#27: Ya' gotta give me somethin', honey!

[Cotton]

And on that note - I'm headed to bed - to sleep - perchance to

Dream!

[clayzedover]

Oh dear, I've fallen in love with a teddy bear! How CUTE are they? Such talented people on these boards... I think I saved the link to the ones on ebay and will check it out for you.

ETA: item has ended on ebay. Sorry.

And, because it's still yesterday where you are, am sneaking in here and taking this opportunity to say:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SKYBAR!!!!!

What a GREAT review that is! Hope we see that all over the place, and more just like it. EW can go suck an egg.

[playbiller]

I'm tired and just got home. I wanted to bring a few notes

No one was sitting in the D101 seat tonight, so they brought up a guy from C101. I think he made up a last name, it was "peachy". Two well dressed and older women were sitting in the B row and at the end of the show, Jerome came out for them and gave them a hug before taking them back stage. After the show, Jerome announced that Clay would not be coming out tonight.

Happy birthday Skybar - tired, must sleep, dog wants to play, life is tough.

[Claygasm]

I have a friend coming from out of town tomorrow. It was a last minute visit. She is not getting vacuuming or dusting, but she will get a clean bathroom, clean sheets and clean towels.

So I am up late doing laundry....

YAY to the good review from the AP! Fingers crossed for more good reviews to come!!

YAY to muski and couchie having good days at work!!

YAY for those adorable bears!

From the OFC (with permission) via CV:

BFS post from OFC. Say is was OK to post. Adding my eeeeeee here too. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/thdancingbananalove.gif)

and he said Clay's time cannot be extended bc Clay has concets to perform, that he will be off foe a week and then start his concets...take it for wha it's worth.

he did mention that he talks to Jerome.

Concerts? Right after Spamalot? I don't think so!!! What I bet this guy means are appearances in promotion of the new CD - GMA, maybe Letterman, SNL would be nice (pipe dream...), probably Leno and definitely Kimmel, maybe with a mini-concert. And of course, there could be an AI appearance. I suspect the guy just knows that Clay can't continue in the show because he will be off singing and he just assumed concerts. I mean, he need to release the album and promote it before he can do a tour!

But I will take any and all appearances I can get!

Clay is very cute, you know!

I think my towels are done.

YAY! I can go to bed!!

[Lotus]

In Sept 06, at David Foster's Star Search Gala both the owner of the River Rock Casino and the owner of Mission Hill Winery paid $500,000.00 each for a special grand piano with Clay to sing 3 songs and David Foster to play for him.

Could these recitals already have happened and no one in Claydom heard about them? Is such a thing possible?

[Gibby]

Gibby, merryclay, this link should work, if not, just go to the linked homepage and scroll down. It is the same AP piece with a beautiful picture. (what a great review!!11!)

Clay Aiken Goofy In Spamalot, Aiken A Team Player On Broadway

Gibby, if you click on it, it gives a 404 error, but still opens the CBS page - click on the 'theatre' tab, and they have the lurvely review front and center!

Thanks for the link! I'm so excited that Clay is getting some good press! Doing so well in Spamalot just might be the start of a bit more positive image in the press for Clay.

Cotton, those bears are absolutely adorable.

Happy Birthday, skybar!

:hb2:

[laughn]

cindilu2 wrote:

I posed this question at the CH and never did get a definate response...so here goes! In the "Not Yet Dead" scene Robin says he has a brother who is a guard. Then is the guard he plays in the "Prince Herbert/Lancelot comes out" scene his brother? Prince Herbert says that you can see Lancelot pumping at the Camelot YMCA so the palace is close to there.....see I really need to get a life!!!

LOL at 'getting a life.' I so understand.

Well, let me give it a shot here....that line about 'seeing Lancelot,' I take to mean, 'if you get to Camelot, you will see him there,' not that it is close by or anything. Prince Herbert lives at Swamp Castle, not Camelot.....and....Robin says his brother is a guard in Camelot. Saying that, I don't think either the first guard (tower guard) or Herbert's guard are Robin's brother, as neither one of those scenes happens in Camelot. So, the line is a nod to Brett? Possibly.

skybar, so sorry I'm late on the Happy Birthday! Hope it was a good one! :F_05BL17blowkiss:

[skybar22]

Thanks again to everyone for the birthday wishes. I appreciate them.

