top 4: i'm the B to your G...
We've cut the field to four and it's time for the BeeGees, (YAY!). We haven't had a BeeGees night since season two, also during the top four round, so it's long overdue that the kids pay proper respect to one of the best groups in the history of music groups.
Because THIS is American Idol.
I've had a rough day (funerals make me pissy) so I'll make this brief and to the point.
Here they are, subject to review and revision, and as always, from worst to first:
Blake Lewis (You Should Be Dancing). Barry Gibb says he thinks Blake's beatboxing will work with this song. I think Barry Gibb is either being nice or he's senile. Blake and falsetto probably shouldn't be used in the same sentence. Randy tells Blake it was like being in a disco in some strange country. That's about the best description. In a word, it was "painful."
Blake Lewis (This is Where I Came In). Barry wonders why this song never became a hit, and hopes that Blake can make it one. I doubt that, especially if his video is a dance one. I've never heard it, and I don't choose to hear it again. Simon calls it a bizarre choice of song. Well. That's probably what Barry Gibb meant.
LaKisha Jones (Stayin' Alive). LaKisha is looking fine tonight, as she finally, apparently, got some decent wardrobe assistance, and, going third behind Blake, had a grand opportunity to make up some ground. Too bad she tossed it out the window. (Why is everybody sucking so bad tonight?) Simon says no kiss for LaKisha. But she may have a bus ticket home waiting for her.
LaKisha Jones (Run to Me). The judges tell KiKi that her second was preferable to her first. It was, but, totally blundered last note excepted, the arrangement which shifted keys midway only to shift back was disturbing enough to destroy the entire song.
Melinda Doolittle (Love You Inside and Out). Melinda gets the lead-off spot with this song, and says she's going to try to figure out how to turn a "group" song into a "single" song, even though she's got a trio of backup singers behind her. Whatever. It's probably the least enjoyable of all of Melinda's performances thus far. The judges pan her, rightfully, because now is not the time to settle for average.
Jordin Sparks (A Woman In Love). Okay, so Jordin does Streisand. I love Jordin, but she doesn't have the chops to try this one. But did you know she's 17? Again we're reminded that she's 17. Because she's 17. And for 17 it was amazing. 17. It was good, considering the quality of tonight's performances, but I won't be remembering it during season 9 when we're doing another BeeGees night.
Jordin Sparks (To Love Somebody). All three judges tell her that it was the best vocal of the first four, and it is, but it is also one of my fave BeeGees songs, so I'm a bit protective.and Jordin's audible breathiness is bothersome. And I'm wondering, understandably, why Jordin is getting the pimp anchor spot for the second time in three weeks.
Melinda Doolittle (How Can You Mend a Broken Heart). Melinda knows better than to utter the word "loser" on American Idol. Smart. This iconic song starts out predictably, but Melinda shifts it a bit on the backside and turns it into, possibly, one of those Idol performances we talk about years later.
Okay, so here I go, because we'll be doing bottom two tomorrow...
Who I want: LaKisha and Blake.
Who should: Blake and LaKisha
Who will: LaKisha and Blake.
And as much as Blake deserves to, LaKisha will be saying goodbye.
So, what do you think?
Because THIS is American Idol.
I've had a rough day (funerals make me pissy) so I'll make this brief and to the point.
Here they are, subject to review and revision, and as always, from worst to first:
Blake Lewis (You Should Be Dancing). Barry Gibb says he thinks Blake's beatboxing will work with this song. I think Barry Gibb is either being nice or he's senile. Blake and falsetto probably shouldn't be used in the same sentence. Randy tells Blake it was like being in a disco in some strange country. That's about the best description. In a word, it was "painful."
Blake Lewis (This is Where I Came In). Barry wonders why this song never became a hit, and hopes that Blake can make it one. I doubt that, especially if his video is a dance one. I've never heard it, and I don't choose to hear it again. Simon calls it a bizarre choice of song. Well. That's probably what Barry Gibb meant.
