StoneRose Valley My Thoughts, Expressions, and Passions

Once again, it’s that time of year. The Finale of finales’ has arrived.

We have Rod Stewart, Black-Eyed Peas, Cyndi Lauper, Lional Richie, Keith Urban, Queen Latifah, Carlos Santana, Jason Mraz, and David Cook, all gracing the stage tonight (reportedly).

Right now, we have the top thirteen performing Pink’s “So What”; great to see some old faces-Alexis Grace, for example! That was interesting; hearing the last words uttered by these thirteen contestants “I want to start a fight!”, while all decked out in white….yeah, this is american idol.

David Cook is performing “Permament” in honor of his brother, Adam, who passed away a few weeks ago. All the proceeds from the I-tunes sales of this song will go to charity.
It is wonderful to see David on this stage again…this man, is, IMO, hands-down the BEST american idol winner ever. He is the embodiment of everything that an A-I is supposed to be. He was obviously very touched by this song. That was another thing I loved about DC, the emotion he showed during his performances.

Now we get a tribute…Norman Gentle, anyone?
And I was right, Nick Mitchel, aka, Norman Gentle wins the male contestant tribute. And he takes the stage, singing for us one more time…wasn’t that something.

Queen Latifah is singing “Cue the Rain” with Lil Rounds…this is the kind of music Lil should be singing. But I’m tired of it already; can we move on now?

The top thirteen (minus Adam and Kris) are performing “I’m Yours” now with Jason Mraz; love Alexis Grace, as usual. She and Anoop each got their little solo’s.

Now we watch Kris’ journey through A-I…was so proud of him as I watched this.
We get to hear Kris perform with Keith Urban, “Kiss A Girl”.  These guys sound great together! Great choice putting Kris with Keith. Thoroughly enjoyed this performance.

The girls are performing now. Not liking Megan Joy or her outfit. Allison looks nice; Jasmine is darling! And Allison introduces Fergie…not one of my favorite singers out there. Now that number is over; Allison introduces Black-Eyed Peas. A-I blacks out a bit of the number…and when they brought it back, I changed the channel.

Back to the “Golden Idol”; tribute to those with the “best attitude”. Katrina; Tiffany Shedd; another girl in there; are the contenders….but the winner is Katrina. Yeah. Wasn’t a fan of her, either. So, once again, the channel changed.

Allison Iraheta takes the stage with Cyndi Lauper, singing “Time After Time”. Great performance by Allison. There’s something about this night; maybe because it’s no longer a competition, but more a time to have fun. Just much more relaxed.

Ryan talks with both Kris and Adam’s parents.

Back to the stage is Danny Gokey, singing “Hello”. Awesome song-one of my fav’s ever since DC did it last year. Danny’s performance is no David, but still quite enjoyable. Good song for him. Now Danny introduces Lional Richie for their duet; they’re doing a medley of Richie’s songs. Loved this! Also, this was the sort of music Danny said he wanted to do. I would definitely buy his album.

Now we get a glimpse of Adam’s journey….What in the world is he wearing?! That was a boring song….Now he’s singing with Kiss. All I can say is…did we just get transported to the circus?! These people are seriously disturbing. But Adam fits right in. I can’t say anything more about this. The scream in the middle didn’t even sound like it fit in the song, but it was like they said, “oh, we have to put an Adam signature scream in”, and so did. Just weird.

Guitar legend Carlos Santana is performing “Black Magic Woman”….we hear an awesome solo by Matt. Now we get the top thirteen for “Smooth”. Adam heads the group up; Jorge follows with some creepy moves; and then some awesome solo’s by Kris and Danny. Great number! Absolutely loved it!

Ryan promises the results soon. Final Ford Music Video…nice one; featuring clips from all the video’s this season…the song is “I Will Remember You”. David Cook shows up to hand over the keys for the guys new Ford Fusions….man, I need to get on this show.

Steve Martin, Megan Joy, and Michael Sarver are all on-stage singing “Pretty Flowers”…Steve with a banjo. What is this? Hilarious…my fam called it the “Clampett’s”. lol  Enjoyed Micheal…but he and Megan didn’t sound good together…I think that was Megan. Steve slips in a joke; when asked who he hope’s is the winner after tonight, Steve replied “I know it’s kind of a long shot, but I hope I do!”.

The guys from the top thirteen are back singing a pretty cool (and a bit funny) version of “Do You Think I’m Sexy”. Adam introduces Rod Stewart  after the guys are finished. Stewart is singing his “Maggie May”.

Last Golden Idol of the evening we are told…”Outstanding Female”….nominees are Chelsea, Irene, Dana, and Tatiana Del Torro. Tatiana is going to win this one….I was right. Of course, there’s a lot of drama here; Ryan says he’s out of time and has to cut to the commercial…Tatiana forces her way on stage, grabs the trophy and bursts into song…some escorts try to get her off-stage, but we cut to the commercial before anything else….this was so totally staged.

One of the best numbers tonight, Kris and Adam sing “We Are The Champions” together. Queen joins onstage with the guitar. The top thirteen join the chorus. Must be nearing the very end. Love watching the comraderie between the two guys as they share the stage here at the end. These guys sounded great together.

Soon, we will hear the results. My guess is that Kris wins….but it really could be either of them.

