jmh123

I'm still feeling rotten, and have a headache to boot, hence my attitude today. Eh? Ever now and then isn't everybody entitled to a crappy attitude? If not, then I've fucked up again.

You're allowed, at least from my POV. Totally. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

So, nobody's excited about Clay and Jaymes having a baby?

WHOA!!!!!

http://www.tmz.com

I'll tell you, that is one prolific baby daddy.

Now will album sales pick up??

I just can't go on (insert Edward Gorey figure here) argh!

Does anyone have a knife? I have two wrists that need slitting!!!!!! I mean there is no reason left to live now Clay has fallen so far!!

Oh wait I just listened to Scarlett Johannsen's song..OMG bad doesn't even cover it! I think I will have to live on to listen to Clay !

AOL Sessions just started yesterday and already the death knell is sounding for the cd?

Um, yeah. And even though Sessions is real purdy. And getting lots of hits. But it didn't increase last weeks sales. Oh wait....

RANT TERRITORY AHEAD!!!! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!!

Ok, its been what, one month since the single OMWH was released to radio. Right?

IF I READ ONE MORE TIME IF ASHES, EIDN OF FALLING HAD BEEN THE SINGLE CLAY AND IF RCA WEREN'T SUCH A BUNCH OF INCOMPETENTS OUT TO RUIN CLAY'S CAREER HE WOULD HAVE BEEN KING OF THE MUSIC WORLD I MAY HAVE TO HURT SOMEONE!!!!!!

Lovely rant, CG.

I think probably other fandoms are kind of like this, I'm afraid. The AI thing breeds competitiveness, which, apparently, never slackens.

If we want any of the other songs to get played on radio...if we want this CD to continue to sell steadily....

WE HAVE TO GET BEHIND THE CURRENT SINGLE!!!!

all the hair pulling, finger pointing, and blaming is getting everyone no where really.

If fans need to do that to feel better...just get it done then lets just do things to help. If not..just let it go already...

00lsee, :bday2:

I'd like to have seen some eyeliner for the Sessions video, or at least a renewal of the eyelash dye. In those bright lights he looked washed out and his eyes looked half closed and sleepy. His lashes are so pale that you don't see those beautiful eyes without something to make them stand out. Because he partially closes his eyes when the lights are too bright, the eyeliner would have to be applied differently if he did use it--for example, it didn't work for me in most of the Planet Hollywood shots.

And what was with his never looking at the camera? The only time you see his eyes, really, is in the interview segments when he's looking at the person asking the questions.

A RL fan friend of mine tried to post for the first time during the listening party and couldn't--same old problem of people getting logged out when they try to post. She tried over and over. Sure wish we could solve this one.

Yeah, and the fact that he named SAU in that one interview, pre-release, as the song that would define him (or something like that, forget exact wording).....

Song most likely to be a signature song--that was the wording.

CG, we gotta keep it on the downlow that you can have a fulfilled life as a single person, lest the human population cease to reproduce.

But to this!

Maybe he needed to grow up, grow into himself, get that confidence and maturity BEFORE even thinking about a relationship.

I can still get into AOL music, chachatrusty.

Gets in line behind Clayzorback.

Thanks for the details and the caps. I'll run down to the office in the morning, print them out and make a flip book.

BWAH! Hopefully someone with the know-how will get those to you--Scarlett?

Sounds like now that the Spam run and the Canada visit is over, the future in Baku is looming long and large. {{{Karen eh}}}. If so, and I know you know this already--it does get better with time. Really. It does.

So.... what are his tour plans? Those of us in cubicle hell need to know that answer to that one, please.

None at the moment, but you know he ain't going to tell us nothing about nothing until it's a done deal.

It's a guitar special effect ... a foot pedal ... it goes "wah-wah" ...

It was popularized by Jimi Hendrix in Voodoo Child (Slight Return), Eric Clapton used it extensively with Cream and Blind Faith, and for me the most masterful use of it ever was by Stephen Stills (Super Session: Season of the Witch (near the end)). You hear it in a lot of funk songs, and Slash uses it a lot, too.

Runs off to Amazon.com mp3 site to download two versions of this from the Supersession album, the original, and the remix without horns: Super Session - Michael Bloomfield, Al Kooper, Stephen Stills . Each track 11 minutes long - Wahoo!! Jam!!

Welcome canfly! Thanks for welcoming yourself with such a lovely smile.

