Official AI 2006 Thread

[daBowsa]

Here's what I remember from last night...

 

Taylor

• Dancing in the Dark - boring song choice. Good think he pulled Paula up on the platform - is that a Courtney Cox moment recreation?
  
• You Are So Beautiful - finally! The Joe Cocker song we've all been calling for, and a Billy Preston song at that!
  
• Try a Little Tenderness - one of my favorite soul tunes. Not my favorite arrangement (my favorite would be from The Commitments, of course) but he brought it home in the end. Simon really doesn't like it when Taylor goes all dance crazy, but I think America does. Its entertainment.
  

 

Yamin

• ??? - sounded good, nice runs, nice tone.
  
• ??? - sounded good, nice runs, nice tone.
  
• ??? - Boy needs to move around a little bit. Keep me interested, will you? Nice song but this is television - give me something to look at...did I just say that?
  

 

Kat

• I Believe I Can Fly - I agree with the judges, don't try so hard. Your strength is in the subtleties.
  
• Somewhere Over the Rainbow - Yep, great song. Not as unbelievably awesome as Simon made it out to be, but still great.
  
• blues tune - Nice tune, definitely her style of song. Not a bad choice, just not a very recognizable tune to leave as a last impression.
  

 

I would guess that Yamin is gone this week and Taylor wins the whole thing.

[daBowsa]

WARNING - this link may contain a spoiler!

 

DialIdol.com has an 85% accuracy rating for predicting the AI loser - see who they predict will lose tonight HERE .

 

The site uses an auto dialer application which users download and use to keep dialing the vote number of their favorite Idol, until it gets through.

 

The cool part is that it tracks how long it took each caller to get through and then reports that data back to the website. The website then calculates who had the most busy signals and assumes that person was the most popular and has received the most votes.

 

It even predicted the shocking Chris departure last week. Neat!

[RABid]

While I think Taylor will win I thought "Try a Little Tenderness" really fell short. He cannot cut loose and without loosing it. The end of the song was a mess and that song needs a good ending. This morning I listened to Otis Redding, Three Dog Night, The Commitments and Etta James versions of the same song. There is a BIG difference.

 

Robert

[Mr. Nightime]

When I heard that Kat was doing "I Ain't Got Nothin But the Blues" I immediately thought of my favorite version by Robben Ford, so when she did some other version of the song, I was a bit dissapointed. Did not care for her rendition.

 

My wife loves Eliott, but even she says that after last night he deserves to go home.

 

I agree that Taylor's version of "Try a Little Temderness" could have been better. My favorite version - Etta James.

[Eric VB]

Missed the first round last night.

 

I agree, Taylor is a great entertainer. Don't know if that's enough to win a singing competition.

 

OTOH, Elliot has a great voice. Don't know if he's got enough personality to win Idol.

 

Kat is the interesting one, if only from the feedback she generates. If you spend any time on the Idol blogs you know there is a large following of Kat haters, moreso than for any other contestant this season it seems. She's the only one so far in the history of the show that has been testy with the judges and survived that kiss of death. Some point to her wardrobe malfunctions and revealing fashion as the only reason she's still there. If the voting was set up such that you voted for the person you least liked, Kat would already be gone.

 

It's hard not to compare Kat to Kelly Clarkson. (Sorry if this was discussed already.) I mentioned that early in the finals. Some Idol fans dislike Kat so much that they won't even acknowledge the slightest similarity between her and the much loved Kelly. I find that amusing.

 

Go back and watch Season One over again. Kelly wasn't always the best week in and week out. She took a lot of negative comments from the judges, but she held her tongue and used her innocent charm in those situations to win over America. I think she's improved tremendously since winning Idol.

 

It seems a lot of people let their feelings for Kat influence their perception of her singing. (I don't notice that here.) Is she as good as Kelly, now or when Kelly was a contestant? Is Kat even a good singer, or could Justin out sing her? (Take your pick of the three versions of SOTR Kimberly Locke sang and A/B it with how Kat sang it last night.)

 

[Personally, I liked the arrangement of SOTR last night, and the performance sold it for me. If she had sung it straight up Judy Garland I probably wouldn't have liked it as much.]

