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Here are a couple of articles that I hadn't been able to post:
Women 12 Finalists:
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Tonight's show featured the twelve female finalists. Whenever there are twelve contestants on a show, I always know that I'll have my work cut for me when writing my recaps. Writing this after the show, I hope that my joeuser.com website comes back up in time for people to enjoy this. In the meantime, I will be posting this review on my "B" website.
About a half-hour into tonight's show, I was thinking: "Wow! They'll really have to pick up the pace to get all of the girls in." It was at that time that I realized that they were going two hours. I think that was a good idea, as it gave America a chance to know the contestants a little better on what could possibly be their last time on television.
In the end, the show turned out to be a fun night with some really strong performances. This year's crop of women has to be the prettiest and most-talented of any preceding group of women on Idol.
With that, let's get to the individual performances:
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Mandisa Hundley: "Never" by Heart. Mandisa sang this song bigger than she probably had to, but in retrospect it probably is a good idea to try to be "memorable" at the beginning od a longer-than-usual show. Mandisa belted out a reasonably good version of the song. Mandisa's size, exhuberance, and singing style are reminiscent of Nell Carter. Grade: B+
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Kellie Pickler: "How Far" by Martina McBride. Pretty shirt. Judges liked the song. How can anyone root against Kellie? That said: I don't get country. Grade: B
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Becky O'Donohue: "Because the Night" by Pat Benetar. Other Idol contestants have tried this song, none have done it well. Becky did a reasonably good job with it, but it didn't knock my socks off. She received faint praise from the judges. Personally, I'd like to see more of Becky on TV, but I doubt that she'll last longer than a month. Grade: C
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Ayla Brown: "Reflection" by Christina Aguilera. I drifted off during this song. Ayla looks like a pretty Sandra Bernhardt. Grade: C+
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Paris Bennett: "Midnight Train to Georgia" by Gladys Night. Paris reminds me of Kim "Tootie" Fields. My son loved her song, as he was dancing around the living room in tune to Paris' song. Paris was fantastic tonight, and it seems unlikely that she'll ever make a mistake as long as she can choose her own song. Paris' only problem tonight was staying in the frame as she was dancing. Grade: A
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Stevie Scott: Sang "XXX" by "XXX". I haven't seen the judges go after anyone that harshly in quite a while. I'd like to hear Stevie take a stab at a Celine Dion song. Grade: D+
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Brenna Gethers: "You are the Sunshine of my Life" by Stevie Wonder. Brenna needs to be really good from the start in order to shake that foolishness that came out in Hollywood. Tonight didn't do it. She didn't sound so good, and she sang through her nose. Grade: C-
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Heather Cox: "When you tell me that you love me". Whenever the music is louder than the vocalist, there seems to be trouble. She sang as well as Becky, but is slightly less pretty. Heather might be in a bit of trouble. Grade: C
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Melissa McGhee: "When the Lights Go Down" by Faith Hill. Melissa's voice sounded really nice, but the music wasn't all there. She was pretty, had good poise, and wore a nice shirt. I want to see more of Melissa, so she'll probably be getting my vote tonight. Grade: B-
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Lisa Tucker: "I am changing" by XXX. I wasn't into her hairstyle tonight (she usually has really pretty hair), but her dress was quite nice. Her song came off really well. Grade: A-
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Kinnik Sky: "Get Here" by Alita Adams. It seemed like she sang the song well, but I doubt that I'll remember it tomorrow. Grade: B-
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Katharine McPhee: "Since I fell for you" by Barbara Streisand. *I was looking forward to hearing Katherine sing more than anyone else on the show. She didn't disappoint. Her performance was very controlled. I really like what she's done with her hair and makeup. She looks better than she did in Hollywood. Grade: B+
Tonight's Best: 1) Paris 2) Katharine McPhee 3) Lisa Tucker
In Trouble: 1) Stevie Scott (unless America has mercy on her) 2)Brenna Gethers (will America like her enough?) 3) Heather Cox (could be memorable if she gets another chance.)