Simon said that either one could win and deserve it. 100 million votes…wow.
And the winner is….KRIS ALLEN!!!!! So totally deserved…and he still remains humble.
The judges make me so embarrassed…they really had a look as if to say “this is SO wrong”. I think Kris has shown amazing artistry this season; consistently growing each week, more so than any other contestant.
He sings once more “No Boundaries”…I like him singing this; and despite what others say, calling it a ‘corny’ song-I like it. Afterwards, before the station cuts, we see Kris locked into a hug with his wife. This man is amazing, I’ll say it again.

And so ends another season of american idol. I have to admit, I’m relieved that I don’t have to keep up with this show twice a week anymore. It will be nice to have my Tuesday and Wednesday evenings back.

“American Idol Hall of Fame”

Kelly Clarkson
Reuben Studdard
Fantasia Barrino
Carrie Underwood
Taylor Hicks
Jordan Sparks
David Cook
Kris Allen

“These names will go down in musical history as some of the best. Congratulations to each of you. And welcome to Kris Allen. Sometimes, slow and steady still wins the race.”

Posted under American Idol, Entertainment, Music

Well, wanted to let ya’ll know that I will not be blogging live tonight during the results show. I have been so overwhelmed by what is going on in my life (mostly finishing up this semester of school) that the idea of having to keep up with the live posts is exhausting. I’m also in the process of determining whether the live posts are even worth it. I don’t really get to think about the show and share all my thoughts and expressions about it when posting live…so I’m thinking about returning to last years no-live-blog, at least on the results show. I’d love to hear any feedback you have on this choice! If I don’t hear anything, I’ll assume you don’t care (likely!) and will lean on my own better (hehe) judgement.

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Now, after the results show; here are my thoughts.
Frankie’s appearance was pretty hilarious!

The top eight performed…whatever it was. I didn’t like Matt’s part in the song; but loved Allison. Excepting her, overall, honestly, it was forgettable.
Loved the behind the scenes of the ford Magic Show video. Especially Scott’s imitation of Simon.  The video, featuring the song “Circus” turned out quite well….I’m just getting bored with the whole magic show theme that they come up with every season.

Based on performance, I would have put Scott, Lil, Kris in the bottom three. I expected to see Scott, Kris, and Anoop instead. I was wrong there. Was rather surprised–no, very surprised to see Kris safe.
I could just about slap Ryan for being so mean to Matt. And although I thought deserved, I was surprised to see Lil in the bottom three. Maybe it will be a wake up call for her; she just really needs to make wiser song choices.
I think Scott, based on the performances last night, should have gone, so I can’t say I’m upset. But he is an amazing young man. He mentioned in his farewell video that he hopes he “can be an inspiration to a lot of people”, and I think he has. Paula called him, and I totally agree, “an inspiration to the entire world through his commitment and talent, and one classy gentleman”. And his quick sense of humor each week will be missed.

As far as the guest artists went…

Not a fan of Flo Rida; never been a fan of rap, punk, or hip-hop. Also didn’t like the suggestive dancing. So no surprise that my TV found itself changing the channel during his performance.
Cute and bizarre Kellie Pickler made her way back to the A-I stage. But as I watched, I was quite sorrowful; it didn’t look or sound like Kellie. She reminded me greatly of Dolly Parton. I think the old Kellie I knew and loved is gone. Probably for good.
So nothing remarkable about this week. Except for the fact that the judges very nearly used their save on Scott. Unfortunately for him, nearly wasn’t enough. But maybe he can be comforted by the fact that he came further than anyone else so far.

Posted under American Idol, Entertainment, Expressions, Life Thoughts, Links, Music, Polls, Quotes, Uncategorized, Verses, Video's

Polls are at the end of this post.

Danny Gokey starts the night out with Micky Gilley’s version of “Stand by Me”. Not Danny’s best, but a solid performance nonetheless. His voice is carrying him straight through this part of the contest.

Randy told Danny “You…came out with the gospel/jazz, r&b chords. Even though I didn’t love the arrangement you made me love the song”.
Kara was thinking “what kind of arrangement is this?” but said Danny “killed it…turned it on it’s head; really unique!”
Paula said he “opened the show, and set the bar so high, everyone’s going to have to run to catch up”; also loving his “creative liberties, and the chord subsidies”.
Simon called the beginning good, the middle lazy, and the end terrific; saying that overall it was “great!”

Kris Allen chose “All She Wants To Do Is Dance”. Kris also chose to sing in the pit, playing his guitar; this gave off a very relaxed atmosphere during his song. I didn’t think this was Kris’ best either, but it was also a solid performance. Nothing stood out greatly to me, unfortunately.

Kara said it “felt like jazz/funk homework. It kinda lost a lot of it’s youth”.
Paula called it “heartfelt and genuine”; also calling Kris “one of the most likable contestants we’ve ever had”.
Simon agreed that Kris is likable, but called the performance “indulgent, boring, and forgettable. You came over as a guitarist who wanted to sing instead of a singer playing guitar”.
Randy agreed with Simon that the “arrangement was a little self indulgent”. He said that Kris got lost; reminding him “You’re the singer; you’re in the competition, not the song”.

