Thursday, February 23, 2006
Mr. Thatcher's Neighborhood - A.I. 5
Well, the top 12 guys performance was certainly more entertaining than the girls. There was really only one guy I’d like to get rid of now. There are a few that I’d like to give one more chance, just to see if they can do anything different. I had a tough time ranking these guys, because they were all so different. I’d have to agree with Paula – I’d like to see about a 3-to-1 ratio of guys to girls in the finals.
And, we’re off…..
Patrick Hall – “Come to my Window”:
According to the judges, Patrick is a great ballad singer. However, I don’t think you can just sing ballads and win this competition; you have to be able to do a little variety. I thought this performance was pretty good, but it definitely got lost in the shuffle of the evening. Patrick seems like he might be a funny guy, and I’d like to hear him again, so I’m putting him in the “keeper” column, for now.
David Radford – “Crazy Little Thing Called Love”:
I have no idea how David thought this was something different for him, unless he meant that it was awful. This performance really did look like a joke, like a character Jimmy Fallon would play at the Continental’s cocktail party. Completely affected. I can’t tell what this kid was thinking – he seemed pretty crestfallen from the judges’ comments, so maybe he was serious? I don’t know. But I do know that I have no desire to see him perform again. Here’s the one guy I’d be happy to lose.
Bucky Covington – “Simple Man”
Apparently, Bucky is Grumpymoss’ favorite, based on the way he jumped on the laptop when Bucky’s picture came up. Or maybe he though Bucky was trying to rob our house. He does look like the guy you catch trying to steal tools out of you open garage in the summer. Bucky has a great unintelligible southern accent that reminds me of home. His performance sounded painful to me, but it did have some appeal. I’ll put Bucky in the “maybe” column, just because I want to hear how he handles one more song.
Will Makar – “I Want You Back”
(aka John Mayer Jr). He is cute, and I thought he did a solid job with a not-so-easy song. His age definitely showed, but if he sticks around, I could see his stage presence improving with practice. He’s definitely a keeper.
Sway Penala – “Reasons”
Sway has on the best outfit of the evening, wearing a velvet jacket and a snappy fedora. He sings the entire song in falsetto, which I feel was a bad plan. A little well-placed falsetto can be really impressive – a whole song’s worth gets old fast, unless it’s a gimmick (like “Kiss” by Prince). I would have liked to have heard his “natural” voice, as Randy called it. But, I can appreciate the effort and difficulty of his performance, even if I didn’t like it, so I’ll put Sway in the “maybe” column.
Chris Daughtry – “Wanted Dead or Alive”
Chris is this years “rocker” and I enjoyed his performance a lot. Only time will tell if he’s a one-trick pony, though. I ranked him really high, but I could see myself changing my mind if he can’t hack it in something a little different. He’s a keeper for now.
Kevin Covais – “One Last Cry”
Are Kevin and Paris Bennett in the same 3rd grade class? Is American Juniors making a comeback? Seriously, Kevin actually seems like a pretty solid kid, and his singing was not bad, probably better than about half of the girls. But he’s just not for me. I’m sure he’ll be around for a while, though – he’s too cute to vote off. Call it the John Stevens effect. I’ll call him a “maybe”, just because I think he might have some surprising spunk hidden in there somewhere.
Gedeon McKinney – “Shout”
This guy cracks me up. That smile is da bomb (shut up Simon)!! He speaks so clearly, I could see him with an announcing career, like Mr. Seacrest. When he was describing the song “Shout”, he sounded just like the announcer on those late night infomercials for those “Hits of the 70’s” CD compilations (I love those, by the way). His performance was way too stylized, but it was fun and the bits he actually sang sounded good. He gets a “maybe” from me.
Elliott Yamin – “If You Really Love Me”
Ahhh, I love this song. And Elliott really does a nice job with it. However, just like Lisa last night, I think Elliott is good, but not leaps and bound above everyone else as Simon seems to think. And I’m having trouble getting past the fact that he looks like Tim Blake Nelson’s homelier brother. But, the boy can definitely sing, so he’s a keeper.
