Tonight our idols are bringing us the music from some of the inductees that have graced the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame museum located in Cleveland, Ohio. Both Ryan Seacrest and our remaining nine idols get to make two appearances in opening up our show tonight. First Ryan and the idols start it off with a party-like entrance as Ryan says we will see nine great idols perform nine great songs. This is of course American Idol!
We get to welcome our judges who look fabulous as usual plus our host Ryan for the second time. He too looks so good. Some extra help is available for our contestants tonight as Gwen Stefani is helping the ladies look their best and Will.I.Am from the Black-Eyed Peas will be on hand with Jimmy Iovine to coach our nine on performing. Another plus is Jeff Beck will be on stage with our contestants to offer his greatness with the guitars.
Our next clips involve seeing scenes from different rooms and exhibits that are at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Steven Tyler is the narrator. How great it is seeing so many pictures, instruments, clothing, statues and memorbilia of those that have been inducted. The preservation of so many artists that have given us such great music over the decades will continue to bring joy to the people for years to come.
With nine rock stars in the making we are again introduced to our contestants who look raring to go so let's get this party started.
Jacob Lusk is our first contestant who initally was going to sing "Let's Get It On" by Marvin Gaye however decides to change his song as he tells us he would not feel comfortable singing a "nasty song". His new choice is "Man In The Mirror" by Michael Jackson. I am not so sure his comment before his performance will make his fans happy. The comment being "if he doesn't get the support from the voters, it is not because he didn't sing well but because the voters are not ready to look at themselves in the mirror". I felt Jacob's voice was perfect for this song and overall he did fairly well. He has some duet help from Siedah Garratt who co-wrote this song with Glen Ballard as we are later informed by Steven Tyler. Steven also says about the performance that each time Jacob sings he brings another piece of himself. Jennifer Lopez likes how he makes everyone know what is right for him and calls the performance perfect. Randy likes his moral convictions and calls it hot. What got me about the performance was Jacob did not want to do the "nasty song" but does do some sexy moves during the song. As mentioned it was good but frankly I was not completely blown away. My grade: B+
Next up is Haley Reinhart that has been told often by the judges how much she has the Janis Joplin sound in her voice. So of course her pick is going to be "Piece of My Heart". Will and Jimmy encourage her to "feel" the music as she sings this song. I do think she sort of made this song her own and vocally she was pretty good but I could have lived without so much growling in the number. One thing however I did not get from this sexy young lady was the connection of the pain this song is supposed to be about. J-Lo thinks she had a strong start and feels she is a contender at least for a minute (huh?). Haley looked confused with this statement also. Randy talks about the bluesy, soul thing all of them loved about Haley in the first place and loved it. Steven couldn't find nothing wrong with this rendition and feels she nailed it. My grade: B+
One of my faves Casey Abrams originally was going to sing "Everything She Does Is Magic" by Sting but opts to change his song to "Have You Ever Seen The Rain" by Creedence Clearwater Revival. He feel nervous performing in front of Will.I.Am we see but manages to get his act together. Tonight he has brought back his up-right bass and also gets some assistance from Jeff Beck on the electric ukulele. Again I thought he did a good job overall but no one mentions the few off-notes he did have during the performance. Regardless I am a fan and enjoyed it. Randy thinks Casey made CCR proud and calls him revolutionary for bringing the up-right bass in the number. Steven feels Casey could put some wheels on the bass and ride it as he feels Casey is a true musician. Jennifer concurs by saying she would pay top dollar for a front row seat to see Casey perform. My grade: B+
For heaven's sake we are once again going to hear someone sing "Natural Woman" by Aretha Franklin. Sorry but I am really sick of hearing this song every year, I mean come on Aretha had some other songs that were awesome and why can't we get a change here and there I say. Okay enough with my rant as Lauren Alaina takes the stage to perform this overdone song. First of all I have to mention her outfit that was not to my liking at all. The sun-suit look made her seem like she had a bubble butt (sorry it just popped out). As far as her vocals went it was pretty good but like Randy mentions we have heard others in the past do better. Steven thinks four months ago she came in as a girl but has now matured into a woman (frankly I have always thought she looked older than she is). Jennifer says very nice and amazing. Even Christian Slater who is in the audience tonight seems to love it. For me personally it was overall just okay. My grade: B
Tonight is about rock but you can see by James Durbin's performance that you can rock even with a ballad. His pick tonight is George Harrison's "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" with the aid of Jeff Beck on guitar and ladies on violins. This performance was so touching and in my opinion filled with such emotion I actually had chills. James obviously felt the emotion as he is reduced to tears after the song. J-Lo thinks he brought another dimension to his talent which is special and calls this a great choice. Randy thinks he took a chance and won as he too loved James emotional side. Steven says he made the guitar weep and so did he with this great moment. I loved, loved, loved this. My grade: A+
Young Scotty McCreery is taking on Elvis Presley with the song "That's Alright Mama". For the first time I feel Scotty showed he could be a performer as well as a good singer. His stage presence was so good and I liked how he showed us a few dance moves as he performed this song. Sure he could never top Elvis with this song but overall I really enjoyed how he made it his own. Obviously several girls did also as they run up on stage after the song to give Scotty some hugs which seemed to surprise Ryan. Randy thought the number was amazing and fun. Steven thought he did justice to a song that was 57 years old. Jennifer thought he brought the 'flava" as she inquires if he listens to rap. I didn't get this vibe but oh well I did like it. My grade: A
Pia Toscano proves she can do an up-tempo number with her song "River Deep, Mountain High" by Ike and Tina Turner. I felt she did show more personality during this number and of course her vocals were very good but once again I felt her moves seem so wooden as she moved around the stage. I think Randy and Jennifer also got this vibe as they mention her great singing but also comment on the fact she should study performances of other artists to bring the movement. Steven is cute as he says there are a million guys with a million bar drinks about her. My grade: B+
:sing: Stefano Langone wants to bring the romance as he performs "When A Man Loves A Woman" by Percy Sledge. I thought his start was a little rocky as mentioned by Randy but overall he does perform this song quite well vocally. My problem is I still did not feel the connection of the passion this song displays. Maybe if he had sung it to one of the girls from the audience I would have liked it better. Jennifer however feels he had it in him and loves the layer of emotion he did bring to the song. Randy liked it in spite of his complaint that the beginning was a little jerky. Steven disagrees with this comment and loves the old-time feel and passion that Stefano displayed. Good but not great I say. My grade: B
You know I really try to give Paul McDonald a chance to show me he is the great artist so many say he is. Tonight I think he did better than I have ever seen him do since this show started as he sings "Folsom Prison Blues" by the late great Johnny Cash. His vocals were better even though I did hear some of those squeaky notes pop up here and there. The energy was quite good as he gets the audience going. Once again no one mentions the off-notes he had at times. Randy only has three words for him "I loved it"! Steven calls him a crazy character that rocked the house. Jennifer thinks it was right in his lane and also loved it. My favorite part of this was how Ryan looked so cute as he bounced around giving out Paul's number to call. For the performance itself my grade: B-
Final thoughts.
I enjoyed this week much more than last week and do think the fans might have some issues on who to send home. I, of course know who I would send home which would be Paul. Joining him in my bottom 3 consists of Stefano and Lauren. I do think it might be Stefano leaving us tonight as his fan base is not as large as my other two choices. I look forward to your thoughts on tonight.
Bye for now!
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Subject: Rock & Roll Hall of Fame - 4/6/11 
Thu Apr 07, 2011 9:02 am
