I was a tired man as I arrived at the John Bassett theatre. Earlier, I had attended a press conference to announce the new Entertainment Tonight Canada show that will premiere in the Fall. The only problem was that it was very early in the morning and given the free drinks, I was feeling a little “under the weather” by the time Idol rolled around. I definitely was not my jovial self.
As I sat in my M3 seat in the right orchestra, I thought about how I have gotten to know the Idols personally which has its advantages and disadvantages. We have finally reached the point in the show where I would be sorry to see anyone go.
The smoke that penetrated the theatre last week cleared up for the Tuesday performance show. Loud Elvis music was playing in the waiting area and in the theatre itself (obviously gearing the crowd up for the theme of the night).
A weird voice came over the loudspeaker. It was female and surprised me because I was expecting to hear the Michael Buffer guy. I soon figured out that it was Sue Brophy and she urged the audience to buy some of the $2 charity bracelets that were on sale.
The place slowly started to fill in at 7:30 PM Eastern. I noticed that season 1 contestant Karen-Lee Batten was one of the late arrivals.
The Michael Buffer guy finally made an appearance and introduced producer John Brunton. Brunton admitted that Canadian Idol has been lobbying to do an Elvis theme for the last three seasons of the show. He then introduced Sue Brophy who came out to the theme of Jailhouse Rock.
Given that the theme was “The King,” I was just waiting for Jon Dore to make an appearance. I was totally expecting the white jumpsuit and long sideburns.
As Sue revved the crowd up by announcing the names of the four competitors who are still vying to become the next Canadian Idol, I noticed that Suzi Rawn got the smallest pop while Rex got the loudest. I am interested to see if this translates into Wednesday’s results.
Brophy finally introduced the judges and host Ben Mulroney.
Mulroney was wearing a hilarious outfit that consisted of an orange dress shirt and black blazer, topped off with a rose in his lapel. This was a guy who was feeling Memphis!
Jon Dore came out before the show started. Instead of the jumpsuit that I was expecting, he was wearing a chef costume.
Sue Brophy announced that Canada’s Minister of Heritage along with the Mayor of St. Thomas (Aaron Walpole’s hometown) were both in attendance.
The show began.
Mulroney: The quartet is ready to become a trio.
The Idols would be performing two songs in the Elvis-themed show. Ben asked the judges for some comments.
Jake: Don’t fall into an impression of Elvis.
Farley: He made rock and roll popular.
Sass: I have no expectations except to have a fantastic show.
Ben Mulroney then introduced an Elvis video package.
The Idols came out in the following order: Suzi, Melissa, Aaron and Rex.
There was a sneak preview of their recent trip to Sun Studios in Memphis with more being promised for Wednesday’s show.
Let’s get to the performances.
AARON WALPOLE Song #1
– Sang “Teddybear.”
– Song came off very blues-y.
– An average performance.
– Nothing spectacular.
– Very safe song that he used to ingratiate himself with the audience.
– Did not highlight his vocal abilities.
– Jake: Good job of not falling into an impression.
– Farley: It was good man.
– Zack: (Rips paper)… Next!
– Aaron clearly faltered with his first song.
– This makes tonight more of an open race.
SUZI RAWN Song #1
– Sang “Heartbreak Hotel.”
– I expected her best performance of all-time.
– Sterling rendition.
– The best voice in the competition.
– Definitely highlighted the fact that she does not have to oversing to do well.
– She reminds me of Marty on Rockstar: INXS.
– An outstanding display.
– Farley: Have more fun!
– Sass: God bless you!
– Zack: Looked like you could use a good night’s sleep.
– Jake: This is a song about heartbreak. You sang that like you had some heartbreak. That’s what’s important.
– To me, it seemed like the judges were overcompensating. Either they are too nice or they are too rough.
– Zack seemed like he was pissed about the Idols going to Memphis. Maybe he didn’t get to go!
During the ensuing commercial break, Sue said that someone was celebrating a birthday. While I expected the worst (the crowd singing), luckily time ran out and this was a live show.
MELISSA O’NEAL Song #1
– Sang “A Little Less Conversation.”
– Visions of JPL on American Idol ran through my head.
– Yes, he was the “pen salesman.”
– Melissa has a nice, high range.
– She seems to have a clear preference for the uptempo stuff.
– This is a tough song to sing because of the intense verbiage and diction. There are a lot of words that run together.
– Sass and Farley seem really into it as they cannot stop bobbing their heads to the beat.
– Sass: You’re my idol.
– Zack: Kill this next song… please!
– Farley: You energized the room (at least).
– A good performance, which is the norm for the Calgary girl.
REX GOUDIE Song #1
– Sang “Blue Suede Shoes.”
