American Idol: the top 11 perform songs from Grand Ole Opry artists
It’s country week on American Idol. This season the contestants were mentored by Randy Travis as they performed songs made famous at the Grand Ole Opry. Here’s what I thought about the show tonight.
Michael Sarver. Michael is from Texas so you would think that this genre would be right up his alley. He sang one of my favorite Garth Brooks songs, “Ain’t Goin’ Down Till the Sun Comes Up.” I was so disappointed in the performance. I agreed completely with Simon when he called it clumsy and said that he couldn’t understand what he sang. I thought the performance was slow and sluggish in terms of the way he arranged the song. Randy didn’t think this performance allowed him to show anything different about his vocal skills; Kara and Paula both saw Michael’s personality come through in the performance.
Allison Iraheta. She performed the Patty Loveless song “Blame it on the Heart” and she rocked it. I can’t believe this girl is only 16 years old. Kara, Paula and Simon all thought it was yet another rock solid performance. Randy just called it “dope.”
Lil Rounds. She performed a Martina McBride song, “Independence Day.” She’s an R&B singer and really wanted to stay true to the country theme of tonight. That impressed me, but the judges found fault with this decision (all expect Kara who said she was happy that she did what she felt was right and that was part of being an artist). Randy thought it was a bad song choice and that her performance didn’t feel comfortable. Paula said she made a bad choice by singing two verses before going to the chorus. Simon thought she should have taken a country song and given it an R&B spin. I guess I was watching a whole different show because I thought it was great.
Adam Lambert. He sang the Johnny Cash song “Ring of Fire” and the only thing country about this performance was the fact that it was a Johnny Cash song. It was strange. He did this Middle Eastern inspired arrangement (his words) that was just weird for me to listen to. I wanted to hear someone sing it the way Johnny Cash would. The judges were split in their critique. Paul and Randy loved it. Kara said it was a little strange, it left her confused and happy but she kind of liked it. Simon hated it. He called it horrific, and absolute indulgent rubbish. You know, the judges raked Lil Rounds over the coals because she left her R&B roots tonight to be true to country but Adam stays true to himself in this performance and Simon berates him for it. Hmmm.
Scott MacIntyre. Scott reminds me of the actor who played Peter Brady in the Brady Bunch Movies. I know that has nothing to do with his singing but I thought I’d share that. He chose a Martina McBride song, “Wild Angels” for his performance. He played a piano while singing and Paula called him to task for it. She said that she thinks he’s using it as a crutch. Simon disagreed with her, making a comment that perhaps Elton John should stop playing the piano because Paula said so. Simon had issues with the song choice, saying that the performances were not memorable. Randy said it was nice and good but that he’s looking for the standout vocal performances (and this didn’t do that). Kara told him that he needs to up his game, but he did bring class and poise to the performance.
Alexis Grace. She chose the song “Jolene” by Dolly Parton. Every once in a while looking at her while she performed I could kind of see her looking like Dolly. Simon said the performance was a sound-alike performance. Alexis asked him to explain and he said she sounded too much like Dolly and not enough like her. Randy and Kara thought the performance was not her best. Kara said she lost her edge and that was disappointing. Paula was Paula. She had some nice words for Alexis. I’m not sure exactly what she said but they sounded kind and gentle.
Danny Gokey. Watching him in his rehearsal with Randy Travis had me nervous that he wouldn’t do a good job performing the Carrie Underwood song “Jesus Take the Wheel.” He was really good. Paula and Simon loved the performance but Simon commented on his clothes (I agree, his jacket was pretty bad). Randy and Kara said the first half of his performance wasn’t as good as the second half of the performance. It’s so nice when Paula and Simon can get along.
Anoop Desai. He chose the classic song “You Were Always on my Mind” made famous by Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson and the Pet Shop Boys. OK, I’m a child of the 1980’s I had to throw that one in. He did a really nice job. He wasn’t my favorite of the night but he was good. All four of the judges loved it. Simon made a nice gesture to take back what he said last week (about Anoop not deserving to be there) and said he went from zero to hero tonight. Randy said that Anoop proved tonight that he can really sing.
Megan Joy. Even with the flu Megan did a rendition of “I go Walking After Midnight” that the judges and crowd loved. Simon told her she should have the flu every week because she was much better than last week. Randy and Kara thought she made a really good song choice. Paula commented on her professionalism – she had been to the hospital earlier and missed the run through but came out and gave a great performance. I do have one comment for Megan. Get some more supportive, lined undergarments to keep the girls in place!
Matt Giraud. Matt closed out the show singing “So Small” by Carrie Underwood. I couldn’t understand him 100% of the time but when I did I thought he was good. The judges loved him. Kara said he is a true talent and the performance was amazing. Paula commented on his authenticity and honesty as a performer. Simon said it was a great performance. Randy said he had mad skills and this was his favorite performance of the night.
It’s hard to tell who will be going home. The ones who were weaker in terms of judges’ comments got some really good crowd reactions. As always it depends on the fans and that’s the beauty of shows like American Idol. The fans have the ultimate say in who wins.
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March 18th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
Hi, your critique is excellent, but you forgot the eleventh contestant – Kris Allen. I guess Simon was right though, there is nothing memorable about him or you would have remembered to critique his performance. No worries. I think he will be eliminated this evening.
March 18th, 2009 at 12:31 pm
Natasha, I feel bad. Thanks for pointing that out. He sang a song by Garth Brooks and I don’t think he did it any justice. I was so excited by Lil Rounds right after him that I must have forgotten to type it up. You’re right – if he was memorable (in a good way or a bad way) I would not have forgotten to include it.