a "culture" (read, political/religious/social) clash. Instead, your clever song choices brought them, and those of us watching them, together and reminded us that music is a force for unity, for social change and for peace even among people who might appear so very, very different on the surface.

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No MTME Ratings, just a statement: The night, and the season, goes to Adam. (My dollars will be spent buying Kris's first album, though).

Let's see what the voters say!!

Music To My Ears: The Top 3 Make Their Choices; Stake Their Claims

Danny Gokey - “Dance Little Sister” by Terence Trent D’Arby

I didn't know the song. He brought a lot of energy to it, almost too much (it was a bit frantic). He didn't make me love the song, but although I have definitely seen Danny more engaged with the crowd before, he was in his comfort zone in terms of range. I would have liked to see him mix it up with the audience a little more. This song has a message (believe it or not!), but I don't know that he particularly connected to the lyrics and listening back, he missed a lot of them (letting the bgv's take over)--I think this might have been underprepared by Danny. Overall, an okay start to the show but not exceptional. MTME Rating: 3.75/5

Kris Allen - "Apologize" by One Republic
I thought this was a moderately strong vocal, just different enough from the original to have that particular Kris "uniqueness". Transitioning to head voice was smooth and lovely, but I noticed he didn't stay up there nearly as much as the original--so in fact, he DID re-arrange, and did so in a way that matched his vocal abilities and overcame his weaknesses. I didn't hear the bum note that Paula claimed was there -- anyone help me out here? I DEFINITELY loved him playing the piano on this. It was the right thing to do, especially given the emphasis in his second song on the acoustic guitar. Clever, showing us his musical virtuosity. I really like this song, and the hook, and the lyrics were delivered with the right amount of pathos. MTME Rating: 3.85 / 5

Adam Lambert - “One" by U2
Like Simon, this is one of my all-time favourite songs, so it's going to be pretty hard to get me to forget about the original (and Adam didn't manage to do it). The vocal was beautiful, of course, as usual. But there was something missing for me: I think it was the seriously abbreviated version, which didn't allow him to build the story of this song properly. He sang a couple of lines and then hit the most intensive part of the lyric and one of the key refrains: "love is a temple, love is a higher law". At that point, it became about the vocal acrobatics, and not the lyrics. He didn't sing any of the key lyrics, including: "You act like you never had love / And you want me to go without" and "Have you come here for forgiveness? / Have you come to raise the dead? / Have you come here to play Jesus? / To the lepers in your head" This song is a dialogue, and these lyrics are absolutely key to conveying the emotion and telling the story of the song. (Incidentally, the powerful dynamic set up in the lyrics are why this song works so well as a duet -- if you don't know it, check out the Bono/MJ Blige version. It is brilliant.) Adam also was not properly articulating the lyrics that he did sing. Also, I hated the ending in his arrangement--it left a very poignant song, which is filled with a sad anger and resignation, feeling sentimental and somewhat trite. I think Simon's pick for Adam fizzled out here: Adam didn't connect to these lyrics, as he did with Black & White or Mad World, and as a result his interpretation seemed over-dramatized and forced; and the rendition overall paled significantly in comparison to the original. MTME Rating: 4 / 5

Danny Gokey - "You Are So Beautiful" by Joe Cocker
When I first heard this song pick, I thought it was a fantastic choice by Danny--a classic song, heartfelt but not overly sentimental, and perfect for his vocal range and tone. I expected him to just copy-cat it, and would have probably been happy with that. I don't hear Danny as much of an arranger, but he ended up bringing a really unique interpretation to this beautiful love song. And he managed to make an emotional connection with it, and with the audience, that was NOT overly sentimentalized (as is his usual way). When it comes to Hallmark sentiment, I have a hair trigger gag reflex so even though the arrangement veered every now and again into the land of cornball, it didn't stay there long enough for me to need to reach for the bucket. So kudos to Danny! And, yes ... the vocal was virtually flawless (boy can sing, you've got to give him credit--about time Danny was helped out by the mixer with the reverb as much as Adam has been all year). "Masterclass" said Simon, for the very first time this season. I agree. MTME Rating: 4.75 / 5

Kris Allen – “Heartless” by Kanye West
HOLY MOLEY, FAITH AND BEGORRAH. Kris blew me right off my chaise lounge, laptop landing on the floor and mouth agape. Let's start with: a) I hate this song with a passion. Hate it. When I first heard he was going to do it, I cringed, not only because -- did I tell you? have you heard? I hate it! -- but also because we just saw Kanye singing this how many weeks ago? I'm still not over that performance. BUT. Oh my dear, is Kris smart or what? He made us all forget entirely about that abysmal Kanye performance and made me (for one) love a song I hate. b) who knew this song had lyrics? Kris did, apparently. And we could hear them. And he brought them to life. Hence the reason why he changed many of our minds on this song. Yayy!! c) Acoustic guitar? Played for the first time since one of the earliest shows so we could actually HEAR IT? And ... played remarkably well (Kris is an exceptionally good guitarist; check out the homecoming vid of him doing "Come Together" or any of his pre-Idol recordings, and you will hear it)? Yesssss... This was pure, unadulterated Kris. Randy said after Apologize that he could hear what kind of record Kris would make. After Heartless, he must've been placing calls to all his producer friends: this was a stroke of strategic and musical brilliance by Kris, a huge risk and exactly what he needed to do to have a hope of making the finale. MTME Rating: 4.85/5

Adam Lambert - “Cryin” by Aerosmith
Definitely the right song for him. Definitely a sly retaliation for Danny's butchery of Dream On. (Incidentally, both Danny and Adam were playing strategy games and politicking in their comments to curry votes all night, did anyone else notice that?) Definitely showed all the Adamness that we've grown to love (or not, as the case may be). The BGV's needed to be strangled back a notch. All definitely very good, but not exceptional--not by Adam's standards, and not by the standards of the night. Kind of a denouement. Sorry Adam, still love you -- still believe you should be in the finale with either Kris or Danny. MTME Rating: 4 / 5

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MTME RANKS (Top 3):

KRIS: (3.85 + 4.85 / 2) = 4.35

DANNY: (3.75 + 4.75 / 2) = 4.25

ADAM: (4 + 4 / 2) = 4

Music To My Ears: The Rock Cream Rises To The Top

Rock 'n roll is the most brutal, ugly, desperate, vicious form of expression it has been my misfortune to hear. ~Frank Sinatra

It's only rock 'n roll, but I like it. ~Jagger and Richards

From Rat Pack week to rock 'n roll: could there be a greater contrast? Probably not, but one thing is for sure: whether it's classic standards or classic rock, it's all about ATTITUDE.

Rock is not just a genre or a music style, it's a personality. It's a lifestyle. You can't act it, finesse it, technique your way through it, or fake it. You either have it, or you don't. Tonight, the two with the rock 'n roll spirit soared and the two without struggled, just about like we all expected.

First, I hold my cell phone and glowstick high for:

- Ricky Minor and the band: THEY ROCKED!!!

- the Idol crew and especially, stage manager Debbie Williams, who was badly hurt in this afternoon's accident. Speedy recovery!

