Good evening PopPoolers. As Beth is out of the country and not able to watch tonight's broadcast, I am going to try to do her a solid by giving her my assessment of the show. As such, this will become my post for tonight, so I apologize in advance for the length, but for those of you that have the time to read it, now you can get a view into my warped interpretation of the performances and what influences my decision making. The key problem (or benefit depending on how you look at it) is that I am two large glasses of wine deep so far. I am just getting home now and begining to watch so you are going to get the live play by play.
Wholly mother of Jesus - it's Gwen Stefani! Finally an artist that doesn't have one leg in the grave. And we get to see her without all that makeup and lights and stuff. She actually looks really good. I mean she always looks great, but this is refreshingly good.
OK, so Lakisha starts it out with "Let's Dance". Of course she is Lakisha, so don't need to say much here. Nothing blew me away, but she is good as always. Gwen was speechless after hearing her because as she says "she is a better singer than I am". Randy - "you are a fly Diva", Paula - "you did Donna Summer proud." Simon - "love the up tempo beat, great vocal".
Chris Sligh - "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic" (by the way, one of my favorite songs ever). Nothing unique about the performance in my opinion. Not bad. I don't expect the judges to LOVE it, but they will like it. Randy - agreed with Gwen that it was a good song for him, but his tempo was off with the band. Paula agrees with Randy - surprise, surprise. Simon - thought it was a mess.
Gina - "I'll stand by you"? Don't know the song but am guessing the title from the lyrics. It was fine. I think she is safe tonight. Gwen liked her. Randy thought it was her "best ever". Paula - blah blah blah. Simon, "It was your best performance ever - your transformation is like "chalk and cheese". What the F$%# does that mean?
Sanjaya - What the S#!& did you do to your hair!!!???? Oh my Hawaiian-Indian spiced crackers! This has to be the picture for the website tonight. He has his hair up in a faux mohawk… would that be a faux-hawk?, singing "Bathwater" by No Doubt. Funny thing is… I bet he is still safe tonight. Randy and Paula basically said as much. Simon said "I don't think there was a mirror in your dressing room", and "I don't think it matters what we say any more because people obviously love you no matter what you do". Ryan called it a "pony-hawk" which is probably a better description.
Haley Scarnato - "True Colors" Gwen is cool because she is not giving platitudes to people. I think I love her. She said that Haley started out good, but then started doing this "other kind of melody which is totally unnecessary for the song", and "she should just tone it down," and "people would really like to hear her sing that song". It appears that she has toned it down a touch. Nothing great, but not bad enough to be booted - also she is wearing a slinky little black thing that will probably keep her in the hunt (OK Sanjaya lovers - bring on the hate comments and bash my testosterone influenced tolerance for Haley). Ooooh, her last little ending note - a wee bit out of tune. Hmmph. Randy - "started a little rough, got better towards the end, I wasn't jumping up and down - it was just aaaiiight". Paula - something about beautiful song, vulnerable - blah blah blah - pretty girl - blah blah blah. Simon - "sweet but forgettable. Too safe."
Phil Stacey - Ok, first the good news - he has a cap on tonight. The bad news - it's a girl's knit cap!! (I think crochet is the proper term). Singing "Every breath you take". Gwen actually liked his rehearsal - (he must not have had that same cap on). Randy - "I actually kind of liked it Dog". Paula - something about personality, color, magic, "blah blah blah". Simon - "very good. Great choice of song - first time I thought you were taking this competition seriously."
Melissa Doolittle - "Heaven Knows" Donna Summer. Gwen "she blew me away - mind blowing". I'm not sure about this outfit tonight, but another great vocal. She has such great control and emphasis behind her lyrics. Randy agrees with me - he says "Melinda, you know what's so dope man? (what if she actually is a man?)... you are like a pro. You come out here each week and interpret the lyrics and sing with feeling and live the words" … or something like that. Paula - "you have charisma from the word go. You…" something about spades, "blah blah blah." Simon - "Not the performance that we will remember as your best, but your vocals were outstanding as usual… hate the outfit". Simon and I are like 'this' man!
Blake Lewis - "Love Song" by The Cure. Gwen, "the melody in this song is strong and he needs to be careful about when he chooses to beat-box or else he will distract from the melody which is so simple". Not a great vocal per-se tonight. I think Blake is typically safe, but this was a tough night - bad song choice? No beat boxing tonight at all. Randy - "not my perfect song choice, but guess what, you made the most of it. You had that tender spot." Paula "Blake, I LOVED what you did with the song. You're taking risks, making it your own, I'd love to see you in the finale"(and in my dressing room after the show). Simon "You are the best guy in this competition for sure. You have to be careful because you are in this Chris Daughtry zone where you are doing your own thing. Don't be too indulgent and boring - it's a matter of taste. However, for sure you are the front running guy."
