keepingfaith

My personal belief is that it can be counter-productive to try to sell Clay to other people. Nobody sold me on Clay -- he did it all by himself. I know people, myself included, who tend to pull back when something is pushed. I have to walk into it freely and unaware, which I did on May 24, 2006. I think Clay created new fans every single time he was on Idol, every night he performed on Broadway, every time he appeared in concert, and with every late night talk show appearance, and so on into the future. But no matter how many times he appears on TV, or on Broadway, or, please God, on the big screen, not everyone will feel the connection. And that, in my estimation, is what makes us superior beings. Okay, I'm exaggerating a little bit. Just a touch. Clearly a lot of people didn't care for Elvis, or The Beatles, or Aretha Franklin (can you believe it?), Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra, or (name of every singer/entertainer that's come down the pike). People have to not only like the singer's voice, but also like the music the voice is singing. Of course, if you've fallen under the spell of Clay's voice, the latter is just thrown out the window -- then you're in the territory of wanting Clay to sing the songs that inspire him and make him proud. So far, I am grateful that these have not included Mongolian Polkas, but I'm probably open to that, too. He still surprises me.

So you thought I was done? and the most viewed rivet in history: So many great memories from that night .... Sugar Daddy! .... I'll always remember that scorching hot look on his face after he sang ... "Oh I can't forget this morning ... and your face as you were leaving ... but I guess that's just the way the song goes." GAH for that adamant look in his eyes when he said that. ETA: And YAY for indoor concerts in Houston in July.

I know what you mean, and yet, he's really a product of the new millennium. If he'd had his break on Ted Mack's Amateur Hour on radio, for instance, how would anyone have known about those come hither eyes, and shell-pink lips, and how his hands caress a mike stand, besides he'd be an old man now with his glory in the past, and I like him young and hot, right NOW. More Clay in Houston (I like the sound of that, he should come back and pose for us verra verra soon):

Yes, one year ago tonight we were wrapping things up at Birraporetti's and making our way across the street to Jones Hall for this incredibly photogenic man:

You know, that's true. My mother has worried her entire life and she wouldn't know what to do if she couldn't be in a dither about something. I think I was following along in her footsteps as a kid, and then I read a line in a book about Benjamin Franklin saying that worry is a total waste of time because 95% of what we worry about will not happen and the other 5% is best dealt with when it materializes. It took effort to push worry out of my mind, but I made the effort whenever I recognized it in my conscious thoughts and pretty soon the nagging worrying evaporated. I'd get all uptight about something -- a bill or a medical problem, just anything, and say, "Self, forget about it, this is in the 95% group." It worked for me. Another thing I got rid of was regret, the twin sister of worry. If it did or didn't happen, it's done and tomorrow is more important than yesterday. This can be interpreted as sublimation, but I know I'm happy, and my mother has never really been happy because she's always too worried about something going wrong. I remember when I told her I was pregnant and she was devastated because she was going to have another person in this world to worry about. She took it personally that I was having a baby to increase her emotional baggage. Being here now is impossible if our minds are constantly in the past and future, and, ultimately, living in the here and now is all we have that's real. Okay, a movie for Clay. It would be funny and poignant, that's for sure. After the guard scene in Spamalot, which to me was classic Laurel & Hardy, I can envision Clay Aiken playing the life of Stan Laurel on the screen much the way Robert Downey, Jr. played Charlie Chaplin. After Mike Nichols raved about Clay's comedic gifts, I'd be surprised if he doesn't have something in development with Clay in mind. ETA: Bottlecap! Where can I get my hands on that sandwichboard? That's hilarious!

