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Tuesday, May 12, 2009

American Idol, judges get to pick the songs

How on earth did I forget that it was AI night?!! If that dear sweet old DVR box hadn't recorded the show I don't even know what would have happened... (shudder) Alrighty, the girls are in bed and I'm settling into the recliner with a favorite blanket to watch the not-quite-live show, ahhhhhhh. Crap! One of the kids is screaming my name. Back in a sec. Ok. You wouldn't think that going up and down one flight of stairs would make me winded (pathetic). Restarting the show...

Danny singing Paula's choice for him of "Dance Little Sister" by Terence Trent D'Arby: Cool song choice, I went to one of Terence's concerts somewhere around 1989 or 1990. Oh my lord, both of the girls are screaming for me again!!! (must keep my cool and be nice, breathing, breathing, back in a sec.) Ok, they're back in bed again and it's time to watch the show. Nice raspy sound in the beginning for Danny. A good match for his voice. Hm, the chorus wasn't great, I couldn't help comparing it to the original song, and Danny came up lacking. Eh, I didn't love it when all was said and done. This is a total aside—sorry—but has anyone else suddenly found themselves wearing (gag) reading glasses now that they've hit forty-something? Detestable freakin things. How on earth are you supposed to type on your laptop while watching tv? I've got the damned things perched on the end of my nose and keep twisting my head up and down to alternate between looking through them or not and it's driving me crazy and making my neck hurt and my eyes feel kinda tweaky.

Kris singing Randy and Kara's choice of "Apologize" by One Republic: Love the grand piano. Hey he sounds pretty good, nice tone to his voice, nice variety, and a really fine job of singing while playing well. Ooo, the judges didn't agree with me at all. Wow, that was certainly a cat fight between the judges. Yeouch.

Adam singing Simon's choice of "One" by U2. Like the controlled, soft start. He sounds good. Uh, oh, he started the screamy thing again. The high notes were pretty good though, to be objective. Why does he flick his tongue in and out when he's singing. Yuck—seriously not attractive. The song clip seemed really short and choppy to me. I guess that's mostly a function of the time limit they put on every performance, but I think they could have done a better job of arranging it. Hey I just noticed that Simon has what looks to be a big splotch of makeup on his chest. Is that from Paula smacking him? Is she wearing heavy makeup even on her hands?!! Crimony.

Danny singing his own choice of "You Are So Beautiful" by Joe Cochrane: Ok, we're four seconds into the song and I can already tell I don't love it. I appreciate that you want to start softly and build up, but it doesn't sound like he's singing at 100%, like he's not getting enough breath or can't quite hear himself on the monitors or something. He sounded better toward the middle and end, so I'd give him one halfhearted thumb up, I guess. Oops, the judges completely disagreed with me again. Too bad, I'll bet America agrees with me.

Kris singing his own choice of "Heartless" by xxx (he mumbled so badly that I couldn't hear the band's name and I'm too lazy to Google it): Neat mix of sounds in the beginning. I liked the way he got into the song and I enjoyed the guitar playing and the way he was all alone up there on the stage. Kind of make or break, eh? I think he did a good job but it was a little risky.

Adam singing his own choice of "Crying" by Aerosmith: Have to admit I couldn't wait to see what song he chose. The boy is captivating, even though I'm kinda tired of his singing style. Nice beginning, but I didn't like it when the background singers joined in (not his fault though?). Net net: it was a typical Adam performance, wasn't it? He's not going to capture a big segment of the over-forty crowd. But I guess that's not really the audience that record producers are aiming for anyhow. I think Danny's going home tomorrow night and we'll see Adam and Kris in the final. What do you guys think? DSC_6411_LR2

PS: The girls and I romped through a field of poppies on the way home today and took I-won't-admit-how-many pictures. And almost all of them came out! I'll try to narrow it down and pick a few to share tomorrow, here's one in the meantime.

29 comments:

  1. Hearless is by Kanye West, although not sure if he actually wrote it.
    I hope Danny stays. I do love him so. Kris is kinda dull to me. And Adam is pretty amazing, but I agree about the tounge, kinda icky and slug like.
    I'm hoping for a Danny/ Adam pairing. Still kinda burned that Allison is gone though.
    But I guess in reality they'll all get contracts at this point, so really the finale is moot.

