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Aimee Mann, American Idol, Bob Dylan, Glen Hansard, Michael Fassbender, Neil Young, Thom Yorke, YouTube
So my kids tease me that I still watch American Idol, “What, is it 2001?”. It’s a thing we’ve done as a family, more or less, since Season 2. Favorites being Taylor Hicks, Bo Bice, and Phillip Phillips and of course the best selling contestants Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood and Chris Daughtry. Even went to a couple of Idol concerts.
As anyone who regularly watches the show, the contestants perform weekly and choose a song based upon a prescribed theme, this past week’s being “Movie Night”. Needless to say, right up my alley. So many choices. Something for everyone, show tunes, standards, pop, classic rock, the list is endless.
Obviously, there are a gazillion songs that have been used in movie soundtracks, some of them overly used as from Forrest Gump (1994) and The Big Chill (1983). I’m more interested in songs that were either written specifically for the movie or at least did not become well known until featured in a film. Disney, James Bond and Elvis Presley films alone could provide their own theme night. The last couple of years have provided gems, such as 2014’s Frank “I Love You All” and “The Moon Song” from Her (2013), for my playlists.
As for the Idol performances, I like that a good portion of the selections were songs written for the original soundtrack but otherwise the song choices were quite uninspired. “Danger Zone” and “Let’s Hear It For The Boy” are better left in the ’80s, Kenny Loggins’ performance of his Footloose pretty much covered that genre. “Staying Alive” wasn’t personalized enough, “You’re The One I Want” was an interesting adaptation that didn’t quite pay off, and “Circle of Life” just didn’t needed to be sung. Some decent song choices included “Love You I Do” and “Lost Stars” both of which refer back to music performance shows and maintain a contemporary feel. The Beatles’ “Come Together” was exciting and fun to watch but ultimately barely sung and lacking in any iconic movie performance having been derived from a soundtrack of all Beatles songs.
Top 3 of the night:
- Jax – “Grow Old With You” Adam Sandler The Wedding Singer – Best choice of the night. Fun movie. Great adaptation, better than the original. Made a novelty song legit.
- Clark – “Sunday Morning” Maroon 5 Cheaper By The Dozen 2 – Solo performance. Strong guitar, strong voice and strong look. Possible champion.
- Joey – “Mad World” Tears For Fears Donnie Darko – The first inspired song choice of the night. The cover version on the soundtrack is even better than the original, great movie as well. Joey’s performance was quirky and mesmerizing.