American Idol Running Diary: 5/2
I noticed after reading last week’s running diary that it’s pretty unintelligible. It made complete sense to me while I was writing it, but of course you’re not watching the show as you read it, and hence the unintelligibility. So sorry about that. To make it more readable, I’ll be doing some modifications this week. I’m doing thoughts before, during, and after the song. If it helps (or not), let me know. If anyone’s reading, that is. Enjoy.
Elliott Yamin: “On Broadway”
Pre: Not sure what this song choice is all about. A funkified version of “On Broadway”? Whatever. Good thing they’re doing two songs tonight, because I don’t know who’s supposed to connect with this one.
During: But man, is this guy good. He could sing the phone book, to use an annoying cliché, and it would be awesome.
Post: Loved it. I hate the song, but I love listening to Elliott. Still, hopefully he picks a better song for the next one.
Paris Bennett: “Kiss”
Pre: Very intriguing. Paris covering Prince just doesn’t sound right, but we shall see.
During: Not sure what to think here. I think had I never heard the original, it might be alright. But I can’t help hearing Prince’s falsetto, and this version doesn’t work for me. And honestly, it’s always bothered me when a woman takes a man’s song (and vice versa), and changes all the gender-specific pronouns. Maybe it’s just me.
Post: Paula still likes the old songs (so do I), and Simon didn’t like it. I didn’t either, but I don’t know whether that’s because it was bad, or because of the version. Just didn’t work.
Chris Daughtry: “Renegade”
Pre: I dig this song, and it should show off his vocals, which is good.
During: I’m glad they did the first part of the song. It would have been blasphemous had they skipped it, but American Idol is not above blasphemy. Chris picked a good one tonight. He’s right on and nailing every bit of it.
Post: Awesome. Not much else to say.
Katharine McPhee: “Against All Odds”
Pre: I hate this freaking song.
During: Ouch. Started flat, but that won’t continue. And it doesn’t, but even though she’s hitting the notes, I’m not getting anything from this one. No feeling, really. It seems like she didn’t even want to sing it.
Post: Good thing there’s another one coming up, because that was not great at all. The difference between her performance and Elliott’s is that I don’t like either song, but Elliott made me forget that fact.
Taylor Hicks: “Play that Funky Music”
Pre: Very interesting. This song rules no matter how many times you hear it, and I don’t care what anyone says.
During: Seems like Taylor’s happy to be where he is again. I was wondering the last few weeks. The man’s enthusiasm is infectious when he’s on, and he’s on tonight. The dancing is painful, but also hilarious.
Post: Way too shortened. He didn’t actually sing much during the performance, but I still thought it was still enjoyable, which is cool.
Elliott Yamin: “Home”
Pre: I’m not a Michael Buble fan. Let’s see what happens.
During: But again, I like Elliott. The problem with this one, though, is that it feels a bit rushed. I’ve never heard the song, but it’s…decent, I guess. It’ll be enough to get him through, for sure, because the vocals are just gold.
Post: That definitely could have been slowed down some, and Simon’s probably right when he says the song didn’t really have enough of a hook or anything to be memorable. But I still think he’ll be alright.
Paris Bennett: “Be Without You”
Pre: n/a
During: I love that she’s doing Mary J. Blige, because it shows off her awesome lower range. This girl has got some kind of voice. She’s nailing everything, but I could really do without the little “Hey”s and “Come on”s and other adlibbing.
Post: I think she did really well for the most part.
Chris Daughtry: “I Dare You”
Pre: Chris is a better singer than the lead singer of Shinedown, if you ask me, so this should be interesting.
During: You know, they really could use a different background during rock songs on this show. I don’t need the flames every time. Jessica just asked why we’re in hell. I’d like to know too. He started off pretty well, but after the high notes it seems like he lost his breath. It looks like he’s screaming his way through it.
Post: Yeah, that wasn’t so good. He said it’s about the fifth time he’s done it today, and that song can definitely take a toll on the voice. (After-show note: When they played back the recaps—which is what happened in dress rehearsals—this song sounded waaaay better than what he actually did during the show.)
Katharine McPhee: “Black Horse in a Cherry Tree”
Pre: What? That’s the weirdest song title I’ve ever heard of.
During: But I can dig it. Not sure what the dancing on her knees is all about, but I like the box drummers. Also the song is interesting for sure. It doesn’t feel like your typical Billboard top ten song, which is refreshing.
Post: I actually liked that quite a bit. I don’t have any idea what it was about, but it had a cool groove to it.
Taylor Hicks: “Something”
Pre: n/a
During: This is the kind of song he needed to do after the first one. He picked one to show the vocals, and it’s working really well for him.
Post: That was great. Solid vocals, nothing fancy, and it was exactly what he needed to do.
I really enjoyed tonight’s show. Simon was right when he called it “erratic”, and I think that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Taylor definitely had the best night. Elliott’s stock fell a little bit, so I hope that doesn’t hurt him, because I always hate to see someone suffer for picking a less than stellar song and singing it well.
Predictions
Bottom Three: Paris, Elliott, Chris. Tough to pick a bottom three anymore. This is by far the best top five the show has ever had. No one was really bad, so here’s where it becomes a popularity contest. I don’t even know if they’ll do a bottom three, really. But if they do, I can’t imagine Katharine and Taylor in it.