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  2. I hope that Danny and Adam are the last two standing. Kris is okay, but he hasn't put his heart into it like Danny has.

    BTW, your girly girls are just the cutest! Of course, you know that!

    Christie

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  3. I think I'm agreeing with you here.
    Can't wait to see the pics you mentioned!

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  4. Adam gives me nightmares, so I hope he goes home tonight, but I doubt he will.

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  5. Yeah, I agree the backup singer was terrible on Cryin', but not his fault for sure. I knew something was up when he ripped out his earpiece in mid-song lol. I think he was trying to cover up her vocals at one point by getting a little shouty. Boy has chops though. Love him.

    Can't wait to hear "One" on iTunes in the full version. We have to keep those songs short, you know, so there'll be more time to listen to the judges bicker :(

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  6. Anonymous5/13/2009

    nice photo very professional skills :)

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  7. I'm with TweedleDea.But I don't think the tongue thing is deliberate. Those high notes aren't even human and he has to open his throat so much to hit them I think the tongue coming out helps that process.

    And no one notices the sideways mouth thingie that Chris does? I know, I know, ya'll love your Chris but that's not too pretty, is it? (Though he is a cutie-bum in a Brad Pitt kinda way - yum.)

    It has been a fantastic season (even though Alison went home one week too early!) and I'm already getting sad that it'll soon be over. :-(

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  8. Hi, there! this is my first time commenting, but I'm a long time reader! If you really want to get a better concept of how different Kris' "Heartless" performance, you should check out Kanye West's version on YouTube or somewhere. He totally did his own thing with it which was really fun to see. The difference between his version and Kanye's is major and worth checking out.

    Also, love all the recent videos of the twins. My sister has boy/girl twins that will be one on the 24th and after seeing Ree open your van door... I know its going to be an interesting few years ahead with those two!

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  9. I LOVED Kris last night!!!!!

    Can't wait for the flower pics. I'm sure you have a couple of winners in there.

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  10. I don't watch AI (Biggest Loser instead) but I'm right there with ya on the glasses! I just had to get (gasp!) TRIFOCALS!! but they are in the form of a progressive lens so there are no lines. I'm getting used to them, and now I can see distance, computer and reading without taking them off or squinting. (If its any consolation, I'm not quite 40 yet)

    -Heather

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  11. Where on earth is the bed of flowers? That is a perfect place for pictures.

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  12. Love, love, love Kris. I thought his rendition of Heartless was wonderful.

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  13. I agree about it being Adam and Kris. I really loved Danny in the beginning, but he just isn't doing it for me anymore. I love Adam each and every week. I agree about his tongue though...ick! Kris' version of Heartless was soooooo differen thatn the Kanye West version. Amazing!! Danny didn't impress me at all last night. Don't get me wrong, he's a very talented guy, but last night just didn't wow me!

    BTW....I love your weekly recaps! What's up next when AI is over??? The Bachelorette?? I think that starts next week!! :)

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  14. Adam is waaaaaaaayyyyyy too screamy for me......I am tired of him already !!

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  15. Anonymous5/13/2009

    Can i just say - I agreed with every. Single. One. Of. Your. Adam. Comments. Every one! And I was laughing to myself because my sister and I watched it together last night (as is our tradition) and we both kept saying, "what with the tongue?" "I hope he doesn't do that screaming thing aga- OH! There it is!" And "Wow! Those back-up singers are competing with him or something because that sounds like poop!"

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  16. Love the poppy pic! Can't wait to see more! I am dying to get Gracie in a field of flowers but here in FL, if you happen to run across a field of flowers, you have to be very aware of snakes! I recently set up a picture to "look" like she was in a field of flowers... it was at a theme park... ya do what ya gotta do... right? lol

    Have a great week!!

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  17. Haven't watched the whole thing yet...but I too, get very tired of Adam's screaming ooo's! STOP IT!!! He is bang on though every single time. I was hoping for Chris or Danny to win - for popularity only!

    And I just wanted to say that when I read your note about stopping this afternoon to take pictures in a poppy field, I was very impressed. I think it's VERY important to stop and enjoy the journey and I applaud you for taking the time!

