Kris Allen’s New Single “Live Like We’re Dying” Listen to a Snip!

I kinda like it. Still wish it were something new, but it’s pretty good.

Seems a bit teen-ish for my tastes, though.

Seems like Kris is getting the typical SONY/19 strategy, including an overproduced first single that’s meant to be a clone of his greatest hit from Idol, in this case, Heartless. It sounds pretty ‘bleh’  to me. I love The Script, but I don’t think Kris should be a clone of them. I guess I just need to remember the lesson I learned last year with Light On, that, sometimes, not only does the 1st single sound nothing like the rest of the album, but, it’s also the worst song on the album. Here’s hoping that the rest of the album has more character.

(Moved from headlines)

I…. don’t like it at all.

If it weren’t by Kris it would be the kind of bland song I listened to for a few seconds and then turned off.

He didn’t change it either.

Maybe the rest of the songs on the album will be better. But I won’t be purchasing this particular song. ;(

I kinda like it too…. I just can’t wait to hear all his music.

it’s catchy. perfect mainstream radio pop fare.

Very exciting news for Kris fans! Sounds like the single could be out in the next couple of days…Wish it wasn’t a cover though…

I’m in too crowded and public a place to listen yet, but I think it’s a shame that his first single is a cover. Makes me a bit worried that either he’s not getting good advice, or he’s not getting good songs. Hope I’m wrong.

Not sure what I think about it – there will be lots of talk on this though – just hoping for a mainly positive response

I think despite not understanding a word other than “gotta live like we’re dying” and not loving the original, it’s a nice upbeat one. And I think it’s great he’s going upbeat with the first single, wise choice, imo.
His voice sounds really produced there, which makes it a lot more generic than it really is. But that’s always the faith of these albums.

I think it’s got more in common with “She Works Hard for the Money” than “Heartless.” Or maybe “SWHFTM” plus “Seasons of Love” minus glory notes.

I can’t tell anything from 30 seconds. So I’ll just wait to hear the whole thing.

I still don’t know WHY they’re releasing a cover as the first single.

Oh sads, I can’t hear it. I won’t make any judgment after one listen though. I’m one of those who needs a song to grow on me a bit. I was rockin to The Script’s version yesterday though. I’m sure with radio play, Kris will get it going on.

Yay KRIS!!!

As an Adam fan who has never dowloaded one single song of Kris’, despite being a huge fan of his genre…..

I F’in love it and will buy it when it is available. Once again, very O.A.R. like, love the reggae/ska/folk vibe.

Congrats Kris!

I can’t tell anything from 30 seconds. So I’ll just wait to hear the whole thing.

This snippet sounds exactly like The Script’s version, except for with Kris’ voice. You can listen to their version to get an idea of what the song’s like. It’s up on youtube.

ETA: It seems more reggae/ska/folk as Studio57 described it, not pop.

Way to go Jive/19/Sony, with yer covers. *thumbs up*

/sarcasm

It’s popish but based on the snippet Kris seems to get into it. I think it will do well.

“It’s up on youtube.”

its also on itunes.. lol

As an Adam fan who has never dowloaded one single song of Kris’, despite being a huge fan of his genre’ ¦..

I F’in love it and will buy it when it is available. Once again, very O.A.R. like, love the reggae/ska/folk vibe.

Congrats Kris!

This comment definitely makes me feel a bit more positive. Also, besides all of us that live on these blogs and are obsessed with everything AI – how many people have heard the Script song before? I’d never heard of it until yesterday so people might not realize it’s a cover, especially since it’s only a B-side by The Script.

amiroamor
September 16, 2009 at 6:55 pm

I still don’t know WHY they’re releasing a cover as the first single.

eh. it’s almost quite as befuddling as kelly releasing “i do not hook up”, but less so since katy perry is huge right now. i’ve stopped trying to understand record labels’ strategy and take it for what it is.

it’s probably not unusual for songs recorded by other artists that didn’t make an album to be passed on to someone else in the music biz. sometimes it can blow up; see rihanna’s “umbrella”.

also, if i were kris, i’d gladly take this over the “original” dreck they gave to taylor, katharine, blake, etc.

Well, I’m not surprised — just disappointed. When I first saw the title and guesses that it was a cover of The Script song, I expected it to be Heartless-esque — except that Heartless is a better song with much better lyrics.

CathyMK: Seems like Kris is getting the typical SONY/19 strategy, including an overproduced first single that’s meant to be a clone of his greatest hit from Idol, in this case, Heartless. It sounds pretty ‘bleh’  to me. I love The Script, but I don’t think Kris should be a clone of them. I guess I just need to remember the lesson I learned last year with Light On, that, sometimes, not only does the 1st single sound nothing like the rest of the album, but, it’s also the worst song on the album. Here’s hoping that the rest of the album has more character.

I hope you are right about this being like “Light On”. I hope that this was selected and put together quickly because Kris is still working on the songs for his album and didn’t have “the good stuff” done.

Sherena: I’ ¦. don’t like it at all. If it weren’t by Kris it would be the kind of bland song I listened to for a few seconds and then turned off. He didn’t change it either.

I agree completely. I was hoping if this was “the song” that Kris would rearrange it. But instead, it’s a cover of a song with too many lyrics, done at basically the same tempo as The Script version.

‘It’s up on youtube.’ 

its also on itunes.. lol

When I search The Script on ITunes I can’t see the song anywhere immediately. I’m sure it’s there somewhere, but you’d have to buy it to listen to the full thing on ITunes, and idk if smartcookie would want to buy a song she’d only listen to once.

also, if i were kris, i’d gladly take this over the ‘original’  dreck they gave to taylor, katharine, blake, etc.

Original dreck, recycled dreck, same thing. This reminds me of No Boundaries but without the earworm factor.

I thought Kris might have slowed it down it a little, the song is too fast here, just doesn’t sound right for him. Will have to wait for a good quality clip before I can say if I like it or not, but at the moment I’m tending on the iffy side.

For me, I am still in wait and see mode. I really didn’t get enough from the snippet to make a sound judgement. The sound quality was not great at all and maybe it’s not the final version. Didn’t David A. say in an intervew that he didn’t even know what his first single was going to be or what it sounded like until it actually got released.

I just don’t get why they would go anywhere near a cover for the first single. Probably the biggest criticism of AI is that it is a “karaoke contest.” Are they in that much of a hurry to get something out?

Having said that, it isn’t a bad song. And it definitely fits Kris.

First, as I said yesterday I actually like the song and think it can potentially be a hit on the radio. So yeah for Kris.

But this is really a farce, that snipet sounded just like THe Script, they didn’t even rearrange it?
Really hope Kris has some great songs that he simply didn’t have the time to get ready for the single, even tough I am not his biggest fan I find this is a little disapointing for him.

Kinda catchy, but his voice seems too generic for me. Hope it goes well. It is true that is looks a bit like she works hard for the money (the guitar), but the “rap” part looks like heartless.

anovich- no one but us crazy obsessed AI fans are even going to know it’s a cover. Like I said yesterday, Kris needed a song quickly to get on the charts- he has absolutely no time to tweak an original yet. He has to strike while the iron is hot and before people start forgetting about the idol season. this will buy him some time.

All I can say is

Here’s the full lyrics to The Script song – I personally think slowing this down would make it sound so much better

http://www.lyricsreg.com/lyrics/the+script/Live+Like+Were+Dying+/

The same snippet is up on YouTube in two versions. One with this photo and one with a B&W photo.

anovich- no one but us crazy obsessed AI fans are even going to know it’s a cover.

Or any of the thousands of people who have gone to a Paul McCartney concert lately. I think the Scripts sang it at the one I was at in August. It sounds very familiar.

Can I just say that’s 2 for 2 for two winners in a row that AI fans have figured out the provenance of the first single based solely on the title being given out? Okay, in the case of Chris Cornell’s Light On. no demo was actually dug up (and it doesn’t sound like it got that far) but the connection to the Script based solely on the title came up pretty quickly and people did their digging, made the connection to Cook and Sony, and, bingo, they got it right in one. Well done, AI Detective Team! Now, how about helping the CIA on finding that Bin Laden dude?

Is there a recorded version of Katy Perry’s version of IDNHU around the internet anywhere? As long as a song was recorded and released in any way shape or form, and another artist records it that to me is a cover. Saying a song was originally Katy Perry’s (or insert any established artist name) at least can drum up some buzz. I’m not grasping why they would go with this unless it’s the best song they have. Luckily The Script aren’t all that well known here and radio listeners likely don’t have a clue about it so that’s good. I do think it’s a very catchy and fun song so I hope it does well for him.

ETA: ptslittlecomment yes I think they did sing it there now that you mention it. I was at one of the Paul McCartney shows and I thought the song sounded familiar.

Here’s another link to the snippet. To me, the audio quality is a little different/better here – easier to understand the lyrics:
Live Like We’re Dying

As for it being a cover – I guess technically it is, but I just don’t know if the general public will see it that way. To me, the first version of a song I hear becomes the original – especially if the ‘official’ original isn’t widely known/available.

As for Kris’s version being the same – yes.. the 20 seconds are the same. We won’t know the rest until we hear the whole song. The couple of parts I specifically hope are ‘Krisified’ aren’t part of the clip, so who knows how it will turn out.

I LOVE IT. I think it has the potential to do well. It’s definitely something you can hear Kris sing so this will not disappoint/shock his Idol fanbase but at the same time, it’s not the typical sound you hear on the radio right now and he has Jive on his side.

I would have to hear more of the song, but from listening to the original and the 20 sec clip I am not happy. I don’t think this song will show Kris at his best. I think he should have done something along the lines of a love song. (In the vein of Fallen Slowly or Ain’t no Sunshine when she Comes”) I hope the 20 sec clip is a rough draft of what Kris will really do with the song.

The second link that was put up by KT_CLE is a better quality of the song and is a lot more appealing.

From what I heard, not very different from the original. Kris’ voice is distinctable altho a little over produced. I wish Kris could’ve changed it more. I won’t download it to my iPod. But the song is poppish and with Jive’s marketing promo it could be a hit.

Is there a recorded version of Katy Perry’s version of IDNHU around the internet anywhere?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBJOY66x-c4

This is the kind of song I will be singing along like an idiot in my car to, lol. I can’t wait to hear the rest of it. I don’t give a crap about covers or whatever and most people who will listen to this on the radio won’t either. They’ll just hear a song that IMO is good.

I’m sorry but that is just terrible. Wow typical over produced bubblegum American Idol crap! Hmmm maybe I am starting to be glad Matt wasn’t signed by 19 but of course still praying he is picked up by a major label. So glad that is not Matt’s songs!

“Didn’t David A. say in an intervew that he didn’t even know what his first single was going to be or what it sounded like until it actually got released.”

He hadnt had time to listen to the finished one because I think they had just finished it in time really. lol Plus he’s not all that prone to listeneing to his stuff.
He only JUST got around listeneing to the final song of Save The Day that got released with the japanese version.

and he has Jive on his side

At least we hope so – sorry but my cynicism of 19E and it’s affilitaes in regards to Kris is hard to get over even this long after the show

I think I will like it. It sounds like a song that will suit Kris well. I’ll buy it when it’s released.

Hmmmm Not sure what to think. I lose Kris’s voice in the whole thing. I was hoping he would take some of the pop out of the Script version.

I can see it getting radio airplay and being a hit even if it’s not totally my ‘cup of tea’…

its also on itunes.. lol

Frogcooke, how did you find it on iTunes? when i search for the title, all I get is a song by Lenka.

Just listened to Katy perry’s “I Do Not Hook Up” which is basically identical to Kelly – that’s just insane

I am SHOCKED Kris would release a cover as his first single. What is the strategy in that?? He just came off a show singing covers and the point is to now branch out and do your own thing and the decision is made to release a cover as the first single? Im still holding on to hope that its just a filler for the album and not his first single.

Sherena
September 16, 2009 at 6:53 pm

I’ ¦. don’t like it at all.

If it weren’t by Kris it would be the kind of bland song I listened to for a few seconds and then turned off.

He didn’t change it either.

Maybe the rest of the songs on the album will be better. But I won’t be purchasing this particular song. ;(

I don’t like it at all either. I hated The Script’s version and was hoping Kris would rework it. Does not sound like he did anything but sing it with the same arrangement.

I am very disappointed. I won’t be buying this single.

dhunken
September 16, 2009 at 7:09 pm

I think he should have done something along the lines of a love song. (In the vein of Fallen Slowly or Ain’t no Sunshine when she Comes’ )

as a first single? that’s kinda like radio suicide. $50 bucks the second single is more ballady.

Well I never listened to script’s verizon and I don’t plan too. So I really enjoyed it. It took me about 3 times listening to it thou to decided. But i’ll know more after I hear the whole thing.

I’m happy for all Kris fans

Here’s another link with better audio

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfzbwd_5v0A

Also, Kris’ version seems to be a carbon copy of The scripts version. ::palm on forehead::

alaadam
September 16, 2009 at 7:03 pm

All I can say is

DITTO.

As for it being a cover ‘“ I guess technically it is, but I just don’t know if the general public will see it that way. To me, the first version of a song I hear becomes the original ‘“ especially if the ‘official’ original isn’t widely known/available.

It’s a cover but many singers have had their biggest hits with covers, and this should be a hit. It is the first real single by the winner of American Idol — I expect it to be a big hit.

But I think the risk for anyone from Idol is being labeled a “karaoke” artist. And this small clip sounds just like The Script version — it’s the same arrangement, tempo is the same and so on. I hope there is something original in the parts we haven’t heard.

Didn’t David A. say in an intervew that he didn’t even know what his first single was going to be or what it sounded like until it actually got released.

david hadn’t heard the final version of ”crush” until he premiered it on z100 august 1st of 2008…… it was written specifically for him by eman kiriakou, along with david hodges, and he recorded it, if i recall correctly, very soon after the finale so he was aware of what his 1st single was going to be… the final mix he heard live on the air with the rest of us…. good times, so kris fans, enjoy it!

What a frekin’ waste of talent. a) it’s a cover and b) it’s too wordy – Nobo all over again. Nothing worse than a singer suckin’ for air.

What the hell is the big rush?

I think 20 seconds is too short of a clip to determine whether or not I like it. On the one hand, I was hoping his first single wouldn’t be a cover. On the other hand, the beginning of this has a catchy melody. I haven’t bothered to listen to the original version of this song, so I don’t know if it’s close to the same.

I plan to buy it because it’s Kris, but I won’t if I hate it. That clip is not horrible, but neither is it great. Hopefully the whole single will drop, so I can judge of that.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfzbwd_5v0A

Ok, this audio is much better. Kris doesn’t sound like he’s struggling with the wordiness — which was a problem (one of many) with NoBo. This song, even in this brief clip, seems way better than NoBo

This brief clip does sound very close to the original version (which I just listened to), so hopefully Kris changes the rest of it up somehow. The lyrics are a little cheesy, but the melody is definitely catchy and radio-friendly. Which is likely what Jive is going for.

jtoms you are probably right.

On the upside they have not made Kris into a Nickelback repeat.

But I think the risk for anyone from Idol is being labeled a ‘karaoke’  artist. And this small clip sounds just like The Script version ‘” it’s the same arrangement, tempo is the same and so on. I hope there is something original in the parts we haven’t heard.

The fact that it’s a cover isn’t the problem here. The Script aren’t a very well known band–I’d never heard of them before– and this was a b-side, not even a released song. I’m sure that the general public will have no idea it’s a cover.

Now this is interesting …. according to The Scripts website, their debut album in the States is going to be released on Nov. 17th!

No it doesn’t have “Kris’” song on it.

I like the vibe, but not the title, though.

I like the song. It’s right down his alley. Very acoustic, lyrics interpreted meaningfully, very Kris. It’s not like anybody even knows The Script’s version of the song, it wasn’t exactly a hit. If anything there might be initial confusion between this song and the Tim McGraw hit a few years ago that had a similar title.

I think it can be a hit. It’s upbeat and pop-y and yeah, with Jive/19 promoting it, I can definitely see it doing well. And I don’t consider this a cover version, though technically it is, because this band never even released it in the US, right?

I don’t hear any ska/reggae in this at all, but it’s super short! and the quality sucks, so I’m reserving my thoughts about the final sound until I hear the whole thing. Which should be soon. We are also speculating that this song would be released in time for his Sept.19th show with David Gray, if not his show doing the Ford thing, so the timing of ths clip coming out would fit into it.

As of now for me personally? eh. Unimpressed, but as I said in the headline thread, I’m unimportant. The music buying public is important and they have really crappy taste, at least if I go by the top 40. So I’ll hope this is a successful song for Kris (and that I like the rest of his album more).

Sounds a bit better phrased by Kris than by the lead singer for the Script actually. Or maybe it’s only that the lyrics were shown on that Script utubey link from yesterday and I felt like I was waiting for the guy to get it over with already on singing the lyrics. It’s not the best song in the world but it’s not bad either and I can hear it getting played on the radio (very catchy). And it does sound like a Kris song so Kris fans (the non-obsessed ones) will feel like he was true to his style on AI. The song fits Kris’ style much better than LO fit David Cook’s style — at least coming off AI as the first single.

Knew it! Let the angsting commence. It’s deja vu all over again — Light On 2.0, LOL.

On the upside they have not made Kris into a Nickelback repeat.

That was my biggest fear for how 19 could ruin Kris — and, for me, the good news is that this at least sounds like Kris and leaves me optimistic that I might like his album.

I can’t think that more that 0.05% of people who aren’t AI obsessed will have any freaking clue that it’s a cover. It truly doesn’t matter. I remember a few (maybe 7 or years back when I walked into the room singing Jolene. My daughter was shocked and asked me where I’d heard of the White Stripes. I was shocked and asked what they have to do with Dolly Parton. This song is nothing like that one. It just won’t even matter on the radio.

Do I love the song? Of course not…it has absolutely nothing to do with any music I love. Do I think it should do well? Yup. Sounds like so much I’ve heard lately that has done well.

I think it has the perfect tempo for first single, no ballad please! Well done in that regard, I believe.
It’s funny The Script are now trying to get into the US market. But this being a cover won’t hurt Kris at all, imo.

Just listened to Katy perry’s ‘I Do Not Hook Up’  which is basically identical to Kelly ‘“ that’s just insane

It’s a demo, I don’t think she ever really recorded it to release.

Am I the only one here who ACTUALLY likes it?

So…the 30 second snippet is making the rounds of radio stations starting today….and on Friday Kris will sing it at Ford Day and on Saturday at his roof top presentation with the Boston station (it is Boston, isn’t it) getting the radio premier. It will be on I tunes this weekend and available for Radio spins by the first of the week. All this is conjecture on my part…but I’m a betting women.

Not sure what the issue is. Lots of songs intended for one artist end up being hits for someone else. Seems more like the song didn’t fit with The Script’s album, not that the song was poorly written.

Sounds very catchy with a good message. Right up Kris’ alley. Not at all like past Idol singles, but still seems to fit within the group. I agree with whomever said it had an O.A.R. vibe to it. Michael Franti too. He’s hitting the charts too. Very, very current – chart-wise. (Given that these guys have actually been around a long while.) Right where things are headed, not where they’ve been.

For the record, I’d never heard of The Script before today. I had to YT them to figure out I’d even heard their single on the radio. I doubt the fact that this was never released by a mid-level new band will have any impact on the record buying public.

I didnt see it on itunes at the moment, other people said it was. But its on Amazon under the ‘We Cry’ EP 4 tracks on the EP.

jtoms

September 16, 2009 at 7:13 pm

dhunken
September 16, 2009 at 7:09 pm

I think he should have done something along the lines of a love song. (In the vein of Fallen Slowly or Ain’t no Sunshine when she Comes’ )

as a first single? that’s kinda like radio suicide. $50 bucks the second single is more ballady.

Jtoms I am not disagreeing with you I just think what I have heard of this song loses the great quality of Kris’s voice which I feel the two songs I mentioned brought out. I am not necessarily saying it should be a ballad but something that showcases the intimacy and timbre of his voice. This song is too much a NO Boundaries 2.0 IMHO. But have to admit the “Live like were dying” is catchy.

I like it. And my daughter who is 12 likes it and she wasn’t a Kris fan on the show. She’s wants it on her i-pod when it comes out. I think it really could be a big hit. On twitter there trying to trend it.

I love The Script, so it’s all good to me.

I think with some marketing behind it, it could be a hit for Kris.

