Okay, so, this is an interesting theme for the show… popular downloads on iTunes… i wonder, does that mean songs in the Top Songs list? i’m gonna go ahead and load that list up and keep that available for me… it’s funny to see Ryan doing his thing in the radio world… okay enough chitter chatter… off we go…

NINE MORE LEFT

now playing: You Found Me – The Fray

Anoop-a-noop… singing Holla by Usher… and he’s crowded out by the forefront singers… see, i’m not so sure that this is a good thing… more energy and all that… last time he did that it was the Michael Jackson trainwreck… and yeah, this really doesn’t work for me… he’s still kind of imitating MJ… and his vocal turns into screaming way too often… i wasn’t into that one… let’s see… Randy says he picked up his swagger, but still the wrong song… Kara says that he played it too safe and it sounded like he did it on a dare… Paula says she wasn’t sure at first, but his vocals were good… Simon says it was a complete and utter mess… Anoop says everything is everything and he wants to be an R&B singer…

Megan Joy “Lydia”… iTunes is being stupid… maybe it’s my computer or connection… i swear my cable company has it in for me… she’s going to try and bounce back with a Lauryn Hill version of a Bob Marley song… that might work… um… or not… hey, why is she dressed up like 1980′s era Madonna? is that current?… you know, i try to like her and it’s probably better than last week, but everything in me screams FAKE!… i don’t think she is who she says she is… Kara says she’s in trouble… bad song choice – should’ve picked Adele… Paula says that she needs to take us by surprise… Simon says the problem was it was boring, indulgent and motonous… Randy says bad song choice… she snarkily argues and says that she’s good anyway…

“Gokey Dokey” okay, finally the iTunes page loaded… and so far none of these songs have been on the top 100… and, well, Rascal Flatts is, but not this song… anyway… What Hurts the Most… oh, it’s a slow one… i’m not exactly a Rascal Flatts fan, so i’m not familiar with it… wow, he’s really nailing it though… i mean, assuming that’s what it’s supposed to sound like… i bet one of the judges says that the night has finally begun… good job Danny boy… Paula says this is where he thrives and she wants to hear it again… Simon says it was his best of the competition and he blew away the first two… Randy says the night starts right here… i KNEW IT!… Kara says it was emotionally moving…

now playing: Heartless – Kanye West

Allison “Red” singing Don’t Speak by No Doubt, which is a good ten or twelve years old, right?… She’s playing the guitar for the first time and… oh no, it sounds like she’s struggling with the lyrics… and she has no fire in her vocals tonight… not a good time to be timid… certainly a low point for her… Simon says, no, Randy starts… Randy says she was ahead of the beat and what a crazy outfit… Kara says it doesn’t matter ’cause you can’t stop the rock, but it felt forced… Paula calls her guitar an axe to sound cool and that she’s tenacious and going to go far… Simon says the outfit belongs in the Addams family and it was so distracting that she was lost in it all…

“Mistah Scott-tare”… will be singing a Billy Joel song and he’s going to strip it down so that it’s really slow and intimate… just like he does every week… i think the piano is just a little bit closer this week… a bit of pitch issues, but nothing worse than that hair style… you know, i kind of appreciate Billy Joel a lot more now… i don’t like this guy… Kara says that he made some smart choices tonight and that it was moving and honest… Paula says that she’s most proud of him among all the contestants… Simon says it was his best performance by a country mile… Randy says one of the best of the night several times…

Matt Giraud 5 is picking a song for himself with The Fray’s You Found Me… hopefully he doesn’t butcher it like he did to Coldplay’s tune… oh, well, so much for that notion… really, what on earth do the judges keep talking about with this guy?… he’s absolutely horrible… i mean, it’s karaoke to the nth degree… he’s just plain off and not good at all… Paula says it was not a great performance – like when he did Coldplay… Simon says he didn’t get it at all – somebody trying to be somebody else… not a commercial song? it’s the first one that’s actually on the top 100… Randy says wrong song choice… Kara says he needs to find out who he is… rock or pop…

now playing: Chasing Pavements – ADELE

Lil Rounds oh no… a Celine Dion song?… ugh sorry Ugh (with a capital U)… well, come on, she’s got a good, maybe great voice, but why would she pick this song… and it feels about as lifeless as her hair looks… she hits a few power notes… misses a few others… i didn’t like it really… Randy says he wouldn’t have picked the song, but she sang it really well, but it’s too old… Kara says something younger would’ve been better… Paula says no AC, give us the energy… Simon says it was playing it safe, but it would’ve been better at a wedding… they try to save her by playing the cute kids card…