- Danny, Allison, Kris and Adam who performed without the benefit of a dress rehearsal

- Slash, for giving the Top 4 a rock 'n roll experience of a lifetime

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Adam Lambert - "Whole Lotta Love" by Led Zeppelin
Adam was up first, for the first time. This was the first performance that I truly felt Adam was connected to himself, and not "acting". In fact, he seemed to almost UNDERperform this. He barely moved on stage! Even so, there was a head toss and a sneer that he kept doing that betrayed something ... a self-consciousness, perhaps. A bit of posing. I never really bought Adam being a straight up, heavy metal, hard-ass rocker, no sirree bub. He has the voice for it, but that broadway background puts a veneer over his performances that saps them of the true rocker spirit that is needed. Glam rock maybe, something with the right level of drama. But not dirt. Not out-and-out raw sexuality. And that's what this song is ... ("gonna give you every inch of my love"). His strength is in the kind of weird, emotional, dramatic place where he can do the vocal calisthenics in a controlled way -- the Mad Worlds and the Tracks of My Tears places. I did LOVE the a capella piece of it--compared to last week's sustained power/glory note, THIS was a much better demonstration of vocal control and power. He brought the right tension and angst to it. At that moment, he had the audience in the palm of his hand. One thing that truly distressed me: the line "woman ... you need love ........." Wow, that so didn't work. But that line is so much a part of the song, he couldn't change it. Can you say rock ... and a hard place? MTME Rating: 4.5 / 5

And PS: I thought it was EXTREMELY unfair for Simon to reference back to this performance throughout the evening.

Allison Iraheta - "Cry Baby" by Janis Joplin

She was considering Somebody to Love -- the Jefferson Starship song, not the Queen one, as she clarified. Allison doing Grace Slick, like I've been asking for all season long??? That woulda been freakin' AWESOME! What was she talking about that it had been done before -- no it hasn't!! Oh, CC is sad. Very sad. I love Janis, but Allison would've totally rocked with Grace Slick.

Not only that, but I'm with all of the judges who said that this might not have been the song to pick. It has very little energy. It's a little too slow and meandering in the verses, and then the chorus is just that great, distinctive "cry baby" bellow. But there's no real melody or lyric to grab hold of, so it was hard for Allison to sink her teeth into it and get that rocker attitude going. She works the stage well, but she didn't have enough lyric or melody to emote with. She got to put some flair into the phrasing, but it wasn't enough. Her backtalk to the judges showed more rock 'n roll spirit than the song did! Thank goodness for that last duet for Adam, because based on this performance alone, I would have ended up being very disappointed in Allison on a week where she should have blown me away. :( MTME Rating: 3.85 / 5

Kris and Danny Duet - "Renegade" by Styx
It was painful to watch these two attempt to be rockers. Classic example that you can sing the tune, dress the part, carry the mic the right way ... but it's still ALL WRONG. Now, having said that ... those harmonies were gorgeous. I mean, GORGEOUS. On their separate vocals, it was a disaster. Danny sounded breathless and Kris was reaching and missing notes and phrasing. But, what was wayyyyy worse, was watching the body language between the two of them. Not only were neither comfortable with themselves, but they were clearly uncomfortable with each other. They couldn't even LOOK at each other, and made only cursory contact at the end. Oh, to have been a fly on the wall during their rehearsals. Let's pretend this never happened.

Kris Allen - "Come Together" by the Beatles

And then, poor Kris ... to have to go on and do his solo next, especially right after Simon gave the duet to Danny. (hello, bus. Meet Kris. Kris, meet the bus.) And then Ryan (Ryan, what were you thinking!) decided to remind Kris of that fact right before he did Come Together. Hmmmm ... The Beatles, not my first choice for a Slash-style rock song, but Kris picked something he could actually work with (this was a better pick than Revolution--he couldn't have done that primal yell, and at least knew better than Gokey to even try). This was a subtly brilliant, or brilliantly subtle, song choice by Kris.

I did flash back to Carly Smithson singing this, but Kris did a different treatment entirely. And you know what (yes, I AM biased!), but geez ... I really liked this! First, I can't understand a darn word of this song no matter who sings it, it's completely absurd lyrically, but I enjoyed Kris's phrasing and I liked the way he punctuated (not enunciated, but punctuated) the a capella lyric bits, which are so very edgy: "Hold you in his armchair you can feel his disease" among others. Kris always picks songs with great words, which maybe is not the rock 'n roll way, but it's something I appreciate. I also loved the low a capella section near the end: "He bag production he got walrus gumboot / He got Ono sideboard / he one spinal cracker" (seriously, WTF?!? it makes NO sense and I. Love. It.) Also, I liked him playing his guitar. I thought he did a typical Kris thing, which was to skew his song choice to make the genre fit him, instead of betraying his style to fit in to the genre. He is in trouble, but if he goes, he won't be going out on a bad performance. MTME Rating: 4 / 5

Danny Gokey - "Dream On" by Aerosmith

First, let's talk about the breathing. He was off in the duet with Kris, and he was off here. And it was distracting!! It. Almost. Sounded like. This. Also, not sure what area of the U.S. you are from when you pronounce the word "true" as "treeeyiuuu". Can anyone help out a Canuck here? So: song choice. I could barely tolerate it when Michael did it last year, but seriously Gokey, what were you thinking? I cannot believe that Kris is going to get eliminated, when at least Kris picked a song that was suited for a non-rocker, and Danny is going to sail through on this, you watch.

Bottom line: this was a mess from top to bottom. He shouldn't have picked this song, didn't sing it well, and didn't bring anything original to it. Finally, there was that ... that ... thing at the end that he did. With his voice. Or perhaps voices. I'm pretty sure there were a couple of other personalities sharing that note at the end. Perhaps an exorcism is in order. MTME Rating: 2.5 / 5

Allison and Adam Duet - "Slow Ride" by Foghat

Duelling rockers to end the show. They genuinely seemed to enjoy themselves, and the positive energy they generated was engaging and uplifting. Everything a rock finale needs to be (finale, there I said it. Could I just hope for it? Please?)

I liked this duet better than each of their individual performances. Everything about this was the opposite of the Kris/Danny duet: Adam and Allison, who have been splitting votes all season long, and who had the greatest opportunity (and reason) to seize the brass ring individually, both showed the generosity of spirit to allow each other to shine in the duet. They kicked butt on their solos, but shared the spotlight with each other, putting the overall performance and the audience's enjoyment, not their own egos or aspirations, first. That's not solely because each is more comfortable in the genre. I give Adam full credit here (because Allison is still a little too young and goofy to be doing this consciously): there is nothing I admire and respect more than someone who is good, who knows he is good, who has the humility and generosity of spirit to allow someone else to shine instead of selfishly needing to steal the spotlight all for himself. That ends up making BOTH people look better. It is a mark of maturity, of artistic integrity and of class.

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MTME Rankings:

Adam: 4.5

Kris: 4

Allison: 3.85

Danny: 2.5

Music To My Ears: The Rat Pack Five

Original thread on Americanidol.com

The trick with picking "standards" and singing them well is exactly what Jamie Foxx mentioned: it is about more than just singing, it's about conveying a "lifestyle"--a mood, a tone, a feeling.

Going into tonight's show, I was worried that our Idols would want to go all rearrangin' on these songs. That seems to have been the preferred approach this season. It would have been a bad move, in my opinion. These songs are classics for a reason, and rearranging them would do a disservice to the legacy that each one of these songs has. On the flip side of that, though, sticking TOO close to the melody without putting something of their own into it would suck the life out of these songs...making them sound like a parody, or worse ... the dreaded "k" word.

The other baggage that these songs bring with them is some pretty stellar performances by previous Idols. Four of the five songs we heard tonight have been done before on the show; two of them memorably by Katharine McPhee (Come Rain or Come Shine and Someone To Watch Over Me) who still, in my mind, totally dominates in this genre. Melinda Doolittle has given what still remains my favourite performance of My Funny Valentine on Idol.

Tonight, I felt the Idols all brought something uniquely their own to each song they chose, and they all did the Rat Pack proud. At this point in the competition, it's really tough to differentiate one from the other: it's a bit trite, but they are ALL pretty darn good. I'm finding my evaluation of each contestant's performance based on how they did tonight compared to their previous performances; not necessarily how they did compared to each other.Maybe it's just a cop-out, because I don't want to see anyone leave tomorrow. :(

Simon was being particularly ruthless tonight, judging them based on how much killer instinct they brought to their performances. Who wants to really WIN, and who is channeling that fierce competitive desire into something memorable and passionate on stage? Now that Lil and Anoop are gone, none of them, thankfully, went over the edge from drive to desperation.

