April 20, 2011
Back again and it's down to the super-seven on American Idol this week. The theme for the night is "Songs From The 21rst Century" and promises to be a fun and fresh night of great performances. At least I hope so.
Ryan Seacrest is the host and we have Steven Tyler, Randy Jackson and Jennifer Lopez at the judges table, telling it like it is.
We start off with a musical number from the first six Idol contestants, who have already been eliminated and sent home, coming back to do the group version of "So What", by the always amazing Pink. Five lovely ladies did a great job and Paul... well, the voice was all over the place, but the energy was there and overall, it was a good and fun way to start the show. And then we got started with the "Top 7", singing to stay in the competition and keep those dreams of being the next American Idol alive.
First up was Scotty McCreery, who sang Lee Ann Rimes "Swinging". No offense to Scotty, but long before Lee Ann did this song, it was a John Anderson classic in the early eighties, so just how does it qualify as a "song from the 21rst century?" I don't get it. Scotty did great, as always and I loved the way he took it up a notch and deepened that voice just a bit in the second verse and towards the end. He got some criticism from the judges for playing it too safe and Randy called it "kind of boring", but it was a solid performance from Scotty and I think he's safe.
I have to agree about one thing though. I would like to see him turn it up a notch and go outside the box a bit instead of just the traditional country. How about some Eagles or Lynyrd Skynyrd or even some Hank Jr. or Greg Allman. We know he can sing the traditional stuff, but let's see some rock-a-billy and more of an edge come out. I'm sure he'd do excellent and it would really help add some life and even more character, if possible, to his act.
The second act to perform was James Durbin, doing "Uprising" by Muse. And he's really got the theatrics and stage antics down pat to go along with the awesome singing. I loved the starting off with the marching band. That was unique and just really set him apart from everyone and even if the song performance had sucked, which it didn't, James would have gotten many kudos for that.
James is just so full of energy and fire when he's on stage. He's a natural performer who just lives for that moment when the lights come on and the audience starts to cheer and he proved it one more time tonight. A great job by a very talented young man.
The third performance was by Haley Reinhart, doing the song "Rolling In The Deep" by Adele. And I'm not sure what to say here. She did an amazing version of the song and and sounded great, but the perfornance was lacking a bit in my opinion. Maybe it was that she stayed in one spot for most of the song. She's got charisma and that "it" quality when on stage and needs to take advantage of that natural stage presence when she can instead of casting it to the side and just sitting there.
Truthfully, the thoughts that kept running through my mind when watching her perform was I sensed a bit of the "Pia curse" showing it's head. She sounded great and the voice kicked ass, but I just don't think that's going to be enough to score with the fans as much as it should. It's just a feeling I've got. Tomorrow night, we'll find out if I'm right.
And here comes Jacob Lusk, doing a Luther Vandross number called "Dance With My Father". I've been critical of Jacob a lot since I started doing these recaps. He's over dramatic when singing. He comes across as one dimensional. He's a bit preachy. And considering how long he's been in the closet, you'd think he would know how to dress better and wear clothes that actually fit. And I stand by those criticisms.
But then tonight, he toned it down a bit and did a great song that was still too gospel-like for my taste, but he didn't over-play it and did a great job. And the suit actually fit and looked good. The judges told him that he needed to go back to the "old Jacob", but honestly, I prefer this "new and improved" over the old Jacob anytime. I love to listen to Luther Vandross when I'm just feeling mellow and kind of romantic. Between Luther Vandross and Percy Sledge, you will get laid or else you just one extreme ugly mo-fo. Just saying... So the song was a good pick for his voice and style. And I liked it. He did well. I still don't see him as any kind of mainstream performer, but he did a good job tonight.
It's crazy-time as Casey Abrams came out next doing the Maroon 5 song "Harder To Breathe". Casey started off a little shaky at the beginning, but as he relaxed and got more into the song, he loosened up and made the song his. I loved the little skat thing in the middle and we got the Casey growl in there too, which was really fun and cool. And then he sang to, and kissed J-Lo. That capped it. The performance wasn't his best, but that ending just saved his ass for another week. He made Jennifer Lopez blush and had Steven Tyler getting bleeped with praise. Just classic! I have to agree with Steven that Casey is really turning into a "cult hero". He's unique and so talented. And if there is a Casey Abrams cult starting out there, sign me up cause he's definitely a guy on the rise.
It's time for the little girls and J-Lo to swoon a little bit as the resident Latino Heartbreaker, Stefano Langone was up next. The song he chose to sing was Ne-Yo's "Closer". And he did a great job and just killed it. Stefano had some rough weeks starting out, but the last couple of weeks have been really good to him. He's getting more and more confident with the singing and the stage presence. He definitely had his "Rico Suave" going on tonight and was putting it out there. One of Stefano's better performances and a great job by the handsome young flirt.
And finally, we had the resident country-belle, Lauren Alaina, coming out and doing her version of Sara Evans "Born To Fly". And it was okay, but not one of her best songs. She just didn't seem to be giving it everything tonight. She was there, but seemed to be distracted and it was more like talent night at the local high school than a performance on American Idol. She's got a great voice when she uses it and cuts loose, but tonight wasn't a good night for her and she just didn't seem to show what she's capable of.
So there you go. We had seven future superstars perform and show their stuff to the world and tomorrow night, we'll have a bottom three and one of them will go home. So without further delay, let's pick the bottom three.
It's tough this week since, with the exceptions of James and possibly Stefano, everyone seemed to have some shaky moments and was lacking a little bit. I think Casey saved himself by kissing J-Lo, or else he might have been in the bottom three, but with that kiss and the reactions it caused, he's safe. And Scotty may be playing it a little too safe, but as has often been said, if it's not broke, don't fix it. So I think he's safe for another week.
So by process of elimination, I think the bottom three will be... (dramatic pause) Haley, Jacob and Lauren. Haley just reminded me too much of Pia and I just can't help fearing for a repeat of two weeks ago. Jacob did well tonight, but he's still just too one dimensional for my tastes. And Lauren just didn't seem to have it going on all burners tonight and gave what I feel was a sub-par performance.
And with that being said, Lauren takes that walk tomorrow night.
Am I right? Am I wrong? Do I need to step back and check myself? We'll find out tomorrow night on the results show.
Thanks for reading. Feedback is welcome and appreciated. I'm Doug and I am gone.
Ubuntu!
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