| Vocal Masterclass Discussion For American Idol Season 11 Top 5 Singers: British And Sixties MusicMasterClassLady.Com

Gene W May 2, 2012 at 1:32 pm

I’m sorry to hear that you are sick. Take care of yourself and I hope you get well soon.

Gene

Masterclass Lady May 2, 2012 at 2:03 pm

Thank you Gene. You always give insightful commentary, so I hope you can do so again. It’s my first time sick all season, but it’s a doozy. Had to cancel some obligations. Frustrating!

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Vonnie May 2, 2012 at 3:19 pm

Praying you feel better soon MCL… 🙂

Hi Gene W!!! Where ya been??? 😉

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Vonnie May 2, 2012 at 3:22 pm

If anyone would like to hear what Phillip may sound like on the radio, listen to Neon Trees, Everybody Talks, I think they sound alot like my Phillip!

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Gene W May 2, 2012 at 4:10 pm

MCL,
I know you’re miserable. That’s the risk you take with grandkids though. 🙂 Mine gave me a sore throat to take with me on vacation.

Hopefully Mindy will jump in and do the heavy lifting for you and I will be able to irritate her enough to keep it interesting. I’m trying to get excited about seeing my girl sitting in the audience tonight.

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Louise May 2, 2012 at 4:15 pm

So sorry to hear that you’re not feeling well, MCL. I hope you rest and will feel better soon!!!

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Gene W May 2, 2012 at 4:22 pm

Hi Vonnie,
I can’t believe you let Elise get voted off the island! I’ve been on a motorcycle trip for the last ten days or so and wasn’t able to vote. I got back in time to Dance with the Stars and watch the Voice on the DVR. Both were good. I chose a Hohner Blues Harp in D for my trip, BTW. It was a perfect travel companion.

I thought Philip was Dave Matthews’ voice with Joe Cocker’s voice.Neon Rainbow huh?

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brotherkarl May 2, 2012 at 4:37 pm

MCL – Sorry to hear that you’re not feeling so well. We’ll keep you in prayer. Your body probably needs a real good rest, and its getting ready to get it, although you love this site and this show so much I’m sure it’ll be hard for you to stay away.

Alright – I’m already for tonight. I’m not going to say who I think will be going home or who will be in the bottom tomorrow because some folks really get real sensitive if you say its one of their favorites who they are plugging away for. I’m almost certain the people who I vote the most for, who I think are the most talented are not going to win and thats alright because I know the kind of music I like is not what the majority of Idol voters like so if either of them is in the bottom tonight I won’t be so shocked. I would be shocked however if one of them went home

Instead I’ll mention one person who I’m pretty sure won’t be in the bottom …and thats Phil. Everybody else has been in the bottom before except him and while he is not at all my favorite , he is definitely an Idol voters favorite and I really enjoy watching him perform. All of theses kids are great!!!

Whats important tonight I think, is not how well anybody does or what any of the judges say ….whats I think is important is that we all vote for our favorite , whether they have a good night or not. Thats how much I believe in them. Thats my plan as well as the plan of a lot folks I talk to .

Should be an interesting night.

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Vonnie May 2, 2012 at 6:25 pm

Motorcycle trip with a harmonica…you got it goin’ on my friend; the hubby and son would turn green from envy!!!

Neon Trees…look them up, the song “everybody talks” give it a whirl.

I tried Gene, but couldn’t keep Elise on the island, my dreams of the elusive confetti bath are slipping away, Phillip is my only hope…(I feel like I just gave the all important line from Star Wars there, you don’t by chance have a R2 unit do ya?)

Brotherkarl, you speak wisdom, I wish I could be so civil, I usually have my feet so far in my mouth, that I can tickle my tonsils with my toes, then always need a glass of water to wash down my Dr. Scholls.

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Gene W May 2, 2012 at 7:52 pm

Hi Vonnie,
Neon TREES; I’ve got it now. I watched their video and they do have a similar style to Philip.

Yep, me and the harmonica, and did I mention Mrs Gene was with me as well. We got fairly close to your neck of the woods but began to get road weary and headed back home. It was a lot of fun.

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Anita May 2, 2012 at 8:37 pm

Get well soon Rosanne! I love ya! Hollie did so well with Mountain High, but I wish she had chosen something else. I’ve heard Idol contestants cover that song so often . I’m going to try like heck to get her into that Top 4!

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Mindy Moore May 2, 2012 at 8:50 pm

MCL,

Please forgive me for getting here so late. Of course, I would be happy to write another article giving my thoughts. It’s not you and never will be. But I will try to fill in and please if you are reading thing, take good care of yourself and get well! The flu is a nasty business! Don’t worry about us. We will be here chatting away and having a great discussion.

My thoughts are with you! 🙂

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Mindy Moore May 2, 2012 at 8:55 pm

I heard that Hollie did “River Deep, Mountain High”. That is a tough one to pull off. I am reading a few sites online to try and keep up as I wait patiently for the show to come on out here on the west coast. Sometimes I try not to even read what people think about the performances. I haven’t really read anything about the performances themselves. I want to see it fresh with nothing else in my head.

I will be voting like mad for Hollie tonight no matter what! It may well be a lost cause, but I am there for her as long as she is on the show.

I have no problem with anyone predicting who they think will go home. We all know who the obvious choice is for this week – Hollie. Anyone else will be a big surprise.

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Vonnie May 2, 2012 at 9:19 pm

Now how close to my neck of the woods did you get? You coulda gave me a shout and we coulda done lunch anyways!!!

I think you fullfilled my husbands dream, he would like for me to trade the horses in for motorcycles (we’d have to have two, cause I like to drive myself around) so that we could hit the open road…the reality of that looks so good on paper, but five minutes into the ride we be having it out over which way to go and who got to lead!

I’m glad you and the Mrs’s had a good time!!! Does she play harmonica too?

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Vonnie May 2, 2012 at 10:49 pm

My favorites of the night…Phillip, Hollie, and well, Phillip and Hollie!!! 🙂

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brotherkarl May 2, 2012 at 11:01 pm

Brotha Phil, Brotha Phil , Brotha Phill . Gimeah ticket fo ah airplane. Sing it Man.

Vonnie; You know what I always say. He definitely is not my favorite, but I love watching that brother sing. To me … I don;t care what the judges say ..Letter …to me is the song that brought him the American Idol title.

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Mindy Moore May 3, 2012 at 1:52 am

As I am feverishly dialing for Hollie, here is my masterclass article for tonight’s performances. Oh and get well, MCL! 🙂

Hollie really came into her own with two stellar performances. “River Deep, Mountain High” had me nervous. That’s some big shoes to fill! However, she came out strong and got better as the performance went on. She showed some real attitude, confidence and spunk in this performance. She was getting some grit in her vocals and it was a joy to see! I don’t know where she gets the power, but it’s absolutely unbelievable. This song is so hard to sing. Incredibly difficult to pull off. However, it was Hollie’s second performance that moved me to tears. This was a moment for me. What can I say? How do I do her justice? Seeing her sitting on the piano and starting off controlled, soft and restrained and then letting the momentum of the song build and build and the emotion and passion in her voice, well what can I say? It’s a standing “O” from me! Brava, Hollie! Yes, you did go out there and sing as though you didn’t care what the judges said! You sang your little heart out and I am so incredibly proud of you!

Philip did his thing with “The Letter”. I wondered what happened to the melody and then I realized that this is what Philip does to a song. It was kind of strange, but for him it seemed to work. He had his trusty guitar again and his vocals were very good here. I will always love Joe Cocker’s version of this song. But Philip did make it his own. With his limited vocal range, this was a good choice. Unfortunately, I did not think his performance of the Zombies great classic “Time of the Season” worked, even though this time he stayed with the beautifully distinctive melody. Those falsetto notes didn’t quite get there. He sounded strained and seemed to struggle mightily throughout the performance. I thought there was a curious lack of energy in this performance. It seemed like the song was dragging and it was sluggish. I give him credit for trying to do this song justice, however it didn’t seem to come together. I think this song actually highlighted the weaknesses and limited range of his voice.

Skylar’s great strength is her performance skill. She always comes alive on that stage with personality to spare. She enthusiastically worked the stage with CCR’s “Fortunate Son” and her energy was contagious. However, there were some vocal issues especially in the first part of the performance. I heard her sounding off key from the start. It just sounded off until she got to what I call her “money voice”. That is her growly power voice where she is totally in her comfort zone. When she’s there the vocals work much better. I thought that her performance skills helped her pull this off. Her second performance of the great Dusty Springfield’s “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me” was much better vocally. She seemed more centered and on key and the vocals had clarity and quality. I don’t know that this totally worked in a countrified version, but her ability to connect emotionally with the song gave this performance power and believability. I didn’t think she hit that last note. It seemed to be off and she cut it off and didn’t hold it.

Jessica should have listened to Little Steven and stayed away from “Proud Mary”. Not a good choice. Tina Turner pretty much owns this song and her delivery was seductive and sexy, speaking the words before she went into their version of CCR’s song. I thought that the slower beginning didn’t seem believable and then the quick changeup going into the uptempo part of the song seemed so abrupt. Jessica never disappoints vocally. She did a great job with the vocals. However, the performance value didn’t seem quite convincing. I thought she was trying to do Tina Turner’s moves and that risks making you look like an imitation. However, I thought that Jessica came back strong with a beautifully realized version of “You Are So Beautiful”. This is the Jessica I love so much, with controlled vocals, little variations and nuances and that gorgeous falsetto. I thought she didn’t hit that last note quite cleanly but overall this was so lovely. Seeing her just laying there amidst the clouds gave it a surreal quality which helped to highlight her gorgeous interpretation of this classic song.

Joshua did a good job with the Temptations for his first performance. Joshua is also someone who never disappoints vocally. I think this could have been kind of karaoke in lesser hands, but Joshua seemed comfortable dancing and grooving to the song and the dancers were a nice touch. But it was his second performance that really was the standout. I loved his version of “To Love Somebody” was incredibly powerful. He knows how to build to a crescendo in a song. It was absolutely amazing, but I do have one slight criticism and that is the tendency towards the end to get into the shouting and screaming. I honestly do not think that Joshua has to even go there. The emotion is in his voice and he doesn’t need the embellishment.

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Taymaro May 3, 2012 at 2:01 am

Sorry to hear you are sick MCL. Nobody can give the insight you can on these performances. I personally thought that Joshua did amazingly well on his last performance tonight. I noticed they gave Hollie the first spot tonight. Just another way to put her at a disadvantage once more. I think her performance may have been good enough to overcome that though.

Hollie also sang in a Trio with Jessica and Skylar. It was a great comparison of the three vocals and Hollie definitely out sang both of them IMO. Although Joshua had arguably the best performance of the night I think that Hollie had the best three combined and won the night.

Phillip really didn’t do himself any favors tonight trying to sing the Zombie song. He absolutely could not hit the high notes and it was almost painful to watch him try. He is a good performer, however awkward he might be, but his vocal range just isn’t there. But I guess some of the most popular male singers in the world aren’t really that gifted vocally. Robbie Williams for instance.

Jessica Sanchez did a great job tonight on her second performance but even it wasn’t perfect. As the competition goes on, IDK if it’s the pressure or self doubt or what, but her weaknesses are starting rear their ugly head. It seems maybe she is not the greatest singer in America, EVER after all.

Skylar just Skylared her way through her performances. She is a peppy little thing and performs well and sings well but she has a specific genre where she does great and is not quite as gifted as Hollie in my opinion.

I still miss DeAndre in the competition. I believe he could have out performed any of these contestants in some of the themes that they have ventured into since he left. I can think of a number of songs he could have nailed in any one of these themes. He was by far the best performer and his vocals came so naturally that he could concentrate more on his performance and really get the audience in an uproar. Was it really that great of a sin that he liked his hair? That’s what most people say was the big turn off for them concerning him. They said he seemed conceited and cocky because he kept flipping his hair as if he was an extremely vain individual. I saw him as a nice, polite, soft spoken, teenager who just thought his hair was cool. Every interview I have seen him in they always mention his hair so why wouldn’t he think it was cool. Oh well, maybe someone will grab him up and give him a shot. I will be first in line for his first album if it’s anything like the performances I have seen on Youtube and on American Idol.

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Taymaro May 3, 2012 at 2:13 am

Your remarks are so spot on Mindy. I think Jessica went a little sharp on that last note and on the previous chorus as well.

Joshua did great and I have criticized him before on the screaming but in this case I rather enjoyed the whole performance. I didn’t mind the energy at the end as much as I previously have. I think it was an absolutely stellar performance for Josh.

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Gene W May 3, 2012 at 3:22 am

Good music tonight! There were a lot of my favorite songs and artist featured in the top five round. These are my thoughts and random ramblings and are not intended to be a comprehensive review of the vocal abilities of these young performers.

Mindy, thanks for filling in again for MCL who I hope is having a restful night. I see we have a lot of areas of agreement.

Maybe Little Steven could drop in more often. Hollie was the clear leader coming out of round one for me but I had a sinking feeling when she explained why she chose “River Deep Mountain High. I think she used the exact words that Pia used when asked the same question. You may recall that Pia gave a very good performance of the same song the week she was eliminated. Hollie looked and sounded like a pro. The stage performance was nicely planed and she worked it in a very natural way. She seems to have put the paint by numbers behind her for good with at least two weeks of solid performances behind her now.

Phillip’s arrangement of “The Letter” didn’t work for me. I give him credit for trying to make it his own, given the two hit versions already on the record, but I didn’t care for this version. I really expected him to mimic Joe Cocker on this song but I’m glad he didn’t go there. We talk a lot about the pros and cons of young singers on idol. I recall that the boy who fronted the 1.5 hit wonders known as the Box Tops was 16 years old when they recorded that song. I only hope he got at least a penny every time it’s been played.

Were they kidding with the Righteous Brothers duet? Oh my. Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield, aka, the other guy, were great. These guys, sorry to say, were not. This was a very poor song choice for these two and not an inspire matching of singers for a duet. Given this group I think Skylar and Phillip and Joshua with Hollie and Jessica would have made for two more balanced groups.

CCR’s “Fortunate Son” seemed like an odd choice for Skylar, given the theme was the sixties. I’m pretty sure there was country music in the sixties. 🙂 I bought a country classic track recently that originates in that era. It appealed to me because of the irony of the lyrics as they relate to the woman singing the song as well as the excellent vocal in the traditional country style. The singer was Georgette Jones, daughter of George Jones and local girl gone country, Tammy Wynette. The song was I” Don’t want to Play House” originally recorded by her mother. The lyrics speak of the singer watching through the window as her little girl played outside. The irony of course was that the little girl was Georgette, who is now the singer. The point of that field trip was that there were thousands of song choices that might have been better at giving Skylar more depth and credibility as a country singer.

Jessica made an ambitious choice in taking on Proud Mary” which you may have noticed was done originally by CCR that Skylar covered and later by Ike and Tina Turner that Hollie covered. I’m mixed on this performance. While I give her credit for going a little grittier than normal for her and channeling a little bit of Tina in her performance, an eighty pound, 16 year girl can’t help but come up short trying to perform this song in the same way that Tina did. I noticed that Hollie didn’t attempt to sing in the same style that Tina did, instead making it her own, and I think her choice worked better for her than Jessica’s did in this case.

Joshua did a nice job of the Temptations’ “Ain’t Too proud To Beg” showing restraint, and delivering a clean R&B version of this classic. To his credit, Mantasia set on the bench for this round.

Round Two, British Pop

Hollie chose Leona Lewis’ “Bleeding Love” and was advised by Little Steven to sing as if she was singing to one person. This was an outstanding performance for Hollie so the faults that I saw were the difference between an A and an A+. Being familiar with Leona Lewis’ original version I could tell that Hollie rushed a few lines in the song and didn’t allow the words to soak in quite enough. This could be the result of the shorter format of Idol songs as compared to the original, so not that big of a deal. If she were recording it, a little more attention should be paid to that area. Keep in mind that I think this was an outstanding performance as I make my last observation. I thought about Steven’s advice as Hollie sang the song and I felt like she didn’t quite do what he advised her to do and the performance had , to a degree the same emotional disconnect that Hollie has been working hard to overcome. To see the whole picture I had to see Jessica’s performance and her emotional state at the conclusion of it. She was visibly shaken, wrung out. She had given us a part of herself. That is what great singers and performers of all types do; they open up, throw caution to the wind and give you everything they have. Hollie will do that in time and these excellent performances tonight will go toward building the confidence in herself, and the trust in her audience to let it all hang out as they say. I hope she and Jessica are both back next week for another round in the battle of the Divas.