Q3- I really think that concern is way overstated. If you can find a version of the snippet with the DJ chatter on it, she didn’t mention anything about covers or The Script. She was just like “this is Kris Allen’s new single”. I have a feeling that when the full song is released it’ll still be billed that way.

And Katy Perry’s version of I Do Not Hook Up is the same exact song. Kelly didn’t change it up at all and it didn’t hurt her, so I’m not sure why it would be different for Kris.

It will be on I tunes this weekend

No it won’t. Songs go on itunes on tuesdays. Plus, they usually wait at least a couple of weeks after the debut to put it on itunes.

I didnt see it on itunes at the moment, other people said it was.

It is in some (maybe all?) european itunes stores. Not in the US though.

Jive just seems to have a strategy just to get Kris all over the radio with a uptempo kinda catchy tune while they work on the rest of the album. NB failed so he didn’t get the kind of exposure the winner usually gets. They really needed to get Kris’s name out in the public domain with something that could catch on. I could see the song being used in tv and radio commercials maybe for Ford. I hope Jive bought the exclusive rights to the song from the owners. That way Kris could have it all to himself from this point forward.

I’ll also say that the comments on the youtube page of Kris’ clip are almost all positive

Am I the only one here who ACTUALLY likes it?

Nope. I quite like the snippet I heard. It’s exactly the type of song Kris should be doing.

#

#
eyelinerandcigarettes
September 16, 2009 at 7:22 pm

Am I the only one here who ACTUALLY likes it?

I like it.

Not really sure what i think about it. :/ Will just have to wait until I hear the whole song I guess.

um…holy crap…he sounds EXACTLY like the lead singer for The Script…i like the song, but it is eerie how similar it sounds to the Script album…i am not sure this is gonna give him his own identity when he sounds so much like an existing act (that is just gaining recognition in the US but is really popular in Europe)

Am I the only one here who ACTUALLY likes it?

I like it too. I’m onboard with this choice. This is the sound that I expected/wanted for him and I got it. =p

i do think the song is really catchy tho….who knows, but i think it will probably do well

This brief clip does sound very close to the original version (which I just listened to), so hopefully Kris changes the rest of it up somehow. The lyrics are a little cheesy, but the melody is definitely catchy and radio-friendly. Which is likely what Jive is going for.

Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

Oh, and welcome to the world of post-Idol debuts, everybody. It’s business as usual. .

Ok, I liked it more the 2nd time I listened to it. Of course I’m biased, being the huge Kris fan I am. But this may be one o those songs that people like as they hear it more.

And since The Script are barely known in the U.S., probably only a minority of people who hear Kris’ version will know without being told that it isn’t something he wrote himself.

Just curious, how will the critics pan it? The general public won’t know its a cover unless the critics spill the beans. Will they rave about it or just say it is more of the same AI stuff. Will it matter? Probably not to Kris fans just like it won’t matter when I hear “Strut” from Adam.

Mj,how am I supposed to catch up on the concert thread if so much awesomeness is posted???!!!!!! Sigh

brb listening

fingers crossed for homies:D

I’m another one who’s never downloaded any of Kris’s songs, but I think he’s really talented. The song is, imo, super catchy and will be a radio hit. People are worried? I’m surprised. His voice sounds good on it, and he can strip it down if need be during promo with just his guitar or not. The lyrics are positive and fits into a Christian vibe without going there at all if you’re not looking for it (I don’t know The Script at all). I’ve never heard any David Cook songs, so can’t compare to “Light On” or whatever, but if people are worried about Kris’s single, just think about Jordin Sparks’s “Tattoo” – that was a piece of pure dreck with weird yelping noises in the background, and it still went platinum or something as a single. Awesome single for Kris!

Now Adam, on the other hand, just knowing one of his songs is titled “Strut” scares me. Not radio friendly, just by that.

Need to hear the whole song to get the full melody, but Kris sounds good. Don’t like the title either. It could do well. However, the thought of seing him performing it live, since he is not playing an instrument has me just a little concerned. Is he going to groove in place, hop around the stage? sorry, couldn’t resist.

I like it. I really like it. It reminds me of another song that I can’t remember. it’s gonna be a hit. yeah go kris.

upside: its catchy, has a bit of an urban flair to it (so they avoided the nickeback syndrome) and its not a ballad (whoop!).

downside: dont like the title and song seems to be a bit wordy, but really, im nitpicking here. actually wordy songs work if you are NOT singing a ballad. he seems to be freestylin’ the lyrics, much like ska.

overall, impressed of the direction they are taking kris.

trust me, the 99% of the people out there are not going to give a flying F if this song was originally sung by a unknown band. nobody cares. only thing will matter is if its catchy.

Strut!!!???? WTF is strut??!!! I think I’m missing something!!! Someone PLZ. Fill me in on headlines…

I’m not in love with the little snippet, but it seems like the kind of song that will do very well on radio.

I really like it for what it is. I think Kris will do very well with it. I’m not itching to buy it, however, because it’s just not my kind of music. American Idol actually doesn’t produce MKOM. I love the show. I love the voices. I can’t say as much about the music. I’m actually rather shocked that I ever voted (free) much less bought one idol’s album (not free).

Now Adam, on the other hand, just knowing one of his songs is titled ‘Strut’  scares me. Not radio friendly, just by that.

“Strut” is a perfect title for an electro/dance leaning song. The worrying thing about Adam’s potential single is the Kara, not the title.

Am I the only one here who ACTUALLY likes it?

I think it is fine. Hard to say what he did with the rest of the song. I’m just going to wait and hear it all before passing judgement.

I was just wondering how many takes it took to get it right. There sure are alot of words in the chorus.

And Katy Perry’s version of I Do Not Hook Up is the same exact song. Kelly didn’t change it up at all and it didn’t hurt her, so I’m not sure why it would be different for Kris.

Kelly is not sold as a “singer-songwriter” and she had already left idol long before when she recorded it… not saying that it will be doom for Kris, because most people will not know the original, but for me it is disappointing.

This snipet is the best part of the song. The beginning is very repetitive and boring, if he kept the same arrangement of the script. I like this part but not the rest the song.

HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIIIIIT IM FLAILING!!! FO REALZZZZ!!!!!!!!!! I FLOVE IT!!!!!!!! besides I can hope 4 homies on the rest if his album…:D

FLOVE IT but I liked Adam’s no boundaries so…:z

I’m glad the twitterati are loving the clip, I hope it’s a big hit, but I’m in the sad camp as well. I so don’t want him to get screwed by his label, and this isn’t a great start. They better get it out pronto, because right now people are going to be Google-ing it like crazy, and they’re all going to come up with the Script version, and that’s going to be their first listen of the whole song. And I agree that in this clip, his voice is lost, which was my other fear for his album. Hoping for less lost on the rest of the songs (or even the rest of this one).

Kris has such a wonderful voice but this little snippet sounds like his voice has been run through that thing (I can’t think of what it’s called right now) and it has a tiny bit of electronic buzz to it. It also sounds a little bit hip-hoppish to me.

Not saying it’s bad or anything, just not what I expected. I guess for the first song from the #1 Idol, it’s more about the marketability of the song than it is the person singing it. Almost makes me think they’ve got the first single picked before there’s even a winner.

Is The Script on the same label as Kris or one of the sister labels?

SparklesATL
September 16, 2009 at 7:37 pm

Is The Script on the same label as Kris or one of the sister labels?

Yes, they’re both under the Sony Music umbrella.

Luv There was an article today, I think MTV, not sure about Adam and kara penning a song called “Strut”. I’ll find the article and put it on the headlines thread.

Oh, and welcome to the world of post-Idol debuts, everybody. It’s business as usual. .

haha, seriously….you’re not going to have a radiohead type album in the 1st debut (or 2nd, or 3rd……)

Sorry, Mila, nobody ever “leaves” Idol. She will forever be known as an American Idol, and even as the First American Idol. It’s like, you can’t go home…Idol will always be there for better or worse.

I’m sure Kris will be playing an instrument when he performs this live. And the melody fits well into Kris’ bouncy stage presence. If I close my eyes, I can definitely see him bouncing up and down performing this. Yup…

And there are a couple of YouTube versions of this clip. Kris’ voice sounds a LOT stronger on the one version than the other. Not sure what’s up with that…

Well I’m a complete Adam fan, and I love it. It’s got that earworm quality that makes for good radio play, and while maybe it doesn’t showcase all the facets of Kris’ voice, it’s still recognizably Kris.

If it were on iTunes right now, I’d be clicking “Buy It.”

Luv There was an article today, I think MTV, not sure about Adam and kara penning a song called ‘Strut’ .

It was from Rolling Stone and it’s in the headline thread multiple times.

eyelinerandcigarettes
September 16, 2009 at 7:22 pm

Am I the only one here who ACTUALLY likes it?

I like its vibe. But I have reservations because it’s just a snippet. It’s catchy.

luvie, one of Adam’s songs co-written with Kara is called “Strut” according to the album preview posted today in Rolling Stone. It’s making me sink, but anyway, this is about Kris’s single. I can see Kris’s “Live Like We’re Dying” being played EVERYWHERE. Who cares if he didn’t write it or change it. He’s a vocalist, Jive put it on his album, it’s Kris’s song now and that’s all that people know. Very cool that an Arkansas station got first crack. I don’t think it’s too wordy at all. What was that Billy Joel song about fire? The one with a thousand lyrics?

take heart kris fans… ”crush” received much of the same reaction/criticism upon first snippet listen, and even afterwards, and it’s now knocking on the door of 2 million downloads… you never know how a song is going to resonate with listeners, and with good push to radio by jive, and good promotion, this song could be a hit… it’s now up to the real powers that be in the music mainstream to settle the matter…

Anybody that goes to YouTube and types in “Live Like We are Dyin”" will see that The Scripts also sing the song. Anyone who reads the credits on the CD will know they wrote it. Anyone who has attended the concerts in the US they have done all summer will have heard them sing it. Anyone outside of the States is probably more familiar with the The Scripts than we here are, but its not going to be a hidden fact that this is a cover.

That being said I like the song. I wish Kris well. I just wish they could have let him start out with something original, if nothing more than it does little to shake the image of AI singers being kareoke artists.

Oh, and welcome to the world of post-Idol debuts, everybody. It’s business as usual.

MJ I hate it when you are right… just reminds me what type of delusional world I live in.

If Kris couldn’t sing NoBo, why would he sing this? The beat is catchy here, but, once again, there are too many words.

Sometimes Sherlock Holmes-ing on the internet isn’t always for the best. Sure it is great to dig up fairly obscure information and it is a lot of fun to pass it around but in this case I think it hurt the initial impression for Kris’ new single.

AI fans tend to want their singer to sing something totally unique but have it sound just like their favorite song from the past season. So, if someone liked the ballady Kris they will tend to feel a little bad because his single isn’t, and if someone liked the acoustical Kris…well any catchy little ditty won’t come up to snuff.

99% of the listening public have never heard, will never hear the Script single…I’d hazard a guess that more listeners know who Kris is than the Script is. Besides songs are shopped until they die a slow death or until an Artist make them a HIT.

Personally, I like the tune. I think it is catchy and fits Kris voice to a T. I want some bubbly from Kris….he has all the time in the world to be the earnest singer/songwriter that his fans seem to envision him to be.
Besides, the tune is recognizable within the first few seconds…a must for a good radio hit.

Bring it on, Kris, I think you’ll have a bit of fun with this tune and will enjoy singing it on all the radio shows and your upcoming TV talk show visits. It’s a feel good song and I think that is always a winner for a new Artist out of the gate.

So far, I love it. It’s very catchy, and Kris sounds great. I can’t wait to hear the rest.

Quote: “AI fans tend to want their singer to sing something totally unique but have it sound just like their favorite song from the past season. So, if someone liked the ballady Kris they will tend to feel a little bad because his single isn’t, and if someone liked the acoustical Kris’ ¦well any catchy little ditty won’t come up to snuff.”
This is something that every AI contestant since the show started has had to deal with, Kris isn’t any different. I think it is more important for these former contestants to be true to who they are as artists, which will result in them, hopefully, producing music that is more believable, so that they can appeal to the vast group of music listeners and buyers who far out number those in the AI fandom.

The snippet that I heard still stays true to what I liked about Kris during his time on the show. To me, he was never just the guy with the guitar, or just someone who did ballads or did only acoustic arrangements. I always noted the soulful nature of his vocals, and that he was not a carbon copy of Jason Castro, nor was he a folk singer. I hated to label him, but if I had to, I would put him a similar category to Rob Thomas and Gavin DeGraw.

on a personal, selfish note…i was hoping Jive would take note of Kris soulful interpretations throughout the season and put an r&bish spin on his pop/rock album. i like my white boys with a bit of flavor

I’m just a bit worried on the direction of his album. I think Jive is known for being more tween friendly, and this song kinda doesn’t help prove that Kris won’t be a tweenybopper type. If they put Kris too much in that crowd I will do vicious, treasonous things. Maybe force people to watch Danny do the Scream On thing or watch it myself.

But I like the strategy and hope Jive markets it well.

Seems a bit teen-ish for my tastes, though.

I always thought Kris would have to be more towards pop on his album than he was on the show. They’re not going to turn down cashing in on his “adorableness”.

I F’in love it and will buy it when it is available. Once again, very O.A.R. like, love the reggae/ska/folk vibe.

Me likey the ska vibe on the script song too but I coulndt hear if Kris kept that arrangement or kept it more soft rock?

I think it’s a great song for Kris, it definetely feels like him.

It’s one of those songs that get stuck in your head and won’t go away. I’ve listened to it like 20 times at least so far. And like I said never heard of the script and don’t plan to listen to there verison of it.

I like this song and kris sounds good my issue is that IMO the script has a very distinctive sound and that song version and kris vocal souns just like them. It is just odd But I think it will be a hit. But then I like the script and their sound and already have a bunch of their songs on my ipod. I am surprised there is such a literal interpretation of the song

The interviewer who gave Adam a hard time about “Kris writing ALL his own songs” might be choking a little bit right now.

The song is fine. Kris’s voice sounds good. It will be a hit.

But I’ll listen to the entire song before deciding whether to buy it.
My mind started to wander when I listened to the Scripts version, unfortunately, and Kris’s snippet sounds identical to the original.

I’m not sure what to think. I heard the Script’s version yesterday and read the comments. I like the song, but I think I would like it more if I hadn’t heard the original. What I heard of Kris’ version sounded exactly like the script’s. I had to listen to it again to convince myself that was Kris singing. However, I think the majority of people won’t know/care that this is a “cover.”. That being said, “liiiiive like we’re dyin’” is now stuck in my head. So maybe that’s a good thing?

I love it and I was worried that I wouldn’t.

I am sorry, but that’s not a good song. It instantly reminded me of NB, because it sounds very wordy and he’s rushing trying to keep up with the music.

I didn’t really like the snippet but what I don’t get is why would his first single be a cover? Couldn’t they come up with an original that would work?

The production sounds good. I like the tempo. there are a lot of songs on the charts with cheesy or weak lyrics, so it may not be a problem. It will probably be a hit. I will probably buy it. Kris won me over on the tour.

I really don’t get all the angst that it sounds like NoBo. It really sounds nothing like it. Yes, it has a lot of words, but the problem with NoBo (as a studio recording) was its lack of melody and “ear worm” as was put so aptly upthread. When sung live, NoBo’s problem was its wordiness COMBINED with the range not being well-suited to Kris’ voice.

There is nothing in LLWD that won’t suit Kris’ perfectly. It sounds perfect for Radio and I’m sure he can do a jammin’ acoustic version when he’s doing promotion or play with a band for a full sound.

This Adam fan has just six words: Two thumbs up!

First listen don’t like it, second listen still don’t like it.
But what do i know with a 20 sec clip, maybe it will grow on me.

So what I’m wondering now is, WHY is the closest thing to a hook on this “upbeat” song “live like we’re dyin”? I could take or even love that in an artsy, edgy song, but if it’s going to be formulaic happy stuff, then for goodness sakes have a formulaic happy hook.

ETA: I edited my comment to make it less harsh only to find it’d been quoted already. lol my life.

Sounds like something that could do very well. It seems radio-friendly and will be pretty consistent with what people expect from him from the show.

I do not care for it myself, but then I don’t like The Script, so I guess that figures!

I can’t find the Scripts version. I want to hear the whole song since peeps think it sounds exactly the same.

Lyndsey Parker from Yahoo! Music (who we all know took her time to warm up to Kris) seems to like it!

http://new.music.yahoo.com/blogs/realityrocks/272735/preview-kris-allens-debut-single/

Alaadam

MJ posted it yesterday.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unzBo3m5N2I

I really wish everyone would drop the term “cover”. Kris is singing a song that was also sung by the “writers” of the song who shopped it around. Other than a 4 song EP (which I always look at as a “demo”) which propably hasn’t sold 10,000 copies in 8 months, the song hasn’t been heard on radio, on a Script tour set, or on a full album.

Besides a cover is taking an “established” hit and re-working it. Not taking an unknown song and singing it and putting it on your album.

Guess I’ve seen this happen to many times to get in a tizzy about it. From here on out this song will be Kris’ song. The Script won’t sing it anymore.

Kris isn’t the first Idol who’s covered a song for their first single. Nobody at this point is trying to get him OMG!cred. They’re trying to get him sales. If the people at his label think this is the best chance to do so, that’s exactly what they are going to do. This has nothing to do with whether or not it’s the best song on his album, and actually most of us, I think, would agree that it probably isn’t… even without hearing one other song (Idol singles just don’t seem to work that way). What this song represents is the song that whoever it is at Jive who decides this stuff thinks is the song that will make him profitable. My guess, from what I’ve heard on T40 radio is that it will do its job.

It’s a short clip, but my initial impression is that I like it. I like it a lot! It’s radio friendly, and I’m sure there will be other songs on the album much different from this first release. I can’t wait to see what the whole CD sounds like…much, much luck to Kris on his first post-Idol CD!

Oh. Well. DAMN.

when I heard the Scripts version I could see why they gave it to Kris, I could totally hear the Jason Mraz vibe and I thought hmm… Kris could possibly wrap his vocals around this.

But then it hit the chorus and I turned it off. It totally lost me. It almost turned into something that didnt’ fit Kris’s groove.

I don’t really care for the snippet I’m hearing either.

I don’t know why I’m surprised I can’t say I liked a single winner’s first single before.

but I was HOPING.

on a Script tour set,

Yes, it has.

You can even get The Script’s version as your ringtoone (lol)

http://www.lyricsreg.com/lyrics/the+script/Live+Like+Were+Dying+/

Pretty much (cept I defended NB before). This song is less catchy than NB tho, and even MORE wordy. And why is the closest thing to a hook on this ‘upbeat’  song ‘live like we’re dyin’ ? I could take/love that in an artsy, edgy song, but if it’s going to be formulaic happy stuff, then for goodness sakes have a formulaic happy hook.

I disagree, I think this song is catchier than NoBo was and some version of hook to it. I think this song is much more radio friendly and again, could see it being very popular. I will probably avoid it, if it sounds like an even blander version of The Script’s song (I admit, I was hoping for him to mix it up, well at all, and this sounds completely straight forward). But it’s AI and the first record, I expect the blandization machine to take it’s toll.

But Kris sounds like Kris and what I expected Jive would have him sounding like in terms of his music.

I’m cautious also about rushing to judgment.

But something happens to those kids when they get into the studio for the first time, under massive pressure from their label & handlers. and often what happens is a big, noisy, overblown first single that does not represent the artists we thought they were on TV — when they sang some of the best tunes ever written, and (in Kris’s case) stood out because of their more spare, classy arrangements.

On a 20-second clip it sounds much shlockier than I want Kris to sound. And I hope, as someone said, that it’s not some strained and misguided attempt to woo the tweener set. Lotsa other people buy and download music too!

But I’ll try hard to reserve final opinion…

I love what I have heard so far! And it’s only 20 seconds so how can one determine whether it is going to sound exactly like The Scripts song or not? Plus it was a B-side and never released so it’s really not considered a “cover”. This type of stuff happens to artists all of the time.

I already can’t get this song out of my head, which is a good thing. I can’t wait to hear the full version!

At first blush, this snippet reminded me of Kris’ live performance of NoBo – words are coming at me too fast, voice is not melodious and sounds like it’s straining.

However, listening a few more times to the sample at the new link, I think it will be radio-friendly and can become a hit. So far, not my cuppa but I will reserve proper judgment until I hear the song in its entirety.