Going Home: Paris. She’s good, but she’s too one-dimensional at this point.
Elliott Yamin: “On Broadway”
Pre: Not sure what this song choice is all about. A funkified version of “On Broadway”? Whatever. Good thing they’re doing two songs tonight, because I don’t know who’s supposed to connect with this one.
During: But man, is this guy good. He could sing the phone book, to use an annoying cliché, and it would be awesome.
Post: Loved it. I hate the song, but I love listening to Elliott. Still, hopefully he picks a better song for the next one.
Paris Bennett: “Kiss”
Pre: Very intriguing. Paris covering Prince just doesn’t sound right, but we shall see.
During: Not sure what to think here. I think had I never heard the original, it might be alright. But I can’t help hearing Prince’s falsetto, and this version doesn’t work for me. And honestly, it’s always bothered me when a woman takes a man’s song (and vice versa), and changes all the gender-specific pronouns. Maybe it’s just me.
Post: Paula still likes the old songs (so do I), and Simon didn’t like it. I didn’t either, but I don’t know whether that’s because it was bad, or because of the version. Just didn’t work.
Chris Daughtry: “Renegade”
Pre: I dig this song, and it should show off his vocals, which is good.
During: I’m glad they did the first part of the song. It would have been blasphemous had they skipped it, but American Idol is not above blasphemy. Chris picked a good one tonight. He’s right on and nailing every bit of it.
Post: Awesome. Not much else to say.
Katharine McPhee: “Against All Odds”
Pre: I hate this freaking song.
During: Ouch. Started flat, but that won’t continue. And it doesn’t, but even though she’s hitting the notes, I’m not getting anything from this one. No feeling, really. It seems like she didn’t even want to sing it.
Post: Good thing there’s another one coming up, because that was not great at all. The difference between her performance and Elliott’s is that I don’t like either song, but Elliott made me forget that fact.
Taylor Hicks: “Play that Funky Music”
Pre: Very interesting. This song rules no matter how many times you hear it, and I don’t care what anyone says.
During: Seems like Taylor’s happy to be where he is again. I was wondering the last few weeks. The man’s enthusiasm is infectious when he’s on, and he’s on tonight. The dancing is painful, but also hilarious.
Post: Way too shortened. He didn’t actually sing much during the performance, but I still thought it was still enjoyable, which is cool.
Elliott Yamin: “Home”
Pre: I’m not a Michael Buble fan. Let’s see what happens.
During: But again, I like Elliott. The problem with this one, though, is that it feels a bit rushed. I’ve never heard the song, but it’s…decent, I guess. It’ll be enough to get him through, for sure, because the vocals are just gold.
Post: That definitely could have been slowed down some, and Simon’s probably right when he says the song didn’t really have enough of a hook or anything to be memorable. But I still think he’ll be alright.
Paris Bennett: “Be Without You”
Pre: n/a
During: I love that she’s doing Mary J. Blige, because it shows off her awesome lower range. This girl has got some kind of voice. She’s nailing everything, but I could really do without the little “Hey”s and “Come on”s and other adlibbing.
Post: I think she did really well for the most part.
Chris Daughtry: “I Dare You”
Pre: Chris is a better singer than the lead singer of Shinedown, if you ask me, so this should be interesting.
During: You know, they really could use a different background during rock songs on this show. I don’t need the flames every time. Jessica just asked why we’re in hell. I’d like to know too. He started off pretty well, but after the high notes it seems like he lost his breath. It looks like he’s screaming his way through it.
Post: Yeah, that wasn’t so good. He said it’s about the fifth time he’s done it today, and that song can definitely take a toll on the voice. (After-show note: When they played back the recaps—which is what happened in dress rehearsals—this song sounded waaaay better than what he actually did during the show.)
Katharine McPhee: “Black Horse in a Cherry Tree”
Pre: What? That’s the weirdest song title I’ve ever heard of.
During: But I can dig it. Not sure what the dancing on her knees is all about, but I like the box drummers. Also the song is interesting for sure. It doesn’t feel like your typical Billboard top ten song, which is refreshing.
Post: I actually liked that quite a bit. I don’t have any idea what it was about, but it had a cool groove to it.
Taylor Hicks: “Something”
Pre: n/a
During: This is the kind of song he needed to do after the first one. He picked one to show the vocals, and it’s working really well for him.
Post: That was great. Solid vocals, nothing fancy, and it was exactly what he needed to do.
I really enjoyed tonight’s show. Simon was right when he called it “erratic”, and I think that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Taylor definitely had the best night. Elliott’s stock fell a little bit, so I hope that doesn’t hurt him, because I always hate to see someone suffer for picking a less than stellar song and singing it well.
Predictions
Bottom Three: Paris, Elliott, Chris. Tough to pick a bottom three anymore. This is by far the best top five the show has ever had. No one was really bad, so here’s where it becomes a popularity contest. I don’t even know if they’ll do a bottom three, really. But if they do, I can’t imagine Katharine and Taylor in it.
Going Home: Paris. She’s good, but she’s too one-dimensional at this point.
Tha Docta's two cents. | 10:03 PM
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