#35: You mean, it’s not all dressing up and dancing at FCA?

[playbiller]

sorry, Muski - part of what you signed up for as a parent. Sometimes the lying is more like avoiding. I have a relative that is a serious people pleaser and can't bear to give anyone bad news. They really can't face the stress and have actually put them selves in danger trying to avoid the inevitable. It could be because she really wants you to be happy. Or it could be something else - who knows.

Three songs is kind of cruel. I only know one song that I would have on my non-Clay list - 57th street bridge song. Always makes me smile.

[PermaSwooned]

{{{muski & family}}}

I never had open rebellion from either of my kids. I kept waiting, but it didn't happen. However, my DS was what we called a "digital" kid. He lived in the moment. Future consequences did not exist for him. During the years in question, my ex and I had joint custody and it switched every 2 or 3 days around my hospital work schedule. Each of us had a fax machine and we faxed school notices and homework assignments to each other. It was quite possible that something could get "lost" between houses, and there could be a huge assignment pending that we didn't know about.

I can't believe the number of times I had to ask him "What were you thinking????". Eventually the assignment was going to be due, or past due. Eventually there would be a terrible report card. Eventually there would be a parent-teacher conference. And then, all would be revealed!! The very idea would have terrified me, personally, but he just ignored impending doom. He was a frighteningly bright kid, but got bored easily. I'm really glad those days are past.

muski, I'm hoping for the best for your family.

Oh the fabulous orange shirt. Yum.

I have not been able to open the frickin' download of IIEOU yet. I guess I'd better figure it out tonight. I LOVE gospel Clay. I love southern gospel under any circumstances anyway. My father really loved it, and all of the music at his memorial service were gospel hymns. My daughter signed Amazing Grace along with the singing. It was really special.

Cotton, I wish you lived closer. You are me, in so many ways. Plus, I know from a picture you posted that our husbands could be brothers. Amazing.

I have been having a lot of fun at YouTube of late. It's so inconvenient that it's blocked at work!! The nerve!!

Thanks to those who mentioned Paul Potts. I had never hear of him, so I checked out some of his YouTube stuff from Britain's Got Talent this morning. I loved him. A nebbishy guy that got to see his dreams come true.

What killed me was that Simon pontificated AT LENGTH about how he loved to see an ordinary guy with an ordinary job and extraordinary talent get a chance to show it to the world. He talked about how he was really rooting for the underdog in the competition. HELLO!!!! Why wasn't that sentiment expressed more often in 2003 across the pond, Simon??? What could fit that definition better than Clay Aiken? Sheesh!!!

I was THA-RILLED while browsing around YouTube to find my favorite EVAH version of Nessun Dorma. I had looked for it everywhere so many times and never found it, and suddenly there it was!!! If you have never seen it, PLEASE take a look.

I first saw this performance on a "25 years of the Grammys" show. It was from the Grammy broadcast in 1998. They were broadcasting LIVE, mind you. Luciano Pavarotti was supposed to sing Nessun Dorma with a full symphony orchestra. He showed up and rehearsed with the orchestra. Then his manager said that he was not feeling well and was going to rest. Fine. Rest up and then give a great performance.

However, this was a miscommunication. What they meant was....he wasn't going to do the show. The producers didn't get that. As the show approached, they couldn't find him. The show started and they still couldn't find him. FORTY-FIVE MINUTES into the show, they finally got the message that he wasn't there and wasn't going to be there!!! OMG!!!! Full-blown panic!!! They have a full symphony orchestra assembling on the stage!!! It would leave a huge hole in the show to just skip it!! What to do?????

Well, another performer stepped in. She'd already performed another song. Opera was a million miles from her normal genre. She couldn't rehearse with the orchestra. She had about 15 minutes or so to get ready. She was going to have to sing it in Luciano Pavarotti's key, because that's what the orchestration was written in. They told her that she could listen to the rehearsal tape, but she just said it was OK because she had sung along with his CD for years.

Can you IMAGINE what kind of cojones it took to walk out on that stage in front of your music industry peers and a huge TV audience to sing a famous tenor's aria under those circumstances? This is not a beautiful operatic performance by any means, but if this doesn't put a lump in your throat, a tear in your eye and hit you right in the gut, you are made of stronger stuff than I.