I am still loving the album and the variety of sounds on it. Frankly, I'm a little surprised Clay hasn't gotten dinged for OMWH being too eclectic, instead of just straight up pop. He gets to demonstrate his jazz chops, be a little bluesy, croon and whatnot.

And then there are those little panting noises after each of the "Falling"s at 2:24 and 2:27 that just about make me drop over dead every time I hear them. Have mercy....

I guess if it's necessary to have one's own opinion about what sounds good validated by someone with a byline, a blog, a penis, a Master's Degree in English, or who is too young to legally buy beer, one might be disappointed in OMWH.

Eh, whatever. I have ears and a brain and a heart, and I like what OMWH does to them.

And I'd add to that list in bold, the sales figures, which is what really caused all the criticism to kick in. Because you know if it doesn't sell enough, there must be something wrong with it.

My feelings haven't changed at all about the album; if anything I love it more. I used to skip OMWH, but now I don't. I love WOTW (waved at ldyjocelyn) "un-break-able...don't you wish you were." I love SAU more than I did at first, which was a lot. I think it's a little gem. Still having an affair with EIDN and "well well".

Another listening party is a good idea.

*Scarlett tiptoes into KAndre's living room...*

jmh, looks like this could actually happen. At least KAndre agreed to it in principle over the spiciy crawfish / queso fries tonight. I really would love to backpack Shanghai and some archeological sites with you, though. I can do China (or any place in Asia) at way less than most packaged tours so if there is any chance that we could do this next year I'll wait 1on the Shanghai leg for you!

Maybe by then there will be a miracle (or two) for me, and perhaps even an Asian tour for Clay to sweeten the deal??? **fingers and toes crossed**

All in all, the best time I ever had at a live music venue was when kd lang and the reclines would come through the bars and the clubs in Grande Prairie, Alberta. Maybe it was the beer or because they were relatively small places but back in the early eighties put that girl in a cowboy bar and you had something special. Really really special.

Oh, I would've loved to have seen that!

Back to the topic of songs and songwriters. Not every good song is written from personal experience. Johnny Cash had never set foot in a prison when he wrote "Folsom Prison Blues". He wrote it while stationed in Germany after seeing a documentary.

Some people have the ability to capture a place, an emotion or message even when they've never been there, never felt that way or even don't agree. Writing is a bit like acting, you don't have to be mad to play King Lear.

Worth quoting. I think of Clay as the kind of singer who can interpret others feelings and bring them to life. I'm not really that interest in hearing him bear his soul about his own inner life, unless he chooses to do so, wants to do so.

Last but not least :00003653: to laljeterfan!

:bday: to Mama Couchie!

And, :hb2: to muski's Carrie!

Stealing this beauty. Happy birthday all!! :F_05BL17blowkiss:

Scarlett steals KAndre's wireless keyboard....

Unless KAndre is serious about our flying to Hongkong on her birthday -- it's in the middle of monsoon season but hey, we've done crazier things before. You haven't lived until you've been through a Pacific cyclone or two.

Oh, oh, oh, and then on to Shanghai to the Museum???? Oh if only I had a job and beaucoup money I would pester you like crazy!!! Hong Kong is one of my favorite cities in the world. "Luckily" I realized my passport has expired, so I couldn't yield to temptation anyway.

My first concerts were when I was a teen. I was fortunate that all the big "soul music" acts played at the Memorial Auditorium in Raleigh and my parents let me go. Seems like there was a group almost every Saturday night. I can't even remember them all now: the 4 Tops, the Drifters, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles (sticks in my mind because we saw them at Shoney's afterwards), the Platters, and many more. Friday nights I would go to the Y to hear a local combo, and Saturdays to the Memorial Auditorium. I loved music and I loved to dance. Many groups also came to my college, too many to remember them all: Janis Joplin, Steffenwolf, Bonnie Raitt. My college had a big Spring concert every year with multiple acts, all free. The only one of those I remember now is Chicago. After college, the concert-going pretty much stopped. I did go to Union Grove one year to a big festival of folk music. Doc Watson was the most memorable performer there. I went to see a Marshall Tucker Band/Eagles bill in Winston-Salem in the mid-70s, the Grateful Dead in '77 in Durham, the Dead again in the early 90's in Chapel Hill, and I flew back home to see Eric Clapton in '94 or '95. Also in the 90s in NY I saw regional groups like Bella Fleck and the Flecktones, Christie Lavin, and the Horse Flies. In the 00's in PA, there was a big festival in May right across the street from me, where I saw regional groups like Zen for Primates, and one year I saw someone I'd adored as a kid, Melba Moore. I'd go to NY now and then for a Broadway show. And then came Clay Aiken!!