LaKisha Jones (Stayin' Alive). LaKisha is looking fine tonight, as she finally, apparently, got some decent wardrobe assistance, and, going third behind Blake, had a grand opportunity to make up some ground. Too bad she tossed it out the window. (Why is everybody sucking so bad tonight?) Simon says no kiss for LaKisha. But she may have a bus ticket home waiting for her.
LaKisha Jones (Run to Me). The judges tell KiKi that her second was preferable to her first. It was, but, totally blundered last note excepted, the arrangement which shifted keys midway only to shift back was disturbing enough to destroy the entire song.
Melinda Doolittle (Love You Inside and Out). Melinda gets the lead-off spot with this song, and says she's going to try to figure out how to turn a "group" song into a "single" song, even though she's got a trio of backup singers behind her. Whatever. It's probably the least enjoyable of all of Melinda's performances thus far. The judges pan her, rightfully, because now is not the time to settle for average.
Jordin Sparks (A Woman In Love). Okay, so Jordin does Streisand. I love Jordin, but she doesn't have the chops to try this one. But did you know she's 17? Again we're reminded that she's 17. Because she's 17. And for 17 it was amazing. 17. It was good, considering the quality of tonight's performances, but I won't be remembering it during season 9 when we're doing another BeeGees night.
Jordin Sparks (To Love Somebody). All three judges tell her that it was the best vocal of the first four, and it is, but it is also one of my fave BeeGees songs, so I'm a bit protective.and Jordin's audible breathiness is bothersome. And I'm wondering, understandably, why Jordin is getting the pimp anchor spot for the second time in three weeks.
Melinda Doolittle (How Can You Mend a Broken Heart). Melinda knows better than to utter the word "loser" on American Idol. Smart. This iconic song starts out predictably, but Melinda shifts it a bit on the backside and turns it into, possibly, one of those Idol performances we talk about years later.
Okay, so here I go, because we'll be doing bottom two tomorrow...
Who I want: LaKisha and Blake.
Who should: Blake and LaKisha
Who will: LaKisha and Blake.
And as much as Blake deserves to, LaKisha will be saying goodbye.
So, what do you think?
Labels: american idol
posted by jennifer at 7:42:00 PM
29 Comments:
I'm really disappointed in this season. Usually, by this time I'm dreading the end of the season. This time, I'm wondering if I'll still be tuning in next week.
I love me some BeeGees too!! I was disappointed with almost the whole show! Jordin, you know, the 17 year old, is getting my votes! HA HA!
I think thst while it wasn;t Blake's best night, the judges and you are being way too hard on him. He wasn't THAT bad and I thought the breakdown in Dancin' was good, and This Is Where I Came In was much better. I think given his body of work this season and the originality he brings, he definitely deserves to stay over Lakisha, although she was decent this week
I think the judges were unnecessarily hard on them because the theme was unnecessarily hard on them.
It was just a bad theme to have this late in the year. It was like AI decided to have a "screw the singers" night. The Bee Gees are just a hard theme for anyone.
To Love Somebody is one of my favorite songs of all time, and I just couldn't believe Jordin singing it. The words are so beautiful and she's 17 and I wasn't buying it. Sorry. I just don't care who goes.
I agree that it's a hard theme, but they had the same theme in S2, and, aside from Josh's attempt at Jive Talkin' [eww], those kids KILLED on those songs.
I just want this season to end. It's painful. I don't know that I've ever said that.
I have little doubt that Kiki will be at LAX tomorrow night after the show. Blake has benefited from the loss of the other two guys in the competition and the fact that Chris made a point to pass his fans to Blake with the BFF hugs last week. Blake will live to sing another day. That's OK, because I still think he is the most original and creative contestant. His second song tonight could have been "Crimson and Clover" if he weren't trying to force the beatbox into every performance at this stage of the competition.
The only question left is, "who gets Lakisha's votes?" Those could be the deciding votes and will probably leave Blake on the outside looking in. Blake may make the final, but I don't think tonight helped his cause. But if he should get there, he's going to find Melinda or Jordin locked and loaded to sing his brains out.
