American Idol Season 7

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Alright, alright, alright… some commentors have been sticking up for Kristy Lee Cook and pitching a fit with me.  SO!  On that note let me shock you all by saying that Kristy Lee Cook did a GREAT job last night with “Forever”.  I was actually impressed!  It was the best she has ever sounded (in my opinion) and she still put that country twang to it that could easily make it’s way onto the radio waves if somebody wanted to sign her to a record label.  Surprisingly, the judges didn’t like it as much as I did (and believe me, it’s difficult to admit she performed well).  Randy said it was a little pitchy and he wasn’t crazy about it.  Paula said she was really proud of her.  And Simon said that even though Kristy gave Mariah chills during their mentoring session, Kristy sure didn’t give him any chills.  He said “it just wasn’t great”. 

And now you’re all going to hate me.  *ahem*

Dear David Cook,

“Always Be My Baby”? What? 

- AmericanIdol7blog

Okay, in all seriousness I thought that David’s performance last night was the weirdest thing ever.  I usually dig the rockers and I usually love things being changed up but this was just so out of the box that I didn’t get it at all.  It was like the music and the lyrics just clashed - badly and I was completely speechless.  It was super serious and if the lyrics were different then I probably would’ve loved it but just knowing that it was “Always Be My Baby” and hearing those poppy, bubblegum love song lyrics to such a serious, violin-driven anthem with haunting background vocals was very off-putting.  But let’s go ahead and give him credit because the judges ate it all up. Randy called it brilliant.  Paula said “that song could be in a movie soundtrack right now” and again she referenced his package… oh no wait, she said he HAS “the whole package”.  Simon described David’s performance as “like coming out of karaoke hell into a breath of fresh air.  It was original, daring, it stood out by a mile and this is the sign of a great artist - someone who takes risks.”  All of this love had David in tears, aww.

Jason Castro sang “I Don’t Want To Cry”.  I enjoyed it because it was laid back, heartfelt and Jason showed a lot of emotion.  Randy said he felt “like I was at a weird beach luau” and the song was playing in the background.  Paula called Jason amazing.  And after a bit of a pause, Simon said he has to agree….. with Paula.  He noted that it “wasn’t the best vocal of the night” but it was “identifiably you, it was a cool version” and that the guys beat out the girls tonight.  

So who is going to get the boot tonight?  If I had to take a guess at this point in the game I would say that Carly Smithson, Syesha Mercado and maybe Brooke White will be in the bottom three. 

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Tonight the Idol contestants performed songs by the legendary Mariah Carey.  But first, a quick note to everyone who has been commenting on this blog!

Thank you for stopping by and showing some love :)  And for everybody who would rather read straight, un-biased recaps of the show -  go read the news!  I realize you’re not all going to agree with my opinion but that’s what makes this so much fun!  Okay, on to last night’s performances…

Let me start by “pimping” out David Archuleta once more (the kid ain’t perfect but he is pretty freakin’ good).  He sang “When You Believe” which was originally a Mariah Carey/Whitney Houston collaboration.  It was gorgeous and very well done.  He tried out his falsetto like Mariah had told him to do and it worked out in his favor because all of the judges loved it.

Carly Smithson sang one of my favorite Mariah songs, “Without You”.  The beginning was sultry and soft.  She used her bottom range really well even despite the note changes in the arrangement that made the song sound a lot different.  But as the song progressed, Carly seemed to get “angry” again.  Anytime she tries to put power behind her vocals she comes off as overbearing so I’m not really sure what to make of her.  I want to like her but I don’t think she’s got what it takes. 

Syesha Mercado has been fighting week after week to keep her place in the competition.  A lot of commentors on this blog apparently like to bash me for sticking up for her but man, the girl is good!  Last night her performance was fantastic.  Plus she looked amazing all gold and shimmery.  The judges all really liked it but Simon still believes that David Archuleta had the best performance so far and that he is the one to beat.  Agreed.

Brooke White sang “Hero” at the piano.  Of course, you know that I have a soft spot for her so naturally, I thought she did a nice job.  It definitely wasn’t her best by a mile.  Midway through the song (from “Lord knows” onward) she put some oomph behind her vocals which sounded great to me but left her visibly shaken up.  You could clearly see that she had tried something she wasn’t totally comfortable with and her nerves seemed to get the best of her.  Simon called it “a bit like ordering a hamburger and only getting the bun” saying that she doesn’t have the “meat” to do that song.  This was followed by the judges bantering over pickles, onions and special sauce.  Boy, the metaphors this season are hilarious.

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Now David Archuleta sang When You Believe in tonights epsode of American Idol 7. And as you know, the judges were all over him.

You see, if you’re a fan of David, you’re going to want to watch ths video. And the reason is because he does an awesome job singing When You believe.

Now, there will be some poeple who say that only teeny boppers are voting for him. And the reason for it is because of his good looks. But I think it’s hard to deny he’s got a wonderful voice.

You see, these were the judges’ reactions tonight:

Randy: You probably picked one of the toughest songs. But I gotta tell you something. If you can sing, you can sing anything. That was the bomb, baby!

Paula: You made Mariah feel proud, very proud.

Simon: I thought it was very, very good. You performed that very well.

Anyway, I hope he chooses a few edgier songs to show off to others that he;s more than good looks. I think edgier songs will help him break the mould of being just a ballad singer or something.

Anyway, here’s the clip you;ve been waiting for.

… David Archuleta - When You Believe

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As you probably know, it was Mariah Carey night. And the top 7 sung their heart out.

… While others cried too.

Ok. So David Cook sang Always Be My Baby.

Anyway, normally I hate to see guys cry, but with David, I felt sorry for him. You see, I think he was emotional because his ill older brother with cancer was in the audience or something.

As they said at the start of the series, they wanna make this a little more down to earth. So I guess it was cool that American Idol flew David’s brother to see him on a private jet. You probably know that he wasn’t allowed to fly on a commercial plane due to the sick.

Anyway, I think David Cook’s version of Always Be My Baby was good.

And if you didn’t catch it, then have a look for yourself.

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