“What’s Love Got To Do With It” was the song Lil Rounds chose this week. Personally, I’m not a fan of her stylist; I feel like the personality of Lil has been lost in her ‘new style’. But as regards her voice and performance: I think the girl is finally getting back to picking the right songs! The note at the end broke, but other than that, one of Lil’s best performances; certainly better than the last couple of weeks.

Paula called Lil a “brilliant vocalist, but that only gets you so far”. Paula felt that Lil didn’t make the song her own.
Simon said “we’re not looking for a second or third rate Tina Turner…other than some nice parts at the end, it was literally like we’ve lost you”.
Randy said Lil has “mad, mad talent”, but said she just was “not clicking right now”.
Kara said this competition is “about making that leap from a singer to an artist’, and didn’t think Lil has made that leap.

Anoop Desai is singing “True Colors”; I think this was a really wise choice for him. I thought his transitions from chest to head voice went very smoothly overall. Very nice vocal tonight from Anoop.

Randy thought the vocal “very nice…very controlled” and told Anoop “you can actually sing!”
Kara said that Anoop showed that he “can take a pop song and interpret it with soul!”
Paula thought the “choice of song: flawless. Phrasing: beautiful. You showed your true colors”.
Simon called him “a singing yo-yo. Last week was [terrible]; this week was very good. Take a song and make it your version. Wasn’t fantastic though”.

Scott MacIntyre went with “The Search Is Over”, also playing guitar. I have to say I love seeing a new side to Scott; he’s keeping things interesting. And I enjoyed his vocal.

Kara said he “took on a very difficult song; it had some good moments but also had some off moments. Not your best; there were parts I liked and parts that were too ambitious for you”.
Paula gave him credit for stepping away from the comfort zone of the piano. When she commented on the guitar, Scott remarked that it was his “punk side coming out”; Paula laughed and said he had a “wonderful sense of humor”. She thought some of the high notes came out a “little bit screeching, but overall good”.
Simon recommended he “go back to the piano”, calling the song “atrocious. The guitar and song didn’t go together…the choice was wrong”.
Randy said it was all just “OK. The song, vocals…Didn’t show you as a star. I want to see you leap off the stage vocally”.
I totally had to disagree with Simon here….

“I Can’t Make You Love Me”, to me at first thought a strange choice for Allison Iraheta, I have to change my mind. I think she put her own touch on the song. Good vocal, great interpretation! Also, the outfit was 10 x’s better than last week!

Paula said the “great thing about having you in this competition is you just hear one note and it’s undeniably Allison. You gave all of your heart in this song. This was the same arrangement as the original, but you made it our own”.
Simon thinks “you’re really good, I really do. We need to sort you out and make you more likable though. I still don’t know much about you”.
Randy said Allison “remind[s] me so much of a contestant from season one; she can sing her face off and so can you”!
Kara said that “to take adult content like that song and make it believable and young; that’s talent”.

Matt Giraud is singing Stevie Wonder’s “Part Time Lovers”.
Not as good as ‘So Small’ or “Who’s Loving You’, so not Matt’s best, but better than most of what we’ve seen tonight…

Randy said that it was “vocally one of the best of the night”.
Kara called Matt “incredibly talented”.
Paula gave Matt a “standing O”.
Simon had two words; “well done”.

Adam Lambert is singing “Mad World” by Tears for Fears; this is honestly his best vocal EVER! This performance, for the first time, made me think that Adam really could make it in the music industry. This was amazing!

Simon said “the bad news is we’re running out of time. Good news is I’m the only one who is going to say anything. Words aren’t necesarry but I’m going to give you a standing ovation”, and he proceeded to do so.
Totally deserved!

Best of the night: Adam. Usually, I think he’s so overrated with all the talk of “in a league of his own”…but tonight, he truly was.
Other standouts: Matt Giraud, Danny Gokey, and Allison Iraheta.
People in Trouble: Lil Rounds, Scott MacIntyre, and Kris Allen. I’m worried about Kris, not that he did badly tonight…but it was forgettable. He has put so much in the past weeks, rising head and shoulders above the rest; I just hope people remember the past couple of weeks, “Ain’t No Sunshine”, “How Sweet It Is“, and “To Make You Feel My Love” while they’re voting.

Note to self: I wonder how much Adam’s standing ovation from Simon had to do with the fact that they cheated him on the time and had to end the show instead of letting al of the judges comment…? Think about it, would Simon still have given him a standing O? I really don’t think so…I think Adam did deserve an ovation, possibly by Paula or Kara, maybe even Randy…but hardcore Simon? I think that was just to keep people happy. What do you think?

Posted under American Idol, Entertainment, Links, Music, Polls, Quotes, Verses, Video's

The Ford Music video featured the song “Mixed Up”…and it lived up to it’s name! Quite strange…

The top nine are singing Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing”. I love the group numbers as the group actually diminishes in size…it affords everyone a chance with their own little segment, a chance to showcase their individual voices.

We also get a chance to hear the contestants impersonating each others voices…pretty hilarious! And they all handled the jokes with fun and grace.

Tonight we will be treated to David Cook’s new single, “Come Back To Me”…as well as Lady Gaga’s hit “Poker Face! Lady Gaga, haven’t been looking forward to so much….but Cook? Oh, yeah!