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Let's get right to it ... the Idols picked some of the BEST Rat Pack standards I could have wanted to hear, and each put their own special touch on them. Still, this show has to have winners and losers ... so even though I want to pull a Paula and be nice to simply EVERYONE, here's the honest appraisal of what I heard:

Kris: "The Way You Look Tonight"

Sweet, lovely, deceptive in its quality but ... ultimately (and I love you Kris, you know I do) ... a bit disappointing. Kris is at his best when he can either pick an unusual song and bring it to life; or pick a well-known song and go to town on the arrangement. This theme didn't let him do either. Pretty, but not his best work on the show so far. MTME Rating: 3.75 / 5

Allison: "Someone To Watch Over Me"

One of my favourite "standards"...so rich and emotional. She brought a quality vocal to it, with her very distinctive style (it's odd to hear on this song which is typically sung so very smoothly). I noticed the diction problems much more tonight. Like Kris, solid but she's out of her element. MTME Rating: 3.75 / 5

Matt: "My Funny Valentine"

This one left me feeling a bit flat ... pun definitely intended. What Matt was trying to pass off as jazz stylings just did not hit my hear well. And when you're competing with Melinda and with a zillion other absolutely GORGEOUS covers of this song (from Chet Baker to Rickie Lee Jones and all points in between), you just can't afford to have a less than stellar performance. I wasn't feeling it; even though Matt clearly was in his comfort zone. He got a B in jazz class; I'm giving him a B for this. MTME Rating: 3.5 / 5

Danny: "Come Rain Or Come Shine"

The Gokester pulls it off!! Now THAT was a vocal. Best from him for the entire season. I loved the song choice; I thought it suited his voice perfectly. The vocal was pretty much impeccable, and didn't suffer from Danny's typical slow/pitchy start with a big, blustery finish to cover it up. He started with well-modulated intensity (with just the right amount of sexy growling--this is a blues song after all!). And the jazz/blues riffing at the end brought this vocal home with conviction and power. Excellent! MTME Rating: 4.75 / 5

Adam: "Feeling Good"

My dears, I think I finally heard Adam get the Goldilocks seal of approval: not too screamy and not too subdued, but just righhhhht!! And where did Adam find this middle ground? Yes, in a very cabaret/stage vocal of a jazz standard that in my mind will ALWAYS be linked to Nina Simone. I know he did Muse's version (which knocks off a 1/4 point for me), but while the arrangement may have been Muse-like, the vocal most definitely was ALL ADAM. That long last note, dropping down to a sweet whisper ... now that was just Adam showing off!!! Sticking to my principle to evaluate based on Adam's prior performances (and compared to Danny's finale-driven, pull-out-the-stops performance tonight), I'm giving it a shade under his highest marks for the season. (If he hadn't been so good all the way along, I wouldn't have to be so tough on him!). MTME Rating: 4.65 / 5

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MTME Ranks:

Danny: 4.75

Adam: 4.65

Allison: 3.75

Kris: 3.75

Matt: 3.5

Despite these rankings, I think Allison could be in deep trouble tonight. Matt has a certain site's endorsement, and Kris has captured a strong and loyal fan club and has never been in the bottom 3. Should be an interesting -- and nerve-wracking -- results show tomorrow.

One last observation: I thought Jamie Foxx did a great job mentoring. Similar to Tarantino, he was able to use his acting/directing chops to help the Idols connect to their songs. It didn't seem he added a lot of musical value, but that was really beside the point. I noted, in particular, how he was able to help Danny get out of that self-conscious, egocentric place that inhibits his performances; and how he helped Allison connect to the lyric by drawing upon her love for her family (and theirs for her). Nice job!!

Music To My Ears: 6+1 Idols Dance The Night Away

Lil Rounds - "I'm Every Woman" - Chaka Khan
As disjointed and desperate a performance as we've seen from her, from the vocal delivery to the choreography. Not unexpectedly so given the trajectory she's been on and the steady decline in support from the judges and now, clearly, the producers. Everyone's out of love with Lil -- as demonstrated by the "death spot" order she was given, through to Simon driving the final nail into her coffin. This week, though, I can't even really feel sorry for her. She continued her stubborn ways, being unwilling or unable to help herself, choosing Chaka Khan (covered by Whitney et al.). It will be funny to see if her voting bloc keeps her in this, against every direct and indirect effort to oust her. Funny, but also sad--for her, and for us. MTME Rating: 2 / 5

Kris Allen - "She Works Hard For The Money" - Donna Summer
Yet another completely original, interesting arrangement from Kris. He stamps his artistry on each song. Kris was one of the contestants that I thought would struggle most with this theme, but he took a big risk and it paid off. The sub-text that Ryan seemed to be suggesting during the intro was that Kris didn't know the song is about a prostitute (at least, I think that's the sub-text. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!). Yet, he definitely chose the song understanding that it "told a story." What, he thought she was a waitress in a 24/7 diner?? LOL Could sweet kissy-face Kris possibly be that innocent? No matter...regardless of WHY he connected to the lyric, connect he did. I will say, though, that his connection didn't result in a particularly strong emotional response from the audience. This song just can't get to that place that is Kris's special niche: the deeply felt, authentic emotion that he pulls out of listeners with his interpretation and his arrangement. Tonight, I didn't think the vocal was particularly compelling--it was solid, but not exceptional, and we've heard him stronger. Nonetheless, I loved the jazzy, contemporary feel he gave this song and he has now definitely shown himself to be among the best song arrangers this show has ever seen. MTME Rating: 4.25 / 5

Danny Gokey - "September" - Earth Wind & Fire
The extra little whoo's and bop-bop-bops didn't work for me, but other than that, I really enjoyed Danny's performance! This was a great song choice, with excellent upbeat energy to it. He showed some personality, picked up the tempo, put a little flair in some of the phrasing here and there and got back to that place of strength where he can really connect with the audience in a genuine way. AND I loved the sampling of I Can See Clearly Now which is the song I chose for him last week. HAH!!! Brownie points for that, Danny (also MUCH better with your trademark glasses. Please keep them on!) MTME Rating: 4 / 5

Allison Iraheta - "Hot Stuff" - Donna Summer
Miss Allison shows she TOO can bring something unique in the way of an arrangement that shows off her particular strengths and style. I'm going to go along with (most) of the judges (heaven forbid, even Randy), saying that while the arrangement suited her, the vocal wasn't her best. Not that it was particularly bad, but the combination of so-so song, adequate performance and average vocal adds up to nothing much to grab hold of or be impressed by. I loved the rocker-chick meets disco-diva outfit though -- it worked! MTME Rating: 3.75 / 5

Adam Lambert - "If I Can't Have You" - Bee Gees
I have mixed emotions about this, as usual. I admire the completely new treatment that Adam gave this song. I just don't know if it was entirely successful -- not only did he slur his words on a couple of lyrics, but in points I could hear his voice starting to show some strain. (I hope he is taking care of his voice. The amount of singing these kids are doing -- you will have heard Paula's comment about Lil being on complete vocal rest yesterday -- is at this point in the competition probably really starting to separate the trained from the untrained. No one is pushing himself harder than Adam, so he better be careful or he could find himself unable to perform when it really matters.)

Aside the unusual, only semi-successful arrangement, I thought he overacted it and as a result his attempt to create an emotional moment felt ... yet again ... staged. Adam's unpredictability is now becoming a little bit predictable. His repertoire seems to ping-pong between over-the-top performances filled with energy and that distinctive vocal range to slowed-down, all-falsetto treatments acted out to give the impression of drama, but not the reality of emotional connection.

