Good evening!
Well, I'm about to turn in... But before I do...
I LOVED LaToya tonight on "American Idol". She was the only who truly had a sense of presence tonight - for me. And her pitch was basically dead on. -The only quibble I had was that she was doing Celine Dion's version of "All By Myself". And there was some other Celine earlier in the show. -But I do love that triplet build into the final chorus.
As for the others...
Elizabeth - Nice way to start the show off. I like that song, but it actually does need back-up singers to truly work.
Eric - Not a good song choice, imho. Started off shaky and weak - probably equating singing softly with not having to breath as much. And his falsetto - eh-eh. More music theatre than pop to me. *And I know I've played for him at a regional audition at least once if not twice.
Amy - Liked a lot, but, yes, she was weak in her upper register. However, I think if she just tried more, she would have been able to belt those notes out.
Jonah - Not a chance! Nada! Zip! Zero! I felt I was watching a bad karaoke night.
Jon Peter - Interesting voice. Weird arrangement, ending of the song. But if he's that uncomfortable being in front of a camera, then he's not an American Idol. But I'd like to more from him in the future.
Charly - Very pitchy at the beginning. I think she has the same "heart" appeal as the Hawaiian girl. More a presence than a talent.
Leah - Very pitchy at the beginning too. And she doesn't seem genuine to me. -And from the shots of her mother/pop-star/coach... she just seems "created" to me, rather than real.
And, again, LaToya - Really impressed me. Actually got me to look at her - well, look up from my laptop screen.
All in all, definitely a much better group than last week. Much better. As long as LaToya gets passed on to the next round, that's all I care about. -And I'd pick Amy over Charly, Leah and Elizabeth.
OOOHHH!!! And I can't wait until next Monday - I can't believe they're getting some of the "losers" to come back and perform. It's actually kind of mean on the producers parts, but some of those egos we saw on the tape... well, well, well.. we'll see....
*And now for some thoughts on "My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiance".. Just Plain Mean! To put a family through that whole ordeal... just plain mean. And from the way the finale wrapped up, it appears that even the producers had no idea just how far and how much the whole scenario would go. The sense of "grand apology" in the "groom's" final speach was pandering. -And he was actually on Letterman tonight, and even Letterman made a point of mentioning how they had "ruined" these people's lives. And even though his comments were couched in his typical dry humor, you could tell he meant it. Go Dave!