Dim the lights, etc…
We’re dividing into three groups…? So, Kris, Megan, and Matt in one. Adam, Lil, and Allison in another. Leaving Scott, Danny, and Anoop in the last grouping. There is no way that either Kris, Danny, or Adam are in the bottom three; so I’m going to put out an early guess that one out of each group actually make up the bottom three…?

So good to see and hear David Cook again…so what if it was pre-recorded? Watch the music video for Come Back To Me. And David is presented with his platinum debut album commemorative whatever-they-call-it…nice. Of course, no new news, but great to watch him receive this. Loved his performance, as always.

Back to the results: Kris is safe, as everyone knew he would be.
I think Matt will be safe too. And he is after Ryan pulls an April Fools on him.
Megan is in the bottom three. But the girl handles it with grace. And perhaps a bit of cornyness.

Second group is up.
Lil is safe!
Allison is next…I’m going to have to say that I think she’s going to find herself in the bottom three. And she is.
Adam is of course (at least this week) safe.

Third group…Danny is safe.
Scott should be safe too…and I think we’ll see Anoop joining the girls in the bottom three.
Anoop is indeed in the bottom three. Anoop has been accused of being arrogant, but tonight he was anything but. Very gracious, and that put him far in my opinion.

Yeah; we get to watch Lady Gaga! Kidding-April Fools (lol)! not really excited about her; just not a fan. Honestly, I don’t think they should have allowed her on a ‘family-friendly’ show. So no more about her.

Back to the bottom three…Simon says that ‘only one of these three (Anoop, Allison, or Megan) are worth saving’. That would be Allison, I’m sure.

Allison is sent back to safety…leaving little hope that the bottom vote-getter will receive a save from the judges.
Anoop is safe. Simon tells Megan that they’re not even going to attempt to evaluate her performance or save her. That was harsh…don’t think she deserves a save, but she does deserve the respect of an evaluation.

Megan was called hip, relevant, and the most original artist ever to grace (my new word for tonight!) the A-I stage. I think this girl was just plagued with bad song choices, like several others have been throughout this competition. Unfortunately, she caught a lot of flack; but definitely a contestant full of originality, and talent. Kudos for going out with grace, Megan!!

Posted under American Idol, Entertainment, Music

So, as always, what do you think?

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Posted under American Idol, Entertainment, Music, Polls

So, I hear that the contestants will be performing songs from Itunes top charts….that bodes well for many of them.

For me, though, this show doesn’t look good. I’m starting this night out very irratated. The TV keeps cutting the sound on and off.

Starting the night off is Anoop Desai, singing something by Usher….at least I think that’s what he said. As I already said, the sound is there only every once in a while. And what I do hear, I don’t recognize. But back to Anoop; he’s bringing back some of that energy and attitude we saw several weeks ago. As far as the vocals went, I didn’t think he stood out with them. They were only OK, which just doesn’t cut it with this group.

Randy said Anoop’s “vocals were really good” but thought it a bad song choice. He said he felt “a little torn”.
Kara pointed out that “when you pick Usher you’ve got to do crazy stuff” but didn’t hear that from him; instead felt “like a bunch of frat guys dared you to sing Usher”.
Paula loved that Anoop went back to the playful side; “Your vocals sounded really good”, but recommended he “work on the stage presence”.
Simon called it a “complete and utter mess”; saying Anoop “came over as a wannabe”. He said “the arrangement was a mess”, and complained that the performance gave him a headache.

Megan Joy is singing Marley’s “Turn Your Lights On Low”. I have to say that this is definitely an improvement over the last two weeks…actually, three weeks. But this didn’t turn me into a fan of hers by a long shot.

Kara really likes Megan but thinks she is in trouble. “Here’s the thing: Not the right song choice for you”.
Paula thinks Megan really needs to “take us by surprise”.
Simon called the song boring, indulgent, monotonous; and all the things we liked about you are disappearing. It wasn’t you, and it is about song choice”.
Randy said it was “like watching paint dry”, and told Megan she had better artists to pick from than Marley.

Danny Gokey is singing “What Hurts The Most”, by Rascall Flatts. I’m so glad he chose this song! Much better song choice than the last two weeks for sure!! This is getting us back to the real guy! His vocals were spot-on, and the interpretation in his voice brought me completely into the song.

Paula said “this is where you thrive; from the first note to the cadence”, and told Danny he left her “wanting more”.
Simon’s thoughts on Danny’s performance; “this week, if I’m being honest, this was your best performance. So much better than the first two…So far away better. Get a great song, sing it brilliantly, and do your version; that’s what this is about”.
Randy said “it’s about choosing something that you can do well”, and thought Danny did just that.
Kara told Danny, “You moved everyone in this room emotionally…That’s so hard to do; you gave so much of your heart and soul”.

Allison Iraheta chose “Don’t Speak”, her vocals are fairly good, but I’m totally distracted by how she looks. Not in the same ball park as last week, IMO.

Randy knows Allison can sing, but thought she was a little ahead of the beat; but he did like the guitar. His biggest thought: “What are you wearing?!”
Kara told Allison “the rock in you comes out no matter what you’re wearing, so you don’t need to dress it. I felt like you were trying to be something, and you don’t need to try, you already are”.
Paula said Allison’s “vocal prowess rivals singers twice your age. You are serious about this. think you’re skating by and going right to the finish line”, she predicted.
Simon simply couldn’t ignore the outfit. He thought it looked like “dressy-uppy; trying to be a rock star. Plus you shouted the song”.