There are six weeks left, and no doubt he'll be here for all of them (barring a shocker). I need to see something else from him. How is it possible that such an exciting and entertaining performer is starting to bore me? Has he set my expectations so high that he is now failing to live up to them? Perhaps. For all of those reasons, this didn't quite work for me. MTME Rating: 3.85 / 5

Matt Giraud - “Staying Alive” by the Bee Gees
Okay, you know Robin Williams? He wears a full beard in his dramatic movies, and is clean-shaven in his comedies. I've decided that Matt with and without his fedora is a similar kind of thing: with, he gives us a strong performance within his comfort zone. Without, we're in trouble. Tonight, fedora on -- and he delivered a go-for-broke performance of "Stayin' Alive": the ground-zero disco song. The mother of all disco hits. The ... oh, you get it. The performance was infused with Matt's knowledge that he evaded his fate last week and got a second chance. He had nothing to lose, and everything to gain. There were a few problems with the falsetto screech somewhere there in the first third, and a lot of breathlessness ... and by and large, he didn't transport this beyond its kitschy disco (and dated) origins. But it barely mattered because of the energy and conviction he brought to it. If it does turn out to be his last performance, then he'll be leaving on a high. MTME Rating: 3.75 / 5

Anoop Desai - “Dim All the Lights” by Donna Summer
The song is unfamiliar to me. As for Anoop, I like the scruffy look ... it's a shame he's finally gone fashion-forward just when he's taken a step back musically. The abrupt ending to this song capped off an overall awkward arrangement. The vocal sounded pretty clean, and almost excruciatingly boring. Whatever Paula was blathering on about Kris shopping in the ladies department (for this we traded intro clips of the Idols?!?), Anoop has in the past been able to take a song performed by a female and turn it into something quite special. Not so this time. MTME Rating: 2.75 / 5

~ * ~ *~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

MTME Ranks:

Kris: 4.25
Danny: 4

Adam: 3.85
Allison: 3.75
Matt: 3.75

Anoop: 2.75
Lil: 2

A final note: Overall, the performance order seems to be completely random this year. Ending the show with Anoop left us on a bit of a downer. Not only are they pacing the show differently now that there are 4 judges but, in a demonstration of monumental poor planning for a reality show that has been on the air 8 years and pulls the kind of ratings it does, they appear to be managing each show on the fly. Tonight, with the abrupt start (all of a sudden Lil was singing! no intro, no nuttin'!) and the disappointing ending, I have to wonder whether Nigel Lythgoe's steady hand at the helm--as autocratic as he no doubt was--isn't sorely missed.

Music To My Ears: Top 7 Emote, err, Sing (or something)

Tuesday night, we heard more over-arranging and overall unevenness as our fading former frontrunners and judges' faves (Danny, Lil) tried to up their game and missed; and our challengers (Matt, Allison) weren't at their best. Anoop, Kris and Adam hit their sweet spots: but while the first one surprised me and the second mesmerized me, the last left me, funnily enough, a bit cold.

Here's how I heard it:

Allison Iraheta - “Don’t Want to Miss a Thing" - Aerosmith, Armageddon

This song won a Raspberry award, did you know that? Allison bottomed out on some of the low notes at the beginning but when she hit her stride and started belting it, she was powerful. The editing of the song was a little odd, and I think made it sound more off-pitch than it was. Even Simon, grudgingly, had to acknowledge her as a likely frontrunner, and certainly the best hope of the two gals. Solid effort, but not nearly as good as last week. MTME Rating: 3.5 / 5

Anoop Desai - “Everything I Do” by Bryan Adams - Robin Hood
Anoop! Dawg!! You KILLED it!! What a gorgeous arrangement--an arrangement that actually worked (hear that Matt? see below). Anoop brought out all of the emotion of the song, through holding on to those key words and notes, and by projecting it to the audience (oh yeah, he MUST have been singing to someone special!). I usually find this song slightly cloying, as I do much of Bryan Adams' music, but, as he did with True Colors (a song I do like), Anoop really sold it to me! He climbs out of the bottom 2 with this performance, easily. I hope the voters see it that way. MTME Rating: 4 / 5

Adam Lambert - “Born to be Wild” by Steppenwolf - Born to be Wild
A wild ride, for sure. Everything from the sneers to the pelvic thrusts to the interplay with the band and the final, on-his-knees spent posture were contrived and delivered with specific intent. It was just way over the top in a clichéd, I-wanna-be-a-rock-star kind of way. As a result, there was no emotional connection for me--I didn't feel the power of the song, which is a classic rebel yell. His performance, by being so calculated, ran counter to this anthem to rebellion, and to being uninhibited, wild and free.

Now, you may say--what on earth was Adam doing if he wasn't wild and free in this performance? But wait: he was not. Every move, every look, every vocal inflection was staged and planned to give the impression of being so, but it was an act. This is the Adam show with which we are now very familiar. It's high energy and vocally proficient, yes. But when he picks these uptempo songs, it gives him even less room to actually bring nuanced emotion to the stage. He just becomes very, very ... theatrical. There's no other word for it. And because I was so aware of it being an act, I didn't end up feeling what he wanted me to feel. It was, as Simon is fond of saying, self-indulgent. Yes, I stood and watched, in awe, of his vocal acrobatics and tremendous energy. But that fourth wall--it is still there. MTME Rating: 3.75 / 5

Matt Giraud - “Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman” by Bryan Adams - Don Juan deMarco
Oyyyyy ... this was a bit of a mess, and I really, really like Matt. I do. But this has just got to stop. He is overarranging and trying too hard. This was actually a pretty good song pick (too much Bryan Adams tonight, but still...). It started nice and simple, with a lovely piano accompaniment, but by the line "see every dream", it started a steep decline. He wrestled it back when he returned to the melody, but every time he tried to change it up, he just went off. It was painful. I bet it will be better in the studio. The other thing is that falsetto: I think I understand now what he is doing with it. He is overusing it to make up for a lack of range, I believe. The analogy that is coming to mind is of a plain woman who wears far too much make-up. From a distance, it looks pretty, but get too close-up and it just highlights the real flaws. All of the vocal flourishes (or some of them, anyway) serve only to disguise what is, at the core, a pretty average range and tone. I liked the bit at the end when he went into his growly voice, and then that last falsetto note, but by then it was too late. MTME Rating: 3.25 / 5

Danny Gokey - “Endless Love” by Lionel Richie - Endless Love
Arrrrrrrrrrggggggggggh. No, no no no no no. A harp? A HARP! Someone please just shoot me now. Perhaps he would like to come out in a white flowing gown wearing angel wings, hmmm?
And Simon pandered right back at him, because ... oh who cares why. We all know why.
Danny is, when I'm feeling generous, a B-range singer. He has a nice raspy tone to his voice, which would be served better if he would veer away from the cheap sentiment--which is, at best, sincere but misguided, and at worst, deliberately manipulative. He is choosing songs that pander to his audience's emotions in as crass a way as it is possible, whether intentionally or not. And tonight, he was off-pitch more than he was on, from the beginning through to at least the middle. He then picked it up for a big sentimental ending. I'm surprised they didn't lift him (and the harpist) up on guywires to the rafters in a crescendo of tearjerkery glory. I am filing this performance under "Céline" cross-referenced with "overwrought angst." Paula, Simon ... you totally missed the boat not calling this guy on that stuff, and your failure to do so--especially you, Simon--is evidence of your own crass manipulation (and underestimation) of your audience. MTME Rating: 2.5 / 5

Kris Allen - “Falling Slowly” by Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova - Once
Quentin said: Kris "lived up to the spirit of the competition most." Amen, brother, and nowhere was that more apparent than in tonight's line-up. Thank you, Kris, for being the anti-Adam and the anti-Danny of this competition. This is not only appreciated (at least, by me) but also smart. What we get from Kris--quiet, consistent, confident Kris--are simple, nuanced performances of depth and quality (leaving aside the misstep of All She Wants To Do Is Dance last week, of course). We get subtlety and genuine emotion. Was it a perfect vocal, or a technically outstanding one? No, but it was a very strong vocal, a controlled one, and one that touched us with its authenticity.

