American Idol Recap: The Top 5 sing standards! No, they sing Rat Pack songs! No, Jamie Foxx is an R&B hitmaker!


Amidst mixed messages the Idols find the challenge in singing simple standards

They don't do a Standards or Big Band theme every year on American Idol, but I like it when they do. Standards seem simple, but it's deceptive. We have gotten so used to power wailing pop ballads that we don't notice how little ability to sustain such wailing requires. We don't even notice as modern-day singers take a breath every other word, or in the middle of words. They can hold single notes for a long time, or do runs for a while, but they often can't sing a sustained phrase. We don't have a chance to hear what their voice sounds like just hitting a note and staying on it. Or singing a whole sentence and making sense of it. We've lost the appreciation for dynamics and vibrato control. And sometimes, in all that wailing, we also lose the meaning. Of every. single. word.

Singing standards provides the perfect opportunity.

And while the Top 5 acquitted themselves admirably in general...we certainly saw and heard where they could use some work.

Where you ask? Well, let's dig in.

1. Kris kicked it off singing one of my very favorites: "Just the Way You Look Tonight"

Both Bennett and Sinatra had big hits with this, the former as a balladeer, the latter as a swingster. Given a choice I'll take the former any day. Kris actually tried to split the difference, starting out with a tender opening and then kicking into the swing temp halfway through. Similar to when Anoop took the half and half approach to Dim all the Lights, I didn't think switching it up really served Kris. He sounded too needy as a balladeer and too wanna-be as a hipster. Despite those lovely puppy dog eyes, I really didn't buy either part of the song. Don't get me wrong: Kris can sing, and Kris has a basic, sincere approach. This wasn't painful or bad...it just didn't drive me wild. he seemed a pale version of both the big guys he was emulating, and I think he could have made a stronger impression if he had picked an approach and committed 100% to it.

2. Allison sang "Someone to Watch Over Me"

A Gershwin classic that Linda Ronstadt revived, Someone To Watch Over Me is sweet, but a bit over-done, I think. I thought it was glaringly obvious in this song that Allison has an amazing voice and pretty much no actual technique. She is naturally gifted, which is awesome, but this girl couldn't sing more than three words in a row without a breath. Obviously she has enough lung power to hit some amazing big notes...as Randy would say, "she can really blow", but not being able to use that same power to make it through an entire phrase of lyrics? Sorry, it bothers me. I thought Allison looked lovely, and sounded great at those points when she was really wailing, but I didn't think she had the finesse on the verses. And I'm worried about her.

3. Matt sang "My Funny Valentine"

I have to say I was shocked Simon loved this. I totally acknowledge that Matt can sing, but this had an erratic, nervous quality that made me very uncomfortable. I agree completely with randy that he was sometimes pitchy and that some of the runs were quite good, while others just didn't seem to fit. I agreed with Kara that it didn't hang together. Bottom line, I thought it was pretty terrible, actually.

4. Danny sang "Come Rain or Come Shine"

Danny has a really really bad habit: He sings perfectly nicely from the start, but with a weird kind of expressionless lack of energy. Then at about the mid-point he gets possessed by a singing demon and suddenly the energy pops in; he's all over the place, and he's strutting his stuff. This isn't the first week I've remarked upon that, but this week was perhaps the most glaring example yet. I'm actually not talking about volume, for example, one can have quiet intensity, after all. I'm talking about that fire inside. He needs to have it form note one, not from the middle of the song.

5. Adam sang "Feeling Good"

This is an interesting song, written for the Broadway musical "Roar of the Greasepaint, Smell of the Crowd" by Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse. The song was actually popularized by Nina Simone in the 60s and more recently by Michael Buble. So, let's just say it has a theatrical background to begin with, unaided by Adam's natural theatrics. As always: A great vocal. Kara actually had a pretty funny comment, calling Adam "sleazy and superb". I think I agree on both counts! You also already know I'm not a fan of the tongue sticking out when singing a big note, but it's hard to argue with the results! And yes, he strutted down that stairway like a pompadoured peacock! I always have the same comment about Adam: Doesn't matter if it's my personal cup of tea or not...he is another level above any of these other contestants.

Bottom Line:

I think the Bottom 2 will clearly be Matt and Allison. I think they deserve to be. And I think Matt deserves to go home. I'm kinda hoping that's the way America goes too.

But how about you?

Posted: Wed - April 29, 2009 at 04:57 PM       EmailFeedback

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