Scott MacIntyre chose a song from Billy Joel, “Just The Way You Are”, and it was perfectly suited for him! Great choice! He stripped it all down, and just gave us his honest soul in that performance. Very well done!

Kara said Scott “made some very smart song choices tonight”. She loved that he came “from an honest place, which you know how to do well”.
Paula told Scott that “of all the contestants which have graced the stage, I am most proud of you. It has nothing to do with your challenge, but everthing to do with how you’ve faced that challenge!”
Simon called it Scott’s “best performance by a country mile. This is a different Scott. You are lucky you didn’t listen to madam’s (Paula) advice about not playing the piano”.
Randy declared it “one of the best of the night; nice one!”

Singing “You Found Me”, Matt Giraud is fighting to gain his footing back on the show. He chose to play keyboard actually in the audience! What a way to make it personal! This isn’t my favorite performance of his, but was a good one nevertheless.

Paula thinks Matt is “bored with the magnificant riffs and beautiful falsetto” that he is so good at.
Simon said Matt “should be happy ’cause we don’t like you this week”. He felt it was all “very put on, very up-tight. You’re becoming like all these different people just to try and stay in the competition”.
Randy thought it was “just the wrong song for you. You got more chops than that; let all that flavor out”.
Kara didn’t like how Matt seems to “keep going between the rock r&b and the pop r&b”.

Lil Rounds wanted to really nail her song choice this week, and picked Celine Dion’s “I Surrender”. I love this song, and am a huge fan of Celine. I’m very back and forth between this song….there are times I feel are magnificant, and others that are just less than what I’d hope for from her.

Randy thought it, once again, not the right song choice. “But you sang it really, really well. You’ve got unbelievable vocal skills”.
Kara pictured a Mariah or Mary song, but was “surprised too. You hit a few notes that I was like….whoa! We got a glimpse of what we saw in the beginning which is this singer who can let it out and wow us”.
Paula….well, I actually didn’t catch what Paula said.
Simon felt like it was Lil “singing to stay in the competition”, and thought it “quite similar to a wedding performance”.

Adam Lambert chose “Play That Funky Music”, a song that I normally like, but not his version. I really think that Adam is someone you either love or hate. I just don’t get him. But he does have a good voice, and I think this performance was a very good one. So, no, I didn’t like it. But this was the best performance of the night so far!

Paula declared that “true genius does not fulfill expectations; they shatter it!”
Simon called it “very brave!” and said it was original.
Randy admitted that when he heard Adam was doing this song, he thought “this is going to be corny;  But you got it going on!”
Kara told Adam that each week she “cannot wait to see what you are going to do next. And that’s a big compliment!”

My favorite, Kris Allen, is closing the night with “Ain’t No Sunshine”. I love the simpleness he brings with just the keyboard and a strings quartet accompanying him. This guy improves by leaps and bounds each week! I’m so excited by him! And this week, I really and truly feel like I’ve seen an artist, equipped with charisma and personality. Did I say Adam’s was the best performance so far? Wrong! Kris stole the night!

Randy: “Yo dude! Right now in this moment; for the last couple of weeks you’ve been slaying them; that was definitely in the zone! Slay it!”
Kara said she has three words; “That was artistry!”
Paula said Kris “played to your strengths; your best to date”.
Simon brought up what he talked about last week with “showing some confidence; you brought that tonight. Very clever and cool performance; Your best so far”.

Here’s my ranking of the night:

1. Kris Allen–by far the best of the night
2. Adam Lambert—followed very closely by
3. Danny Gokey
4. Scott MacIntyre
5. Lil Rounds
6. Anoop Desai
7. Matt Giraud
8. Allison Iraheta
9. Megan Joy Corkrey

I really think that Megan will be leaving…but I say that every week, don’t I? It’ll be Megan, Matt, and Allison/Anoop in the bottom three tomorrow night….maybe even ending with Matt leaving us. But who really knows? No one will until tomorrow at the results show.

Posted under American Idol, Entertainment, Music

Who’s leaving tonight? That’s the big question facing us every night after the performances. Going into the results show, I expect to see Megan, Michael, and Scott in the bottom three. As usual, I’m blogging live with the show.

They’re performing a medley of Motown hits tonight; featuring “You’re All I Need”, “My Guy”, and “Ain’t No Mountain”. The choreography is pretty neat.

The Ford music video is “Pocketful of Sunshine”…I liked this one alot. But not as much as “We Will Rock You”; was still good though.

Reuben Studdard is guest performing tonight….is he live? I have to ask ’cause so many this season are prerecording their performances this season. Randy Travis and Carrie Underwood, Kenye West, and the upcoming performance of David Cook (YEAH!) next week. I think this one is live….The performance was nice, I suppose, but I’ve never been a fan of Reuben. Nice guy, though.

