#56: Clay's going to sing. Life is good.

[ldyjocelyn]

Again, off the phone with bottlecap. I think she's still in awe of the entire evening.

She says he started the show with Mack the Knife -- curtain comes up, but Clay has back to the audience at first. Sounds so very cool.

Some staging notes --- during It's Impossible, several chandeliers came down, made it look really nice. Also, a horn solo during that song, and Clay acknowledged the the player.

He had some schtick about Neil Sedaka -- how he had sang Solitaire on AI that week, but the song he wanted to do, Ruben chose first. So, Clay was going to sing it tonight -- sang one line, and then Ruben came out to finish Breaking Up is Hard To Do.

The Big Band Medley --

• Baby Got Back sung by Clay
• Poker Face (Lady Gaga) sung by Ruben
• Crazy In Love (Beyonce) by Quiana
• Maneater (Hall and Oates) -- Clay
• Tik Tok (Kei$ha) -- Ruben
• Straight Up -- Quiana (with Clay and Ruben doing the "oh oh oh's"
• She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy -- Clay (totally done in the crooner fashion)
• Play That Funky Music -- Ruben
• Can't Touch This -- all three

All done in Big Band, slowed down. This sounds fantastic!

He rocked Suspicious Minds and BMUB! EEEEEEEEEEEE!

Talked about his schooling in Raleigh, how his 6th grade teacher helped him, and then dedicated "In My Life" to all his teachers in the audience. How sweet.

UM was a totally different arrangement, and he got a huge standing ovation for that.

More later, I'll let bc tell it when she gets back by Sunday.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

[bottlecap]

Back in the room - had a long phone conversation with ldyj (see above) and gave her all my notes from the show.

Can I just say how excited I am for you guys to get to see this show on TV? It looked so beautiful live and he sounded fantastic. I can see this being a classic that gets shown over and over again. It was so great.

I'll try to pull my thoughts together and write some kind of recap on my way home tomorrow and will post some more later this week-end.

Guys, it was just so, so, so good.

[ldyjocelyn]

Guys, it was just so, so, so good.

*scurries off the thread title suggestion thread*

[drmchaser]

Back in the room - had a long phone conversation with ldyj (see above) and gave her all my notes from the show.

Thank you! The medley sounds awesome. I cannot wait to see this in June. I'm praying it isn't delayed until August!

Deep voice Clay was there too.

EEEEEEPS! I'm gonna be toast.

[FearofH2O]

UNBELIEVABLE!Clay sang like I have never heard him before. UM amazing with that changed up ending. Crying- two beautiful voices with Clay making some unbelievable sounds. My friend has never seen Clay in concert thought he was fantastic. She also loved Quiana and thought Rubin sounded great. The concert was very organic and didn't seem forced at all. I can't wait to order my tickets for Asheville.

I'd add more but still can't figure out how to get more reply space.

[Couch Tomato]

Reply space? uh oh. There should be unlimited space.

Glad you enjoyed..so looking forward to the show and hearing clay sing LIVE again.

[jmh123]

I swore I would not go to bed tonight without writing a recap. I appreciate recaps so much more now than I used to when I lived smack in the middle of Clayland and got to go to all kinds of things. I can't begin to tell you what a high this was, what an amazing experience. I sat there with that shit-eating grin on my face the whole time and prayed that I wouldn't be caught mooney-faced on national TV again.

I went to the show with lilyshine and my local concert buddy/lurker friend. We wanted to be sure to get there on time, and also to avoid traffic going into Raleigh during "rush hour" which is in truth "rush hours." So we left my little town to the west just before 3:30 and headed to downtown Raleigh. Got there around 4, 4:15 and got a parking place on the street right at the Marriott. Walked up Fayetteville st., tried to catch the city museum but it had closed. It was wonderful seeing all the fans in pockets everywhere along the street and in various eateries. I got to see some people I had hoped to see or meet, and I wished that all of you could've been there who weren't able to be there. Had tea at Starbucks and then dinner at the Marriott.

As did lot of people, I saw Reed. He's very tall, hard to miss in a crowd, and he's damn good looking in person. Totally GAH worthy.