Philip chose another great old tune from Rod Argent of the Zombies, “Time of the Season.” This performance actually relied on one of my undeniable truths of good music. That being any song featuring the most important musical instrument ever invented, the Hammond B3 organ, has a better than average chance of being good. What, you’ve never heard of that? I swear, it’s a rule. Keep in mind that the LAST B3 was build over 35 years ago and the instrument was used in at least two performances tonight alone. Phillip didn’t hold up his end of the stick. He was struggling in fact. I’ve heard better covers of this song at the local sock hop when I was a kid. Ray Chew rocked though.

The girls joined forces in a trio to perform Jackie Wilson’s (Your Love Keep Lifting Me) Higher and Higher. Jackie Wilson was another great R&B and soul pioneer who died tragically. The girls really worked hard to bring a fine vocal as well as a bit of showmanship. If I had to compare and rank the three girls in this performance, I would place Hollie at the top and Jessica over Skylar.

Skylar chose “You don’t Have to Say You Love Me” from the incomparable Dusty Springfield. I was glad to hear the two Stevens going on about Dusty. Steven Tyler had it right though. She was “the” leader of the women’s side of the British evasion and is still important today. This song choice was very interesting to me because when I heard the theme for the week there was only one song that I had settled on in my mind that I would like to hear, and it was this very song, unfortunately, it was Hollie that I wanted to hear sing it. Joan Osborn has covered many of Dusty Springfield’s songs and titled one of her albums after Dusty’s “Breakfast in Bed.” This album followed an outstanding album from Shelby Lynn who did nearly an entire album of excellent Dusty covers entitled “Just a Little Lovin.” I wish that Skylar had taken a minute to listen to the Shelby Lynn cover of this song. Even so, this was the closest Skylar has come to straight, unaffected singing that I have heard from her. I have wanted to hear what she could sound like with the country stylizing removed. It was honest and heartfelt with a good stage work, and it wasn’t bad, but I think she has better in her.

Jessica chose Joe Cocker’s “You Are so Beautiful to Me” a great song from one of my favorite male singers. Joe brought his gruff smoke and gravel voice to this tender love song in a way that could bring a tear to a grown man’s eye. His last note on the word “me “seemed to be squeezed out of a single alveoli at the lowest portion of his lungs; he almost managed a full on whisper. Jessica, by necessity, took a different approach to this song than Joe did, but it was every bit as effective. When Jessica is good, she is very good. Her strength in this performance was in conveying the emotional message of the lyrics. As I said earlier in my thoughts about Hollie’s performance, Jessica poured her heart into this song and appeared to have actually paid an emotional price for her efforts. The judges seemed to pause for a quick minute to give her a chance to regain her composure before giving their evaluations. This was the performance of the second round and of the whole night for me. In fact I think it was an Idol moment; the second for Jessica with the season’s third going to Elise.

Joshua closed the night with the Bee Gees’ “To Love Somebody” from the early years when the Bee Gees were at their best. This was a good song choice for him. After the first round I thought he should do something less predictable and this song fit the bill. I enjoyed most of the song, and even the first time he went gospel I was still hanging. He delivered well in his chosen style but it was when he morphed into Mantasia that he lost me. I had hoped he would take a similar approach to his first song but it wasn’t to be.

It was a good show and I really enjoyed the song choices for the night. I think I would give Hollie the edge overall, Jessica second, Joshua third, then Skylar followed by Phillip. Do I think the voting will go that way? No way.

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Gene W May 3, 2012 at 4:13 am

Vonnie,

We went up through the mountains of North Georgia, through Tennessee and North Carolina. We traveled along the Blue Ridge Parkway from the southern terminus to the Virginia border and rode all of the great roads in the deals Gap, Fontana Dam, Great Smokey Mtns areas of North Carolina. Our tentative original plan was to head over to the coast, somewhere hear the Virginia Beach area and then south from there, but there is always next time. We took the Goldwing on this trip but I also have a Concours that would have been more fun on the twisty Mountain roads.

Mrs Gene is a backseat driver only and only tolerates my harping but does none of her own; not with a harmonica anyway. We have intercoms on the bikes but she doesn’t know when I’ve turned hers off. I had an interesting experience on the road that ties in here. My iPod feeds into the intercom so we can listen to music. Sometimes I just set the entire music library to shuffle and let it play whatever it wants too. We listened to hundreds of songs that way. On three occasions I remember thinking, that’s nice, who is that? Once it was a song from one of Brook White’s CDs and twice it was songs that Pia did on Idol.

Trade the horses for a bike or two, it tends to bread co-operation…given enough time.

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Mindy Moore May 3, 2012 at 5:19 am

Gene,

I loved reading your thoughts! I really wish that you would be the guest blogger and do your own vocal masterclass subbing for MCL at least once. You make me think and then I have more to say to you!

We do agree on so many things. I really believe that Hollie is coming on strong. Whether it will be enough, I just do not know. She has been in the bottom two for the past two weeks and that’s never a good sign. All I wanted was for her to come out and do her best. I was so nervous about “River Deep, Mountain High”. On MJ’s blog, they were all saying how this was the song Pia did the week she was voted off. So that really set my mind at ease! LOL! I actually listened to it again on MJ’s blog. I have my recording of tonight’s show and will go back tomorrow and listen to all of them again, maybe with my eyes closed. Listening to this performance again, I actually think it was even better than I originally thought. In this song, Hollie got some grit in her voice and did some amazing runs and got some soul. She really seemed to be digging deep and pushing herself. She showed some personality and spunk out there. Great performance of a song that can reallly be the downfall of many.

I didn’t think Jessica’s performance of “Proud Mary” worked for pretty much the same reasons you did. She did similar choreography to Tina Turner, but no one can move on stage like her. It just wasn’t believable. It’s interesting to read your thoughts, because I like both Jessica and Hollie. But I am definitely more invested in Hollie. She is the one whose voice won me over. I hear the emotion in her voice. It’s that amazing tone and clarity and it gives me the chills. I also think that she is really starting to connect with her songs. It’s like there is a whole other dimension to her performances. I find that Jessica doesn’t seem to connect emotionally as much to her songs. I did feel it when she sang her second performance. I see her being so technically gifted with such incredible control over her voice, that the emotion sometimes gets lost. I do wish that Steven could have talked her out of “Proud Mary”. As you pointed out so well, Hollie didn’t attempt to sing it like Tina. She sang it more like Celine Dion, who covered this song.

I really did appreciate the acknowledgment of Dusty Springfield. I loved her so much. I also know about Shelby Lynn! In fact, I have some of her music downloaded. I discovered her on itunes a few years ago. I think your comments about Skylar were some of the most thoughtful and insightful ones. I agree with you that if she had listened to Shelby Lynn, she might have done it better. Also, like you I really wanted Hollie to sing this song. She ended up singing “Son of a Preacher Man” that week. This song was made for Hollie’s voice. Skylar doesn’t have the power. She doesn’t hold her notes the way that Hollie and Jessica do. I agree that it would be nice to hear Skylar without the country influence. I don’t think that her voice is holding up all that well. I also don’t love that twang in her voice. It’s not my thing.

Philip is going to drive me crazy! I went on youtube and listened to the original version of “The Letter” by the Box Tops. It was so wonderful and I really missed hearing the melody. But that seems to be what Philip does. For me his voice is much too limited and just not appealing. I thought he butchered “Time of the Season”. He didn’t hit any of the falsetto notes, but the judges never call him out. I had to also listen to the Zombies doing it the way it should sound.

I have no idea what is going to happen tomorrow night. Anything goes. But I have been ready for the last three weeks for Hollie to go home. If it happens, then at least she goes out on a high note.

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Louise May 3, 2012 at 6:18 am

Some great observations here from Mindy and Gene about last night’s performances. This is one of those times when I’m going to be concise because I don’t have much time, I loved both of Hollie’s performances, Jessica’s second performance was beautiful, Joshua comes in second, and then this is where I differ from Gene–I have to put Philip next, and Skylar last. I have absolutely no idea who might go home tonight. I really hope it’s not Hollie.

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Louise May 3, 2012 at 6:19 am

I actually meant to say that Joshua comes in third (not second).

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Vonnie May 3, 2012 at 7:58 am

Well if you are inclined to believe dial idol…Phillip is going home tonight! There goes my confetti bath…no wait, I still have Hollie.

Gene you were close to my stomping grounds…

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brotherkarl May 3, 2012 at 8:01 am

Busy dialing last night for my favorites

Mindy:
Every comment you made tonight in my opinion was right on point. I think thats because now we’re down to the “real deal”, the true “cream of the crop”. These kids are really good. I’ve kind of made it clear that while I like Hollie, she definitely isn’t my favorite …..but last night when she started off the show, to me she kicked it up so many notch’s for me. Undeniably Awesome!! In my opinion she had the best performance of the night. If winning Idol was based on last nights performance,to me …Hollie would be the winner. I’m also in total agreement with what you said about Joshua when you said “I honestly do not think that Joshua has to even go there. The emotion is in his voice and he doesn’t need the embellishment.” He is my very favorite, but sometimes those embellishments are overkill ..enough already.

Gene:
When you said …. “when he morphed into Mantasia” ….. (LOL) I fell out. I kept getting this picture of him doing one of one of those growls, and instantly he turns into this 12 foot Fantasia and everybody start screaming and running out the building. I read it last night and I woke up this morning and I was cracking up. You could not have said it better. Your line up of best performances of the night, to me was all the way right, but I’m definitely like you …if the voting went that way. I’d be all the way shocked.

As usual … I thought last nights show was great ..but I must say …even though I made my predictions weeks ago and everything is panning out pretty much like I’ve thought , after last night, I don;t know. I really don’t know. I’d like to see Hollie have a chance to do again ..what she did last night. Gene, I can really see that battle of the Diva’s. Before tonight I would not have said that. I didn’t give her any votes, I gave them all to my favorites, Jessica and Joshua.

If it were solely my pick though…and someone had to go, I’d pick Skylar. I;m just not into that. She reminds me of the singers you see in these cowboy movies in some little town where they walk in the bar and you see them fighting and chairs being thrown all over the place. Skylar however is one who has always been one of the favorites of the Idol audience, so I will stick with what I’ve been saying . Phil will be in the top again and whoever is with him in the top …will be in the finale.

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Vonnie May 3, 2012 at 8:19 am

I still think Skylar is going to be crowned Idol Queen!!!

Lol, Mantasia, I thought the same thing listening to him sing last night, so funny! Gene, you crack me up!

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Louise May 3, 2012 at 9:08 am

Vonnie,

I really hope you’re wrong about Skylar!

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Masterclass Lady May 3, 2012 at 9:52 am

Good morning everyone. I am still pretty sick here and couldn’t even watch Idol last night. Too busy with my head in the toilet. Straight from the diaphragm! Ha!

Anyway, it sounds like a great show and thank you all for your in depth reviews. I am going to add them as a separate blog topic. Mindy and Gene – great insight. Thank you.

Off to bed for a while.

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Louise May 3, 2012 at 9:56 am

So sorry to hear how sick you are, MCL. No wonder you weren’t able to watch Idol. When you do finally get to see it, I think you will be pleased. Get better soon!!!

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Vonnie May 3, 2012 at 10:52 am

Oh! Louise, me too!!! I actually fast forwarded through her songs last night.

Round 1 last night, for me:

Hollie
Joshua
Phillip
Jessica
Skylar

Round 2:

Hollie
jessica
Phillip
Joshua
Skylar

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Vonnie May 3, 2012 at 10:59 am

Ummm! Me again!

Hollie’s voice is crystal clear

Phillip reminds me of Louis Armstrong (whom I love)

Joshua I like at times, I liked when he did the Stevie Wonder song a while back, cause then he didn’t sound like Fantasia (I can think of better artists for him to mimick)

Jessica when she is singing soft her voice is breathtaking, but when she does runs and adds the growl, her voice sounds very gravely to me

Skylar I wish she would sing one time without that twang, it is so forced, I think she would have a pretty voice is she sang without twang!

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Gene W May 3, 2012 at 11:58 am

MCL,
I’m glad to hear you made it through the night with at least your humor intact. I love to read what you write because you are very articulate and have a nice conversational style of writing, but that is hands down the FUNNIEST thing I have ever read from you!

Drink plenty of water even if you don’t want to and keep a circular mouth position.

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brotherkarl May 3, 2012 at 12:18 pm

Hey Gene:

Question. I’m curious. Just off the cuff … right now who would you predict to be this years Idol. Not who is the best, but who do you think will win? I;d like to hear your best shot! Oy maybe an easier question will be …who do you see in the top 2?

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katillac May 3, 2012 at 1:09 pm

MCL, I hope you feel better soon!
I absolutely loved Hollie and Joshua last night, and Jessica and Skylar were good too. As for Phillip, every week I like him even less. I think it’s his turn to go home.

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Mindy Moore May 3, 2012 at 4:48 pm

brotherkarl,

I don’t remember your predictions from a while back. Do you want to tell us again how you think this will play out? I admit that if Hollie does go home this week, it will make me sad. Just when she really rose to the occasion. I think it might well be two girls in the bottom two this week. I don’t think Joshua is going anywhere and Philip seems to get by no matter what.

I would love to see a battle of the divas with Jessica and Hollie, but I do not think it will come to pass.

MCL,

That is the funniest thing you have ever written! I really wish you could have watched last night. Hollie just killed it with both of her performances. Unbelievable! Where this is coming from, I don’t know. She has transformed and is singing with conviction, passion and feeling. She pulled off the unthinkable with “River Deep, Mountain High”. The more I listen to it, the better it sounds. She really seemed to dig deep for that performance. Singing that song is like vocal acrobatics. It’s a minefield. She was so in the moment, just throwing in some runs and letting that voice soar! I am so very proud of her!

When you listen to “Bleeding Love” I think you will be moved as I was. The tears come every time I listen to it. Someone on MJ’s blog posted the recorded version and that was magnificent. She really owned it and did it better than Leona Lewis. The poignancy and depth of emotion in her performance was wonderful!

Please get well and come back to us soon! 🙂

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Masterclass Lady May 3, 2012 at 4:59 pm

Mindy and Gene – thank you for laughing. I needed that. Still feel like !!!!! but what can you do? These flu bugs suck you dry. Oh, and Gene, trust me!! My mouth was round but my throat was constricted and tight but the sound came out anyway – along with everything else. Existing on fluids here!

I was hoping to have your masterclass evaluations up by now, but I just get so winded doing the slightest thing. I am so sorry. Maybe later on this evening.

Mindy – I did watch the performances over at MJs and, truly, Hollie was the best of the night. The others all had one performance that was great, but Hollie slam-dunked both plus the trio. Put a smile on my face.

Thanks to everyone for sending your well wishes. I think I will be able to watch the results tonight from my bed, so that’s progress, I guess!!

Will try to add a blog topic for the results show but, if not, continue the party here on this topic.

Love to all!!

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Gene W May 3, 2012 at 6:08 pm

Mindy,
I’ve been tied up most of the day and haven’t had time to catch up on my blogging. I’ve pecked on this all day so you may have already gone past these topics, but here goes anyway.

I’m glad I didn’t make you mad. Hollie IS in the middle of a remarkable comeback. Randy may be right that her timing is just right but the other side of that coin is sometimes when you bloom late the fans have committed to someone else. I thought her “River Deep was outstanding from front to back and that her stage craft was far better than Pia’s .I hadn’t thought of Celine Dion’s performance of this song, but you are right, that was more the style that Hollie went with. I worry that the bus that comes for people who have just had their best night could stop at her doorstep.

