Top 9 Perform!
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
All right! It's that time again. Tonight's high-profile super-mega-legend coach is Tony Bennett. He's before my time, but everything I've seen indicates that he's still a cool dude and a nice one to boot. Ryan's looking smashing in shades of black, I must say - love the look.
We go through the usual routine - we get the intro, the band recognition, the nerve-shot of the 9 remaining contestants, and the introduction of the judges. We are admonished that Tony Bennett is "the master" and we get a recap of his storied career. 109 albums, 15 Grammys, numerous other awards, and all at the tender age of 80! The remaining Idols are thrilled to meet them. He loves them - they're a rare group. Note he didn't say they were a talented group. Follow over the click to the first performance of the night.
And we get right into it. Blake Lewis is up first, singing Mac the Knife. Perhaps a smart choice. Tony observes that he has to get to the meaning of the song. And we're right to Blake's performance. He's dressed up for this one. I can't say I think the outfit, which looks like none of it actually goes together, does much for me. His beginning vocal is good - it's relaxed, it's in the right key and he's in tune. He dances a bit here and there as the music continues to modulate up. I have to say - this is probably one of my favorite Blake performances because he's IN TUNE throughout pretty much whole song. Quite good. He gets an A-.
Randy: (crowd screams wildly) He thinks it's a very good way to start the evening. He points out a few pitch problems (which I didn't really hear) but thought it was good.
Paula: Blake was "pizzazz". He's cool.
Simon: Good song choice, says Simon - gives him 7 out of 10 where he gives the band 8 of 10. He mentions that the band played a big part in the song.
Blake doesn't mind going first, and he was most worried about the lyrics. 1-866-IDOLS01 or text 5701. I'd throw a vote his way tonight.
We're gonna break, which is good so I can eat quickly.
And we're back!! We pimp the American Idol Gives Back extravaganza again, and that's a good thing. They have to split the live broadcast, apparently, that's how popular it is. That's good, too. And Kelly Clarkson is going to sing live - that's actually news!
Phil Stacey has been looking forward to this week - Tony's his hero. Tony wants him to speed the song up a bit and put a beat behind it. Tony thinks he's one of the better singers he's heard period, and I agree. Phil won't last long because people find him creepy, but he's a great singer. He starts off in a suit, behind the mic stand, singing this beautiful song Night and Day. It's a little weird for me - I think it's the arrangement, frankly, because Phil's in tune. This is a nuanced performance with a lot of bonus notes that are great, but I thought perhaps the vocal and the arrangement didn't always synch up. It's hard to grade this one - vocally, it's an A but the performance is a B.
Randy: It was an interesting choice for Randy, but he didn't feel any real connection or passion. It didn't hit him.
Paula: She thinks he's reminiscent of a young Frank Sinatra (Simon is shocked), but she needs him to have more joy and warm the vocals up throughout the song.
Simon: He doesn't think Phil's Frank Sinatra. He thought it had the joy of somone singing in a funeral parlor - it was gloomy and dark. No life in the performance. The other judges agree about the darkness. He was trying to focus on his wife. 1-866-IDOLS02 or text 5702. Poor Phil.
Melinda Doolittle is doing I've Got Rhythm, which is probably a really good choice. Tony loves her - thinks she's the best singer all day (or so far). She's out at center stage doing a jazzy version of the song. Can't really stand the dress, but Melinda's singing overcomes anything she's wearing. She goes to the chorus and it's fantastic. One of the things I like about Melinda is that in watching her, I truly believe she would rather be doing nothing other than singing THAT song on THAT stage at THAT moment. She sells it EVERY time. This week is no different. A+
Randy: Randy loves that she comes out every week and gives everyone a lesson in singing (yes, that's it exactly!).
Paula: She's like a master class for everyone else to watch. It was a flawless performance.
Simon: He didn't like the first part of the song, but he liked the last part of the song. He thought it was great in the second half - great, personality, fun. He doesn't think they're ever going to be able to criticize her.
Simon thinks it's a problem that they can't be mean occasionally with Melinda because she's so good. 1-866-IDOLS03 or text 5703.
Do I really care what House is doing next on House? No, I don't. Continuing - Chris R. gets a viewer question: what does he consider most when choosing a song? A: You have to do something you're comfortable with, see if the audience will like it, and then if the judges will like it. He went with a Duke Ellington song and he doesn't know the words. Mr. Saturday Dance is his choice. It's a little low for him in parts in the beginning. He's got the look down to go with the song - retro-hip. He hasn't sung through his nose once yet! Yay! So far the vocal is pretty good - I don't know how challenging the song is, frankly, but he's playing it straight - no extra runs (more or less), and no nose-singing. A good Chris R. performance. B+.
Randy: He thinks Chris came out with a vengeance and it was one of his best performances of the season.
Paula: He kept himself in the song and she loved it.
Simon: He thought it was very good - very believable, and he agrees with Randy and Paula about how he made it hip. Thought he was one of the strongest tonight.