ETA: Awright, now I can’t get it out of my head. Methinks they might onto something here…

This song is totally catchy and anthemic, so it will do Kris well to bust onto the scene with such a radio-friendly and dance-y tune. I can just imagine this song being used as the theme song for proms across america, the backing track for slideshows of 30th birthdays everywhere, and the soundtrack for a typical run-from-the-man chase scene during many a summer buddy movie. Kris will do fine!

For me, while it sounds very Kris-esque, it seems a bit overproduced. I wish it were slowed down just a wee bit so it wouldn’t feel so rushed. The higher note on “liiiived” sounds a little tinny and forced to me. I hope it does well, and I wish Kris all the best–I just don’t think it would have been my pick for him (not that anyone asked).

Hopefully Jive has several different versions of the song like the new Carrie Underwood single. They may not have settled on the version they want to release and want to start a public debate to see which one would make the most impact.

Wow, I gotta say I REALLY dig that. Very well produced. Catchy tune. Kris always did have a “radio-ready” voice. best thing is he has that popular sound, but he doesn’t sound just like anyone else.

Could be a hit i think.

I really wish everyone would drop the term ‘cover’ .

Why? It is a cover. It doesn’t matter if only 1 or 10000000 people have heard ot it, it’s a cover.
I just don’t understand why is it so bad to have a cover on his album or make it a single.
As long as the audience loves, who cares? It’s catchy, poppy… should do well on radio and that’s what matters now that he wants to star a career and promote the album.

What a frekin’ waste of talent.

Right with you, spring.

Kris has such a wonderful voice but this little snippet sounds like his voice has been run through that thing

The over-produced, insert generic singer, overlay tracks til you can’t tell who it is thing. IMHO, this could be anyone. Absolutely anyone. Idol Winner #8 goes in this singing slot. Kris Allen is incidental to this song. Lil Rounds could have been inserted. Anyone. 57 country artists trying to cross-over would sound exactly the same.

This ain’t the guy singing Bright Lights and dancing drunk on music atop his piano bench.

I am sorry, but that’s not a good song. It instantly reminded me of NB,

It’s the poppy use a lot of hooky instruments NoBo dance remix. Not one second (or 84,600 minutes, hours, days) of “organic”. Maybe they thought NoBo wouldn’t be the torpedo tanking drek it is and this would be good segue. Maybe they made Kris record this and gave him 6 non-generics with the songwriters in return.

Hope it sells 4 million overnight.

And, Tess, think you’re right about the roll out timetable. Maybe it’ll sound more Krissy in person at Ford.

Strut, Adam, strut loud, strut all over the place in as many ways as you can. Don’t let them hide your voice.

I’m still flabbergasted. (Moving here from headlines thread) Why in the world is Kris not putting out something original??? He’s been working with writers and producers all during the tour so it just does not make sense that he is singing someone else’s music. I understand that Script has been shopping it, but why …. use it for the winner’s FIRST BIG SINGLE. I think it is catchy and it is radio friendly, but hell, it belongs to another group who has released it. I’m disappointed! Sad face here.

Kris’s voice gets lost in it. Although his voice isn’t as powerful as David Cook’s or Adam Lambert’s, it has a very nice tonal quality, and when I heard him live at GMA I was impressed by how good he sounded live. But I can barely hear him in that recording.

Maybe the full song will show off his voice better. I listened to the Script’s version, and the song itself isn’t bad. But was this really the best they could do for Kris? I mean, he really got gypped in terms of his coronation single, at least compared to Cook. Time of My Life is still getting radio play.

Yes, It is a cover

Live Like We’re Dying
From the album We Cry
© 2008 Sony BMG Europe
Categories: Alternative Rock
Rate track:Sign In to rate!

http://new.music.yahoo.com/script/tracks/live-like-were-dying–215241232

I think of the term “B-Side” and well I think of small vinyl records with big holes. Those were always some of my favorite songs and typically less scratched. I’m unsure, honestly, what it means in modern times. Can I turn my CD over and get more? *runs off to try*

So what I’ve got from this is that nobody will know that it’s a Script song unless A) you’re an AI fanatic in which case you may or may not love it; B) somebody tells you in which case I can’t see anybody caring because if you cared enough you’d already know; or C) you’re an invested Scripts fan in which case I’d hope you love the fact because it makes them money to continue what they are doing.

the fast-paced rapid firing of the words in the chorus gives it that reggae/rap-urban tinge that kris was promising earlier, and that’s a positive for me. one of the things that kept kris at #4 throughout the season for me was that his sound on the show had been done to death already, but with an urban-tinged pop/rock sound, it might work.

don’t like the verses on the script version much. also, reading this thread about original vs cover, i wonder how much the general public knows about how the music industry works. this is fairly standard procedure. i’m surprised at how many are shock that a singer would release another artist’s work as a single. and about half of the idols have had “cover” songs as their debut singles, including one miss kelly clarkson.

Am I the only one here who ACTUALLY likes it?

No. I actually like it so far. Hahaha.

Seriously… IMHO I don’t think they had time. NoBo is dead in the water (so no radio play at all) & the winner needs something out now. Adam, being the runner-up has a little more slack to work it out.

Very radio-friendly (the chorus anyway). Smells like a hit.

I just don’t get it. The song was deemed unworthy of being on the band’s own album, for whatever reason. It is essentially a “reject.” Why then does Jive have such faith in it being a smasharoo for Kris? I’m not saying it won’t be, but the decision-making process is a head-scratcher to me. The song has already been market-tested and found wanting.

the backing track for slideshows of 30th birthdays everywhere

^^^THIS.

Kris’s voice gets lost in it. Although his voice isn’t as powerful as David Cook’s or Adam Lambert’s, it has a very nice tonal quality, and when I heard him live at GMA I was impressed by how good he sounded live. But I can barely hear him in that recording.

If it makes you feel any better, I thought the exact same thing about David Cook at GMA. I forgot what a powerful, rich voice he has – I think he loses it in the album.

just don’t get it. The song was not deemed worthy of being on the band’s own album, for whatever reason. It is essentially a ‘reject.’  Why then does Jive have such faith in it being a smasharoo for Kris?

You will be surprised how many smashes were originally rejects. Umbrella, bleeding love, I don’t hoop up, blah blah, need I go on?

BTW like the song. Very mraz-ish

Am I the only one here who ACTUALLY likes it?

No. I actually like it so far. Hahaha.

I like it a lot. I want to buy it now.

I like it!!! It’s kinda sad to know where the song came from but I enjoy it nonetheless. And I don’t usually enjoy Idol debut singles.

Am I the only one here who ACTUALLY likes it?

No. I actually like it so far. Hahaha.

Yes, I like it too! I was skeptical, but I actually liked it the first time I heard it.

I think it sounds perfect for Kris! It’s nothing deep or serious, but it’s got an irresistible melody (I like the rap-sing parts) and it’s catchy. I really think it will catch on.

The more I listen to it, I find the more I like it, though.

will, it’s possible that the song didn’t fit into the vibe that The Script was going after. Similar to Christina Aguilera’s “Miss Independent” which worked out well for Kelly Clarkson.

Difference between the two cases: this song is crappy.

You will be surprised how many smashes were originally rejects. Umbrella, bleeding love, I don’t hoop up, blah blah, need I go on?

Were any of those rejected by the artists themselves after testing them on an EP?

Y’all, that sounds like Barenaked Ladies “One Week”- seriously.

I can’t believe he’s releasing a cover of a song that wasn’t good enough to make the cut of this no-name never-heard-of-them-before band. Lame, Kris Allen, lame. You won, start actin like it, kthnx

I just don’t get the reggae vibe people are talking about. To me, this is not reggae or dancehall in the least. Although the voice takes on a wee tinge of Jamiraqui (sp) or Mraz, the bass line would have to be much slower or heavier for me to even consider it to be reggae. JMO

I just don’t get it. The song was deemed unworthy of being on the band’s own album, for whatever reason. It is essentially a ‘reject.’  Why then does Jive have such faith in it being a smasharoo for Kris? I’m not saying it won’t be, but the decision-making process is a head-scratcher to me. The song has already been market-tested and found wanting.

Maybe they didn’t market it to the tweens. This sounds like a great song for slumber parties. Most graduation events already use Tim Mcgraw’s version that is slower and more meaningful so I don’t see it being used for similar events. But, I can see my little nieces enjoying this.

LaurelG
September 16, 2009 at 8:09 pm

Very radio-friendly (the chorus anyway). Smells like a hit.

Agreed. I can definitely see this being played on all the mainstream and variety stations that I listen to. I think it will turn out to be a smart choice as a first single.

Were any of those rejected by the artists themselves after testing them on an EP?

They were rejected by the artists themselves before even releasing it. In Umbrella’s case, several female artists.

Man, the way people are going on about it, you’d think it was dreck. It’s not amazing, but better than a lot of post-Idol stuff I have heard. I am not going to make radio-friendly predictions based on the short clip.

But, um, is that definitely Kris and not The Script? I cannot tell.

I’m not gonna over-analyze this since it’s only a short clip, simply put-sounds very Kris and I’m loving it so far! Cant wait for the full version, and the album of course. It’s practically not a cover since the band never released it in their albums

The Script’s self-titled CD was released in Jan. 2008. The EP on which LLWD is on was released in May of 2008. So if anything, the Scripts found the songs to be additions to their original work.

To be fair a lot of The Scripts songs are of a similiar vein. They really are kind of a U2 Lite, so it could be they thought LLWD was too similar to one of the songs used on the CD.

It is the self-titled CD that is set to be released in the States on Nov. 17th, like Kris’ CD if I remember correctly. I wonder if they planned a follow-up release of the EP here too as well.

Yeah, it is pretty catchy! Kris really does have a nice recording voice. I can actually see this becoming a chart topper after listening to the snippet a few times. I am sure hearing the song as a whole will put it in a better perspective : )

Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

Oh, and welcome to the world of post-Idol debuts, everybody. It’s business as usual. .

lol at this. To think we were asking what we wld do with ourselves after the concert. I see we are all here and it is buz as usual. Luv u had nothing to worry about all along. nobody is going anywhere hehe.

but seriously I like the little part i heard of kris’s single. no one wld care if it is a cover. i never heard of it b4. I don’t want to bring in Adam’s name here but I remember that his WANT song was already released by someone else on that label and no one cared. all everyone said was that it was adam’s song. so this is kris’s song.

I just wish it was his 2nd single and something brand spanking new was his 1st so there’s no story . I don’t want the talk of cover to over shadow the single itself and that goes for the rest of them too. u know what i mean?.

Very radio-friendly (the chorus anyway). Smells like a hit.

It certainly smells.. but I’m not sure what exactly it smells like just yet.

The Script’s self-titled CD was released in Jan. 2008. The EP on which LLWD is on was released in May of 2008. So if anything, the Scripts found the songs to be additions to their original work.

Oh okay, the chronology does help explain it. When MJ said in yesterday’s post that it “didn’t make the cut” for the band’s album, I assumed that the EP was released before the album. So instead of describing it as a “reject,” I guess it would be more accurately be described as a “leftover.”

usual Kris haters are hating. what’s new? Kris is never going to measure up’ ¦ as for me

Lets not get too unhappy yet. Most folks seem pleased or at a wait and see (which is where I am).

I just don’t get the reggae vibe people are talking about. To me, this is not reggae or dancehall in the least. Although the voice takes on a wee tinge of Jamiraqui (sp) or Mraz, the bass line would have to be much slower or heavier for me to even consider it to be reggae. JMO

I totally agree. I don’t hear any kind of reggae in it. I also don’t hear any ska in it, for me (for you) , I mean not even the pop version of it by like No Doubt.

It’s pretty generic soft rock to me, with some pop and sort of generic upbeat sounds. Which is fine and why I’m sure it will do well on radio. But ska and reggae? not hearing it at. all. Maybe there will be some in the longer version? (doubt it).

i’m surprised at how many are shock that a singer would release another artist’s work as a single.

yeah, im guessing some people dont follow the music biz and arent familiar w. the way albums work. its extremely common for a label, producer or band to “give away” a song to another artist. im sure a savvy poster will compile a list soon enough.

Definitely not hating on Kris. I want him to succeed. Just not at all what I was expecting. i guess I was thinking it would be more like Heartless or Aint No Sunshine. Something slower with his voice as the highlight. But, like I said, tweenies will luv it.

I have listened to the snippet and the Script version and I like it. Although Kris is not my favorite, that is still reserved for Danny and Adam, I have always said that Kris is very radio friendly and this song will likely be a hit and get a lot of radio play.

I don’t want to bring in Adam’s name here but I remember that his WANT song was already released by someone else on that label and no one cared. all everyone said was that it was adam’s song. so this is kris’s song.

Ack, that terrible song and I REALLY don’t want to bring Adam here and have this be some thing, but just for the record, it was the other way around. Adam recorded it first, than they had one of their signed people record a slightly different version, with a new title.

And for the record, I don’t hate Kris and think and hope this song is going to be very successful. Based on that clip? I don’t forsee myself downloading it anytime soon, but I won’t need to when tons of other people will after lots of airplay on the radio. I will be hoping for other songs off of Kris’s album that I can enjoy and look forward to downloading them.

Jim loves it!!
@jambajim Yes I’ve heard the snippet of @KrisAllen4Real’s single. About 75x. I lurve it. PERFECT 1st single. Cruel unusual punshmnt 2 only have 20 sec

I think it is a catchy fun song at that is all that matters. The average music consumer has no idea who the script is, and even if they did most people wouldn’t care because many singers sing songs written for others or by others. I think sometimes people get too immersed in the idol fan world and lose a bit of touch with reality…..

Jim Cantiello likes it…so he and Lyndsey Parker have chimed in with positive reacts. Waiting on Slezak!

jambajim
# Yes I’ve heard the snippet of @KrisAllen4Real’s single. About 75x. I lurve it. PERFECT 1st single. Cruel unusual punshmnt 2 only have 20 sec3 minutes ago from web

I like it and so does Jim C

@jambajim Yes I’ve heard the snippet of @KrisAllen4Real’s single. About 75x. I lurve it. PERFECT 1st single. Cruel unusual punshmnt 2 only have 20 sec less than a minute ago from web

I think it has a very good hook. This should easily become a big hit on Top 40. But I just can’t see this moving the albums. But I can see Kris becoming a Jordin type artist who sells lots of single downloads.

Okay, so I had my 16 year old listen to this and she liked it.

She says: “From a production stand point, most people will like it; there is something for everyone in the song. The rock, pop and even hip hop (because of his diction) people will find something to like in the song. It is catchy it, it will get stuck in people’s head and they will want to find who is Kris Allen and what’s the rest of his album like. It may not sound like the Kris we know, but the way it always is, there are 2 singles off the album and then there is the actual album which is more heavy in content.”

So there we have it – an opinion from a teenager who listens heavily to alt rock/indie.

Sorry I was so negative beforeeeee if this was Anoop’s single I’d want people to be more hopeful about it.

Not taking into account it’s a cover or whatever… it’s.. a mouthful, sort of reminds me of barenaked ladies, but I guess we’ll have to wait for the whole thing? it sounds catchy, if nothing else.

yeah, im guessing some people dont follow the music biz and arent familiar w. the way albums work. its extremely common for a label, producer or band to ‘give away’  a song to another artist. im sure a savvy poster will compile a list soon enough.

This is true. I had no idea that this was common practice. I guess what I wanted for Kris is something he could call his own. Having said this, I do think it is going to be popular with the radio crowd so maybe it will work out great for him. For the record, I have never heard of Script and if I wasn’t following MJ/ Idols so closely (for the first time), it would not be something I was aware of anyway.

As some of you said, even with only 20 seconds, it’s the word thing. It instantly reminded me of NB because too many words being shoved at me too fast. And that has made me just say no. Even if Kris’s is different than te Scripts version they are both spouting words too fast. The only fast word song I’ve ever liked is “I want you” by Savage Garden, and “I want you” this is not.

Why are they making Kris into some wordsmith?

Maybe its just me, but Kris shines beautifully on more simply worded songs that he can wrap his vocals around and really shine. Why stuff all these words into his mouth that he has to rush through instead of letting us hear his smooth beautiful vocals that he has. See: “Ain’t No Sunshine”

Barenaked Ladies. Yes, that’s who it reminds me of.

It’s pretty bad that the first song you release is a cover, is his own material that bad?

Listened to it again- it is definitely a song I would listen to on the way to the beach, windows down, etc.

My roommate said it sounds SO 90s and I was like YES! it is so 90s music- sugar ray, etc.

I don’t like Kris’ voice in it though. Whenever you can clearly hear him, I don’t like it. Like, when he says “liiiiiiiive” egh, no.

I feel like I need to reiterate how 90s it sounds. perfect description, imo.

Oh, and by the way, did someone say that Tim McGraw has also released this in a slower version???? WTF?

She says: ‘From a production stand point, most people will like it; there is something for everyone in the song. The rock, pop and even hip hop (because of his diction) people will find something to like in the song. It is catchy it, it will get stuck in people’s head and they will want to find who is Kris Allen and what’s the rest of his album like. It may not sound like the Kris we know, but the way it always is, there are 2 singles off the album and then there is the actual album which is more heavy in content.’ 

I think your teenager is smarter than the rest of us.

ETA:
“Maybe its just me, but Kris shines beautifully on more simply worded songs that he can wrap his vocals around and really shine. Why stuff all these words into his mouth that he has to rush through instead of letting us hear his smooth beautiful vocals that he has. See: ‘Ain’t No Sunshine’ 

IMHO they want another Heartless. I say wait for the rest of the album.

Truthiness
September 16, 2009 at 8:26 pm
I just don’t get the reggae vibe people are talking about. To me, this is not reggae or dancehall in the least. Although the voice takes on a wee tinge of Jamiraqui (sp) or Mraz, the bass line would have to be much slower or heavier for me to even consider it to be reggae. JMO

I totally agree. I don’t hear any kind of reggae in it. I also don’t hear any ska in it, for me (for you) , I mean not even the pop version of it by like No Doubt.

It’s pretty generic soft rock to me, with some pop and sort of generic upbeat sounds. Which is fine and why I’m sure it will do well on radio. But ska and reggae? not hearing it at. all. Maybe there will be some in the longer version? (doubt it).

ITA. No ska in that sampling either. (I forgot that ska was referenced as well.)

I like Kris and even if his voice didnt impress me, his humility and character won me over.

Based on that 20 sec snippet, I thought the song is very generic but Kris has a lot of fans in the US, and whatever material he would come out with, Im sure his fans would support it.

It’s pretty bad that the first song you release is a cover, is his own material that bad?

I think we’ve been over this a few times, but name an Idol winner who released a song they wrote for his/her first single?

Oh, and by the way, did someone say that Tim McGraw has also released this in a slower version???? WTF?

No, McGraw had a big country hit with a different song, but it had a similar title. No other similarity.

How many of the Idols wrote or co-wrote their first single? Very few, I would bet…

I would prefer an original song written/co-written by Kris, but I remain confident there will be several of those on his album.

If anyone on twitter didn’t like what this snippet, they aren’t tweeting their response to Kris. Looking at his @ replies, it’s all love. The ontd_ai thread about this is also almost all positive, as are the comments on the youtube page. So, going by this, that is cause for optimism (although most — but not all — of the people commenting are likely fans of Kris)

So far I like it…I want the full single now, heck I want the full album Now!!!! can’t wait…

mj
September 16, 2009 at 7:32 pm

Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

Oh, and welcome to the world of post-Idol debuts, everybody. It’s business as usual. .

You were right all along, MJ. This is what post Idol debuts are like.

Oh, and by the way, did someone say that Tim McGraw has also released this in a slower version???? WTF?

Probably confused with Live Like You Were Dying, a huge hit (the only song I know by McGraw:).

That snippet was very corny, poor Kris. I’m not quite sure what 19 is going for with this. Turrible.

My only problem with the song (which I think will do very well) is that Kris has no “personality” to me. So having him cover so closely another’s groups recorded song just reinforces that “generic” quality of his. There’s nothing “Kris” about it. And it is a little weird to not start with an original song for the first single.

To me Kris will be an Idol winner exactly like Jordin Sparks. They’re on the same label as well. Two nice talented people who just aren’t very interesting.

usual Kris haters are hating. what’s new? Kris is never going to measure up’ ¦ as for me

Um, I’m an Adam fan and as I said before, I like it — it’s supercatchy and has definite hit potential.