Are you kidding me? There is actually a You Tube video of the Box Tops? There may be one of me being born out there somewhere. I grew up with this song. All of the garage bands and sock hop bands covered the original and then went Joe Cocker stood it on it’s ear, they covered his version. Bar bands still do it today. It has amazing legs for a teenage garage band song.

Speaking of amazing legs, well, Miss Jessica has nice shoes, but Tina has legs bigger than Jessica and she ain’t afraid to use them. Little Steven should have said “don’t go there kid, you’ll get hurt. Her’s a tidbit for you. Did you know that Ike Turner recorded the first rock and roll song?

I have agreed with Vonnie before about Skylar going all the way and have been pretty confident that Phillip would be number two. I hope not in both cases, but I’m not as sure now. I would really like to hear Hollie and Jessica again.

It does my heart good to hear that you like Shelby Lynn. She is another Alabama girl. She is the only country, jazz, swing, R&B singer that I have ever seen. I actually had tickets in hand to see her about a month ago and decided not to go because you have to stand the whole time and my back won’t do that. I regret it though.

I have a download recommendation just for you Mindy. I will mail you $1.29 if you don’t love it. I tried to suggest this to you in a previous thread but it wouldn’t accept anymore post. Anyway, it’s Sara Bareilles doing Otis Redding’s “Dock of the Bay” recorded live at the Fillmore. In fact you can watch the video on You Tube. There are two actually. The first is her stage performance, self accompanied on piano, and the other is probably in her dressing room accompanied by a guy playing guitar. Both are outstanding IMHO. The piano version is the one available on iTunes. Watching her singing in the guitar version is the best argument I could ever make for why I don’t like to see a singer hold their microphone right up to their mouth so you can’t see their mouth. It’s a thing of beauty to watch her sing and emote. The Steven Tyler quote was unintentional.

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brotherkarl May 3, 2012 at 6:22 pm

Hi Mindy:

A while back now I predicted that 4 (Phil,Skylar,Jessica and Joshua) would be in the Top 5, and they are there. It wasn’t based on who I thought were the most talented or any individual performance they gave …just on fanbase and how fanbases are influenced. For example: When Hollie’s critiques were bad I knew her fans would rescue her. Same with Jessica when she she got the “save”. I said “continuous good critiques” usually cause the fans not to vote as much. And as you noticed, Jessica, Joshua,and Skylar
have had continuous good critiques and all now have been in the bottom.

So …my prediction is …. seeing that last night was the first night that Phil’s judges critiques weren’t glowing as the others last night , his fans witnessed all of that and IF (thats a BIG IF) they are really fans and things go as normal, his fans will vote more than they regularly do and he will not be in the bottom. The other person who stands in the top with him tonight is the person with the next biggest fan base …and Phil and that person will be in the finale. (The person who appears to have next biggest fan base is Skylar) If my memory serves me correctly the judges gave glowing comments only to Hollie, Joshua and Skylar, (its what I have been calling “the judges curse” , MCL one time called it the “kiss of death). They’re intended for good but almost always backfire

IF everything goes like it normally does, Phil (will be in the top tonight not because he he’s the best but because he wasn’t seen as one of the better performances ) and … IF he is there tonight, He will ultimately win Idol because after this week I think there’s no more bottom 3. Its not a hunch …its just the way the Idol voters have continually voted this year. While Hollie was awesome last night I think she has the smallest fan base, because she’s been in the bottom so many times ….and if its really just about fanbase (which I think is) then Holly will be going, leaving Syklar, jessica and Joshua battling for spot number 2 . If Phil is in the bottom then all the flaws in my observations will be exposed and they are no more than hunches

Things could be different but IF IT GOES AS NORMAL and Phil is safe …then thats how I believe its going down. Its not superstition, or a hunch …its just usually how it goes. We all know that its not usually the best talent that wins , its person who can garner the biggest fan base that wins.

The two who I personally believe are the most talented are Jessica and Joshua, but I’d be really surprised to to see if either wins

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Masterclass Lady May 3, 2012 at 6:35 pm

Just resting here and reading everyone’s comments. I find it interesting that the judges are giving glowing – albeit deserving ones – for Hollie at this crucial time in the competition.

Now, it could be the lack of food talking here, but wouldn’t it be a hoot to think that Hollie was the Chosen One from Day One and Idol was pulling our strings with the backlash and less than stellar comments for most of the competition?

But, I really think they want a FEMALE to win and will stop at nothing to achieve their cause. And, they have 3 females in that Top 5. I don’t see one of those guys beating those odds for the Top 2.

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BlairB May 3, 2012 at 6:42 pm

gosh. someone please tell jessica not to sing songs that are bigger than her. it makes her look desperate or, in simon cowell’s words “self indulgent”. in songs within her vocal range, she sounds great. otherwise, she sounds kinda awful. … my two cents.

i think joshua and hollie did great with their songs.

about phillip, well … what can i say. he is getting all the votes and on his way to winning AI. but just not for me. good luck anyway.

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Gene W May 3, 2012 at 6:48 pm

Karl,
I’m glad you enjoyed the Mantasia thing. You know, he really does transform, it’s a physical thing, and like you said before, he suddenly becomes a little more tasia than man. I like Joshua and I would like to see that traditional R&B revival that Randy spoke of but I still think Mantasia needs to sit on the bench most of the time. It could really be a powerful thing if he just did that briefly and every now and then.

You ask who I think will win. I have thought for a while, and Vonnie said it first, that Skylar will win and I believed that Phillip will come in second. They are neither my favorites nor the two that I believe to be most talented or skilled. Skylar’s strength is that she has competed unopposed as the only country singer in a year following a country one-two finish. Those fans are still out there but they don’t necessarily transfer. Country is part of my mix but I don’t care for Skylar’s style. When she did the Kenny Rodger’s Dolly Parton duet with Colton was really the only time I enjoyed hearing her sing. She also has excellent stagecraft and enjoys a high comfort level on stage. She seems to appeal to fans beyond typical country fans as well. Her weakness is having been in the bottom three. Somehow Phillip seems to be able to do no wrong and he hasn’t seen the stools of doom. He also is heir apparent to the white guy with guitar title, which has always been a powerful position on Idol. He is probably the most unique or original of the remaining group.

The two remaining girls share a common issue that has hurt contestants in the past and that is the perception of being foreign. They may have paired them up to cancel that factor out because it hasn’t seemed to hurt them. Sixth place is as far as anyone with foreign roots has gotten in my memory. I’ve lost a few of my favorite to that issue.

Josuah has run a pretty good race as well and you couldn’t get higher praise from the judges than he usually gets. I think you could make a case for any of them winning or losing at this point, but the answer to your original question id Skylar.

You mentioned liking Gospel and R&B before; do you listen to any Blues?

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Vonnie May 3, 2012 at 7:15 pm

Gene and Brotherkarl,

Is it just me or have you noticed that we are not getting to see these kids personalities, that they are letting the pieces fall where they may?

We were left with images of Elise being upset by being criticized as well as Colton leaving us with a burning image of him saying he didn’t care after being criticized, we have watched poor little Hollie get bombarded week after week, and her just standing there like a little child.

What happened to those funny little clips and chats in between songs??? We had windows into these kids lives.

Are the votes causing TPTB to lose control and so they don’t want us to like someone that they don’t want in the finale…?

Haven’t we all other years been so inundated with back stories that you weren’t sure if we were trying to crown Mr. or Mrs. Congeniality instead of a singing contest. We watched interviews of parents and siblings and who ever else would hold still to be interviewed.

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Kariann Hart (@KariannHart) May 3, 2012 at 7:24 pm

MCl, I have been sick most of April with a respiratory infection. These things just hand on. Strange thing though, my Grandchildren (whom I watch during the week when Mommy & Dady are at work) never got sick! Let’s pray we both get better. Enough is enough!

Both Jessica and Hollie are wonderful singers, but I sense vote splitting. Joshua has the R&B crowd jumping for joy. The country fans get out there and vote for Skylar. Many assume the teen girls (and others) adore Phillip’s good looks. Hmmmm…. My sincere belief is that Phillip really NEEDS to go home! He just seemed to be a bit listless. Give him a chance to rest up after the media visits. He needs to prepare for the grueling schedule of the tour. I would hate to see him get sick while on tour.

Hollie had a wonderful evening with two great song choices. She seems like such a sweet young lady. Good to see her bounce back from the judges’ criticism. She’s gonna make that TOP 3.

Jessica’s first performance was good. I didn’t like the dress she wore as it was distracting, but her vocals were good. However, “You Are So Beautfiul” was the best performance of the evening. Again, this is my personal opinion. That was just awesome. If she sounds like this at 16, what will a more mature voice of 26 sound like? WOW! I think she’ll be in the TOP 3.

I am so familiar with the Motown music that I was disappointed in Joshua’s “Too Proud to Beg”. His voice is a bit gravely like James Brown. Sam Cook and Jackie Wilson are such powerful singers, I don’t know if Joshua will ever get there! However, I sincerebelieve vocal training would HELP him. He needs to take care of his voice. I fear blown out vocal cords or nodules. (You can tell I know nothing about vocal training.)

Does Skylar have a cold? She was very nasal on both songs. I do like the selections but was a bit disappointed. This girl has so much energy. She will start off the concert production. Right now, she’s in danger of going home. I do see a career in Country music for her.

THE MUSIC OF THE 1960’s ARE SO FANTASTIC – LOVED THE THEME!!

One final comment…I think the judges are losing it. They make the craziest comments. Someone needs to be replaced next year.

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Gene W May 3, 2012 at 7:43 pm

MCL,

I’m glad that you feel well enough to laugh about it a little bit but I’m sorry that you are suffering. Even with the throat constriction the porcelain can add a nice resonant quality that is hard to achieve with other methods; don’t you think? There is no need on my part to make a special blog topic and I’m sure Mindy would feel the same way. Thank you very much for the thought but I would rather you conserve your energy and get well, for the sake of the others!

I’ve had the same thoughts about Hollie’s rise and the backlash voting effect. I know it works in my case. When my favorite is in trouble, I vote as much as possible. I believe that Jessica and Hollie have shared fans from time to time. The first time Hollie seemed to be in trouble and the fans responded for her, Jessica hit bottom. Since that time, Hollie’s own fan base seems to have grown, and deservedly so.

I hope she gets to stay and I would also like to see Jessica stay. I have a hard time seeing both of them in the top two though.

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Gene W May 3, 2012 at 8:03 pm

Vonnie,
I think you’ve made a good point about the lack of background this year compared to what we have had in the past. I have to admit to being swayed by those back stories but I hadn’t noticed them missing until you mentioned it. I can see how removing that information from the mix could enhance their control over the vote outcome, but I think it works even better the other way. My guess is that we should look at it as one of the attempts that Idol has made in the last few seasons to respond to the wishes expressed by viewers regarding what they would like to see on the show. I know I have read a number of snide remarks over the years regarding back stories.

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Gene W May 3, 2012 at 8:04 pm

Hey Kariann,
Sounds like a song. I’m sorry to hear that you have been sick for so long. Maybe you will see some relief as the pollen subsides a little. I hope you are well soon.

I really enjoyed and was touched by Jessica’s “You are so Beautiful.” I felt like she left a piece of herself on the stage last night. That doesn’t take away from Hollie’s fine performances all night at all. This was one of the best theme nights I’ve seen in a long time.

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Masterclass Lady May 3, 2012 at 8:04 pm

Gene – we have our own little theme going here, right? Yes, the porcelain would add some ambient resonance, similar to a cathedral’s chamber. Haha. But, the end result is just – splat! Lack of natural ring! Okay. I have to stop. The waves of nausea are starting again.

Feeling so much better tonight. At least, I can watch TV. Huge improvement!

Kari Ann – you are my Idol. How, how, how do you watch these kiddies on a weekly basis? And you are so ill on top of being so busy? What a great grandma you are. I hope you become better soon.

My grandson was with me as well, but I had to send him home to his parents (they live two hours away). I was just too weak. Plus my other grandson was with me as well – wanted to give his pregnant Mommy a rest.

Idol is on. Back later!!

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Gene W May 3, 2012 at 8:08 pm

MCL,
Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha! I’m sorry. Ha Ha ……………

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Vonnie May 3, 2012 at 8:53 pm

Wow! Those are not the two that I expected to see in the bottom…we are having terrible storms and my power just came back on, who else was in the bottom?

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Vonnie May 3, 2012 at 8:59 pm

Wow!!! Okay Gene…plan B

Well my boys still got a chance and my girl Hollie’s still got a chance…but I don’t have clue who will win now!!!

I think Skylar should have went home weeks ago, though!

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Masterclass Lady May 3, 2012 at 9:02 pm

Wow I didn’t see this coming. And Vonnie my satellite kicked out when Ryan pronounced the “S” in Skylar’s name. Anyone think that next week it’s Phil’s turn? The guy is falling apart at the seams.

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Gene W May 3, 2012 at 9:04 pm

Vonnie,
Yeah, I’m pretty sure it won’t be Skylar in the confetti this year. Best of luck to her. It looked like it was harder on Hollie than Skylar though.

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Louise May 3, 2012 at 9:10 pm

Wow! That was a surprise, but I can’t say that I’m unhappy. I wish Skylar well and am sure she’ll have a successful career in country music. I was actually surprised to read comment after comment today from others who weren’t crazy about her twang. Last night I had a really hard time hearing most of the words in her first song.

I am so relieved that Hollie is still in this group. And, yes, I do think it’s time for Philip to go but he probably has too many fans

Jimmie made a really good point about Jessica’s dress for Proud Mary. She definitely looked older than 16. Several weeks ago he told her she should sing more age appropriate songs. But I LOVED her version of “You Are So Beautiful.” It was gorgeous.

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Gene W May 3, 2012 at 9:11 pm

MCL,
Of those remaining Skylar was the second best choice to go for me. I thought Phil was on his way out before Colton. That shows how much I know. It seems that one of the unshakable laws of Idol is if the majority of teen girls and older women agree on a contestant “he” will win. It takes both groups though.

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Vonnie May 3, 2012 at 9:14 pm

MCL…I don’t know, seems to be one’s going home now, that I would have thought would have been here when the confetti fell.

I think Phillip has a huge fan base, Ryan said so last week! I really like Phillip so I won’t be sad if he wins.

I must say that right now in the pop music, the more eccentric your voice the better, and I think Phillip has that distinct sound that you will know him when you hear him on the radio…

But who knows, I never would have guessed Skylar going home!

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Anita May 3, 2012 at 9:47 pm

That Hollie! She keeps pulling through. I’m so happy for her. Randy said this is the best Top 5 ever. Hmmmm…..Season 7 there was David, David, Syesha, Jason, and Carly. They certainly have a great Top 5 this season, but I’m not sure it beats Season 7!

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Gene W May 3, 2012 at 9:59 pm

Anita,

I’m glad that Hollie made the cut.

In season seven I believe that Brooke White out lasted Carly Smithson, didn’t she?

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Masterclass Lady May 3, 2012 at 10:04 pm

Anita – how right you are! Season 7 still was the best season ever and, most definitely, the best Top 5 ever.

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Mindy Moore May 3, 2012 at 10:06 pm

I am so drained from following the results online. MJ’s blog crashed and I couldn’t get on to see whether it was Hollie or Skylar. I was sure it would be Hollie, given how often she has been in the bottom. Finally I got on and saw that Skylar was eliminated! I didn’t see that coming. I do think that of the three girls left, she was the weakest vocally. Jessica and Hollie are both so strong and are probably splitting votes.

It hasn’t sunk in yet that Hollie is in the top four! I am so happy for her, but being in the bottom two each week has to take a toll on her. Poor girl! I am assuming that this is Philip’s to lose. I really thought it was time for a girl.

Gene,

I am listening to Sara Bareilles singing “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay” on youtube. This was the version with her singing along to the guitar. I love her and have several of her songs downloaded. I thought that was simply amazing! Now I am listening to the Fillmore youtube video. I had no idea that she could do such a great cover of that 60’s oldie but goodie! Nice!