Lakisha should go. She's always the same thing and - unlike Little Richard, for example - her same thing aint that great. Enough already!
It's easy to see at this point that the only one who can win this competition is Jordan. Shrek Dolittle can sing, but as they pointed out in the first song, she's a background singer at heart. She has no idea how to be a performer, which is what this comes down to.
Melinda is of the same note as Rueben, Fantasia and Taylor - one note singers. Any wonder they weren't included in the Idol Gives Back show, no one cares about them. Plus that semi-retarded look she gives while listening to the judges can't help her case.
jennifer... I really have to disagree with you on Season 2 doing better with Bee Gees night. Clay's To Love Somebody was amazing, and I dug Kim Locke's Emotion (dissapointed no one grabbed that this time around) but honestly the rest of those performances were only aight for me.
Gracin's Jive Talkin stunk and Clay showed him up on To Love Somebody.
Clay's Grease was so cheesy.
Reub (Nights on Broadway, How Can You Mend...)wasn't bad but it def wasn't his best night. Every season either top 5 week or top 4 week sucks.
*Oh and sorry about the typos earlier. I was trying to type fast cuz I've been voting
I never liked the Bee Gees, their music was way too bubblegum for me.
I didn't like the falsetto, I hated what they called harmony, and I found the entire disco era to be totally distasteful.
Unleashing their particular brand of garbage on these singers was unfair, I don't particulary see any of it as serious music, or at least enjoyable music.
Blake is a one trick pony, and I've gotten bored with his trick. I don't see this guy for dust.
Lakisha peaked early and has proven to be a dud.
Jordin and Melinda should duke it out for the finalists. Jordin the eventual winner, on chutzpah alone, yes she is 17.
The Bee Gees SUCK They always SUCKED and now they just look old and tired Blecccch
I agree 100% with your analysis, Jennifer. You have the order exactly right. Jordin oversang "Woman in Love," and Blake (while always entertaining) did some weird stuff to a BeeGee's classic.
My favorite is, and has always been, Melinda. I can't wait til she receives her crown, sings her acceptance song, and we can dispense with the rest of the formalities of a lackluster season.
I'm cranky. I can't wait to see who gets the axe tomorrow night.
spoonieluv says (about Melinda): "She has no idea how to be a performer, which is what this comes down to."
Exsqueeze me? Bacon powder?!
Melinda is the ONLY one this entire season who has consistently interpreted the songs correctly. She translates the essence of the songs to the audience, which is why she has been the ONLY one this season to never find herself in the bottom 3. She performs circles around the rest of them and will be wearing the AI Crown 6...mark my words. ;)
Melinda is consistently good, but truly boring. Lakisha is exciting. Blake is exciting, if just to see what he will do. Really, its Jordin who should be the AI. She has the most Potential!
They can't blame "us" the voters for this group. I think "the producers and Judges" must of been partying way too much during the try outs.
I wasn't thrilled with Blake last night. Last week he did a great job, but he has to learn that you can't beatbox to every song. It gets old, and can look stupid!
Lakishia's time has come. She should be packing.
Melinda is good, but I think she lacks star quality.
Jordin is young, but she's the best! She's the whole package.
