Last night, our American Idol top 12 took the stage with the Lennon and McCartney songbook and actually surprised me some. If you know me, I am a Beatles freak and have a problem sometimes when people other than John, Paul, George and Ringo cover (read: ass-rape) the songs of the most influential, brilliant band of all time. I thinkt he best way to do this is to just go through the 12 - jot down a comment or two and what I think they should have sang. Then I’ll move on. Then, I’d love to hear your comments on the show.
Syesha Mercado: OK, of course this chick has a great voice and is a total front-runner on the female side, but srsly. She could have picked anything except “Got To Get You Into My Life.” The problem with picking just one artist as a theme is if there are people who were never really into that artist, they choose to cover a version of the song that already was covered.
Earth Wind and Fire supposedly did this song in a jazzed-up, funk kind of way…I just don’t think there is any way that anyone, talented or not, can do justice to a cover of a cover. To me, I liken it to a tragic game of Telephone. The original does it the way it was intended, then it’s passed through another creative opinion filter…then another? What I would hve preferred: Blackbird. Happiness is a Warm Gun might have been hot too. I’m pissed no one did it.
Chickezie: His version of ‘She’s a Woman”, no matter how you cut it, or if you like bluegrass or not, was hotter than a two dollar pistol. Really I am happy without it went. He was entertaining, and he had a blast. If he didn’t do that song, I guess I’d pick And I Love Her…..pretty and slow. But this was hot.
Ramiele Malubay: Honestly, I have never heard anyone cover “In My Life” and do it any justice. For whatever reason, this song just doensn’t translate for anyone. It was kind of pretty, kind of vulnverable and sweet…but just didn’t strike the chord I think she was expecting to with the audience. For some reason, she just doesn’t pull the audience in. Its like that “fourth wall” they talk about in theatre is really there, made of bricks. Like she is performing in a room alone with no one to engage. I might have given her Sexy Sadie. I think even The Long and Winding Road would have done her voice more justice.
Jason Castro: One of my favorite Beatles songs, of all time, hands-down, is If I Fell. Seeing it in Across the universe done by Evan Rachel Wood almost ruined it for me because hers was the only cover I ever heard that ever did it justice. While Jason is safe and he did a fine job, I wish he could have done something a little more with it. It seemed like he rushed through the lyrics when he could have done more with it if he had slowed it down. It didn’t help to juxtapose last week’s “Hallelujah” with this week’s performance either, because I felt that was probably his best to date. If he should have done anything else, he has the engaging qualities that would have fit Yesterday to a tee and made it believable.
Carly Smithson: Carly could sing just about anything and I’d be on my knees at her beck and call. She did something she was comfortable with (which can sometimes backfire for being too safe) and tore the roof off the place. If she did anything else, I’d have to give her Oh! Darling. But she worked her magic on Come Together just fine.
David Hernandez: This dude just made me sad this week. To have the rumors coming out about you that he has and to do I Saw Her Standing there - a song that is so, innocent, poppy and…straight…just didn’t jive with me and his new tainted reputation. I lost him. I dug his voice for a while…it has almost a Gary LeVox (Rascal Flatts) quality and ease to it. But after this week, I just didn’t get it. The SM and I joked that instead of that song he should have sung just about anything else….or the old standard and one of my favorites, “Butt Sex With Dudes.” Ok, that’s not a real song. So what. You’re feelin’ me.
Brooke White: Now HERE is a song that fit voice and talent-wise. My favorite Beatles song is Let It Be and when I heard Brooke would be doing it, I wasn’t totally sold. By the end, however, I was almost in tears myself. Vulnerable, sweet, genuine…authentic…barefoot. That’s how I’d want to do it if I was in the Top 12. If she didn’t do that, we thought she might have tackled Yesterday, acoustic style - Like I saw (finally was SO blessed to have seen - and cried through) Paul McCartney do it in concert in 2001…like he did on Ed Sullivan back in the day. Just one man and the guitar under one big spotlight.
David Cook: OMG, I totally forgot about Eleanor Rigby. We were thinking he might have done something like Strawberry Fields and I would have been good with him doing anything like Youve Got To Hide Your Love Away, or Girl. But Jesus H. David Cook, given the unfortunately demise of David Archuleta (yet to be critiqued) has definitely moved into the top spot in my book. I think people like Michael Johns and Carly and Archuleta have the talent and presence in certain situations to win the whole thing….but just by pure performance and the fact that we haven’t had to wait for him to pull out the big guns, David Cook WAS the dark horse, and now IS the thoroughbred of the competition. Brilliant. The only thing he MIGHT have done even better on was While My Guitar Gently Weeps.
Amanda Overmyer: I never thought of “You Can’t Do That” this way but it actually worked really well. Her voice is so powerful, yet so effortless. I really thought she’d do Oh Darling or Get Back…ven Helter Skelter (though I didn’t want to her to do the latter). But this worked just fine for me.
Michael Johns: Across the Uniuverse definitely fit him personality wise, but I guess I am still waiting for him to really kick it up a notch, make something his own and blow us out of the water. I know he has it. I keep feeling like each week, he gets to like a 92%; he’s on the brink of something really brilliant but he just can’t quite get there. Again, I think something like You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away or Girl would have been good for him. Even Happiness is a Warm Gun would have fit perfectly here too.
Kristy Lee Cook: You gotta give this girl credit for taking her country roots literally. Eight Days a Week had an…interesting arrangement. But even if she sang it the best she could, it was still too backwoods and she was still too uncomfortable. I don’t know what she could have done really. I think it’s probably the end of the road for her this week.
Shhhhhhhhhhhh-it.
David Archuleta: Ohhh…..David, David, David. Falling victim to the cover-of-a-cover disease. I would have been delighted if he would have done Here, There and Everywhere…even And I Love Her - Even Something…something soft and pretty and simply innocent. But We Can Work It Out is really no one’s favorite Beatles song…forget Stevie Wonder’s version. Besides…if you don’t know the words to a song…why not just do whatever one best fits your voice instead of doing some cover and butchering that?
I hate it because while he wasn’t my personal favorite, I have kind of put my neck out on the line, saying he’s my favorite to win the whole thing. I’m thinking he’ll fit perfect into that whole tween, Miley Cyrus, Jonas Brothers niche that is so popular right now. He didn’t do bad enough to be kicked off tonight but he has definitely shown some chinks in his armor that won’t be so easy to buff out in the coming weeks. It’s only going to get more stressful and difficult to really come with it each week - from here on out. Maybe he’s just a little too green to go all the way?
As for tonight’s result show, I can’t help but think that either David Hernandez or Kristy Lee Cook are going home. David with his performance and the escalating rumors (with photographic evidence) are just not helping. And Kristy Lee Cook, while she is the sole country-tinged finalist, just doesn’t stack up. David Archuleta was the worst of the night, but there is no way he is going home. Let’s tune in and see!
