American Idol 13 studio recordings Top 8 Redux – I’ve listened so you don’t have to! Unless you WANT to–I have the youtube song streams right here, along with mini-reviews.
What are YOUR favorite American Idol 13 studio recordings this week?
Jena Irene – I Love Rock n Roll by Joan Jett – The slowed up beginning is shorter on the recorded version, which is a good thing, because rearranging a song so that it sounds like a ballad isn’t very rock ‘n roll at all. Once the song kicks into a higher gear, I am totally convinced that Jena does, indeed, love rock n roll. – Download from iTunes
Dexter Roberts – Keep Your Hands to Yourself by Georgia Satellites – This is such a dumb, annoying song, I can’t get worked up about it either way. Dexter sounds really good recorded, but I couldn’t pick his voice out on the radio. Generic, generic, generic. – Download from iTunes
Malaya Watson – Through the Fire by Chaka Khan – You can hear the potential peaking out in this vocal. Malaya has a sweet tone and has a sense of how to phrase a song, but her breath control and thin upper register need work. She sounds so young, even here. In a few years, she could be a wonderful singer. Not yet. – Download from iTunes
Jessica Meuse – Call Me by Blondie – Since I don’t have to watch Jessica awkwardly playing the sexy vamp on stage, I can say I actually enjoy her vocal on this recording. She’s more comfortable with the material behind the mic than she was in performance. – Download from iTunes
Sam Woolf – Time after Time by Cyndi Lauper – Sam made a VERY smart decision when he decided to ditch the band for his performance last week. Ugh to the cheesy synthesizers on this song. Without the intimacy of the acoustic arrangement, Sam’s languid performance fades into the background. – Download from iTunes
Alex Preston – Every Breath You Take by Sting – Sorry. I like Alex a lot. I just can’t with the sweet reimagining of this song. The Police classic will always be “the stalker song” to me. Obsession isn’t nice. It’s creepy – Download from iTunes
CJ Harris – Free Fallin by Tom Petty – I LOVE this arrangement, particularly the mournful slide guitar. With his pitch problems erased, I can be moved by CJ’s beautiful, plaintive take on this classic. Not going to lie, it’s my favorite of this week’s recordings. Imagine that. – Download from iTunes
Caleb Johnson – Faithfully by Journey – Caleb knows how to sell a song live, even if the arrangement isn’t a huge departure from the original song. That’s why the recorded version–although boasting a solid vocal from Caleb–suffers from a karaoke vibe. Any comparison to the Steve Perry original is going to fall short – Download from iTunes