Jordin Sparks "Hey baby." Gwen, "I was surprised when I heard she was going to sing this song, but she made it sound much more musical than I thought it was. She's cute and refreshing and I'm excited for her." OK, but what the hell is this outfit? It's like a bad accident between a picnic table and Soviet school girl uniform. To me, the vocals are coming across like a bit of a karaoke performance. Randy "Risky thing to do - you could do anything and that was brilliant. Paula "you're adorable, and hip and young, blah blah blah, blah blah blah... blah blah." Simon, "probably the most improved contestant in the last few weeks. Younger more confident, but a bit copy-catish". Hmmm, well it didn't do much for me. You know... I think I could probably fit my entire arm through those hoops in her ears.
Chris Richardson - "Don't speak" Gwen, "I've seen him before and I know he likes to do these vocal Olympics kinds of things, but I don't think he really needs it Just focus on the song and emotion." In my assessment, he is doing it well. He has a good contemporary feel and it works for me. A few rough spots intonation-wise. Ended with a strong bit. Randy, "Yo Chris, so check it out man. Liked the R&B flavor. It was good". Paula "you're good, you're good. Hey, can someone get me another drink over here!!!??? And for goodness sake, which one of these boys am I going to manipulate in my room later tonight??!!!! Yeah, Chris, you're good." Simon, "song choice got you in trouble tonight last week but this was a much better choice of song. Still wasn't crazy about it. Struggled in the middle." Yeah, I agree.
Well, that's the end of my wine soaked recap of tonight's Idol. Quite frankly, I'm not sure what to make of it all. We've weeded out some of the obvious riffraff other than Sanjaya, and he is staying in because of some combination of the following - spite, the entire US population of junior high school girls and curious boys, and Howard Stern. So, as far as I'm concerned it's anyone's to lose tonight other than Melinda, Lakisha, Blake, and I can't believe I am about to say this, Sanjaya. PopPoolers - give me your thoughts.
BB
Wholly mother of Jesus - it's Gwen Stefani! Finally an artist that doesn't have one leg in the grave. And we get to see her without all that makeup and lights and stuff. She actually looks really good. I mean she always looks great, but this is refreshingly good.OK, so Lakisha starts it out with "Let's Dance". Of course she is Lakisha, so don't need to say much here. Nothing blew me away, but she is good as always. Gwen was speechless after hearing her because as she says "she is a better singer than I am". Randy - "you are a fly Diva", Paula - "you did Donna Summer proud." Simon - "love the up tempo beat, great vocal".
Chris Sligh - "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic" (by the way, one of my favorite songs ever). Nothing unique about the performance in my opinion. Not bad. I don't expect the judges to LOVE it, but they will like it. Randy - agreed with Gwen that it was a good song for him, but his tempo was off with the band. Paula agrees with Randy - surprise, surprise. Simon - thought it was a mess.
Gina - "I'll stand by you"? Don't know the song but am guessing the title from the lyrics. It was fine. I think she is safe tonight. Gwen liked her. Randy thought it was her "best ever". Paula - blah blah blah. Simon, "It was your best performance ever - your transformation is like "chalk and cheese". What the F$%# does that mean?
Sanjaya - What the S#!& did you do to your hair!!!???? Oh my Hawaiian-Indian spiced crackers! This has to be the picture for the website tonight. He has his hair up in a faux mohawk… would that be a faux-hawk?, singing "Bathwater" by No Doubt. Funny thing is… I bet he is still safe tonight. Randy and Paula basically said as much. Simon said "I don't think there was a mirror in your dressing room", and "I don't think it matters what we say any more because people obviously love you no matter what you do". Ryan called it a "pony-hawk" which is probably a better description.Haley Scarnato - "True Colors" Gwen is cool because she is not giving platitudes to people. I think I love her. She said that Haley started out good, but then started doing this "other kind of melody which is totally unnecessary for the song", and "she should just tone it down," and "people would really like to hear her sing that song". It appears that she has toned it down a touch. Nothing great, but not bad enough to be booted - also she is wearing a slinky little black thing that will probably keep her in the hunt (OK Sanjaya lovers - bring on the hate comments and bash my testosterone influenced tolerance for Haley). Ooooh, her last little ending note - a wee bit out of tune. Hmmph. Randy - "started a little rough, got better towards the end, I wasn't jumping up and down - it was just aaaiiight". Paula - something about beautiful song, vulnerable - blah blah blah - pretty girl - blah blah blah. Simon - "sweet but forgettable. Too safe."