What I like about what Kris did here (and this takes extreme control and confidence), is that he picked an original, unusual, very hip song, and then he let it BE. There is no need to over-arrange a song that almost no one has heard anyway, and he resisted the urge to do anything big and blowsy with it. Good choice not to have the guitar (or other instrument)--very similar to what he did with To Make You Feel My Love. Without the guitar, we got to focus on the emotion of the song, and his delivery of it. Kris, again, hit that sweet spot that is uniquely his (and, increasingly, although in some way less compellingly, Anoop's): the sincere, heartfelt performance. Where the others are trying to throw every vocal trick in the book at us to impress the judges and cow their competitors, and also overarrange these overdone songs to try to make them interesting, Kris instead picks an interesting song and sings it well. I mean, it's so simple really!! With subtlety and I would even say strategy, he is sneaking up the middle, letting Adam do his Adam thing and polarize the masses; and watching Danny and Lil self-immolate. Now that Matt has had another off night (and may even be on his way home because of it), I'm thinking Kris' real competition is Allison, hehe.

"Take that sinking boat and point it home / we've still got time" -- listen to the nuance, the subtlety, the emotion in that. Oh. My. Just perfectly gorgeous. It was a bit rough starting, but when he got to the chorus, he totally had his hooks in me. Heartwrenching and wonderful. MTME Rating: 4.5 / 5

Lil Rounds - “The Rose” by Bette Midler - The Rose
I did not hate this. I thought it was a pretty good song choice--she did pick something "big" but compared to what we were all worried she was going to do, it wasn't THAT big. I also hear where she was trying to take it, and I thought she was partially successful--I like some of the trills and runs she brought to it, but -- similar to Matt -- it was too much fluff on top of what is really a very classic melody that just sounds, well, odd with all those vocal curlicues. Thing is: Bette Midler is about as white as you can get, as is this song, and it just really doesn't take well to an R&B patina, y'know? I really felt bad for Lil tonight, because I see what she was trying to do. And I applaud her attempt to justify her decision to Simon; I hope that doesn't backfire against her. By the end, she was in tears, and even Ryan seemed to desert her as he rushed to get the final clips up. It made me sad. MTME Rating: 3.75 / 5

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

So, weirdly enough, here are the MTME Rankings (out of 5) for the evening:

Kris 4.5
Anoop 4

Lil 3.75
Adam 3.75
Allison: 3.5
Matt: 3.25

Danny 2.5

Confirmed: Jason Castro Signed to Atlantic

Fans of the laid-back dreadhead have been abuzz for weeks, ever since Jason Castro cancelled a much-anticipated release of an independent CD. Today, Atlantic Records confirms they have signed the Season Seven third runner-up:

Atlantic Records has announced the signing of singer/songwriter Jason Castro. The Texas-based tunesmith, best known as the third runner-up on the 2008 season of Fox's American Idol, is currently hard at work on his debut album, set for release later this year. A multi-talented singer and guitarist, Jason Castro was among the most popular and talented artists in American Idol history, entering the record books as the first contestant ever to play an instrument on the show.

Atlantic lists a number of high-profile creative collaborators on the project, including Grammy Award-winning producer John Fields (Lifehouse, Switchfoot, Soul Asylum) and a number of acclaimed songwriters, including Kara DioGuardi (Kelly Clarkson, Jewel, Santana), Martin Terefe (Jason Mraz, KT Tunstall), Sacha Skarbek (James Blunt, Jason Mraz), Guy Chambers (Robbie Williams), and Jason Reeves (Colbie Caillat).

Atlantic Records

Who's Hot, Who's Not: The EW Power Poll Top 7

Entertainment Weekly does a great job tracking public opinion from week to week ... here's their latest poll results.


EW.com

Music From The Movies: American Idol Top 7

In anticipation of this week's "Music From The Movies" theme, here are some Idol Moments from the three divas of Season Three (the last time this theme was done).

Fantasia: Summertime, George Gershwin (Porgy & Bess):


Jennifer Hudson: I Have Nothing, Whitney Houston (The Bodyguard):


LaToya London: Somewhere, Bernstein & Sondheim, (West Side Story):

Music To My Ears: CC Reviews The Top 8

From my recap at americanidol.com

Aside from Adam, I honestly don't know why anyone else needs to bother showing up again next week. BUT ... the show must go on. Adam is driving the rest of these contestants to compete at a level that is beyond their capabilities. That's why we saw the kind of overblown arrangements from the three other contestants fighting for that precious finale spot: Danny, Kris and Matt.

These guys are becoming increasingly desperate, and pushing themselves beyond where their talents can comfortably take them. Meanwhile, Adam merely has to pick a great song (which he has a knack for); find a good arrangement of it (or make one up), and phone it in. He barely has to try, and he still manages to deliver a performance that makes the rest of them look like it's amateur night at the Airport Holiday Inn.

Only Allison appears not to be succumbing to the pressure that Adam is creating: probably because she is youthfully oblivious to this silly show's importance to her career, or perhaps because not even she expected to last this long.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Danny Gokey- “Stand By Me” Ben E. King

So, obviously: Danny was feeling the heat and knew he needed to do something musically innovative to get back in the game. This was an interesting arrangement. Not entirely successful, but I'll give him points for originality, and at least he didn't oversing it. There was some subtlety here, and the glimmer of a competitor who's still in it to win it.

MTME Rating: 3.25 / 5

Kris Allen - “All She Wants To do is Dance” by Don Henley
This was a bit of a mess, but not as much of a mess as the judges claimed. First, it is a strange song choice--if he wanted to go uptempo there were many other options, at least one other on that Henley album alone (Boys of Summer would've been great). There is a cynicism to this lyric that he missed--either because he skimmed over some of the lyrics, or because he made it a little too boppy and dance-y (too literal, in other words). All she wants to do is dance, despite the fact that the world around her is ruled by drug lords and gun runners. This is a CYNICAL song. The horns added a jazz element that seemed out of place--there was a little too much going on here musically, and the staging didn't help either. I'm not keen on putting these guys in the middle of the mosh pit--i can't imagine they are comfortable there, and it shows in a slightly awkward performance. We couldn't hear his guitar -- again.
MTME Rating: 3.25 / 5

Lil Rounds - “What’s Love Got to Do with It” by Tina Turner
Lil--much better outfit. Your performance was as cliched as your song choice. And, you can't keep telling the judges that "you'll do better next week." You've had your three strikes, time to go home (but she won't, just watch).

MTME Rating: 2 / 5

Anoop Desai - “True Colors” by Cyndi Lauper
I liked this. I'm not over the moon in love with it and I don't think it allowed Anoop to make up any lost ground, but it was a sweet vocal, and a nice (albeit very straightforward) treatment of this song. An unusual, but I think successful, song choice and he made it work for him. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt, because at this point it barely matters.

MTME Rating: 3.5 / 5

Scott MacIntyre - “The Search is Over” by Survivor
This was a disaster. Why oh why did he try to play power chords on an electric guitar ... on this song?!? It was jarring, and he's not even 1/10th as good a guitar player as he is a piano man. Leaving aside the extremely poor choice in instrumentation, the vocal itself was painful to listen to, the staging was awkward. This whole performance was just plain amateurish.