Dori
Ok, this has been the weirdest AI season yet. I think the judges definitely were partying too much when they picked the finalists... a boring, boring, bunch of "kids". Nary a performer in the whole bunch. No dramatic improvement in the bunch. Melinda is ending the same way she started, a great, consistent vocalist. I think her stage presence has improved, but not by much. Don't get me wrong, I love her voice, and when her album comes out I will be buying it. But exciting? Nope she is not. Jordan, is the most interesting because she is young, she has tremendous confidence and although her vocals fall short sometimes, she is enchanting on stage.... Blake is creative and sometimes interesting, but lacks consistency and maturity. He doesn't know when enough is enough with the beat box. Bon Jovi week was perfect, last night he should have changed it. He should have done something dramatic and completely out of character, like belting out a beautiful ballad and knocking the socks off of the judges. I think they would have been blown away if he had just done that. Lakisha, well, she yells, she is shrill, she is a wardrobe disaster, I've seen more of her cleavage than I have of my own. And when she is good she is very good, but she has never topped herself from her Dream Girls week. I'd like to see Jordan win, just because, not since Kelly has Idol had a young, fresh, contemporary, marketable pop star. I think it would be fun to see her soar. I think she has the most potential of any of the remaining idols. I think with the exception of Lakisha the remaining finalists will have successful careers ahead of them, but I can't say I'd pay to see any of them on stage. Maybe last year just had an abundance of talent and such variety that no season could top it. Season 5 was the best yet. I hope top 3 week somebody does something completely worthy of the top 3, i.e. Bo's accapella week, Fantasia's Summertime, Clay's Bridge Over Troubled Water.... C'mon, give us a "moment"....
I agree with everyone who's having a hard time getting into this season, and as much as I like Jordin (and Melinda), I haven't really voted this season (says the person who burned up the phone lines for Bo and Taylor).
DialIdol is actually making a strong prediction this week, and is saying Jordin and Blake are safe (1-2), with LaKisha and Melinda in the bottom two. If it's true, should be interesting. Melinda getting kicked out now would definitely make for a Daughtry-level shocker... but I'm still betting on LaKisha.
Bye Bye Melinda or LaKisha..I agree w/ Johanna..we may be up for the Daughtry shocker.
I would LIKE to see LaKisha leave.
I also agree w/ you that this wasn't a very good week for Blake..my husband on the other hand is already wanting to download the videos.
Jen,
This is my first time commenting, and I have been an avid reader of this blog, the past couple of years.
After last night's show , I went on Youtube and watched Clay's "How do you mend" at least 4 times. It was truly incredible. Nobody this year has even come close to that caliber of performance.
-Jen
I meant Clay's "to love somebody.. Oops"!
-jen
Ok, so maybe this isn't the best group of singers, but I've been entertained throughout the season and apparently so has everyone else, because obviously you all are still watching.
I think everyone is a little too uptight about a singing competition... relax and enjoy it a little bit.
Btw - I think Barry Gibb is one of the greats and it was good to see him last night.
Actually it's a fine group of singers who just didn't wow us last night. And part of the fun of watching the show is bitching about the show. That's the way I, personally, relax and enjoy it. Although this season has bored me to absolute tears.
Barry Gibb (and the BeeGees) IS one of the greats. So many people only associated them with disco. Their best stuff was pre-disco.
definitely a weak season. None of the songs really caught me or the wife and made us say "wow", so it was basically boring and we couldn't wait for it to end :(
Melinda was her normal vocally wonderful self, and she is more entertaining than in the beginning of the show, but that's not saying much really. She's the kind of person I could see doing say Vegas, or that sort of show where it's smaller, more intimate audiences, and her singing is telling a story. But not a big stage "Idol" style entertainer.
Lakisha I can't see winning in any way, she's not as good a singer as Melinda or Jordin, not as easy on the eyes as Jordin, and doesn't have the stage presence of Blake. She does yell some, which is easily fixable thru proper coaching. She may have a market, if she goes more along the Gospel Christian music route.
Blake has the most "entertaining" style onstage. Melinda has similar presence, in that she knows how to work the stage some of the time, but Blake has a more modern, youth, hip style being that he's trying to be in that type of mold. His voice isn't the biggest, he doesn't have the range of the girls, but his voice is very easy to listen to. Myself, if they had a Phil Collins night, I think it would be eerie, as that's who I think of when I hear Blake. The softness to his voice, the shape of this face, always makes me think of a teen Phil before hooking up with Genesis and hitting it big. Of the 4, his stage entertainment would be the most fun, even though the singing might not be as powerful. (and while last night the beatbox was overdone, I liked how he sounded when he sang. I think he'd have been more liked straight singing last night)
Jordin is simply the most complete of this group, though stage 'presence' would be her weakest point. She's got youth, nice looks while being a big girl (what is she, 6'2"?), she's the kind of pretty Laila Ali has. It's not the model or Playboy look, it's a more natural real woman look that I think appeals to many more men than marketers and advertisers think (we're afraid to admit we don't like the "models" as much, for fear of not being manly :) ). She has plenty of vocal range and power, and while this may sound dumb, she has PERFECT teeth. She has a very big mouth, so when she cracks open the big notes and the camera zooms in, I don't have to run from the room scared (Fantasia, Elliot and Lakisha on my 65" widescreen has always been a little unnerving to look at in those close ups, it's a better view than a dentist gets).
