This week the nine remaining American Idols got a chance to add a little country music to their repertoire. And who better than country music legend, and fellow Houstonian, Kenny Rogers to serve as the idols personal vocal coach and song consultant? If you ask me, no one.
Starting off the night was the man with the old soul, Mr. Taylor Hicks. Taylor picked the song “Take Me Home Country Roads”, a track made famous by the late John Denver. When Taylor first sang the song in front of Mr. Rogers, Kenny said that Taylor started the song off weak. Kenny also said it seemed like Taylor wasn’t really sure whether or not he liked the song or even knew what it was all about.
Kenny assured Taylor if he grabbed the audience with the first note and then encouraged them to take the journey with him, he would do really well. Throughout the competition, Taylor has proven to be a quick study and country music night was no exception. I thought he did really well and the audience did too. Taylor even had to give himself a hand, after the performance.
Randy Jackson thought it was a good song choice for Taylor, but that his vocals were just OK. Randy also added that he didn’t see Taylor exude any of the personality we’ve come to know him for.
Paula Abdul reassured Taylor that she loved him and then she hit him with the big but. She painstakingly stated that Taylor is so full of life, but that his song choice didn’t allow him to shine. She follow up the comment by mentioning how Taylor just sang the song as it is and how she expected a little more from him.
Simon Cowell didn’t beat around the bush, he flat out told Taylor that he thought the performance was safe, boring, and lazy. Later Ryan Seacrest would use those same three adjectives to describe Simon’s love life. Not surprisingly, Simon’s comments drew boos from the audience. Undaunted Simon went on to remark that it sounded like Taylor chose that song ten seconds ago
Mandisa was second to perform. She chose a song that Kenny Rogers exclaimed had more words in it than all of his songs put together. For this reason, Kenny advised Mandisa to make sure that she articulates all of the words. Of course, Kenny felt confident that because of Mandisa’s spirit, whatever she sings she’s going to give it all she’s got.
The song Kenny was referring to was “Any Man of Mine”, by Shania Twain. As usual Mandisa looked great. She successfully engaged the crowd and managed to put her own twists on the huge cross-over hit. But something was missing. Maybe it was just way too hard to compete with Shania’s version of the song.
Randy had his reservations as well. He said the song was a weird choice for him. More specifically, he thought the beginning of the song wasn’t that hot. Randy stated that it seemed like Mandisa was trying to find her lower range, but that it wasn’t quite connecting. Randy graciously concluded by pointing out the good things about Mandisa’ performance, which in his opinion only amounted to the last four bars.
Referring to the last four bars remark, Paula said to Randy, “You like the last five seconds of the song.” Randy said at least I like something. Not wanting to be left out of the conversation, Simon interjected that he liked the four seconds after the song ended.
After addressing Randy’s less than flattering comments about Mandisa, Paula turned her attention back to Mandisa. Paula told Mandisa that she could sing the phone book, encyclopedia or anything with her voice, but that she was not sure about the song choice.
Simon went straight for the jugular, by saying that Mandisa’s performance was horrible. More boos from the fans. To which Simon responded, “why do I get booed for being constructive.” Paula answered because you are booable (duh). Anyway, Simon also had something good to say. He said the performance was fun and cutesy. But then he reiterated the fact that he liked the four seconds after she stopped singing.
During Mandisa’s post performance interview with Ryan Seacrest, Simon took a pock shot at Ryan by saying he wasn’t the one trying to look like a cast member of Desperate Housewives, referring to the five o’clock shadow Ryan was sporting and his rumored romance with DH star Terri Hatcher.
Moving on to the third contestant of the night, which was none other than the funky white boy himself, Elliot Yamin. Kenny said that Elliot had a tendency to over sing. Kenny told Elliot that if the lyrics are important you don’t have to do a lot of licks to impress people. Kenny recommended that he sing the song simply. He also reminded Elliot that his objective is to make the audience cry.
I don’t think Elliot was all that comfortable with the instructions he received from Kenny Rogers and it was fairly evident in his performance. Elliot chose the country love ballad, “If Tomorrow Never Comes”, by superstar Garth Brooks. Although Elliot sounded better than most people on their best days, I didn’t feel the desperation, in his voice, that Kenny was pushing him to impart. On a side note, I would like to add that I like the fact that Elliot is letting his hair grow out. He’s probably doing it so it can cover up those elf-like ears of his. After all he’s got to look good, because he might just win this thing.
Before judging Elliot’s performance, Randy had to do a little name dropping. He said he loved the song and that he had the pleasure of producing it with Barry Manilow years ago. While Randy was wowing us with his music credentials, Paula pretended to dose off, whereas Simon just snickered. Back on track, Randy said that finally the competition has started because Elliot’s performance was hot.