Bobby Bennett – “Copa Cabana”
I don’t think I’ve heard this song on Idol yet, which is a shame because it ROCKS! I actually liked this performance. It really did seem like something from the 1930’s, like those crackly old films you see of nightclub performances with people wearing fruit on their heads. Bobby seemed to be having fun, although the whole thing did careen a bit out of control. Another “maybe”, who I’d like to hear with a different song. I was impressed with Ryan’s calling out of Simon on his un-helpfulness. It was like something snapped in Ryan and he became very logical, all of a sudden.
(As an aside, I have a lot of respect for Ryan. I feel like hosting a live show is probably a lot harder than it seems, and he really does do a good job of deflecting the attention of someone who needs the camera off their face. He’s a little too motherly sometimes, but he has to deal with a lot of emotion and strange behavior by these contestants, and he always keeps his composure and thinks quickly on his feet. I think he’s a lot more intelligent and talented than people give him credit for. End aside)
Ace Young – “Father Figure”
I was expecting a really weak, reedy, wimpy performance from Ace. I’m not sure why, he just seemed so timid, and coupled with his good looks, I didn’t have high hopes for his singing. But he actually did really well. He does have a soft, reedy voice, but it fit the song perfectly. The trick for Ace will be finding the right song each week, because he’ll never be able to compete on the strength of his voice, but he might have a shot on pure style. He’ll be around a long time, I’m sure, so in the keeper column he goes.
Taylor Hicks – “Levon”
I never thought I’d see the day when I’d see a finalist on American Idol that reminded me of Joe Cocker. This guy is great. He’s funny, his singing is a joy, he looks to be about 45, and I would love for Idol to launch the career of someone so un-Idol. Kudos to Ryan for indulging the nuttiness at the end. My pick for the best of the night. Hmm, I picked the last performer as the best both nights. Could Idol be manipulating me??? Naaahhh…
My rankings for the night:
Keepers:
Taylor Hicks
Chris Daughtry
Elliott Yamin
Will Makar
Ace Young
Patrick Hall
Maybes:
Gedeon McKinney
Bucky Covington
Bobby Bennett
Sway Penala
Kevin Covais
Loser:
David Radford
My predictions on who’s going home: Sadly, Bobby Bennett and Sway Penala. David will live to annoy me another week.
And, we’re off…..
Patrick Hall – “Come to my Window”:
According to the judges, Patrick is a great ballad singer. However, I don’t think you can just sing ballads and win this competition; you have to be able to do a little variety. I thought this performance was pretty good, but it definitely got lost in the shuffle of the evening. Patrick seems like he might be a funny guy, and I’d like to hear him again, so I’m putting him in the “keeper” column, for now.
David Radford – “Crazy Little Thing Called Love”:
I have no idea how David thought this was something different for him, unless he meant that it was awful. This performance really did look like a joke, like a character Jimmy Fallon would play at the Continental’s cocktail party. Completely affected. I can’t tell what this kid was thinking – he seemed pretty crestfallen from the judges’ comments, so maybe he was serious? I don’t know. But I do know that I have no desire to see him perform again. Here’s the one guy I’d be happy to lose.
Bucky Covington – “Simple Man”
Apparently, Bucky is Grumpymoss’ favorite, based on the way he jumped on the laptop when Bucky’s picture came up. Or maybe he though Bucky was trying to rob our house. He does look like the guy you catch trying to steal tools out of you open garage in the summer. Bucky has a great unintelligible southern accent that reminds me of home. His performance sounded painful to me, but it did have some appeal. I’ll put Bucky in the “maybe” column, just because I want to hear how he handles one more song.
Will Makar – “I Want You Back”
(aka John Mayer Jr). He is cute, and I thought he did a solid job with a not-so-easy song. His age definitely showed, but if he sticks around, I could see his stage presence improving with practice. He’s definitely a keeper.