[merrieeee]

Thanks guys for the responses!

I feel happy!

[Ansamcw]

I posed this question at the CH and never did get a definate response...so here goes! In the "Not Yet Dead" scene Robin says he has a brother who is a guard. Then is the guard he plays in the "Prince Herbert/Lancelot comes out" scene his brother? Prince Herbert says that you can see Lancelot pumping at the Camelot YMCA so the palace is close to there.....see I really need to get a life!!!

Hee...and I found this question totally amusing. First of all I don't think the characters were meant to be connected at all. If you watch the movie even the not dead yet scene is not connected to Lancelot and Robin at all. Same with Dennis and Galahad. They just found a way to use these really funny bits in the movie to introduce the knights in the play. Besides...the first castle was definitely not in Camelot...the swamp scene is supposed to be far from Camelot since they already traveled quite a bit in finding grail.

I'm tired and just got home. I wanted to bring a few notes

No one was sitting in the D101 seat tonight, so they brought up a guy from C101. I think he made up a last name, it was "peachy". Two well dressed and older women were sitting in the B row and at the end of the show, Jerome came out for them and gave them a hug before taking them back stage. After the show, Jerome announced that Clay would not be coming out tonight.

Hey play how many shows is that now? Interesting bit about the 2 older women. Maybe their family.

keepingfaith...interesting article. I definitely feel like this is what happened to a lot of ATDW reviews, lots of reviewers not even bothering to listen to it. They just made assumptions based on the song and what they think Clay sounds like. BUT...I don't think they can do the same with theater because its pretty easy to verify if they actually went to see the show. I think the people that work in the theater knows who the critics are and will be on the look out for them. I also don't see any anomaly with the EW review except that its pretty obvious the guy was looking for something to complain about. He could be pretty accurate in saying that Clay was subtle or tentative or not very silly, but for critics that came in with an open mind and not trying to be oh so cool, that can actually be something good, as the ap reviewer pointed out...this is Clay simply blending in with the ensemble and not trying to steal scenes. I remember that DHP was subtle and dead pan in his delivery. He didn't try to be silly at all. Thats the same thing I noticed in the movie. They were not acting for laughs. Each character was played with seriousness...its the situations and the dialogs that was silly and funny and the earnest and serious delivery made it more effective. I wonder if the tentative nature EW guy saw in Clay was deliberate because he is supposed to be cowardly.

WORD cg on what the box office guy said. First of all I think this guy just got it from hearsay...Clay or Jerome probably won't be talking about Clay's business with just anybody. I assumed he meant Clay will be busy with appearances right after the show. If there will be concerts this year I think that will be after his promo and having some time to prepare the show.

[claytonic]

I'm also delighted to hear that Mike Nichols is taking such a personal interest in Clay's growth in the role, if that is actually true. I hope it is. I liked Hannah's early comment about him taking direction very well (or extremely well, can't remember). I just thought at the time it was an excellent sign.

Well.I recall Simon Cowell saying something about Clay being one of the few that listens and takes criticism like an adult. I think Clay's intelligence and humility has played a huge part in his success.

[Cotton]

I'm wondering if the concerts are the David Foster Gala commitments. I don't think those have been done yet, right? It can't be the album tour, can it???

That's what I was wondering about yesterday.

If they have happened, the fans are slipping!!

Especially the Claynadians!! :cryingwlaughter:

Good Morning!

[aikim]

Good Morning Everyone,

28 Days until Spring! (waves to jazzgirl)

71 Days until The Closing Night of Spamalot!

73 Days until The New CD!

Everyone have a great day!

Kim

[cindilu2]

cindilu2 wrote:

I posed this question at the CH and never did get a definate response...so here goes! In the "Not Yet Dead" scene Robin says he has a brother who is a guard. Then is the guard he plays in the "Prince Herbert/Lancelot comes out" scene his brother? Prince Herbert says that you can see Lancelot pumping at the Camelot YMCA so the palace is close to there.....see I really need to get a life!!!