    Carol. (Cafrin's friend from Ontario)

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  18. p.s. I'm extra impressed because you did it with twins. I had two kids 4 years apart and I went everywhere on warp speed ... soo busy and rarely took time to stop and enjoy!!! So kudos to you!

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  19. You really have to listen to Heartless by Kayne (Kahn-yeah) West. It's a hip-hoppy, top 40 sort of song and Kris' version was great - he really changed the original - which is risky because it's so popular.

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  20. Anyone else think Adam sounds like a screaming goat at times? :

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wuAsRmSOlw

    That's all I could think of when I listened to him sing "One" last night! :)

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  21. Anonymous5/13/2009

    I really want to be fair about Adam, so I closed my eyes while he sang to see if his tongue thing was really my problem with him. It's not. I just think his voice doesn't have a pleasant tone to it, he screams, and I don't care for his singing. It's like Mariah Carey when she hits her highest notes - maybe the mermaids and dogs are digging it, but it makes me wish I didn't hear that frequency. Love Danny to pieces but did NOT love his Joe Cocker song. LOVED, LOVED, LOVED Kris for both songs. AND I am taking 3 friends to see all of them in concert this summer because my husband is so sweet!

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  22. Anonymous5/13/2009

    I really want Adam to win. He is the most talented. He truly takes it to the next step when he's on. I just wish he'd realize he doesn't have to screech every time he sings. For me, his Mad World will always be the best. He needs to do more of that. Danny is just too monotone for me. All in all, though, no one really knows how it's going to play out. AI is just one surprise after another. My wish would've been to have Adam and Allison in the finals. Allison is better than both Kris and Danny.

    I wish I could see the finals next week, but I will be in Singapore. There's too much media to avoid not knowing who won. Hoping I can watch the performances on the Internet though.

    Ilene, mommy to April Lauren, 41 months old ... P. S. I look forward to your AI recaps each week...onto next year :)

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  23. I sure hope Danny doesn't go home tonight. I think it should be Danny and Adam in the final two.

    Kris drives me crazy singing out of the side of his mouth. I cannot stand to watch him. UGH!

    Reading glasses... I wear glasses to see far away but now that I'm over 40, I can't see a darn thing up close if I have them on. Take them off and I'm totally fine. So, I'm constantly putting my glasses on top of my head to see up close and pulling them down to see the TV or anything farther away. Totally Annoying!!!

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  24. Yeah, I'm a Kris fan too...I liked Danny, and I do agree he put his heart into it. But I really think Kris did too, they just have very different personalities. Danny is very confident, and social and so likeable and Kris is more the quiet shy humble type (at least that's how it seems!) He has moments that remind me of John Mayer for sure. I loved his rendition of Kanye's song.

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  25. I was 39 and 9 months when I went to the eye doctor and he told me that when you hit 40, you start needed reading glasses. I immediately protested and informed him in no-uncertain-terms that I had 3 MORE MONTHS before I turned 40 (shh-that was 6 years ago-don't tell anyone!)

    I now have regular all-the-time glasses and I'm not happy about it.

    My son's friend (age 9) saw me the other day (they moved recently and were back for a visit) and he said,"Oh, you have glasses now." Peter said, "Yeah, because she's old" so his friend said, "Yes, but she's as beautiful as ever" I looked at Peter and said, "He gets dinner, you don't" :)

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  26. M3,
    the tech at lenscrafters once told me that 10 minutes after you turn 40, you need the reading glasses!
    I have a 'monovision' contact lens thing. One lens is for the farsighted vision, and one is for the nearsighted vision. Somehow, it is working, didn't even take much getting used to, and I was able to toss the reading glasses!

    J.
    (haven't tuned it to AI this time,
    its been DWTS, Lost and Ugly Betty). 2 wks behind on watching the dvr'd Dancing wts shows)

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  27. Anonymous5/14/2009

    Just a comment, I think the make-up stain on Simon's shirt is from him wrestling Paula (from her face) not from her punching him. We watched the playback and made sure. Cause who wears that much make-up on their hands!

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  28. Hi M3,
    I wanted to make you feel better about the glasses - my first pair of bifocals came at age 30!

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  29. Anonymous5/15/2009

    "How are you supposed to type on your laptop while watching TV?"

    Um ... bifocals?

    Or maybe get those reading glasses that only have half height lenses.

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