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Thoughts and Impressions on ‘American Idol’: March 18by Sting7 -- 03/19/2003
View Printable version of this article Due to the fact that Mother Nature saw fit to do damage to vacation, David Bloomberg and I decided to switch hats this week. You can see David’s full recap here, my goal is to supplement that in-depth analysis with my own thoughts and impressions of what we saw, what we know, what we can assume, and what we can expect. It is impossible to watch American Idol and base your votes solely on what you heard from week to week. For a contestant you like, you will forgive a glitch or two, for one you despise, you hear every crack in their voice, every misplaced gasp of breath. And you’re ready to pounce! This week was Movie Week, when the contestants sang songs from soundtracks that meant something to them personally. Gladys Knight, R&B legend and classy lady that she is, was the celebrity judge (is this really gonna be a regular thing?), and she got to witness more home runs than a Barry Bonds baseball game! Corey Clark sang “Against All Odds” from the movie of the same name and seemed to find himself only when he got to the upper-register. But, when he got there, WOW! Corey is growing more likeable week to week, but he seems like all the work he did was on the higher notes, when he is singing lower, lock up the kids! Ruben Studdard did “A Whole New World” from Aladdin and he continues to amaze me with his control and his versatility! What can’t he do? I remember thinking ‘are they sure he is an amateur?’ Gladys Knight said his voice “sooths the soul” and she is dead-on. My soul needed soothing. He did that! Trenyce performed “I Have Nothing” from The Bodyguard, a Whitney Houston classic. Maybe the song that turned Whitney from an ace to a diva. Many an American Idol contestant has fallen trying to take on Mrs. Brown (remember Kelly Glover, who was axed for sounding too much like Whitney? And now we have Simon complaining that they had contestants last year in the Top Ten who couldn’t sing when they expelled someone with a great voice!). Trenyce did a fantastic job, I was a bit concerned that the Whitney crack (no pun intended) would come up again because Trenyce made similar choices, but Trenyce is as charming as you’ll find, and her performance was brilliant. Nailed every challenging note. Simon’s crack about her looking too old was just plain silly. She was dressed for the song (it wouldn’t have worked for “Footloose!”), and was elegant. Clay Aiken sang “Somewhere Out There” from An American Tail. He said in his video package that he wanted to show his range (you mean he hasn’t already?) and was amazing. I couldn’t wait til he got the Ronstadt note (‘underneath the same bright staaaaar’) and he made it worth the wait. Clay brings something completely unique to the table and he’ll be a star no matter what happens. If he doesn’t make the Top Three, Fox may have to hire extra cops for that night’s show. He and Ruben look like they will dogfight for the win this year unless someone else (Trenyce? Kimberley Locke?) takes the next step to their level. Kimberly Caldwell performed “The Shoop Shoop Song (It’s In His Kiss)” from Mermaids, and this was another case of bad song choice for Kimberly. Shoop Shoop is one of those songs where the backing vocals actually share the lead, and Kimberly never actually seemed to take control of the song. She also didn’t finish her runs, which was distracting to me. She put a lot of energy into working the stage, I wish she would have just stayed in one place and sung it like she could have. Joshua Gracin did “I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing” from Armageddon. Joshua did fine job, albeit a definitely country-styled version. Simon pressed him on this jarring shift, basically demanding that he choose a style for the rest of the competition (why? If a singer has a couple of different styles in their arsenal, why challenge that?). Josh said he was going country for the rest of the competition, and I hope he decides against that. Not that I have a problem with country (Nashville Star is teaching me a greater appreciation for it, frankly), but the winner of American Idol becomes the property of Simon. And, he don’t do country. Second, once Josh allows himself to be pigeon-holed, he exposes himself if he tries anything else. What is he going to do during Disco Week? Beyond his control, Josh has a built-in advantage by being a Marine, but if he starts straying from the show’s demographic, even that won’t save him. Carmen Rasmussen presented “Hopelessly Devoted To You” from Grease and she did an okay job. Just okay. I know my friend from Utah is gonna email me and ask me what didn’t I like about it. I’ll be hard-pressed for an answer. For me, Olivia Newton-John’s voice was as pure and innocent as a strand of cornsilk on a pair of coveralls. Remember, she was the darling of country music then, and had a squeaky clean a rep as anyone around. “Hopelessly” was perfect for her as a singer, and her character in Grease. Fortunate, because the song is high cheese, and if you are gonna do it, you have to make it real. You really have to sell it believably. Carmen sang it decently, but that was it... she just sang it. Hit the notes, breathed in the right places, but didn’t sell it. Experience will take care of that (Gladys Knight alluded to the same thing). View Printable version of this article
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