LOL at 'getting a life.' I so understand.

Well, let me give it a shot here....that line about 'seeing Lancelot,' I take to mean, 'if you get to Camelot, you will see him there,' not that it is close by or anything. Prince Herbert lives at Swamp Castle, not Camelot.....and....Robin says his brother is a guard in Camelot. Saying that, I don't think either the first guard (tower guard) or Herbert's guard are Robin's brother, as neither one of those scenes happens in Camelot. So, the line is a nod to Brett? Possibly.

Hee! For the record, I didn't ask the question, I answered it.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I firmly believe a lot of these 'critics' had their review of ATDW written before they ever heard a note (if indeed they ever heard a note). They just filled in a few blanks after they had a track list. And then there are those that just parrot whatever the 'cool' kids are saying, because that's what they do. As far as the EW review goes - I can believe he's seen Spamalot - just not convinced he saw Clay in Spamalot. Or perhaps he saw the first show or two, where he was terrific, but hadn't settled in to the silliness and ad-libbing yet. Regardless, the whole thing reads as somebody really reaching for a reason not to like him, not to give him his due. That's what EW does now though, and that's why I don't have a subscription any more.

[Cotton]

Have y'all seen this??!!!

SPAMalot Game!!!

[00lsee]

In Sept 06, at David Foster's Star Search Gala both the owner of the River Rock Casino and the owner of Mission Hill Winery paid $500,000.00 each for a special grand piano with Clay to sing 3 songs and David Foster to play for him.

Could these recitals already have happened and no one in Claydom heard about them? Is such a thing possible?

Hey, Lotus, the good news is, this will be all new clack for you! The downloads for the gala can be found here (look for files labeled piano auction to see this in article in action). Clay used the same technique David Foster did to sell TWO dinners to benefit the BAF during his recent golf fundraiser. Two bidders got very high, so the prize was duplicated so both could donate/win. I remember being dazzled by Clay being able to raise so much money and very impressed with David Foster for his quick thinking.

Good morning, y'all!

The bottom line about whether Sir Robin is/is related to any other character Clay plays in Spamlot? Each viewer can use their own imagination and make him be or be related to whoever they want. Only Mike Nichols and Eric Idle know for sure, eh?

waves to Karen Eh?, for loaning me an "eh"...

Glad to hear news about some eHPers in NYC this week! More details, more details!

[Carolina Clay]

Have y'all seen this??!!!

SPAMalot Game!!!

Hello, Cotton! I first saw it on Cha Cha's SPAMALOT site and featured it two blog entries ago. Fun game, for sure!

Love, love, love the AP review! I was working on my blog Friday and just happened to drop by here right after that hit the wires. Changed the whole thing around in a skinny minute.

Have a great day, FCA! :F_05BL17blowkiss:

Caro

[luckiest1]

Found this on the CH:

Scarlett over at CV wrote:

This time we were slightly to the right of where toni7babe & I sat last week. My 2 companions hadn't been on front row center before. The got the seats directly in front of the Slo-mo TTTR and the coconut dance. Dear Solo gave me the seat closest to the center because this still counts as a "celebration week" for me, so I died once more on the bottle dance. The 3 of us were in the same spots (relatively) as we were in Fort Myers but this time Solo couldn't do any hitting. I was squeezing and hanging on to her left arm and she got bruises on her right from PerusingOne. We may have to put it in ice.

One new thing that they both saw and I didn't had to do with the confetti at the end. Last week, I saw Sir Galahad catch a bunched up wad of confetti, separate them and toss them back into the crowd. They tell me that "you just had to see it" but this is the best description I can give.Well apparently tonight, Clay also caught some confetti, looked at them with purpose while rubbing them and the way he did it gave the impression that he was um "making the confetti very happy". Unfortunately I didn't see it (wah! headbang!) but I will pay more attention to my surroundings next time.

According to one of our other companions, only the rightmost & leftmost couple of seats in the balcony were unoccupied, there weren't a lot of Clay fans in the audience (I actually heard the "golden larynx" line), but he still got a huge cheer in the end!!!

