I really enjoyed George last night. He dressed the part, chose songs from the actual era, and toned down the bouncing. I liked that he sang at the mike for one song, ala the 40s radio show. I didn't find it dull, like many did. The scratchy tone of his voice has got NOTHING on Louis Armstrong!
LaToya is a class act that deserves to win on talent alone, but does not connect well with the younger set. Is this a problem? Not for me, but that's where the ice princess stuff is coming from.
Fantasia has fantastic stage presence. She is a diva. This means she will be loved and hated, with very few neutral observers. She was not the only one straying out of the genre last night, but because of her personality, she is one taking the most heat. Of course, Queen is about as anti-swing music as you can get.
Jasmine comes in fourth for me. She's got a great voice that just doesn't have quite the same power as the top three. She's hit or miss on many shows, last night included.
Diana is in the bottom for me. I just haven't clicked with her in anyway whatsoever and I think Randy is insane for backing this horse. (Now watch her win
)
Here is someone paid to review the show:
Big Band, Little Point
By Ken Barnes, USA TODAY
American Idol's insatiable drive to corral every last available viewer took a desperate turn Tuesday night with its "big band" theme. Having enticed everyone over 75 with that concept, the show's masterminds proceeded to dilute the '30s/'40s vibe by allowing the contestants to sing their favorite pop standards, which turned out to include one from 1968 (Louis Armstrong's What a Wonderful World, which at least generally fits the description) and one from 1979 (Queen's Crazy Little Thing Called Love, which no one outside of Freddie Mercury's immediate family would call a standard).
La Toya London and Fantasia Barrino delivered impressive renditions of tunes from the Barbra Streisand songbook (Don't Rain on My Parade and What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life, respectively), but really the theme did the singers no favors. Simon Cowell, as usual, nailed the problem when he said the music had "absolutely no relevance to what's going on today," and compelling these young contemporary singers to perform in such antiquated styles (with a live big band, no less) produced performances that were inadequate, predictably safe, or pointless. And having them each sing two songs (now that there are only five entrants left, stretching is vital to fill the hour) merely doubled the irrelevance.
Running them down, La Toya and Fantasia outclassed the competition, as usual (as pointed out by Simon, also as usual), although Fantasia lost a lot of points for doing the ludicrous Queen cover.
Still, the Other Three clearly sounded inferior. While Diana DeGarmo warbled "come on, get happy" Judy Garland-style, I couldn't help thinking she'd be better off singing the Partridge Family theme. Her Someone to Watch Over Me was better (barring a brief passage in which she seemed utterly lost).
Jasmine Trias shrewdly picked a relatively undemanding ballad, The Way You Look Tonight, and handled it reasonably well. You couldn't say the same for her second song, an awkward version of It's Almost Like Being in Love that sounded almost like being in tune.
Wish I knew what's happened to the likable George Huff, but he's been floundering for a few shows now, and Fred Astaire's Cheek to Cheek wasn't the remedy. He sounds completely one-dimensional now, unable to handle anything but uptempo Motown-style tunes. Which don't include What a Wonderful World, which has exhausted its welcome in general thanks to overexposure in MCI commercials and exhausted my patience in George's dull version.
But my worries over George are nothing to my newfound concern for Paula Abdul. That fingernail problem (the reason for the bandage she's sported on the last two shows) must be incredibly painful, because she looked puffy, sounded vague and gave every appearance of having taken more meds than the recommended dose ... for the Incredible Hulk. The show suffers without her perceptive, incisive commentary OK, I'm rambling here.
So I'll close with the rumor that next week's theme and guest will be Donna Summer. Can we expect someone to sing Hot Stuff? Bad Girls? Love to Love You Baby? This could be interesting, in a grisly sort of way.
http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2004-05-04-idol-bigband-recap_x.htm