1-866-IDOLS04 or text 5704. End of the show, peeps (duh).
Jordin Sparks is up next singing On a Clear Day. Tony thought she was in tune and had intelligent improvisation that fit the song. And we're right to Jordin's performance. She starts off strolling and singing. I can't say I like the tone of her voice for this particular song - she's punching through notes where I would rather hear some nuance, but she IS in tune. It's just loudly in tune. The song itself - the arrangement - is repetitive and repetitive in the high power parts. I can't fault her voice, but I'm not blown away. A-.
Randy: He loved that there's some heat up on stage tonight - it was the bomb.
Paula: She thinks Jordin is a magnet of joy. She's proud of her.
Simon: He thought she sang it well, but she didn't make the song young and current. She sang a song very well, but very old-fashioned and very traditional (I agree).
1-866-IDOLS05 or text 5705.
Gina Glocksen is singing Smile. Interesting. Probably outside of where she's been most successful, so we'll have to see. She starts seated. She's toned down the rocker a bit. This is a beautiful song. She's handling the beginning part quite well. She's my dark horse this season. She's much better than I think anyone realizes. This song is a nuanced performanced yet it's still Gina. She gets a teeny bit screamy but then pulls is back to the softer, sweeter vocal. I really, really liked that. She was completely in tune. A.
Randy: He actually liked it.
Paula: A flawless performance.
Simon: He can't rave about the vocal because two girls outsang her (disagree generally - she was better than Jordin imo).
1-866-IDOLS06 or 5706.
Tony's with Sanjaya and says that he "makes it interesting". Sanjaya is singing Cheek to Cheek and says that his goal is to show America that he really can sing. Let me pause for a moment - I find that interesting, because it's obvious, then, that he's seen the press surrounding him, the "Sanjaya is killing Idol" headlines and whatnot. I KNEW that would happen. WHY do you keep this kid around, America?? Sheesh. At any rate, here we go with the performance. Right out of the gate he's not in tune. He gets his pitch back after the first few notes. He loses it again in the low notes, but he's a bit more precise than weeks previous in his vocal this time around. But people - it's just not good. You HAVE to compare him to the other people in the competition and there's just no comparison. His vocal is better, but still not nearly good enough. C-.
Randy: Randy won't comment on the vocals, but he's turned into a great entertainer.
Paula: She gets why people love him but points out that vocals were off in the beginning.
Simon: He's trying a different tactic this week, and tells him it's "incredible".
1-866-IDOLS07 or text to 5707.
Haley Scarnato. She gets a viewer question: Is she more nervous singing or waiting for the judges. She picks out Simon. She's singing Ain't Misbehavin'. She's wearing a boob/legs dress again, playing to her "assets". She starts seated. The beginning of the song is in tune and quite pretty - a little breathy, but good. She's stalking around as the band comes in. She's on stage now and it's the uptempo part. It's all very broadway and it suits her. She gets in a clunker note but recovers quickly. This was probably a good song choice for her - she sings it strongly up until an AWFUL flat note at the end, one she held. Oops. Her grade: C+, just because of that awful note.
Randy: He thought this would be a good week for her... but what does Paula think?
Paula: Thinks green's a good color.
Simon: Thinks she's got great legs. He thought it was a good style of music, a little "pageanty".
Haley makes faces. 1-866-IDOLS08 or text to 5708.
Ok - since we're at commercials and my DVR has caught up, let me just say - Haley's attitude REALLY rubs me the wrong way. She's out there in a short, low-cut tight dress and she makes a face about the comment about her legs. Well, then wear a long skirt, girl. You can't work your assets and then be pissed off that someone noticed.
Lakisha Jones is doing Stormy Weather. Tony advises her to drop a run and stick where the song is written. Lakisha's out in floor-length dress - it's very attractive on her. She's styling this particular song, and the arrangement is different from the original. The vocal is excellent as usual. The difference between Melinda and Lakisha is in the believability arena. It's not that I don't believe Lakisha or that she gives poor performances that are vocally perfect - she's a very good performer. But Melinda's just a skosh better. I think I put Lakisha just slightly under Gina this week - mainly because she kept the final run in the end of the song and I thought that particular bit was the worst part of the performance. A-.
Randy: He loved it - perfect song - pitch problems at the front, but great in the end.Paula: Most gorgeous she's ever looked. Sounded beautiful.
Simon: He thought it was sassy - a great performance.
1-866-IDOLS09 or text 5709.
Here are my final rankings:
Melinda Doolittle
Gina Glocksen
Lakisha Jones
Chris Richardson
Jordin Sparks
Blake Lewis
Phil Stacey
Haley Scarnato
Sanjaya Malakar
((sigh)) Predictions before the show tomorrow, but I can already feel who's going.
Labels: American Idol, Finals, Performance, Top 9
posted by RenaRF @ 7:00 PM,