I think the people most disappointed are Kris fans who were really hoping for one of the songs he co-wrote to be his first single. And that’s not hate, just honesty.

I just don’t get the reggae vibe

Emo & Truthiness
Just listen to the song “This Town” by O.A.R. ( the chorus). If you still don’t get the ska/reggae/folk vibe, I really don’t know what to tell you. I definitely hear it. Like someone else said down thread ( sorry, I hate searching) the rapid fire lyrics are a good clue. Someone else said urban, that fits too.

There is a tiny hint of ska in there, to me. I guess we all hear our own thing. *shrugs* Without getting too long winded about ska, it’s not always the horn section that makes a song ska. Sublime and The Flys are two good examples.

Well, I like it. I really do. I don’t know if I can be completely unbiased since I am a pretty big Kris fan, but I can imagine if I didn’t know who Kris was and heard this come on the radio I would turn it up and bebop along to it and then wonder where the song came from. I’m excited

I like the Sublime reference. For me, if you fuse Barenaked Ladies (as mentioned upthread) with Sublime, you’ve got the LLWD sound.

(Which is probably why I like it).

Oh my goodness, it sounds like Miley Cyrus Party with Us. Sorry guys – not my thing – I’m sure it’ll sell a million within weeks appealling to the tweens. I’m not sure this is what Kris wanted – but hey if it sells – so be it.

usual Kris haters are hating. what’s new? Kris is never going to measure up’ ¦ as for me

Actually, I am disappointed (that it is a cover) BECAUSE of being a Kris Fan. I like Kris. Not the same way I am stupid over Adam, but I like Kris and I want him to have a blockbuster start.

I’m loving it! Just got through reading Lyndsey Parker’s review and it was quite positive about the song. You can sing along to it and you can dance to it. It’s uplifting and it’s fun, and it’s a song that has a message. It’s very, very Kris. I agree with twittwit. I’m not quite sure why it’s got to be this way… kinda sad.

With David Cook, TPTB wanted to connect DC’s musical genre with that of Chris Cornell, give it a bit of a rock cred. With Kris Allen, TPTB are doing the same thing, associating Kris with The Script, showing the music listening/buying public this is what Kris Allen’s music is all about — soulful alternate rock, which is exactly how Kris’s brother described Kris.

I’m really excited about this album. I was worried it was going to be all soulful ballads like Ain’t No Sunshine.

This song is current and it’s going to do really well. I’m not sure what those that dislike the song were looking for musically. And to be perfectly honest, I don’t really care. I’m sure they were never going to purchase the CD anyway. If No Surprise and Already Gone can make the Top 40 charts, Kris’s song most certainly can do it as well.

Oh, yeah and another thing Lyndsey mentioned was that the song is clearly identifiable as Kris Allen without any need for DJ introduction. I agree. In the last post, I mentioned that the minute you hear the guitar introduction, you immediately know the song. This song has a strong recognition factor as does Kris’s vocals.

I’m esctatic!!

I’m not sure this is what Kris wanted ‘“ but hey if it sells ‘“ so be it.

I’m sure he will cry all the way to the bank.. actually all of the idols will.

I love it! Don’t hear a “tween” sound to it at all. I’ll be buying that single and his album. I’m sure his album will have a mix of tempos and I love his tone. I think he has a bit of a Rob Thomas vibe which I love.

Oh my goodness, it sounds like Miley Cyrus Party with Us. Sorry guys ‘“ not my thing ‘“ I’m sure it’ll sell a million within weeks appealling to the tweens. I’m not sure this is what Kris wanted ‘“ but hey if it sells ‘“ so be it.

oo, it does sound a bit like Party in the USA! but I like that song, ha ha.

I mean, Kris is generic, y’all didn’t expect anything different did you?

I really like it! Yay! I’m so glad that it’s not a ballad! I think it would do really well on the radio.

As for the “cover” controversy, it really doesn’t matter in the real world because most people don’t really care. It matters more if they like the song or not. Also, half of Kelly’s current album is “covers” and I love it.

Hmm. The only reason this wouldn’t make it big is because it does sound a hell of alot like a Barenaked Ladies song. I mean a hell of alot.

Just listen to the song ‘This Town’  by O.A.R. ( the chorus). If you still don’t get the ska/reggae/folk vibe, I really don’t know what to tell you. I definitely hear it. Like someone else said down thread ( sorry, I hate searching) the rapid fire lyrics are a good clue. Someone else said urban, that fits too.

There is a tiny hint of ska in there, to me. I guess we all hear our own thing. *shrugs* Without getting too long winded about ska, it’s not always the horn section that makes a song ska. Sublime and The Flys are two good examples.

I hear you. As you say, not to get too long winded, but as I grew up listening to all forms of reggae (ska, mento, roots reggae, dancehall, lovers rock, etc.), sometimes stuff that is purported to be reggae is akin to being told that Olive Garden serves real Italian dishes.

My 2 cents…it’s a pop song like a lot of other pop songs. I think it will get radio play but Kris won’t win any awards for singing it.

That being said, I like pop music so I think I’m gonna like it. (It does kinda remind me of “Heartless”, though.)

It is the self-titled CD that is set to be released in the States on Nov. 17th, like Kris’ CD if I remember correctly. I wonder if they planned a follow-up release of the EP here too as well.

Where the heck are you getting that The Script’s album is going to be released on November 17th? I’m at the site and I see nothing. Their album was released March 17th of the year.

Also, the “EP” is really just the We Cry single with a couple of B-sides on it. iTunes registers that as an EP. If The Script are to release We Cry here in the US, they wouldn’t be releasing it as a physical single, and the downloads would just come from the album version of the song.

usual Kris haters are hating. what’s new? Kris is never going to measure up’ ¦

To be quite honest, I’ve seen more Kris fans hating on the song and more Adam fans saying “WOW I’D BUY THIS”…so you’re pretty much wrong

BTW…the Tim McGraw song is about five years old now. While still somewhat “recent,” a lot of kids or young adults either don’t remember or just don’t get hung up on the fact that it shares a similar title. I’ll never understand why people get so upset about similarities in song titles.

I don’t think I said it was reggae, did I ? I said it had a reggae /ska/folk vibe. A blend. An influence. I am not saying Kris is the next Bob Marley.

madnessinmotion
September 16, 2009 at 9:05 pm
My 2 cents’ ¦it’s a pop song like a lot of other pop songs. I think it will get radio play but Kris won’t win any awards for singing it.

I agree with this. As I said, I think Kris sounds good. Not great, but good. The song itself doesn’t thrill me. But that doesn’t matter a whit to Kris, who will be quite successful whether I like the song or not.

It sounds so much like the original…I would have thought it was (probably) Kris singing over the original backing tracks…but the song is very pop…very commercial…gets into your head….

My 2 cents’ ¦it’s a pop song like a lot of other pop songs. I think it will get radio play but Kris won’t win any awards for singing it.

Yep, I agree with this too. It might be a fun song for the 12-15 yr olds and kris will get air play and make money but it won’t win any awards-which I really don’t think he cares about anyway….his fans on the other hand….All three of my college kids did not like it. It won’t be playing at their frat parties any time soon….

I do think they were going for a bit of the heartless vibe. I think this is a good compromise between Kris’s sound and what I hear being played on the radio, so far so good. I just want airplay at this moment. I hope the radio stations want to play it, and I want a cool video too.

I think Kris has a personality similar to mine, so I am biased in that I love Kris’s personality and love that Kris has his own natural vibe. It seemed like Kris was Kris in what I heard of the snippet, so I think if Kris can find a way to stay true to himself through this song, Kris fans including myself and hopefully new Kris fans will like this single.

I feel like I need to reiterate how 90s it sounds. perfect description, imo.

So Kris and Adam are pulling from an old school vibe with their music.

Slightly OT, but it sounds like Jive IS going to market Kris internationally. This interview from yesterday has Kris talking about him going to London…

http://wjyy.com/

Ok, this audio is much better. Kris doesn’t sound like he’s struggling with the wordiness ‘” which was a problem (one of many) with NoBo. This song, even in this brief clip, seems way better than NoBo

You know what’s so funny about this?

I remember a video of David Cook when he was recording “Light On” — and it may very well still be out there — where he thrusts the song sheet into the camera at the recording studio and says this is a hard song to sing!!! David Cook said, “this is a hard song to sing!!!” (And that’s probably why Chris Cornell never recorded it, since he couldn’t sing it.)

So, my conclusion is, that 19E, R, X,Y and Z tests their American Idol and gives them the HARDEST SONG TO SING!

Rest easy Adam fans, he will not have the hardest song to sing because they do not torture their runners up like they do the winners.

I never dreamed that Kris’s first single would be written by him.

My fear was that they would have him singing a song that wasn’t about anything (like “Crush”).

This song is about something. It may not state its message in the most elegant way, but it does have a message and it isn’t too heavy-handed about it.

I like the way it sounds, and it sounds like something Kris would sing. So I’m thrilled.

Edit: I think the message is one that Kris would agree with, since he was very sick and came close to dying a few years ago.

I like it. It may not be deep, but it sounds fun. And I say, for me, it is alot better than Cook’s “Light On” single, which went platinum.

Adam fan here; Regardless, I like this snippet of Kris’s single. Although I don’t think the 20 secons we heard showcase the richness of his voice, other as-of-yet-unheard parts of the song may. Even if the rest of the song is pretty much like the little clip, it’s catchy and fun to sing along with. It’s kind of stuck in my head after just one listen. IMHO, this is what they should be after at this early stage of the game. I doubt any of them are going to come out with the equivalent of the “White Album” or other such respected classic on their first attempt. I would think relevancy in today’s market would be pretty important, and this song sounds fresh to me.

Kris was my 2nd favorite this year after Danny and I really hate to say this, but I did not like that short snippet AT ALL.

Hopefully it’ll sound better when we get to hear it in its entirety.

I actually think Kris sounds really good in this snippet. I’m probably going to love this when I hear the whole thing!

GROSS SMOKEYVERA PLZ DONT MENTION THAT BITC* hey guys, STOP THE aDAM TALK,kay??!!! CAN WE GET 350 POSTS ON THIS THREAD??!!!! PLZ FORR KRIS!!!!?????

personally I still flove it

And lmao about kris h8ers…..

If you don’t like The Script or you don’t like David Gray or if you don’t like alternate rock, you will not like this song. The Script have done really well in the U.K. and their song, “Man who Can’t Be Moved” has done well here. I read they opened for Paul Mc Cartney and have won some awards. Nothing to sneeze at.

Who is to really say Kris won’t win a Grammy for his album? Carrie Underwood did, Kelly Clarkson the same. It’s not all about artistic merit. Wasn’t Jesus Take The Wheel one of Carrie’s first hits?

But who’s to say there’s not some really standout songs on Kris’s album that were co-penned by Kris.

Kris chose to sing The Killer’s ATTTID, a really catchy alternate rock song. Their Mr. Brightside has the same vibe as Live Like We’re Dying. And although it has the word “dying” in it, the message is very upbeat. Carpe Diem and all that …

You ain’t gonna please everyone — but I’m thinking this songs gonna please a hell of a lot more people than the naysayers think.

Kris Allen does not have a problem with wordy songs. Try singing along Heartless. Lots of words. The problem with NB was (is) that there were too many words for certain musical phrases. Like when it goes “You almost gave up on your dreams” they have to sing it like “y’most v’up onyo dreeeeaaammms” to catch up the melody. Bad song writing.

This song is amazing. Sounds like a hit.

Wow, I really really like it now. I’ve replayed it like 20 times so far…

Kris is by far my favorite this year, and this song disappoints me so. I was definitely intrigued by him from the beginning on the show, and wondered what he could do, and he showed me with “Falling Slowly”. His voice on that song captivated me, as it does on a number of others. This song does nothing to showcase that rich, beautiful voice, and although his loyal AI fans will hopefully buy his album, I can’t imagine this song encouraging new fans.

Thanks for the link girlygirl.
I was hoping there would be some interviews as Matt mentioned doing some press yesterday

http://wjyy.com/

so it’s Detroit, Boston, LA, NY and London… and song writing sessions still ongoing. Quite a schedule there….

Studio57
September 16, 2009 at 9:12 pm
I don’t think I said it was reggae, did I ? I said it had a reggae /ska/folk vibe. A blend. An influence. I am not saying Kris is the next Bob Marley.

Let’s agree to disagree as I do not hear those blends or influences at all in this song. And, BTW, there were more than one posts citing the reggae thing when I made my original comment – I was not responding to you specifically. (And I don’t mean that in a snarky way. Sometimes words may jump off a page in a manner not intended.)

My Olive Garden response is because I’m from a reggae culture and the cited artistes are not my yardsticks. It’s all good. We all have our opinions and I respect yours but do not agree as my mileage (REALLY) varies.

I like it. I think it will do very well.

Okay so it’s only a snippet but it is very ironic that someone who was known on Idol for arranging songs and making them his “own” appears to be doing a note for note cover as his first single.

19 you amaze me. So just think the opposite of what they did on the show, and we can figure out their first singles.

I don’t want to bring in Adam’s name here but I remember that his WANT song was already released by someone else on that label and no one cared.

I try to never judge a song by a snippet, so I’ll reserve comment.

But there was something very familiar about all of this…

Oh, and welcome to the world of post-Idol debuts, everybody. It’s business as usual.

Oh, yes, that’s it. For those wondering, here were the threads for “Light On” and “Tattoo” (the two prior Idol debut singles). No need to comment on them here, just for reference to see how these things go. Although, those were for full songs.

Whenever I hear “Tattoo” I remember Slezak’s wonderful snark about the yelps and Stargate burning themselves on microwave popcorn. Somehow, his snark made me fall in love with a song which I previously had no use for. LOL.

I predict that we have about 86,400*365 seconds before we can definitively state if this song will help or hurt Kris’s career. Although, I might start calling it a boat anchor by November. [Channel Anoop]: That’s my prerogative.

Kris Allen does not have a problem with wordy songs. Try singing along Heartless. Lots of words. The problem with NB was (is) that there were too many words for certain musical phrases.

Well, true. That song was totally tuneless. I was shocked that actual professional songwriters put together that mess.

I am an Adam fan, and I don’t hate it. I need to hear more before I shred my clothes and stick pins in my Jive music executive doll.

I don’t want to bring in Adam’s name here but I remember that his WANT song was already released by someone else on that label and no one cared.

Yeah, they just hated it and refused to buy it. Same difference? Don’t think so.

I’m in love already. Bring. It. On. Kris Allen

I don’t want to bring in Adam’s name here but I remember that his WANT song was already released by someone else on that label and no one cared.

That was never meant to be released. A lot of hoopla behind that.

Oh I don’t think the song will hurt Kris’s career at all. It will just be targeted to a group that will luv it. Others, like myself, won’t. But he will probably sell quite a bit….it just won’t be a “Wow, that is the winner of AI, Kris Allen” singing that song. And by the way, I didn’t think Kris had haters.

abbysee
September 16, 2009 at 9:49 pm
I am an Adam fan, and I don’t hate it. I need to hear more before I shred my clothes and stick pins in my Jive music executive doll.

LOL.

Nothing says “organic” singer-songwriter like autotune. The strings are a nice touch, too!

Nothing says ‘organic’  singer-songwriter like autotune

Every single song on every single cd nowadays is processed through a computer.

Goodnight:)kris I love u

Nothing says ‘organic’  singer-songwriter like autotune.

No. no. This year, it was Martin who was the organic singer-songwriter. This is the kid whose back-story was all about how he raises passenger pigeons back home in Delaware.

Has the full song leaked yet?

From the clip, it definitely sounds like a song that Kris would sing; very radio-friendly and should do reasonably well. Kinda lame that it’s a cover, though.

Maybe this was punishment for ditching “No Boundaries” Nonetheless, I still like what I hear.

I like the song.

Reminder:

Let’s keep this thread focused on Kris and his first single. No thread jacking. Thank you.

Every single song on every single cd nowadays is processed through a computer.

The challenge is to sing it live.

I reserve full judgement until I hear the complete song. But I like that it’s got some energy and I think it’s really catchy. It grows on me with repeat listens and I hear more “Kris” in it each time. It would have been a terrible idea to release a ballad as his first single.

I guess it was a pipe dream to think he might get to co-write his first single. But I thought there might be a chance since he was writing with a couple of proven hit makers.

The fact that the song was originally written and recorded by The Script does not bother me. Tess had an excellent post pages ago that I agree with completely. 99% of the people who will hear this song will have no idea it was ever previously recorded by another artist.

The choice of this song as the first single does concern me for other, non-radio reasons. But I don’t know how to express my thoughts without bringing other Idols into the conversation. So I am just going to hope for the best in regards to Jive and their promotion of Kris.

I also hope we get an announcement soon about who produced this song and the rest of his material.

It sounds a lot like the recording by The Script. I was hoping that it would sound a little different–a little more “plugged in” than I thought it would be.

That said, pop/rhythmic is sellng hugely these days. I don’t love it personally, but I think the masses will. Good for Kris. Can’t wait to watch the charts.

The Script song does concern me for other reasons. But I don’t know how to express my thoughts without bringing other Idols into the conversation. So I am just going to hope for the best in regards to Jive and their promotion of Kris.

I wish we had PM here. I’d love to know what you’re thinking.

I just listened to the snippet. I like it. I like the Script version too. I think this song will be a hit for Kris and spike his album sales nicely. NoBo will be utterly forgotten.

Have listen to the 20 sec snippet and the Scripts version. Kris’ chorus sounds very similiar. I liked Kris’ version better. My initial reaction to the song was Meh.

The chorus is catchy. I hope he did something better with the rest of it.

I can’t call it until I hear the whole song. If it does indeed have a reggae/ska vibe, I will be surprised. That would be a twist.

The song is fine for Kris. When I heard the version by The Stitch, I was concerned with the wordiness of the chorus. I no longer have those concerns, Kris pulls it off. Its just catchy enough to get radio airplay, which is what 19E is probably aiming for. CHR POP/Rhythm might be a stretch for this one, but it should chart well AC/Hot AC.

But I don’t know how to express my thoughts without bringing other Idols into the conversation.

You can use other Idols as examples as long as Kris remains the focus of your remarks.

Let’s keep this thread focused on Kris and his first single. No thread jacking. Thank you.

Sry, didn’t think.

BCU79, now I’m really curious.

There is a tiny hint of ska in there, to me. I guess we all hear our own thing. *shrugs* Without getting too long winded about ska, it’s not always the horn section that makes a song ska. Sublime and The Flys are two good examples.

Of course it’s not just about the horn, though it and the drum/cymbal beat and sound are very important for the sound of ska, I would argue. But like you said, it could be long-winded to discuss. And I would love to hear more ska with this song, or with The Script’s original version and so maybe it’s just me, but I’m not hearing it. And I just went and listened to some Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Skakin’ Pickle, Specials and Pilfers to try and see if I was missing something with this song. But sorry, still not hearing it. I tried though! Do I get points for that?

But hey who cares? Ska isn’t popular these days and this song will be. So good for Kris.

I like it. I enjoyed The Script’s version yesterday, but I think I like Kris’ take a little better, based on that snippet. It’s catchy, seems like there’s a lot of room for improve ‘“ which he’s awesome at, positive and “radio-friendly” (though, as a rule, I hate that term), but I think it applies here.

Cover or no, I doesn’t really bother me. The way this music gets bandied about anymore, who cares? Is it much more different than if the Script were hired as writers for his album? It wasn’t released as a single, so I don’t see a huge problem.

evanjane
September 16, 2009 at 9:36 pm

If you don’t like The Script or you don’t like David Gray or if you don’t like alternate rock, you will not like this song.

I’ve only heard this one song by The Script, I don’t know who David Gray is. I guess I don’t like alternative rock then, because I don’t like this song?

I don’t like music that twangs at me (most country) and I don’t like Hip/Hop, Rap, Urban whatever term is being used now – those are the only two genres of music I can’t listen to. I could not stand “Heartless” until Kris completely changed it to something I liked.

Kris chose to sing The Killer’s ATTTID, a really catchy alternate rock song.

Well, now wait…I do like ATTTID when Kris performs it. So, what isn’t working here for me? Maybe I just don’t like THIS song?

You ain’t gonna please everyone ‘” but I’m thinking this songs gonna please a hell of a lot more people than the naysayers think.