Now to the results.
Dim the lights.
Here we go.
Adam is first. Of course after last nights performance he is safe!
Matt is next…and in the bottom three. Totally disagree with this! And DialIdol predicted him completely safe! Sorry DI…you’re falling down on your touch.
Kris next…Ryan misleads with his comments, making us all think Kris is in the bottom. But Kris is safe!
So is Lil. Placing Michael in the bottom three with Matt.

Smokey Robinson and Joss Stone perform…getting me thinking about Reuben’s performance minutes before…Reuben lacked our contestants on the stage…making me believe that it too was prerecorded. Why do so many of them do this?
Nice performance by the legend and Joss.

Who else will join Michael and Matt? My guess has gotta be Megan.

Allison is next…She put out a steller performance last night and is safe.
Anoop is also safe.
Danny Gokey won’t be in the bottom three for quite a few more weeks.

We’re down to Scott and Megan. ‘Cheap hotel performance’ or ‘Train-wreck’?
I’m astonished to see Megan, once again, safe!

Ryan is sending Scott back. I’m really mad at this. Matt totally doesn’t deserve to be standing where he is now. But Michael has to be leaving now.

Stevie Wonder is once again gracing the A-I stage. I like Stevie Wonder, but…I really can’t enjoy this with Matt sitting where he is. Ok, I was able to say I enjoyed that by the end. Great performance by Stevie!

The results after the commercial break…as always.
Are we going to have another totally wrong night like last week with Alexis? What is happening to this show?!

Dim the lights.
Here we go.

I am truly sorry to see Michael Sarver go, but believe that Matt really deserves to remain in the competition.
I think Michael sounds better tonight than last night. Is getting over the flu? This guy is truly a favorite character! What a genuine, nice guy! He is not saved, but it looked like he came close! Will miss this guy. I hope someone picks him up for a record deal.

Posted under American Idol, Entertainment, Links, Music, Uncategorized, Video's

My first reaction of the night-what is Paula wearing?! Hmmm.

So anyway, we have the contestants singing motown this week. Their mentors were Smokey Robinson and…(what’s his name? I completely forget!) Berry Gordan.

The one’s that could do really well, IMO, are Lil Rounds and Danny Gokey. I also think that Kris Allen, Matt Giraud, and possibly Anoop. We’ll see how they do.

‘Kicking it off’, according to Ryan, is Matt Giraud with “Let’s Get It On”. He’s sticking to what he does best, once again on the ivory keys. Wait-I spoke too fast. He’s thrown us a twist by leaving his customary seat and is now touring the stage. I have to admit, not my favorite of his performances. But I believe he did a fine job with the song.

Randy thought Matt “set this off to the tone tonight!” and loved his run at the end of the song, commenting on Matt’s strong falsetto; “You’re challenging [the other guys] for the front spot”.
Kara liked the departure from the piano, and also Matt’s vocal interpretations, calling it a “solid performance”.
Paula commented on how comfortable Matt seemed behind piano as well as out from it. “You showed a cool, sexy vibe. You’re tasteful, classy, spot on, and respectful of the melody. It’s like wearing a great pair of worn jeans”.
Simon thought the piano departure corny, but said that Matt’s voice “absolutely suits that type of song. You are one of the front runners in this competition”.

Kris Allen, unfortunately, is performing second tonight. He is performing “How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You”; Smokey said Kris ‘blew [him] away’, also commenting on how talented Kris is to sing and play guitar like that. Kris started the song off accapella; I really like his interpretation. I would buy this song from Itunes definitely! Towards the middle/end of the song, I really loved the husky tone to his voice. Something we don’t hear often from him.

Kara loved that Kris “didn’t do James Taylor or Marvin Gay, you did Kris. You made your mark on that song. You did everything right on that performance!”
Paula thought it was really nice seeing Kris “come into [his] own”, calling his personality ‘infectious’; and marveling that the “note at the end was brilliant. You keep growing and growing every week!”
Simon said that Kris is having a good competition so far. But wants to see Kris “start believing in [himself]“. This I don’t get, Simon thinks you have to be conceited to be a star? His advice to Kris: “Start acting like me”. No way! Kris’ response: “I’ll take everything else, but the conceit? No.” And Ryan backed him. Kudos, Kris, for showing some back bone and standing up for who you are and what you believe!
Randy declared that Kris has “hit your zone; You ain’t doing nothing wrong!”

Scott MacIntyre is singing “You Can’t Hurry Love”. Once again, he appears behind his piano; and I think he made a fabulous choice in remaining there! He has put his own twist on the song as well; and I really like it. I’m not sure his vocals are right on all the time, the sound a bit weak at times, but this is a million times better than last week.

Paula loved having the back-up singers around the piano; as well as “the beginning, with the chord changes in the rabatto(?) section”.
Simon thought the “piano was terrible, the back up singers were a mess. This was the wrong song for you. I thought it was cheap. And I think you’re better than that. You are choosing the wrong songs”. I have to agree with Simon in that Scott could pick much better songs for himself, and I think he is better than what we’ve seen so far.
Randy doesn’t agree with Simon often, but did tonight, calling it “a very hotel performance”. He told Scott to start taking some risks; “You’re a better singer than that, take bigger challenges”.
Kara disagrees with the guys on this one, saying “I love the up-tempo”. But she cautioned Scott; “When you take liberties like you did with the melody, you have to nail it. You had good ideas, the execution just wasn’t perfect”.
And at the end of it all, Paula pulls out a box of crayons for Simon. Hmm. Those two are a mess always!