Phil Stacey - Ok, first the good news - he has a cap on tonight. The bad news - it's a girl's knit cap!! (I think crochet is the proper term). Singing "Every breath you take". Gwen actually liked his rehearsal - (he must not have had that same cap on). Randy - "I actually kind of liked it Dog". Paula - something about personality, color, magic, "blah blah blah". Simon - "very good. Great choice of song - first time I thought you were taking this competition seriously."
Melissa Doolittle - "Heaven Knows" Donna Summer. Gwen "she blew me away - mind blowing". I'm not sure about this outfit tonight, but another great vocal. She has such great control and emphasis behind her lyrics. Randy agrees with me - he says "Melinda, you know what's so dope man? (what if she actually is a man?)... you are like a pro. You come out here each week and interpret the lyrics and sing with feeling and live the words" … or something like that. Paula - "you have charisma from the word go. You…" something about spades, "blah blah blah." Simon - "Not the performance that we will remember as your best, but your vocals were outstanding as usual… hate the outfit". Simon and I are like 'this' man!
Blake Lewis - "Love Song" by The Cure. Gwen, "the melody in this song is strong and he needs to be careful about when he chooses to beat-box or else he will distract from the melody which is so simple". Not a great vocal per-se tonight. I think Blake is typically safe, but this was a tough night - bad song choice? No beat boxing tonight at all. Randy - "not my perfect song choice, but guess what, you made the most of it. You had that tender spot." Paula "Blake, I LOVED what you did with the song. You're taking risks, making it your own, I'd love to see you in the finale"(and in my dressing room after the show). Simon "You are the best guy in this competition for sure. You have to be careful because you are in this Chris Daughtry zone where you are doing your own thing. Don't be too indulgent and boring - it's a matter of taste. However, for sure you are the front running guy."
Jordin Sparks "Hey baby." Gwen, "I was surprised when I heard she was going to sing this song, but she made it sound much more musical than I thought it was. She's cute and refreshing and I'm excited for her." OK, but what the hell is this outfit? It's like a bad accident between a picnic table and Soviet school girl uniform. To me, the vocals are coming across like a bit of a karaoke performance. Randy "Risky thing to do - you could do anything and that was brilliant. Paula "you're adorable, and hip and young, blah blah blah, blah blah blah... blah blah." Simon, "probably the most improved contestant in the last few weeks. Younger more confident, but a bit copy-catish". Hmmm, well it didn't do much for me. You know... I think I could probably fit my entire arm through those hoops in her ears.
Chris Richardson - "Don't speak" Gwen, "I've seen him before and I know he likes to do these vocal Olympics kinds of things, but I don't think he really needs it Just focus on the song and emotion." In my assessment, he is doing it well. He has a good contemporary feel and it works for me. A few rough spots intonation-wise. Ended with a strong bit. Randy, "Yo Chris, so check it out man. Liked the R&B flavor. It was good". Paula "you're good, you're good. Hey, can someone get me another drink over here!!!??? And for goodness sake, which one of these boys am I going to manipulate in my room later tonight??!!!! Yeah, Chris, you're good." Simon, "song choice got you in trouble tonight last week but this was a much better choice of song. Still wasn't crazy about it. Struggled in the middle." Yeah, I agree.
Well, that's the end of my wine soaked recap of tonight's Idol. Quite frankly, I'm not sure what to make of it all. We've weeded out some of the obvious riffraff other than Sanjaya, and he is staying in because of some combination of the following - spite, the entire US population of junior high school girls and curious boys, and Howard Stern. So, as far as I'm concerned it's anyone's to lose tonight other than Melinda, Lakisha, Blake, and I can't believe I am about to say this, Sanjaya. PopPoolers - give me your thoughts.
BB
Oh my gosh. Soooo funny. Loved the Paula comments, Melinda comment, Jordin outfit reference. So good.
ReplyDeleteOkay, so Here comes the Rooster! Sanjaya is the Rooster - I'm so glad I finally saw it tonight. That's why he is in the competition still. The rooster hair suddenly made me think of the prophesy from Alice in chains, and I quote:
"Here they come to snuff the rooster
Yeah here comes the rooster, yeah
You know he ain't gonna die
No, no, no ya know he ain't gonna die"
What else can we say about him?
And, Chris Sligh made me think of that skit that goes, "I've (snap) got(snap) rhythm (snap.)" What was that about? He had a week to work on that song!!!! Although he said he picked it late, whatever that means.
