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!!