Megan Joy is singing “For Once In My Life”. Smokey was right in that it does sound like she totally made this her own through her unique voice.

Randy said “the song was a trainwreck”, calling it “bizarre”. His advice was to have slowed it “back a little. It was too rushed and hectic”.
Kara agreed with Randy. She recommended ‘My Guy’, calling it more like Megan. “You didn’t dominate the song, the song was dominating you”.
Paula complimented Megan on her appearance, calling her “stunningly beautiful. The camera loves you”; but she agreed that the song wasn’t right for Megan. “I don’t feel you found your pocket”.
Simon was abrupt: “The good news is you look good. The bad news is that it was horrible. A horrible arrangement; atrocious song, the vocals were all over the place”.

Anoop Desai chose “Ooh, Baby, Baby”, and my initial thought is-’really?’. But I was surprised. It was better than I thought it would be given the song choice, but not as good as I’d hoped for Anoop tonight. It turned out a little bland to me.

Kara said that was one of the most beautiful songs ever written and probably one of the hardest to sing. “Overall”, she said, “that song is very hard to do you and you did a pretty good job. You’re showing us that you can sing; you have a skill set”; but asked to see Anoop become “a little more creative with the melodies”.
Paula loves Anoops’ new-found confidence but wants to see more. “Your delivery was spot on, not only that but sweet”.
Simon called it a “great vocal”; but said Anoop looked half asleep. “You gotta find that balance, that showmanship. But you’ve had two good weeks in a row”.
Randy liked seeing the “serious Anoop-dog”, next week wants him to “turn it back up. Was nice to hear you croon and swoon; but get back and bring it next week!”

In the sixth performance spot is Michael Sarver, singing “Ain’t Too Proud To Beg”. Can Michael bring it? Can he, as Smokey said, lay it all out on the line? My verdict: YES! Michael brought it tonight; solid, and fun performance!

Paula: “for me this was a tough performance; it felt old Las Vegas loungy for me”. She told him “you really need to dominate and drive that song, not the reverse”.
Simon actually couldn’t wait for it to end. “You were screaming and shouting that song”. Simon went a step further, telling Michael “you have no chance of winning this competition based on that performance. In the real world it just really isn’t good enough. That was below half”.
Randy said the song was just a little too big for Michael tonight. “You were trying to do too much with it”. Remember folks, both Michael and Megan have had the flu…
Kara was the only one, in my opinion, that gave Michael any constructive criticism; saying “at this point it’s not about singing, it’s about artistry. That’s what we need from you. And that’s what I didn’t feel this week”.

Lil Rounds picked “Heat Wave”…Honestly, this is nowhere near what I expected from Lil this week.

Randy mentioned her crazy vocals, but said “the front was a little bit torture, not the right song for you. Felt like you were rushing a bit. Not the best performance from you”.
Kara said Lil looked great. “You were the diva that everyone was waiting to hear. I don’t think this was the right song. If you had melodies that breathe more you could have interpreted more; you have the voice for that”.
Paula disagreed with the above two. “It’s what you do vocally that feels fresh and takes a classic song and makes it new”.
Simon thought Lil was giving an “authentic tribute to the sound of Motown. But the song didn’t give you a moment. It was too fast. You could have had a moment”. He reminded us that Lil is “one of the best singers we have in this competition”; and said he’s waiting for her to blow everyone away again like she did in the first week…but said she can’t do it with that song.

We have three contestants left; Adam, Allison, and Danny. What will they bring?

Adam Lambert is next, singing “Tracks Of My Tears”. I’m really surprised by this choice. Is he going to change it like he did with “Ring of Fire”? Is he trying to look like Elvis? I do have to say that I’m SO glad that he chose to tone everything down this week and show us his pure vocals. I admit freely that Adam has amazing talent in his voice. I don’t think he’s miles ahead of the other contestants, but he does have one of the best voices here. Adam is getting a standing ovation from Paula, Kara, and Smokey! Nice job, Adam!

Kara called it one of the best performances of the night; loving his artistry!
Paula said he was completely in his own league. And loved the clean look, “you look classy. You are exciting.”
Simon disagreed with Kara; saying it was THE best performance of the night! He said Adam summed up originality, choosing the right song, and being a relevant recording artist, as the judges had talked about earlier. Adam was lauded with emerging as a star tonight. Good for you, Adam!
Randy said Adam has the range to do anything; he loved the “tender moments; the falsetto”, and said Adam used everything in his arsenal.

My favorite, Danny Gokey, is up, singing “Get Ready”. I think this was a great choice! He’s been working on the dancing…I love the energy he’s showing. Not his best vocal performance, but still quite good. I enjoyed the ambience in his voice.

Paula called Danny undeniable and identifiable, saying he brings a “first class performance every week”.
Simon thought it clumsy and amateur.
Randy said it wasn’t the best performance from Danny, but loved the energy and feel of it.
Kara loved the energy as well, saying she “thought it was good, not great”, but declared herself “still a big fan!”