MTME Rating: 1.75 / 5

Allison Iraheta - “I Can’t Make You Love Me” by Bonnie Raitt
I was completely unable to pick any songs out for these contestants this week, but I did suspect that Allison was going to do this one. Bonnie Raitt is such an obvious choice. Too obvious, and that is the problem. Yes, she sang it well ... really well, in fact. As she always does. I liked that she went for a softer ballad, but it was kind of boring. She did nothing to the arrangement to make it particularly unique or uniquely hers. She is competing with Matt, Kris and Danny for a spot in the finale against Adam ... she needs to step up the musicianship a notch. Earlier in the competition, this would have received an even higher mark. From here on out, she needs to be better.

MTME Rating: 4 / 5

Matt Giraud - “Part Time Lover” by Stevie Wonder
"Incredible on every level"? "Unbelievable"? (said Kara) A standing ovation from Paula? "A million times better than last week" (Simon) ... well, that last one's true, but the rest -- ??? I don't think so. This was one overdecorated cake, with no nutritional value whatsoever. A mess of runs, growls, headvoice and falsetto phrases. It was all over the place. It was a good song choice, but he was trying too hard to make it into something much bigger, without actually making it interesting.

MTME Rating: 3.25 / 5

Adam Lambert - “Mad World” by Tears for Fears
Well, how could we be anything but impressed by this after all that came before? The staging was very compelling -- it looked like he was floating in a pool of blue light. Almost as creative as the treatment used in the video for Gary Jules' version of this song (go look it up, it's wonderful); that is, the arrangement that Adam copied virtually note-for-note. If it was the arrangement (or the lack of time), rather than Adam's typically virtuoso vocal performance that led Simon to give him a standing "O", well -- that's unfortunate. I would have liked to have heard some judging commentary around it, to be sure of what, exactly, was leading Simon to that first-in-eight-years moment. Still, it was the best of the night, and the quality of Adam's vocal cannot be denied (despite -- or because? -- he missed the last note, recovered and made it sound like it was intentional). Very clever, very compelling performer.

MTME Rating: 4.5 / 5

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Overall Rankings (out of 5):

Adam 4.5
Allison 4

Anoop 3.5
Kris 3.25
Danny 3.25
Matt 3.25

Lil 2
Scott 1.75

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Maybe I'm just grumpy, so I'll go away and sleep on this......... do let me know what you think. Am I being unduly harsh? Should I just give up and drink the Glambert Koolaid? And the most interesting question: who has the balls to come back next week with something new, fresh, and unique to upstage Adam (and will Adam continue to push himself to the next level?)

Music To My Ears: Kris Allen's "Moment"

Top of the Ninth, Bases are Loaded and Kris Allen Steals The Show

Kris Allen is currently in a fierce battle with Matt Giraud for the title of 'dark horse' of Season Eight. This past week, in a self-admitted (and successful) attempt to create a "moment", Kris pulled into the lead by making Ain't No Sunshine (When She's Gone), a 38-year-old song that has been covered approximately 236,794 times*, sound original and current, while Matt did a current song by The Fray. Badly.

* ok, I exaggerate. But, a lot.

Kris earned an understated but emphatic approval from Simon ("good job")--capping off a string of subdued approvals and constructive critiques by Simon over the past several weeks. The previous week, when Kris did a perfectly acceptable and squeaky clean version of Marvin Gaye's How Sweet It Is, Simon told him he wasn't "conceited" enough.

Simon looks for killer instinct, and knows that without it one is unlikely to have the star power to ever make it in the music biz. In Simon's world, arrogance is a virtue and egocentricity is not just an important quality, it is an essential one. Kris--the "tender puppy"--is a bit of an enigma to Simon, because aside from being cute as a button, Kris is nice. Nice confuses Simon, almost as much as country music does. Nice guys finish last, certainly in Simon's world. Or, do they?

He may be nice, but what Kris showed us last Tuesday is that he is also a fierce, and very smart, competitor. This tender puppy has TEETH. Kris knows what Matt seems not to know (and Danny is struggling to show): that to advance in this competition, it is not enough to be talented. You must also be relevant; clear-sighted in your artistic vision and solid in your execution; capable of listening, learning and growing from the feedback you receive each week; and able to choose and arrange songs--no matter what the theme--that show off your particular musical skills.

The only thing I can possibly fault Kris on is his wardrobe, which leaves a lot to be desired. :-P (Kris--bold choice to go with the grey T-shirt. Much better than the khaki shirt of last week). LOL

But even in this, I sense a (perhaps unconscious) strategy. Kris is happy to be underestimated, and is using the fact that people's attention is elsewhere to pace himself carefully and slide into the Top 3, having gained tons of friends (fans) and no enemies.

It's a smart play, because it's the ONLY position one can take against the current frontrunner. There is no way to beat Adam at his own game, and it would be insanity to even try. Gokey is going to burn himself out trying to steal the limelight from Adam, instead of creating his own niche. You can almost hear him doing it in his vocals week to week.

The smart money is on whoever (and right now, I believe it will be Kris) can provide a viable alternative: something equally compelling, but different. This week was the week that Danny or Matt could have done it; instead, Kris actually did. (Adam and Kris are roommates--can you think of a better "odd couple"? I wonder how much Kris is learning about Adam's game, and storing up quietly to use against him. hehehe).

I've said it before, I'll say it again: this Idol year is a terrific competition.

Great Song Choice
Kris seems to have a knack for picking great songs--songs that have not been done to death on Idol, and which have great "bones". For the most part, he's chosen songs with great hook-y melodies, in his range and with lyrics that he can sink his musical chops into. Ain't No Sunshine is a fantastic song for him: it's very economical lyric-wise, but also very moody, and it offers a perfect canvas for interpretation. This is the reason, I suppose, that so many have covered it.

It is, at its very heart, a blues song. That rhythmic blues chord progression (Am-Em-G) is simple and classic. Find the cover by Freddy King or the one by Buddy Guy with Tracey Chapman, and you'll hear the song's blues roots brought to the forefront. As a blues song, it also oozes sex appeal; it is very primal. Kris is almost a little too boyish to be sexy (to wit: his self-mocking attempt to put on the sexy face for the camera that we saw last week), but he's smart enough to know that there's a good portion of girlies out there in the voting audience who want to see that from him.

And beyond that, Kris has shown how well he can make a connection to the heart and soul of a song and project that out to the audience. Go back and have a listen to his To Make You Feel My Love to hear another example of this. He's drawing from that same well of emotion, and it's no accident that they intersperse cuts of Kris's homecoming-queen wife during his performances, Simon's earlier cynicism about that notwithstanding.

Strong Vocals
What is surprising about Kris, now that I've gone back and listened about a dozen times to both the live and the studio version of this song, plus his earlier performances, is how good a singer Kris is. I mean, he rarely misses a note! He also uses runs and growls appropriately (Matt: listen up, buddy!), and in ANS, this let him transfer the emotion of the song to the audience with a well-modulated and spine-chilling intensity. Again, go back to To Make You Feel My Love, and you will hear a similar level of control.

He doesn't have the range of an Adam, of course, but he does know his own voice very well, and he can manage things on the fly: he is able to use a number of vocal tricks to get himself out of a jam, as he did during the live performance on at least two occasions, including the very last note. To my ears, that last note--while it wavered a bit--was more or less on pitch, if a bit breathless, and didn't mar the rest of the performance. In fact, it was hearing that roughness that brought home the emotion of the song, and I thought actually strengthened the overall performance. But I am weird like that, as I like to hear vocal imperfections: they bring the interpretation and emotion into relief, and make the performance feel even more real. There is nothing worse to me than a perfect, clean vocal--with no hint of any authentic emotional connection.