– I actually was expecting Rex to sing “A Little Less Conversation.”
– Rex sounded exactly like Elvis.
– Risky song to pick.
– I think he should have danced more. He clearly owned the performance when he did dance, but I think he should have emphasized that in the performance a little more.
– I already know the judges will dig it.
– Zack: Best performance of the first half, but would be different if a really good singer like Christina Aguilera sang it. That was a’ight.
– Jake: The dancing was original.
– Farley: You’re the stiffest man alive. You’re like Elvis Pretzel.
– Sass: Snores at the song.
AARON WALPOLE Song #2
– Sang “Love Me Tender.”
– Doing an awesome job!
– Totally making up for the bad initial performance.
– Significant improvement.
– There was a cute moment with the audience when Aaron sang “Love Me Tender” and a couple of girls screamed “We Love You Aaron.” Walpole smiled, breaking the serious demeanour that he was going for.
– Only problem with the song was that it did not highlight high vocal range and was basically spoken instead of sung.
– All of the songs seemed to be significantly shorter than usual (probably attributed to the fact that the Idols were singing two).
– Jake: Us big guys gotta stick together, that’s what we need to hear.
– Farley: All good.
– Sass: You really milked the dramatic moment!
– Zack: All cheese, all the time.
A commercial break was taken.
SUZI RAWN Song #2
– Sang “Can’t Help Falling In Love.”
– I absolutely adore the UB40 cover of this song and listen to it everyday.
– This was the first ballad that I have seen Suzi sing, and it is strange to see her sing a softer song that the powerful rock that the audience has become accustomed to.
– She is the class of the competition and the crowd is mesmerized. While the crowd seemed to interrupt Aaron with their proclamations of love, they were completely quiet for Rawn.
– She was also wearing white for the first time, with no shoes. Once again, this reminded me of Marty.
– Farley: I like what you are wearing.
– Sass: While it was iffy in the vocal, that was really cool to watch.
– Zack: Very well may be your last performance on this show, but it was definitely your most honest.
– Jake: (To Zack): I think you are out of line predicting someone’s demise. (To Suzi): First time I have seen you being vulnerable on the show. You moved me.
Time for a commercial break. Last week, I talked about the journalistic code of objectivity and I think the same principle can be applied for the judges. It has become readily apparent that Zack is actively rooting for Melissa, and while I do not have a problem with this, I certainly have a problem with him outlining his preference in the face of his contempt for the other performers.
During the commercial break, Jon Dore came out and asked the crowd to “go nuts” for his segment when he said “fried peanut butter sandwiches.” I actually laughed at the pun. Nuts. Peanut butter sandwiches.
The show started with the aforementioned segment, entitled the “Canadian Idol Kitchen.” It was funny because Dore talked about the favourite meals of some of the Canadian personalities and sad that Zack “devours other people’s happiness.”
Back to the show.
MELISSA O’NEAL Song #2
– Sang “You’ll Never Walk Alone.”
– Seems all of the contestants decided to go with a fast song first and end with a ballad.
– While Aaron and Suzi benefitted from their ballad selections, I think that Melissa does the best with faster songs.
– I didn’t like her pitch on this one.
– She received a semi-standing ovation at the end of it.
– Sass: Simple, sweet, stunning.
– Zack: Honest and honorable. God willing, you’ll sing better next week.
– Jake: I like when you’re playful, but I really like what you just did.
– Farley: I really enjoyed that.
I don’t think that we will have bad performances anymore. We are now too deep into the competition, so while I have criticized some of the songs here, they are minor. All were generally decent. It is no longer a question about who the best singer is. It’s about who has the largest and most committed fanbase, right Richard?
After a commercial break, it was time for the last performance of the evening.
REX GOUDIE Song #2
– Sang “If I Can Dream.”
– I don’t like the song.
– Average at best.
– Not as good as his first.
– I just think Rex has to take more risks. I think he always goes with the safest choice, which is probably the best strategy (considering he doesn’t have to really improve since he is a shoe-in for the finals).
– Zack: After tonight, I have no idea who is going to win. The four talents massacred a great talent.
– Jake: (To Zack): I think tonight will remembered as the night that you massacred four great talents.
– Farley: I liked the passion.
– Sass: I thought that was phew, but I really like you.
That’s it.
Here’s how I rank ’em. The part that Inside Pulse’s Rob Purchase has anxiously been awaiting.
1. SUZI
2. MELISSA
3. AARON & REX (TIE).
So there you have it. Ironically enough I think Wednesday’s results will be the exact opposite. I think Suzi and Melissa will be in the bottom two and that Melissa will be sent packing. While I actually think it will be Suzi, I am still sticking with my Suzi wins prediction.
We shall see…
