Idol Update: Mentors, The Freshmakers!

Posted Thu Mar 20, 2008 1:15pm PDT by Lyndsey Parker in Reality Rocks

On last night's American Idol elimination show, Ryan Seacrest announced the mentors for this season. And judging from some message board posts I've perused, not all viewers are that psyched about the news.

Well, I for one am excited about most of this year's mentors. Read on and I'll tell you why!

Mariah Carey - Ooh boy, this one's going to be interesting. It's a well-documented fact that one of the worst strategic moves an Idol finalist can make is to attempt to sing a Mimi song, because very few people (other than dog-whistle-manufacturers) can hit the positively stratospheric octaves that Mariah can sing in her sleep. I shudder to think of what might happen if Kristy Lee Cook gets stuck with "Vision Of Love," if she manages to stick around for Mariah Night. But regardless of whether or not Mariah will be able to successful coach the contestants vocally, there's one way in which she will no doubt be immeasurably helpful: teaching them how to triumph over adversity. Seriously, this woman's been through the ringer so many times she probably bathes in Woolite, yet she always emerges so fresh and so clean. Any finalist who eventually gets eliminated can learn a lot from this comeback queen: She's proof that any setback, even one of Glitter-sized proportions, can be overcome with pure talent. (By the way, check out this excellent essay my esteemed co-blogger Billy Johnson Jr. wrote about Mariah's almost cockroach-like tenacity. Maybe it should be required reading for all Idol finalists!)

 

Neil Diamond - Say what you will about Neil. But he is DA MAN. First of all, this Songwriters Hall Of Fame inductee has penned some of the finest, most time-tested pop hits ever, many of which have been famously covered, like "I'm A Believer" by the Monkees, "Red Red Wine" by UB40, "Solitary Man" by both Johnny Cash and HiM, and  "Girl, You'll Be A Woman Soon" as popularized by Urge Overkill in Pulp Fiction. (Wow, talk about "song selection"!) Second, in 2005 Neil made a completely critically acclaimed comeback with 12 Songs, a Rick Rubin-produced tour de force that did for Neil's career what the Rick Rubin-masterminded American album series did for Johnny Cash in the '90s. (It featured instrumentation from a couple of Tom Petty's Heartbreakers, plus the final performance by late Beatles sideman Billy Preston. That's pretty frickin' cool, if you ask me.) Anyway, to quote a line from the 1991 film What About Bob?, "There are two types of people in the world: those who like Neil Diamond and those who don't." If the Idol finalists know what's good for 'em, they'll be in the former category. These diamonds-in-the-rough could learn a great deal from Sir Diamond.

Dolly Parton - Alesha Stelzl, the squeaky-voiced blonde from earlier this season who sounded so much like Dolly that Simon made her learn "Islands In The Stream" and then re-audition, will sadly never get a chance to be mentored by Miss Parton. But those who do get to meet this Opry icon should feel very, very honored. They need to become bosom buddies with Dolly (heh heh) and spongily soak up as much knowledge as they can from this country goddess. Come on, how many other musical stars have their very own THEME PARK? That puts Dolly in a class all by herself. She's a wise, worldly woman, as her philosophical video below proves. I just wish Danny Noriega had gotten the opportunity to work with Dolly. If he had, there would've been a whole lotta fierceness in the theater that evening!

Andrew Lloyd Weber - OK, this is the mentor I'm a little nervous about. Sure, I enjoyed watching ALW on Grease: You're The One That I Want, but that show was specifically designed to find a Broadway star. Conversely, on American Idol one of the biggest insults a singer can receive is "you'd be good on Broadway." (Ouch.) Really, the horrifying prospect of rockers like Michael Johns and David Cook or shy, self-effacing finalists like Brooke White and Jason Castro tackling "Memory" from Cats or "Don't Cry for Me, Argentina " from Evita makes my very insides ache. (Although the rockers might do all right with a Jesus Christ Superstar number, actually). Still, working with the king of musical theater may help a few of this year's more awkward contestants with their stage skills. And if things don't pan out for them on Idol, a Broadway career is a pretty good plan B, really. Just ask Fantasia, Clay Aiken, or Frenchie Davis!

For more American Idol, go to Yahoo! TV
19 Comments

1. Yahoo! Music User -
You're right LP, Neil Diamond is "DA MAN". I love this video of him, thanks for posting it!

2. Yahoo! Music User -
what no Bon Jovi thats whack. I thought that when Blake Lewis sang Shot Through the Heart it was amazing!!!!!!!!

~bon jovi fan~

3. Yahoo! Music User -
these are the only 4 that have been announced before. bon jovi won't be back since they were on last season, but i do think they need to get a rock mentor on there! how about tom petty?

4. runaway38 -
I agree 100% with your points. Neil, Dolly, Mariah - great mentors for these singers. Andrew Lloyd Weber??????? He would be great to mentor, say Danny H. or the long lost Danny [shoot, forget his last name already] who was booted out a while ago. Please Mr. Weber, don't make broadway stars out of people who want to be recording artists.

5. Yahoo! Music User -
Thank you LP for another great blog. You have over 700 responses on your previously recent one - all in less than 24 hours. Also, this is your 8th blog in less than 3 days! Thank you for all your hard (& good) work.

6. Yahoo! Music User -
Tom Petty sounds like a terrific idea #3. Enjoyed your overview LP!

7. Yahoo! Music User -
Luv ya LP. You're a bit of a punching bag for some today. Sorry about that. *wink*

8. Yahoo! Music User -
Hmm all great mentors...espcially Mariah Carey. That should be, eh...interesting. But I was thinking...Chris Daughtry would make a great mentor. He's a rocker...and he's a past idol, so even better...

9. Yahoo! Music User -
Too bad American Idol can't get Madonna for a mentor. THAT would be very interesting.

BTW - Carly Smithson = Preggers?

10. Yahoo! Music User -
#9, What did you hear? (re: BTW - Carly Smithson = Preggers?)

11. Yahoo! Music User -
Agreed with #8: "Chris Daughtry would make a great mentor. He's a rocker...and he's a past idol, so even better..."

12. Yahoo! Music User -
I love Dolly. I remember fondly Sally Field or Julia Roberts' story about Dolly. When they were making that sad movie (the one where Roberts' character dies I think - the one with Daryl Hannah and others) ...yeah... "Steal Manogolias" (spelling), all the other females leads were complaining about having to wear a sweater on set one particularly warm day. Dolly remained silent until Roberts said, "You must be warm too Dolly"? Doll replied: "When I was a little girl I wanted to be rich and famous, now that I am, I am not going to complain about it". Sure sounds like she'd make a good mentor to me. Thank you LP for all your hard work and always always amazing blogs. You are the BEST! blogger out there.

13. Yahoo! Music User -
The videos are amazing and much appreciated. Thank-you for taking the time to post them. Congrats btw on over 1000 comments in reply to Wednesday night's blog. And your 8th column in less than 72 hours. Wow, you blow my socks off (and I don't mind telling you so). Luvs ya LP!!!

14. Yahoo! Music User -
RE: Tuesday and Wednesday's LIVE! shows ~~~

Some of us (I guess the people in the west can't really), will be posting LIVE! comments on the Amanda elimination thread on Tuesday (the one with over 1100 posts as of today). On Wednesday we will await the new summary of our Tuesday comments by the one-&-only jsandzjamzz.

15. Yahoo! Music User -
Hey LP, that's 9 or 10 columns for you in about 3 days (even less). You are a warp speed blogger. Smoooooooth. TWO BIG GREEN THUMBS UP! A+++++

16. Jon Jon -
I think ALW night will be AMAZING!! Let's all remember where the 1st American pop songs came from: BROADWAY!! Many of ALW songs were hits because they connected to the listener even if they had not seen the musical from which the song came from. Memory is a great ballad full of loss, Music of the Night is an amazing song about love as is I Don't Know How to Love Him. In recent years we have had amazing songs come from the Broadway stage: Rent, Aida, Sunset Blvd, Hairspray, Lion King, Wicked and Spring Awaking. Songs from these musicals have been heared on the radio and should have been bigger hits. Too bad record labels and musical producers don't fight harder to get some of these songs on the airwaves. I totally look forward to ALW night!!

17. Yahoo! Music User -
Did anyone post this yet?

Why does "American Idol" suck on a regular basis?

LOL.

Posted on Tue, Mar. 25, 2008
Failed Transmissions: Deconstructing 'American Idol'
By RICH MACIALEK
Why does "American Idol" suck on a regular basis? Is it the talent, the concept, the songs, or is it something more insidious?
Sadly it's the judges. After every song, they each take turns critiquing or lauding the performance. Most of their comments are usually valid, as long as they are taken in the context of the judges' strengths.

Randy "I played with Journey" Jackson is a highly successful producer and studio musician. When he talks about pitch and intonation, he's the "bomb." That man knows when a singer is hitting the notes or isn't. Since it's a singing competition, that's pretty important. Unfortunately if the contestant sings anything other than radio friendly pop, he tilts his head like a dog hearing a person fart for the first time.

Paula "pass the vodka please" Abdul really gets the emotion of a singer. She knows it's more than just notes sung in tune. It's the heart and soul of a performer that makes a singer great. You can tell when a singer bombed the vocal though, because she starts her critique with a comment on their smile or heart or something. She's like the kindergarten teacher trying to talk about the kid who keeps eating the crayons. You can tell when she really likes singer because she dances like a chimpanzee on meth.

Simon "beware of my nipples" Cowell is actually the best of the lot. He's rightfully critical of the singers because most nights they do stink.

Take a kid who's nervous and overwhelmed by everything, and you get trouble. In hopes of winning, they try to please the judges because that's their only feedback. Unfortunately, they aren't mature enough to decipher what they should listen to and what they should discard.

Add in a house band that can't play rock or country to save their overpaid behinds and you get some serious train wrecks. That band playing country is like your dog playing bagpipes, just not as funny.

And this is the point in the season where it begins: Singers who get panned by the judges try to change themselves up and usually end up being even worse. Even sadder are the contestants who get praised by the judges and simply do the same performance over and over, only with a different song.

Very few contestants have the inner strength to stay true to themselves week after week and still grow as a performer. When they do, we get a Kelly Clarkson or a Carrie Underwood. Unfortunately we also sometimes get a Taylor Hicks. ... Say, did he get back from his tour with Carnival Cruise Lines yet?





--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

© 2008 Miami Herald Media Company. All Rights Reserved.
http://www.miamiherald.com

18. haibbrooks -
JC and DC are unique, whether you like their particular style or not, and therefore are probably safe for another week. Archie is standard Idol issue, but his youth and likeability, along with his consistent performances also keep him safe again. The girls I think fill in the bottom three. For me, I'm hoping it's Brooke that goes. Sorry, she may be stylistically different enough from the others to make her interesting but frankly I find her cheery chattiness increasingly annoying. It won't be Brook though. I'm thinking Carly or Syesha could be next.

19. Jessica Kake -
I LOVE Andrew Lloyd Webber!

This is insane, but I'm thinking David Cook can do a rock rendition of the Phantom of the Opera theme, since it is kind of rock style to begin with
Leave Your Comment
You must sign in to leave a comment
Select a Blog Posts
And The Winner Is...
by Wendy Geller
11
As Heard On...
by Suzanne Baran
7
Better Living Through MP3
by Ken Micallef
128
Chart Watch
by Paul Grein
38
Framed
by John Kordosh
50
GetBack
by Cory Frye
28
Hip-Hop Media Training
by Billy Johnson, Jr.
35
List Of The Day
by Rob O'Connor
219
Maximum Performance
by Lyndsey Parker
66
New This Week
by Dave DiMartino
53
On the Road With JamBase
by Aaron Kayce
21
Reality Rocks
by Lyndsey Parker
201
Rock's Backpages
by Rod Tootell
55
Rolling Stone Song Of The Day
by Chuck Eddy
14
That's Really Week
by Lyndsey Parker
56
The ARTHUR Blog
by Paul Krassner
32
The Lefsetz Letter
by Bob Lefsetz
155
The MOJO Blog
by Kris Needs
39
The NME Blog
by Dan Martin
20
The Spin Blog
by David Marchese
14
The URB Blog
by Brandon Perkins
9
The Y! Music Playlist Blog
by Robert of the Radish
247
Video Ga Ga
by Lyndsey Parker
17

Music Blog Archives

July 2008 (15)
June 2008 (30)
May 2008 (27)
April 2008 (28)
March 2008 (31)
February 2008 (21)
January 2008 (12)
December 2007 (4)
November 2007 (4)
October 2007 (5)
September 2007 (4)
August 2007 (2)
July 2007 (13)
June 2007 (4)
May 2007 (1)
Rapper DMX arrested at Phoenix mall
AP
Sat Jul 19, 2008 11:35pm PDT
AP - PHOENIX (AP) — Rapper DMX was arrested at a Phoenix mall Saturday on suspicion that he gave a gave a false name and Social Security number to a hospital to get out of paying for medical expenses. Maricopa…
More »
More Music News
My Music


Create your very own radio station based on your music tastes.