Musical Versatility
Now here's where Kris's strategy really paid off, and how with clear intention he vaulted this performance into a "Moment." Out of all the covers I've heard, they are almost exclusively guitar-based. (Trivia tidbit: The original had Stephen Stills on guitar; Stills is ranked #28 on Rolling Stone's List of the Top 100 Guitarists of all time). So doing this on guitar would have been the easy choice for Kris.

Instead, he chose to switch over to keyboards. Very clever move. First, we got to see Kris on a second instrument--a subtle but powerful demonstration of musicianship that automatically racheted up the competition. Since they have allowed instruments on AI, we have seen the artistry on this show go up. Vocal skills are still all-important, but if you can also play an instrument, you can offer the audience another layer of richness in your performance. (Allison, take note: if you're going to play with the big dawgs, you need to play with the big dawgs, y'hear?).

If one is good, two is even better: if you can play both of them well, you are now exhibiting true mastery over your medium. Furthermore, whether Kris did this intentionally or not, he chose instrumentation to set a mood, highlight his skills, and position himself against Matt. Matt had been getting the accolades for instrumental skills; but Kris is no less--and perhaps more--of a musician. He showed exactly how much more this week.

Second, the arrangement itself sounds to me to be completely original. I've now listened to every single cover I can find (all 457,298 of them), and the only one that seems close might be Aaron Neville's. Someone correct me if you've found a similar version out there...but to me, that sounded like Kris's own arrangement. And, what a great interpretation it was: it captured the longing, the sadness, the pent-up frustration of separation. The blues of it. As Adam does with more flamboyance, Kris did here with subtle confidence: he created a perfect storm of staging, arrangement, interpretation, vocal skill and song choice.

One Last Thing: Live versus studio version
I prefer the live version. The studio version is slightly faster, and too string-y for my taste. It's lost the gutsy, bluesy quality. Kris's vocal is beautiful, but the overall arrangement is over-embellished and not as raw. I hate the fade-out at the end, it loses the sadness and poignancy Kris offered with that final falsetto/head voice finish. I am still getting chills re-listening to the live version; not so with the iTunes one.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ ~ * ~ * ~

Next week: Will Kris keep up the pressure, or has he blown his cover as the dark horse? Will Adam grow complacent and slip? Will Matt get back in the groove and make a final challenge for Top 3? Does Anoop have a hope in heck of catching up? Can Danny regain momentum? Who will be the final gal standing: gritty young rocker Allison or wannabe-diva Lil?

All predictions welcome! As for song choice for birth years, I haven't got a clue, but am looking forward to being surprised...again.

Music To My Ears: CC Reviews The Top 9

From the Archives at americanidol.com

This week ... it's a COMPETITION again!! Without further ado, my assessment:

Anoop Desai - "Caught Up" by Usher
I don't know this song so I have nothing to compare it to...but what I saw was Anoop trying to act the hip, streetwise R&B singer, and not quite pulling it off. He doesn't have a style to call his own -- he has a great voice, but it's not gelling with any of the music he's choosing (with the exception of his You Are Always On My Mind during Country Week). I was bored again. He seemed downright angry with the judges, barely able to bite his tongue. That attitude won't help him with the voters, but those Troopers are a steadfast lot.

MTME Rating: 3 / 5

Megan Corkrey - "Turn Your Lights Down Low" by Bob Marley
I'm going to try to find enough synonyms for quirky so that I don't have to overuse that word in this, what I expect to be the last or second-last Megan review. I like her--or at least, I want to like her. There were parts of this, a couple of 5-second snippets when she was doing a run of whooooaaas, that I actually liked. She has such a unique (quirky), interesting voice. It's a (brace yourself) Dylanesque voice. By that I mean, it sounds almost intentionally off key. On the "right" song, when she combines that weird (quirky), jarringly atonal, clipped delivery with a song that is equally as unusual (quirky) and a similar arrangement, it can work. Problem is, that can't happen week after week on this show. It's fun once. Was fun once ... on Black Horse & Cherry Tree. I think Simon said something like "everything we liked about you is now becoming annoying." That about sums it up for me, too. It's starting to be kind of heartbreaking watching the judges criticize her week after week, and Megan just standing there all pretty and smiley. I hope the voters (despite valiant attempts by the bratwursters to thwart the process) put her out of her misery soon. It's getting hard to watch.

MTME Rating: 2.5/5

Danny Gokey - "What Hurts the Most" by Rascal Flatts
A-ha!! Did Danny read my advice to him? No, you don't think?? Coz he did EXACTLY what I wanted him to do: find a great song, sing it well, make me FEEL what he is feeling. I was transfixed by the performance, even though he was just standing there basically (!), and was still a bit too yell-y for my tastes. Didn't matter this time, because he was sooooo connected to that song. Genuinely connected to a genuine lyric, not disingenuously using a lyric to take a short-cut between his own emotion and the emotion he wants to make the audience feel. (yes, I could psychanalyze that. I'll resist.) He said as much afterwards himself. This was one of the tops of the night for me, and a welcome surprise--I was starting to think I was overlooking something since so many others find him so great, and until tonight, I haven't.

MTME Rating: 4.25/5

Allison Iraheta - "Don’t Speak" by No Doubt
Allison is not much of a guitar player. She looked like she was very uncomfortable playing it, even in the rehearsal when she had to look at her fingers before each chord. Why'd she bother, other than to don the trappings of a "rock star"? She doesn't need to do that...we know she's a rock star as soon as she opens her mouth. And No Doubt? Really? Her voice sounded quite good, almost great, but the overall performance was as cluttered and messy as her outfit. Sorry Allison...this one didn't work for me, and as I said in my "Advice To The Contestants" post last night, this could end up really hurting you. Your support is too soft to withstand an less-than-stellar performance.

MTME Rating: 3.5/5

Scott MacIntyre - “Just The Way You Are” by Billy Joel
Ok, yes: Billy Joel is perfect for him. But, heck ... why couldn't he have done one of Billy Joel's COOL songs?!? (uhh, which one's that, CC? LOL) Instead, Scott took a 30+ year old song which was sappy and old-fashioned even in 1977, and made it sound even more old-fashioned with a truly horrific arrangement. Also, while he's a very good piano player (not quite Billy Joel, but GEFI, or "good enough for Idol"), soloing with the piano makes the imperfections in his voice even more evident. That big note at the end? That was truly dated and cheesy. It sounded like something you'd hear off-season at a hotel lounge in the Catskills.

MTME Rating: 2.75/5

Matt Giraud - “You Found Me” by the Fray
Really rough beginning ... bottoming out and off pitch on low notes, and sounded wavery throughout, perhaps nerves, perhaps exacerbated by standing in the middle of the audience. He really was quite off -- BUT, I felt the emotion in his voice and you could see it in his face. He is such a natural musician, truly sympatico with his instrument. And, I confess, I LOVE this song--I love the ambiguity and angst in the lyrics. I, for one, think we need more angst on this show, not less. Real angst, real emotions: the whole gamut of them, messy, spontaneous and authentic. Not trite sentiment or vacuous pop or contrived drama, which is what we typically get from the show, and from the songs allowed by the format. Matt kind of choked this week trying, again, to show off his 'current' side. It went awry as his Coldplay fiasco did, and for similar reasons. I refuse to believe, though, that he can't sound current and also hit that sweet soulful spot of his. We'll see what the voters think.

MTME Rating: 3.25/5

Lil Rounds - “I Surrender" by Céline Dion
Someone on the PBP said that she tore a page out of Jhud's book with her hairstyle, and as soon as I heard that I put my finger on what was wrong between this song and Lil. First, it SHOULD have been good--I mean, Lil has been pimped as though she has the chops to pull off Celine. But she didn't do it. Her voice sounded thin. And when it didn't sound thin, it sounded like she was trying too hard to make it sound ... not thin. And she was fighting the pitch all the way through. She took a backwards step on the fashion, too: not quite all the way back to her mother-of-the-bride days, but definitely in bridesmaid territory.