Two of us were seated in the balcony, third row, right behind the soundboard. Various people tried to offer us closer seats, including some production people, but all were off to the far side of the orchestra or in the side mezzanine, and besides I wanted to watch the process of filming. From our seats we could see all the cameras, as well as two laptop computer/ television monitors showing two of the camera views, and also the sound equipment and of course the people working in the booth. There must have been another location somewhere, outside or backstage, where the actual directing was taking place, and where there were other TV monitors. The negative side is that we couldn't really see Clay's face, because of the lighting and the distance, but we got some good closeup views now and then in the monitors. (Except the people working there had the nerve to keep looking at them and getting their faces in the way. ) There was a fair amount of shots showing the whole band at one, as well as closeups on various instrumentalists, all the soloists of course, and Clay at various distances. Lot of variety. And, as I said, we could just see two monitors.

There was a long, long boom 20 or 25 feet long hovering over the audience, with a guy looking through a lens at one end of it while the camera was at the other end. It travelled around mostly directed at the stage. The guy somehow operated the whole huge thing on his own, I think. He stood on a platform in the back of the side mezzanine. There was a guy with a big camera seated on a rolling platform right in the front who was continally being pushed by another guy back and forth from one side of the stage to the other, sometimes very fast. We did not have that monitor in view and I was very curious as to what those shots looked like and what they were for. There was one guy with a much smaller camera off to my right whom I usually couldn't see, and one or two others I think. There was also someone signing all the lyrics, two woman actually who took turns, in an area off to the left of the left side orchestra section.

Oh and yeah, that Clay Aiken guy. When the curtain opened and he was standing there with his back to the audience, just that silhouette that is so classic and familiar, I felt such a rush I can't tell you. I just wanted to hug everybody for the rest of the night. The crowd was electric. Even the ushers and crew seemed to be into it.

Clay Aiken can flat out sing y'all.

Mack the Knife was like the AI2 performance times a million.

The band totally rocked, and the choice and chosen location of the instruments was fascinating to me. There was a bass fiddle player on the left (not stage left, my left), the drums, Ben on piano and conducting when needed, an electric guitarist, and another percussionist doing that interesting stuff Clay loves with a variety of small percussive objects. To the right there were two cellists, a couple of violinists, some brass (4 guys?), and some others. Looking at the Yahoo picture, I see another keyboardist behind Ben. I'm guessing that is some kind of synthesizer (Rockys mom would know). I also see two people on the right side closest to the audience, one holding a viola or guitar? and someone almost out of the picture doing something I've forgotten.

The sound was just incredible. The band was tight. It was a big band sound, but uniquely Clay also. Y'all have a set list already so no need to repeat that. I thought it was a good variety of tempos and moods, and I didn't have the sense I was hearing "covers" at all. Everything was arranged as a unique, Clay Aiken version, and the band was a huge part of that. For me anyway. And Clay's voice just soared. It filled the room. I think I'd forgotten the way he can do that. Effortless, huge voice with those amazing pure tones.

And Deep! Voice! Clay! was there in full force.

Because it was Raleigh and Memorial Auditorium and because of the theme of the show, it was also for me, especially for the first three or four songs, Clayton Grissom fully grown and handsome, but yet still and totally that guy. That Raleigh boy. Clayton Grissom of Hometown Connection putting on a show for PBS, but mostly classier. (I loved the medley, so funny.) I was struck by how he really has come home, how he has remained "tried and true" throughout AI, becoming a "pop superstar," coming out, doing Broadway, being a dad, everything he's been through. He is still that geeky, skinny, picked-on guy, and now that guy is fulfilling a life-long dream.

Did anyone post that he had all of his Raleigh teachers there? (yes, I see that bottlecap via ldyj did) He talked about how much one particular teacher had meant to him at a time when he was really struggling socially, and introduced her, and then had all of them stand up. It looked like a row or two of people and their families. Someone also said that they were told Clay had flown all of his teachers and their families to see Spamalot when he was in it.

What else? Songs I think Clay "owned" from the moment I heard them, "Misty" and "Crying" for sure. Those two are songs I wouldn't have thought anyone new could own, but Clay's voice on "Misty" was so gorgeous, and "Crying" was simply otherwordly. The woman who sang that with him had a wonderful voice and I enjoyed the idea of making that a duet and the arrangement of it, but when Clay sang on his own on that song it was like nothing I've ever heard anyone do. This is definitely the best duet I've ever heard from him, and he's a man who can sing a duet with a big voiced woman, as y'all know.

He reminded me and everyone that he already owns Mack the Knife, Unchained Melody... and Buttercup. It was so cool that he did that one! And Suspicious Minds.