So what’s your take now? Skylar is gone. Who wins this? Philip? I am trying to let it sink in that Hollie is still there. I am so proud of her for doing so well even as she is in the bottom every week. A real trouper!

MCL,

I am with Gene. We don’t need a guest blog. Save your strength and just rest and get well. 🙂

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Masterclass Lady May 3, 2012 at 10:42 pm

Mindy and Gene – thank you from the bottom of my heart!! XO. Will try my best, though.

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Gene W May 3, 2012 at 10:57 pm

Hi Mindy,
That had to be nerve racking for those of you that lost your cable at the critical moment. Hollie’s still hanging in there. I was curious what the judges were saying when the results were revealed. It appeared that Steven said to Jenifer “that’s just wrong” or “they got it wrong” or something like that. If so, that’s just tacky and un-called for, no matter which way it went.

I have no idea now. I was going a little outside the envelope with Skylar as a girl against a WGWG who hasn’t been in the bottom two or three. So it would seem that Phillip would be the one to beat, but, they have continuously pimped Josh to the point of having exhausted all of the known superlatives in both the English language and the Dawg lexicon. Jessica has had a pretty good ride with the judges as well, so conventional wisdom would probably say that Hollie is the only one in the competition who absolutely cannot win. So Hollie is my pick. 🙂 or I no longer have a clue.

I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the Sara. Do I get to keep my buck 29? Be sure to WATCH the video. I really enjoyed seeing her sing this song. Actually, she does a lot of covers in her act still. I would also recommend that you check out one entitled “Sara Bareilles – Oh Darling (Live from Abbey Road)” There are several sessions like this from other artist who were invited to record at the historic Apple Abbey Road studio. They each do a Beatles cover and then one or two of their own songs. In addition to “Oh Darling” she does her own songs “Gravity” and “Love Song.” Another one that I enjoyed was “Come Together” done at Abbey Road by Sugarland. Jennifer Nettles voice works pretty well on this song.

Forgive me for speaking for you earlier but I felt confident that you would feel the same way.

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Mindy Moore May 3, 2012 at 11:02 pm

Gene,

No problem! You can always speak for me! I trust you! We want MCL to have a nice rest and not worry about the blog.

No worries, I did watch the video. I have “Gravity” and “Love on the Rocks” downloaded. However, I was so impressed with her version of “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay”. She killed it! I really love her. And yes, you can keep your buck 29! 🙂

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brotherkarl May 3, 2012 at 11:13 pm

Louise;

Wow are my exact sentiments. My next line wouldn’t be “I’m unhappy” though. (LOL). I hate to see any of them go. I said on here earlier today that if it were my pick , it’d be Skylar and I guess some folks out there think like me and you.

Also … as usual what I call “the judges curse” worked again. Last night when Ryan asked the judges who gave the stellar performances they ALL said Hollie, Skylar and Joshua and I believe had there been “a bottom 3” they all would have been there, BUT there were only 2 and 2 who they did say were great, Skylar and Hollie, were in the bottom,and the 2 they didn’t include as great (Phil and Jessica) were in the top.So much of this show is almost 95% predictable and then there’s the other 5 that make it so very interesting.

Like Hollie. She is truly riding in as dark horse just like Randy said. It’s so interesting to me . I said just a couple of post above ….. If wining was based on last nights performance alone , Hollie would be the winner. It was indeed an awesome performance. She is definitely not someone who I personally would say is the best, but obviously shes building a fan base because she’s still in. On my own blog from the first time I saw her I gave her as a 4 , which is “an interesting talent, I’m just not sure”. Shes the only talent I think out of the 80 or so that I rated, that I gave that score to. I’m still not sure. One things for sure she definitely has a fan base in this site.

Mindy –
Its looking like the battle of the divas that you spoke of is here. So interesting.

Gene ..
You said “sit Mantasia out” (LOL) I’m just with you so much on that. I really believe if he ..left …her … out of it totally , it would make every body a little bit more comfortable …and I think he’d win hands down. And watching those 2 brothers perform last night together… I just didn’t get it. I thought it was going to be like a BRO mance, but it was more like …he couldn’t stand it. Tasia …is messing it up for him.

Oh …Blues …I’m not a big blues fan ….but I do like some kinds of blues. If this makes any sense … I don’t like blues songs …but I like some blues voices. Taylor Hicks had a blues kind voice and I loved him. One of my absolute Idol favorites. There was another guy in the top 24 that had a blues voice like that …can’t think of his name. Is there a such things as a blues voice?

Vonnie
Your boy, Phil, once again is in the top and it looks like its going to be a clean sweep. I said earlier if he made it in the top again, he;d be …The Next American Idol” and I;m sticking behind it .

Phil Phillips will be the next American Idol.

Also I was thinking about what you said earlier and those story’s and clips really work.
They made Kelly Pickler one of Idols biggest stars who wasn’t even in the top 4. If more of the stories were there I think it’d help make them all stars whether they won or not.

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Gene W May 3, 2012 at 11:20 pm

Mindy,

I agree Mindy, and thank you for the confidence. I share that feeling about you as well. If you can’t trust your sister, who can you trust, right?

Not to belabor the point but my emphasis was on “watching” because you had said you were “listening” to it. For me, the visual of how much Sara puts into her songs, and this one in particular I don’t really have words to explain I guess. The video of “Oh Darling” is as good as the two “Dock of the Bay” videos. I really like Sara. I’m sure you would have enjoyed seeing her in the role of judge on the Sing Off. It was the sort of judging that we all are looking for from the Idol crew.

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Mindy Moore May 4, 2012 at 1:21 am

Gene,

The more you talk about the Sing Off, the more I wished that I had seen it. I will check out “Oh Darling”. I always watch them, but I just was so anxious to tell you how much I was enjoying listening to it. I agree about the importance of watching, too. She is so much more versatile that I would have thought. It’s not easy to interpret songs from the 60’s. As we have seen at times on this show!

Please know that anything you say will be appreciated by me. Even if you don’t like Hollie, that’s fine. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. If we all agreed, this would be a very boring place. What I like is that you keep it real and are true to yourself. You are also very smart when it comes to music.

Yes, I will always trust my big brother! 🙂

brotherkarl,

I do enjoy reading your thoughts about how you think it will all play out. However, I don’t think it will be a battle of the divas in the finale. That can’t happen because Philip is a sure thing to be there. I felt that if he survived what I thought was a night of one decent performance where he threw away the great melody of a classic 60’s song, and a really bad performance in which he didn’t pull off another classic 60’s song from the great Zombies, “Time of the Season”, where he did sing the melody, then there is no stopping him. He didn’t hit those falsetto notes and that took a lot of the energy and life out of that performance. If you can avoid the bottom after that, then you are invincible.

I am still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that Hollie made it to top four! What a fighter! I think that Little Steven gave her really great advice. If I could have talked to her, that is exactly what I would have told her – the heck with the judges! Do your thing and don’t even worry about them. That is exactly what she did. Also, when you are less tense, nervous and worried, it can only help your vocals. It’s like she freed herself and just soared. Every time I watch “River Deep, Mountain High” I find more things to appreciate. Hollie was smart to do the Celine Dion version. Trying to do Tina Turner’s version would be impossible. That is where Jessica went wrong. You cannot try to imitate this legend. Can’t be done. She didn’t go off key even having to walk from the audience up to the stage. There was a lot of movement and choreography in this performance and she was able to do it without compromising the vocals.

I had a very different feeling about Hollie than you did. I sensed the potential from the first time I heard her. Thanks to Gene, I watched her youtube videos and that’s where I saw more of her potential. I knew that something wasn’t working on the show, because I have seen her connect with a song and sing in a much more animated way, connecting with the words of the songs. Maybe she was psyched out by the pressure. I don’t think the comments from the judges helped. Something just wasn’t right with her. She couldn’t let go.

Oh, now that I have seen tonight’s results show out here on the west coast, I have to say that Jimmy’s comment about Hollie’s performance of “Bleeding Love” being “competent” was bull! Where are you, MCL! I need you! I thought that performance was so poignant, so moving and a real moment for her. She did two great performances, Jimmy! Tell it like it is! But I think that when Little Steven told her to sing that song to one person, that was brilliant advice. He was so helpful in his comments.

I read on MJ’s blog that the theme for next week will be California Dreamin’. Whatever that is. I have no idea. There will have to be another theme, too. We will have to wait and see.

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Chad May 4, 2012 at 4:34 am

I have to say, after tonight’s travesty on this “show”, I’m about done with it. That the powers-that-be have done nothing about the voting – by limiting the voting allowed to only so many votes per number/IP address and/or charging for the votes – clearly proves that Idol is not about talent. Let me be clear, I am not saying that three of the four left on the show don’t belong there – clearly they do – but that one of the four has never landed in the Bottom 3, and should of, “at the very least”, been in the Bottom 2 tonight, is almost inexcusable.

Also, Hollie sang her butt off last night, and did a superb job, and for Jennifer Lopez to sit there and say that the 3 that were safe were the right 3, again, just goes to prove how little this woman, and moreso, this judging team, know about vocal ability and clear, unadulterated talent. Hollie in no way should of been in the Bottom 2, any more than JLo should be playing with a pubescent boy. Sorry, had to say it.

I was never a huge Skylar fan, but even I know that she deserves to still be in the running, along with Hollie.

How interesting that since DeAndre left, the ratings for this show have been going down by 5% each week, even dropping 10% after Colton’s exit.

I don’t know what disgusted me more tonight; the results of this disastrous show, or the thought of Demi Lovato and Britney Spears on The X Factor judging panel. One show’s jumping the shark, while, the other is about to land right in its waiting mouth.

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Louise May 4, 2012 at 5:33 am

Brotherkarl,

A man after my own heart–I was a huge Taylor Hicks fan too. I’ve always been sorry that he didn’t do better after Idol. I saw him in concert once and he is very entertaining in a live show.

Mindy,

I’m right there with you about Hollie. The first time I heard her sing, I loved her voice and thought she could go far. Then I became a little discouraged for a while. I always loved her voice but thought there was a little something missing in some of her performances. Then week after week she was belittled by the judges but she kept fighting. I was so happy for her this week because she definitely proved them wrong. I sometimes like a performance so much that I will go back and listen to it again–and sometimes again. This week it was both of Hollie’s performances. I loved BOTH of them!!! But I also loved Jessica’s version of “You Are So Beautiful.”

In my opinion, there is also something very likeable about Hollie. But now, as far as fan bases go, I’m guessing that next week will be her week to go. If not Hollie, then probably Joshua. But I can’t imagine the final two being Jessica and Phillip. That would be really boring in my opinion. Sometimes I can appreciate Phillip, but more often I can’t.

Chad,
I’m right there with you about Demi Lovato and Britney Spears on The X Factor. The only time I’ve heard Demi Lovato sing has been twice on the Idol elimination shows, and both times I’ve felt that she sounded worse than the remaining Idol contestants.

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Vonnie May 4, 2012 at 7:41 am

Brotherkarl…Taylor Hicks, love that man! I took a long confetti bath when he won, picked that guy right outta the gate during auditions.

Louise,

I think our boy Taylor is doing exactly what makes him happy, he stays busy, love that he will be in Vegas this summer!

The top 3were sitting on the couch last night, with my boy Phil winning!!! Now just please sing “What a Wonderful World” Oh!Yeaaah!!!

Sing it with me brotherkarl…! 😉

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Louise May 4, 2012 at 8:59 am

As I was getting ready for work this morning, a Philip and Joshua final occurred to me. I don’t think it will happen, and it’s not my first choice, but that could be interesting.

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brotherkarl May 4, 2012 at 9:05 am

Mindy

The first time I came here and I saw the loyalty that you and some of the others here have for Holly … I just didn’t get it because she just didn’t hit me that way. AT ALL. I remember one time you said something like ..you dialed almost until your fingers were broke (LOL) ..and I’m like ..Wow!! She’s serious. Hearing people with different perspectives is something that always fascinates me. (It doesn’t typically change me …just opens me up to see all the different sides of the coin) . Your comments in particular have been that way for me, especially when it comes to Holly. I’m always looking forwards to what you have to say about her … because what you see there …. I’m definitely blind to it (LOL). So to hear all these here who like her like that ..is astonishing to me!!

When I spoke of “the Battle of the Diva’s I didn’t mean a battle of the divas for the American Idol title … I meant , for the top 2 female .And that is getting ready to happen starting next week. I’ve been pretty clear on who I predict the actual winner will be …and thats Phil Phillips. While he has NEVER been my favorite, I have always had him in the top 5, I said even with his Wednesday performance, he still would NOT be in the bottom and just like I said, he wasn’t …and I said, once he passed that it would be a clean sweep and he would win.

My prediction is that Phil Phillips will be Season 11’s American Idol

Having said that …what I NEVER predicted ….is that Hollie would be in the top 5 with him. I never saw her coming and looking at the way things are happening with her, I wouldn’t be surprised if she made it to the finale because I never thought she would make it to even Top 8. For me she is the dark horse I never considered …and her being there has definitely changed the game ..at least for me. Other than that, I’d be able to say unequivocally without a shadow of a doubt specifically who would be third and second because everything else has gone as it normally does. She IS there however, and because so many of the powers that be (judges, mentors AND voters) did not consider her to be a real threat … she belongs there. They all assumed she;d be gone, myself included and we all were wrong. How far do I think she will go? I think the only person she’d have a hard time beating now, is Phil

Do I think she’s talented? Absolutely! She beat out thousands. Do I think she is the most talented person left? In my opinion, absolutely not. Do I want her to go? No …. it makes all of this very very interesting. Do I think she can win? Absolutely. Shes from Texas, one of the biggest states in the country and while she may get thousands of votes from every state, that one state that will give her more than all of them. And she has the votes of all the overall british voters here. Will she win? I wouldn’t be “totally” shocked if she did (she is the dark horse) but I doubt it. My prediction is Phil, but as I said a couple of posts above … IF Phil goes, that will show that everything that I understand about how this game is “usually” played, is flawed and all I’m doing is guessing.

Mindy, I know you said you think she’s next, but I wouldn’t count her out yet. Joshua is my very favorite but if you listen to what folks are saying all over the internet … folks all over are saying Joshua and Jessica. Holly was never thought by many to be there. Now she is …and everything . I believe, is now changed.

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brotherkarl May 4, 2012 at 9:16 am

L

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brotherkarl May 4, 2012 at 9:51 am

Chad ;
I;m sure I understand what you are saying about them limiting the number of votes or having to pay for them. Mines haven’t been limited …and as far as I know I haven’t seen any charges. Do you pay when you vote online too?

Louise:

I Absolutely LOVED that brother. Taylor was in concert here in Michigan, less than a mile away from me but I didn’t know about it until the day of. It was a sold out concert, lines all around the building and I missed out. I;m like Vonnie. Picked him out the first time I heard him. Some things are just obvious. It was always a no brainer for me. Great voice and a great personality!!

Vonnie,

So you say the top 3 are , Phil, Jessica and Tasia (LOL) I couldn’t resist. I couldn’t resist (LOL). Okay Phiil, Jessica and Joshua. Want to take a shot at who you think will be the first to go out of the 3 ?

One thing, I think we’re both together on. The winner ….. Mr Phil Phillips!!! And I say to my seeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeellllffff. What a wonderful Wooooooorrrld. Oh Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeh. (LOL)

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brotherkarl May 4, 2012 at 9:53 am

OMG!! It went off the page (LOL)

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Louise May 4, 2012 at 10:07 am

brotherkarl,
During the Season 5 auditions, I also picked Taylor the minute I heard him, so I was right there with you and Vonnie. I really LOVED him and no one else stood a chance with me that year. I used to “vote my fingers off” every week for him. I’ve never done that for anyone since.

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Vonnie May 4, 2012 at 10:30 am

Brotherkarl

You sing so well, loved it! 😉

Lol, I think Tasia will be the first to go, then a Jessica, Phillip final two, with my boy taking the crown!

You did run off the page, how’d ya do that? Hehehe LOL?