Oh, also he did a little jig during the peasant award before attempting (& failing once again) to shake the peasant's hand before the picture was taken.

I didn't plan on a stage door stop tonight because I have a bit of a sore throat but my 2 companions hadn't had anything signed so we swung by. The cold rain was starting to get worse though so it was a good thing Jerome came and told everyone that it was cancelled. I think the weather will improve as the weekend goes, and I'll also go willingly to bed early (sort of) tonight so as to be nice and well when they have it again.

[djs111]

Did DHP do the missed handshake thing? Every time someone reports on that, I can't help thinking of Ripa and her stupid comment, and imagining he is poking at her.

[cindilu2]

Did DHP do the missed handshake thing? Every time someone reports on that, I can't help thinking of Ripa and her stupid comment, and imagining he is poking at her.

I do believe this is all Clay, improvising at his best. Having seen it go both ways, shaking the peasant's hand, and doing I the 'missed' handshake, I have to say it's totally in character and a great addition. I really doubt that it's any kind of commentary on Ri pa - it's just perfect for the situation. Most of the peasants I've see truly seem to be bedazzled by being up there (even the ones who knew what was coming, IMO). They almost always reach for the 'Arthur' before their name is read, and the King has to direct them around the stage. Robin's position at the end of the line lends itself to being missed. (Not counting the ones who zero in on him, lol).

[merrieeee]

Did DHP do the missed handshake thing? Every time someone reports on that, I can't help thinking of Ripa and her stupid comment, and imagining he is poking at her.

One of the things I like about Spamalot is there so many instances where you wonder if they meant this or that or was it deliberate or not. There is one line, I think in the Camelot scene, where they sing they are "not just idol bums with royal mums". Now I think that really has to be a dig at Prince Charles but then again I may be being a little bit silly (hee).

As I listen to the original Spamlot soundtrack I keep hearing little things like that and I realise more and more how well written and smart it is.

[ldyjocelyn]

Good morning FCA! The Brad Paisley concert last night was a blast, and I'm quite hoarse from yelling, my hands hurt from clapping, and my husband and I had a fanatastic time.

This morning, I was awakened by a phone call that one of the employees, who always works Saturdays, is sick. Guess whose job it is to find a replacement? *sigh* But I did find someone to cover part of the shift at least.

The bottom line about whether Sir Robin is/is related to any other character Clay plays in Spamlot? Each viewer can use their own imagination and make him be or be related to whoever they want. Only Mike Nichols and Eric Idle know for sure, eh?

One of the things I like about Spamalot is there so many instances where you wonder if they meant this or that or was it deliberate or not.

From what I understand of it, this is EXACTLY the reason I love this show, and why it's so great that Clay is doing it. I originally thought, way back when this was just a rumor, that Clay would get bored doing the same show day after day. I can now say that I was totally wrong, and this is the reason why. He's finding new ways to add to the character, and can add things that may or may not have been suggested by Mike Nichols or Eric Idle. Gotta love that...it gives his sharp improvisational skills something more to work with.

Concerts immediately after Spamalot? I'll be there if it happens, but I'm not counting on it. I've decided that I must be a Type C personality -- I'm too laid back to even be considered a Type B, let alone Type A. So, I'm sure I'm projecting some of me onto him when I think that he's got to a have a bit of time off before starting this whole thing again. I certainly wouldn't want the man to burn out. Yeah, I know he wants to strike when the iron is hot, and I can see that being a good thing. But I just can't see IMMEDIATE tour. Maybe in a month, month and a half. *shrug*

[atinal]

Add me to the list of the those who felt that several of the "critics" who reviewed ATDW did not really listen to it. How could you prove it anyway? I think that their bias against Clay and bias against the songs showed. I also think some of them let the gossip from earlier in the year influence their reviews. The choice of some of them to include it in their reviews made that pretty clear to me.

In the blurb from the article that KF brought over, Maxim's reply looks pretty much like a "so what" response, and seems so typical of the "too cool" attitude that prevails in some of the print media. I don't make my decisions of movies, music or concerts based on critics reviews, but I would like to believe there is some integrity in those who are writing them. The AP reviewer shows that some still have it. I'm not just saying that because of his review of Clay, but because it was a thoughtful review that pointed out the strengths of the whole cast and how well they play together.