EW has one of those "articles" which is a series of photos with captions, topic: how to improve American Idol in the future. Slide 18, the final slide, has this:

I really think it would be a fabulous idea to have previous Idol contestants (especially the winners and runners-up) be the weekly mentors. I just feel that previous Idol contestants would actually be able to give helpful feedback (that is, real mentoring) to the contestants about performance issues.

The photos accompanying the blurb are of Clay and Melinda Doolittle.

Here's a link to the whole shebang: EW.

Ruben sued someone in his family who was managing him--his uncle?--for stealing money from him several years ago.

I was thinking about that 12 M difference in votes...This huge difference can;t be just the result of DC the audience rebelling against the pimping. I think DC has always been way ahead of Archie and all the pimping was to create the illusion that this is a very close contest in the same way that they were pimping Ruben since Clay was always ahead in the votes. I think this is very much like AI2 but with all the extra phone lines they had and the extra time to vote no phone anomaly occurred and the right guy i.e. the most popular guy won.

Was Paula and Randy singing with that guy in the cape? is there a you tube of this?

They did sing with the guy. They came on stage towards the end, after the band and most of the spectacle, when there was a stage full of people. It must be on YouTube. His name was Renaldo?

Word to whoever said that they could've skipped that, or the promo for the movie, and included a duet between Clay and Ruben, even a quartet with the final two. I thought it would've been better television.

As it turns out, Carrie and Ruben were the only ones that got performances in the two days of finale, and Ruben's was almost an afterthought. I'm not disappointed that Clay wasn't seen on the red carpet or in the audience.

I think you're right about the votes not being close for awhile but I think the constant rise of Cook's votes that started mid-way through was a surprise, and that it kept going up when his performances weren't as attention-grabbing for the last few weeks. I think this was partly because Archie, while very good and consistent, wasn't showing any progression, and his few efforts outside the box were not good. And partly because some of the others just crapped out or were thrown under the bus.

Simon did fire people up at the finale, but he always plays both sides and he had done so quite a bit in the media prior to that night, predicting a Cook win. He was right that he was wrong--he missed the point that people appreciated the risk Cook took more than the polished but predictable performance by Archuleta.

Has any other Idol ever left the show "owning" classic songs like Clay does Solitaire or (as one of the persons whose names are inscribed on) BOTW?

*George*

I love George Michael and I love that song. His personal life is what it is. I'm loving Eli Stone too--at first I didn't believe that was really him, he looks so different, and I didn't watch most of the season because I didn't realize he'd be on so much, but the song he sang at the end of the last episode I saw was wonderful (but I don't know what it was). He has a gorgeous voice, and "Praying for Time" is a song that's especially appropriate for American Idol, although I wonder if TPTB get the irony. Carrie's version was really moving and her performance even more than the vocals, but his was the bomb.

Also, Clive (ooo a Clive rant from me!!) didn't do him any favors having him sing DLTSGDOM. The song is not open for changing in accordance with the limitations of any singer's voice, i.e., lack of range. When you bring down the high notes, and move up the low notes, you've created some bastardized hybrid. The changes fit his voice, but it didn't come close to Clay's version which was true to the written song, and staggeringly good. I can't believe that Sir Elton would be happy with the way it was fundamentally changed by David A. And someone said that David A. changed the lyrics to Imagine, but I didn't hear him sing that one. If he did, he'd better watch out for Yoko!!!

KF, you are so right. I'm afraid having Archie sing that song just exposed his limitations. I think Clive keeps giving that song to people to see if any of them can do it better than Clay or George Michael or Elton John. It's like Simon with the Roberta Flack song. It's a bit boring for the rest of us after awhile though, and it's kind of "old school" and unnecessary, I think. I noticed that "the cryptkeeper" is a pretty common nickname for Clive among AI writers.

DLTSGDOM--why has Clay never recorded it? So many people want a recording of that song, random people who do google searches looking for it. I got lots of referrals because I had a performance mp3 on my blog back in 05.

