StoneRose Valley

“To be able to find joy in anothers’ joy,
that is the secret of happiness.”
unknown

“The Lord has filled my heart with joy; I feel very strong in the Lord…I am glad because You have helped me!” ~~I Samuel 2:1

Choices….life is full of them. So many different choices to lead you in so many different directions. One decision could lead you down a path of misery, or give you a life lived full with joy. Life is all about choices. We’ve gotta choose, and choose well.

This song of John Waller’s seems to sum up what I want to convey to you. What I am trying to learn…it seems, over and over again.

Sometimes, you have to press on through what you know to be true and right. Press on despite the turmoil of feelings raging inside. There is that choice to be made. And in that choice, there can be found joy.
It’s true what they say about small steps; small steps, just one at a time, lead you to where you should go just as surely as the large and hurried ones. The difference is, you are actually aware of your surroundings and the effects your actions cause. Take time to smell the roses, and all that jazz. I guess, as I hinted earlier, Autumn makes me think of these things.

Sometimes, all you need to do is choose to Cling to the Call. Let the rest follow.

Meant to post this a LONG time ago….well, here it is finally. Hope you enjoy!

Kara DioGuardi…she is an incredible songwriter…and a pretty good singer too.

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My favorites from last night…I think Adam and Allison both did good jobs, just didn’t catch my attention and hold it.

As usual, Kris put in a fantabulous performance. It didn’t really sound disco to me…but that’s what makes him so good. He was able to take a disco song (the requirement) and turn it into himself. As Kara said, I could see this on Kris’ album.

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Matt Giraud set out to prove that that judges save last week wasn’t used for nothing. I really liked his rendition of Staying Alive…

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Danny Gokey brought back some punch to his music…I was thinking that his voice sounded strained the last two weeks; much better last night.

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Anoop Desai…this guy is getting better each week. I’m just not sure that it happened soon enough; don’t think his fan base is large enough to pull him through unfortunately.

Well, it seems that, by popular demand, I’ll be continuing to add video’s of my highlights of the night.

Kris Allen continues to steal the night…I am wowed by this guy. Danny Gokey continues to bring the emotional connection with every song. Allison is still rockin’ out the stage, as is Adam.
Adam Lambert the obvious winner? Nothing obvious about that at all!! This show still has several more weeks to run, and I believe those who think Adam will emerge the victor…well, I think you may be in for a surprise. Kris is running this race to win. As is Allison Iraheta and Danny Gokey. Matt Giraud and Anoop Desai are throwing in their punches too, if not for some bad weeks, they’d be up there with the other four. But I think they may still have some surprises in store. Read the rest of this entry »

My favorite performances this week came from Kris Allen, Allison Iraheta, Adam Lambert, Danny Gokey, and Michael Sarver. I wanted to share the video’s from last nights performances with you. Some of the audio’s cut out before the last note is completely over, but at least you get the big picture of their performances.

Allison Iraheta shows so much talent for one so young. I believe that with Alexis Grace gone, Allison now has a clear path to be the last female standing this season. This is an audio from her live performance, which in my opinion was better than the studio recording; although this one cut’s out before the song is completely over.

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Kris Allen has very subtly stolen my favorite contestant slot this season. I started off a big fan of Danny, and still am, but Kris has been proving himself better and better every week. I think all he needs is a little more charisma to launch him to the semi-finals. This audio, just as Allison’s, cut’s out before the end. But, just as with Allison’s I enjoyed the live performance from Kris over his studio recording.

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Danny Gokey has been a front-runner since the start in this competition; deservedly so. The husky, soulful vibe he exhibits is irresistable. His back-story is one that many can relate to; it draws us to him, making him seem like a normal guy perhaps we’d meet in line at the grocery, on the shuttle, or the pump at the corner gas station. This guy is true talent, and has the makings of a star, not only vocally, but his lifestyle is one to inspire, encourage, and challenge others. That is what truly makes someone a star. Danny’s audio is the studio recording.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxNTDBuMOxU

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Michael Sarver is another of those guys that we can relate to. The normal guy with the tough job, wife and kids to feed, and a smile on his face the whole time. No, his voice is not one of the best in the competition, but we have a lot of tremendously talented people this season. But Michael shows that you can go places by being a ‘good, clean guy’ (not discounting his vocals-he is still talented and a great entertainer), something many discount in today’s society. Michael’s upcoming audio is also a studio recording; I think he did a tremendous job on it!

Kris Allen, during Grand Ole Opry week, blew everyone away; by far the best of the night! Well, IMO. This young man has brought his game up each week. He sang “To Make You Feel My Love”, putting his own twist on the song and making it completely his own. I loved seeing him take a huge chance by choosing to quietly sit onstage and sing instead of jumping around with some crowd-pleaser song. I mean, come on; this was country week! No-one would have blamed him. This guy is a gutsy performer, and a progressing artist. I fall in love with this artist more each and every time I hear him.
This video doesn’t have the clearest picture, but all you really need are the vocals anyway.

Matt Giraud is another artist that just gets better each time he performs. To be honest, I really disliked him when the competition began…no more. He’s proven that he is deserving of recognition and in this to win. And his hands on those ivory keys! He not only is a talented singer, but an extraordinary pianist as well. And Matt shows he can be gutsy too by taking Carrie Underwood’s “So Small” and turning it into his own.

I have to say that I really enjoyed Alexis Grace’s “Jolene”. I loved hearing that softer side to her. This is a young mom; she seemed like such a sweet girl in her audition. All the “dirty”, well, it had it’s places, but I would have liked to see more of this side of her. I thought she did a wonderful job; loved hearing her use her head voice in addition to the chest voice she usually uses. So, no; I don’t believe she should have gone yet at all.
Here’s the studio version, I couldn’t find another that had the complete song.

Here are the video’s of this weeks highlights for me.

Danny Gokey was great!

Jasmine Murray was much better than she got credit for!

I actually found that I like Matt Giraud tonight. Funny.

And of course my pet-favorite Kris Allen!

Here are my favorite performances from tonight’s show. Sorry to all you Lambert fans out there, but Adam did not make it in my list.

Kris was my favorite…no idea if he’ll make it to the top 12 or not…based on tonights performances, I think he deserves a spot there…we’ll see.

Allison made it second place in my book. For only sixteen years of age, this girl has got some pipes!

And lastly, Jesse Langseth. I love her bluesy-jazz tone!

Other than these three, I really didn’t enjoy tonight’s show. But I have to include Jasmine Murray ’cause she’s my local girl!

I guess I do have to say that I enjoyed Mishavonna Henson as well…but I thought four video’s were quite enough.
So saying, these are not my top predictions from tonight…just those that I personally enjoyed best. As I said in a previous post, I believe the top male spot will be taken by Adam Lambert…the top female space will be in Allison Iraheta’s hands…and I’m hoping that Kris Allen will make the third slot. We’ll see tomorrow night.

Video’s by Lenny Limbo.com and qwaszx.org

Just because I think Tatiana has a very nice voice and deserves a little more recommendation in a positive way, here she is. I do hope she gets a chance at the wild card. It’s no small thing to pull off a Whitney Houston song as well as she did.

I have already posted video’s of Danny Gokey and Alexis Grace’s performances last night…Here is Michael Sarver’s-he is our third contestant moving on from tonight.