Louise,

My poor hubby was sooo sittin’ in the jealous box that year…kept sayin’ to me
” you’re obsessed with Taylor Hicks” and I would grin and say ” I know, ain’t it awful”… I stayed up for hours voting for him and dragged my poor defenseless hubby to see him in concert!

My heart still goes pitter patter when I see him, LOL.

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DSS May 4, 2012 at 10:45 am

Hollie, dark horse? Go back and listen to all of Hollie’s performances. Turn of the picture, turn off the judges, and just listen to her singing. She was never the dark horse, based on the strength, range, clarity, & tone of her voice. The dark horse theory was manufactured by the judges, who often inexplicably failed to stress her positives, as they did for all the other contestants. The judges critiqued Hollie for not smiling, even while performing melancholy songs, and meanwhile touted Phillip’s ability to get away with singing without melody. Just strange. These things handicapped Hollie’s early build of a sizable fan base. I don’t think Hollie has suddenly gotten better. I think the judges have suddenly come to their senses.

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brotherkarl May 4, 2012 at 10:46 am

Vonnie

(LOL) I don’t know how that”off the page” thing happened. Never seen nothing like it before (LOL). I didn’t even know it could happen. I guess the screen just loved that last note so good …it wanted everybody to feel what I was feeling when I sang it. Tasia (LOL) , we need to stop. before he turns into that 12 foot Fantasia I was talking about. I’m going to say he will go before Jessica, but I’m really having a hard time with Hollie. Everything thats happening with her is surprising me.

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Vonnie May 4, 2012 at 10:46 am

You know, I bet TPTB were in a frenzy that year, they so wanted a Daughtry, Kat McPhee final two!

But, there was no controlling the nimble fingers of the American women!!!

I was hangin’ out over at Mj’s that year and I remember two people who posted on there…fred and hot4taylor, they were hilarious and I would stay up half the night reading their posts…I was only a lurker then!!

I felt the same about a gorgeous, dredheaded, sweetheart too! My boy Jason, I didn’t care for either one of the Davids and still don’t care to hear either of them sing, but I still love to hear Jason!!!

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katillac May 4, 2012 at 10:50 am

I was a Katharine McPhee fan all the way that season… that’s where I got my name Katillac. I liked Taylor Hicks, but I thought Kat was a superior singer, and I’m loving her in the new NBC show, Smash.

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Vonnie May 4, 2012 at 10:51 am

I would be thrilled if Hollie were in the top 3, what worries me is she was in the bottom last night with what I thought were two great performances from her…but anything can happen, with Jessica being safe with one not so good performance and one pretty good performance!

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Vonnie May 4, 2012 at 10:57 am

Katillac,

When Kat sang KT Langs song, Black Horse and the Cherry Tree…that was outstanding, and she definitely deserved to be in the finale!!!

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Gene W May 4, 2012 at 10:58 am

Chad,

Who could be more perfect for the X-Factor than Demi Lovato and Britney Spears?

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Masterclass Lady May 4, 2012 at 10:58 am

Okay, listen up one and all! I may be under the weather but my thinking isn’t so hazy. There is no-way, no-how that Hollie is receiving the lowest number of votes. How can she escape elimination week after week? Because they are planting her there in the bottom to replace a producers’/judges’ favorite.

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Masterclass Lady May 4, 2012 at 11:00 am

Gene – I can answer that question. Someone who can SING LiVE! Now, over to Chad!

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katillac May 4, 2012 at 11:02 am

Vonnie, Black Horse and The Cherry Tree was my favorite performance of hers that season! It’s originally by KT Tunstall.

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Gene W May 4, 2012 at 11:06 am

MCL,
But it’s the X-Factor. Yuk. They are perfect. Can’t sing? Perfect.

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Masterclass Lady May 4, 2012 at 11:18 am

Haha Gene. How right you are!

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Gene W May 4, 2012 at 11:19 am

The best singers, particularly if they are female, don’t get the most votes on Idol. Not since the first season anyway. Hollie is also still in her “battle round,” as I’ve called it, so she is still splitting votes with Jessica. Jessica bloomed earlier in the season and captured a larger portion of the Diva fan base. Hollie is doing a great job of fighting back so it’s still a horse race.

I can’t understand why they are pimping Phillip so hard. I know the teens, tweens and lonely ladies everywhere like to look at him but at the end of the day they will have one more WGWG to market who will struggle to sell 150,000 records, much like his predecessors. It has occurred to me that he is being retained as someone for the female that they want to win to beat. Long term cannon fodder.

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brotherkarl May 4, 2012 at 11:25 am

DSS

I don’t think “the dark horse thing” was all manufactured by the judges. They may have contributed some to how people have voted, but as far as talent , I remember when I first heard her and I rated her on my blog and she was one of the only ones that was unsure of … out of all the 80 or so that I rated. I’m not saying I’m the best expert on whats good talent … but I think a lot of people out there felt about her like I did. I don;t think everybody saw what you so many others saw. The judges saw much more in her than I and a lot of folks did. I’m not saying she’s not good. She is good, especially this week. Different things appeal to different people. I don’t think the judges are finally coming around. I think on this show, the more you perform, if you apply yourself, the better you get. I’m a true believer that “practice makes perfect” and I think Hollie has had some hard times on this show, that has caused her to get more focused, practice more, and as a result she has gotten much better and now a force to be reckoned with. The talent that I heard this week is totally not the same talent I (just me) heard a few months ago. To me, her talent has been fine tuned , and her confidence has become much stronger , all bringing out a much better Hollie. The performances have gotten better and this week, to me was the best

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katillac May 4, 2012 at 11:27 am

“It has occurred to me that he is being retained as someone for the female that they want to win to beat. Long term cannon fodder.”

Gene,
That’s an interesting take!

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DSS May 4, 2012 at 11:51 am

Fair enough, brotherkarl. I personally can’t tell much difference from the way Hollie sounded during her mid season performances when the judges were so negative, and the way she sounds now. I’ve always thought her richly textured tone throughout a broad vocal range has set her apart from the others.

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brotherkarl May 4, 2012 at 12:25 pm

Gene;
I’m like Katillac ..that was an interesting take. So you think “they” want a female to win and I’m assuming you think that both Hollie and Jessica can beat them.

Earlier you said Hollie cannot win …and since you don’t think Phil should be there …. and that they want a female now … and I’m sure you don;t mean Tasia …. then you are saying …who you think they want is Jessica. Very interesting.

For me … I don’t think Phil can actually sing AT ALL . There hasn’t been a time when he has sung that he has hit every note like he should. Its like Steven, he just can’t sing to me . Phil however on the other end, gives a great performance in my opinion, in my opinion. He can really work a crowd.

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Louise May 4, 2012 at 12:41 pm

MCL,
I hope you are feeling better today!

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brotherkarl May 4, 2012 at 12:47 pm

DSS

Sometimes different songs and styles highlight different qualities in a talent. For some folks ballads work and some like Phil , Steve and folks like them, they should stay way from then (They rock crowds, they should never sing songs like the Star Spangled Banner like Steven did a few months back ..that was awful). For me hearing Hollie sing “River Deep Mountain High”, that showed me she could hang with big boy Phil, she was dancing. She had me up dancing with her. I didn’ t know she could do that .. “Oh I love you Babae ….Baby baby bayba”. (I didn’t want it to go off the page this time -LOL). She blew the mess out of that song. I don’t ever remember her singing a song like that. If she had a chance to sing that song one more time. I think it’d be all over.

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Gene W May 4, 2012 at 12:54 pm

Karl,
Just trying to make sense of why they would promote someone for the win whose “general type” has been a repeat failure for the Idol brand.

When I said “Hollie can’t win” it was tongue in cheek and based on the conventional wisdom that someone who has been in the bottom three can’t win. Anyone can win. I agree with you that Phillip can’t sing in the traditional sense of the word, at least he hasn’t demonstrated that ability. He is an interesting performer and he looks like Steve McQueen and he is the most unique of these contestants, though not unique in the music industry. The question for me is will that sell albums? I think looking historically at the success of WGWG Idol winners you would have to conclude that the answer is no. I don’t think he is in the same class as the other three contestants or many of the top ten who are watching from home. I enjoyed his Ton Petty / Stevie Nicks duet with Elise.

If I were betting on the outcome at this point I would bet on Phillip simply because the winner has to have the support of more than one voting group. He enjoys the support of tween and teen girls and many of the adult women. If the producers want him to lose, they will use the themes and the comments from the judges and Jimmy to push him back a little.

So is it Jessica, Hollie or Tasia (ha ha) I don’t know. If I could buy stock in one of them and control their career just for the sake of making money, I would choose Jessica. I would have chosen Jessica very early in the competition just on singing ability but then the fact that Skylar didn’t have a direct competitor in the completion coupled with the popularity of the Country genre changed my focus to her. That doesn’t look like it will work out at this point.

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brotherkarl May 4, 2012 at 1:43 pm

Gene:

You and I are in the same page … oh that other singer that was in the top 24 that I couldn’t think of when I was thinking of blues “voices” was Adam Brock. I don’t know if you remember him or not. He was one of the older guys.

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Chad May 4, 2012 at 2:13 pm

Gene,

If I were Simon I would of went for Shania Twain and Toni Braxton, or Shania and Gwen Stefani. At least these three ladies would have credibility, and have proven they are live, not memorex. I hate to say it – I mean, I run an X Factor Forum – but, although Britney may have some appeal – she’s at least charted in the past 10 years, regularly – Demi has no musical credibility, whatsoever. As a matter of fact, even many teenagers find her to be somewhat of a joke. He really thinks she could coach ‘Over 25s’ or ‘Groups’??? It’s a good thing Simon has a God complex, because, he’s going to need a major miracle to pull this one off!

Rosanne,

As for Hollie and your comment about the Producer’s placing her in the B3 every week to save a favorite; I would agree.

Idol has absolutely no integrity. What I also found funny about last night were JLo’s comments to Jessica about appropriate dress. Oh really JLo, yet you have no problem displaying yourself, on full screen, in front of millions of people, rolling around in glitter, and simulating sex with your “teenage” boyfriend, while trying to tell us the song’s about dancing and having fun? Who are you to talk about what’s appropriate or not appropriate. I suppose she let’s her children watch Idol as well, so guess what they got to see mommy doing. Be proud JLo. Be very proud. You’re such a role model.

NOT.

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Masterclass Lady May 4, 2012 at 2:23 pm

Chad – you tell ’em. I was thinking of J-Lo’s comments to Jessica last night and laughing. What a hypocrite! She prances around in skin tight dresses making obscene videos and she’s one to talk?

Anyway, you said it better than I ever could. Thank you!!!

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Gene W May 4, 2012 at 2:27 pm

Karl,
I don’t recall Adam Brock off hand. There are very few guys that come through Idol that I like very much because I usually like a male voice that conveys a little more experience and road wear. There are exceptions to everything, but that’s the norm. I listen to old Blues artist, most of whom are dead, as if they were top forty performers today. Most of them had their heyday 30 to 50 years ago but their vocal styles and phrasing and the ability they have to convey the strongest emotions lives on today in good singers from many genres.

If I was following you correctly earlier, you said that Steven Tyler couldn’t sing(?) I agree that his National Anthem was a hot mess and in extremely poor taste but I do think he can sing in a highly stylized way. He also has an understanding of the fundamentals and roots, of rock music anyway, and where I absolutely agree with him is when he keeps harping on these kids to listen to some Blues. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to deepen the emotional content they deliver in their songs.

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Gene W May 4, 2012 at 2:51 pm

Chad,

My point is that the X-Factor is an awful singing completion and TV show so the choice of these two judges fit it perfectly. It survives entirely on hype, most of which is centered on Simon and the ridiculously large prize.

I find J-Lo to be a farce as a singer and would not attend a performance of hers if I were paid to do so. She is a woman who is best known for her…. well let me say she has done her part to make the “rockin’ world go round” if you see what I’m saying. I am not a fan or defender of J-LO. Having said that, I think her comments to Jessica were exactly right. She said something to the effect that “ we’re in Hollywood, in show business, and we may not see your dress as inappropriate, but the people at home across the US might have a different point of view. They do, as she said, have a different standard in Hollywierd and that is the reason no one stopped Jessica from dressing like she had young love for sale. I thought it was totally inappropriate, as are her shoes every week.

Hollie, on the other hand, was very tastefully as stylishly dressed. I liked the dress she wore in her first performance a lot. She has similar taste to Halley who was always stylish but not trashy in her clothing choices. The six inch heels are a bit much though, and for both girls, they over power their feet. If they were smart they would ban them from the Idol stage after Haley’s fall on stage and the problems Lauren Alaina and the other girls had with them on tour last year.

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Masterclass Lady May 4, 2012 at 3:06 pm

Gene – I re-watched the video and you are so correct. I guess I was taken with the vocals and didn’t notice her dress. But she is so tiny- no body parts falling out of the dress. I just think that it was distasteful to bring up on live television. The poor girl. She must feel so self-conscious now.

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brotherkarl May 4, 2012 at 3:18 pm

Gene

About Steven, let me say it this way …before Idol I never heard of him, probably because I;m definitely not into that kind of music and my only time I ever remember hearing him sing was that National Anthem and when he sang in the show, so first impressions our lasting…I will never forget him singing that. Many, I heard, loved it, how I have no idea. I guess you have to be into that kind of music to enjoy it. To me “rock” is not music, pretty much the way a lot of people feel about gospel and Tashia’s screaming I’ve never purchased a cd of a rocker, I’ve never ever had it on it on in my car … but I have been to a couple rock concerts in my day and had a blast. I feel the same way about Phil. While I can appreciate his performances … I can’t imagine buying the cd.

So you mean …real old school blues…. BB King, Bobby Blue Bland, Wilson Pickett (who’s daughter I as once pretty close with) or sometimes even older. I recently bought a CD not that long ago produced of…. Billie Holiday. Hows that for blues? Is that the kind of blues you mean …or are we talking something else?

Some of that music I can appreciate, because my father had a band which my mother sang in when I was a kid and they did a lot of that, so usually when I hear it …it brings me back. I’m much closer to R&B and Gospel though, as I’m grew up in Detroit and Motown was a block away from my Jr High and High School. We were always out there. They went to school with us and many of them were just 2 to 5 years older than us. There is some blues is in me …but more gospel and R&B

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Vonnie May 4, 2012 at 4:10 pm

Look at you guys, I go away for the day and you throw a party, I bet you even had cake a noise makers too!!! 😦 😉

I don’ t have time to read all the wondervul posts right now…I will read then later tonight!

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Gene W May 4, 2012 at 4:15 pm

Karl,
Gospel and R&B are rooted in the Blues so we’re not that far off. I grew up listening to a lot of R&B and Soul music myself. I envy you living near the Motown studio, Hitsville USA. The Funk Brothers, who were the house band at Motown, are like Idols to me. They played on something like 300 hits and never received any individual credit. They were some of the greatest musicians of our time and are virtually unknown. It’s pretty cool that your Mom and Dad had a band as well.

For me, Rock and Roll has to remain close to it’s roots in the Blues to be good. That is why I like so little of the Rock from the eighties. No roots.

You’re on the right track with the list of artist you mentioned. I listen to people like Muddy Waters, Howlin Wolf, Little Walter, Eta James, Sonny Boy Williamson II,B B King, Jimmy Reed, Albert King like they were contemporary artist. Dosen’t everybody? There are newer artist as well like Eric Clapton, Bonnie Raitt, Delany and Bonnie, Paul Butterfield, the original Fleetwood Mac, Delbert McClinton, Stevie Ray Vaughn etc that not only perform their original songs in the blues style but also record the old traditional blue songs. For me, Rock and Roll has to remain close to it’s roots in the Blues to be good. That is why I like so little of the Rock from the eighties. No roots. Virtually all of the British invasion groups recorded several traditional American Blues tunes and they became rock classics. The Beatles did “Matchbox Blues” Clapton did “Crossroads” with Cream which became their biggest hit and it goes back to the root of modern blues, Robert Johnson. The band name “The Rolling Stones” came directly from a Muddy Waters song of the same name. They recorded “Little Red Rooster,” and “Smokestack Lightning,” Southern homeboys The Almond Brothers did “Statesborrow Blues” and folks are still recording these classics today. Former Idol contestant Melinda Doolittle recorded “Walking Blues” and “Dust my Broom” on her debut album

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Masterclass Lady May 4, 2012 at 4:40 pm

Vonnie -buhahaha

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brotherkarl May 4, 2012 at 5:30 pm

Gene,

Man … My mind was going back all the way as I was reading and then you mentioned …Malinda Dolitlle … and it brought back to Idol Season 6. OMG.! I don’t remember most Idol singers but ,Malinda! Yes! I started thinking back when she sang My Funny Valentine. I didn’t know she recorded as you said and so I immediately started surfing to find “Walking Blues” Loved it. Its one of those old Aretha style songs.

