Idol Throwback

It was a throwback night in the Linder household. With My Daughter Diandra (MDD) here for a visit, it was like the old days of the family gathering ’round the TV for a night of American Idol. Gone was the Omnipotent Idol Clipboard upon which MDD used to make her critical notations (e.g. “GO! LEAVE! DEATH! DESTRUCTION!”) upon which I would consider additions or revisions to my own. But not gone was a family united in the adoration of the one and only Adam Lambert who gave amazing advice to each of the Idolists. Whether it was about arrangements, stage presence, song interpretation or delivery, or just plain attitude, Adam’s well-rounded and professional mentoring upped each Idolist’s game.

Also not gone from the good old days were My Daughter’s icy and spicy comments that were reminiscent of those wonderful days of yore:

• When Lionel compared Wade to Marvin Gaye after his duet with Alyssa, one daughter exclaimed, “You’re going to hell for that, Lionel.” Please put some respeck on Marvin’s name by sharing her outrage.
• MDD’s assessment of Alejandro being stuck in a duet with Walker Burroughs was, “It’s like being in a group project where the worst person holds the others back.”
• As to Lionel’s comment to Wade – “You’ve already won. Top 8 of American Idol” – My Daughter Cassandra replied, “That not how winning works”.

I feel My Inner Simon Cowell taught My Daughters very well. 🙂

As to tonight’s Queen performances, here are my ungraded thoughts about each summarized.

• Walker (Crazy Little Thing Called Love) – Why is he still here?
• Madison (The Show Must Go On) – As Adam said, her powerful voice isn’t quite connected to her body in terms of performance and she’s not able to sell her performances as a result.
• Jeremiah (Who Wants to Live Forever) – Powerful. Captivating. Mesmerizing.
• Alejandro (Under Pressure) – A clever, very “Alejandro” arrangement helped by Adam’s suggestion to keep some parts of the song familiar for the benefit of the listeners.
• Laine Hardy (Fat Bottomed Girls) – He was able to do what Adam suggested (and Madison couldn’t deliver) by putting on a rock god persona. A solid performance.
• Laci Kaye (Love of My Life) – She’s good. Really good. (And her Jackson duet with Laine was a star turn, too.
• Wade (We Are the Champions) – Bad song for him although I’m not sure what Queen song is good for his limited range.
• Alyssa (Somebody to Love) – In their comments, each judge basically said goodbye. She knew it, too.

Speaking of goodbyes, with Walker and Alyssa voted off, I’m actually happy with the Top Six of Laine, Laci Kaye, Jeremiah, Alejandro, Madison and Wade. If it hasn’t been inferred from all my posts, I’ve felt for some time that the best four are Laci Kaye, Laine, Jeremiah and Alejandro. For now, it’s an interesting contrast: three “traditional” Idolists in Laci Kaye, Laine and Madison; two outside the norm in Jeremiah and Alejandro; and Wade straddling the border[1]. I’m intrigued by what the voters will do with these different choices.

And I’m looking forward to seeing the story of Adam and Queen on Monday night.

Until the next time, I hope you get to listen to some good music. I know I will.

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[1] Although Lee Dewyze won with a rough, gritty voice in some ways similar to Wade.