The theme for Idol this week is Songs from Cinema...whatever that means. Any song used in any movie ever? So, more or less wide open is what we're saying? Sounds good to me! This week is especially crucial for two people - will Lil pick I Will Always Love You or You're Gonna Love Me, thus sealing her fate as the next to go home? And what does the option of songs from musicals do to Adam? Is American Idol, as MTV.com worries, one giant Broadway audition for Adam? Or will he continue to surprise us and not choose something from a musical? Or if from a musical, not an obvious one? Below, are my thoughts & predictions for tonight's show.
Adam - We've all seen how smart Adam is, which leads me to believe if he DOES pick a song from a musical, it won't be well known or very predictable. If he does go the musical route, I'm hoping for Heaven on their Minds from Jesus Christ Superstar. It's a song I love anyway, it requires a voice and some serious rocking out. Plus, I bet you no one in that audience has ever heard it. Ever. Like. Ever. But this night also brings with it the opportunity for Adam to finally touch Bowie (Labyrinth Soundtrack), Queen (Don't Stop Me Now - Shaun of the Dead), The Pixies (Where is my Mind - Fight Club) Bjork (Any of Dancer in the Dark) or joy of joy, Radiohead (Fake Plastic Trees - Clueless, Exit Music - Romeo & Juliet). One way or another, he is the one to watch as he will smash our faces with his vocals no matter what he chooses. But please avoid Phantom, Chicago, etc if possible. Rent, Rocky Horror, Hedwig & Jesus Christ Superstar are more acceptable.
Allison - Can't wait for this one. Lots of various sites are hoping Allison goes for Baby, It's You by Smith from the Death Proof soundtrack. Fitting, considering this week's mentor! Also off a Tarantino soundtrack, Allison could do Son of a Preacher Man (Pulp Fiction). Also, any of the Dana Fuchs covers from Across the Universe, especially Oh Darling. On a related note, she could also do well with Live and Let Die from...Live and Let Die. Actually, there are probably a bunch of Bond songs Allison could have fun with. If she goes the musical route, Rent would probably suit her best. She could sing the shit out of Lady Marmalade (Moulin Rouge), but she's better than that and I hope she sings something less full of suck. Might I also suggest the Across the Universe version of I Wanna Hold Your Hand? That would be hot.
Lil - Important week for Lil. DO NOT sing I Will Always Love You, I Have Nothing or You're Gonna Love Me. Remember last week when I said don't sing something, then you sang it? That was a bad decision. The best suggestion I've heard for Lil is Lauryn Hill's cover of Can't Take My Eyes of You from the 10 Things I Hate About You soundtrack. It's got soul, it's a great cover that feels young & modern and it requires serious pipes. Also, Nina Simone's take on Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood (Kill Bill) could be great, though, be warned now, this song has been done in so many styles, I will be suggesting it for many of the top 7. I'm not a fan of Dreamgirls and generally think we should all just forget it happened, but I suppose Listen would be a fine choice. Though completely and utterly boring. The problem with Lil is I don't really know what to suggest cause she's never picked the right song. She's gotta surprise us. What if she sang Suddenly Seymour? Haha I love that song. That would be so weird. Also pull-offable for Lil? Out Here On My Own from Fame. Yeah. I said it. I mean, she still shouldn't go the ballad direction yet again, but at least it's a better choice than a Whitney song. Probably stay away from Disney songs too...and Anastasia.
Danny - Oh, the Gokes. You're so Gokey. Danny could go many ways tonight. He's the only one I could see taking the Disney route (Go the Distance from Hercules, You'll be in my Heart from Tarzan) cause you either gotta be super Gokey or super mix-it-up-hip to pull off a Disney song. (Woah. Side note. Roger Bart was the voice of Hercules? That creeps me out. Roger Bart creeps me out, that's just the way it is. Moving on.) He almost seems destined to sing Iris (Goo Goo Dolls, City of Angels soundtrack) or Don't Wanna Miss a Thing (Like you don't know who that's by and what it's from) and he would sound great singing them, but...you know he won't do anything creative with them so...who really cares? If he wanted to get a little more unpredictable, might I suggest a Joe Cocker/Across the Universe mash up version of With a Little Help from my Friends or sticking with Joe Cocker, his cover of Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood? Could also see The Gokes doing some Peter Gabriel (In Your Eyes - Say Anything or Solsberry Hill - In Good Company) but I would rather he didn't. And fine yes, he could sing either Bryan Adams song, but Danny Gokey singing something remotely sexy makes me wanna throw up. So I'm not officially suggesting either one for him. He's so gonna sing Everything I Do, isn't he?
Kris - Kris, however, can get as sexy as he wants. I'll eat it up. And so will every other girl ever. Definitely recommend The Beatles' Something from Across the Universe. Thinking about Kris singing that makes me swoon. He could also pull off any Bob Dylan song, most of which were used in I'm Not There and thus are fair game. Ballad of a Thin Man, Simple Twist of Fate, Times They Are A-Changin, I Shall Be Released, Knockin of Heaven's Door are all Dylan songs Kris would kill. Just to name a few. I could also see Kris doing Have You Really Ever Loved a Woman (Bryan Adams - Don Juan DeMarco) and me doing that swooning thing again...Kris could also pull off pretty much anything from Once, especially Lies, and maybe even Is It Okay If I Call You Mine from Fame, with just him and a guitar, but the song doesn't have too many levels and there's no way he would randomly know that song. But the swooning, oh man. Another not a lot of range, just him and the guitar super swoony original choice? Wanna Grow Old With You from The Wedding Singer.
Anoop - I'm afraid if Lil does well this week, Anoop's outta there. Not even sure how he can save himself. He looks ridiculous whenever he does an upbeat song, but he can't just be the ballad guy. The ballad guy isn't gonna win American Idol. What could he even do? Unchained Melody? Sure. I've heard Let's Stay Together by Al Green from Pulp Fiction recommended, and also The Rainbow Connection, but Anoop's gotta get creative if he wants a shot at sticking around. I don't know, Anoop. I just don't know.
Matt - What do we know about Matt? He needs to sing something with soul. MTV suggested Janet Jackson's Aga
in from Poetic Justice or The Beautiful Ones from Purple Rain. I know neither of these songs. I might suggest Try a Little Tenderness by Otis Redding, from both Pretty in Pink & The Commitments and for that matter - pretty much anything in The Commitments would work for Matt. Also, this may be cheating, but anything from the Ray soundtrack. Matt's wowed us before with Georgia on my Mind. He could do it with plenty other Ray Charles songs too. Oh god, is it wrong that I'd love to hear Matt do Sit Down You're Rocking the Boat, even though it's completely inappropriate for American Idol? Awkward or amazing if he sings Everybody Wants to Be a Cat from the Arisocats or Why Should I Worry from Oliver & Company? Why am I suddenly associating Matt with Disney cats? He could also do Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood, because, hey, why not? Could also see Matt being the one to grab Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman? with that sultry voice...yes, I like. Or Unchained Melody from Ghost. Fine.
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