Sway Penala – “Reasons”
Sway has on the best outfit of the evening, wearing a velvet jacket and a snappy fedora. He sings the entire song in falsetto, which I feel was a bad plan. A little well-placed falsetto can be really impressive – a whole song’s worth gets old fast, unless it’s a gimmick (like “Kiss” by Prince). I would have liked to have heard his “natural” voice, as Randy called it. But, I can appreciate the effort and difficulty of his performance, even if I didn’t like it, so I’ll put Sway in the “maybe” column.
Chris Daughtry – “Wanted Dead or Alive”
Chris is this years “rocker” and I enjoyed his performance a lot. Only time will tell if he’s a one-trick pony, though. I ranked him really high, but I could see myself changing my mind if he can’t hack it in something a little different. He’s a keeper for now.
Kevin Covais – “One Last Cry”
Are Kevin and Paris Bennett in the same 3rd grade class? Is American Juniors making a comeback? Seriously, Kevin actually seems like a pretty solid kid, and his singing was not bad, probably better than about half of the girls. But he’s just not for me. I’m sure he’ll be around for a while, though – he’s too cute to vote off. Call it the John Stevens effect. I’ll call him a “maybe”, just because I think he might have some surprising spunk hidden in there somewhere.
Gedeon McKinney – “Shout”
This guy cracks me up. That smile is da bomb (shut up Simon)!! He speaks so clearly, I could see him with an announcing career, like Mr. Seacrest. When he was describing the song “Shout”, he sounded just like the announcer on those late night infomercials for those “Hits of the 70’s” CD compilations (I love those, by the way). His performance was way too stylized, but it was fun and the bits he actually sang sounded good. He gets a “maybe” from me.
Elliott Yamin – “If You Really Love Me”
Ahhh, I love this song. And Elliott really does a nice job with it. However, just like Lisa last night, I think Elliott is good, but not leaps and bound above everyone else as Simon seems to think. And I’m having trouble getting past the fact that he looks like Tim Blake Nelson’s homelier brother. But, the boy can definitely sing, so he’s a keeper.
Bobby Bennett – “Copa Cabana”
I don’t think I’ve heard this song on Idol yet, which is a shame because it ROCKS! I actually liked this performance. It really did seem like something from the 1930’s, like those crackly old films you see of nightclub performances with people wearing fruit on their heads. Bobby seemed to be having fun, although the whole thing did careen a bit out of control. Another “maybe”, who I’d like to hear with a different song. I was impressed with Ryan’s calling out of Simon on his un-helpfulness. It was like something snapped in Ryan and he became very logical, all of a sudden.
(As an aside, I have a lot of respect for Ryan. I feel like hosting a live show is probably a lot harder than it seems, and he really does do a good job of deflecting the attention of someone who needs the camera off their face. He’s a little too motherly sometimes, but he has to deal with a lot of emotion and strange behavior by these contestants, and he always keeps his composure and thinks quickly on his feet. I think he’s a lot more intelligent and talented than people give him credit for. End aside)
Ace Young – “Father Figure”
I was expecting a really weak, reedy, wimpy performance from Ace. I’m not sure why, he just seemed so timid, and coupled with his good looks, I didn’t have high hopes for his singing. But he actually did really well. He does have a soft, reedy voice, but it fit the song perfectly. The trick for Ace will be finding the right song each week, because he’ll never be able to compete on the strength of his voice, but he might have a shot on pure style. He’ll be around a long time, I’m sure, so in the keeper column he goes.
Taylor Hicks – “Levon”
I never thought I’d see the day when I’d see a finalist on American Idol that reminded me of Joe Cocker. This guy is great. He’s funny, his singing is a joy, he looks to be about 45, and I would love for Idol to launch the career of someone so un-Idol. Kudos to Ryan for indulging the nuttiness at the end. My pick for the best of the night. Hmm, I picked the last performer as the best both nights. Could Idol be manipulating me??? Naaahhh…
My rankings for the night:
Keepers:
Taylor Hicks
Chris Daughtry
Elliott Yamin
Will Makar
Ace Young
Patrick Hall
Maybes:
Gedeon McKinney
Bucky Covington
Bobby Bennett
Sway Penala
Kevin Covais
Loser:
David Radford
My predictions on who’s going home: Sadly, Bobby Bennett and Sway Penala. David will live to annoy me another week.
