LimeWire Music Blog

It’s a new dawn, a new day and I’m feelin’ good…. Well, aspiring Idol Justin Williams was after his audition with that Nina Simone classic, and so am I after a surprisingly strong start to the first American Idol episode of 2010. Now, I’m not much of a fan of these early audition episodes, mostly because of the bad and/or frightening singers just trying to get on TV. However, the producers gave us a more of the good than bad and a few that look like they could make it to the top 24. But before we dissect these new wannabes (yes, that was a shout out to guest judge, the lovely and, um, nice former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham), let’s discuss a few topics about this new season of Idol….

1. Did we miss Paula? Well, I’d say that’s a resounding…maybe. At first, I didn’t miss her. Randy was more on his game and apparently has been using a thesaurus lately. Simon was in fine form as always (no hint of the man who is ready to depart the show at the end of the season for his next venture, America’s X Factor),  and shocker of shockers, Kara was not annoying at all. She was on point with her critiques and didn’t make it about her as she often did last season… So, what changed as the episode went on? Well, we missed the heart and loopy fun that is Paula. I know she crazy, but still I miss her zany spirit. However, it’s good that I didn’t miss her too much during the first half of the show. I think the transition to Ellen Degeneres as the new “nice” judge may be ok after all.

2. Did we need Victoria Beckham and/or a guest judge? I’d say NO. Posh was very pretty and polite … and a pointless addition. While she was great at bolstering the contestant’s confidence, she really didn’t add any incisive criticism or humor or bite that the show could’ve used. And as many of us have complained, four judges is one too many. Besides, Kara can play the new Paula just with a little added Italian seasoning…. That said, we’ll have to accept the 4 judge fact and see how Ellen fares once we get to Hollywood week.

3. Producer manipulation: As we all know, the producers and judges throw their favorites in our faces (hello Hokey Gokey and Lil “I can’t live up to my hype” Rounds from last season) and change up the rules (thank goodness there’s no top 36 this time). So what are we in for this season? With only this first episode to judge, I’d say the producers are looking for a girl to win the season. There was decidedly more airtime spent on the better female singers tonight, not that there’s anything wrong with that. I just hope they don’t shove certain contenders back stories down our throats too much as well.

Okay, now let’s get on with the show. The first set of auditions landed in Boston, a city famous for the Red Sox, Aerosmith, a Tea Party and giving us New Kids on the Block.  Big history, but did they have big talent? Let’s break it down with the good, the pretty good, the bad and the ugly.

The Good

(All going to Hollywood)

Ashley Rodriguez: this beautiful music student slayed Alicia Keyes “If I Aint Got You” and Simon was right on in saying: “Some people have got it and I think you may have it.” I totally agree.

Katie Stevens: This 16-year-old with the big Portuguese family did it all for her grandmother suffering from Alzheimer’s, and she killed it with a sultry and sensitive take on the Etta James classic “At Last.”

Maddie Curtis: Along with Katie, her backstory had me welling up a little. She comes from a family with four brothers with Down’s syndrome and “Hallelujah”; she was fantastic performing the Leonard Cohen song with soul and a surprising maturity.

Leah Lorenti: Is she a producer fave? She did get the “pimp slot” as the last contestant of the night and she earned it with a bluesy sexy take on “Blue Skies.” Give her a little more confidence and this girl from the Long Island could be a strong contender.

Tyler Grady: While he looked like he could use a sandwich and a comb, he didn’t need either ’cause he had pipes! The guy who fell right out of a tree from 1971 shattering his wrists wowed the judges and left Posh and Kara salivating for more after a sexy take on “Let’s Get It On.” Bonus points for not making the song salacious Tyler! Oh, and one more thing, anyone else notice the Justin Guarini similarities in hair and song choice? I’m just saying…

Luke Shaffer: The hot guy with the blond hair and beanie hat belted out Secondhand Serenade’s “Fall for You” with grace and ease. He may have been a little nervous but he could go far on looks and the voice.

Justin Williams: the cancer survivor and possibly the next Michael Buble served up a strong and memorable version of “Feelin’ Good”.

