Tossing Salt Is American Idol - April 6, 2011

Tossing Salt Is American Idol
April 6, 2011

So I was watching American Idol and a thought popped into my head. I'd really like a Burrito Supreme from Taco Bell right now. Yeah, I had forgotten to eat dinner, so my body was starting to make those growling noises to remind me that it was feeling neglected. And it's been a long time since I went to Taco Bell.

But that would require hopping into the car and driving to the place. And I'm in for the night, so that's just not happening. I ate a hot dog. And then another idea came to me. I'm already pro wrestling's most eclectic columnist. At least that's what I keep telling myself. But recent discussions with certain people have convinced me that as much as I like to write about wrestling, there's more in life than just armlocks and bodyslams. Disclaimer: It's still real to me, damn it!

I've tried to expand a bit as of late. I've written short stories about vampires, super-heroes, wrestlers, game shows, and other media darlings. I even wrote an NCIS crossover with Marvel Comics. (I love me some Abby!) I'm writing fics and stories. I write poetry on occasion (but that's for my own enjoyment and not for public consumption.) I've even written songs. And I love to rant and ramble and raise holy hell when the mood hits.

And now, I've decided that, for a few weeks anyhow, to write about the hottest show on television, The Glenn Beck Show. What? Oh yeah, that got cancelled today. I guess Beck gets to take a vacation and spend time hanging out with Keith Olbermann in the over-rated, but highly entertaining nut-cases posing as journalist wing of the Crazies R Us Asylum. So it's not Beck.

And it's not Two And A Half Men either, even though I find the antics of Charlie Sheen highly amusing. No, change that. It was amusing, but now it's ventured into the Land of Stupid. He (Charlie) needs to just go away. And as for the show, CBS producers need to just hire a new guy and let the ratings and show go where it may. It may fail or it may succeed, but just move on and do something.

As for who the new person should be, forget the most obvious choices, which I've heard are John Stamos, Jeremy Pivens and Rob Lowe. Think outside the box. My top picks would be Corey Feldman, Danny Bonaduce or how about Chris Jericho? It'd work and keep the show alive for a few more seasons. Any of them. Just saying....

But the hottest show on TV right now, getting back to what I was originally saying, is American Idol. Everyone thought that with Simon gone, the show would fall on some hard times. But Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez (Jenny from the Block) have done a really good job in their roles and, along with Randy Jackson, have really cranked the show up a notch or two from previous seasons. If anything, it's better than ever.

And the talent. Damn! These guys and girls are amazing talents and there really isn't a bad performer in the bunch. Some are better than others, for sure, but the weak links, in my opinion, are already gone and the final nine are tremendous talents who are really going to be big and make strong impacts in the music industry for many years to come.

So for one night only, unless it gets a really positive response and ya'll want me to continue next week and for the rest of the season, I've decided to just do a really basic recap of the show for tonight with my thoughts and comments on each contestant and their performance. And I'll make my predictions for who will be the bottom three and face elimination the next (tomorrow) night. Doesn't that sound like fun?

So yeah, I'm taking my wrestling column format and taking it to a new level... cause that's how I roll. So that means that just for tonight (unless you want more... hint hint)... it is...

Tossing Salt Is American Idol...

Let's get right to it and look at the Idol contestants and how they performed on the "Hall of Fame Week" show.

We started off with Jacob singing "Man In The Mirror". The man can really sing and hit some amazing notes, but he strikes me as a one dimensional performer. No matter how good he sings, I just have a hard time getting into his music. He's got a great future in gospel and R&B, no doubt. And he's got a presence, but is he really a versitile type performer with any mainstream appeal? I just don't see it.

His performance was good and on target. He hit all the notes and I think Michael Jackson would have been proud to hear this cover of his song, but I just don't feel it with him. Maybe he'll grow on me eventually, but he just seems a one-note character, as as high as that note is, he needs to show more and expand.

Next up was Haley singing the classic Janis Joplin song, "A Piece of My Heart". She nailed it. It's hard to believe that a young girl, who reminds me a great deal of Taylor Swift, can put out that kind of passion and soul, but she pulled it out and just hit a home run.

I don't really see her as a top tier performer yet, but she's well on her way and with the right marketing and packaging, we could be looking at another Christina Aguilara or Britney Spears. Hopefully, she's more mentally stable though. Good song and a great performance. No complaints here.

Casey performed next singing the Creedence Clearwater Revival song, "Have You Ever Seen The Rain". I'm not sure about the song choice, but he did a good job of it regardless. If he wanted to do CCR, in my opinion, I think "Down On The Corner" would have been better, but that song's a favorite of mine anyhow, so I'm prejidiced. Have to agree with the judges that Casey is a well rounded and great entertainer and he deserves to be there. The judges were right to use their save for him a few weeks ago, and each and every week, he's proving that to them and to the world. Good perfomance and he nailed it. A strong night for the Seth Rogan lookalike.