Speaking of Aretha. I went to New Bethel as a kid, which was 2 blocks away. Thats the church her dad pastored where she sang. I have an album by her that she recorded back then when she was about 14/15. Its one of those things that when you hear it, you can tell where that voice is going. Thats where some of that gospel comes from in me. You are taking me all the way back.

My dad was also a church organist and when I grew older I directed choirs, and played myself. So music is in my blood …which is why I love this show so much, and more in particular …this season.

The Funk Brothers story is one of those stories that needs to be told more. They didn’t get credit and many of the singers from Motown never got paid. Everybody profited except the singers and muscians themselves.

Thanks for waking that stuff up in me Gene. This doesn’t have anything to do with “Idol” (LOL)

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AliceJ May 4, 2012 at 5:56 pm

I’m glad I stumbled upon this site, I read each comment on this article and their all really interesting. My guess is that most of you are in your 30s, I’m only 16 like Jessica and I think it would be interesting to see how a 16 year old who watches AI thinks.

So…I have never heard of Tina Turner, none of my friends have either (we’re all Jessica’s fans). I’m not ashamed to just say that…I grew up listening to disney songs, then Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Chris Brown, Rihanna and Justin Bieber. Which was probably why I loved her first performance. She is definitely taking a lot of risks in this competition, such as dancing and singing signature songs. She said in one interview that Dancing was her biggest weakness. I’m glad she danced, I even memorized her moves. Rollin! Rollin! I loved that performance, just as I loved her Try A Little Tenderness. I prefer her uptempo songs to her ballads. I have these two songs (the studio version) on my iPod and listen to it while I work out. I dunno why when I look for reviews they’re all like she made a really bad song choice. Or maybe those who write reviews probably are in their late 30s (not sure about this). I love her doing ballads, but I prefer her exciting dancy side.

A lot of people, whom I think were probably also in their late 30s ( not to mean that everyone in their late 30s think this), want big belty ballads from her such as And I Am Telling You, and Listen. I won’t vote for her if she keeps doing ballads. She has actually done a lot of current songs like Rihanna for youtube covers, I wish she’d do that for next week’s theme of California Dreamin’ and stay away from ballads…please.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved You Are So Beautiful…but I can’t just listen to it…I’ll have to watch her because I would be asleep if I didn’t watch her.

BTW she looked so beautiful there sitting on the clouds barefoot…I loved it!!! Reminds me of Cinderella when she was singing Sing Sweet Nightingale.

Hollie on the other hand, she was okay with her first performance…I have my criteria and I prefer a raspy voice, hers is almost identical to Celine Dion. It’s not a performance which I would like to watch again. None of my friends like her either. I just don’t know. This is just my opinion if you think she’ll do great outside AI in the world of music industry then let’s just see what’ll happen…what I’m saying here will be useless then. “Whatever happens happens” and my opinion is just an opinion.

Her second song, Bleeding Love was worse than the first one. Just my opinion everyone. Around the last part I thought she was gonna hit that high note like Leona did, but it seems to me that she sang with the second voice…the alto maybe, but there’s no one singing the soprano to hit that high note. I don’t know, maybe I’m just a kid who knows nothing about good music. But How’s Celine Dion doing today? This is not the truth, this is just an opinion. I’m not gonna say things like “just keepin it real” like most of my friends do, but I am being honest about my own feelings.

The top 5 (now top 4) are all really great singers, but only a few of them might make it big in the music industry. My guess? Colton, Jessica, and Skylar.

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Chad May 4, 2012 at 6:02 pm

brotherkarl,

Rock has actually produced some phenomenal vocalists, but, due to the “hype” of rock music, their talent has been overshadowed. If you’d like some examples; Robert Plant, Steve Perry, Freddie Mercury, Lou Gramm, to name a few. Outstanding vocalists, that could give a lot of the singers today a run for their money. I’m not a rock music fan, but, I know good singers when I hear them. Steven Tyler has a ‘sound’, that is distinctly him, and, there is a certain amount of power to his voice. He’s definitely not the type of singer that I would put in the same class as the four I mentioned, but, for what he markets, he does well.

I think Rosanne would even agree that their vocal talents set them apart from most. They even have the ever popular ‘relaxed jaw’ when performing 😉

Here’s the four I mentioned, singing on their own. I would invite you to listen to their ranges, how they hold their runs, and how they actually use their voices, moving from head to chest effortlessly;

Robert Plant (from Led Zeppelin)
Heaven Knows

Steve Perry (from Journey)
Faithfully

Freddie Mercury (from Queen)
Who Wants To Live Forever

Lou Gramm (Foreigner)
That Was Yesterday

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Gene W May 4, 2012 at 7:55 pm

Alice J,
I’m glad to hear your opinions and yes, we are 30….or so…. give or take.

You would have to see the great Ike and Tina Turner Review doing “Rollin on a River” or the original version by “Credence Clear Water Revival” to see why it wasn’t a great choice for Jessica. For most of us, these songs came out when we were your age and forming our musical identity, so we know them very well. A cover needs to be spot on or different enough for the cover artist to make it their own. I can see that from your perspective, having never seen the original artist that Jessica’s version would seem pretty good, and it was pretty good, it just wasn’t right for her. Given your age, I will just say that it’s a very mature performance the way Tina did it and that Tina herself is a good bit different than Jessica.

I have a feeling that you will be happy with her post Idol career if you like dance music. I think she is capable of much more than that though.

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AliceJ May 4, 2012 at 11:18 pm

Even though she’s already a great singer she definitely still has a lot to improve on performance-wise, and she needs to improve on being an artist as well and developing a distinguishable voice (don’t know why people keep saying this, but her voice is a lot deeper and raspier than Beyonce or whoever they think she’s immitating)…that’s all. I wish she’d do a Rihanna song though, something more current and familiar to voters her age for the California Dreamin’ Theme.

Songs that sound like this are definitely what she might be recording post-idol.

Seriously, I’m getting sick of AI producers making them sing old songs. Songs from this era please.

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Anita May 5, 2012 at 6:08 pm

Vonnie-I’m determined to get you to love David Archuleta’s singing, perhaps even David Cook’s! But, I love ya Vonnie!!!

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Vonnie May 5, 2012 at 8:20 pm

Awwww! Anita…you are the sweetest!!! 🙂 I love ya too, and I promise that I will stay open minded about the Davids!!!

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Anita May 5, 2012 at 9:30 pm

Vonnie-We may not see eye to eye on those two, but I just love chatting with you, and think you are such a gem. We all have some great discussions here.

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brotherkarl May 5, 2012 at 9:57 pm

Chad

First , thanks for posting the videos. I did listen to all of them and I must say my opinion is pretty much the same. After listening to them though I want to retract what I said about Steven Tyler as well as Phil Phillips. Rather then say they can;t sing or they can’t sing, I’ll say … their singing isn’t horrible, its just not the kind of music I would buy, but I’m sure there is a big market for it. I’ll also say the same things about the guys who’s videos you posted. I listened to them all and none of them are bad but its just not the kind of music I would personally buy but obviously there are a lot of people who really like it. Those guys you posted sing sort of like Colten does.. He is not a bad singer at all , he just doesn’t sing the kind of music I would personally buy. If those guys moved me in a different way perhaps I’d hear what you and so many others hear in them, but they don’t. and so I don;t hear what you hear

Its like the singer Jennifer Holiday. She was a very hot singer back in her hey day, she still rocks a lot of shows now … but a whole of folks just are not moved by her style of singing. They say she just yells, but the audiences that like that kind of music , love it and say nobody sings like her. Different strokes for different folks.

Thats the best I can give you brother

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Vonnie May 6, 2012 at 8:24 am

Right back at ya Anita…I love MCL’s Place 🙂

We do have great conversations on here (well, you guys have great conversations, I’m just a musical wannabe, but there has to be one of those in every good conversation, right? LOL) I’m here just to keep you guys on your toes or in most cases shove mine in my mouth!!!

Brotherkarl,

My friend you gotta listen to Aerosmith’s “Dream On and Walk this Way” then I think you will have a greater appreciatio for Steven Tyler, he was a vocal genius! (That was you that said you hadn’t heard him sing other than the anthem, right?)

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Louise May 6, 2012 at 9:05 am

In reading some of Chad’s and brotherkarl’s comments, I was thinking that it would be really interesting to read how all of you have developed your own musical likes and dislikes. I think our age to an extent probably influences some of our likes and dislikes because the music we listen to when we’re young creates memories. MCL, what do you think about this as a topic?

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Masterclass Lady May 6, 2012 at 9:45 am

Louise – that is a very good topic. I will add it as a separate entry. A little busy with family stuff today but will publish it ASAP. Thank you for a great suggestion. 🙂

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Gene W May 6, 2012 at 1:22 pm

Karl,
Sorry to be so long responding.
Melinda was one of my favorite Idol contestants ever. My wife and I went to Nashville last year to see the Idol Tour concert. Melinda was there, she lives just outside Nashville, and I had the opportunity to meet her and have my picture made with her. I think her CD is very good. It has a varity of material, both original and covers, and all of the voices on the album are hers. After all, she knows something about backup singing. The “Walking Blues” is credited to Son House and Dust My Broom is generally believed to have originally been a Robert Johnson tune. It’s also associated with Elmore James. Either way, these songs and artist are at the very root of Delta Blues. The interesting thing about the Blues is that the songs are recycled from artist to artist, generation to generation, as more of a badge of honor and belonging than a disgrace as some of today’s light weight newbies consider doing cover songs to be.

Now, I would travel far and pay good money to see Aretha Franklin. Love the Queen. If she did “Walking Blues” that would be even better.

Detroit City. You may know people that I know. A lot of people used to move from Birmingham to Detroit in the 60s and 70s to work in the auto plants. Some of them would stay 20 years and then move back home. You have been blessed with a rich musical heritage with your parent’s involvement as well as your own. What kind of organ do you play?

We were talking about Steven Tyler. I wasn’t a huge Aerosmith fan but there are some of their songs that I like. I have a CD of theirs where they cover more classic Blues and Steven plays some Blues harp. If you pay close attention to Steven’s facial expressions and comments, there is a bit of wisdom that trickles out of him from time to time. I saw a video of him and the other two judges commenting on Elise’s elimination. The other two said little of substance except that she was a good singer. Tyler said “she sings the Blues better than anybody and that he liked her Rock work, but she needed some coaching in that area. I had noted that she was a Blues and soul singer earlier in the season. You may have noticed how often he has told these kids that they should listen to some Blues or that a particular passage had that bluesy thing to it etc. He understands the relationship of Blues to the later genres of music and to expressing emotion in a song in general.

The Aerosmith song “Dude Looks Like a Lady” might be an interesting comment on the whole Mantasia thing.

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Vonnie May 6, 2012 at 2:07 pm

Louise…AWESOME Idea, that would be a most interesting topic!!! 🙂

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RayRayJr May 6, 2012 at 3:35 pm

I agree with almost everything said here about the show last week, and I’m so happy to find others that think the way I do. Hollie was trancendent, and it appears that Jessica is a little worried about the speed she’s coming on at. But Jessica still has to be seen as the leader.

Joshua’s taking on the Temptations made me happy; the song felt like it was written for him, and the restraint he showed was a welcome change. I love the over-the-top gospel thing, but was happy to see he could do something a little different (and stay in tune).

As for Phillip–it may not be in him, but for me, singing requires a melody. I have no doubt that he’s a real entertainer–particularly live, and maybe that’s his niche. For me, that doesn’t always translate well to recordings or TV performances.

And I will miss Skylar. Another real entertainer, and a warm personality.

But I really want to talk about Jessica and Hollie. Having two vocalists of this quality is a treat. To see them pushing one another, Hollie struggling to catch up, and Jessica straining (though not vocally) to maintain the lead, will make both of them better.

The flexibility in Jessica’s voice is amazing (maybe that’s a benefit of being young). For me, Proud Mary didn’t work. But the breezy runs she sang, and the patience and maturity she showed, in You Are So Beautiful was beautiful, to me.

But the care Hollie took with her tone this week, and the resonance she “naturally” has (after, no doubt, years of practice) won me over. The subtle vibrato she used on some of the notes she held in Bleeding Love nearly brought me to tears (I’m a very sensitive guy).

I would love a Hollie/Jessica final. I can dream, can’t I?

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brotherkarl May 6, 2012 at 4:40 pm

Vonnie
You said you are just a “musicale wanna be” but the passion you have for music really comes though these post for me. Sometimes when you’re sharing on these post, I feel like we;re all in the same room and ….we are all just cracking up. You’re definitely not just a casual music listener.

I really look forwards to all the post here

Gene

As soon as I finished reading your post I went on You Tube to hear Seven singing “Dude Looks Like A Lady”. I never heard it before. The lyrics were wild but …I LOVED IT!! What a performer!! Still wouldn’t buy it though. I feel pretty much the same way about it ,as I have always said here about Phil Phillips. I’ve enjoyed almost every last one of his performances …especially when he did “Letter”. Would I buy it? ….no. What can I say, its not what I call singing ….and man….talk about yelling …..but I’d be really lying if I said I didn’t enjoy it. I could probably even do that concert once too …but I’m sure it;d be the only one. Its kind of wild for me. Loved the music , the dancing and his guitar playing ….awesome !! And “Dream On” …I think I’ve heard it flicking through the channels on TV Its not music that I would buy though. I think Vonnie said it something like “its one of those things that you’ve got to be there to enjoy it”. I think the emotions of the singers and those in the audience all add to the enjoyment of it. Its like a lot of gospel music, you have to be there and really feel all of that to really enjoy it.

Organ: When I was 16, my grandmother bought me a Wurlitzer. Thats what I started with. In the churches however I always played a Hammond B3 and usually with the pedal all the way down (LOL) Loved it loud. Its been a while though

Malinda DoLittle-You got a chance to meet her? Now I;m envious of you. She can blow I remember her saying that she sang background for Be Be and Cee Cee Winans and (they are all from Detroit you know), so when she said it, it really peeked my interest . Then if I remember correctly when she sang they came on Idol and sang with her. What I remember about her is that she had this kind of almost “timid spirit” but she blew like a pro. I really wanted her to win. I think she came in ,like 3rd place. Never knew she recorded though.

They were talking here about different eras of music and my mind went back to my first Motown concert. We use to have here what was called the “Motown Revue” every year and the first performance on stage for my first “Motown Revue”, was Gladys Knight, she was about 19. Its an experience I will never forget. I don’t want to hog up all this space talking about old times, but I will share this. When I was 14, my mother remarried and she married a DJ , and it seemed like he knew just about everybody in Motown. Celebrity’s …The party’s they would have were really something. Man …..its really taking me back..