Refreshed from her nap, Paula told Elliot that there were so many things about him that she adored and Elliot being a breath of fresh air to the music business is one of them. Paula called Elliot humble and understated. She added that even though Elliot knows he’s great, he has a careless and reckless abandonment about him. She concluded by saying that Elliot knows how to pick the right song for his voice and ultimately labeled him fantastic.
Before addressing Elliot, Simon jokingly told Paula that he uses the same words (careless and reckless abandonment) to describe her. Turing his attention back to Elliot, Simon said he thought Elliot picked a good song, but that he didn’t deliver a great vocal. Simon felt like Elliot was a bit hesitant and perhaps nervous (Elliot admitted that he was). Even so, Simon felt like Elliot’s performance was the best so far.
Paris Bennett rounded out the top half of the performances on country night. After meeting Paris, Kenny Rogers remarked that she was so small to sing so big. While rehearsing the song “How Do I Live (Without You)” by Trisha Yearwood (or LeAnn Rimes take your pick), Kenny recommended she hold the word “live” a little longer. After the rehearsal, Kenny said that you really believe it when Paris sings the song, which is a great tribute to it.
I think that Paris looked amazing. She was young and fresh in her brown leather corset and matching riding boots. But perhaps the corset was a little too tight, because she seemed to struggle a little bit with parts of the song. Overall though, she was pretty good.
Randy said he could tell from Paris’s performance that it was a tough song to sing. He explained that the front part of the song was not good, but that by the middle she kind of got it together. All in all, Randy felt it was just alright.
Paula exclaimed that Paris has a powerhouse voice and that we (normally) see joy from her when she sings. However, Paula felt like Paris didn’t connect with the song this time and that it was a struggle for her to sing. Surprisingly, this time it was Paula’s remarks that drew boos from the audience.
Simon seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the negative reaction Paula was getting from the audience. So much so, Simon rubbed salt in Paula’s wounds by emphatically stating the he disagreed with Paula. Simon said he thought Paris’ performance was very good and that she picked an excellent song. Simon finally received cheers from the fan. Pumped up by praise, Simon went on to compare Paris to an early Dionne Warwick.
Appearing smack dab in the middle of the show, was the sexy and oh so sensitive Mr. Ace Young. Ace picked a song by another young hottie, Keith Urban. The particular Urban song chosen by Ace was titled “I Want to Cry”.
Kenny Rogers called Ace a very passionate kid. He also noted that Ace sings with his heart and that when he sings people believe that. To Ace, Kenny said great singers know how to squeeze a note and bring the passion out of it and Kenny thinks that Ace does that incredibly well. Probably the most prolific thing Kenny said the entire night was that Ace matched with this song is the best combination of music and singer of the whole bunch.
Well I for one certainly believed Ace when he started to sing. In fact, I was totally mesmerized by his performance. The crowd seemed to be equally enthralled as I was, because they went absolutely wild when he was done.
Randy stated again that country songs are really tough to sing. Randy felt that Ace’s performance was nice, but really boring. I can only assume that Randy feels that way because he’s not a heterosexual female or homosexual male for that matter, because Ace’s performance was the epitome of hotness. At least, Randy found it in his heart to commend Ace on the little falsetto he showcased on the end.
Thankfully Paula was there to represent for all the red-blooded females out there. She totally disagreed with Randy. Looking out to the crowd for some support, Randy tried to interject that the performance was boring. Randy got no support from the audience or from Paula.
Paula continued her comments by saying that Ace has a knack for picking the right song for his voice. She also stated that the high falsetto is Ace’s signature and that he put a nice, contemporary take on the song.
Simon said the last couple of weeks Ace had not picked the right song, but that tonight he did. He concluded by simply saying that he thought Ace’s performance was very good.
During the call for votes, Ryan gleefully informed all the ladies that Ace is officially single. That’s all fine and dandy, but what I want to know is, is he straight?
Kellie Pickler kicked off the bottom half of the show. But before she sang, Ryan Seacrest interviewed her to find out if her over-the-top naiveté is all an act. Kellie assured Ryan and the public that it is not.
When Kellie met Kenny (sounds like a sappy movie title) she was relieved to finally meet someone with a familiar accent. I’m sorry but Houstonian’s don’t sound like people from North Carolina (at least not from the part Kellie is from). Anyway, Kenny said he loved Kellie and added who wouldn’t, because she’s got this wonderful charm about her. As if to corroborate, what Kellie said in her interview, Kenny also stated that Kellie is what she presents.
