Let's begin -
Kris – The Way You Look Tonight
It was Kris’ typical performance. Not bad, but not noteworthy. I think he may pull a major upset and make it to the end of this competition. He has a very big following.
Allison – Someone to Watch Over Me
I was worried about how she would do tonight. She was terrific. She was smooth and sultry on the parts of the song that warranted it and forceful in others. I thought it was the perfect song choice for her and she looked lovely.
Matt – Funny Valentine
I was not a fan of this performance. I thought Matt was flat much of the performance. Simon raved but I thought it was just okay. The performance was better during the preview and I didn’t feel he listened to Jamie’s suggestions. It was okay in some parts but I fear he will be going home.
Danny – Come Rain or Shine
I thought this was perfect. I rewound it and listened to it again. I thought this was his magic moment. I especially liked the end of the performance when he seemed to let loose and put it all into the performance. Loved it!
Adam - Feeling Good
I think his performance was good, his signature high notes. I think I have become bored with his performances and it was definitely too Broadway. I put him in a different category then the rest of the contestants because he is so professional and seasoned. But I am not sure if he should win the whole thing. I am rooting for Danny!
Conclusion
All in all I liked Jamie Fox as the guest mentor. They really have a chance to help the contestants craft their performance. I look forward to them getting better and better.
Disco Night
Disco Night
Lil Rounds – I’m Every Woman – She should have did the Whitney Version. I was not impressed by the performance. Good singer…but too much karaoke.
Chris – She Works Hard for the Money – So he totally changed the song and sang the lyrics to his own beat. Of course it was good. It wasn’t disco. It was better. My nemesis will never go!
Danny – September – I love this song but I don’t like the low energy. This song is supposed to be very upbeat. I think the band messed him up on this one. I didn’t love the arrangement.
Allison – Hot Stuff – Another interesting arrangement. I thought it was okay. Enough to stay. Not her IT performance. But good enough for disco night.
Adam - If I Can’t Have You – I liked it. I would have sang the chorus like the Bee Gees though. I think the strong is slow and strong on its own. I think I liked Chris better.
Matt – Staying Alive – I like him but this was just an okay performance.
Anoop – Dim the Lights – I liked it. But he made it too karaoke with the pointing and the smirking. I wish he would have stayed in the moment.
Best performance: Chris and Anoop. Worst: Lil Rounds and Matt. Going home…Lil Rounds and Matt. There time is up! We shall see….c-ya!
Lil Rounds – I’m Every Woman – She should have did the Whitney Version. I was not impressed by the performance. Good singer…but too much karaoke.
Chris – She Works Hard for the Money – So he totally changed the song and sang the lyrics to his own beat. Of course it was good. It wasn’t disco. It was better. My nemesis will never go!
Danny – September – I love this song but I don’t like the low energy. This song is supposed to be very upbeat. I think the band messed him up on this one. I didn’t love the arrangement.
Allison – Hot Stuff – Another interesting arrangement. I thought it was okay. Enough to stay. Not her IT performance. But good enough for disco night.
Adam - If I Can’t Have You – I liked it. I would have sang the chorus like the Bee Gees though. I think the strong is slow and strong on its own. I think I liked Chris better.
Matt – Staying Alive – I like him but this was just an okay performance.
Anoop – Dim the Lights – I liked it. But he made it too karaoke with the pointing and the smirking. I wish he would have stayed in the moment.
Best performance: Chris and Anoop. Worst: Lil Rounds and Matt. Going home…Lil Rounds and Matt. There time is up! We shall see….c-ya!
Songs from the Year Contestants Born
Due to my injury, this review is re-posted from EOnline:
Idol's Elite Eight Try to Make You Love Them
By Natalie Finn Tue Apr 7, 9:04 PM PDT
March Madness is over, but April Idolatry has just begun.
The American Idol field has been pared down to a mostly elite eight, give or take a few errant vocal cords, and Tuesday's matchup had them singing songs from the year they were born.
WIth Danny Gokey being the eldest remaining contestant at 28 and Allison Iraheta bottoming out at 16, we're talking tunes released between 1980 and 1992.
Did the Top Eight make the most of the gillion choices they had to choose from?
