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American Idol 2009 - Last Group Sings


Tonight on American Idol we get our chance to see the remaining members of the Top 36. This group holds a number of the better known singers so it might be hard to pick just three to move on to the Top 12.

Host Ryan Seacrest asks Simon Cowell about his criticism of song choice. Ryan says that America wants to know why Simon doesn't just pick the songs himself. Simon has wondered the same thing himself and vows to have a Simon Cowell week.

First up this week is Von Smith. For his selection, Von is singing "You're All I Need to Get By" from Marvin Gaye. His performance is much better than his Hollywood week screamfest. Randy Jackson thinks it's a hot performance and better than Hollywood. Kara DioGuardi notes that Von is coming into his own as a performer. Paula Abdul likes that Von knows when to pull back and when to push forward. Simon was reminded of Clay Aiken, but isn't sure if Von will take it as a compliment. Simon tells Von he looks appalling, but sings like Clay.

For her performance, Taylor VaiFanua picked "If I Ain't Got You" by Alicia Keys. The chorus is good but the verse is terrible. She just can't sing the lower notes and should have picked a different key. Kara thinks she has a voice, but wants more personality to come through. Paula wishes Taylor had picked something she hadn't done before. Simon can't remember her from earlier rounds. He thinks she is generic and bland. Randy tells Taylor she has a great voice, but didn't tell anything about herself with this performance.

Ryan talks to Alex Wagner-Trugman before he performs. Alex has apparently read the online reports of his geekiness and decided to bulk up at the gym. For his performance, Alex picked "I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues" by Elton John. He has an okay voice but I'm just not sure about him. Paula tells him that the audience had fun watching him. Simon agrees it was fun to watch but not to listen. Simon thinks Alex is a hamster trying to be a tiger. The audience is booing Simon, of course, so he tells them that it's not a democracy on the show. Actually, Simon, it is as America votes. Randy thinks the whole thing was crazy.

Arianna Afsar is singing the first ABBA song on American Idol. She picks "The Winner Takes It All." She has a good voice, but her performance is inconsistent. It was bad in spots and brilliant in others. Simon tells her that the song was too big for her with a dreary arrangement. Randy doesn't think it was the right song for her. Kara thinks she was dark and depressing, and wants her to be young and touch people. Paula feels it was too old fashioned.

Ju'not Joyner picks one of the most overdone songs on the show this year, "Hey There Delilah" by the Plain White T's. He changes it up a little bit, trying to make it more R&B. He has a very pleasant voice. It's a good performance, but I'm not sure it's the right song to pick with only one shot to impress. Randy likes that he pulled back for most of the song and that he switched it up. Kara thinks the song felt very fluid. Paula likes the liberties Ju'not took with the song. Simon says it was better than he thought, but wanted Ju'not to strip the whole song down.

Kristen McNamara had some drama during Hollywood week. If you remember, she and the next contestant Nathaniel were in a group with Nancy. Kristen has put that all behind her. She performs "Gimme One Reason" by Tracy Chapman. I hate her version of the song. She makes into a happy, perky song - which is not what this song is supposed to be. Kara isn't sure she picked the right song. Paula thinks she picked a safe song. Simon isn't sure who Kristen is, and doesn't think she is comfortable. Randy agrees with Simon.

Nathaniel Marshall is up next. He wants America to see his goofy, good-natured side. Nate picks "I Would Do Anything For Love" by Meatloaf. Simon thinks that the minority will like it but most will not. Simon does like Nate and thinks he is fun. Randy likes him too, but can't imagine what kind of record he would make. Kara wants him to pick a more serious song. Paula thinks that this was like a Boy George version of the song. Newsflash, Nate is to American Idol what Boy George was to Culture Club.

Felicia Barton, who replaced JoAnna Pacitti, picks "No One" by Alicia Keys to perform. Her timing feels off as does her pitch. I really did not like her performance, though the judges did like it. Paula is glad she was brought back. Simon notes that it was a bit "copycat". Randy thinks it was hot. Kara noticed Felicia for the first time tonight.

Scott MacIntyre performs "Mandolin Rain" by Bruce Hornsby. Randy can feel the passion pouring out of Scott. He didn't think it was a perfect vocal, but the parts that were great were really great. Kara tells him that he moves mountains when he steps on the stage. Paula wants America to see him at the piano where he is a genius. Scott is growing on Simon, who says that Scott is the one he's going to remember. Simon will be amazed if Scott doesn't sail through to the next round.

Kendall Beard decides to go back to her Country roots and picks "This One's for the Girls" by Martine McBride to perform. I'm not wild about the performance, but she's the best of the night for the girls so far. Kara points out that Kendall had some issues with the notes. Paula tells Kendall that she has the best outfit of the night. Simon couldn't wait for it to end halfway through. He wanted her to pick a song that better suited her voice. Randy thinks it was a good song choice but had issue with her vocal performance.

Kara had issues with Jorge Nunez' accent when he auditioned, so Jorge worked on it. For his performance, Jorge picks "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" by Elton John. He is easily the Top Guy for the night, regardless of pronunciation issues. Paula is proud of how hard Jorge has worked with a dialect coach to improve for the show. Simon thinks they were wrong to tell him not to sing with an accent. He points out that there are Spanish artists who do very well with accents. Randy says it's the vocals that matter and the vocals were very good. Kara tells Jorge that he has the gift of touching people when he sings.

Mother of three Lil Rounds picks "Be With You" by Mary J. Blige to sing. I had high hopes for Lil, but she is disappointing me tonight. The beginning of the song is terrible, but she picks it up for the chorus. Simon thinks she is brilliant. He picks this as his favorite performance and calls her one of the best they've found so far. Randy likes that she didn't lose her swagger. Kara calls her a powerhouse. Paula calls her first class.

For my Top Guy, it's definitely Jorge Nunez. My Top Girl (since I have to pick one) is Kendall Beard. I'd rather put through three guys, Jorge, Scott and Nate.

Random Thoughts:

1. Whomever put the microphone inside the judge's table needs to be fired. I cringed every time Kara or Paula spoke, because they kept banging on the table, sending the sound through the microphones. Also, you could hear the producers talking in the background.

2. Here we are about two months into American Idol and already I want to shoot the judges. I'm so sick of the bickering and fighting. If I want fighting, I can watch Jerry Springer. Why can't they just let each other talk and agree to disagree. It's called an opinion for a reason. I refuse to type up their bickering comments towards each other.

3. Jorge and the accent. Many of you know I'm an American married to a Dutchie and I lived in the Netherlands for several years so I'm used to accents. I really resent the idea that having an accent or singing with an accent makes you less of a singer. American Idol PICKED Puerto Rico as a stop on the tour. They have no * right to complain about accents when you go to a place where English is not the first language of many of the citizens. Yes, Puerto Rico is a territory of the U.S. Yes they speak English. But for most, Spanish is their first language so they have an accent. Why is it okay for Kellie Pickler to sing with the most God-Awful Twang ever, but a Puerto Rican accent is bad? Stars like Jennifer Lopez, Ricky Martin, Mark Anthony, Daddy Yankee and many more have all released songs here in the U.S. in Spanish that were popular. I hope he makes it into the Top 12. I hope they have Latin night again. I hope Jorge picks a Spanish song and sings in only Spanish. Even if I don't understand a word of what he's singing, I'll spend two hours voting for him just to prove a point.
**curlio**

1 comments:

Anonymous said...

i wish the crowd wouldn't "boo" whenever Simon says anything; he tells it like it is much better than the other judges