I sincerely hope that is true, and from the comments here it seems to be. I hope he sells millions of copies, but from what I have heard of it I won’t be buying one.

I just hope his album has some tunes I DO like, because I really was looking forward to buying it.

meh I don’t like it. I hope that’s just a sample and not the actual song. Sounds scat like.

I like the snippet. It sounds catchy. I’m interested in hearing the full song. I haven’t heard The Script’s version so I have nothing to compare it to.

Well, yay. As I said in the other thread that speculated that it was this Script song, I am fine with it. It’s way better than the usual stuff 19 gives the winner. I’d listen to this over Tattoo any day!

As for Kris being a singer-songwriter… Umm. Says who? Is there a genre for that? Because if you mean folk, then I’m sorry. He’s not really folk. Never claimed to be. An acoustic guitar does not=folk. That said, I am looking forward to the songs he does have writing credits on, too.

I’ll buy this one.

I kinda liked that… catchy. Looking forward to hearing the whole thing.

I’ve never posted here but I lurk often and have read all of your comments about the song, along with the comments over at ONTD_ai, the reviews from Lyndsey Parker, tweet from jambajim, etc. I should admit that I am primarily an Adam fan, although I have nothing against Kris and enjoy his music as well. I can definitely see the references to OAR that others have mentioned above, although I am a huge fan of OAR and have seen them in concert numerous times, and their music has a much different feel to it then this song. In fact, the songs of theirs that have become singles like “love and memories” and “shattered” are probably the most criticized amongst real OAR fans. My problem with the song is that it is a nice, catchy, “radio-friendly”, probable hit, but it is nothing original or earth shattering. From this song I can definitely see the Jordin Sparks comparisons- nice, somewhat bland artists with not much of a musical identity- but they pop out hits. Hopefully Kris’s original music has a little bit more substance to it, although, like i said- i would be shocked if this wasn’t played all the time on the radio and at the top of the charts. And for many of his fans I’m sure that is enough. I would just hope for something better for the song you want to introduce yourself to the world with.

I think the chorus is catchy – just hearing it a few times had me interested. I think the original Script song was a little clunky on the verses, but then, a lot of big songs are made by just having a catchy chorus – so this could easily be enough (still not a fan of the 86,400 bit though).

as a kris fan i obviously hope this does well for him. the script thing doesnt bother me that much. the online community of idol fans is large but there are plenty of people out there who wont be aware of the problem. plenty of artists use material that are orginally sung by someone else as tons of people have mentioned. im crossing my fingers for this and for adam and allison.

Hopefully Jive has several different versions of the song like the new Carrie Underwood single. They may not have settled on the version they want to release and want to start a public debate to see which one would make the most impact.

I think they should go with the Bollywood version. It’s killer with the tabla drums!

Oh — and I for one think this is VERY Kris sounding – this is exactly the kind of sound I’d expect from Kris based on what I saw on the show, and even more so based on his set on tour (especially The Killlers and MB songs)

I was pretty skeptical about Kris doing a cover…but this fits him really well. Excited to hear the full version. Kris has a sort of white-boy-acoustic-rapper vibe to him that he can pull off those lyrics. Plus I can’t stand The Script’s lead singer’s constantly sharp vibrato. Gahhhh.

Hopefully Jive has several different versions of the song like the new Carrie Underwood single. They may not have settled on the version they want to release and want to start a public debate to see which one would make the most impact.

If that was the case, I don’t think they would have leaked a test version into Arkansas.

I bet this 23 seconds is from the real single, and bet that the whole song leaks by Saturday.

I really like what I have heard so far. It’s catchy and sounds very radio friendly. I can’t wait to hear the whole song. I agree Mary102, it’s exactly what I was expecting too.

hmmm.. non-Kris fans dissing Kris.. sounds like business as usual on here…

I’ll go out on a limb here and say I think this song is better than the first singles of Taylor Hicks, Jordin Sparks, and David Cook.

OK. Well, in that case’ ¦. this is way better than John Peter Lewis would have done!

Ha. Have you listened to John Peter Lewis’ first album? I didn’t see his season, but it remains my favorite Idol album of the ones I have. I like his second one, but prefer the first. Mileage, I guess.

James Taylor is about as singer-songwritery as you get, and it sure didn’t hurt him to have a big hit with a cover of Carole King’s “You’ve Got a Friend.” Ditto for the Eagles, who had a much bigger hit with “Take It Easy” than Jackson Browne did, when he wrote it, even though Don Henley and Glenn Frey wrote most of their own stuff.

Since Bonnie Raitt is one of my faves and since she does the kind of stuff people throw in that amorphous “singer-songwriter” basket, I’m always surprised that she doesn’t write her own material. Wait, she may’ve written “Nick of Time.” I can’t remember. But definitely not “I Can’t Make You Love Me” or (my own personal favorite) “Two Lives” or the incredibly lovely “Angel from Montgomery” (written by John Prine.) I guess it says something that I just don’t know whether she wrote even one of her own songs and it hasn’t interfered with my enjoyment one bit.

I kind of like this, I fall on the side that hears a reggae influence in the Script version, and I am not going to make a judgment on whether I like what Kris did with it till I hear the whole thing. You might be able to take a 20-second snippet of Kris’s “Heartless” and say it’s the same as the Kanye original (or the Fray version, which a lot of people have said, even though I disagree pretty completely). It’s just hard to know with only 20 seconds to judge by. It turns into Name That Tune or something.

So I’m reserving judgment. For the record, I loved David Cook and HATED “Light On” on the first hearing, even though I did think it was an earworm. I also thought it sounded a lot like Aerosmith and other “anthemic” bands I can’t stand, and I was hoping the whole record wouldn’t sound like that. Which most of it didn’t, even though some of it did. But he threw “Lie” and “A Daily Anthem” and “Life on the Moon” in there for people like me. And I have a feeling Kris will do that, too. So I will very probably be buying his album even if I *don’t* like Live Like We’re Dying even after I hear the whole thing.

Come on. This is a world where “Bleeding Love” was a smasheroo. (Sorry, Bleeding Love. But I can’t stand you.)

I wish we had PM here. I’d love to know what you’re thinking.

Ha! I don’t know if it’s really all that interesting. But following MJ’s guidelines, I will try and tread carefully here.

As I said above – I don’t think the fact that “Live Like We’re Dying” was originally recorded by some other artist and released on some B-side EP is going to matter one bit to any radio station. Or to the 99% of listeners who have never heard the song.

But using The Script song as the first single does make me wonder how much Jive is invested in this album and in Kris himself.

As a season-long Kris voter, maybe I have just become addicted to worrying. It’s hard not to be a little discouraged to see Kris get a hand-me-down from a fellow Sony act as his first single when they are obviously spending lots of money on some other Idol albums. It makes me wonder if Jive going to show Kris the same kind of patience that they have with Jordin and Archie.

I hope Kris will do some interviews soon to talk about how he came into possession of the song and why it was chosen as the first single. And I also hope I’m just being paranoid about Jive.

And MJ – please delete if I did not tread carefully enough in this post.

Where the heck are you getting that The Script’s album is going to be released on November 17th? I’m at the site and I see nothing. Their album was released March 17th of the year.

I am not at the same computer that I was at earlier so I can’t retrace my steps. It is quite possible that I misread something or read incorrect information as I seem to recall them saying they had already released their CD in the States when I saw them last month. Releasing an Irish band’s debut CD on March 17th in the States sounds like something a music company would do so I concede the point.

Have you listened to John Peter Lewis’ first album?

Good lord, no. I don’t listen to American Idol albums.

Are you saying that the kid who won American Idol this year isn’t even as good as John Peter Lewis? Oh, my….

I hear a Maroon 5 vibe to it. I like it a lot.

That sounds really good. I also think it sounds a lot different than the version from The Script.

I hate the lyrics but he kind of makes them unintelligible so it’s OK.

I neither like nor dislike it, but I can tell it’s one of those songs that will get stuck in my head until I feel like buying it. (like Bleeding Love, heh) I never bought a Kris track during Idol, so that’s probably a good sign.

It makes me wonder if Jive going to show [the kid who won] the same kind of patience that they have with Jordin and Archie.

What paitence? They’ve already given Archuleta the kiss of death, telling him to record a Christmas album. His major label career is over before he even hits puberty.

I don’t see anything wrong with giving the kid who won a song from the Script. That’s the way it works. The songwritring acts write songs, put the demos on CDs that nobody buys and the labels grab the songs for their pop acts. When an Idol is having a “writing session” that means that they’ve him to learn the song from the songwriter.

Kris’ second single is horrible. Hope he has better luck with this one.

Come on. This is a world where ‘Bleeding Love’  was a smasheroo. (Sorry, Bleeding Love. But I can’t stand you.)

I’m not too thrilled with the woman who sung it. SnooZZZZe.

They’ve already given Archuleta the kiss of death, telling him to record a Christmas album.

Why is a Christmas album a kiss of death…?

I’ll go out on a limb here and say I think this song is better than the first singles of Taylor Hicks, Jordin Sparks, and David Cook.

Too late, Billboard lists Kris first single as NoBo, the lowest selling Idol winner’s single of all time (NOT Kris’s fault). Also it is also Adam’s first single.

Taylor’s Hick’s first single, “Do I Make You Proud” sold 190,000 physical singles and 38,000 digital downloads during its first week, debuted at #1 on the Hot 100. (#1 in US and Canada). I hope Kris does as well with his new single.

Kris has a sort of white-boy-acoustic-rapper vibe to him that he can pull off those lyrics.

I think this is where I am getting hung up with this sound. For me (for you, for Randy Jackson – lol), Matt has the white-boy rapper vibe. On Kris, it doesn’t work for me at all.

For me, Kris is a dichotomy. One is acoustic, soulful and intense. But when I see him with an electric guitar and really going to town, I get an “a deep down inside I really want to be a rock star” vibe. JMO, everyone sees something different in art.

Oh my goodness, it sounds like Miley Cyrus Party with Us. Sorry guys ‘“ not my thing ‘“ I’m sure it’ll sell a million within weeks appealling to the tweens. I’m not sure this is what Kris wanted ‘“ but hey if it sells ‘“ so be it.

LOL! I, too, thought it sounded like Miley’s Party in the USA. Lots of words. My daughter plays her song all the time, she’s a huge Adam fan too though, go figure. Anyway, after listening to Kris’ little snippet, I’ve had it stuck in my head. It’s catchy, I think he’ll do just fine with it.

Good lord, no. I don’t listen to American Idol albums.

Are you saying that the kid who won American Idol this year isn’t even as good as John Peter Lewis? Oh, my’ ¦.

No. How would I know if Kris’ album is any good if I’ve only heard a 23 second clip of a possible first single?

I said that after hearing the full version from The Script that I thougt it was a better SONG than the first singles of Taylor, Jordin, and Cook.

If you don’t listen to Idol music, how could you possibly judge it?

I think the song is pretty good, but I expected them to change it up more. Hope it’s a hit.

Too late, Billboard lists Kris first single as NoBo, the lowest selling Idol winner’s single of all time (NOT Kris’s fault). Also it is also Adam’s first single.

Taylor’s Hick’s first single, ‘Do I Make You Proud’  sold 190,000 physical singles and 38,000 digital downloads during its first week, debuted at #1 on the Hot 100. (#1 in US and Canada). I hope Kris does as well with his new single.

Well, obviously I wasn’t talking about the coronation songs. I was talking about the first singles off their albums. And I wasn’t talking sales, either. I said better. To me.

Why is a Christmas album a kiss of death’ ¦?

It’s not.

I so wish the comments section from my Season 5 record release threads hadn’t gone poof with Halo scan.

I’m just sayin’.

Can’t really judge it on one short clip … it’s OK, but it does sound very close to the original from that snippet .. I would have to hear a bit more of the verse to form any real opinion.

For what it’s worth, I think the song is catchy and radio friendly. I hope it’s a hit for Kris.

Yes, It is a cover

Live Like We’re Dying
From the album We Cry
© 2008 Sony BMG Europe
Categories: Alternative Rock
Rate track:Sign In to rate!

http://new.music.yahoo.com/script/tracks/live-like-were-dying'“215241232

I’m late here. I understand Kris fans wanted his single to be original and he co-wrote it, but maybe the reason why Jive use cover song for his single was so it’s easy to sell than new song. IDK, just thinking, just like what they’re doing on the show its easy for fans to like the song they’ve heard and known before than one that never heard before.

This song is catchy… the kind of song that once you hear it on the radio while driving and will stay in your head and next thing you didn’t realize you’ll sing it. Personally I like the song. Like it when I heard Script sing it in YouTube the other day and like it now with Kris’s voice. It’s a little to high for his voice, but still nice song.

mj
September 16, 2009 at 11:23 pm

Why is a Christmas album a kiss of death’ ¦?

It’s not.

I so wish the comments section from my Season 5 record release threads hadn’t gone poof with Halo scan.

I’m just sayin’.

Experiencing a bit of deja vu, MJ?

It is the self-titled CD that is set to be released in the States on Nov. 17th, like Kris’ CD if I remember correctly.

I bought The Script/The Script last May, so it’s already been available for that long. According to iTunes, it was released here in the US 11/4/08, so, last November, not this coming November. Maybe it’s a deluxe version that’s being released this November.

The song was deemed unworthy of being on the band’s own album, for whatever reason. It is essentially a ‘reject.’ 

The album does have the same hip-hop/pop/rock feel, but the rap side isn’t as strong as it is in this song, so that’s probably why they left it off. Anyway, an artist may have 50 great songs for an album, but typically an album only has 10-12 songs, so some will be left off, no matter how good they are. The song is fine, I just don’t like the way they made Kris sound totally bland. I was expecting it though. As MJ said, Idol albums aren’t about being a unique, original artist. They’re about selling as many records as possible. If you can do that and be unique, great, but they will go with the safe choices for singles either way. I’m sure it will go platinum and be a big radio hit, just like LO and Tattoo.

He didn’t win but Daughtry co-wrote his first single. I think Blake may also have co-wrote his first single. Both of them had writing credits on their album. Even though I hate the song, Chris Cornell is a respected name to write your first single. Kris is getting a retread. I just think he’s not getting Idol winner treatment.

Yep, I agree with this too. It might be a fun song for the 12-15 yr olds and kris will get air play and make money but it won’t win any awards-which I really don’t think he cares about anyway’ ¦.his fans on the other hand’ ¦.All three of my college kids did not like it. It won’t be playing at their frat parties any time soon’ ¦.

I like it and I am far from being within the 12 to 15-year old range although I am not a college girl myself.I am in my 30s.

I don’t think the purpose of this first single is to win awards.Not everyone watches AI or know who Kris Allen is.I actually think this is a good pop song.It’ll get people’s attention enough maybe to buy his album and listen to his other songs.Good strategy.

I expect the detractors will crucify him for singing a cover.Well, it’s not a popular song(it was not officially included in their album so….)…so it’s not really a big issue…it’s just that AI fans are just so…I don’t know the word for it…nitpicky…I actually enjoy it…it’s the typical feel-good song…nothing wrong with that….

And at least it’s not about his “AI journey” (which would be quite nauseating) nor about generic love themes.It can’t be anything overtly sexual nor too dark(that would be more Adam) because that just isn’t him….so this is okay.

And I do agree with the others saying this is one of the better first singles from the winner(if it really is even the first single and the same song).I can actually only remember Carrie’s first single amongst the winners…I can remember DC’s but I don’t think it was that good.

And this is exactly the type of song I see Kris singing…very contemporary pop with a little rick edge(but really more pop).

My main problem is that it does sound so much like the original(even the backing tracks)….like they scrimped on Kris’ first single.

Maybe it’s naive or I’m missing something but I haven’t noticed anything that leads me to believe that 19E/Jive isn’t putting as much effort into Kris’s album as other idols at all.

Re: College kids not liking it, I’m a college student and I liked the song. Then again I’m the farthest you can get from frat boy.

He didn’t win but Daughtry co-wrote his first single.

Daughtry’s single was also released on the same day his album dropped in November, which is pretty out of the norm. Blake’s single was released in November as well (his album in December). Both had more time to get a first single in order than Kris had.

I love the 23 seconds I heard of the song. I think it will do great!

Man, this is really weird for me (for you) because I literally already have the Script’s version of this song on my iPod. I’ve been a huge fan of theirs for awhile now and while I adore Kris and think he sounds great, I’d rather hear him on a new, completely original song. That being said, most people in the US will think this is a completely new and original song so I’m sure it will be a big hit.

Maybe it’s naive or I’m missing something but I haven’t noticed anything that leads me to believe that 19E/Jive isn’t putting as much effort into Kris’s album as other idols at all.

Yeah, me too. We haven’t even heard the whole song yet. We don’t know what’s on the album or who he wrote with. They haven’t started promo so we don’t know what kind of rollout he’s gonna get. Too soon to worry, IMO.

I am not at the same computer that I was at earlier so I can’t retrace my steps. It is quite possible that I misread something or read incorrect information as I seem to recall them saying they had already released their CD in the States when I saw them last month. Releasing an Irish band’s debut CD on March 17th in the States sounds like something a music company would do so I concede the point.

No worries, my apologies if I came off as a little aggressive! It might have been the 17 in the date that made you see it and think 11/17. No harm, no foul!

He didn’t win but Daughtry co-wrote his first single. I think Blake may also have co-wrote his first single. Both of them had writing credits on their album. Even though I hate the song, Chris Cornell is a respected name to write your first single. Kris is getting a retread. I just think he’s not getting Idol winner treatment.

Daughtry’s single also came out very close to the album release (I think it might have been a week beforehand?)…and Blake’s album wasn’t released until December, and the single was released at the end of October, which gave him an entire month longer than Kris has.

I don’t get why people are thinking Jive isn’t putting any effort into Kris and his album? He’s being flown out to London in the next week or two, and so far he’s worked with Joe King from The Fray, Salaam Remi, Claude Kelly, Alex Band from The Calling, Mat Kearney, Dan Wilson from Semisonic, Chris Daughtry and Mike Elizondo. He’s due to work with Kevin Rudolf soon, and I’m sure there’s some other names that I’m forgetting. They also got him the Tonight Show spot back in July, even though he had to cancel due to his grandmother’s death.

He seems to have done a lot more songwriting sessions than Allison and maybe a couple more than Adam. Just because his first single wasn’t cowritten by him, doesn’t mean it’s any less HIS. Besides, the only Idol alums to have writing credits on their first singles are the two mentioned above, Daughtry and Blake. The fact that Kris didn’t had no part in writing at least one song on his album should not be surprising in the least.

He didn’t win but Daughtry co-wrote his first single. I think Blake may also have co-wrote his first single. Both of them had writing credits on their album.

But it’s not the same to compare an Idol winner to a runner-up. The pace with which the winners have to get an album out after the tour is much more intense.

It was very predictable that Kris’ single would be written by someone else.

As far as the comparison between Cornell and The Script, well, what does it matter how famous the songwriter is? What matters is the quality of the song and this one seems to be getting pretty good reviews except for some Kris fans who wanted more originality and some Kris haters who were unlikely converts in any case.

My main problem is that it does sound so much like the original(even the backing tracks)’ ¦.like they scrimped on Kris’ first single.

^^^There’s this too. The clip sounds almost like Kris’ vocals laid over existing tracks.

I guess I can hope this is really 19/Jive releasing a bad demo clip to lower expectations of a song that Kris, in reality, worked over the lyrics and music to sound like something I would like. ::wandering around in my delusional world::

I can’t wait to hear the whole thing, it is already stuck in my head, lol. I would put it on my ipod today if I could.

That was my biggest fear for how 19 could ruin Kris ‘” and, for me, the good news is that this at least sounds like Kris and leaves me optimistic that I might like his album.

Me too. I liked a handful of Kris’ performances on idol and I actually kind of like what I’m hearing here. But I have some Hannah Montana songs on my iPod so I think I just invalidated my own argument. Heh.

Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

Oh, and welcome to the world of post-Idol debuts, everybody. It’s business as usual. .

Eep. Thank you for the warning MJ.

…..one other thing, it has a tad bit of reggae beat to the hook – it might catch on – I wish him success in his career though! I am yet to warm up to Kris’ singing – nothing on the AI show and nothing on the tour has caught my attention, he has a long way to go, with me that is.

Daughtry and Blake both released their albums in November. They had exactly the same amount of time as the Idol winners. I’m not an Adam fan or a Kris hater. I actually voted for Kris on the finale but I’ve gotten sorta bored with him since then.