Kenny was glad that Kellie chose the song “Fancy”, by Reba McIntire, because in his opinion the song was perfect for her. Kenny said the song is what Kellie is all about. The song would give her a chance to show her strength, which is her personality, as well as her voice.
Kellie was definitely in her zone on country night and showcased much more than her personality and singing talents. As she strutted her stuff, in a bright red bodice style top and dark denim jeans, Kellie showed off some other asset as well. I think she did an amazing job.
Randy remarked that Kellie was in her element and that he thought she did a great job. He added that he liked the song choice for Kellie and wrapped up by saying that this was Kellie’s night.
Paula said that the song was one that Kellie could sink her teeth into. Then she said she agreed with Randy about it being a great night for Kellie.
Simon snidely expressed that it would be a shock if she didn’t do well tonight. Then he said he hated the song personally, but thought that Kellie’s performance was pretty good.
My main man Chris Daughtry appeared in the number seven slot this week. When Kenny met with him, he said that Chris had chosen a song that is difficult to sing, especially for someone from a whole different genre of music. But Chris let Kenny and the world know that everyone in his family listens to country music and the he is the lone rebel, with his preference for rock.
Chris also picked a Keith Urban song; one entitled “Making Memories of Us”. Seated on a stool, Chris proved that he was paying attention when his relatives were playing their country music. He also affirmed that he could do much more than rock the house. He demonstrated that he can infuse emotions into a heart wrenching country love song equally as well.
Randy, who’s foaming at the mouth to sign Chris, said that it was a good song. He followed up by stating that every week we’ve being hearing you do your rocker thing and it was nice to see you just sit there and sing. All in all, Randy said he actually enjoyed it.
Paula said Chris showed versatility and still stayed true to who he is. She also felt like Chris did a good job.
Simon admitted that it was nice to see a different side of Chris, the he paused. During the silence you could tell that Simon’s newfound popularity with the audience was about to come to an abrupt end. Simon went on to say that Chris’ song choice was boring and that America deserves more.
Well if I may be so bold as to speak on behalf of America, I would say we were pretty satisfied with the performance Chris put down. Speaking of Chris’s, Chris Rock was in the audience accompanied by his daughter, who held up a sign. Of course, I could not tell who they were rooting for. Also in attendance was Whoopi Goldberg.
Katharine McPhee followed Chris. When she met Kenny Rogers, Kat confessed that although she loves country music it’s really not her style of singing. So she picked a country song with a more bluesy feel to it. The song was “Bringing Out the Elvis In Me” as song by Faith Hill.
Kenny thought it was a good song choice for Kat, because she has a sultry voice. I consider myself a Faith Hill fan, but I must have missed this song. And I don’t think my life would have been any worst for the wear if I had missed out on Kat’s version of it either. I mean Kat has a good voice and she looked absolutely stunning, but I just could not get into the song.
Randy remarked that he liked the bluesy country feel of the song. He also told Kat that she sang the song nice and did a good job.
Paula simply said that the song was Kat’s niche – sexy, hot and cool.
Flabbergasted by his cohorts comments, Simon did not know what to say. All he could manage to get out was “that song was just so peculiar”. Feisty Katharine didn’t take the comment lying down, she politely fired back by pointing out that Simon doesn’t like country music. And she assured him that that was OK. Simon agreed with Kat’s statement, saying he hated it (country music).
OK, was I the only one that predicted that Bucky Covington would be the one closing out the show this week? When Bucky and Kenny met, Kenny told Bucky you should be at home with country music. Bucky chuckled and said the key word is “should.”
Bucky chose a song by Gary Allan called “Best I Ever Had It”. Since this is a lesser known song, Kenny Rogers advised Bucky to over enunciate his words. Kenny worried that if Bucky didn’t do this, the audience would miss a part of the story and then the song wouldn’t make sense to them.
Looking like a young Alan Jackson, Bucky sang his heart out. Now, I can’t say that I understood every word he was saying, but it was a moving performance. However, I would have to say that I much preferred his rendition of the Tim McGraw song that he performed last week to this one.
Randy said the performance was alright. He pointed out that it started off a little out of tune and that it was pitchy in the front, but Randy felt like Bucky got it together in the middle. Randy also said he thought it was a good song choice for Bucky.
Paula said that Bucky and Kellie probably shined the most tonight (I disagree; I thought Ace and Chris were the best). Paula added that Bucky was in his element and that he should wear his hat proud.
Simon confessed to Bucky that he is not an expert on this kind of music, but it sounded OK to him.
It is getting increasingly difficult to predict who will be in the bottom three, but I will give it my best shot. After watching the tape over and over, I predict the bottom three will consist of: Taylor, Mandisa and Katharine, with Kat ultimately being eliminated.