All I can think of when Haley sings is that she would be a really nice wedding singer. I love that song, but really liked it more when my kindergarten class sang it, to be honest. Also, I like it better in the Dove commercial, too. So, she looks good, but ?????? I'm not sold on her.
I actually loved Phil, and loved the song. I don't care if it was a crocheted hat, or a paper crown, I'm just glad he wore a darn hat. (I love shaved heads, note Chris Daughtry, but not so much on Phil.)
Jordin for sure has looked a lot better, and I'm sure it was the outfit, but she still sang pretty well, I thought. I love the picnic tablecloth/Russian schoolgirl reference - lol! And, I could only wish to fit my arm through the earrings. Make a wish, here I come.
Blake - I really like him, but why does he have a crooked mouth when he sings? Really likeable, though.
Gina, Lakisha - not bad. I wanted Lakisha to rule, but I'm afraid Melinda showed her up a little.
Chris R. - hard to say. Not as bad as last week, I thought. He reminds me of a roly poly a little. Totally symmetrical face and body. If you touch him, will he roll into a ball and then snap out of it? Am I the only here? Like a tightly wound, fit cartoon character.
And, Gwen Stefani. Beautiful. Herself. Even classy, I have to say. Just like Paula. (hee hee.)
And..... of course I have to copy a couple comments I found (not from me!):
ReplyDelete>>> I have been trying and trying since the show to think of what it was he reminded me of. Now I know-My Little Pony.
It seems Sanjaya elicited the phrase "WHAT THE HELL" from a lot of people tonight LOL....next week he'll really go for the gold and dress like Strawberry Shortcake
Did anyone else not get through tonight? I get the west coast showing and tried for 3 hours now and just get the "your call did not go through, please try your call again". This was after the three chimes, like somehow the number is wrong? I tried with every single idol contestant just to check and got the same message. Is there going to be "trouble" with the results?
I had no problem voting 500 times for Sanjaya.
Lakisha - "Let's Dance": Girlfriend, I sang with Donna Summer: I knew Donna Summer; Donna Summer was a friend of mine. Lakisha, you're no Donna Summer.
ReplyDeleteChris Sligh - "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic": Blake would have knocked this song out of the park; Chris struck out looking. Singing with a fake British accent ensured his performance would be little more than a bad karaoke performance.
Sanjaya – Phone call with Michael Jackson: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziSuXpEaiwE
Blake Lewis - "Love Song" by The Cure. Blake is the most talented and underrated on the show.
Chris Richardson - "Don't speak": Terrible! Chris is the most overrated contestant on the show. He butchered the song, and now I will have to listen to the original at least ten times in a row to exorcise his version from my mind. If there is any justice, he will be voted off the show. After all, at least Sanjaya provides us with some amusement.
If you are curious about what "Chalk and Cheese" means, have Beth ask the Brits while she is in London. This is a classic british phrase... she will definately be able to get the low-down.
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness, that YouTube piece just isn't right. ... ok, yeah it is. Nice find Michael.
ReplyDeleteYeah, those Brits are full of funny little sayings like that one and I have no idea what many of them mean. According to http://effingpot.com, it means different, like "day and night". Beth, if think about it, ask someone what "Gordon Bennett!" means.
...oh and one thought Annie. If Sanjaya's new hair-don't is a rooster, then does that actually make it a "cockhawk"?
ReplyDeleteI have to say that as I was watching Sanjaya perform last night I threw up a little in my mouth.
ReplyDeleteI'm also very happy that Phil wore a hat - I love nothing more than a bald man but Phil scares me - all I can hear is him whispering "my precious" over and over.
Melinda rocked it, Lakisha not so great, Jordin was okay, Gina was great last night, could care less about the guys, though I will say I was impressed that Blake pulled out a Cure song... love the Cure.
Cat,
ReplyDeleteHave you seen Phil's father? He is a real looker: http://www.geocities.com/~cousin_itt/v/Lloyd.jpg
AAAAACCCKKKK!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteCat, I love the "my precious" remark. So funny.
ReplyDeleteYes, Sanjy is making famous his cockhock. Ryan has one. Bradley Gordon Bennett, you are next.
Okay, so, I hear that Blake's favorite band, 311, already did a cover to that song that Blake sang, and his was a LOT like it. I didn't check it out, but he's probably lucky the judges aren't too familiar with that band, or they might have called him on it. Some 311 fans aren't too happy with Blake doing it just like 311, as I was reading online. (Come on, sleep is overrated, right?)
I still really like Blake, though. Not like Paula likes her boys, Brad, but I too hope he goes far.
And, wooo - hooo! Gwen was great! And, I'm so glad I picked Chris S!
Now I have to check those you-tube videos.