I missed the first part of Moon River. I had to pee, and ran off to do it, knowing it wasn't totally over, but the curtain did come down so I thought I'd have time. Cutely, the usher said to me, several times, he's coming back, he's coming back, she even yelled to me after I was already in the stall, he's coming back. So I half peed and got my butt back out there ASAP. I can see why she wanted to make sure I didn't miss Moon River.

I also loved "Kind of a Hush" and "In My Life" and didn't think, Oh, that's that Beatles song or Oh, that's Herman's Hermits--I just thought, oh, now he's singing that beautiful song, how wonderful. Likewise he killed on the "standards" like "What Kind of Fool am I" or "Can't Take My Eyes off of You." They didn't seem like songs of different eras, they all seemed of a piece. It was all good, the choices, the order, the arrangements, except that I wanted more, more of everything. It went by so fast and it seemed so short.

[bottlecap]

I don't think I slept a wink last night, so if this an incoherent mess, I apologize in advance.

I just can't think of anything that would have made last evening even better than it was. And the best part is, when the show airs, everybody will get to share it.

I loved seeing the vintage Clay moves - like how he throws one arm back when he's really belting a note. Or how he pulls the microphone away from his mouth to control the power of his voice. And the pronunciations that are uniquely Clay: "Tweh yew..." at the end of Unchained Melody. I just love him.

And I'm a little jealous of how Jamie got to greet Reed by throwing her arms around his neck and practically climbing him. Okay, a lot jealous... That man is really good-looking, y'all.

[aikim]

DON'T FORGET - DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME STARTS TONIGHT - SPRING AHEAD- TURN YOUR CLOCK AHEAD ONE HOUR!

8 Days until The First Day of Spring!:glasses:

79 Days until June 1 and The New CD!

:04:

Clay addresses The Key Club Convention in July!

Happy Birthday to all celebrating!

Everyone have a great day!

Kim

[ldyjocelyn]

jmh, bottlecap, thanks for your recaps. jmh, I love that you had a totally different perspective on the whole show, and that's fascinating to me.

This is going to be grand, ya'll.

[luckiest1]

Wonderful recap jmh123!

So sorry I didn't write one last night. I texted ldyjocelyn after the show a couple of times, but mainly things like "omfg, there are no words". Heh. We were just in seventh heaven, and probably in shock too, really. We wandered back to the Marriott in a daze afterwards and the buzz there was overwhelming, like gala night x 10. There was no way in hell we would have ever got a table to eat anything, and we hadn't eaten dinner before hand, because we were all a bit too nervous and excited, so we ended up driving over to the 24 hour IHOP and doing our eeeeeing and peeeeeing there, much to the amusement of the wait staff. I managed to get the last copy of the N&O from the newspaper box outside the restaurant, wheeeee! Hope there is a concert review in today's paper as well.

I will write my usual detailed recap later, but here are my quick impressions before we head over to the FCA breakfast.

I've been to something like 45 or 50 Clay shows. I've been lucky enough to witness so many of those special moments in the fandom over the past 7 years. The Merrillville AIW note. The historic Toronto JBT concert. The Las Vegas skating show. The CFC gala in Raleigh with the rings and the beard. But nothing compares to last night. Last night was the ultimate. Last night was the moment we've, or at least I've, been waiting for for 7 years. A concert where the production and the attention to detail matched Clay's talent, where it was filmed for posterity for the rest of the world to finally see what we've known all along. Clay Aiken is awesome. He is the ultimate entertainer. He can sing like no one else on the planet. He sang those songs last night from the tips of his toes to the ends of the hairs on his head. He reached deeper than I think he's ever reached before to give all he had. He had more than even I knew. He blew my mind. He was given the golden opportunity, and he took it and ran with it and blew it out of the water. He blew the roof off that place. He convinced everyone in that building that he is the real thing. The comments I heard as I exited the building were so exciting. Local people who had never seen him live before were raving about how talented he is. The fans were giddy, running around hugging each other and saying "oh my god, can you believe what just happened?" I wish everyone could have been there. I am so glad I was, I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Favourite parts? Mack The Knife, what an way to start the show. It'll blow your minds, y'all. Crying duet. Wow, what an arrangement, what a fantastic performance. In My Life made me cry, partly because I am the huge Beatles fan that I am, and partly because of the words and the way he dedicated it to the teachers. The whole Ruben, Clay and Quiana section of the show. Had us peeing our pants laughing. Suspicious Minds, not once but twice! Buttercup, the place just errupted. Unchained Melody, where Clay's voice went places I didn't think possible. Clay in the audience with the lady from Nebraska. How freaking sweet is he? How awesome that he did that, and it was the one moment in the show where I could kind of see his facial expressions from closer up. I can't pick one favourite moment at all. It was the total package. I love that PBS got to see and record what we've seen and known for so many years. I love that the world will see it all. I didn't want it to end. I am not sure Clay did either. He must have been so happy afterwards. He should be so proud of himself. I know how proud of him I am. And thrilled for him.