There’s another side of me also Gene. In my mid twenty’s I met a young lady who was a classical opera singer …OMG. I can’t tell you the chills I got when I first heard her sing. I really knew nothing at all about that kind of music. At All. By the time I met her she had sung all over the world and it opened my eyes to brand new world of music. Shes now teaches music, I think at, Louisiana University. Thats why I am so fond of Jackie Evanco today

I am definitely a music lover and this young lady here, Alice who just started posting …. hearing how she views the music and what she thinks about all of our comments about it …is fascinating to me. When she said she didn’t know who Tina Turner was I f got to thinking , it was about 5 years ago or so now that Tina did her LAST tour, this young lady was about 10. I feel a lot like her …..as much as I enjoy the older songs, I’ve never understood why year after year they continue to make these kids sing these old songs. If they have careers …thats not the kind of music they’ll be singing. Of course … I think the music that I grew up with is the best music that ever hit this planet …but I’m sure she definitely wouldn’t agree, just like I really wasn’t into my grandmothers kind of music . If I was 16 and in a talent show and I had to sing music from my grandmothers era … I;m sure I couldn’t connect with it either. My grandmother was a teenager in the 30’s …ARE YOU KIDDING ME? … I’m listening to everything Alice is saying. When Ike and Tina T first sang “Proud Mary” , that was close to 35 years. Alice’s mother probably wasn’t even born then

I;m listening to everything you’re saying Alice

Talk at you guys later

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Gene W May 6, 2012 at 5:57 pm

Karl,
A Hamond B3? You’re bordering on bromance territory there. I can’t play one, but I used to be able to carry one end of a B3 pretty well. I’ve said it many times, but for me, that’s the greatest musical instrument ever invented. By looking at the bands on tv and listening to “good” music from many genres today, you would think that you could walk in any music store and buy a new B3 and Leslie. Ray Chew played his B3 in two songs just last week on Idol. The last true electromechanical tone wheel B3 was built in 1974. I know where two nice ones and one perfect one are for sale if you’re interested.

Jackie Evanco is a great young singer. I saw her again on Dancing with the Stars last week. She sang during an actual dance in the competition. On results night, when they recap the performances, you can hear what the competitors are saying to one another. The guy whose dance she was singing for was waiting for the music to start and you could hear him say “I want to say hello to the little girl” so he waved at her and the poised young women turned into the beaming kid and did her little kid cutesy wave back at him just seconds before turning back into the serious young woman and singing incredibly. It was a neat thing to see.

I got up for refreshments during the intermission at the Idol concert last year and as I walked near the sound coral in the middle of the arena, I saw Melinda there with the sound engineers. I returned to me seat and very casually said to my wife “I saw Melinda Doolittle while I was up.” She looked a few times but couldn’t see her. When the show was over, we were walking near the sound area again and I said “there she is” as I pointed my wife in her direction. When she saw her she said “come on, we have to go say hello.” Honestly, Melinda was radiant that night; she really looked like a star. We walked right up and said hello and found her to be very sweet and easy to talk to. Kathy ask if she could make my picture with her she said sure and hugged up beside me for the shot. The concert was great but that was an unexpected highlight.

We got to see Gladys Knight this year on Valentine’s day. She’s an old favorite of mine but that was the first time I have seen her. She was Pip-less, but great none the less.

I got to meet Karla Bonoff and Janis Ian, if you remember them, Friday night after seeing each of them perform in a very intimate setting on no more than 200 seats. We were only 20 feet away from them during the performances.

I’ve had the same thought many times that you mentioned regarding Alice, and frankly I’m amazed by the quality of performances that Idol contestants have given over the years of music that predates their parents in some cases. The best contestants for me are the ones who have a direct connection with songs from that era. The ones whose parents, aunts and uncles or older siblings perform in bands and these kids have performed with them over the years. Siobhan Magnus, Alison Iraheta and Haley Rheinhart come to mind but there are others. The reasons that they continue to use the older music is that it is easy to get cleared, the majority of the viewing audience is familiar with it and its good music. There is also more opportunity to make it your own by either your own creativity or by doing a cover of a more obscure artist version. The more current theme weeks haven’t been as successful in my view. The original artist can’t perform their music live without electronic trickery, so it’s pretty tough for these kids to do so. Do we really want to see a J-Lo cover?

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Anita May 6, 2012 at 9:02 pm

Vonnie-You are sooo funny! I think I’ll feel like having a party if Hollie can make it into the Top 3 this week. I think Joshua has such an incredible voice, but he kind of spoils his performances with his screaming and other weird noises he makes. So I’d be excited to see Jessica and Hollie in the Finale, but I think the judges would have a holy fit about that.

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Vonnie May 6, 2012 at 10:06 pm

Brotherkarl,

Ahhh! Thank you!!! My musical abilities are hunting and pecking on a piano…when my son was 10 we started him in piano, he took a few lessons and hated it, so I took his spot in the lessons and loved it. I took lessons for about a year, and then my piano teacher decided to retire, and I didn’ t want to find a new teacher (performance anxiety) so I left off with alot more to learn, my son is going to be 20 this summer! So that tells you how long I have let this go without finding a new teacher.

My love of music comes from being a young girl who had a mom that loved to sing and dance (only she couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket) but she belted it out and sang like nobody was in the room with her, and usually we weren’ t, she could clean out a room quick!!! But she loved Elvis, Patsy Cline, Hank Williams, and Charlie Pride…plus so many more of the country singers in the 60’s and 70’s.

I am the middle child with a flat spot on my head (you have to ask Gene W about that flat spot!!!) In my late teens early 20’s I felt that I needed an identity of my own…tried the hippy faze, but didn’t make a very good one, so in the 80’s the music helped me find a place…I was a Cyndi Lauper wannabe!!! I dressed like her, so needless to say I looked like a multi colored teeniebopper! But had a blast,and to this day I still love the 80’s music.

I loved Prince, the Thompson Twins, Huey Lewis, Bryan Adams, Van Halen, but only with David Lee Roth, gosh the list goes on!

So while I don’t know all of the technical things that goes with singing, I know what I like, what makes me smile, and I smile every time I pop Louis into my CD player. That’s why I like Phillip, he makes me smile and he makes me wanna get up and sing and dance like my mamma “still” does, lol.

I think music is so individual, I love contemporary christian, but it may not be for everyone, and I love voices that are unique, most all of the singers that I like are distinct, you know who they are as soon as they start singing!!!

Okay, I have yacked enough! 🙂

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Masterclass Lady May 6, 2012 at 10:13 pm

You know, I was thinking. Joshua and Phillip can do no wrong – in the eyes of the public and the judges. But, I just bet Idol wants us to think this is the case.

I think they would salivate at the prospect of a Hollie – Jessica finale. An all-female Top 2 has only happened once – Season 3 – with Fantasia and Diana Degarmo.

And, they need another shocker results show. Hollie being eliminated wouldn’t be a shocker but Joshua or Phillip’s exodus would.

Or, it could be that this flu thing is making me delirious. You know, the lack of food and all.

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Anita May 6, 2012 at 11:21 pm

Rosanne-No, I don’t think you are delirious. You could be right, but if the judges didn’t say anything negative to both Phillip and Josh so they could have both girls in the Finale, then that’s not being fair to those two guys. f that’s the case they should call AI a game of deception and unfairness instead of a competition! Oh, who am I kidding! It’s already become that kind of game!

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RayRayJr May 7, 2012 at 12:09 am

Alice and brotherkarl–I definitely feel you on this one. I try to listen to, and appreciate the talent of all kinds of singers, but have a definite bias for the music I grew up with (diverse though it was). I grew up on soul, R&B, blues, gospel, Jazz, classical and rock and roll. So that’s what I relate to, mostly. But even if I don’t experience the same emotion for screamo, hip hop, or Tuvanese throat singing, I have to recognize the talent, and respect the taste of people for whom this music is part of their beings.

For kids like Haley, Siobhan, and Alison, our music has become part of their existence. But that’s not true for a large part of their generation, and we shouldn’t expect it to. I hope they learn to appreciate all of that great music–and all of the other great music out there. But I would never want to deny them the joy of the music they relate to. Nothing conveys joy better than singing–in any style.

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Mindy Moore May 7, 2012 at 2:43 am

I was debating whether to reply to Alice’s post. I do understand how it feels to be a teenager and not like that “old” music. However, I also believe that it is extremely important to understand how music evolved. These kids today may think the older music isn’t for them, but the truth is that without it, they would not have the music they have today. American artistis invented rock and roll. That is our heritage. It’s our musical legacy. It is also a powerful testament to the commitment, courage and determination of those artists to keep on fighting to get the music heard. And they won the war.

I missed most of the 50’s because I was too young. But when I was older I made it a point to go back and immerse myself in the history of 50’s music. It was a revelation. When the Beatles talked about Buddy Holly, Elvis, Chuck Berry, Little Richard and all the great 50’s artists who inspired them, that’s when I had to find out what I missed. I am so glad that I took the time to listen to that music. It gave me such a wonderful perspective on how the music I loved in the 60’s came to be. I developed a deep appreciation and respect for those great artists who bequeathed us this treasure trove of genius music. My life would not be complete if I had not gone back in time.

I would urge all young people to at least listen to some of that older music. It will give them a real understanding of how music developed and evolved over the decades. It’s a good thing to listen to Tina Turner and then understand why no one could possibly to justice to “Proud Mary”. I think about the great Sam Cooke, my personal idol and how he invented soul music, how he started his own record company and found success as a black artist in the late fifties when it was considered impossible to do so.

Someone on MJ’s blog posted a link a few weeks ago to some musical convention or event in Texas at which Bruce Springsteen gave a key speech. I listened to it in its entirety. Basically, Springsteen gave a history of music identifying and saluting the artists and music that inspired him. He spoke about Elvis, all the great Doo Wop music, Curtis Mayfield and the Impressions, James Brown, Bob Dylan, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and on and on. It was one of the most extraordinary things I have ever heard. He did play a little of the older music on his guitar to illustrate the different songs that he loved so much. That is what I am talking about. If he had not been moved and inspired by so many artists and their amazing music, then we would not have had a Bruce Springsteen. His admiration and respect and understanding for those who came before and how they helped shape the history and even the future of music, moved me a great deal.

A few things to add. I loved, loved Melinda Doolittle when she was on the show. Her failure to get into the finale caused me to almost stop watching the show for good. She had one of the best voices ever to grace the show. Another tidbit of interest – my sister went to school with Janis Ian at the High School of Music and Art in New York. I should ask her if she kept in touch with her. It’s a small world.

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brotherkarl May 7, 2012 at 8:37 am

Vonnie

Really cool getting that insight into your attachment to music. I really enjoyed the part about your mother. That cracked me up. It was a little different for me. My mom was a singer. She sang with my father.She liked singers like Gloria Lynn, Nancy Wilson, Nina Simone. My mother would sing while she was cleaning the house and people walking down the street would just pass by stand and listen. I can still hear it to today. It was beautiful . I wanted her to be a singer so bad, but she had too many kids for all of that. So …you like contemporary christian music. When I was a kid I wanted to be in the music business so bad, I would do anything. So I started out working for a couple of record company’s and one of them was a big prompter of contemporary christian music, so for a quick minute I was off into a lot of it. One of the biggest artist we pushed back then was Sandy Patti. Are you familiar with her? She could really sing. She had this album where she did this joke thing, imitating all of her favorite singers she grew up listening to, she did a number of styles and singers in that peice, one was Barbara Streisand. It was out of sight. We promoted a ton of contemporary christian artist. Went to a lot of their concerts. I was about 21/22 then. When I left that job I didn’t continue with that music, but I remember it well. Colten sings like some of those artist.

Gene

I saw Ray Chew on that B3 …and you know it got me going. I never thought of it as one of the best instruments, but when you get a good leslie with it .. OMG. I remember as a kid (about 12) coming to a rehearsal before anybody got there and I cut that thing on …and I put my finger on high c … and I felt the power!! I thought …Oh …yeah I …got to learn how to play this. You mentioned Dancing With the Stars. I saw Jackie singing on that show. Her voice is incredible to me. I have 2 cd’s by her. Oh …did I hear you say you live in Tennessee or that you just visited. I went there for the first time a couple years ago. I had to see the “Smokey Mountains” . That was something. We don’t have anything even close to that here. Infact … here , we almost don’t have anything period..anymore

Back to Alice who’s comments really peeked my interest.

Somebody said something about the kinds of music kids “need” to listen to … I don’t know …. as a kid if I ever listened to music I “needed” to listen to. I listened to the music that I “enjoyed”. I heard other kinds of music. As I grew older I learned about artist from other other eras and I somewhat appreciated them…but it really made me angry when older people tried to steer me away from what I enjoyed to what they enjoyed. Seriously! I remember when I was a kid and the music started changing and we were going into the disco era and the Temptations made a record called “Psychedelic Shack”, and I heard so many older folks say, ‘”thats not music, its just noise” or “the kids shouldn’t be listening to that kind of music”.I was about 16 and it use to really make me angry. I got plenty of Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, Cab Calloway and Sammy Davis on Tv and when I rode in the car with my grand dad…great singers, but I had no interest in them as a kid or their music. When they came on TV, I got on the phone …and when the singers came on that I liked, I got off. Today we look back at it and say “that was music”, but our parents didn’t think that was real music back then. Does anybody remember all the stuff older folks said about the Beatles when they first came out. Elvis.Jerry Lee Lewis ….and don’t mention, Little Richard, the long hair, tight pants and all of that. And do we really want to talk about what our PARENTS thought (not thought …but said) about Tina Turner when they first saw her on TV.Come on na. Now she’s the great Tina Turner.

I remember how they felt about our music …that so many older folks didn’t really approve of. Yet today we’re holding it up and honoring it as some of the best music in the world. The same thing is going to happen in 20 years to the music these kids are listening to today. I think just like Alice, Idol needs to let the sing more current stuff.
I’m interested in hearing more of their music and opinions. I’ve been listening to mines all my life.

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Louise May 7, 2012 at 12:51 pm

My memories of music began before I was five years old. I grew up in a small town and the most popular music heard there was blue grass. I never liked it, and to this day the only blue grass I’ve ever liked is the soundtrack to Oh, Brother Where Art Thou? When I was 7 years old, my family bought their first TV. My mother, especially, watched some of the musical shows including The Hit Parade, Eddie Fisher, Dean Martin, etc. By the time I was 9 years old, American Bandstand with Dick Clark started airing from Philadelphia. I couldn’t wait to get home from school every afternoon to watch it. As far as I’m concerned the next 10 years had some great music, including Elvis, Little Stevie Wonder, the Beatles, Rolling Stones, etc. When Elvis was popular, Pat Boone was sort of popular too. Magazines would feature both of them. I sort of knew that Pat Boone was the clean cut one and I felt like I should like his music, but I couldn’t help myself–I much preferred the music of Elvis! But eventually I tired of him too.

The 1970s was a period of time when I was raising three small children, so I know very little about music from that era. Then my kids were teenagers in the 1980s so I know a little about that music because it’s what they were listening too. Some of it was okay, but I wasn’t a fan of most of it, although I really liked Simply Red, the Eurythmics, etc.

I’ve learned to appreciate a lot of music through the years because I played the piano and loved to play classical music and show tunes, but I’ve never appreciated hard rock or rap or most of the pop stuff that is on the radio now, except for Adele. So that’s my musical background.

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brotherkarl May 7, 2012 at 4:52 pm

Hey Louise –

Well I guess Alice now knows we’re not just folks in our 30’s like she thought. 🙂

I’m not familiar with “Bluegrass” at all. I’ve heard the term but I wouldn’t know any blue grass artists or songs. Probably because its a music close to country which I’ve never spent a lot of time listening too. I did watch American Bandstand a lot. I think I can remember it as far back as may be when I was 9 or 10 like you. Ed Sullivan as well, and I can remember that first show the Beatles were on. I’m in Detroit.

Like you I never got in to rap but when I heard a record by LL Cool J maybe when I was about 35, it was called “I need Love”. It was a love rap, pretty much like the love songs we grew up listening to …and so it caught my attention. I never became a fan of rap or LL, but after that I started paying attention to the lyrics’s he would sing. I was just speaking to someone today and we were talking about how some of the kinds of music we listen to back then is coming back and Adele is one of the newer artist who’s voice I is bringing it back. I’m also a big fan of Jennifer Hudson. My friends will tell you, when I FIRST heard her voice on Idol, I knew immediately she;d be big, whether she won or not and low and behold she;s one of their most successful stars. To me, this season Idol, in my opinion, has some of the best artist they’ve ever had. I think the music industry is going through a transition and ten years from now it will be totally change and I believe this bunch we’re listening to now are going to be the biggest stars in that change.