People respect what Clay has, even if they claim not to like it. I wonder if they even know what it is that they're not liking. I've seen so many random posts saying that Archuleta's version didn't equal Clay's. There's a thread on TwoP in which people are posting their lists of the best Top 12 ever, and Clay is on so many of those lists. Some people feel compelled to add that they don't like his type of music, but also that they can't deny his voice. He's like "the VOX." Still. And there are so many people out there who voted madly for him that year, but then lost interest, many of them years ago, just natural attrition not any kind of negative thing. I wish more of them knew he had a new album out--but maybe they'll see it in stores or in iTunes or seek his music out, with his name coming up so often this week and last.

"You could sing the phone book might be true," but most people really don't want to listen to someone sing the phone book. OMWH is a fine album, really fine, and deserves to be heard. May it be a sleeper. "I think it can I think it can I think it can."

Imagine--I've been wondering about that but haven't sought out a video. He seemed to stumble over some words when he first started, but he skips the no religion and goes right to "no possessions..." which is a bit odd to my ear and less familiar and so I'm not sure if he got that line right or not. His father got in trouble for causing him to sing some different lyrics to Stand By Me, something taken from another song??

I'm here too! Welcome Tijala!! Oh boy, fresh meat an enchanting new member. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

What an interesting screen name you have!

Just cuz I needed sunshine at the graveside . . . LOL

A really bad parody!

Song: He Is Not Dead Yet

Sir Clay:

I feel happy. I feel happy!

I am not dead yet

I can dance and act and sing

I am not dead yet

The IT I know I bring!

I am not dead yet

No need to cry in bed

No need to call the doctor

Cause I'm not yet dead.

CHORUS:

He is not yet dead

That's what the Popstar said

No, he's not yet dead

He even sings in bed

He is not yet dead

He is still far ahead

Fret not about the charts because he's not yet dead.

You think he's dead

You bang your head

You cry because you fear he's dead

It makes me just see red

The biz can be a brute

Radio is mute

The airwaves living backwards are near.ly. dead

Old knaves put music in the grave

Moguls need to wake and see today.

Sir Clay:

I feel happy. I feel happy!

I am not dead yet

I can dance and act and sing

I am not dead yet

The IT I know I bring!

I am not dead yet

No need to cry in bed

No need to call the doctor

Cause I'm not yet dead.

CHORUS:

Oh we're off to hear

‘cause he’s not yet dead

We will all cheer

As the Knight sings in our head.

He’s coming too

With his parts made of Pure Steel

He'll be our musician

He’ll have Surprises to reveal!

CHORUS:

Oh he’s not yet dead

To Concerts we will go

The voice and man behold

We’ll give him all our dough

Even though we’re told we’re much to old

We'll be going to his shows

Because we're not yet dead

And he’s coming, too

His name will be Sir Clay

He'll be our musician

'Cause he’s not yet dead

He’ll kill

Us all

He gives us such a thrill

He’ll sing,

Entrance

Give us a Glance!

ALL:

Our hearts will Soar

We'll have Big O’s by the score

And we will shout by for MORE!

Because we're

not

yet

dead.

~Playfully stolen and fractured by Cotton

This is brilliant!!

heh, that report of Clay sitting int the audience of SPamalot before going to CA was fun. That he ast inthe audience, sure we are gone and that he could sneak in and out alone was amusing. I knew I should have gone a few days later, I am just not sure they are selling SRO right now.

Sometimes I feel like I must read with one eye closed, because I swear this is the first I've heard of this, too. I know he mentioned having snuck in and seen the play after they announced that he would be in it, but before he started, but I sure don't remember reading that he went after his run was over. Can you elaborate?

I don't remember the last time I logged in over at the OFC. Oops, yes I do, they day Clay blogged. Hee. Don't think I can drag myself back into that MB, though.....not even in the name of positivity.

I haven't heard this either.

I should have remembered that no bitching about the bitching rule. It won't happen again.

Hey, it ain't a rule, it's just a point of view. :F_05BL17blowkiss: I love a good rant myself, and I know none of it ever applies to YSRN. It's good to hear how she feels as well, and something to take into consideration. But it ain't no rule.

ETA: I figured you did, atinal. I was just being "cute."

In his monologue, Jimmy Kimmel just said, "I really don't care who wins. As far as I'm concerned In my heart there's only one American Idol--Clay Jefferson Aiken.

ETA: Thanks play. Yes the ads were hilarious. Cracked me up.

EEEEEW!!

You are all invited to camp out at my place when he starts doing those club dates, or Hometown Connection II, or whatever. Be warned, I do mean camp out literally.