Well, some rogue always manages to get around those rather wide parameters by choosing a later version of a decades-old hit. Sure enough, Danny's song choice was so '60s...
Danny Gokey: He was in danger of lapsing into easy-listening-remake territory by choosing Mickey Gilley's 1980 version of Ben E. King's "Stand by Me," but Danny injected enough of a sexy rasp into the tune to make at least the beginning of his performance interesting, before the predictable "everybody sing!" vibe took over. His vocal was strong throughout, however, and the judges really liked it. Randy Jackson loved it even though he didn't care for the arrangement, and though Simon Cowell thought the middle part "was lazy," he declared it great overall.
Kris Allen: The multitalented 23-year-old's performance was packed with visual and rhythmic pleasantries, but it lacked the emotion that had been making Kris rise above the past few weeks. Don Henley's upbeat "All She Wants to Do Is Dance" from 1985 sounded fine in Kris' guitar-strumming hands, but there was nothing standout-special about him tonight. Paula Abdul's attempt at a critique tapered off into "you have to be one of the most likable contestants," while Simon Cowell called the arrangement "indulgent, boring, forgettable."
Lil Rounds: Bummer. A great song—Tina Turner's "What's Love Got to Do With It"—but Lil's version started off as an impersonation, minus Tina's inimitable rasp. She was even mimicking the diva's concert and music video moves. The performance heated up toward the end with some big notes, but it was just a rehash in the simplest sense of the word. "It's about making that leap from a singer to an artist, and that's where you're struggling right now," a concerned Kara DioGuardi said.
Anoop Desai: As far as this arrangement went, only the chorus of Cyndi Lauper's 1986 hit "True Colors" let Anoop's talent show. And even then, his performance was kinda boring. However, considering how much of a disaster results when the 21-year-old tries to do contemporary R&B dance tunes, we're glad he picked a ballad and kept it simple. We weren't sure which way the judges were going to lean, considering Randy started off by congratulating the Chapel Hill native on North Carolina's basketball victory last night—but they dug it. "You're like a singing yoyo—one minute you're down, and then you're up," commented Simon.
Scott MacIntyre: Buoyed by an electric guitar instead of a piano, Scott gave what at least was his most interesting performance to date. He was overreaching (and forgetting his audience) by choosing Survivor's "The Search Is Over"—he's an odd duck when it comes to song choice, isn't he?—but at least the power ballad had more contrasting elements than the 23-year-old's usual feel-good repertoire. Simon thought the song "atrocious," Paula was confused, and Randy encouraged him to "leap off the stage, vocally."
Allison Iraheta: "I Can't Make You Love Me" is supposed to make you ache, and we ached—in a hurt-so-good way—listening to Allison take on Bonnie Raitt circa 1992. Despite a few questionable sartorial choices, this little lass has never let us down, turning each song she chooses into something we want to listen to from start to finish. "That's a gift that you can't put a price tag on," gushed Paula, while Simon held back a bit. He thought her performance "very good," but she needs to "lighten up a little bit." Pretty sure he told her the same thing many rounds ago.
Matt Giraud: The 23-year-old slowed down and sexed up Stevie Wonder's "Part-Time Lover" from 1985 and got the response to show for it. Matt, who like Anoop has alternated weekly between hit-single karaoke and stirring vocal power punch packed the latter tonight. With the show running out of time, the judges were only able to offer a few words apiece: "Vocally, one of the best of the night," Randy said. "Incredible, on every level," Kara chimed in. "Two words—standing-O," Paula said. "Million times better than last week," Simon offered.
Adam Lambert: Well, of course the ridiculously polished 26-year-old was going to sing Gary Jules' Donnie Darko version of Tears for Fears' "Mad World," only with more stylish riffs, sex appeal and tear-jerking high notes. Why? Because it was another perfect song choice (give or take "Play That Funky Music"). "The bad news is, we're running out of time," Simon began before…wait for it…standing up to applaud the front-runner's performance.
Well, if that doesn't say it all.
Idol's Elite Eight Try to Make You Love Them
By Natalie Finn Tue Apr 7, 9:04 PM PDT
March Madness is over, but April Idolatry has just begun.
The American Idol field has been pared down to a mostly elite eight, give or take a few errant vocal cords, and Tuesday's matchup had them singing songs from the year they were born.