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Vonnie May 7, 2012 at 6:57 pm

Louise…the hubby loves Simply Red, one of his all time favorite artists, if he can listen to Simply Red and Boston, then he is a pretty happy camper!

I live in an area where we have bluegrass festivals just about every weekend in the summer and much like you I can take it or leave it….but also love the soggy bottom boys, lol. My brother in law sings in constant sorrow and sounds just like that guy!!!

Brotherkarl, I do know who Sandi Patti is…she has a very pretty voice! My musical tastes covers alot of areas and genres, like I said I love contemp christian, it’s what I listen to in my car, but I also love the music from the big band era, while at the barn my horses and I listen to classical music (their choice, lol, )I like Michael Buble’ I love Jackies voice, when I first heard her on AGT I thought there was no way that voice was coming out of that little girl. I love to listen to Doo-Wop music, anything like that from the fifties, crooners and old jazz, Louis, Billie Holiday, and Ella Fitzgerald, I could sit and listen to Patsy Cline and Barbara Streisand sing all day, the list really does go on.

I can listen to just about anything, theres even a few rap artists than I can tolerate, country music is probably my least favorite. The only country artists that I like to listen too is Dwight Yoakam, Tim McGraw and Garth Brooks!

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Louise May 8, 2012 at 11:50 am

Karl,

I also remember the first night the Beatles performed on Ed Sullivan. I also saw Elvis perform on his show for the first time and they only filmed him from the waist up because they thought he was too provocative!!!!

And I also am a Jennifer Hudson fan. But I loved Latoya London that year. What has become of her???

And Vonnie, I’m also a fan of Michael Buble, Doo-Wop, Patsy Cline, Barbra Streisand, etc.!!!

I was also a big fan of Malinda Doolittle and wasn’t aware that she has recorded a CD.

A

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brotherkarl May 8, 2012 at 4:14 pm

Louise

I’m probably going to be rambling on a lot here, because some of the things you said caused my brain to go in a million ways. So you skip a lot of it if you want or come back. But just know you are responsible 🙂

Latoya London …is also another idol I don’t think I will ever forget. It was the season (season 3) when all those considered divas were in the bottom together. She was s real pro, I was just online a just couple of weeks ago just surfing to see what she;d been up to and it looks like she’s keeping pretty busy. I didn’t read anything about any “major” record deal in the works or anything …so it looks like the record company’s are missing out because she is indeed “major”. I wouldn’t pay $50/$60 to go to the concerts of a lot of singers but I would pay it to go to hers. Latoya to me is a “first class act”. That was a a really hard year for me as far picking a talent ….but I must say in all fairness …. as much as so many don;t look care for Fantashia, right after her first audition I said, she’s gong to win this. I hadn’t heard Latoya and I while I was sure Jennifer would be big .. I knew Fantashia would win. The Idol audience has changed a lot since that time and the kinds of talent that made it to top 24 were different then too.

Elvis: Even though I was pretty young when Elvis came out, I still clearly remember all the talk, not only when he first came out, but as he got bigger. His fans loved him, the people he made money for loved him, BUT parents and the church ragged on him all the time. He wasn’t the King to them at all, he was the devil. It wan’t only his pants and his dance, I remember Evangelist getting on TV and calling it the devils music. The same way so many people talk about Lady Gaga’s music today. The kids who love it will fix it though and in 30 years this music that they’re listening to that so many say “isn’t real music”, will be the best music that ever hit the planet. We don’t necessarily think their artist are as good as ours …. but they do and in time they’ll let the world what they think, just like we let them know now what we thought..

The generation before us thought Frank Sinatra was out of this world in his time, but for me as good as he was and as great as he was, he doesn’t even come any where close to the singers that we loved as young people. “Aretha Franklin” to me a one the greatest voices this world has ever known, (she has a classical lp that is unbelievable) I didn’t even know she could sing classical music like that. These kids know her, they’ve heard her music, …they know it was real hot “back in the day” … they like her, they’ll sing her songs, they respect her, the same way we respected Frank Sinatra who was hot when our parents were coming up. But who we (or should I say most kids) really saw was King in OUR day was, Michael Jackson not Frank, even though Frank was still living and singing in our day, just like Aretha is. He’s one of Americas great talents, because the kids who bought his records (who are now 80) made sure he was known to us when we were 20. No matter how hard they tried though, he was still not OUR king (or should I say MY King). Michael Jackson to me was the greatest thing since sliced bread.

I feel the same way about these kids today. They like Lady Gaga …what they see in that .. I don’t get, the same way they didn’t get what we saw in Elvis and the Beatles and in the next 30 years they won’t be saying the greatest talent that ever lived was Michael Jackson, just like we won’t be saying Frank Sinatra. WE .. probably will say Michael, but the kids won’t. They didn’t hear him growing up like we did. They’ll be talking about some kind of music, that we just don’t get, just like our parents didn’t get what we saw in Paul, George, John and Ringo.

How do they say it …we’ve been around the block a FEW times …we know how this goes. Thats why I’m very interested in what the kids are saying …what kind of music they like … they’re telling us now who the world are going to be talking about in 40 years because I’m not a 100% certain I,ll be here to hear it, but if we listen now to their enthusiasm, we can glimpse about who they’ll all be screaming about in the next 20/30/40 years. Alice told us who her and all of HER friends like and what they don’t like today.

I wasn’t expecting to write all of that …so I’m not expecting anybody to read all of that

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Gene W May 8, 2012 at 5:52 pm

Man, I wish you would have put that last line first. 🙂

Latoya London and Melinda Doolittle’s CDs can both be had from either iTunes or Amazon. I like to buy the CDs of may favorites that finish out of the top two or three because, for the most part, they fund these recordings themselves and when the spend their own money on quality studio time with real musicians and decent producers the 8 to 12 bucks they want for their effort is a small price to pay to keep real music alive. I don’t always like what I get, but it’s a growing process, and again, for the lower place finishers, it’s a self funded growth process. Brooke White has a couple of decent CDs as well. One was pre-Idol, the other post. She also has a collaborative effort called “Jack and White” that has a digital EP on iTunes.

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brotherkarl May 8, 2012 at 6:32 pm

I know, I know , I know, 🙂 I was in rambling mode …. 🙂

Gene:
Did you read where I went to listen to Steven? Awesome performance!!

About the CD’s: I didn’t know that. So are you telling me that the top 2 or 3 don’t even usually get signed away? That really hit me hard because , not only the top 2 and 3 but usually the top 10, to me, are always great talents. Wow!! … Its really got me to thinking about some things.

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Gene W May 8, 2012 at 8:07 pm

Karl,

I meant only the top two or three DO get signed; usually anyway. Plus, their contracts are very slippery. They are performance based, so if your sales aren’t up to expectation, they cut you. Melinda is with a smaller label, HI FI Records, that did Lamberts debut and handles Todd Rundgren etc, so she may have a small contract deal with them. Allison Iraheta had a deal from a fourth place finish but they tried to turn her into a pop artist instead of the natural rocker that she is. Her album sales for the first week were about half of expectations and they released her after a year. Sometimes I think they like a good performer to finish lower than their talent justifies so that they can sign them cheaper than if they finished higher. A third place Jessica is much cheaper to sign than a first place, for example. Last year, Haley was a bargain at third place that she would not have been in second. I’ll bet her first album outsells Lauren’s.

Are you talking about “Dude Looks Like a Lady”? Yeah, it’s a pretty good video. He’s a showman all right. The old dude can still rock. He did a whole show of duets with Carrie Underwood. No kidding. Aerosmith is a little after my time, but what I listen to the most is before my time. That’s why I would encourage young music fans to explore what has come before them, discover their roots. It’s not a bad idea for older fans as well. I noticed in both Vonnie and Louise’s list several performers who are pretty good traditional Blues singers. Cyndi Lauper, Van Morrison and Simply Red. That could be the common thread that attracts them to the style of a new artist they hear. That’s what I have looked for over the years.

Enjoy the show if you are watching The Voice.

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Louise May 9, 2012 at 10:05 am

In reading some of your comments about performers/groups you saw perform live, it reminded me that I saw The Kingsmen perform live in 1964 when “Louie, Louie,” was popular. They played for a dance at my sister’s college, and she very kindly invited her younger sister for the weekend so that I could see them. We didn’t live in an area where there were many live musical performances, so that was a cool experience for a teenage girl!!!

There was also the folk music craze from the 1960s, and I was able to see Peter, Paul and Mary live. I eventually saw them live three more times.

And BB King performed in our local theater about 15 years ago and that was quite a treat! My husband and I attended a couple of other jazz performances there–Spyro Gyra and Grover Washington, Jr. Grover Washington was fabulous. He died much too young.

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Gene W May 9, 2012 at 11:17 am

Louise,
I never saw the Kingsmen in person but I have seen at least 100 cover bands play Louie Louie. Actually, I’ve done it myself.

That’s an interesting group of performers there. I have Spyro Gyra, Grover Washington along with Bob James, George Benson and Earl Klugh and a lot of BB King in my collection. Of the bunch, I would really like to see BB again before he quits touring. I watched a very long interview he did for a guitar magazine a while back and he said that he didn’t know anything about chords. Yeah, right! He has a unique style of playing that’s almost like he a “Lucille” are singing a duet. Love the “Blues Boy.” There is a video of Simply Red singing the Blues with BB King on You Tube.

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Louise May 9, 2012 at 11:54 am

Thanks, Gene. I’ll have to check out the video of Simply Red and BB King.

I don’t know what made me think of this, but one of my all time favorite movies is The Commitments because I absolutely love the music. I’m assuming you’ve seen this one, right?

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Gene W May 9, 2012 at 12:14 pm

Louise,
I love that movie. I thought I was the only person who had ever seen it anywhere. It slips into the late night lineup now and then, so I’ve seen it twice on TV. Did you know those guys have an actual band with CDs for sale and everything?

There is another good movie that covers the early days of Chess Records and all of the legendary Blues artist that recorded there called Cadillac Records. It’s pretty well done. Beyonce Knowles plays Etta James and all of the songs are sung by the actors. I have to caution that I have only seen the TV edit of this movie so a rental version may be a little rougher around the edges. I guess everyone has seen “Ray” which was so well done that I felt like I was actually watching Ray Charles himself. An old favorite of mine is “Coal Miner’s Daughter.” Sissy Spacek actually IS Loretta Lynn and Bev DeAngelo was great as Patsy Kline. All of these movies are a good education for anyone brought up on the auto tuned instant stars of today. They all define the term “paying your dues.”

DWTS is down to the contenders now. It’s been a strong season.

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brotherkarl May 9, 2012 at 1:10 pm

Gene and Louise

Even though I am a musician, as much as I love musician, these days I very very rarely buy cd’s or attend concerts. So if I buy a cd of any artist you better believe that artist is pretty special to me. I purchased two recorded by Jackie Evanco (there I go talking about Jackie again) .The last concert I attended was when Americas Got Talent did their tour the year that Jackie won. Her voice really puts me in the heavens., but wouldn’t you know it, ….she was the ONLY performer of the cast that was not there. I only went there hoping she would be there. I don;t even remember the winners name, but he was there and Prince Poppycock and the others, and Jerry Springer was the MC.

Prior to that I had’t been to a concert in about 5 years. The last concert was at our State Fair and the performers were Little Richard and James Brown :-). Boy was that cool. I thought James Brown was going the bring down the house but while his band was there and they probably did about 10 numbers, he himself only did about 3. His girls did a lot of the singing … which didn’t leave much of an impression on me at all ….but Little Richard …. as old as is …. literally brought the house down. I’ve been to a lot of concerts in my time but none were as memorable as that one. Little Richard had to be literally 70 something. Had all his gear on. Hair standing a foot tall, dancers all over the place, jokes … I had a blast. It reminded me of concerts I attended as a teenager. I really wasn’t expecting that.

I may go to the Idol Tour Show this year. If I remember correctly their first stop is right here in Detroit. Even though Jessica and Joshua are my favorites of those left ….my mian reason for going is to see DeAndre. That dude, to me is just awesome!! I hope he gets a good writer because I’d buy those cds. When traveling thats the kind of music I like to have on.

Okay … it turning into rambling again.

I’m looking to all the Idol contestants to do great tonight as usual. Who my attention is on …is the judges and what will they say to influence the vote. One thing I’m pretty certain of is regardless of what they say or how Phil sings, he will safe ..and ultimately be ….THE NEXT AMERICAN IDOL …. or else I’m just a guesser and don’t have a clue at all how these things generally go down.

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Louise May 9, 2012 at 1:15 pm

Gene,
I knew of all people here that you would be the one to know of The Commitments. I was feeling a little low when I went to see that movie, but by the time the movie ended my mood had improved considerably!!! I bought the two CDs from the movie. I’ve seen the movie several times, but not lately. Talking about it makes me think that I should watch it again soon.

I haven’t seen the movie with Beyonce, but I’ll try to do that sometime.

And this has been a great season for DWTS. I honestly don’t have a true favorite. Of the four who are left, I think Maria might be my least favorite although I think she’s really good too. I love Katherine, but I also love Donald and William is terrific too! I’m a Maks fan, so I was sorry to see him get voted off, but of the two remaining celebrities, Katherine definitely had to be the one to stay. Thanks for bringing that up!!!

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Louise May 9, 2012 at 1:45 pm

Karl,
Michael Grim was the winner of America’s Got Talent when Jackie Evanco came in second. He was really good too!!!

I’m sure seeing Little Richard in person was very entertaining. The one performer who I have always wanted to see in person is Joe Cocker. I don’t know if there is much of a chance for that. He must be around 70 years old now.

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brotherkarl May 9, 2012 at 2:32 pm

Louise

Thanks …for reminding me …and I do remember Michael Grim being really good … but for me, Jackie was like the Lord sent down a little angel from heaven …and it would be hard for anybody to convince me that she wasn’t..

I’ve never seen Joe …Ive heard though …he’s a preacher now …. can you believe that?

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Gene W May 9, 2012 at 3:39 pm

Louise and Karl,
James Brown and the Flames and Little Richard on the same bill. Now that’s a show. The Godfather of soul and the man who doesn’t mind telling you who the king of Rock and Roll is. I would have liked to have seen that show, but I really regret not having seen James Brown in his prime. He was the hardest working man in show business indeed.

I have Michael Grimm’s CD as well. He has the best voice for covering the great soul, R&B and Blue Eyed Soul Songs I have ever heard. I haven’t heard any of his original work that I liked though. He was sharing the stage with entertainment legends, somehow, before we ever saw him on AGT.

I don’t think Joe Cocker is preaching. It doesn’t mention it on his web site. I did get to see him in ’71 or ’72 I believe. It was his first tour after Mad Dogs and Englishmen. He had fallen off of the stage in Atlanta the night before and broken a few ribs, so he was a little more subdued than usual when I saw him; but still great. He’s had such a body of work since that time, I have several albums of his. I would like to see him again but he had almost lost his voice all together when he was last on Idol. That appearance left a lasting impression on me. He was standing there with Lee on his left and Crystal on his right and you could read both of their minds. Crystal was in awe. She got it. Here I am singing with a living legend. I will have a fond memory of this moment until the day I dye. It went right over Lee’s head.

I’m a Katherine Jenkins fan but it is a dead heat for the finish line. I didn’t care for Maria at first; I think the laugh turned me off more than anything. I know she is on TV somewhere, but I’ve never seen her before. Devil his due, the girl can dance. Derik has done a remarkable job with her and both of the guys have really been impressive as well. When the two of them danced with Maks, last week I think, they looked every bit as professional as he did. He may have dumbed it down a little, but still, they looked pretty sharp. William is a charmer and a lady killer but Donald is a competitor and a winner. He wants to get better and pushes Peta (heavens to Mergatroid) to push him every week. I didn’t like seeing Katherine in the bottom two, but she didn’t like it either so maybe she will be motivated to work harder this week.

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Vocal Masterclass Discussion For American Idol Season 11 Top 5 Singers: British And Sixties Music

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Vocal Masterclass Discussion For American Idol Season 11 Top 5 Singers: British And Sixties Music

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