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We’ll Be the Judge of That! – American Idol 7, February 26by Foxes On Idol Judging Staff -- 02/27/2008
View Printable version of this article Last week we said goodbye to Colton and Garrett, so we still have three Davids, two Jasons, and five other guys. If you’ve read our recap, you know what Randy, Paula, Simon, and Betsy thought. But what do our judges—David Bloomberg, Sandy Lamparello, Tyler Sandersfeld, Kathy Lonergan, and Bruce Barker—have to say? Michael Johns, “Go Your Own Way” David: Did it sound to anybody else like he was bragging about how well he did at tennis tournaments when he was a kid? It didn’t come off making him look good. Moving to his performance of this Fleetwood Mac classic, to begin with, I thought his voice sounded too weak in comparison to the music. Also, I kept waiting to hear Stevie Nicks’ voice cut in to sing with him, but obviously that didn’t happen. I didn’t think he really did anything new or different or interesting with the song. It was okay, but by no means great. 
Sandy: Ummm, what was that? Michael didn’t sound very good to me. The background music didn’t quite mesh with him, and when he got to the chorus he often sounded like he was shouting. Not the best way to open the show. Tyler: My mother is a huge Fleetwood Mac fan, so she would definitely have something to say about this performance. As for myself, I suppose it was good. The chorus felt a little messy, and Michael just really doesn’t do anything for me. At least he didn’t cop out again with “Bohemian Rhapsody.” I doubt he’s going anywhere. Vocals: 20. Performance: 10. Other: 4. TOTAL: 34. Kathy: Michael’s opening phrase sounded very “Vedderesque,” replete with the bleat-like sound that makes a Pearl Jam tune instantly recognizable. I was intrigued. From there, the performance seemed somewhat tentative. Specifically, Michael seemed anxious about hitting his high notes (and there are many; Lindsey Buckingham had quite an upper register!) A simple key change could have easily remedied this problem and probably would have made this performance quite good. I agree with Simon that this was Michael’s weakest offering thus far, but nevertheless, he’s safe. Bruce: Of all the songs to choose he chose this one. The entire Fleetwood Mac catalog laid out before him, and he chose one of Lindsey Buckinham’s simplest vocals. And then to make it worse, he came out flat and went from there to a tone-deaf chorus that was so bad it made Joe Cocker sound like Pavarotti. He knew it too. By the middle of the song he was as uncomfortable as a test bunny in a cosmetic factory. The whole effort was a gigantic step backward. 3 Jason Castro, “I Just Want to Be Your Everything” David: On the one hand, I liked Jason’s guitar-playing as it differentiated him from the other contestants. On the other hand, it also rooted him to one spot on the stage, removing his ability to show a bit more presence and showmanship. That aside, I thought his voice was smooth and nice. I didn’t hear the “karaoke” Randy described – not great, but not bad at all. Sandy: I wasn’t crazy about this performance either. Jason C. sounded off in a lot of places. I don’t know, maybe I’m just not in an Idol mood. OK, Randy agreed with me. Tyler: I liked that much better than the judges—and Sandy—did. Yes, it wasn’t as good as last week, which could be a problem. Still, Jason’s taking advantage of the new allowance of instruments, which I’m surprised others are ignoring. He put a very modern adult contemporary spin on a slow disco song. I hope he sticks around. Vocals: 18. Performance: 11. Other: 6. TOTAL: 35. Kathy: Andy Gibb? Seriously? Dude, what were you thinking? The vocals were ok, but nothing to write home about. Jason’s guitar work was somewhat frenetic, and it impeded his vocals, specifically his breath support. His phrasing suffered as a result of his inability to focus his attention on his singing. While I don’t think it was karaoke, it really wasn’t the best song for him. I agree with the judges that next week, (and there will be a next week, I’m sure) he needs to cast away that acoustic security blanket and show his chops. Bruce: Before I go any further I have to make a comment that my fellow judges have made often in the past. I swear I had written the remarks I’ll make in this article down well before any of the judges spoke. Several times it felt like they were literally reading off of my steno pad. Jason shouldn’t hide behind that guitar week after week. Once was interesting. Twice, it looked like a crutch. Additionally, he abandoned parts of the song and left them for the background singers. His song choice was lame and his presentation was amateurish. Overall it was a step up from Michael Johns, but it was a baby step. 5 Luke Menard, “Killer Queen” David: Luke needed to go big or worry about going home – and trying to sing Queen is definitely going big. I don’t think his vocals quite cut it, but I rarely do when somebody is being compared to Freddie Mercury. Like Simon said, he may well suffer by comparison. I did find it amusing that Simon complained that it was too theatrical when talking about a Queen song! Hello! Overall, I do think Luke might have done enough to keep himself around. Might. I’ll have to see how the others do. 
Sandy: Wow I didn’t like Luke’s performance either. I did like his look, but the vocals weren’t the greatest. The guys aren’t putting on a very good show this week. I’m distressed. Tyler: Luke made up for last week’s vocal, but his performance needed a lot more pizzazz. The song needs flair, and Luke has none. If he survived last week, he could do it again this week. Then again, that may very well be the reason he’s going home on Thursday. Vocals: 19. Performance: 8. Other: 5. TOTAL: 33. Kathy: The moment I heard the opening words, I thought, “He’s taking on Queen? The boy’s got cojones!” Freddie Mercury was a rock god, and few would dare to tackle his body of work. That said, Michael Johns and Constantine Maroulis have both been lauded for singing “Bohemian Rhapsody” in the past, and one season, the producers had an entire Queen-themed night. Why then, did Simon criticize Luke for his song choice? Yes, Freddie had charisma, but he also had horrendous teeth. Luke is a lot easier on the eyes, and I think the song was a good match for his voice. He did an admirable job on what is an extremely difficult song to sing, from the range required to the rich and abundant lyrics. He needed to be leaps and bounds ahead of where he was last week, and he met his goal! 1 2 3 4 Next-->View Printable version of this article
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