WIth Danny Gokey being the eldest remaining contestant at 28 and Allison Iraheta bottoming out at 16, we're talking tunes released between 1980 and 1992.
Did the Top Eight make the most of the gillion choices they had to choose from?
Well, some rogue always manages to get around those rather wide parameters by choosing a later version of a decades-old hit. Sure enough, Danny's song choice was so '60s...
Danny Gokey: He was in danger of lapsing into easy-listening-remake territory by choosing Mickey Gilley's 1980 version of Ben E. King's "Stand by Me," but Danny injected enough of a sexy rasp into the tune to make at least the beginning of his performance interesting, before the predictable "everybody sing!" vibe took over. His vocal was strong throughout, however, and the judges really liked it. Randy Jackson loved it even though he didn't care for the arrangement, and though Simon Cowell thought the middle part "was lazy," he declared it great overall.
Kris Allen: The multitalented 23-year-old's performance was packed with visual and rhythmic pleasantries, but it lacked the emotion that had been making Kris rise above the past few weeks. Don Henley's upbeat "All She Wants to Do Is Dance" from 1985 sounded fine in Kris' guitar-strumming hands, but there was nothing standout-special about him tonight. Paula Abdul's attempt at a critique tapered off into "you have to be one of the most likable contestants," while Simon Cowell called the arrangement "indulgent, boring, forgettable."
Lil Rounds: Bummer. A great song—Tina Turner's "What's Love Got to Do With It"—but Lil's version started off as an impersonation, minus Tina's inimitable rasp. She was even mimicking the diva's concert and music video moves. The performance heated up toward the end with some big notes, but it was just a rehash in the simplest sense of the word. "It's about making that leap from a singer to an artist, and that's where you're struggling right now," a concerned Kara DioGuardi said.
Anoop Desai: As far as this arrangement went, only the chorus of Cyndi Lauper's 1986 hit "True Colors" let Anoop's talent show. And even then, his performance was kinda boring. However, considering how much of a disaster results when the 21-year-old tries to do contemporary R&B dance tunes, we're glad he picked a ballad and kept it simple. We weren't sure which way the judges were going to lean, considering Randy started off by congratulating the Chapel Hill native on North Carolina's basketball victory last night—but they dug it. "You're like a singing yoyo—one minute you're down, and then you're up," commented Simon.
Scott MacIntyre: Buoyed by an electric guitar instead of a piano, Scott gave what at least was his most interesting performance to date. He was overreaching (and forgetting his audience) by choosing Survivor's "The Search Is Over"—he's an odd duck when it comes to song choice, isn't he?—but at least the power ballad had more contrasting elements than the 23-year-old's usual feel-good repertoire. Simon thought the song "atrocious," Paula was confused, and Randy encouraged him to "leap off the stage, vocally."
Allison Iraheta: "I Can't Make You Love Me" is supposed to make you ache, and we ached—in a hurt-so-good way—listening to Allison take on Bonnie Raitt circa 1992. Despite a few questionable sartorial choices, this little lass has never let us down, turning each song she chooses into something we want to listen to from start to finish. "That's a gift that you can't put a price tag on," gushed Paula, while Simon held back a bit. He thought her performance "very good," but she needs to "lighten up a little bit." Pretty sure he told her the same thing many rounds ago.
Matt Giraud: The 23-year-old slowed down and sexed up Stevie Wonder's "Part-Time Lover" from 1985 and got the response to show for it. Matt, who like Anoop has alternated weekly between hit-single karaoke and stirring vocal power punch packed the latter tonight. With the show running out of time, the judges were only able to offer a few words apiece: "Vocally, one of the best of the night," Randy said. "Incredible, on every level," Kara chimed in. "Two words—standing-O," Paula said. "Million times better than last week," Simon offered.
Adam Lambert: Well, of course the ridiculously polished 26-year-old was going to sing Gary Jules' Donnie Darko version of Tears for Fears' "Mad World," only with more stylish riffs, sex appeal and tear-jerking high notes. Why? Because it was another perfect song choice (give or take "Play That Funky Music"). "The bad news is, we're running out of time," Simon began before…wait for it…standing up to applaud the front-runner's performance.
Well, if that doesn't say it all.