My own perspective is that there is no drought. When I came into the fandom Clay was having a "silent summer" literally. Nobody had heard him speak for months. All that the fans had were a few pictures here and there Hockey Game, Kelly Concert, LAX, YMCA and that was about it. Since the Foster Gala in 2006 he's been pretty available for us to know where he is, what he's doing, and always something coming up on the calendar. He's taking time off now, yet I've seen him on TV this week on VH1 (which I took as a positive), a couple of Rewinds, and he's going to be on CNN tonight. It's not live and in person and he's not singing, but it's Clay Aiken in the public consciousness. This is just me, but I don't care a bit about a blog. He did blog, a great message in my opinion, when OMWH came out. I totally appreciated the details he provided about the CD and his career, and I'm not jumping up and down jonesing for another blog unless and until he has something to share. Clay's not a puppet, and he's not a wholly-owned subsidiary of the message boards. I don't need to feel like I always know what's coming. I like being surprised. Everytime Clay has blown me away, it has come out of nowhere and kicked my ass. I'm willing to let him have his own career path and then spring it on me, when he's ready. My feelings about his personal life can be wrapped up in one sentence. I hope the love he takes is equal to the love he makes. I bought the Musicpass yesterday at Target. I was there earlier in the week and the rack was full except for the first slot -- Clay's. After hearing stories about Target having it in a box and not displayed, I asked an associate about it. She ran her little gizmo over the bar code and told me they were all sold, but they would be getting more in. I checked Friday and nothing, and yesterday they were there. So, I don't know who is buying all these Clay Aiken Musicpasses in Seabrook and Kemah, but I need to find out if there's a secret cell of Clay fans around here. I've mentioned before that Clay sells in the Walmarts and Targets in my area, and that's been the case since I started monitoring it with ATDW. There's got to be something else going on in addition to the activities of Desertrose and me. Maybe I need to walk down 146 with a sandwichboard - Clay Aiken Fans UNITE!

I decided to sort through some of my picture files tonight and got totally hung up on the David Foster Gala: I don't exactly know why this one knocks me for a loop, but I'm looping anyway.

Hi Kimiye! I arrived at the last eHP bash after you had left and was so sorry to have missed seeing you. Next time, though, for sure! I'll never forget Orlando -- we had some good times that weekend, in spite of my freaking toe! Thanks so much for the audios!

How about a little sumpin' sumpin (mandatory ellipses)

I'm piling on the TLS love. With that performance, he took one of my fave songs of all time and made me forget about the BeeGees, with Robin Gibb in the house. After watching rewind again, I could only sigh at Lamont Dozier's comments to Clay on the very first week of finals competition: Clay, you look like you've already arrived. You look like a professional. And that's the look of a star. He was so right, Clay had already arrived. Simon's comment about ICHM sounding like Motown: The Musical made me think, HELL YEAH! That's what I want, Motown: The Musical starring Clay Aiken with a full version of Reach Out, I'll Be There. Kareneh, give a big hello to guitargirl for me when you talk to her again. I have so many wonderful memories from Houston to Dallas and back to Houston and then to Tulsa and back to Dallas. I have no memories of that final leg of the trip from Dallas to Houston. Must have been on autopilot.

WHAT? Have I heard that story? Cuz ya'll know for years years, even before Clay, I was COUCHTOMATO, not couch tomato... Clay renamed me too. bwah. Kareneh knows this better than me, but the recollection is that Karen Eh? posed a chat question about auditioning for Spamalot, or choreography maybe?, and in his response he addressed her as Kareneh. Thus, it is written. Did anyone watch the Capitol Fourth last night? I saw parts of it on the repeat and was less than impressed. Huey Lewis was terribly cute and he still looked verra verra nice in his jeans, but the voice has weakened and the music was less than compelling. He was followed by Taylor Hicks who tried mightily but could not ignite the crowd. It was kind of sad near the end of Dancing in the Dark when he tried to recreate the Springsteen/Courtney Cox video moment. He went off the stage to the front row where people were sitting on their blankets and he extolled them to Get Up! yet they were unmoved. Finally, he just pulled this poor woman up from the ground to do a 7-second turn with him, yeah, it was also not compelling. The only electricity of the night came when the fireworks started going off to Jerry Lee Lewis singing Great Balls of Fire. My favorite parts of the show were Brian Stokes Mitchell and Hayley Westenra. As many times as I've heard Impossible Dream done badly, hearing it sung well makes up for everything. ETA: Just remembered that at the hour Clay is coming up on the CW network to sing ICHM and charm me yet again!