I've thought for many weeks that a Jordin/Blake final would be the best, as it would at least be the most youthful, hip, modern of this year's crop. Melinda is a great singer, but I'm fairly sure she can't win, the kids, teens, 20 somethings etc are not going to vote for Melinda over Jordin, cause they'd never buy an album from her, but they would buy a Jordin album. But that would make an interesting final as the older viewers would likely side with Melinda and her consistent performances (except for those at sites like this who are over occupied by this silly show, haha).
A Blake/Jordin final to me is the most curious, because a lot would depend on Blake and how much of "him" he would turn his selections into, and would they come off like last week or this week. He's like a Grand Slam hitter, or a total strike out looking type. A roller coaster. Jordin is more stable, only last week was bad, and I just think she'll be hard to beat in the end. At least that will be fun to watch unravel. She's hard not to like. If Jordin goes before the final, I might not be able to watch it :) doh!! well, ok, maybe not that bad, but it'll make it a lot less good.
JJ
My dream is for a Blake/Jordin finale. Melinda is a fantastic singer, but I think the B/J finale would be more exciting.
From what I've read, most reviewers are predicting that KiKi says farewell tonight, and I think someone even mentioned that Dial Idol was saying the same thing. At any rate, it'll be interesting to see who the bottom 2 are tonight.
Melinda Doolittle (How Can You Mend a Broken Heart). Melinda knows better than to utter the word "loser" on American Idol. Smart. This iconic song starts out predictably, but Melinda shifts it a bit on the backside and turns it into, possibly, one of those Idol performances we talk about years later.
until I read that I couldn't even remember what she sang....
It will be Jordin and Melinda. Melinda will win because, well she is just fabulous. I'm surprised at some of the comments about her. She should be credited with singing every note on key -- a feat I've never seen before on AI. I haven't seen all of the seasons, but Carrie Underwood was very green when she won -- I remember her being as stiff as a board! And Fantasia was nothing to write home about -- not to mention the runner up that year. Oy!
JJ, lol at the 65" widescreen TV. I know what ya mean.
Dori
hey, Anon Melinda fan ;)
I don't disagree that she is a technically wonderful, almost perfect singer, but "pop idols" are rarely technically good singers, they are performers, showmen, they put on a show to entertain the audience. Melinda isn't going to put on a Michael Jackson type concert, or Prince, or ZZTop, or Metallica, etc. At least, there's nothing in what she has done to date to suggest she'd be showy on stage. She'd be great at singing a story, almost like in a play or opera, and should have a solid following. But a "pop idol" following? doesn't seem likely.
Blake would attract lots of young people, as would Jordin, and Jordin more than any of them is likely to cross all ages and both sexes (i don't use gender because him/her/he/she are genders, male/female are sexes :) )
I wouldn't expect Blake to be a huge hit like Kelly or Carrie, but likely a little better than Fantasia and Taylor. Has Taylor even sold any albums? I haven't heard anything about how his album is doing, at least I see some of McPhee's videos in stores and such. But no Taylor. Have those who voted for him decided his album isn't worth buying or something?
Jordin, as a few the guests have mentioned, could easily grow into a true powerhouse, similar maybe to Kelly in 4 or 5 years. I think that is why many of us are supporting/liking Jordin over Melinda, she seems to have more potential.
JJ
ps nice to know someone else gets to have the same experience I do, Dori :)
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