“Wicked” Adam is gonna get funky with Wild Cherry?… fasten your seatbelts… oh, that Wild Cherry… how about that… here we go… i like the swagger to the arrangement… it’s a little slower than i’d like to have seen… and honestly, i’m not sure why on earth he picked this song… it’s really not anywhere near his best performance… that was over the top and sure to draw an “indulgent” comment from Simon… i generally like this guy, but that wasn’t it… Paula says something about true genius and then includes him with Mick Jagger and Steven Tyler… Simon says at least it wasn’t karaoke… Randy says he worked it out and he was in the star zone… Adam tributes the band… Kara says that it was like Studio 57…

Kris “With a K” Fringe is back NEXT WEEK… and Glee starts soon… wonderful… anyway… Kris is going to try to be memorable and make a moment… singing Ain’t No Sunshine with a keyboard and there’s a bit of strings there waiting for their cue… see, now this dude is a hundred times better than Matt… even though this song’s been done to death, i don’t mind hearing it again… it’s nice… good way to close things out… Randy says he is in the zone… Kara actually counted right and says that is artistry… Paula says that could be the first cut from his album… Simon says it was a very good arrangement and a good performance…

now playing: Home Sweet Home – Carrie Underwood

MY PICKS

Bottom Three: Anoop, Megan, Matt

Going Home Sweet Home: Matt Giraud

peace… love… bdg…

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I’m going to try and write a lot today, so we’ll see how that goes… first up, a book review…

now playing: My Deliverer – Mandisa

Deliver Us from Evelyn by Chris Well

One of the first book reviews that i ever wrote, well, actually, the first book feature that i wrote included a review of Forgiving Solomon Long by Chris Well… now – it’s been a long time coming (on my behalf) – i’m finally getting around to Well’s second novel and yet, the results are pretty much the same… i enjoyed the book a lot… but let’s back up a second…

first, i picked up the book on the sales rack, and i’m informed that it looks like a girl book… cover design aside, Evelyn would likely appeal to the ladies as well as guys, though, i’m insisting that it is a guy book… there are mobsters, killings, mystery, and witty banter aplenty as can be expected based on Well’s previous novel and this time around, a few capers…

Written from a number of different perspectives and in a number of different writing styles, the book will keep the attention of even the most A.D.D. of readers and the twists and turns will keep you turning the pages as fast as your eyes can carry you… Well fosters an excellent relationship between the reader and the characters which engages you in the narrative… overall, a well-written escape from the rigors of actual life, though, the ending left me a little unfulfilled…

Needless to say, i’m already looking forward to Tribulation House, which is already queued up in my list of books to read next…

peace… love… bdg…

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This week we’re being treated? to yet another MoTown week… we’ll see how this year’s class of contestants connect with and reinterpret songs from Hitsville USA… i anticipate a number of trainwrecks and a few decent performances… i’ll be particularly interested to see what Lil Rounds chooses and, of course, how Adam turns MoTown inside out with a squelching rock opera… off we go…

AND THEN THERE WERE TEN

now playing: Cruisin’ – Smokey Robinson

Matt Giraud 5 from the last spot to the first, Matt is getting all maroon 5-ish with the dirty classic, “Let’s Get It On” by Marvinn Gaye… starting off at the piano and a slightly different arrangement, it’s not too bad… wait, now that he’s away from the piano, it’s not working out well for him… he’s pitchy and totally out of breath… eh, it was alright, but he just doesn’t really have it for me… Randy says that he worked it out and he’s challenging for the top spot… Kara talks dirty to him and says that it was solid… Paula says he has a sexy, cool vibe… Simon says it was a brilliant song choice and that he is a frontrunner… i’m just scratching my head at all this love… (has taken it’s toll on me… )

Kris “With a K” Kris and Matt are kind of interchangeable for me and, go figure, they’re both singing Marvin Gaye songs… “How Sweet It Is“… Kris is apparently a fan of numbers… 6181980… 38397… oh, i guess that’s a uniform of some sort… anyway… he’s vocal is quite a bit better than Matt’s and he’s actually brought something new to the arrangement with the whole singer-songwriter vibe to it… it’s pretty nice… Kara says that he made his mark on that song… Paula says that she like him… Simon says he needs more swagger… Randy says it’s all good, baby…

