MBADC American Idol
Armchair Quarterback 2007
American Idol from
the perspective of someone who's booked artists at the national-level: who we like in the
competition, what works, what doesn't work, what contestants can do to improve
their chances of success, and advice you can apply to your own performances.
Season 6: The Top 4 Perform
Songs of the Bee Gees
Air date: Tuesday,
May 8, 2007
Note: This week was especially tough. The Bee Gees’ material is difficult to
cover without sounding dated or like a bad telethon performance, and the
arranger and band have to be exceptionally talented to pull it off. They
didn’t, and the performances by all the contestants suffered for it. Mostly,
we were bored.
Melinda Doolittle: Melinda Doolittle’s version of “Love You Inside and
Out” had a very Telethon arrangement and less than stellar performance by
the Bland Band, but she sang it well. The song had power parts in the right
places for her voice, including a bridge to belt her way through. But one of
the runs didn’t work when the volume got loud, so we think perhaps she
couldn’t hear herself. We weren’t “wow”ed, but it wasn’t bad at all, and she
had good stage presence. Clothing-wise, her look needed a little help. Tips
for success: A better song, arrangement, and band would have helped, because
Melinda can only do so much.
Blake Lewis: We liked Blake Lewis’s Euro-Mod Beatboxing version of “You
Should Be Dancing,” but it suffered somewhat at the hands of the band. He
made it modern, and although we weren’t crazy about the falsetto, the
beatboxing fit the song well. With a better band and a good producer, he
could record it in a modern way that works. Tips for success: When doing an
off-the-wall arrangement, always keep in mind the limitations of the band
who will be performing them.
La Kisha Jones (aka Kiki): We liked LaKisha’s version of “Stayin’ Alive”
vocally. Her choices were good, and she did a great job on a song which, if
mishandled, could be boring. Put bluntly, the band sucked, but LaKisha was
great. Tips for success: Continuing with good song selection and making them
her own is key.
Jordin Sparks: “To Love Somebody” was an excellent song choice for
Jordin Sparks, but we hated the arrangement of it because it make the song
very Telethon and boring. She sang it well, but would we buy it or pay to
hear her sing it live? Probably not. She looked great, though. Tips for
success: Good arrangements are important, even when you have a great song.
Melinda Doolittle: Melinda had an excellent vocal on “How Can You Mend a
Broken Heart”, but through no fault of her own it was boring. It reminded us
of a great vocalist like Celine Dion or Aretha Franklin performing on a
telethon. Clothing wise, her outfit was better than on the first
performance, but the line of the sleeves and neckline could have been more
flattering. Tips for success: A good stylist experienced in working with all
figure types would be helpful. Melinda needs someone who can give her a
tall, strong, uninterrupted line.
Blake Lewis: We love that Blake reached into the back catalog to find
“This is Where I Came In” because it was unexpected. The band wasn’t up to
it, but with a good producer and arranger, it might not be bad as a
contemporary song. As it was on Idol, it wasn’t so bad, and he had good
stage presence. We’d give the kid a break, because the performance’s faults
weren’t his. Tips for success: Will someone please get a jamming house band
for this show?
La Kisha Jones: La Kisha’s version of “Run to Me” was a good song
choice, and had a good arrangement and performance by the band. We liked it,
and we loved the dress, which was a top notch choice. Tips for success:
Continuing good song selection, good arrangements, and good wardrobe
selection is exactly what LaKisha needs to be successful.
Jordin Sparks: We agree with Simon completely that Jordin’s performance
of “A Woman in Love” was pageant-y, because the arrangement of the song and
her wardrobe styling made her look more like a beauty pageant contestant
than a contemporary music star. Musically we liked the verses, but the
chorus wasn’t great: she strained and wailed a little on the last chorus in
particular. But she did have some big notes in there, and it wasn’t bad…just
OK. We just expect more from her because she’s so good. Tips for success:
Song selection and imaging are key here. It’s easy to lose momentum with a
bad song choice.
We voted for: Melinda Doolittle.
Ryan Seacrest Smart Quip of the Night: Ryan got Simon with some great
zingers, which was fun to watch. But we’re really happy that his trademark.
radio-style sign-off, “Seacrest out” was back in.
American Idol
Armchair Quarterback
The MBADC American Idol Armchair Quarterback is intended as commentary and
is not affiliated with Fox Television, American Idol, or its producers or
judges in any way. Tips should be taken as a suggestion only and are not
intended as a substitute for qualified vocal coaching or artist management.
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