OK must run. More later.

[KAndre]

I love that man. So very much. Not to make anyone feel bad (and it helps that eventually everyone will see some of it) - but this was one of those Clay moments that you had to be there - like the first time he rose from the floor singing This is the Night - the first time he strode through the audience wailing Kyrie - the first time the spaceship stair rose to Where The Streets Have No Name - he and Quiana on Listen...

I can't deal with this keyboard but the eHP got fairly decent tickets during the pre-sale (I was in Sec A, Row G on the aisle with great site lines). Far enough back that I didn't do my usual dress-up and cleavage down for Clay. The eHP is lazy, though. We got to the venue by 7 to pick up our tickets and distribute the couple of extra we had, I found a padded seat and we sat our asses down, having graciously decided to let the mass of Clay fans shove their way into the auditorium before us. I went to the ladies for a second and PerusingOne, in the right place at the right time, "accidentally" overheard some venue people say the phrase "front row tickets". Her speed was phenomenal. She, Solo and Kimiye traded their tickets for front row tickets because they wanted to help out the nice venue lady. I have learned peeing is overrated. They informed me of their luck. I gnashed my teeth but went back to my seat. But a couple of minutes before the show started, the seat next to Kimiye was unoccupied and I knew that would look bad for the teevee so I took it upon myself to help Clay out and sit there. I'm kind that way.

More to come later as I am eating with a few friend from FCA for breakfast.

[keepingfaith]

Thanks everyone so much for the recaps. I'm having those for breakfast this morning and they taste like fresh peaches and cream. Slurp.

[ldyjocelyn]

From the CH:

From Twitter:

RubenStuddard: On my way home from Raleigh! I had a blast with @clayaiken last night! My brother really sounded great!

Love the "my brother." Such a cool friendship!

[keepingfaith]

Dreaming about the DVD. The PBS show may be chopped up for pledge breaks and edited to put the highlights within a 2-hour timeframe, but the DVD will have it all. The Moody Blues famous Red Rocks concert was edited for PBS, but the DVD had it all. The Clapton-Winwood concert at Madison Square Garden on "Great Performances" last year didn't include four or five songs that were on the DVD. So, not only am I excited about the PBS special, but I'm doubly excited about the DVD.

I was so excited last night that I spent time watching PBS, desperate for ANY connection to the night. Pledge drive is going on here and the Celtic programming - Women and Thunder - seem to always be on. Actually, I couldn't take much, because, because, well, because that stuff feels contrived to me, like Pussycat Dolls meets Riverdance. The Celtic and Eastern music of Loreena McKennitt is more my style. Anyway, here's what PBS Houston was offering for Celtic Woman:

$60 for the CD

$100 for the DVD

$150 for the CD and DVD

$250 for the CD and 2 tickets to the Celtic Woman concert in the Toyota Center in April.

Okay, knock me over with a feather ... Celtic Woman in the Toyota Center? They're way more popular than I thought, and apparently it's PBS that's responsible for much of their popularity. I say that because that's the only place I've ever seen or even heard of them. But then, there's that sheltered life I lead ...

But to the point, it augurs extremely well for Clay. And it's wonderful that Simon Renshaw is stepping up and out for Clay now. YAY! Oh, and for the record, EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

And speaking of EEEEEEEEEEEE, where's my girl merrieeee? Oh yeah, only MOVING!!! I can't wait to see Clay with you this year, merrieeee!

[preden]

So wonderful to see pics and read all the reports from last night, thanks to all who are giving recaps. Looking forward to planning a trip for a Clay concert, if he tours in August. Everyone in Raleigh have a good time for the rest of the weekend, I'm sure you are on Clay high!

[Couch Tomato]

Thank you guys so much for the reccps. It's funny but I was jealous before the show but not anymore. I'm just so thrilled for Clay and for everyone who was there that it was a success. I am so satisfied knowing that I'll get to feel just a part of what you're feeling right now one of these days. I love feeling that excitement! eeeeeeeeeeeeee.

I really hope none of this pops on you tube and that they are very diligent in taking things down - like when I couldn't find Pink after the grammys LOL.