“Mistah Scott-tare”… well, Scott’s gonna stick with the piano… and he’s gonna sing a girl song again… “You Can’t Hurry Love“… Scott may have two numbers listed at the end… one for voting and one for dating… blah… i do like how he plays the piano, but i do not like the slow pace of this song so far… okay, he’s picking it up a little bit… you know, i think i figured it out… his voice is just flat… there are absolutely NO DYNAMICS to it at all… it’s like a flatline on the equalizer… i think he messed up the lyrics there at the end, too… well, i didn’t like it… not exactly a trainwreck, but really nothing to write home about… maybe it’s bottom threesville this time… Paula says it had a whole new life… Simon says he couldn’t take much more… wrong song choice… Randy says that he agrees with Simon and that it was very average… Kara says he brought tempo, but he didn’t nail the melodies… arguments and discussions ensue… Paula gives Simon crayons and coloring books… odd… very odd…

Megan Joy “Lydia” singing “For Once in My Life” a Stevie Wonder… Smokey says that she’s “different”… Megan minus the flu kicks off with a a nice horn section, an interesting outfit… Simon has an odd look on his face… i really like the style of singing that she’s trying to pull off, but i think that the fact that it’s fake is really starting to show… and she’s unfortunately wearing a little thin on me… can we say trainwreck?… this one just didn’t work… Randy says… oh my goodness… trainwreck!… score!… Kara says bad song choice and it was all over the place… Paula says that she is stunningly beautiful and Simon says that doesn’t matter and Paula says that yes, she is stunning, but she didn’t sing it well… Simon says it was horrible…

Anoop-a-noop… finally someone is singing a Smokey Robinson song… Anoop has got guts… “ooh, Baby, Baby“… and it’s actually pretty good, that was a pretty rough note there early on, but he’s recovered well and he’s really got that falsetto working overtime… yeah, i liked it man… say what?… Kara says that very hard to do and he did it pretty well… Paula says that he needs more confidence, but he’s doing a good job… Simon says that it was a great vocal, but he needs to wake up… Randy says that he should turn it back up next week… i think he won the first half of the show…

now playing: What’s Going On – Marvin Gaye

Mikey the Mechanic i think that the new Osbournes show looks like a plague on society… also, i can’t quite believe that there are seven guys left and only three gals… how did THAT happen?… anyway, Mikey is churching up “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg“… too bad that means that he’s been told all his life how good he is when really, he’s just okay… i think that he’s doing his part to even out the gender odds… yeah, he’s really churching it up all right… grunting, howling and kiching it into a whole new decade… ouch… toot! toot!… chugga chugga!… CRASH BAM POW!… Paula says, “oh, boy”… Las Vegas lounge act… Simon says he couldn’t wait for it to end… and on and on… (sorry, he started arguing and i just hit fast-forward… i can’t really stand that)…

Lil Rounds She’s gonna sing “Heat Wave“… Ryan is doing the crowd shot, which has become a staple apparently… oh no… that outfit isn’t right… and she’s not really connecting with the song as well as i had hoped… i mean, well, it’s okay and it’s pretty true to the original, but it’s just not near what i was anticipating… she’s safe and it was better than last week, but i’m a little disappointed… Randy says it wasn’t the right song choice because it didn’t showcase her vocal… Kara says, yeah, you look great, but this should’ve been her week and she didn’t nail it… and then she kind of repeats what i just typed… Paula disagrees completely… Simon says it was a nice tribute to MoTown, but it wasn’t the best song choice…

“Wicked” Adam now, let’s see if Adam lets me down, too… he’s singing a Smokey tune as well… “Tracks of My Tears“… YES!… okay, he’s unplugged and slicked out with a nice classy look… and the vocal is on point… my goodness… he’s miles ahead of everyone else… lightyears… man… i don’t even know what more to say… it’s spectacular… and it’s completely not what anyone probably expected… that was HOT, YO!… Smokey gave him the standing O… Kara says understates it by saying it was one of the best of the night… Paula says he’s in his own league and he’s “it”… Simon says it was “the” best of the night… original, excellent songwriting and relevant… Randy says he’s very happy that he proved how hot of an artist he is…

“Gokey Dokey” it must be pretty awkward for these song coaches… anyway… Gokey is singing “Get Ready“… and he’s packing the power vocals from the beginning this time… doesn’t want to be called boring again… he’s doing pretty well and that little dance number with the background singers will certainly draw some comments from Simon… it was good… Paula decides to be Dr. Seuss… Simon says it was clumsy… Randy says it had a great energy… Kara says he has a good, not great personality…

Allison “Red” why is Matthew Perry remaking 30 Going on 13? and how are they running so thin on time when there’s one less performer than last week? bad time management… anyway… Red is singing “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” which probably gets sung at least once each year… she’s placed here to boost her votes since she was in the bottom three last week and the judges, they love her… well, it’s pretty good, but i think there’s something about the vocal that disconnects her from the audience… she’s probably fine though… Randy says she’s dope and blazing hot… Kara tells us all to vote… Paula has a mustache… and thinks that Red is awesome… Simon says she’s a survivor and that she’s bounced back…

MY PICKS

Bottom Three: Michael, Megan, Scott

Going Home Sweet Home: Michael

peace… love… bdg…

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well, life continues on, does it not? I’m churning along through three more books and i’ve spent a good bit of time working with an agency that i’m not sure really has anything to offer… all this and nothing really new as far as leads or anything like that… i did get the results to a myers-briggs personality test and a strong’s occupational interest exam and apparently i’m suited to work a number of jobs that don’t pay much at all…

now now, i know… money isn’t everything – it isn’t even really much of anything, really – but it’s kind of interesting to know… and it makes you wonder about things… kind of a new level of chicken-egg questioning…

anyway, how about some TV talk…

now playing: Never Gonna Be As Big As Jesus – Audio Adrenaline

no American Idol today as once again, the number one show in America is preempeted by America’s current idol, President Obama… that’s right, Obama is a hero to more people than Jesus… Although, God placed eleventh, so if you combine the votes… well, i don’t want to really get into it… moving on with the quickness…

Chuck has recently taken a rather interesting turn… last week’s episode revealed that Chuck himself has been running his own secret investigation with the hopes of revealing the source of the intersect… he’s even hidden a hand-drawn chart visualizing various connections and leads that he’s identified (a la the one on Life)…

Speaking of Life, it’s stuck in a bad timeslot and has all but fallen off of my radar… also, Life on Mars is apparently on its last legs… i haven’t actually watched any of the episodes, but i’ve been meaning to…

anyway, my time has been trimmed unexpectedly, so i’ll talk more later… hope everyone enjoyed the presidential interruption as much as i ignored it…

peace… love… bdg…

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So the “madness” is underway and, while i did fill out a bracket, i can’t say how well i’m doing with it since i haven’t really paid attention to any of the games or the results… i guess i’m just distracted… or perhaps i’m just not into the early rounds because it’s all so predictable… upsets are are quite rare anymore which makes the tourney just a bit less compelling…

now playing: Let’s Get Upset – DeGarmo & Key

speaking of upsets, i was told that Alexis being sent home this week on American Idol was the single biggest upset in Idol history… i don’t know about that, but then again, i didn’t realize it was an upset at all…

see, i don’t really pay attention to any “sources” or chatter about American Idol… i pretty much watch the performances (while blogging my thoughts in real time), make my predictions, and watch the results (with my remote close by to skip through the group lip-syncs and silly Ford commercials (though, i do like the new Fusion)… i figure that’s enough of a time investment to the show as it is and to scour the internet for more would be going too far… also, i want my picks to be my picks, as pure as possible, uninfluenced by things like dialidol and whatnot… (i’m not saying that it’s wrong for others to partake in these channels of information, just that i find it hard enough to manage my time and i need to draw lines somewhere)…

all that to say that i had no idea that Alexis was predicted to make it deep into the contest… all i saw was a gal who has a slightly better than average voice, who was clearly willing to sacrifice all her dignity (“I’ll dirty it up”) to advance and who turned in two weeks of entirely unimpressive performances… that’s why i picked her and that’s why she’s at home now…

now playing: Mad Season – Matchbox 20

now, speaking of madness, it’s been a pretty maddening week for me as i’ve watched four solid opportunities become naught… and i sat through a three-hour class that was all but worthless… so, if i’m riding a pendulum between optimism and pessimism, i’m swinging a little on the dark side this week… i know there’s more out there and that there’s a door that’s been prepared for me, but i’m starting to get antsy…

anyway, coming up, i’ll be finishing up the Dove features on the front page and trying to get some reviews and other items written up – just gettting back to that whole time management thing – and i have plenty to write about here, including: the last episodes of Lost, The Office, and Heroes, a look at some of these mid-season additions to the tv grid, another book review (Deliver Us From Evelyn by Chris Well), as well as thoughts about dirt, Star Wars, and more… hopefully, it won’t be too long coming…

peace… love… bdg…

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and here’s a book review…

now playing: Lion – Rebecca St James

In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day by Mark Batterson

stop me if this sounds familiar… a pastor is reading through the Old Testament… He stumbles across a rather obscure verse, referencing a rather obscure character and it jumps out.. inspired, the pastor does a little more research, discovers that the character really is obscure and decides to hinge an entire book on the life and lessons deduced from a small piece of scripture…

Okay, so this isn’t exactly as bad as some other books that follow that pattern, but Batterson bases the whole 170-page affair on the life of little-known Benaiah, an impulsive and powerful warrior who eventually became one of David’s Mighty Men, a general in the army and David’s head bodyguard…

The book itself is really less about Benaiah and more about living life with no regrets… it’s actually a really good message and i’m mostly glad that i read it… i came to me highly recommended and others i know who read it were very much inspired by it… for me though, if i’m completely honest, it was pretty repetitive, which as i may have mentioned once or twice… i did gleen a few wonderful nuggets of truth out of the book as a whole, but i felt like i might have walked away with the same thoughts had i read only the opening paragraphs and the summaries of each chapter…

That probably sounds mean, but again, Batterson does make a lot of good points and the book has a great message overall… don’t let me dissuade you from reading it, it just wasn’t exactly written to my tastes…

peace… love… bdg…

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It’s not a hill, it’s a mountain
As you start out the climb
Do you believe me or are you doubting
We’re gonna make it all the way to the light
But I know I’ll go crazy if I don’t go crazy tonight
– u2

yeah, that’s about the story of the week so far… last week, good, this week, not so much… more as it develops…

peace… love… bdg…

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yikes… i totally forgot about Idol this week… as such, i need to be quick about the comments and the picks… quick quick… then, i’ll come back around and toch on some of the other stuff swirling in my little head…

THE FINAL ELEVEN

now playing: Better Class of Losers – Randy Travis

It’s a celebration of country music and the Grand Ole Opry… cool, i guess… Simon hates country music… clearly Randy Travis will be performing this week? he looks a lot like Zach Morris from Saved By the Bell… well, when he was much younger… anyway, let’s get moving…

Michael Sarver sure, he can do pretty well here… Randy Travis thinks he’ll do well… i didn’t catch the name of the song, but i’ll assume it’s Garth Brooks… lots of words here… ah, yeah… Ain’t Going Down Til the Sun Comes Up… well, look, so this guy keeps getting told that he has a good voice and he picks a song that leaves him so out of breath that he doesn’t really sing at all… bad choice for me… i guess it was alright of a performance, but i’m not feeling it… Randy (the dawg) says it was fun, but limited his vocal… Kara says she missed the big notes, but that was a lot of words… Paula says fun is fun and fun spreads from here to there… Simon says it should’ve been good, but it wasn’t so much…

Allison “Red”… Blame it on Your Heart… oh yeah, she’s the rocker chick this year… this song kind of suits her voice nicely… it’s a little fast, but she’s doing well with it… as long as she can make herself shout some of the words, she’s good… Kara says Allison can sing the alphabet… Paula says something about the power of her voice and that she’ll go far… Simon says it was good, but a little tuneless… Randy says it was dope…

Kris “With a K” without his guitar… he’s singing a ballad… and i thought i heard them say it was another Garth song, but i can’t say that i know it… there’s something of a giant gap in my musical collection when it comes to country… i like the song though and i like the way he’s singing it… he’s got a pretty nice tone and a nice little falsetto note to end it… Paula says she is pleasantly surprised… Simon says it was terrific… Randy says Kris is a tender dawg… Kara says it didn’t even sound country, it was beautiful…

Lil Rounds singing Independence Day which i think is Martina McBride?… anyway… it certainly doesn’t ring like a country tune right off… which is fine, it’s just that her voice isn’t used to this type of song… she’s a little flat here and there… it’s gotta be distracting to see yourself on the floor in front of you… big note to close it out… i thought it was just okay… she’s good though… Randy says ambitious, but it wasn’t comfortable… Kara says here’s the thing… you do what you feel, so props for that… Paula says everything was spot on (including the booze in her coke cup)… Simon says little and lil are the same and it sounded like she was forced to sing a crappy song at a wedding… she really talks too much and that takes her down a few notches for me…

now playing: Before He Cheats – Carrie Underwood

“Wicked” Adam Randy Travis is scared of Adam… taking a Johnny Cash song to the oddest of places… this actually reminds me of Quinlin from The Blood Violets… i like the oddity of it all and yet despite how strange it all is and how non-traditional it is, it’s incredibly well controlled and entirely spot on… exactly what he wanted to do with it… nice… the exact example of what they were trying to convey to “Little”… Kara says it was strange… Paula says she is amazed… Simon says “what the hell was that?”… absolute, indulgent rubbish… Randy says it’s current, young, fresh, hot…

“Mistah Scott-tare” singing a girl song… i can’t quite place what it is exactly that i don’t like about this guy, but each week, with each performance, i’m just like, yeah, whatever… that was nice, but let’s move on… I guess this is how a lot of people felt about Brooke last year… that was a bad falsetto… yeah, well, it was fine… Paula says it was impressive and lovely, but the piano is a crutch… Simon says Paula is stupid… then they argue a bit while everyone else laughs… Simon then says that he’s not choosing good enough songs… Randy says yo, where’s the hot vocals, dawg?… Kara says rawr… step it up and wow us…

Alexis “Pink Highlights” singing Joleen… didn’t she sing a song that was named after a girl’s name last week too?… right… Dirty Diana…… i don’t know… she didn’t impress me last week and i still am not hearing anything special here today… she can go home for all i care… Randy says he’s not sure she hit the notes… she starts talking back… Kara says that she lost her edge… Paula says it was vulnerable… Simon says it was soundalike… which means that she sounds like the original…

Danny “Gokie Dokie” singing Carrie Underwood’s Jesus Take the Wheel… what’s with the guy’s singing girl songs… my leg is asleep… he’s wearing a snow white coat… you know, i don’t even really like this song… his problem is that he was so incredibly reserved on this verse and then now the he’s opened it up for the chorus (where he’s clearly more comfortable with the song)… it’s almost obnoxious… i do like it though… he’s got a nice voice and i hope he’s fine… Kara says basically what i said… Paula says something or other… ba-bi-bee-ba-boo… BRILLIANT…. Simon says that he somehow understood what Paula said and that he agrees with her… Randy says the verses needed help…

now playing: The Man Comes Around – Johnny Cash

Anoop-a-noop i missed the title, but it’s a familiar song… not so much as a country song… ah, right, Ronnie Milsap… it’s really low-key… and almost dark… like a eulogy… but oh well, that opened up just slightly before the lights went back out… Paula says Anoop is back… Simon says he went from zero to hero… Randy says this is why we wanted you back… Kara says it was very hard to do and he did it… amazing…

Megan Joy “Lydia” singing I Go Walking After Midnight… this is truly a Grand Ole Opry song… and she’s knocking it out of the park… that little twist thing that she does is kind of annoying though… and i just have to wonder how natural that bluesy tone is in her voice… and well, this whole thing just falls apart during the second half… started off great though… Randy says woah, glad that’s over… she coughs which tells me that she’s forcing that tone… Kara says it was perfect and that she has the flu… she coughs a few more times for good merit… Paula says something about the hospital and oh, it’s kind of like when Phoebe wanted to get sick to keep singing a certain way… Simon says she needs to be sick every week…

Matt Giraud behind the piano singing something from Carrie Underwood?… again a guy singing a girl song… it’s alright and all, but it really doesn’t feel all that current and his voice dissolves when he goes for the big notes… ah, So Small… yeah… it was actually kind of a mess in the middle and just okay on the ends… Kara says it was amazing… Paula says it was authen…auth… authentic… Simon and Randy both said it was one of the best of the night… well, i missed that one…

MY PICKS

Bottom Three: Michael, Alexis, Matt

Going Home Sweet Home: Alexis

peace… love… bdg…

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So, i’m pretty tired and this week is a blur… the good news is that it looks like i’ll be doing some job interviews next week, the bad news is that it means that i’ve got just a few days to figure out what these potential employers will want me to know and cram it all in my head before i sit down in the same room with them… oh, and i probably have to dress up, too… anyway, all other entries are probably postponed for a little bit… sorry, but i need to get things rolling…

peace… love… bdg…

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and now we’re down to the final twelve thirteen competitors… so it’s showtime and i suppose that means that everyone is ready for me to start tossing in nicknames for everyone… also, Simon has just mentioned that TWO FOLKS will be booted this week to get things back on schedule… how about that?…

and now, the thrilling evening… oh, did i mention that it’s the music of Michael Jackson?… i said not to try to sing MJ songs… ugh…

AMERICAN IDOL’S TOP THIRTEEN…

now playing: Thriller – Michael Jackson

Lil Rounds: Lil brings her own nickname to the table and is apparently going for the pirate look, bringing her very own parrot onstage with her… oh, never mind… singing The Way You Make Me Feel… i don’t like the snarling here on the first verse… and the BGVs aren’t helping her at all… but as this has opened up, she’s not doing that bad of a job… it’s good really… as good as you could ask for an opener… Randy says that she put a new spin on it and made the song new… Kara says everyone better step it up… Paula said something about it being good… Simon says it was a lazy song choice and he hates her outfit…

Scott MacIntyre: the obvious choice for a nickname is something about him being blind, but i’m not going to go there… i’m not sure what i’ll go with, but we’ll see… singing Keep the Faith behind the piano… okay, it’s gotta be something about the Mr. Kotter fro… actually, maybe it won’t matter too much… he’s clearly uncomfortable singing a Michael Jackson tune… he’s a bit flat and this song is just a throwaway… it’s just not that good, but everyone likes him… Kara says that it wasn’t the most obvious choice, but he’s delivering a hopeful message… Paula says that it’s magical and lovely… Simon says that he hated the song because nobody knows it… Randy says that it was too safe… i’m going to call him Horshack…

Danny Gokey: glasses, specs, church guy… we’ll see… i’m pretty sure that he’ll be around for awhile, so it needs to be good… anyway, he’s singing PYT and he starts out slow before pulling out his Todd Agnew scratchy froggy voice… he’s working the stage like no one else… he’s clearly comfortable with the song and he’s taken the night up a notch… with the red specs… Paula says that he is a true artist… Simon says he’s a brilliant, white guy with soul… Randy says when you’ve got it you’ve got it and dude, you’ve got it… Kara says whatever, you’re joyous, thank your parents… i’ll call him “okie Gokey Artichokie”… maybe…

Michael Sarver: the oil rigger… singing You Are Not Alone… and turning it a little bit country… he really is sitting and asking himself… i think it’s becoming clear that he doesn’t have a very broad range… that’s why he won’t last too, too long… i mean, he’s doing alright keeping it in his limits, but, yeah… not too impressive… Simon says he’s not the best singer, but he is not a tin man, he’s got heart… Randy says that he’s one of the best so far… Kara says that he really can sing… Paula says that he colored it up in a lovely shade… i don’t have a name for him right now…

Jasmine Murray: everytime i hear the name Jasmine, i think of the Antonio Banderas and Sylvester Stallone blockbuster (well, movie), Assassins… so, i will call her Jasmine “the assassin”… she’s singing I’ll Be There and so far she’s making it much more dramatic than i think it should be… i’m gonna go ahead and say that for the most part, girls have a distinct advantage over the guys singing these songs… the range, well, you get the idea… anyway, there was a bit of pitch issues and it was kind of a flat performance with just a few highlights here and there… Randy drops a name or two and then says it wasn’t that bad… Kara says that maybe she should’ve taken it down a half-key… Paula says that she has composure and poise, but something or other, potpourri, there you go… Simon says she was robotic and will always have trouble with the big notes…

now playing: Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough – Michael Jackson

Kris Allen: “Special K”?… singing Remember the Time oh good, he’s brought his guitar… is this the song that had a video with the whole Egyptian reincarnation type of theme?… i think so… this version is more of a cross between Michael Jackson and Jason Mraz… and oh yeah, do you remember the time when this song feh-eh-eh-eh-ell apart?… Kara says that the guitar brings out a whole other side to him and that he’s a good guy… Paula says that he probably knows the MJ catalog better than all the other contestants… Simon says that it was interesting, but at times clumsy… Randy says he loves the wife, loves the guitar and that it was interestingly like Jason Mraz… where did i hear that before?