But it’s not the same to compare an Idol winner to a runner-up. The pace with which the winners have to get an album out after the tour is much more intense.

Well, Daughtry did get his album out before the winner that year so I’m not sure the timing argument works. Granted the Teenage Witch said her hubby wrote the song (with his buddy) and Daughtry just tweaked it, so I’m not sure how much co-writing went on with “It’s Not Over”.

Who cares? If the song does it’s job and raises the profile of the artist, gets new fans and moves some freakin’ units, who cares what its genesis is? Only the people who wrote it, the people who make out the royalty cheques and the Grammy committee (and everybody will ignore them and say that singer won it anyway).

Disclaimer: I’m not claiming this song will win a Grammy or even sell so much as one download (I cannot judge that from a 20 second clip). I’m merely pointing out the main parties concerned with who wrote the song.

Well am a big Kris fan and I loved it too pieces. Am not disappointed at all. And am not a kid or teen. Am in my late 30′s. And also like I said never heard script verison and never want to. So for me when the whole single comes out from Kris well be my first time ever hearing the wholesong. Shot I didn’t like David C lights on at first and now I love it.

Not surprisingly, I love this song and Kris’s version of it. Can not wait for the release of the single followed by the album, followed by the tour, followed by years of making music. Love it!

But it’s not the same to compare an Idol winner to a runner-up. The pace with which the winners have to get an album out after the tour is much more intense.

It was very predictable that Kris’ single would be written by someone else.

I don’t know if I agree with that. “Its Not Over” was actually written by someone else, Daughtry (and Ace Young) just rewrote the chorus. I think a winner could pull off a co-write.

That said, I don’t think it matters who wrote it. At all. All that matters is the performance of the song. Will it sell well and push sales for the album to the degree that they can justify another single? Will it help establish the artist and give a good idea to audiences what kind of music to expect going forward? That’s what is vital, IMO.

ETA: Of course Kristen said it before I did, and better. LOL.

That being said, most people in the US will think this is a completely new and original song so I’m sure it will be a big hit.

That’s me for sure. And probably my 14 and 9 year old daughters who will beg me to let them purchase it for their ipods!!!

jpfan
Daughtry and Blake both released their albums in November. They had exactly the same amount of time as the Idol winners.

Wiki said Blake’s album dropped in December.

Daughtry released his album in November yes, but his first single was released on the same day.

Assuming that Kris, Chris, and Blake worked on their albums during the tour, Kris obviously had less time to get a song out there than the other two.

No harm, no foul!

Ditto! Thanks!

I know my daughter who never really liked Kris much, who is 12 this coming Friday. She loved it and ask me right away if I well buy it and let her put it on her i-pod. I was really expecting her not to like it.

Break Anotha was a horrible first single. I’d take this song over that original piece of crap anyday.

It’s hard to get a good first single. Alicia is so high profile but I think her new single is really boring. For idol allumni, so many of them put out wtf original single either written by or for the idols.

For idol covers, at least invisible, IDNHU, bleeding love, etc. became hits. The “cover”issue is only an issue to more invested idol fans. And for this group, minds are already made on album buying.

This clip says “hit” all over it. I can’t wait to hear the whole song!!! (This is my favorite Kris song, so far.)

You are all correct that I was overbroad in saying that you can’t compare winners and non-winners. I should have said that it is often not fair to make such a comparison.

In the specific cases of Daughtry and Blake, if it’s true that Daughty’s single released in November and Blake’s was released in support of a December album, then they clearly had more time than Kris.

But the best point is the one that several had made. Why does it matter who wrote the song?

I trying to decide if this song will appeal to the older….raising hand here…group that voted for Kris on Idol. The ones that cemented him for me were…”Falling Softly and “Ain’t No Sunshine”.

As an aside, I’ve never downloaded anything from Itunes, but I will buy this one somehow! Probably helps to have an Ipod or Iphone!

I can’t wait for the album which I can walk in and get.

Jim

Too hard to tell much from such a short clip, but from listening to the clip and to the Script’s full song, I can definitely see Kris doing the song, killing it live, and having a hit with the song. It’s catchy — just a quick listen, and it has been stuck in my head.

I’m not sure what expectations people had for Kris’s post-NoBo single, but this one works for me. A cover doesn’t surprise me, since Kris has had so little time to work on anything yet. And, covers can be big hits, so no worries there.

I hope that this will be very successful for Kris.

I would take this song over whatever that was Castro put out since people like to compare the two. I forgot it as soon as the song was over. At least with this song it sticks with you a while, I have been humming it ever since I first heard it.

I also don’t think Kris should be put on the spot to explain why this song as the first single and the background. Jive should step up and release a statement. Kris’s main focus should be promotion and singing. He should not have to answer those types of questions from now until his album drops.

I trying to decide if this song will appeal to the older’ ¦.raising hand here’ ¦group that voted for Kris on Idol. The ones that cemented him for me were’ ¦’ Falling Softly and ‘Ain’t No Sunshine’ .

Yes, and I love those songs too, but those won’t get radio play until he has cemented himself in CHR/Top 40 with some uptempo and catchy stuff. That is where the money is, not to mention the largest market.

I’m sure there will be songs like those on his album, so no need to worry!

I think Kris’s Ain’t No Sunshine and the snippet don’t sound all that different from each other actually. Maybe it’s just me though. Both have that sort of pop/rock with a bit of soul feel to them.

I’m a huge Adam fan but I have to admit I like Kris version of the song and the crisp instrumentation made it sound even better. Kris or Jive picked a good first single for him. Congrats Kris. I’m already seeing a big hit.

Like I said I well buy it and am almost 40. I all ready listen to just that tiny clip of it all ready at least 40 or 50 times and like 4 times in a row. I really liked it. And am one of those Kris fan’s that was trying not to get my hopes up on his CD but if I like this one so much just hearing that little bit am almost 100 percent sure I’ll like his whole CD.

I think the song is cute, but agree that it is “wordy.” The syncopated rhythm is my favorite part. I may not buy it (can’t say till I hear the whole song- wouldn’t buy the Script version) but I think it could be successful. Kris has many loyal fans who will buy whatever he puts out, at least for a while (the same is true for Adam and Allison, imo.)

My 17-year-old son whose most recent concerts were Flaming Lips, Sonic Youth and Pixies rolled his eyes at me when I played the snippet for his opinion, but he’s probably not Kris’s target audience anyway. To be fair, I’m sure he would never show enthusiasm for any AI music. There’s definitely a downside to having the Idol label.

I like the clip. It’s catchy, with a good beat. I just wish it was originally written for him to sing, not another band. As MJ says, welcome to post-Idol releases.

The only people who are going to know it’s a cover are the people discussing it on the internet. I don’t understand why some of Kris’s fans would be disappointed. It’s one song, not his whole album. I’m sure he will co-write some other songs on his album.

I’m sure Jive picked this song because they think it will be a hit. Have any of the AI winners 1st singles (excluding coronation songs) ever done badly? Isn’t it almost a given that it will do pretty well?

I just pulled my daughter away from her homework upstairs to listen to this clip. Nine seconds in she said, “I like it, it’s catchy”. (She is a huge Adam fan, btw.)

Then I had her listen to The Script’s version. She was like meh (if meh means like mediocre or yuck or whatever.)

Too hard to tell much from such a short clip, but from listening to the clip and to the Script’s full song, I can definitely see Kris doing the song, killing it live, and having a hit with the song. It’s catchy ‘” just a quick listen, and it has been stuck in my head.

I’m not sure what expectations people had for Kris’s post-NoBo single, but this one works for me. A cover doesn’t surprise me, since Kris has had so little time to work on anything yet. And, covers can be big hits, so no worries there.

I hope that this will be very successful for Kris.

That’s what I think!!

I’ll go out on a limb here and say I think this song is better than the first singles of Taylor Hicks, Jordin Sparks, and David Cook.

Umm just no to better than DC. Sorry. I like Kris, but yeah not liking this song. Hopefully there are more on the cd to make me buy it cause I like Kris.

This Kris fan is not one bit disappointed. He sounds fantastic. I am a huge David Cook fan and I have to say for a first single I like this one much better than Light On. I think we are going to be hearing this on the radio a lot. I never heard the Script original version until it was posted here and I prefer Kris’s voice.

I just pulled my daughter away from her homework upstairs to listen to this clip. Nine seconds in she said, ‘I like it, it’s catchy’ . (She is a huge Adam fan, btw.)

Then I had her listen to The Script’s version. She was like meh (if meh means like mediocre or yuck or whatever.)

Is Kris’ full version out then? I can’t judge the difference yet if we only have 23 secs. I would see her reaction to the full song as a liability.

I like it. My 4- and 7-year-old will love it. I’ll buy it.

So do radio stations already have a copy of the single? Maybe I can start requesting XM 20 on 20 to play this song

I would take this song over whatever that was Castro put out since people like to compare the two. I forgot it as soon as the song was over. At least with this song it sticks with you a while, I have been humming it ever since I first heard it.

I am afraid there will be Castro vs Kris fanwars going on b/c their albums dropping the same day. Sigh. I like Jason’s song alot. I also like Kris’ 23 secs. I prefer Castro’s voice. Whatev. If I had to vote in a TMZ poll, I’d choose Jason, hands down. That doesn’t mean I don’t like Kris.

I’m no good at all the armchair record exec stuff, but based on hearing that clip, I don’t like the song enough to want to buy it. I also don’t understand the concept of singles, but, hazarding an uniformed guess that they’re supposed to be the best song on the album, it’s disappointing – that would mean the others aren’t any better. And I don’t think they’d choose a cover if there are originals equally good. It doesn’t need to be something he wrote, but it should be something not yet recorded and toured by the songwriters.

It’s hard to say with just a short clip, but I like what I’m hearing so far! It is catchy and I can see myself singing along with it in the car. It sounds like it’d be fun at a concert, too.

Thumbs up from me.

And I don’t think they’d choose a cover if there are originals equally good. It doesn’t need to be something he wrote, but it should be something not yet recorded and toured by the songwriters.

The thing is, I don’t know if they ever sang that song on tour. I did a lot of researching for various Script set lists from the past, and I haven’t found any evidence of it. One person has claimed it on here, but there hasn’t been any video evidence for that either. I went to YouTube and couldn’t find anything there.

I like it. Plus, even in that short clip I think his voice sounds better than the guy from The Script. So, a yes from me.

yeah, you guys are totally right….singing a song previously recorded by another artist can ruin a career. look at whitney houston with I Will Always Love You. Poor gal, she was never able to find the same level of success as Dolly Parton sadz LOL

(yes, this was a joke)

I am a 67 year old male, retired, educator and I started watching AI Season 4. I grown to really love the show and its format. At the end of Season 4 I bought Carrie Underwood’s first album and it was terrific and her second album was almost as good. After Season 5 I bought Daughtry’s first album and it was genius I thought. Also, I bought Kellie Pickler’s first album and thought it was terrific for someone with no previous musical experience. Her writing efforts were sensational. Taylor Hicks’ first album was “unlistenable” and I didn’t purchase it, but did make the mistake of buying Cat McPhee’s and it was equally as “unlistenable”.

Season 6 rolled around and thought the talent was very thin and Jordin Sparks’ first album was juvenile and insulting for her voice. And for whatever reason, because I really liked Blake, I bought his album and played it only once or twice.

Season 7 was one full of talented and attractive performers. David Cook’s album was such a disappointment..and even worse was Archie’s I just bought Brooke White’s and I listen to it all the time. It includes three wonderful original songs on it.

So I am trying to say something here….19E has not always helped the winning artist to produce much of sa first album, in my opinion. If this snippet is any indication,I would not buy a Kris Allen album..he should go the country route. I am very much looking forward to purchasing Adam’s, Allison’s and Anoop’s..don’t even have to hear them in advance. The three best voices since Carrie and Chris Daughtry

shanz88
webster
September 17, 2009 at 12:31 am

I’m no good at all the armchair record exec stuff, but based on hearing that clip, I don’t like the song enough to want to buy it. I also don’t understand the concept of singles, but, hazarding an uniformed guess that they’re supposed to be the best song on the album, it’s disappointing ‘“ that would mean the others aren’t any better. And I don’t think they’d choose a cover if there are originals equally good. It doesn’t need to be something he wrote, but it should be something not yet recorded and toured by the songwriters.

it really varies from artist to artist. some actually save their best single for the second release, while choosing a “flashier” song for the lead-off. it’s also impossible to gauge what the best song on a CD since individual tastes varies, but that goes without saying. there will always be unreleased songs on an album that fans lobby should’ve been a single, or singles that shouldn’t have been released.

pink’s “so what” was probably my least favorite off her new record, but it has also sold the most and is her most successful. sometimes, these record labels do know a thing or two .

I also don’t understand the concept of singles, but, hazarding an uniformed guess that they’re supposed to be the best song on the album, it’s disappointing ‘“ that would mean the others aren’t any better.

It’s only supposed to be the “best” song on the album in the sense that they think it’s the one that will get the most radio play and sell itself and the album. The labels don’t care about the quality of the song. They are in business to make $$. Making great music is secondary to that, and has been ever since the 50s, at least. It’s not something that’s unique to the Idols by any means. Hopefully there are other songs on the album that are more “Kris-like”, but it’s not unusual for the singles to sound different from the rest of the album, whether the artist is a former Idol or not, and for the singles to be the poppiest, blandest songs on the album. Welcome to the music business.

Okay as a Kris fan who belongs to the “slightly disappointed” camp of him singing a cover by the script, it would be better to release this as a second or even third single imo, rather than the first. The first single always brings a wave of euphoria(for the fans) and a surge in interest for the general public and regardless of the technical definition of a “cover song”, people are going to talking about Kris singing a song done by someone else. Search for “Live like we’re dying” on youtube and you’ll find both Kris and the Script versions of the song. IMO, that can’t be too good for trying to bring in new fans for Kris.

But I have to admit, it’s these months of heightened expectations that his single is going to be a big hit and all the positive comments that Kris has said about his album that left me a little hanging. I’ll still be as big a fan as I was before and definitely still buying his album though. And like many others said before, the song sounds really good and catchy. And hmm..well for those that said the song is too high for Kris, well let’s just say that even if Kris sang the song in a baritone for the entire song, it would still be too high. Seriously?

Just to put things in perspective “Falling Slowly” an Oscar winning song never rated higher than 61st on the Billboard Hot 100…And the album it came from barely went gold.

Organic ballads are beautiful and award winning but don’t neccessarily sell, nor do they get a lot of radio play. I am sure Kris will have some of these kind of songs on his album…but they will never be big selling singles. Just not what sells in today’s fast paced music cycles.

yeah, you guys are totally right’ ¦.singing a song previously recorded by another artist can ruin a career. look at whitney houston with I Will Always Love You. Poor gal, she was never able to find the same level of success as Dolly Parton sadz LOL(yes, this was a joke)

That analogy doesn’t work. Since Whitney was well on her way before she covered Dolly and Chaka and everyone else. The Boidyguard soundtrack was when she was already close to her peak,not a newbie

Just listened to the snippet and I liked it, very catchy. I think he’ll do really well with it. Thought it sounded a little Mraz/Maroon 5 and that’s pretty hot. I’m not worried for Kris at all. I hope he changed the arrangement somewhat from the original, he sounds really good, but he doesn’t sound 100% Kris to me. Still think it will be really successful.

But the best point is the one that several had made. Why does it matter who wrote the song?

I don’t think it matters who wrote the song. I think all that matters is the quality of the total performance. A couple of examples of covers of two great songs:

Mehh cover: Susan Boyle’s first single is a cover of “Wild Horses”, a great song — IMO poor cover version. It was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards in 1971, the Rolling Stones have done several great versions of this song and Rolling Stone ranked it at #334 in its “500 Greatest Songs of All Time” list in 2004. But the SuBo cover is boring and slow. And it lacks any of the emotional investment that the lyrics deserve.

Brilliant cover: Earlier in this thread someone mentioned James Taylor’s cover of “You’ve Got a Friend” which was writen by Carole King (1971). This is a great example of a brilliant cover — James Taylor “owned” this song when he performed it — even though Carole King and Dusty Springfield had both recorded the song earlier the same year.

My initial response to this clip was not favorable, but I have decided I was hasty and unfair. I will want to here the whole recording.

That analogy doesn’t work. Since Whitney was well on her way before she covered Dolly and Chaka and everyone else. The Boidyguard soundtrack was when she was already close to her peak,not a newbie

She did do “Greatest Love Of All” on her first album. But it wasn’t the first single. I think it was the second.

seal of approval from me!! love the snippet and would guess the rest is as good. I’m sure he’ll kill it live — just love his live voice (wish it was not that ‘produced’ when recorded).
It’s up tempo, catchy, like a summer vacation song to me. Would say it will get lots of air-play (very good – he got to be more known from non AI public).
Not surprised it’s not written by him… we got to be real; he had a month between the end of AI and the tour for rehearsing and other stuff and has been touring afterward but we might hear some original stuff from him though on the first album if it makes the cut – he’s been tweeting he had finished a song and some co-writing sessions seemed to be really about that ..more than having him only interpreting a song.
He’ll have more time to work as a singer/songwriter on his 2nd album

I also don’t understand the concept of singles, but, hazarding an uniformed guess that they’re supposed to be the best song on the album, it’s disappointing ‘“ that would mean the others aren’t any better.

Kris’s situation is probably a bit different right now than someone typically getting a single and album out. (Not that I have any expertise in the area.) Kris needs to get something out ASAP, but has been kinda busy doing a tour, with very little time to get to the studio to record anything. So, my guess is that rather than choose the best song on the album to be the single, they’re choosing something that appears to be radio friendly, catchy, and, very importantly, is ready to go. They don’t even know what all will be on the album yet, and they can’t wait until they have that all worked out.

I’m guessing that after a while, we’ll be watching YouTube videos of Kris in concert, and when he does this song, he’ll have reworked it a bit, and made it more his own. From the 23 seconds that we’ve heard so far, he hasn’t had a chance to rework it, but who knows what the rest of his single sounds like, so maybe he has put his own stamp on it already.

So late to the party. Damn you, Huntington Theatre in Boston.

So, I think the single will be catchy and poppy and will probably do well, but I sure hope this is not indicative of the album’s other tracks, b/c I couldn’t even HEAR Kris and his cool, husky (in a good way) voice in the song! Will be really interested to hear the whole single, but I am not jumping up and down hearing after this snippet.

So let me get this straight, the singer songwriter arranger extrodinaire first single is a cover?

Has someone told that biatch of a Kris fan from ONTD-AI who interviewed Adam recently? Someone should break the news to her gently

Sounds catchy, sure it will sell well….I obviously never got the Kris appeal with half the stuff he covered on AI but people go for that stuff, and sounds like him(I think?) so I’m guessing it will be a hit! Sounds exactly like the original from that little snippet…was that a hit too?

That analogy doesn’t work. Since Whitney was well on her way before she covered Dolly and Chaka and everyone else. The Boidyguard soundtrack was when she was already close to her peak,not a newbie

what part of “ITS A JOKE” did you not understand?

Organic ballads are beautiful and award winning but don’t neccessarily sell, nor do they get a lot of radio play

This isn’t necessarily in disagreement, since markets vary, as much as individual tastes, but for a good 6 months I couldn’t turn on the radio without hearing Falling Slowly. It played constantly. Sad because I absolutely detest that song.

Not sure what organic means in music, but an example of another song which played constantly, won awards and which I personally think is brilliant is “How to Save a Life”. I don’t know if it sold well, but at least where I listen, I don’t think the divide between “good” and “played” is all that huge. They should go for good – anything else is just a lame excuse, IMO.

what part of ‘ITS A JOKE’  did you not understand?

Oh I got that it was a joke and the sarcasm intended.Just saying, Whitney was well ahead at the time she did those succesful covers.. I was merely expanding on the convo in general

I seem to be in the minority here but I really like it. That’s only a short snippet of the song. I have listened to The Script version and imagined Kris singing it his way. I predict a big hit!

hardscrabble
September 17, 2009 at 12:42 am

So I am trying to say something here’ ¦.19E has not always helped the winning artist to produce much of sa first album, in my opinion. If this snippet is any indication,I would not buy a Kris Allen album..he should go the country route. I am very much looking forward to purchasing Adam’s, Allison’s and Anoop’s..don’t even have to hear them in advance. The three best voices since Carrie and Chris Daughtry

Alison …. did you read this? Or are you looking for a way to the Fair?

She did do ‘Greatest Love Of All’  on her first album. But it wasn’t the first single. I think it was the second.

Aaah,you’re indeed correct Tinawana, forgot about that.And she bested that George Benson classic also, from early on

I think her first single was “I wanna dance with somebody”

im pretty easy to please when it comes to music and my MP3 runs the the whole spectrum from artsy singer-songwriter to hard rock to bubblegum pop. i think this falls in the middle somewhere and i really like it. as someone said a few pages back, i can really picture kris with his guitar bouncing up and down while singing this.

i think it will do well on the radio because it is upbeat and catchy but i think his live performances of it will be REALLY good which i think is important as he goes on the press junket. he needed a song that he can make the rounds with that is perky and fun and will get people to sing along and remember him… and i think this accomplishes that. but, again, im easy to please

i can’t believe there is so much debate on 23 seconds of a song.

can’t wait to hear the whole thing and buy the album!

Yeah I think this thread for Kris news is the bigest and over a single we haven’t even hear a whole sing yet of. I think that’s something. I wonder how long of a one it well be when the whole song plays?LOL

Huge Kris fan here! I listened to the Script’s version yesterday after a long debate over here. I must confess I liked the chorus part only which is exactly whar is on Kris’ snippet even though Kris’s vibe on it sounds better. My husband doesn’t like songs like this but when he listened, he just said this sonds like a Mat kearney song and it’s got a little urban feel and that is what sells now! He was like “that’s a hit right there”.Another out of AI person who loved it. I can’t wait!

yeah, you guys are totally right’ ¦.singing a song previously recorded by another artist can ruin a career. look at whitney houston with I Will Always Love You. Poor gal, she was never able to find the same level of success as Dolly Parton sadz LOL

LOL yes exactly, there are many examples of hits that were covers.

And this is not a cover, in that I don’t think it was ever recorded by anyone else, or on a cd, or performed live that we know of, or played on the radio, and nobody every heard it before, so I think it’s a big to-do about nothing by calling it a cover.

Kelly and Clay both put out their first singles as songs written by others, Clay’s was even recorded by a band in Europe, where I think it was a small hit, and they were both hit songs here. Not huge hits, but hits, especially Kelly’s (miss independent).

A completely original song would be best, however this is an original really. As for songwriting, no way was RCA going to let Kris write the first single, they don’t roll that way (except for Daughtry). They are very cautious about using established songwriters for the first single.

The public won’t know this song or care who wrote it, as much as they will care about whether or not they like it.

I so wish the comments section from my Season 5 record release threads hadn’t gone poof with Halo scan.

I can refresh your memory. I thought Taylor would sell a bunch of albums. I was very surprised that he had the biggest bomb of all Idol winners.

That’s why I haven’t made the slightest prediction of sales for any contestants this year. I have no expecations for who will sell and who won’t.

Well the websites I’ve been too even thou I don’t go to alot seem to mostly all like the little snipnet they heard so far. So hopefully that mean’s something good for the single. I really think it could be a really big hit for Kris. I really like it ,the more I listen to it. Well it’s almost 1:00 am here so am off to bed. Hopefully well hear the whole song soon.

for a good 6 months I couldn’t turn on the radio without hearing Falling Slowly

Yes, beautiful ballads do sell and do get played. Hey There Delilah was one. I hope Kris has at least one great ballad on his cd, if not more. But I’m not surprised that the label is putting out an upbeat song first. I think they’ve done that with most of the idols. It’s probably safer.

Every single song on every single cd nowadays is processed through a computer

That’s not true. There are groups recording analog. Here’s an example from an alternative rock band with Brendan Benson and Jack White. This song was recorded live to an analog multi-track recorder:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4QbEcVVBHM&feature=related

And, another. Recorded at Jack White’s analog studio in Nashville, I believe:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7QSkI6My1g

Even groups that record to dgital aren’t all processing the vocals.

Well the websites I’ve been too even thou I don’t go to alot seem to mostly all like the little snipnet they heard so far. So hopefully that mean’s something good for the single. I really think it could be a really big hit for Kris. I really like it ,the more I listen to it. Well it’s almost 1:00 am here so am off to bed. Hopefully well hear the whole song soon.

Yeah I’ve seen a lot of positive response too. On Pulse Music Board, there’s a bit more negativity over it, but they tend to be drama queens about nearly everything.

He wrote his entire self-released album and there were a few standout tracks. In a bit more professional setting, they would have been perfect to go on a commercial album.

Still don’t see how he borrowed from the Fray for Heartless. His version (at least the one he performed on the show) is a lot more upbeat than the snoozefest version the Fray does.

And for the last time, the song is NOT a cover!

i can’t believe there is so much debate on 23 seconds of a song.

Oh my, just wait till the snippet of Adam’s single.

I still say it’s not going to matter that it’s a cover. No one has heard The Script’s version. However, because of this fact no one is going to know if Kris “makes it his own”.

He will sing it close to how it’s recorded when he goes out to promote the single, because people expect to hear the version they hear on the radio. Later(much later) or in concerts he can “make it his own”.

This isn’t the American Idol show and Kris is now in the business of appealing to listeners outside the AI bubble.(They ALL are.) They no longer will be judged on how well they do covers of covers of proven hits.

This is the single. It is going to radio. Kris’s interpretations aren’t going to matter, but his presentations of his songs will.

It’s catchy and will be a hit. But there’s something weird going on with his voice. It’s not natural sounding. And there’s too much going on with the music. Could they possibly cram another instrument in there? Maybe a viola?

And for the last time, the song is NOT a cover!

Techinically, it is actually a cover. The Scripts released it (to whatever degree, in whatever country) before. And a cover is “is a new rendition (performance or recording) of a previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song.” This song wasn’t a demo and wasn’t session work. So yes, it is a cover…and it doesn’t matter! The vast majority of people in the US don’t and won’t know the original version and this song will be very successful for Kris, so the American public won’t care about the original version.

Cover, schmover. Nobody will care because nobody has heard the original. The song will be identified with Kris.

Personally, I love it and think it’s very smart for a first single. It will get a lot of radio play which is the whole point when you’re starting out.

not a cover. I wish people would quit calling it that.

Catchy with a good beat you can bob your head to. Personable cutie of an artist. Now it’s up to Jive to push it and push it good!

As a Kris fan, I never pinned him to a specific genre on the show. I saw him as someone who could sing anything at least from what I sawhim do on AI. However, I saw him more of pop/rock with some r&b/urban kind of singer. And Randy always mentioned that most of the time he performed, even on Rat pack week. I think Jive has ben in this business for a long time enough to know what appeals to then music buying public. And I’m loving it so far when I visited most AI boards except a few people who do not suprise me. I think he’s all good.

Is Kris’ full version out then? I can’t judge the difference yet if we only have 23 secs. I would see her reaction to the full song as a liability.

I guess we’ll see…

I don’t get how people can say all Kris fan’s are complaining about this song. I know I don’t go to alot of other boards but the one’s I do go to seem to like what they heard so far. And boy we only heard alittle snip of the song. And me I love Kris’s voice. Sure maybe some other singers have stronger voices but Kris’s voice pull’s me in to what his singing. I love when he song apolized,whats going on ,come together.etc. And I love his Brand new shoe’s CD. So for me saying Because I like Kris it’s because he plays guiter etc does’t work. I just feel like if were fans of Kris we get ran over the coals about it.Why is it so hard to believe that we can’t just love his voice.

How is this not a cover if the Script wrote it, recorded it and released it commercially? Do they have to perform it on your front lawn? What am I missing?

I’ve not seen any Kris fan here say anything like they are dissappointed or something, so far we are all excited. There is a lot of excitement on all the other boards. Music is business andyou kind of have to go with the flow and what sells. I sent it to some few friends outside AI just to see what they say. At least 5 out of the 6 loved it which impressed me a lot.

I just find it interesting the amount of (negative) emphasis being put on the fact that Kris’ first single was not written by him, even though that’s not unusual at all.

Keel, I guess I don’t consider it really a cover unless there’s an original that’s widely known.

That’s what I don”t understand were is people getting that Kris fan’s are really disappointed about his single. I go to A couple of Kris’s fan boards,when they first heard that it was song by Script they seem kind of upset but since they heard that little 23 seconds of it maybe only a few were kind of disappointed but for the most part everyone else loves it.

I just find it interesting the amount of (negative) emphasis being put on the fact that Kris’ first single was not written by him, even though that’s not unusual at all.

____________________

IT’s not unusual but there’s nothing wrong with the emphasis.

I’ve been beaten over the head with the “authentic singer songwriter organic mantra” used to describe Kris all season that I was very amused to find his first single would be a cover,not just not written by him, but actually a cover.

Surely that irony of that isn’t lost on me and a few others:mrgreen:I’m thinking he’s getting it easy regardless.

Now that we all agree that recording companies and the music business in general goes for the generic commercial sound to get radio play and some success despite how many whichways you strum a guitar, I’m hoping the likes of Cyrus, Fox, Perry and co won’t get such a bad rap in Idol bubbledome. Allen, Lambert, Cook etc are mere mortals like the rest and best of em

I’m a big Kris fan (and Kradison fan) and I really didn’t like this when I listened to the Script yesterday – I especially hated the number of seconds, which I think is trite, wordy and like NB. But I played the Kris snippet in my office this morning, and now I can’t stop singing it, and neither can my colleagues, many of whom are not native English speakers (I’m an american working abroad). I think this is going to work out great for him. BTW, these same colleagues made me use my US mobile phone number to text in a few votes each week for their favorites Kris and Adam. Cost a bit from abroad but was good for office camaraderie…

I believe the disappointment is a good one. Whether it’s a cover or not, I care less. It’s going to be promoted big time and on radio. Those who love it will buy so every argument is invalid, haha.
“Some people” were expecting something bland as they’ve always described Kris and it didn’t happen. And even yesterday, some were saying it’s too wordy andthat is Kris couldn’t sing NOBO, how could he sing this. He sings it and now it’ about it’ originality. I guess the disappointment is a good one, no Nickleback, no bland. It’s catchy, radio friendly and hopefully can be a hit. Good job Jive!

jpfan
To me Kris will be an Idol winner exactly like Jordin Sparks. They’re on the same label as well. Two nice talented people who just aren’t very
interesting.

I’ve been thinking the same thing. Kris will have some hit singles but i don’t think his albums will sell that well.

It sounds so much like everything else out there.
No doubt it will be poplular and will sell well.
But it doesn’t define Kris or what the rest of his cd.
– I’m not ready to help build up or tear down his possible career on 23 seconds.

Guys, this isn’t a cover. The Script never released the song. As far as anyone is concerned, that might as well be a demo. Kris’ version will be the original. Period.

Since no one has actually heard Kris entire recording, I’m not entirely sure what the argument is. Is it that people either like or don’t like the song based upon the demo that they heard yesterday? Or is it that, based upon the poor audio of 15 seconds of a song, people have decided that the single and the album must suck? I’m lost.

Since the split these days with any Idol’s fans seems to be an even “that song sucks, and I can’t believe my Idol recorded it” / “OMG that’s the Best. Idol. Single. EVAH! and I don’t understand why no one else likes it” (even as tons of people say the exact. same. thing.) I’m thinking it’s a wash.

It’s an Idol single. It’s required to be catchy and radio friendly. It’s not art, and – as many have pointed out – it’s never written by the Idol. Heck, I’m just glad it sounds relevant. That’s a lot more than most get.

Really? No one was making the argument that organic = delusional belief that Kris would be sole writer on all the songs in his debut.

You know what? I’m in the ‘it’s a cover camp’. cover or not it doesn’t change the fact that I’ve never listened to the original (still haven’t) and when I first listened to the clip I liked it. I’d rather have a good cover than a bad original. I have yet to hear the whole song, but so far it sounds like we may be getting the former. It’s a catchy song the is right in Kris’s ballpark. It’s relevant but it’s not this drastic departure from what Kris did on the show.

Speaking of fangirl interviewers, I was surprised Lyndsay Parker liked the single. She’s basically the Glambert equivalent of the aformentioned interviewer is are sending the Adam fans in a tizzy except with a bigger platform. In her article about the upcoming albums she had a lot of “concern” about Kris. So it’s nice to see that the snippet seems to have quelled a lot of that. I’m surprised she didn’t go with the ‘it’s a cover’ “criticism” that seems to be the biggest negative, but my theory is that unless you are familiar with The Script’s version, you’d never know. And how many people who aren’t long time fans of The Script or conditioned to overanalyze every thing on a message board or blog are familiar with the original?

It sounds so much like everything else out there.

Not exactly. It does sound like a few singles hitting the charts (O.A.R./ Michael Franti/ etc), but not at all like the Keri Hilson/ Miley Cyrus/ Pitbull/ Black Eyed Peas/ Kings of Leon (okay, maybe a bit)/ Katy Perry/ Cobra Starship (man, I hate that song) types that have been dominating the charts – and the radio – for a while. Oh yeah, doesn’t sound like Taylor Swift or Daughtry either…maybe a bit Mraz-y, but we all expected that…right?

Totally OT, but the new Avett Brothers is the best thing in the universe right now. If you’re a Kris fan, and do like O.A.R., and maybe the Raconteurs ( that “alternative rock band” referred to earlier) and Nickel Creek, totally check it out.

Also…still not a cover.

And I’ll repeat that I never put Kris in a particular genre on the show but saw him as multi genre. His set on the tour says it all,
Heartless, ATTTID, BRIGHT LIGHTS are all different. So there you go, so far, Kris fans are excited every where I check except a few which is not unexpected.

Guys, this isn’t a cover. The Script never released the song. As far as anyone is concerned, that might as well be a demo. Kris’ version will be the original. Period.

It was released by The Script, yes in Europe, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t count. picture of song/album

So yes, it is an actual cover, no it’s not a demo, practically or otherwise. No, Kris’s version won’t be the original. Because it’s a f’reals cover.

Now all the being said, for the vast majority of the music listening public, Kris’s version will be the first, and only, version they ever hear of this song. They will associate it with Kris, and Kris alone, and Kris will be very successful with this radio friendly, mildly catchy song.

It’s a good song for Kris, it’s catchy and he’ll get radio play. The cover thing is really a non issue. I think Jive made a good desicion with this one (though I wished they’d kept the ska influences).

The small part i heard from the verse seemed very autotuned, the “live like we are dying” is better, there you can hear that it is Kris singing.

Well, yay. As I said in the other thread that speculated that it was this Script song, I am fine with it. It’s way better than the usual stuff 19 gives the winner. I’d listen to this over Tattoo any day!

Here, here!

I’m kind of amused that it seems to be hard for people to understand that Idol winner =/= best Idol music. I too love JPL’s output. Blake’s and Diana DeGarmo’s too.

Given that, I am excited to hear Kris’ album. I have no stylistic expectations, but I’m hoping for some good pop from Kradison as a whole. So far, so good.

It was released by The Script, yes in Europe, but that mean it doesn’t count. picture of song/album

So yes, it is an actual cover, no it’s not a demo, practically or otherwise. No, Kris’s version won’t be the original. Because it’s a f’reals cover.

You got me. Then yes, technically it’s a cover. On the other hand, it now falls into another common category. Just like with unreleased tracks, songs released by bands in one country are often recorded by other artists in another country. Usually between, US/ UK/ Australia. One can be a hit, while another flops…or both can soar/ crash. Still not uncommon.

Still, don’t be surprised if it isn’t called a cover by much of the media. It wasn’t released here, so some still won’t see it that way. Some. Respected music journalists (there are still a few) will call it for what it is.

The one night I go to sleep at a reasonable hour and a single leaks!!!!

I’m so late to the party. I haven’t had a chance to go through the thread yet, but I see that the single is The Script song. It sounds good on Kris.

Congratulations Kris fans. WooHoo!!

Now I have to go and read 9 pages.

It wasn’t released here, so some still won’t see it that way. Some. Respected music journalists (there are still a few) will call it for what it is.

…which would be calling it a cover, because that’s what it is.

I’m beginning to think that cover doesn’t mean what you think it means. [/Princess Bride]

Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t get the big deal that it’s a cover. Besides yes, I personally have a momentary and petty amusement that some random wenchy reporter was wrong about Kris’s co-writing everything on his album. But beyond that, eh, I don’t get the hub-bub. This is par for the course of AI and if it’s a hit for Kris, it’s a hit for Kris. This is right in his wheelhouse, I can totally see him playing it live and rocking out to it. Most of his fans seem to like it. Other AI first singles have been much worse. I’m not seeing the downside of Kris singing a cover version of an obscure song that will make him successful. Confuzzled.

But beyond that, eh, I don’t get the hub-bub. This is par for the course of AI and if it’s a hit for Kris, it’s a hit for Kris. This is right in his wheelhouse, I can totally see him playing it live and rocking out to it. Most of his fans seem to like it. Other AI first singles have been much worse. I’m not seeing the downside of Kris singing a cover version of an obscure song that will make him successful. Confuzzled.

This. Exactly.

Personally, I am happy that at least Kris has a single out, cover or not. He needs his name out there and his music played on the radio. NB didn’t do anyone any favors. The leaking of the snipet was obviously not by accident since the radio station in Little Rock that released is one favored by Kris and were featured in his hometown package on the AI Top 3 Results Show. I think the song will do well and Kris will get some much needed exposure leading up to the launch of his album. Does anyone know how long after the initial single is released a second single comes out? I would guess if the first one is still going strong, the second one would be delayed a bit.

So, I read 4 pages so far consisting almost entirely of handwringing over the song. It’s a cover, it’s not his style, it hides his voice..etc.

My opinion is that it’s a good song. It’s catchy and melodic. It has the same lyrical structure as Heartless so it will be familiar and welcomed by fans of that song. It will be a hit. I have no doubt that this song will chart for Kris.

Those who have said that Kris’ voice sounds generic and unrecognizable, I humbly disagree. I’m a fan of the script and no fan of Kris, but on this song, I think his voice sounds better and warmer than that of the Script.

The fact that it’s a cover was a bit puzzling to begin with, but honestly I don’t see how it would matter to anyone but bloggers like us. It’s not as if he’s covering American Pie, this song is unknown to the general public, very few will know it’s a Script song. And those who do, very few of them will care.

This song is made for radio. It fits Kris like a comfortable pare of jeans. It’s meant to please his casual AI fans and attract a new audience, both of which it will do very well.

People comparing this to NoBo are doing this song an injustice, imo. The trick about a song is not just sparse lyrics, it’s the melody. And this song has a great melody, while NoBO had no melody at all. This is the kind of song that will grow on you, NoBo is the kind of song that smothers you to death.

I’m willing to bet money that this song will chart and climax if not as no 1 then in the top 5.

Congratulations Kris.

The fact that it’s a cover was a bit puzzling to begin with, but honestly I don’t how it would matter to anyone but bloggers like us. It’s not as if he’s covering American Pie, this song unknown to the general public, very few will know it’s a Script song. And those who do, very few of them will care.

Although Kris singing American pie would sound divine…
Hi Sunn.

Hey adamaloha!!(waves)

And’“ it’s a cover. So what?

I completely agree with you there.

So– question for those who’ve followed AI in the past seasons.

Is it the norm for a single to be “leaked” before release? Part of marketing to whet the appetite of a hungry public?

I like the song and think it will be a hit (and I am generally indifferent when it comes to Kris)…i could care less whether it is a cover, demo, written by someone else, whatever. My one concern, however, is that it sounds exactly like a Script song and he sounds like the Script singer. They have a distinctive sound IMO. A lot more people know of the Script than you would think. They opened huge stadiums for Paul McCartney this summer. They have a hit song on the radio. They are popular in Europe. they will be touring with Cook this fall. People do know them. I am just surprised that right out of the box his first single is a song that sounds so much like another band.

I expect that the song will do very well, it’s being thrown out quickly and his fans and idol fans in general have not had time to forget him. They will promote the hell out of it and it will get airplay. It will be interesting to see where they all are in a couple of years (most likely in the same place the majority of previous idols are).

Well the websites I’ve been too even thou I don’t go to alot seem to mostly all like the little snipnet they heard so far. So hopefully that mean’s something good for the single.

I am guessing that you travel Kris websites – you didn’t expect them to hate it did you?

I’m quite disappointed with Jive. I really don’t like the song…yes it’s catchy but other than that, there’s not much oomph to the song that can make it a hit. The worse thing is that people are going to compare his version to the original Script version.