Are we sure this show will be part of pledge week?

[luckiest1]

Back from breakfast. What a crowd! Nice to visit with lots of people from here and beyond. Thanks for organizing it FromClaygary!

OK, Tried and True PBS Taping recap part one. Heh.

I worked Thursday and then rushed home to pack last minute things, walk the dogs, grab a bite, and clean out my trunk before picking up cindilu2 and goldarngirl for the trek to Buffalo. Grabbed luckiest1daughter aka crimsonice along the way, clear sailing, no traffic, snuck up to the room in Niagara Falls, N.Y., then back down to the hotel restaurant for a late dinner. Watched two new Clay interviews and EEEEEEE'ed and squeeeeed. The plan was to party until flight time, but by 11 pm we were all conked out, so we set our alarms for 3 a.m. Do not believe cindilu2 when she tells you we made her sleep on the floor with no blankets. Ok, maybe we did but it wasn't intentional.

Hop in the cars at 3:45 am, hit the highway for the airport. Were accosted by a man banging on our car window at the economy parking lot, who scared us to death, but only needed info on what to do to park. Still, quite creepy at that time of the morning. Airport was packed but security moved quickly. cindilu2 wore a hoody just so she could experience the pat down. Tried in vain to find a freaking Starbucks but gave up when everyone started rolling their eyes at me. Settled for some flavoured water and a granola bar. Flew to Washington D.C. and napped en route. Got an imiatation Starbucks and an overpriced panini. Never want to connect in Washington D.C. again. What a terrible set up. We had to be shuttled to our connecting flight, then shuttled out onto the tarmac so we could walk onto the plane, and check our carry ons plane-side. WTF is up with all this shuttling. What a boring job that must be, driving people 50 ft that they could have walked but aren't allowed to for security purposes. Anyways, no delays into Raleigh, arrived at RDU on time, even though Claymatron kept phoning me asking where I was. Got the rental car, picked her up, met up with a whole bunch of Clay fans and eventually came to a decision about where to go for lunch.

Made our way to Porter's restaurant on Hillsborough, which was v.v. nice, even though the sidewalks were being torn up and it was an obstacle course just to get to the front door. Is all of Raleigh under construction? I sure seems so. Back to the hotel for a much needed nap, because it seemed like 8 p.m. would never come! Of course, we've been up since 3 a.m., that might be one reason. Finally, got dressed and headed over to the Marriott to experience the atmosphere and finally got my Starbucks! Better late than never. Hung around the bar for a while, chatted with friends and fans. It felt like Gala night. Asked someone where the venue was, only to be pointed down the street to this elegant looking building with pillars. Holy shit! Now I get why Clay was excited about going back there. I took pictures as we walked towards it. It kind of reminded me of way back when, in Detroit, when large groups of us walked to the IT from the Hard Rock Cafe. So, so cool.

The outer doors were open so we piled into the lobby. The NIP had a table set up selling the My Friend Mikayla book and pins. Uncle Jerry and Aron were there. The lobby got more and more crowded and the excitement was just palpable. Everyone was hugging and then in walked Reed, right through the crowd. OMG. He went up to the front where the doors were not yet open, and stood there chatting and looking beautiful. Everyone was trying to get a glimpse of him. People were lifting unnamed short people up for a better vantage point. It was something. I thought he was a brave, brave man. It didn't seem to phase him at all. Finally the doors opened and people started moving. We got in line and got chatting to an elderly woman and her son who were behind us. Turned out she was Clay's great aunt. Can't remember the exact relation but it was her husband who was somehow related to one of Faye's parents, I think. In any case, she was a real sweetie and couldn't believe the crowds and the excitement. We found our seats in section F and were delighted that Nick's mom and another sign language interpreter were seated right in front of our section. luckiestdaughter could read a lot of their signs, and they actually proceeded to sign the entire set list. She didn't catch all of it but she caught enough to know that Roy Orbison's "Crying" was a part of the show. Wheeeeeeeeeeee! I was so excited I was bouncing in my seat.

More later, I am being pulled away...........

[jamar1700]

OMIGOSH! I'm so excited for this CD!!!!!

I hope people can see that this really is the direction he wants to go in. He seems so happy and content.

---

Plans for concerts will have to wait. A couple of my other boyfriends will be getting my attention for a bit.

Next week I leave for a week & half in Fort Myers Florida. Meeting up with an online buddy for some Twin's Spring Training!!!!

I'm pretty pumped. Gee.