Allison Iraheta: well, the red hair is obvious… anyway, she’s singing Give In to Me… and i think the judges may finally stop being so stinking pleasant… she’s got a good voice and all, but this song choice was terrible and it just doesn’t really work for me… Paula says that her hair looks great tonight… Simon says it was a good performance and at least we know who she is… Randy says that she’s one to watch… Kara says that when she’s the rocker girl, she distinguishes herself… (clearly not from all the other “rocker girls”, but who’s counting?)

Anoop Desai: so, he wants to be called “Anoop Dogg”, but i’m gonna go with “Anoop-a-doop” because i’m different and i don’t think you should be able to pick you’re own nickname… and he’s singing Beat It… and he’s trying to do a Michael Jackson impersonation… not the way to go… he’s working the stage well, but his vocals are a little shakey and he’s not really too much off of a karaoke contestant right now… too bad, i like him… Simon makes Paula go first and she wasn’t prepared… Paula says he picked a bad song and that he sounded like karaoke… Simon says that it was karaoke, yes, but even worse, it was horrible… Randy complies with the Anoop Dogg nickname, but tells him that it was a bad song choice… Kara says the other three are right, but even worse, he didn’t connect with the audience…

Jorge Nuñez: i think i’m gonna go with “eyebrows”… singing Never Can Say Goodbye… well, he’s taken it down a few keys, and he’s changed the tempo and turned it into some hippie tune… this arrangement is terrible… the vocals are just not hitting their marks and he’s i’m not really feeling it… he’s kind of like a muppet up there… Randy says that it was a bad song choice… Kara says it lacked it emotion… Paula asks him why he picked the song and he makes up some excuse about not knowing what to pick… quote of the night so far: Jorge: “I don’t want to sing Michael Jackson, Bad” Simon: “Actually, you did”… anyway Simon says that Jorge is well out of his depths…

now playing: Rock With You – Michael Jackson

Megan Joy Corkrey: “Lydia” (it’s a Marx Brothers reference)… Rockin’ Robin… i guess… that… this… is… kind of… well… okay, i suppose this brings out the whole next generation swing thing that was really big about a decade ago (really, that long?)… it’s kind of cheesy really and it really hides the vocal tone that they really wanted to draw out… and um, do robins sound like crows?… Kara says that was so Megan… Paula says it was still good… Simon says it was horrible and bordering on ridiculous… Randy says that it was a bad song choice…

Adam Lambert: the wicked one… the lost Jonas Brother… singing Black and White… and he managed to restrain himself and not do the high-pitched “hee-heeeee” at the beginning so that’s a good start… he is wearing a carolina blue leather jacket though… yeah, he’s good though… he’s got the best stage presence, and probably the best range… Paula had no rhythm during the song and no composure as she blathers on and on about him… Simon says that he was in a completely different league… Randy says that he’s Mr. Right… Kara says that he hits notes like woah…

Matt Giraud: behind the piano, singing Human Nature… not really a fan-girl charge the stage type of song… and he’s got a good voice, but he’s oversinging this a bit here… when he stays composed, he seems to be pretty good though… i don’t know, it’s a pretty forgettable song though… performed well, but no energy… Randy says he’s jumping off… Kara says that he’s talented… Paula says that he’s talented and she’s blown away… Simon says it was good, solid meat and potatoes…

Alexis Grace: singing Dirty Diana… “pink”… she’s struggling to keep up with the pace of the verses and the chorus opens up to nothing too special… yeah… she’s pretty much outclassed here… and we’re short on time… Kara says she’s a naughty girl and she liked it… Paula says that she oversang it… Simon says over the top and not as good as she probably thought… Randy says good…

BOTTOM THREE: Allison, Michael, Anoop
GOING HOME: Allison, Michael

peace… love… bdg…

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