"Round of 8: Songs
from the Year of Your Birth" - April 12-13
Ah, 1980... Twas a good
year. The year that "My Life" by Billy Joel came out,
but enough about my song choice. This round of eight, we
go into... Embarrassing baby photos! But oh so cute!
Okay, the theme today is
"Songs from the Year You Were Born". Expect a lot of 80s
tunes, folks. Roll sound, it's Idol time!
First on tonight, Nadia
Turner, born in 1977. A big hit for Crystal Gayle in
1977, "When I Dream". Apparently, it isn't big enough,
because I sure as hell never heard of it. And my musical
knowledge is extensive.
What they say: Randy
says, "A year's worth of songs and you picked that one.
That was just an OK performance. I did not love it."
Paula adds, "You look stunning. I wasn't crazy about the
song choice." Finally, Simon tells Nadia, "That was the
equivalent of musical wallpaper. It was an appalling
choice of song, and I think you could go home after
that."
What we say: Ditto,
ditto, ditto. The pitch is off. The song choice is not
believable, and frankly, we're getting into the A&R
stage of the competition where they choose a song style
that best suits them, and adapt song choices to that
style. That song... did NOTHING. In short... Worst...
Nadia performance... ever. And no amount of eye-humping
will save it.
From a
dream-turned-nightmare, we go to the dream rocker, Bo
Bice. We all know that this guy can throw down when he
wants to. At 1975, he's pushing 30 and admits that his
Christian name is actually "Bogart".
*awkward silence*
Some redneck next door:
"Play Freebird!"
FINE!...
What they say:
Randy says, "I love that song. That was the perfect
song. You could have a hit with that song. Excellent,
dude. Excellent." Paula... "See you at the finals."
Simon won't... "I have to disagree with Paula. I think
that where you'll do well is to use the rock influence
in your voice on well known songs."
What we say: Is it me or
have we seen this performance before! Oh yeah! It's the
same old Bo Bice that we're USED TO! Congratulations,
Bo. You've reached "go-to" status. Unfortunately, a
performance like that isn't long for the competition.
I'd suggest pulling a changeup to let people say "Hey,
Bo can do that, too?" Oh yeah, and the sneering and the
right pitch often don't go together THAT well.
From "Freebird", we go
to Dionne Warwick a la Anwar Robinson. "I'll Never
Love This Way Again", the song from 1979. He started
singing when he was a shy little kid, "and I haven't
shut up since."
What they say: Randy
tells Anwar, "Great, great job. I'm proud of what you
did tonight, baby." Paula says, "Consistently great.
You're just so pleasing to the ear." Simon adds, "One of
your better performances for a while, but you've turned
into the musical equivalent of a blanket. It was
comforting and safe."
What we say: The uphill
climb continues for our smooth soulster. The start was a
tad rough, but better than last week. And way to go with
the pocket rockets at the end. But still, you need to
come, like Bo, with a changeup from usual, because that
was, while good, as safe as it gets.
From psychic friend to
psychotic voice, as we move to... yeah, Anthony Fedorov.
But I shall reserve judgment until after I hear "Everytime
You Go Away" from Paul Young in 1985. Written by Daryl
Hall... who's with his partner in vocal crime John Oates
in the audience. This will be relevant, trust me.
What they say: Randy
echoes the heart of America: "I was surprised." Paula
drolls, "Much better than last week. I'm proud of you."
Simon adds, "Last week was a low point. This week, I
think you were very good. That was a good choice of song
for you."
What we say: It was one
of the better Anthony performances, but again, that
isn't saying much. For what he lacks vocally, Anthony
uses all of his weapons (faux sexiness, white boy
rhythm) to perfection, and the performance just sorta
falls into place. Is redemption his? Probably.
From let's hear it for
the boy to "Let's Hear It For the Boy". From 1984,
here's Vonzell Solomon doing her best Deniece Williams.
What they say: Randy
gives props on "another great performance". Paula gives
props for being cute and picking the right song. Simon
agrees. "That was a very good choice of song. On
tonight's performances, I think you're going to stay,
and Nadia's gonna go. You have to make the audience want
to vote for you. With that performance, that made people
pick up the phone."
What we say: Vonzell
just keeps riding that wave she started a few weeks ago.
I think she, and Bo from earlier this season, prove that
cozying up to the judges works. But the only downside I
have... the upper register isn't... well, registering.
But not bad. That, and being in the bottom three
UNJUSTLY, means that she's not going anywhere any time
soon.
From Baby V to Scotty
the Body. Here's Scott Savol with "She's Gone" from Hall
& Oates in 1976. After being in the bottom three last
week, could that title be foreboding? He thinks he's the
real rocker... Hoo boy.
What they say: Randy
says to one of the true dawg pound members, "The low
notes were a little pitchy, but when you hit the chorus,
man
You brought it home in the end, dawg." Paula says
something like awesome more times than necessary. And
Simon, calling Scott a nice guy, says, "There were more
bum notes than there were good notes. Keeping it real,
on the whole, it wasn't very good."
What we say: Again,
Scott starts off a bit weak, and then overpowers the
song. The lower register wasn't registering, and the
overall tone was lacking. Definitely points for
improvement that Scott should be paying attention to
instead of trying to shout the song all the damn time.
What Scott says: "What's
real is that I'm up here, and there are millions of
people at home who didn't have the nerve to do this. I
think I rocked it."
What Hall & Oates say:
"Keeping it real, baby."
See, I told you that was
relevant! So from deliberate audience shot to deliberate
change up, as Carrie Underwood goes back to the year she
said "What up?" to the world, 1983. The song: Pat
Benatar's "Love Is a Battlefield." "I would rock out and
sing the wrong words to every song imaginable." And
somewhere Gordon is screaming...
What they say: Randy
says, "Some of the high notes were a little sharp. It
was a'ight for me. I'm not sure I'm loving the
rocked-out Carrie." Paula ... irrelevant. Let's go to
the Cowell... "You probably needed to do that after last
week, but it was a bit like watching a kitten who wants
to be a tiger." Randy agrees.
What we say: "Mom, she's
ruining the song again!" Carrie tries to channel the
.... *goes into seizures* ... sorry, strobe lights.
Anyway, channeling the genre instead of incorporating
it, and then bungling the lyrics. Carrie is definitely
out of her element here, and it's about as see-through
as the holes in her ripped jeans. Way to try too hard,
Carrie. My advice: do not deny who you are. It's what
makes you consistent. It's what makes you you. That is
your juice.
Oh yeah, and learn the
f(^_^)ing lyrics.
And finally, we come to
the true rocker (the other one), Constantine Maroulis,
who takes us on a "Bohemian Rhapsody". Queen takes us
back to 1975 and the end of the show.
What they say: Randy:
"For showmanship, I give you a 10. For singing, I give
you a 7." Paula adds, "That was awesome. You've now
proven that you're the one to beat in this competition."
Simon sums it up by saying "astonishing".
What we say: I'm going
to defer this one to my brother.
What D says:
Astonishing... in a GOOD way!
Yep! So we go to the
rundown...
Cute babies: Anwar,
Vonzell, Constantine
Cute-in-an-ugly-way babies: "Bogart", Anthony
Miscarriages: Carrie, Nadia, Scott
Looks like Carrie has
her work cut out for her. But who's going home? That's
why we vote... Gordon and his flying circus returns with
the results...
CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE |