Idol Musings

Okay, so Season 9 of American Idol starts tonight, and not coincidentally, my recaps of said show will commence several hours afterward.

I apologize in advance for those who think AI is The Bane of the Universe (as a few of you have let me know, over the years), but I love the show, warts, and horrible auditions, and all.

We started watching Season 1 because there was nothing else on that night. We were instantly hooked, though I did not vote that season. I enjoyed Kelly, rooted for her phonelessly, teared up a little at her win, and skipped From Justin to Kelly.

Though I may watch it sometime, if I have enough to drink beforehand.

I was never a Claymate (shudder), but I admit to falling in love with Clay Aiken the moment he opened his mouth.

On the other hand, I also fell in love with Ruben Studdard, Kimberley Locke, and Frenchie Davis, though I got over her in a hurry. I did finally pick up the phone toward the end of the season, but that was to divide my votes evenly between Ruben, Clay, and Kimberley so that Josh Gracin would be voted out (he has  wormed his way back into my favor in the interim).

Season 3 fell flat for me. I acknowledge Fantasia's talent, and wish her well, but have no real desire to see or hear her (or watch that gawdawful movie), though I often find her hairstyles amusing. Ditto for Diana DeGarmo, who has done just fine for herself. And while I liked Jennifer Hudson, I thought she was too shouty (she toned it down a tad since... and has likewise done just fine without my votes). I do wonder whatever happened to LaToya London.

Season 4 bounced back a bit, with beautiful Carrie Underwood's golden pipes, and 70's throwback Bo Bice. My favorite that year was Scott Savol. Yeah, I know, I know. But he had The Voice, and he finished higher than I expected.

Season 5 was all about Taylor Hicks . I loved him from the first note, and never wavered. Something about his voice spoke to me, and it still does (and the gray hair didn't hurt). I've seen him in concert and would go again in a flash. My relentless voting probably helped to push his win, which in the long run, was not a good thing since he's widely regarded as The Franchise Failure because his career isn't treading the Pop Stardom route. But it gave Taylor the chance to do what he wants with his life: make music. Daughtry and his goofy sideburns got the Aiken Boost by not winning. And given that Eliott Yamin, Bucky Covington, and Kellie Pickler (I couldn't stand her then, but now find goofily endearing) carved careers from the season, it's all good.

Season 6 was almost a total bust. Jordin Sparks, talented but not mature enough, won with a fairly obvious boost from the producers. On the other hand, I despised Blake Lewis (nope- still hate him), so Jordin's pre-ordained crown wasn't the worst that could happen. Unfortunately, both of them finished ahead of Melinda Doolittle, arguably the best singer ever featured on the show. I guess people were bored by perfection.


I recapped Seasons 7 and 8 (or at least I started commentary in Season 7, and then segued into full-on recaps), so you can search the blog for my comments on those kids (essentially: didn't like David Cook, then did sorta, loved loopy Jason Castro, was disconcerted by Brooke White's disintegration, thought David Archuletta's dad was scary, didn't like Adam Lambert and then did mostly, thought Kris Allen was good enough, disliked Meagan Bird Girl and Matt Giraud, but thought that Top 10 overall, was hugely talented).

Which brings us to tonight- Simon Cowell's last season, Ellen Degeneres's first (and maybe last, who knows), and no Paula to find the unicorn rainbow auras for us. We'll see how it goes.

Personally, I can't wait.