Casey reminds me of the older style variety show type performers that were so popular in the seventies, where they were required to sing, talk, do skits, act, tell jokes, and just about anything and everything else. He's multi-dimensional and multi-talented and while I don't expect him to win Idol, he's going to be around for a while to come. The man has skils.

Lauren came out next and did a cover of "You Make Me Feel Like A Natural Woman" by Aretha Franklin. It was okay. Lauren has a fantastic voice and great control and looked good out there. But this song is one that is so identified with Aretha Franklin, that it's hard for anyone to do it justice and make it their own.

Lauren gave it a hundred percent, but instead of hitting the home run she was looking for, it only seemed like maybe a double-play to me. As soon as she find her own identity and gets that confidence up to really cut loose and make the songs her own, she's not to be top tier for the show. She's good... very good, but she has a long way to go.

And then there is James. After several weeks of being the crazy man and wild entertainer, he showed us some emotion and that soft side with a cover of George Harrison's "While My Guitar Gently Weeps". I was a bit worried at first that James had goofed and his streak of stealing the show was going to end, but he did it again, one more time.

The guy is just so damn good, in my opinion, that the show right now is his for the taking. He's definitely the top dog and so long as he keeps it going like he did tonight, we're going to see him and Steven Tyler performing together at the end of the season. Amazing job by an amazing young man.

Here comes the local guy, North Carolina's own Scotty. It is so hard to believe this guy is only seventeen years old when you watch him onstage or listen to that amazing voice. He's a natural performer and just has a confidence and aura about him when he's up there singing that makes you feel like you're watching a twenty year music veteran, rather than a novice performer.

Tonight, he covered the Elvis classic, "That's All RIght, Mama" and he nailed it big time. He just makes it look so easy and real. I don't think Scotty will win, due to his strong country roots and desire to stick mainly to country music, but he's going to go far and has an amazing future ahead of him. He took an Elvis song and just made it his own and that's not something you see every day. Great performance by Scotty.

Pia came up next to do a cover of Tina Turner's "River Deep Mountain High", which is a fantastic song. By the way, if you get the chance, look up the Violent Femmes cover of this song. They do an awesome version that everyone should hear and appreciate. Doing a Tina Turner song is never an easy thing, since Tina is such a strong and unique performer who has her own style and magic that's next to impossible to even approach or copy.

But Pia pulled it out and did a great job. Her stage presence is a bit lacking and the judges called her out on that, but there was nothing wrong with the voice. She did a good job and deserves much credit for taking such a difficult song and making it her own.

Up next is the extremely sexy Stefano. That's a good looking kid. And he's got a voice that can do some amazing things. Stefano tackled a Percy Sledge classic, "When A Man Loves A Woman". And while he did a good job, NOBODY should ever try to cover a Percy Sledge song. It can't be done.

Stefano has a great voice and some good range and I can easily see him out there on tour opening for J-Lo in a few years. I think there's a little mutual attraction going on there too. The man is a helluva singer, but while the voice was working it, the song was just wrong. At least, that's my opinion.

And finally, we have Paul. Paul is the enigma up there in that he's not a great singer and doesn't have much range, but he's just so damn likable. He's got that quirky voice that, with the right songs, could put him in a very special grouping with stars like Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Rod Stewart or Kenny Loggins. He's just has that "it" about him and he's going to be a force to be noted for some time to come.

What I liked tonight about his cover of Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues" was that he just went up there, sped things up a bit, and made the song his own. This is probably his best performance, start to finish, since this season began. Usually, he's all over the place with his voice, but he kept things together tonight and just ran with the ball. A great job.

I have to say that tonight was probably the strongest night of performances thus far this season. I'm looking forward to tomorrow night when the results are announced, because it is going to be a very close and hard decision. All of the performers tonight proved that they have the voices and talent to be up there, and while some performed better than others, there was no "bad" performance. Not tonight anyways.

It's rough, but let me see if I can channel Sister Cleo and predict the Bottom Three for tomorrow night's show. Hmmmmm! OK, I think I've got it. The bottom three up for elimination tomorrow night will be Jacob, Pia and Stefano. At least that's how I see it. I may be wrong, but then again, maybe I'm not. Guess we'll find out tomorow night.

And I see Stefano going home. Yeah, it's his turn. But really, it doesn't matter who gets sent home tomorrow night anyhow. There were no losers up there tonight.

Also, tomorrow night will feature a couple of big name musicans as part of "Hall of Fame Week". I'm looking forward to see who pops up. Maybe it'll be 2011 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Inductee Alice Cooper. One can only hope. I sure as heck am.

I guess that's enough for now. That's my look at American Idol for tonight. So what do you think? Should this be a weekly thing for the rest of the season or should I give it up and go back to wrestling vampires and super-heroes? It's up to you. Let me know.

And on that, I'm out of here. Ubuntu!