MTME Rating: 2.75/5

Adam Lambert - “Play That Funky Music” by Wild Cherry
Oh, good! It was NOT the best performance of the night .... no, not by a longshot. I'm going to make this short and sweet, because I'm tired of writing about Adam. He reverted to his screamy schtick. A screamschtickle. I wanted another layer, another veil, another Adam. I didn't get it. MTME Rating: 3.5/5

Kris Allen - “Ain’t No Sunshine” by Bill Withers

WOW. WOW. WOW. I would NEVER have guessed that Kris would be the horsie who would pull out front this week. A great, great song which he Krisified. He showed his versatility and another side to his musical personality on the electric piano. The vocal was almost impeccable. He missed a line, though, anyone catch it? It SO didn't matter. Best performance of his so far this year, and definitely the best performance of the night ... well-deserving of the last spot. I did find the strange caterpillar thing on his upper lip a little distracting. It looked itchy. Oh, and our cutie-patootie sweet little Kris--that boy brought some HEAT to this song!! I know (I know, I know, I know) exactly what he's gonna be up to "when she comes home." hehehe This will be the first iTune I download this year. WOW, i am relistening now and it is beyond a phenomenal vocal and arrangement. Chills, I tell you.

MTME Rating: 4.85 / 5

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MTME Rankings:

Kris 4.85
Danny 4.25

Adam 3.5
Allison 3.5
Matt 3.25
Anoop 3

Scott 2.75
Lil 2.75
Megan 2.5

So, what do YOU think?? Are your faves holding steady? Who surprised you, changed your mind, or made you sad, mad or glad?

Music To My Ears: The Adam Lambert Show

Welcome To The Adam Lambert Show, formerly known as American Idol Season Eight

First, to those of you PMing me (or feeling inclined to post here) about whether I've got a hate-on or a love-on for any particular contestant, please rest assured: I don't. Each of the Top 9 has the potential to give a performance that is as nuanced and interesting as any other. Yes, including Megan. And maybe (but I don't think so), Scott. I don't not like Scott. He's a lovely man who plays a mean piano. I just think he's now way over his head on this show.

Just as soon as someone other than Adam gives me something to grab hold of, chew away at and think about in terms of performance, you can bet they will get my attention and my time. In fact, let's hope someone does, because when this show becomes a foregone conclusion this early in the season, it gets a bit boring, doncha think?

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Adam pulled off a feat of fairly monumental proportions this week: he actually brought an entire audience segment onside with that one performance of ToMT. You've probably all seen what I've seen--there is no end to the commentary on these here boards that starts kind of like this: "well, I'm not an Adam fan, but..." and ends something like "this week, I really enjoyed his performance."

Adam The Actor

Adam made a very shrewd, very calculated, very smart set of performance choices this week. His musical theatre background lets him approach every performance as an actor would. Every song is a planned series of choices, not only vocally, but also with respect to gesture, expression, staging, costume, arrangement, etc. Then, he delivers. Live.

I'd like to know how much control a contestant has over those aspects of their performance (or even of song choice for that matter). Did Adam, for example, ask for (and receive) the three musicians accompanying him on stage? Or, do the producers see where a contestant is taking a song, and then stage/choreograph it? I suspect it's probably a combination: the stronger and more confident a contestant is musically, the more likely it is that their vision gets expressed. I assume the producers have final control over staging based on its viability for TV and the reality show format. There has been no end of speculation as to why Chris Daughtry always got the dry ice and light show, for example. But still ... I don't think it's as cut-and-dried as producers picking a fave and stacking the deck for them. Someone with experience and chutzpah (who clearly knows his or her value to the show) can likely make more demands than can a less confident contestant.

Toning It Down

Apart from staging, the second choice Adam made was about how to take this week's performance in a different musical direction. I imagine that he knew how polarizing Ring of Fire was, and figured he needed to go somewhere else this week.

He could have chosen a song that maintained his ability to show off his range--one of his key strengths--but scaled back his tendency to scream. Or, he could have chosen to do a song "straight"--i.e., forgo a unique arrangement, and focus instead on his vocal skills and the emotional interpretation.

Instead, he decided to do about five different things at once: take an emotional song, a song with tremendous nuance; arrange it so that he could sing it entirely in head voice and falsetto (thks for clarification on that, FTA); stage it so that the emotional element comes to the forefront (and his tendency to over-dramatize is minimized); costume and make-up himself so that it is a complete about-face to the Adam character that we have seen; and then deliver it with nary a false note (ok, one or two wobbles, which he masterfully finessed his way around). Plus, that long, head-voice, a capella note at the end? That's like a figure skater deciding to put a triple axel at the end of a long routine. The breath control was amazing. And he was SITTING.

So, he is literally saying: not only am I going to show you I don't have to scream all the time, but I'm going to show you an entirely different type of vocal style of which I'm capable. All you naysayers: I am going to blow your mind by being understated and classy in the same way I have been blowing others' (minds) by being dramatic and flamboyant. You wanna see another side to me, here's another side.

That's a pretty remarkable accomplishment.

Song Choice

Another thing: the song itself. Ok, so the edit they chose of Smokey telling Adam what the song was about? Watch Adam's reaction to Smokey's explanation. He remains respectful, even mouths the words "ooohhh" and I think what amounted to a partial "wow." But inside, I think he's sayin': Smokey, my man, I understand this song better than you think I do. This song is about a person in conflict, who feels so much inside but must "masquerade" to the outside world. THAT's what I'm goin' for....

Smokey tells Adam the literal meaning of the song. That's not what Adam asked, or what he wanted to know: Adam asked, "what inspired you to write it?" He was asking for the emotional context of the song, so that he could get into the character's head. That's an actor for ya'! Adam already knew what the song meant, but was seeking info about the emotional wellspring from whence the lyrics came.

What the title means, literally, is the LEAST interesting thing about that song. Much more interesting is the fact that this song is about someone showing a public face that is much different than the swirling chaos and sadness of their internal emotions:

Although I might be laughing loud and hearty, deep inside I'm blue ...

So take a good look at my face, you'll see my smile looks out of place ...

Outside I'm masquerading ... Inside my hope is fading

Incidentally, this song is a companion song to Smokey's other, Tears of a Clown. Same sentiment; in fact, the next lyric from above is "Just a clown oh yeah..." Now, don't tempt me to get into a psychoanalysis of Smokey Robinson...coz you know, I will. :-P

What a song choice! Here we are all critiquing Adam for not showing us "the real him." And he comes out and sings a song about the struggle that a person has when their internal emotional state contradicts the external face they present in public. You don't think that was intentional? That was intentional. And awesome.

Making It Work For TV

Last thing: Adam has clearly figured out how to scale back his stage mannerisms for a TV audience. As I've said elsewhere and at the start here, Adam is an actor first. In musical theatre, an actor (or director) doesn't have control - via editing, camera angles/shots, etc. - of the audience's attention. The actor must actively demand the audience's attention with every move he makes. As a result, gestures, expressions and vocals need to be BIG, over-dramatized to get the audience to focus in on them, when there is so much else to divert their attention. On TV, that can look very artifical, very staged. What Adam was being criticized for--smouldering looks and sneers into the camera, the hand gestures, even the over-the-top screaming--was, I think, an artefact of his musical theatre background. He has learned, as he confessed he needed to do way back in the Top 36, I believe it was, how to scale back his stage mannerisms to create a more intimate moment for the TV camera.

Next week, look for another layer, both in terms of vocals and performance, to be revealed. I'm no longer really concerned about seeing the real Adam. I'm more interested, now, in seeing the next Adam.