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Men 12 Finalists:
Here is my second night in-a-row writing to a very limited audience on my B website. Hopefully my regular weblog will open up soon, so I can put these American Idol reports back where they belong!
Tonight's twelve male finalists' show was pretty interesting. The best part of tonight's show was Simon Cowell. I have never seen him more "on his game" than he was tonight. There were plenty of times where the other two judges seemed to be watching a different show, while Simon was able to produce some very strong (and funny) insight.
The second interesting point about tonight's show was that viewers are able to quickly see a chasm between the haves (Taylor, Ace, Chris, and Elliot), and the have-nots (the rest of the field.) I feel that it is pretty safe to say that the final six (of all) will be: Taylor, Ace, Chris, Katharine, Paris, and Lisa. (Elliot will probably be in that mix too, thus displacing one of the six.) Is there any doubt?
But, the game still must be played. I am expecting (and looking forward to) a number of surprises along the way!
Tonight's performances:
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Patrick Hall: sang "Come to my Window". I'd bet that this guy has a good song in him. Tonight however, wasn't his night. I'd really like to hear him sing a song by STYX. **The impression that I get from watching Patrick is that he seems very "trustworthy". I wouldn't worry that he'd throw a party if he were to house sit for me. Grade: C
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David Radford: sang Queen's "Crazy Little Thing Called Love". This one was not good. We don't need to suffer through another subpar teenage crooner. Grade: D
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Bucky Covington: sang Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Simple Man". Bucky looks like someone who one could usually find in his garage, messing around with his car. **Bucky's voice was interesting enough, but he overdid it on the song. Grade: C+
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Will Makar: sang "I want you back" by Little Michael. Will is kind of Donnie Osmond-esque. **Why on earth did he choose that song? Grade: D
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Sway Penala: sang "Reasons" by Earth, Wind, and Fire. I couldn't tell if that was good or bad. He did hit a really high note. Grade: C
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Chris Daughtry: Sang Bon Jovi's "Wanted: Dead or Alive". He chose a good song, and sang it really well. Six performances in, Chris' song was the first good one of the night. Grade: A (Chris resembles Seth Green if seen at the right angle.)
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Kevin Covais: sang Brian McKnight's "One last cry". Kevin looks like any kid that one could find stuffed in any locker in any high school in America. **Randy and Paula gushed over Kevin's awful song. What was up with those two tonight? Grade: C-
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Gedeon McKinney: sang"Shout". If they ever do a remake of "The Jeffersons", Gedeon would make a good Lionel. Maybe it is just his hairstyle... **Gedeon's voice sounded alright, and the song was a fun change-of-pace. Grade: B
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Elliot Yamin: sang Stevie Wonder's "If you really love me". I like Elliot. He is a superb singer. Tonight's song sounded really good, but it wasn't electrifying. It is only a matter of time before he sings something fantastic. Grade: B+ (I wonder if Elliot has ever thought of going as "Amish guy" for Halloween. He'd be perfect for that.)
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Bobby Bennett: sang Barry Manilow's "Copacabana". Bobby looks like he'd be at home leading a Caribbean band. His song was quite poor tonight. Grade: C-
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Ace Young: sang George Michael's "Father Figure". This song was my favorite of the night. ("Wanted..." was a close second.) Ace did a great job on a tough song. **Ace reminds me of George's "cool" friend on Seinfeld. He'll go a long way. Grade: A
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Taylor Hicks: sang a song called "Leave on" (Or is it "Lean on"?). Taylor did alright, but the song wasn't the best of the evening. I'm sure that he'll "knock our socks off" some time soon. Grade: B
Tonight's top-three: 1) Ace 2) Chris 3) Elliot
In trouble: 1) Bobby 2) David 3)The rest of the field except Taylor
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Results:
Women: Becky and Stevie were eliminated. (Becky's elimination was a mild surprise. I figured that she'd last 2-3 more weeks.)
Men: Patrick and Robert were eliminated. (Patrick should have chosen a better song, plus being first is always tough.