The things we do

[00lsee]

I feel as if I've just received word a good friend has come through major surgery with flying colors. You know what I mean? That relief that just floods through you and you have to sit down and say, 'Phew!'? That's it. Wow, y'all. I'm so glad you got to see this...this...extravaganza? Is there going to have to be a new word created to describe what happened? Because it doesn't sound like it was a 'concert'...but more of an event, an experience, an organic 'happening'. It's wonderful to have that Involuntary Clay Grin creeping up on me these days. Just like old times. This PBS special sounds like it will be a solid platform from which to launch the next phase of Clay's career. This makes me very happy.

Safe travels to the eHP returning home. Not surprised at to hear about the ticket tango.

luckiest, this made me smile:

The fans were giddy, running around hugging each other and saying "oh my god, can you believe what just happened?"

Now, THAT's what I wanted to hear. Awesome!

[luckiest1]

What can I say about the concert itself? The PBS producer Francois came out first and we all cheered automatically for him. He was impressed. He wanted us to cheer again and we raised the roof. I think he knew then that it was going to go pretty well. He told us Clay would be out in a few seconds.

It started with the musicians introducing Mack The Knife and then Clay was there with his back to us. Then he nailed it, and when I say nailed it, he killed it. I can't believe he wanted to do it over afterwards, except apparently he got all the verses mixed up. I didn't notice....he sure never missed a note. He never missed a note all night. Not one. It was unbelieveable. Next came Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You, which was my favourite from the GFI clack. I was in seventh heaven by this point. Our view was great because I love when I can see Clay full body, see his feet, and he was singing with his whole body, getting his legs right into it. I only wish I could have been close enough to see his facial expressions, but knowing that eventually I will have wonderful, close up clack is enough to satisfy me.

The rest is honestly a blur. He chatted between some of the songs, and told us that if he rambled they would just edit it out anyways so it didn't matter. He told stories about growing up in Raleigh that we hadn't heard before. It was quite cool about his 6th grade experiences, and how he had no friends so he sat with the kids who had emigrated from other countries and couldn't speak English. I could so idenfity with that, as I did the same thing in 6th grade. I just kept thinking that he couldn't outdo whatever song he sang, and then he'd outdo it again. I didn't know some of the new songs from Tried And True, so they will be new to me when the album comes out. I had to giggle at a couple of the choices like the Eso Beso one. Hee, seriously? He was so cute performing it. The dancers reminded me of the JNT05.

Anything with an Idol connection or a tour connection made the crowd go crazy. Yet he did it in a way that it wasn't an inside joke, and those in the audience who had never been to a tour would still enjoy it. It was funny when he asked us if we were surprised about Ruben being there, he tried so hard to keep it a secret. I doubt any fans from the boards were really suprised, but it was cool the way he started singing the song and then Ruben took over. The whole Baby Got Back medley thing was hilarious. I hope they do something like that on tour. I loved that he highlighted Quiana too. She deserves it.

I loved when he came into the audience and chatted with the lady from Nebraska. It reminded me of JBT Toronto. He seemed truly interested in her journey. I loved when he asked her why she wanted to take the bus, and she said "because I love you".

He told us when it was going to be the last song and then he did Unchained Melody. He was so proud to have his own version now after singing it for his whole life. He also told us he was going to redo some songs so we knew it wasn't really over. But then there was the encore of Moon River which I'd forgotten about. Then the retakes. Again, I wasn't really sure why he needed to retake anything because he was spot on the whole night, but I guess it was the random lyric generator thing. I was glad he had to retake them because it made it last longer. Hardly anyone moved from their seats. When it was finally over I was so sad yet so elated about the whole night.

[soulsista4clay]

http://books.google.com/books?id=TSUEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT45&dq=clay+aiken&as_brr=1&ei=5NubS-W6LpH2NI_9rccH&cd=11#v=onepage&q=clay%20aiken&f=false

I just wanted to show this cute vintage article from 2005. I wish I had thier shirts. It's about 3 fangirls.

Google books is my fave place. I found so many old and rare photos of Other performers (the old school ones because not that many photos of clay are rare due to the internet age) and articles that i thought were lost in time.

[preden]

Love your recap Luckiest, hope to see you this summer! I owe you a coffee remember?

[djs111]

Thank you to all who are sharing recaps!!!!!!!!!!!

[keepingfaith]

I have a question for one of our attendees, pretty please. About Clay's new sound, does it have a good beat and can you dance to it?

And slow dancing counts!