The Pretty Good

(All these contenders made it to Hollywood as well)

Joshua Blaylock: I’m just gonna call him Mr. Overly Nice Guy (or MONG) for short. Well, MONG gave us a pretty and serviceable version of Rascal Flatt’s “Bless This Broken Road” but needed to boost his confidence level for Simon and Randy’s votes. His boy band looks and voice have potential though.

Benjamin Bright: Otherwise known as season 1’s R.J.Helton version 2.0 gave a brief but strong rendition of The Beatles’ “All My Loving.”

Mike Davis: The confident actor who works on the speedboat Codzilla had personality to spare and a nice voice with his performance of “Yesterday” also by the Beatles.

Jess Wolfe: She got like two seconds of airtime, but they were good. I wanted to hear her sing more of “People Get Ready.” There was an Allison Kraus vibe there, and I liked it.

The Decent

(Also going to Hollywood)

Amadeo DeRocco: From the big family of Italians on Long Island Rhode Island, he gave us a forced and loud but interesting take on Muddy Waters “Hootchie Cootchie Mama.”

Claire Fuller: She was the pretty brunette who sang Mr. Big’s number one hit “To Be With You.” That’s about all we know.

Jennifer Hirsch: The girl who scatted and sang a Norah Jones-like version of “The Wicked Witch is Dead.”

Bosa Mora: The likable guy of Nigerian decent who sang a song I’d never heard. (Yes, I’ll admit it! What was he singing? Let me know in the comments below). He needs more stage presence and some vocal lessons but could surprise us.

The Bad

Lisa Olivero: She butchered Mariah Carey’s “Vision of Love” despite her self-confidence and her voluptuous body. It’s never good when you leave an audition and suddenly the judges perk up upon seeing your tuchus….

Michael Ryan: This poor young guy’s voice brought to mind two words: Ethel Merman.

Bill Bloom: Like a screechingly awful wannabe Seal.

Mary Doyle: The girl who loved Japanese animae should definitely stick to making kimonos. She said she’d love to be successful in Japan. Well, she’ll have no success singing anywhere especially after she yelled Janis Joplin’s “Piece of My Heart” at the top of her strained lungs.

Pat Ford: Ya gotta love the guy who breaks out into his own goofy choreography to try to wow the judges despite a pitchy and pathetic version of Britney Spear’s “Womanizer.” He did seem like a fun guy though, and points for calling Simon “sassy.”

The Ugly

Janet: Did she have a last name? Well she started off the auditions on an auspicious note with her awkward and just plain horrible version of Natasha Bedingfield’s “Pocketful of Sunshine.” And why was she jumping up and down like she was about to run a sprint? Hello, you need to use your breathe to, um, sing! I did enjoy her constantly mistaking Kara for Paula though.

Norberto Guerrero: The guy with the identity crisis (is he Janet Jackson? LaToya? He has a beard! He’s dressed like the guys from Tokio Hotel but looks like one of the girls from Expose or even El Debarge) failed to impress with a strange take on Cascada’s “Everytime We Touch.” At least the judges let him down easy for once.

Derek: Another one-name wonder, also classified as the spiritual guy with long blond hair. Whether he was channeling Chris Brown (did he really think people look up to him anymore?) or Cher with that strange vocoder voice, he was just plain awful.

Andrew Fenlen: The guy who was annoyed he had to wait in line so long certainly made an impression, the wrong impression that is. Despite a surprisingly on key rendition of the Animal’s “House of the Rising Sun,” Andrew was too arrogant, creepy and rude to even get much of a shot. It was fun to see Kara let him have it though.

Whew! That’s a lot of contestants and that’s not counting the some 17 others who got Golden tickets to Hollywood and the mass quantities of wannabes goin’ home with broken hearts and egos…. I’m happy to report that I think there are a few I could see myself supporting in the coming weeks (Ashley Rodriguez, Katie Stevens, Tyler Grady) and several who could surprise when we get to Hollywood week. So far so good.

Now, before I go, some thoughts for you to ponder: Just how incredibly hairy are Simon’s arms? Did Kara actually get some better hair and fashion tips? Is it me or did Randy NOT say the word “dawg” at all? Did the pacing seem better to you too? And did any of this recap make sense or could you tell I’m under a Theraflu-induced haze? Let me know your thoughts below and welcome back to American Idol!