 

I think she has a lot of commercial potential. I think she can pull it off at least as well as the previous 2nd place finishers. She doesn't seem like a 3rd placer to me, but I did say I didn't hear her first song last night. (Any mistake this late in the competition is often fatal.)

 

Elliot bores me. Not as much as Clay did, but I'm bored still the same. If Elliot finishes in the top two it will be a waste for me, because I'm sure I won't be interested in anything he records.

 

I would probably buy a Taylor CD. (My wife already bought his existing one.) He will do all right commercially, although I worry about his long-term viability. Singing-wise, I think he's more limited; he has less to work with than the other two, IMO. Over time he'll start sounding monotonous.

 

So, as well as Elliot sings, I hope this was his swan song. But I think any of these three will be able to leverage their fan base and at least do reasonably well with their first release.

 

As long as nobody tries to make a movie called "From to Kat".

[daBowsa]

Wow Ric, you're hard core!

 

I'm not afraid to say it - Kelly Clarkson is my favorite current pop female vocalist, but I'm not going to watch Season 1 again.

[MidLifeCrisis]

Originally posted by RABid:

While I think Taylor will win I thought "Try a Little Tenderness" really fell short. This morning I listened to Otis Redding,

His version from Live at the Monterey Pop is absolultely killer

[RABid]

I think Kat has come into the competition with obviously more training than any other contestant. I think others that were voted out had a better raw voice but Kat knows how to use her voice. Kelly Clarkson had a much better raw voice and over time she has made use of training.

 

Chris may still end up doing better than anyone else from this season in the long term.

[kad]

So who got voted off tonight? I didn't get to see it...

[NYKeys]

Originally posted by kad:

So who got voted off tonight? I didn't get to see it...

YaMin

[daBowsa]

My favorite audience sign this season was "Sing it like Yamin it!"

[NYKeys]

Ok am I the only one that thinks Chris looks a little like Jordan Rudess?

[Eric VB]

Any predictions on tomorrow?

 

Heard on the radio this morning:

A Detroit DJ is out in LA and says that town wants Taylor to win, not their local Kat. That's rough when you can't get the hometown to vote for ya!

 

Taylor will be entertaining as always. He's too smart to take a high risk at this point, so look for him to sing more of the same.

 

Will Kat take the advice from last week and try not to overdo it again? Or does she think she needs to take a risk in order to come out on top?

 

What we won't see: more of Taylor and his harmonica. (Sure it's unfair in a singing competition for the contestants to showcase their instrumental skills, but come on, it's part of the "total package"!)

[RABid]

I've been an Idol fan since season 1 but watching part of a bio on Simon really turned me off. It came off as "brat that does not want to work makes it big taking advantage of others." His big moments before this was CD's from WWF and TelaTubbies.

 

That really ruined the show for me.

[Mr. Nightime]

Taking a risk and going over the top can be two different things. I think if Kat takes the risk, but sings her songs with a bit more finesse, she could give Taylor a run for his money.

 

Keep in mind that their final songs will be new music ready to be released. I read that the winner will be crowned on Wednesday, and by Thursday the final song by the winner will be released as a single.

[RABid]

Tonight is the night. Does anyone really think Kat can win?

[daBowsa]

DialIdol.com has Taylor being the #1 vote getter for every week except 1.

 

When asked to predict a winner, Simon said (refering to their weekend rallies), "Lets see, Taylor got half a town and Kat got half a gymnasium...what do you think?"

[meccajay]

I'm one of those... I saw Taylor as the winner from day one. Just a matter of appeal. He appeals to far more demo's than Kat, or anyone else for that matter.

 

He's talented, but not really a great singer, and he's kinda goofy, so America can easily relate. It's similar to the Rueben voters a few years back...times 10!

 

*edit*

 

Also, a male winner is due.

[Geoff Grace]

No one from American Idol has ever blown me away like my favorite recording artists. That said:

 

Taylor and Paris were my favorites in this competition. I liked the timbre of each of their voices, and their passion and enthusiasm were compelling to me.

 

I hope Taylor wins tonight.

 

Best,

 

Geoff

[RABid]

If I had been at home last night I would have voted for Kat 20+ times. Not because I think she is better, but in reaction to the obvious favoritism they showed Taylor. It was bad enough the way they trashed her first song and praised him, but then they stuck her with the most horrible original they have ever forced on a contestant. The song was sappy and boring, the range was wrong for her voice, and it sounded like something written by a high-school prom committee.