Maybe I will just have to wait for the full version to really appreciate it but so far, this snippet does not impress me much. I hope there are better songs on his album.

mmb: I am just surprised that right out of the box his first single is a song that sounds so much like another band.

I think that’s what surprised me the most. If Kris’s song stays true to the snippet and sounds just like the original I will be disappointed.

I loved Heartless because of what Kris did with it. I loved Ain’t No Sunshine because Kris made it his bitch. That, more than his voice, impressed me about him.

If his first single is a stylistic carbon copy– and an overproduced one at that– then it sort of contradicts the essence of Kris’s musical heart.

jmom376
September 17, 2009 at 6:58 am
How many people actually knew who the Script were or anything about this song before it was posted here?? I know I didn’t. I think alot of people are worrying about nothing. Let’s see how many people worry about Adam when a snippet of his song is released. I know I will be there wringing my hands’ ¦

So will I…

I think, though, the point I was trying to make was that Kris’s brilliance lies in his deceptively simple arrangements– in which interpretation and emotion take center stage.

The reason I “wring my hands” at the snippet is the same reason I preferred his live Heartless to the studio version. The excessive instrumentation drowned out the beauty of his original rendition.

But as I also said– I have to hear the entire song before I decide whether or not I like it.

pj
September 16, 2009 at 10:56 pm
I’ll go out on a limb here and say I think this song is better than the first singles of Taylor Hicks, Jordin Sparks, and David Cook.

Judging from The Script version, I think you’re right. It’s definitely better Light On.

Cover, schmover. Nobody will care because nobody has heard the original. The song will be identified with Kris.

My thoughts exactly. Kris’ voice sounds lovely on the clip, I just need to hear the whole thing before I can decide if I absolutely flove it. My first reaction was, hmmm, I’m not sure and now I’m like… I wanna hear more!
I can definitely see this being a hit. It’s catchy. I’ve listened to that small sample about 3 times and it’s stuck in my head.

Best of luck, Kris. Looking forward to the album.

Why do people keep referring to this song as a cover? Afaik the The Script version was never released right? So it’s just a demo. I mean, Katy Perry has her own version of I Do Not Hook Up and Kara Dioguardi of No Boundaries and McPhee’s Had It All, NeYo has his own versions of the songs he gives to other artists all the time. This is clearly not a cover.

I don’t see the issue as “cover/non-cover.”

It’s that Kris is singing a song that wasn’t written specifically for him. Kris may have heard the demo and adored it (for all we know, he brought the song to Jive), but maybe it was thrust upon him. Either way, it wasn’t tailored with him in mind.

But the snippet I heard did sound like the songs Kris sang on Idol, so his fans should like it a lot.

I think there are quite a few that would know the Script in idoldome because they are going to open for Cook and they are a pretty successfull band in Europe.

As someone stated earlier in this thread, more than the fact that this is a cover (after all like some others of you stated, several Idol alumnis have done the same), my real problem is that I heard the version by THe Script and in this snipet Kris sounds almost exactly to me like the original, I mean Kris was known for completely changing the songs he performed like SWHFM or Heartless and his first single could be a straight up cover where he just laid down the vocals. But I will reserve my final judgement on this one after we hear the whole song.

The other great covers people are refering to sounds completely different than the original, hard to compare IWALY by Whitney with the Doly version same with YGAF. Even I Do Not Hook Up is completely different with Kelly singing it because her voice is IMO 10 times better than Katy.

Initially surprised when I first heard it….not what I expected. The more I listen to it , the more I like it and can’t wait to hear the actual track… I wish Kris the best and think it will get plenty of radio play. For those that feel the need to keep track…. this is from an Adam fan ( and no handwringing here)

I’ve been beaten over the head with the ‘authentic singer songwriter organic mantra’  used to describe Kris all season that I was very amused to find his first single would be a cover,not just not written by him, but actually a cover.

Surely that irony of that isn’t lost on me and a few others:mrgreen:I’m thinking he’s getting it easy regardless.

This.

It’s not that I dislike Kris or even think the single reeks. It is everything a winners single always is- safe, bland, over produced, boxed and tied with a bow.

It’s just amusing to follow the revisionist thinking regarding his strengths. Last week he had mad rearranging and original songwriting skills and now suddenly no, his strength is putting out a poppy radio friendly sound with warmly toned vocals.

The whole “It’s a cover/it’s not a cover” is just spin so I don’t have to face the disappointment of his not even doing enough with it to warrant a co-writing credit.
It’s like he just walked into the studio, was handed the thing, and sang it. I expect that of Danny, but with Kris I just expected more somehow.

Also late to the party here but to me it sounds like generic radio fare – I suspect it will be a hit for Kris.

What bothers me about it is the production that IMO almost completely removed the distinctive sound that I have come to associate with Kris. Furthermore, it sounds extremely familiar and I’m pretty sure I do not know the Script – so I don’t know what that is about (of course I am in Europe so I cannot exclude that I’ve heard it on the radio or in a tv-commercial at some point).

In either case, I think the song is catchy (only listened to it once and can still hear the “liiiiiive like we’re dying” part in my head) and I think that is the most important characteristic for a new single. So even though it is hard to make predictions, especially about the future (paraphrasing from the honorable Storm P), I’ll throw my vote into the “it’s a hit”-pile.

Congrats Kris

fearbear
September 17, 2009 at 8:01 am
Why do people keep referring to this song as a cover? Afaik the The Script version was never released right?

It was released as Side B of the EP We Cry.

But it really doesn’t matter. I love the Script, And I’d never heard of the song until it was posted here a couple of days ago. The song was never released in the UK EP of We Cry, only in the US version AFAIK.

I doubt any but the hard-crusted AI and Script fan will have ever heard of it.

Technically it is a cover, but IRL it’s a fresh Kris song that he can make his own.

I like the snippet, although I will have to hear the whole song to determine if I love it. I think Kris’ voice is distinguishable on the “Live Like We’re Dying” part and that is really important on radio. Idol judges have always said that a voice needs to be distinguishable and recognizable when the song comes on. This song, to me, is definitely Kris. I am curious to see how he would do this song live. I’m sure it will sound so different from the recorded version. This is definitely a Kris song and I for one can’t wait to hear the entire song. Congrats Kris – I’m sure the song and Kris will do well.

Well, I’m out. Sunn and all others, have a great day. and Good night.

I think the chorus has a great catchy beat. I’m looking forward to hearing what he does with the rest of the song. I don’t think he could change up the chorus too much, but the rest of the song has lots of room to work with. I think this is where we will either see a difference or it will be a straight cover.

Lets all wait and see. The one thing I am confused about is if this is a at least moderately known UK band who released this song as a side “B” – why would they give it to Kris if they want to promote him overseas. I’m not trying to be negative at all. This is a valid question. Either the song is competely and utterly unknown or well.. I don’t know.

ETA – Sounds like Sunn answered this a little bit.

Personally, I see nothing wrong with covers. E.g. of covers that stand well on their own. Kris vs. Kanye West’s “Heartless”, Jimi Hendrix vs over Bob Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower”, Led Zeppelin vs Willie Dixon’s “I Can’t Quit You Baby”, Jeff Buckley vs Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah”

The commonality between all these songs is reinvention. I think 20s of Kris’s single is a bit too short to judge properly I’m not liking these 20s that much; it’s masking up too much of his voice in it.

FWIW, I love Kris’s vocal quality. I think he does better in songs with less words. Just hope the rest of the song is better.

It’s pretty catchy, Kris can sell the theme on his personality. It’s a good fit from the label although I wish it wasn’t a cover and am not fond of the use of numbers in a lyric.

I’ve a poor track record with what works on the US music scene these days but I can see this might be a hit for Kris. I hope so, we don’t want to see him axed by the label come March.

Well, it’s catchy, that’s for sure. I listened to The Script’s version ONCE yesterday morning (or was that Tuesday?) and I listened to Kris’ snippet ONCE last night (earlyish in the thread). I woke up with the song in my head. I even had to think to myself, what song is that? Oh, it’s Kris’ song. How the hell do I remember that after one 30-second exposure? It is his version (not The Script’s) that is still in my head.

Besides, the only Idol alums to have writing credits on their first singles are the two mentioned above, Daughtry and Blake.

this isn’t accurate. Kelly Clarkson had writing credit on her debut single from Thankful. A little song called Miss Independent which spent 9 weeks at #1 on the pop charts and earned her a grammy nomination.

The main issue I see is that we’ve been beaten over the head for the last three months with the “kris is an organic/original musician” mantra. Much has been made about the fact that kris writes his own music, plays his own instruments and is a “real” musician whereas someone else is “just a singer” forced to sing other people’s music.

Now it turns out that Kris’ debut single is not only NOT written by him but based on the 20 sec clip it’s a complete carbon copy of the original version.

It appears that perhaps much ado was made out of Kris’ “musicality” and now it’s coming back to bite people in the butt because this song shows absolutely no musicality on Kris’ part.

It’s not that the song is bad. The song is actually very catchy. I have no doubt it will do well on radio but I’m not sure it will do anything to drive people to buy his CD.

I’m a big Kris fan (and Kradison fan) and I really didn’t like this when I listened to the Script yesterday ‘“ I especially hated the number of seconds, which I think is trite, wordy and like NB. But I played the Kris snippet in my office this morning, and now I can’t stop singing it,

but why? what suddenly changed from the script version to Kris’ version? they are exactly alike, right down the tone/tempo and phrasing. If you hated the script’s verison it would stand to reason you’d hate Kris’ version too.

Wanted to add, I like the song just fine. It’s not anything I’d normally listen to anyway so I don’t feel bad saying I won’t be buying it. That has nothing to do with anyone else I may be a fan of either. I just don’t like Jasan mraz style songs and as has been pointed out, thiis is very jason mraz; which again is ironic because whenever anyone compared Kris to jason mraz people called it a lazy comparison saying that Kris was much more original than the comparison indicated.

Whether the song was written by Kris or not, it’s new to me. I like the more acoustic Kris the best but I think this sounds like a potential hit.

I love what I hear of Kris’ voice in this. Vocally here Kris sounds to me like a cross between Amos Lee crossed and Marc Broussard, two of my favorites.

Now it turns out that Kris’ debut single is not only NOT written by him but based on the 20 sec clip it’s a complete carbon copy of the original version.

With all due respect, we don’t know this yet. I’m pretty sure that the song is longer than 23 seconds. Kelly re-worked “Miss Independence” and got a co-writing credit. It’s possible Kris has too.

Even if Kris did not write any part of his song or play any instruments on it, it doesn’t change that he does write music and that he does play instruments. Does it? It’s just that for whatever reason, it didn’t make the first single. If a singer doesn’t sing every note in their range on their first single, does it mean they don’t have those notes? I don’t think so. If they do some electronic manipulation to a voice, does it mean that the voice is not good enough for radio? No, I don’t think so (I think it just means that electronic manipulation on the radio is all the rage).

Cook never got to properly release a song he wrote as a single. Doesn’t mean he doesn’t write songs? No, he does and he writes very good ones. It’s just that none of them fit into the marketing strategy that the label had for radio. Radio is a strange beast. You have to have just the right song at the right time even if you didn’t write it. Especially for your first single.

I get that that one amateur reporter was an a$$, but she was one of 300 or so reporters that they faced on the tour. I’m sure she is all but forgotten by the Idols. If she’d followed the rules and not released the audio, it wouldn’t have seemed so bad. If we got the audio for all the interviews, we’d probably be stunned that we listen to reporters at all.

Boy it’s deja vu all over again. Had this last year with “Light On”. Look where LO is now. Hope Kris’ song does as well.

Most posters here are under the impression that these guys have control over their first major label record. That is so far from the truth. The only thing TPTB are concerned with is getting a song out there that makes money. Nothing more, nothing less.

I am with wiredforsound on this one.

Beyond the Kris fans who will purchase this single if it is re-hash on the same Script single then no one new (outside AI) will buy it.
I have no clue who the Script are and never heard this song before. Did anything they did even go Gold? How much airplay did they get?
I hope Kris sells the S%$# out of it but I don’t see $ signs all over this one.

Ok, after one night, I have concluded that:

- I dont exactly like or dislike the melody, but the song is earwormy and is fits Kris very well. Still think his voice sounds overproduced and generic, but this will not stop him from succeeding.
- It is a bit better that former AI debut singles
- Have no idea if will have airtime bc I dont listen much to the radio and dont live in the us, but that is not similar to what plays where I live, I think, at least currently.
- Dont care its a cover, but it is really ironic after one season of “singer/songwriter/real musician” meme. This only matters in the bubble, but is funny.
- Agree with someone in TWoP – It looks like a summer song, not a fall/winter song.
- still need to listen to the rest of the song. As I said before, I like the chorus, hated the beginning, so it will be interesting to see what kris made of the beginning.
- I always loved Light On, so I probably dont have any crdibility…

Good luck kris!

“Most posters here are under the impression that these guys have control over their first major label record. That is so far from the truth”

So true. Get used to the fact that no one off Idol is an artist. And the only time you hear the truth is sometimes when the album fails. Then the Idol sometimes gives insight into how these albums get made.

I predict a hit (top 20 easily) but I’m not sure after that. My MAIN problem with the song is the first single should feature what sold the person on Idol. Kris was the creative arranger guy so this is a pretty odd choice for a first single.

How many people actually knew who the Script were or anything about this song before it was posted here??

Well, the Script have opened for Paul McCartney and U2 in the states this year and had a moderate hit in the US with The Man Who Can’t Be Moved. But yes, they’re much more well known in other countries.

It’s hard for me to judge the song based on this short clip. My initial reaction is that Kris’s voice is way too processed here and didn’t pop out of the musical mix, so much so that I barely recognized it. I absolutely hate the current trend of digitally processing the voice so much that it loses much of its uniqueness. I also find the chorus to be really wordy, although I understand that’s the point. Overall, I’m not uber-impressed but am looking forward to hearing the song in its entirety.

The discussion about covers has revelancy given the nature of the AI show – all covers, all the time. Yes, most people in the US won’t recognize the song, but some will, especially internationally. I have no idea how big a deal this will be to the public at large.

Furthermore, it sounds extremely familiar and I’m pretty sure I do not know the Script ‘“ so I don’t know what that is about (of course I am in Europe so I cannot exclude that I’ve heard it on the radio or in a tv-commercial at some point).

In either case, I think the song is catchy (only listened to it once and can still hear the ‘liiiiiive like we’re dying’  part in my head) and I think that is the most important characteristic for a new single. So even though it is hard to make predictions, especially about the future (paraphrasing from the honorable Storm P), I’ll throw my vote into the ‘it’s a hit’ -pile.

It’s the Barenaked Ladies, I’m tellin’ ya. A few days ago when the Script version was first posted, I said it reminded me of the chorus of BNL’s “under where?” song (“Pinch Me”; had to look up the underwear lyric to find it on youtube). Except that song had absolutely no hook. This one, as you mentioned has Liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiive like we’re dyiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin!!!

So now I’ve got the under where? song playing in my head all day mixed up with Kris’ new one. But it’s all good because that was always my favorite BNL tune. I’m still hoping Kris will slow down the verses and change them up a bit, though.

Parts of it sound a little like One Week by BNL. Maybe it’s all the words.

Yeah, for the wordiness, One Week by Bare Naked Ladies.

jpfan
My MAIN problem with the song is the first single should feature what sold the person on Idol. Kris was the creative arranger guy so this is a pretty odd choice for a first single.

I disagree that the first single should sound like what they did on idol. On idol they were covering old songs with very little time to try and put their own unique spin on it. Given Kris’s ability to play both guitar and piano, the easiest way for him to do this was to cut out the band
(especially since when he used them, they often drowned him out). This is not necessarily the direction he wants to go.

Rather, the first single should sound like what they want to be moving forward while avoiding alienating as many idol fans as possible. Given the limitations of idol, I really don’t think we can accurately judge from it what sound really appeals to any of the idols.

From the little bit of the snippet, it sounds like it’ll achieve the goal of not turning off most of his idol fans. I’m not fond of the snippet itself as I found it too wordy and over produced to feel unique. But even if those problems were solved, it’s unlikely I would have been a fan of it anyway as I was usually bored by Kris’s idol performances. It’s possible the longer version of the song will change my mind, but I think it more important that Kris’s die hard fans like it enough to buy it and that it be catchy enough that radio play will find him new fans and I think it’s got a good chance at that.

Parts of it sound a little like One Week by BNL. Maybe it’s all the words.

Definitely. I keep waiting for the “chinese chicken”. Also the numbers part reminds me of some Broadway song that I can’t place that is driving me insane. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I don’t hate it. I definitely think it’ll get lots of radio play and probably sell well, but I really suck at predicting what will “hit”. Top 40 radio and I have been out of sync since around 1971.

at least where I listen, I don’t think the divide between ‘good’  and ‘played’  is all that huge.

Oh my God, where do you live, I want to go there, cuz where I live it’s a huge, gaping, yawning chasm of blech.

I don’t think anyone is being tough on Kris. I’m a fan and I’m very happy for him. This is because I personally never refered to him as a singer/ songwriter and have never heard Kris called himself that. People choose to call him that because may be he plays instruments and has written before, which doesn’t hold in my books. To me, he has the softrock/R&B/urban feel if I may link it to what he did on the show. This song is right there like Heartless. Kris became popular to a lot of people even outside idol as the guy who did Kanye’s song better than him. So, it is very smart of Jive to give him a single just like that. I don’t think they are doing him any harm at all. He had written with Claude Kelly and some other guy which Kris said didn’t go well, which to me, meant he didn’t like it. As someone said above may be he likes this one, so I’m happy for him and I can confirm that a lot of people don’t even know the song until we pulled it up and cover or no cover, if the song comes out and people love it they will buy. So far a small percentage are downing it which is normal. Everyone will not love it. Forme it’s a hit already. Go Kris!

just shoot me- you’re thinking of the song from Rent 525,600 Minutes.

what suddenly changed from the script version to Kris’ version? they are exactly alike, right down the tone/tempo and phrasing. If you hated the script’s verison it would stand to reason you’d hate Kris’ version too.

You know that from a 20 second clip?

You’ll notice I didn’t comment on the song in my post. I won’t even go there until I can hear the entire song.

I adore Adam but I also like Kris and if this is Kris’ single, this has the potential to be a mega hit.

Reminder:

I’m going through this thread to delete posts that either bitch about the comments, or are overly defensive.

Also, those of you who insist on making this thread about your favorite idol? Your posts are poof too.

just shoot me- you’re thinking of the song from Rent 525,600 Minutes.

studio57 you don’t know how much I love you right now. Mwah!

Parts of it sound a little like One Week by BNL. Maybe it’s all the words.

Hee. I think Kris’ word count is less than One Week.
Closer to The Under Where? Song.

It’s not the type of song I would usually buy, but if Kris sings about underwear, I’m definitely buying.

For your listening enjoyment, here’s an original song parody by halfie.

Two disclaimers:

1) I like Kris and I am among those that thinks this single sounds great and is really catchy.
2) However, I noticed that many of his fans are disappointed in the use of a cover song, without apparent rearrangement. This is a vent for them.

So, sing along with the snippet of the single that was released and enjoy!

Yeah, gotta start
Layin’ down some tracks to make a hit record here
Can’t play my guit box, no time to be pickin’ it
Tried to write a tune but the clock was tickin’

Also the numbers part reminds me of some Broadway song that I can’t place that is driving me insane. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

“Seasons of Love” from “Rent”. Here are the S7 Idols singing the song last year on IGB

This isn’t a forum for the Script, but I will say they are touring with David Cook this fall. Having said that, I am glad Kris has an uptempo lead single. Really does remind me a tad of Kelly’s in that sense. Too many lead post-Idol singles are bland, slow to mid tempo tracks. Mixing it up a bit will draw more attention to him. This makes me want to hear more, even if I am in the minority.

But it really doesn’t matter. I love the Script, And I’d never heard of the song until it was posted here a couple of days ago. The song was never released in the UK EP of We Cry, only in the US version AFAIK.

Nah, it wasn’t released in the US version as they haven’t yet released a single beyond The Man Who Can’t Be Moved. However, it was released in Australia/NZ and a few scattered European countries. Looking on iTunes I noticed it in Germany, Spain, Belgium, etc.

this isn’t accurate. Kelly Clarkson had writing cre