I remember it well, Aikim. Just beautiful, and he made us all pretty misty that night. Wasn't that the same night he went to chat and changed Karen Eh? to Kareneh?

I haven't watched the latest competing videos at LBFCA, but I'm pretty sure BMUB will get my vote just for the iconic profile with "ooooo-ooooo ooooo-ooooo." I'm with jmh in that I didn't like the original song at all. When I heard it announced for Clay's 60's selection, I was immediately disappointed. Of all the great songs of the 60's Clay was going to sing Build Me Up Buttercup??? WTF could he be thinking? But then the music started, Clay hit that first note and I realized I should never prejudge anything he ever chooses to sing, whether I particularly liked it before is totally immaterial. Yeah, Dawg, I was entertained too! And I give it a Standing O for Covert Sexy.

I think he already has a brighter star than anything in the heavens named after him ......

Unforgettable!

I've been in the Aiken Fog today reliving my first time ever to see Clay Aiken, one year ago tonight in Frisco. After all is said and done, that one will always be my favorite. I still can't believe my good fortune to end up right in front of the stage for my first taste of the magic. And it was magical. Nobody can take away from me that this was the first song I ever heard Clay sing live, and I'll never doubt he looked right at ME. It was an electrically charged thrill of a lifetime to be there that evening. I can still feel the fireworks bouncing from Clay's whole being and making my eyes twinkle. His were on fire. The man just makes girls and grown women scream, that's all.

Clay still has four spots on the AOL Top 11 Video Countdown today - Nos. 1, 2, 5 and 7 -- and all 12 songs on OMWH are in the Top 24 of Most Played Songs and Clay still has No. 1 and No. 2. Mediabase has him at #28 with a Spincrease of +8 and a weekly total of 125 spins and an audience impression of 0.345. I noticed that most of the spins heretofore have been overnights but spins are seeping into a.m. - midday - p.m. and evening -- little by little. Also, WRAL in Raleigh had been decreasing spins for over a week and today they show an increase of +3 so at least that's moving back in the right direction.

Claygasm, when I read posts like your last one I feel a distress coming from your words. And that you are really suffering from what the sick tabloidism is perpetrating. I get it. But, I could give a shit about the tabloids and their tales. I fell in love with Clay in 2006 and heard my first "gay rumors" after getting on the boards. Never heard about the mess til I read from the fans about how devastating the whole thing was for Clay's career. Nobody I knew had ever mentioned anything at all about any of that. It just never reached me via any medium. But in my blissful ignorance, I thought Clay was a once in a lifetime singer and a sweetheart of a guy -- little did I know he was no longer viable because small people were whispering about him -- people that read rumor rags and watch celebrity tabloid TV, or worse keep up with creepy internet rumor blogs, and believe it .... well, I could go on forever but let me just say that not only are those people not driving my train, they aren't passengers, they can't even get on the track. Maybe I just know the right people, but it's been my experience that when I mention Clay Aiken to just about anybody they will say Bridge Over Troubled Water almost every time. That song is his calling card. I'm not so sure many people on the street could name a Kelly song or a Daughtry song, and unless they were country fans they sure couldn't name a Carrie song, because I can't name one. I have a feeling there may be more people like me than you realize, who think Clay Aiken has a one in a billion voice and an extra helping of charisma, charming wit, and animal magnetism. Tell me another person that's ever gone through the Idol mill with such gifts. Clay has a solid fanbase still with him every day after five years and I'm happy to be a part of it and love every minute of it. Some things piss me off in this fandom, but it's never been Clay. I know absolutely NOTHING about concerted efforts of people to stream on AOL. Who knew? I go over there to check it out and watch a Session every day or two. I think it's GRAND that he's plastered all over those pages. If this is too Pollyanna for you, I accept that. I just love Clay Aiken and life's too short to be bothered with small-minded people that whisper and giggle about him, or gag or whatever they do. They whisper and giggle and gag about everybody, you know.

My only problem with WINY is that the bass is overpowering. I have to change the settings on my player in the car when it comes on, otherwise it's headache material. The song itself I love very much. Wait a minute, I have a second issue ... it ends much too soon. Clay's still singing, ya'll!!!!