 

Robert

[daBowsa]

Taylor's song was crap also, he just made it sound a little better.

 

Kat ran out of gas, Taylor finished strong.

 

I thought Taylor should have picked a more upbeat song for his 2nd, since the 3rd would had to be sap. Its too late to try and show range - have to go for the throat.

 

Again, here's your spoiler site - Click Me for Tonight\'s Projected Winner

[Dave Pierce]

Kat's last song was a mess. I was surprised the judges went so easy on her on that one after being so hard on her the last few weeks. Mercy judging, I guess.

 

I really like Kat's voice, she's clearly got more pure vocal talent than Taylor.

 

But Taylor has been my favorite since Day One. Walking down to the gallows (judges) with the harmonica sealed the deal for me. He's a far more polished performer.

 

He'll win, IMO.

 

--Dave

[meccajay]

Dave, you hit on something that kinda puts into words how I feel about these 2..

 

Outside of Kat being an attractive female, I'd rather listen to Kat sing, and watch Taylor perform. This is why I see Kat doing well singing soundtracks and Taylor selling out tours.

 

If managed correctly, Taylor has the potential to be a very big artist because his appeal seems to range from teens(AI audience) to seniors(my coworkers). Kat could be Celine Dion-lite if she manages to get a hold of a few great songs.

 

Geoff, regardless of the outcome of the 'rookie album' and subsequent AI tour.. I submit to you that you'll be hearing from Paris for years to come. Can't you just see a more mature version of her, say in her mid 20's, paired with Herbie or Marcus Miller for a huge jazz standards CD?

[Geoff Grace]

Originally posted by meccajay:

Geoff, regardless of the outcome of the 'rookie album' and subsequent AI tour.. I submit to you that you'll be hearing from Paris for years to come. Can't you just see a more mature version of her, say in her mid 20's, paired with Herbie or Marcus Miller for a huge jazz standards CD?

meccajay, I have no doubt, presuming of course that Paris doesn't decide to become a doctor after all.

 

If the show had been Teen American Idol, I think she'd have blown the competition away. If Paris keeps at it, she's got a very promising future ahead.

 

Best,

 

Geoff

[Eric VB]

Originally posted by Dave Pierce:

I was surprised the judges went so easy on her on that one after being so hard on her the last few weeks. Mercy judging, I guess.

When it gets down to the final three, the judges have to show some restraint because anybody could be the next Idol. You don't want to bruise the goods and then expect to sell them for a premium. Even moreso for the final two, because even 2nd place seems to go places.

[Eric VB]

My wife tried voting for Taylor last night and could not get through at all. She finally gave up.

 

Simon made a statement last night "crowning" Taylor. ("If blahblahblah you've already won the competition.")

 

I would be surprised if Taylor does not win.

 

I think this may be the first season of Idol where more than just one of the final 3-12 (finalist that didn't finish in the top two) get a significant career off the ground. It would be shocking if Chris doesn't get something started. There are several others that could make it as well.

 

There are enough non-teen voters that agree with Simon when it comes to under-18 contestants like Paris that makes it difficult for them to compete on even terms. That is, they really can't play the "I'm a hot sex machine" card. (Paris' rendition of Prince's "Kiss" was perhaps a little too much.) Maybe if they filled the front rows of the theater with grandparents the kids would understand. I know when I was in high school I didn't get it, either. It's related to the heavily reported troubles with myspace we can't escape from hearing. Anyway, just IMO.

[Eric VB]

OMG!!! That was the best performance of the show!

 

Sorry, don't want to spoil it for anyone ... don't forget to watch tonight!

[Eric VB]

CAUTION! Slight teasers ahead ...

 

Now that's entertainment! What are they trying to do, harp me, er, hurt me? Dang! Just one of these little chicken things is not like the others.

 

Well done! This tour is going to be better than the first one (which I actually went to see).

[Eric VB]

More teasers ...

 

If YaMin it, you better oblige him!

Bitterness detected: none.

HaVin a great time? You bet'cha!

[Mr. Nightime]

Was Clay the ghost of Robert Palmer???