FearofH2O

Me too couchie. I hope he just ran out of time.

I've downloaded a lot of Clack, but won't see the show until it comes to Charlotte. Of course I can sing every song, badly.

Wow . He really changed TFN. Wonder how or why he is doing that. Its great nevertheless.

OHN Perfect. I think Clay is a little snarkier than Jimmy Stewart was. I still need spellcheck.

Those four songs must be the most difficult part of the show and yet he is amazing on all of them.

OHN Bravo! Beautiful ending.

Me too. Growl or no growl he really puts his heart into it.

That was great TCS.

After trying three phones it must be the venue or area of town its in.

Wohoo the find is back.

He has an aunt and great aunt from Montreal in the audience, I believe.

He is sounding so good. I am worried he won't have anything left by the time he gets to NC.

Changed it up a little again?

Playbiller, It was one of the happiest days of my life when you ran out of those cards. Cellcert is pretty good, it just seems to lose the quieter notes.

He sounds fantastic and the audience is really loving him. It sounds like a rock concert there.

I heard a growl on the CH cellcert. Elzicord said that chat is cheering, so maybe its not just my ears.

Couchtomato, I'll be going to Charlotte and Raleigh. Staying close to home this concert. We are really lucky in NC. Playbiller, no bids on my extra tickets yet. They are pretty bad but hopefully if I donate them the recipients will just be happy to be in the house.

I love this section of the concert (Christmas Serenade). Its still two weeks before my first concert and this is the only song I always download.

After GMA and TES I expected to hear mellow Clay, so SR and JB sounds different. I guess I can't adjust my ears that quickly.

Loved the cellcert from this concert. Clay was in great voice, the CH cellcerter was enthusuastic and the crowd was fantastic. I wish every concert could be this good. I am, maybe needlessly, concerned about how he is really going full out with his voice. The concerts I am attending are just before Christmas and selfishly I want his voice to be just as great as it is now. Meanwhile I am very happy to be able to hear him almost on a daily basis.

Hey Claylove, Thanks for posting over here. Are you going to regularly check this board for questions? I would like to know when volunteers are being recruited for Wrap for Inclusion or when cash is needed for supplies. Are there city coordinators as well as state?

Here is my review of Greenville, which I will post on the CH. This concert is what dreams are made of. WOW! WOW! Clay was on fire last night in addition to being very chatty. First off we met at the Hyatt in Greenville for the preconcert party. Calliek, savagal and all the others who put this party together: Great job! Excellent company, very good food, terrific prizes made for a really good time. Shine in nc, a very enthusiastic fan, explained her wonderful photos and the special paper she uses. Afterwards Playbiller and I walked to the venue with trekkietoo, a very, very sweet fan. It was hot and humid, but at least no rain this year. We couldn’t get to our seats until 7:30 so, although air conditioned, we were packed in and hot in the lobby. When they finally let us in our seats were great, 12Th row center. Thanks calliek for arranging the tickets. I probably would have been in the third balcony if I had bought my own tickets. This is a great venue. The sound was so much better than at Toms River. When Clay appeared, we all jumped to our feet and a loud roar came from the crowd. This was the audience to die for, at least as far as I know. Clay asked us to stand for the fast songs so we were up and down during the show. It allowed us to burn off the calories from our meal. He acknowledged his mom was in the audience. It definitely did not impede his dancing; I’ll bet she was really proud. Jamie Foster was also introduced. We noticed her bopping to the music. She is a very real looking person. His voice seemed a little tentative at first. By the end of the concert he was in the best voice I think I have ever heard. He was probably pacing himself and anticipating the difficult songs ahead. When he totally let his voice out, it was so unbelievable: soaring, flexible and sounding effortless. By the time we got to the 00’s, his voice left me breathless. Just you seems to have been transformed into a rocking ballad, almost heavy metal like, with loud drums, soaring guitars and Clay’s powerful voice. Back For More did not appear to change. I have a feeling Clay is spending a lot of time really thinking and working on this next cd. There was so much more dancing than at the first concert, with more complicated moves. Now that he knows we love it and are not laughing at him, he is really exhibiting his inner rhythm while moving to the music. During the “ Great Balls of Fire” medley he got down on his hands and knees and sang to the female keyboardist, who had a big grin on her face. The ensemble appears to be in sync with each other and having a great time knowing they are pleasing a great number of people. Clay praises each and every person for their great work. I am so proud to be a Clay Aiken fan.

I agree couchtomato about fans not being too involved in BAF. Thats where the problems started (internet problems not BAF problems). It is amazing to me how much information fans have. I don't understand why the BAF is not allowed to make mistakes. Almost everyday I throw food out that I forgot to use, say something dumb, forget to do something that I meant to do, pay a bill late. So an organization which may be spread thin and uses volunteers to keep costs down, can, IMO, make mistakes too. My sister and I are going to GMA, thats one more than last year. I have a digital video camera I could bring, does anyone know if they are allowed?

Do we have to be nice to Ms. Walls too? The gossip item on MSNBC was just that. It made absolutely no sense at all. I don't think this was from WRAL. Some of the numbers were different. It appears to me that she was fed this information and printed as she received it without checking out any of the numbers. I think she mentioned $150,000 in salaries. The audit report shows $112,284 She showed that only $345,000 was distributed. This number does not include the $155,750 spent for Project Gonzo nor does it include the costs of the 2 galas $189,891. So when reporting the amount distributed she includes the income from the galas but does not deduct the related expenses. Almost half of the travel related to Project Gonzo. Which makes sense due to training and observations of other camps. I did a calculation in the den of the Clackhouse and by deducting the income and expenses of the galas the resulting distribution of revenues to programs was more like 78% than the 35% or so they reported. Sorry for the numbers talk. I really dislike the unjust manipulation of them.

Ansamcw, I thoought your analysis was great. I especially liked the following: I don't get upset at others post either. Sometimes I do wish they would go away. We know more about Clay than the public ever will. I think of him as being strong, determined, willful and very funny. His public image, particularly right after AI, seemed to be weak, vain and not in control. Although some critics were able to see the personality that we see during his concerts, it hasn't seemed to have helped with younger people. I am not sure how he can be sold to the twenty somethings but I can see him appealing to older males, if he could be heard for the different and classic voice that he has. I have two sons in their thirties. We have all loved music and there was not a minute in the day that we did not have the radio or stereo on. Their musical tastes run to a lot of older artists: Frank Sinatra, Elvis or quirkier artists: Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen, Bob Wills. Clay is not on their radar as he is lumped in with current pop artists and they are not interested. My point, I think, is that Clay can benefit by seperating himself from the current crop of pop artists by accentuating his difference from them. That can be in attitude, style of clothing and selection of songs. Looks like attitude is in the works. But if he had some songs on his cd that were written by unexpected song writers written specifically with Clay in mind. For example Neil Young or anyone else not usually seen in his genre.