Sooo, you humbugs think it would be better if Clay wasn't showing up on the AOL charts? He's been dominating both video and audio charts for WEEKS. If ya'll think that's meaningless, then why would Clay / RCA put his stuff out there? I know that the inclusion of OMWH in the Blender list of "must listens" was based on the AOL charts. Personally, I think people going to the audio and video sites and seeing Clay Aiken everywhere are checking them out. I don't think it's all us, but that popularity breeds interest. If nothing else, this shows that Clay's fanbase is alive and well after five years. I think that's akin to crossing the Rubicon, because everybody's got to know this is no fluke, no passing fancy, no flash in the pan. Record sales are becoming immaterial these days and I've come to the conclusion that the only people actually buying CDs, other than hard core fans of an artist, are people who don't have internet access. People are stealing the music these days and everybody knows it and that's the way it goes. Maybe just about everyone who likes Clay Aiken owns a computer, and the NJU's have pulled off a million free rips. Clay Aiken is still the biggest star to come out of Idol, regardless of how many records Carrie or Daughtry or anyone else has sold in the short term. Clay's star is more than the music. Clay is the only one of the American Idol alums who threatens their brand and has from the day he stepped on their stage. Again, you may say I'm a dreamer .... but when I came into the fandom two years ago, lot of people, FANS, were already writing him off. God, I hope they are the ones that are GONE! Hey, I noticed on iTunes, that Something About Us is the second most downloaded song after OMWH. Think the Obama video had something to do with that? I think I'll leave you humbugs alone today. I'm in a GREAT mood.

Every single track on OMWH is in the AOL Top 20 Songs this morning: 1. On My Way Here - Clay Aiken 2. Ashes - Clay Aiken 3. With You - Chris Brown 4. Falling - Clay Aiken 5. Lover All Alone - Clay Aiken 6. Grace of God - Clay Aiken 7. As Long as We're Here - Clay Aiken 8. Everything I Don't Need - Clay Aiken 9. Picture to Burn - Taylor Swift 10. Sacrificial Love - Clay Aiken 11. The Real Me - Clay Aiken 12. Where I Draw the Line - Clay Aiken 13. What Hurts the Most - Rascal Flatts 14. No One - Alicia Keys 15. Weight of the World - Clay Aiken 16. Something About Us - Clay Aiken 17. One Step at a Time - Jordin Sparks 18. My Wish - Rascal Flatts 19. Realize - Colbie Caillat 20. What I've Done - Linkin Park On the AOL Top 11 Video Countdown: 1. On My Way Here - Clay Aiken 2. Ashes - Clay Aiken 3. I Kissed a Girl - Katy Perry 4. Lollipop - Lil Wayne 5. Everything I Don't Need - Clay Aiken 6. Where I Draw the Line - Clay Aiken 7. Take a Bow - Rihanna 8. Damaged - Danity Kane 9. No Air - Jordin Sparks 10. Bleeding Love - Leona Lewis 11. Bye Bye - Mariah Carey On Mediabase this morning - Clay is at #29, but has a bullet and is up three spins. I have to believe the traffic that Clay's getting at AOL is getting some attention somewhere. His videos are the only ones in the Top 11 that are Sessions videos, and he's completely dominating the Most Played Songs.

Gee, I thought my montage was appropriate for Sunday morning ... and here you guys have gone right to the beautiful, humongous ........... feet. Yeah, that's the ticket!

Muski, are you sure? I can't imagine it's been downloaded enough this morning to be used up. Hey I just checked and it was still downloadable at http://www.sendspace.com/file/x6hitx I was seeing the universal love in his eyes -- and that song expressed my desire to hold him like Bernadette would do. I do love him, you know. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, FEAR! :bday2: :smiley_84: Okay, Couchie, you must have put this one in just for MEEEEEE: :thsmilies-6728:

laljeterfan, those are gorgeous quilts. My ggrandmother was a quilter and when she died she left every member of the family one of her quilts, even the babies. We still have them, and though she's been gone for over 50 years, they're still exquisitely beautiful and she couldn't have left us anything more precious.