[jmh123]

Well.I recall Simon Cowell saying something about Clay being one of the few that listens and takes criticism like an adult. I think Clay's intelligence and humility has played a huge part in his success.

Word--and throw in work ethic too.

In Sept 06, at David Foster's Star Search Gala both the owner of the River Rock Casino and the owner of Mission Hill Winery paid $500,000.00 each for a special grand piano with Clay to sing 3 songs and David Foster to play for him.

Could these recitals already have happened and no one in Claydom heard about them? Is such a thing possible?

Hey, Lotus, the good news is, this will be all new clack for you! The downloads for the gala can be found here (look for files labeled piano auction to see this in article in action). Clay used the same technique David Foster did to sell TWO dinners to benefit the BAF during his recent golf fundraiser. Two bidders got very high, so the prize was duplicated so both could donate/win. I remember being dazzled by Clay being able to raise so much money and very impressed with David Foster for his quick thinking.

I'm pretty sure she's already seen the Gala tapes--she's asking about the performances for the auction winners--the two guys who paid the half a million apiece.

Lotus, I think it is possible that no one in Claydom heard about the recitals when they happened, as they were probably for small groups of close friends or associates of the auction winners.

[xxx4clay]

Good Morning FCA! It's the weekend for me and I finally had a chance to catch up here. Whew! The best part about reading several days posts at once is that I don't have to have an original thought in my head. I can just quote other people who said what I was thinking in a much more articulate way. So I'll just proceed to do that. Yeh, I know some of this is now old to many of you. But I also think it all bears repeating.

May 6th? ...... If it changes, I still won't care either, because I see a CD dropping for my boy at some point in the future, and I have every faith that there will be a large number of songs I like on it, originals, covers, whatever. I don't really care. I like the way the boy sings just about anything. Except Open Arms. And that frickin' mouse song. And Here, There and Everywhere. I have every faith that a small but vocal minority will hate the CD or some aspect of it, but most people will be fine with it. I have every faith that eventually there will be a national tour (even with limited stops) and me 'n my peeps will be hitting a couple of shows. In the first five rows. I have every faith that a small but vocal minority will hate the tour or some aspect of it, but most people will be fine with it. I have every faith that eventually he will get over his blond phase, and go back to long chestnut locks. I have every faith that he will wear some totally fucked up outfit that will turn out to be either the bleeding edge of fashion or he hit a local Goodwill chapter again. I have every faith that a small but vocal minority will hate the hair or an outfit, but most people will be fine with it. I have every faith that he will say something to totally piss off a small but vocal segment of the fandom. I have every faith that the quiet majority will be perfectly fine. I have every faith that occasionally I will be a member of the small but vocal minority.

Love this! Well except I like Here There and Everywhere. And I am in love with the blonde hair. Double

Heh. If there's one thing I've learned over the past five years it's that nobody can interpret and extrapolate like a Clay fan can. If only we could see the glint in his eye. *le sigh*

That is so beyond true...

Well and the arch of his eyebrow, the slant of his lips, the position of his right index finger, the fold in his pants... Where was I? (I think I lost the original poster of that quote there.)

About the cd release parties. I think its wonderful if fans want to get together and celebrate the release of the CD...But even for ATDW, I was very much against the coordinated effort to get PR for the parties...I was specially dismayed by the press release that was created for it. I really felt that the press release tend to put focus on the fans and not on Clay and his music. I also thought it seemed like the fans were trying to create buzz for the cd and I really think that is not our job. It is up to TC and RCA to promote the CD and up to Clay to create music that will get respect and buzz.

So for this time..I hope people do get together to celebrate...but just forget about press release and inviting the media. That rarely works in our favor anyway.

Yes! Yes! Yes!

I also wanna say that I found the story about Maxim's "review" of the Black Crows album to be very, uh, telling. I have no idea if this is common - still waiting to hear back from my music biz insider peeps - but I don't think there's a snowball's chance in hell that this is the one and only time its happened.

Cotton - your bears are darling! I'd ditch the Rubber Ducky though. hee