Allison Iraheta closes the night with “Papa Was A Rolling Stone”. Allison is bringing everything up to claim the top female spot in this competition, and she’s doing a tremendous job of it! She didn’t work the stage much, but she brought it with the vocals. Awesome!

Randy called Allison “one of the dopest singers in this whole season. Blazing hot!”
Kara was blown away, saying it was “amazing! You sing like you’ve been singing for 400 years!”
Paula said she was awesome; “You belong in the competition. Beautiful!”
Simon called her “a survivor. One of your best performances. Well done!”

Hearing everything back once more, I would place Megan, Michael, and Scott in the bottom three. And actually, in Megan’s re-run, she sounded a little off pitch. Based on the three individual performances, I wouldn’t hesitate in calling them the bottom, and would actually call Megan off.

Outstanding performances tonight were from Adam, Allison, and Kris; with Danny coming in close behind.

So, what do you think?

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Posted under American Idol, Entertainment, Music, Polls, Quotes, Uncategorized, Video's

The results show is here. We will be hearing Brady Paisley, and I duet from Randy Travis and Carrie Underwood before the show is over.

Who will be leaving tonight? After yesterday’s performances, there is no telling. The favorites came out towards the bottom, and some of the tail catchers showed up with what they really can do.

The top eleven is giving out a rousing rendition of…I’m not sure. Maybe TROUBLE; that or a medley. But it sure is good and rousing. Genius putting Scott on the piano. Probably makes him a whole lot more comfortable and allows the other guys to get out some choreography on the floor.

“Here It Goes Again” was the song for the Ford Music Video. IMO, it wasn’t nearly as good as last weeks.

Enjoyed seeing the clips from the going away party for Jorge and Jasmine. And LOVED Jorge’s comment; “Don’t get too comfortable, ’cause we’re not the only ones who will be eliminated!” And all this with a twinkle in his eye! Loved it!

Ryan was pretty hilarious tonight; with all the flu talk.

But to the results.

Danny is up first; and will be heading on to the tour.
Lil is next; her song was Independence Day…was probably not her best performance in retrospect. But she is safe.
Anoop is also safe after his very good performance last night.
Allison and Michael are standing now. Allison was called “dope” by Randy….Michael was criticized a little more. Ryan asks Paula who she thinks should be in the bottom…to which Paula is rather flustered. Ryan, from her ramblings, brought out the comment that Paula would be surprised to see anyone in the bottom three! Hilarious! Paula is so sweet, but sometimes….well, she makes for some comic relief also. Of course, Ryan egged that on some too.
We are told that Allison is in the bottom three. But with a cruel twist, after making Michael think that he is safe, he also is told to head for the three stools on-stage and join Allison.

At this point, we get to hear Brad Paisley perform his single, “Then”. I really like Brad’s voice. I told my youngest sister earlier today that he was performing tonight; usually, she’s not a fan of A-I, but she said she was definitely going to watch it tonight with me just to see him. Strange, but Paisley looks a lot like a friend of mine. They both are singers, both in the country genre, but they have very different voices. But now I’m just rambling. Paisley just finished and I really liked it. My sister loved it. And my ‘baby’ brother walked in with this comment; “Oh, is that the one they’re kicking off tonight?” To which my sisters and I burst out in laughter, “Of course, they’re kicking Brad Paisley off American Idol!” Gave the four of us some kicks. lol.

Now we are continuing with the results.
Scott is up. He is safe. We’ll be seeing Scott on the tour.
Megan is up…and I wonder, with panic, why she’s already standing up?! She’s safe; I really don’t believe this.
Matt is standing…and is safe.
That leaves us with Kris and Adam. What?! Kris is safe, and Adam–?!
Oh, no. I forgot Alexis. Now we have Alexis and Adam. Randy thinks Alexis will be in the bottom three. And he is right.
Adam is safe, leaving Alexis to join Michael and Allison on the stage.

One is sent back to safety…and that is Allison.
We now have to suffer through another commercial break. After the break, we’ll probably hear from Randy and Carrie…and then we will finally learn if it will be Alexis or Michael leaving. Personally, I think it’ll be Michael. As you may have already noted, only one of my original bottom three guesses are actually in the bottom three. I didn’t expect to see Alexis here at all. If she is the bottom pick this week, I hope the judges exercise their save, ’cause Alexis is really so talented and has so much potential; it would be just so wrong for her to leave.

Back to the show. Indeed, we do get to hear Carrie and Randy’s duet. My sisters and I are wondering what in the world happened to her hair?
For the first time ever together live, here is Carrie Underwood and Randy Travis performing “I Told You So”.
This song is so sweet! I love it.

Back to the bottom two. Simon shares, at Ryan’s prompting, that they would consider saving one of the two. I think that would be Alexis. We’ll see, though.

OMW–Alexis is the last. Michael is safe. Simon said she was the one who they were thinking of saving. We get to hear her one more time. I don’t think her vocals are as good as they were last night, but she is showing a whole lot more fight.

The verdict is: a good performance, but not good enough. I am still in shock. She is going to go so far. Honestly, she was the one with, by far, the most marketability. I believe someone will offer this girl a record deal; if they don’t, they’re fools.

Posted under American Idol, Entertainment, Music

What do you think?

Also, who really stood out to you from tonight’s show?

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Posted under American Idol, Entertainment, Music, Polls