# posted by Thatchermom @ 6:47 PM 
Comments:
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Hi T-Mom!! Thanks for the first AI comment on my blog, yay! I'm still doing 2 boards but they're both small & really easy to keep up with (you should come say hi). Anyhoo...
Yes, unfortunately, gauchos are all the rage! I hate them too.
Will you hate me if I point out a typo? I'm the type who'd want to know if I did it... anyway, check Paris' song title, you've got "the" instead of "to." ;-)
Paris is just amazing - she did Take 5 in her initial audition & that's not an easy song to sing even with accompaniment. I'll forgive you for saying Kinnik was better than Lisa, lol; but as Simon said, Lisa's age makes her skill all the more impressive to me; with Kinnik I assume she's reached her peak, if that makes sense.
I'm sorry you missed Patrick's earlier performances. Don't know if you've read all my comments, but early on he did Bread's "If" which was just awesome. Later we heard literally the last 2 notes of "Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me," and I literally yelled at the tv in anger for my loss! I really, really want to hear him do that. He plays piano, and has said some of his influences/people his style resembles are Elton John, George Michael, and Kenny Loggins, all of whom I just love. And yes, he has snark! Which I really, really like in my favorites & don't see in many others yet. So I'm very, very sad at his premature departure.
One of my friends has done a hilarious 'chop of Bucky sitting on a patio overlooking the Hollywood hills, complete with a Camaro, hound dog, Moon Pies, Jack Daniels, a 'wall Jesus,' a tire, and a wa(r)sher! Gotta love him.
Did you go to the link for Will's other song? Oh and talent-wise Kevin should go, but his MySpace has been discovered and boy brings the Snark and whips it up good! Check it out.
Did you know Gedeon is only 17?! There's just something very strange, almost unnatural about him.
One other tidbit - Taylor toned down his initial audition but the producers told him to add (more of) the wild stuff! So there you go, that's his box & he's sticking to it. He may have snark potential as well.
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Yes, unfortunately, gauchos are all the rage! I hate them too.
Will you hate me if I point out a typo? I'm the type who'd want to know if I did it... anyway, check Paris' song title, you've got "the" instead of "to." ;-)
Paris is just amazing - she did Take 5 in her initial audition & that's not an easy song to sing even with accompaniment. I'll forgive you for saying Kinnik was better than Lisa, lol; but as Simon said, Lisa's age makes her skill all the more impressive to me; with Kinnik I assume she's reached her peak, if that makes sense.
I'm sorry you missed Patrick's earlier performances. Don't know if you've read all my comments, but early on he did Bread's "If" which was just awesome. Later we heard literally the last 2 notes of "Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me," and I literally yelled at the tv in anger for my loss! I really, really want to hear him do that. He plays piano, and has said some of his influences/people his style resembles are Elton John, George Michael, and Kenny Loggins, all of whom I just love. And yes, he has snark! Which I really, really like in my favorites & don't see in many others yet. So I'm very, very sad at his premature departure.
One of my friends has done a hilarious 'chop of Bucky sitting on a patio overlooking the Hollywood hills, complete with a Camaro, hound dog, Moon Pies, Jack Daniels, a 'wall Jesus,' a tire, and a wa(r)sher! Gotta love him.
Did you go to the link for Will's other song? Oh and talent-wise Kevin should go, but his MySpace has been discovered and boy brings the Snark and whips it up good! Check it out.
Did you know Gedeon is only 17?! There's just something very strange, almost unnatural about him.
One other tidbit - Taylor toned down his initial audition but the producers told him to add (more of) the wild stuff! So there you go, that's his box & he's sticking to it. He may have snark potential as well.
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