I give you....the AMAZING Aretha Franklin singing Nessun Dorma at the 1998 Grammys.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ySU8y---tM

This has been a "lost" performance until now. Don't miss it. And if anyone could rip it, I would be eternally grateful. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

[muskifest]

Child found. Thank you.

She was at a friend's house. The friend's mother told me some things Carrie told her. Carrie and I had a long talk. We still need to work on some things, but we ended up bawling into each other's shirts, so that's progress. Now when Kenny gets home, he'll need to talk with her because at least part of what is bothering her is something only he can deal with.

I'm exhausted. The one thing I insisted on, though, was that if she ever felt the need to just leave, to get the hell out...to PLEASE leave a note saying that...don't just disappear. That was too frightening. I was driving around looking for her and realizing that if she really wanted to disappear, it would be all too easy. And I really started getting scared.

Anyway...another day in the life, you know?

Thanks for the good wishes, everybody. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

[Cotton]

I love this place!

Thank You, Perma!!!

I wish we could sit and talk, too!

Wanna get you a summer place in NC???

That was A-mazing!

Can you imagine being there?!

That reminds me of Celine and Botticellli (I think) not arriving for the Oscar rehearsal and Josh G rehearsing with her.

Thanks to David Foster who told him, "You can do this!"

I know this wasn't an icon singing and icon's song, like Aretha singing Pavarotti. It's like the opposite.

I remember and interview with Celine. She said this kid was so nervous as he came towards her that it was like he was backing up! heh

What an opportunity for Aretha and for Josh.

I want to be witness to one of those once-in-a-lifetime moments.

Like Wilkes-Barre.

I guess the closest I ever came to that was the Opening Night of IT when RockStahClay entered through the audience on Kyrie!

If I could find a way - I'd be at every single opening and closing nights of every single one of his tours!

The man knows how to entertain!

But those impromptu moments in live "theater" - you just have to be lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time!

Here's the America's Got Talent guy I was talking about. Neil Boyd.

There's a version with just the song - but this has the back story.

America's Got Talent's first Opera audition

muski!

:F_05BL17blowkiss:

[djs111]

I heard from some people here in Tampa that Pavarotti was famous for not showing up, and also that he charged a pretty steep price for charity events, so it was chancy to use him, because sometimes they would not actually make very much money.

Not saying he shouldn't charge, but that he was very unpredictable and that it got hard to sell enough tickets.

That is a wonderful interpretation by Aretha! It almost sounded like she wanted to wail out near the beginning - I love that she sang the English, too!

Do we get to add six more songs tomorrow?

[ldyjocelyn]

I give you....the AMAZING Aretha Franklin singing Nessun Dorma at the 1998 Grammys.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ySU8y---tM

This has been a "lost" performance until now. Don't miss it. And if anyone could rip it, I would be eternally grateful. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

It wasn't a lost performance to me, because I remember watching that show that night, and being simply blown. away. I've always liked Aretha, but she went up about 15 notches in my book that night.

I got another lump in my throat just now, watching it again.

Amazing.

Whew! I'm so glad things are semi-OK muski, and that Carrie is SAFE!

[claytonic]

Muski

Only just read about Carrie ... gosh, you have two opposite-end generations challenging you! It must be hard to be a 13 year old in 2008, there are so many contradictions out there. Sometimes, when there are too many choices, it's harder to make the right ones. I admire your ability to rise above stuff and be as cheerful as you usually are on this board.

[jmh123]

What is it with this board? Almost every time I change the page or hit the add post button, it logs me out! Usually, it keeps me logged in to days!!! (copying this post before I hit the add reply button!)

Some people have had this problem for awhile. I have a friend who can't post at all because every time she hits post she gets logged out. Are you on the same computer, same internet connection, same everything, and this just started happening? Information like that might help the board TPTB figure out what the problem is.

What killed me was that Simon pontificated AT LENGTH about how he loved to see an ordinary guy with an ordinary job and extraordinary talent get a chance to show it to the world. He talked about how he was really rooting for the underdog in the competition. HELLO!!!! Why wasn't that sentiment expressed more often in 2003 across the pond, Simon??? What could fit that definition better than Clay Aiken? Sheesh!!!

I was THA-RILLED while browsing around YouTube to find my favorite EVAH version of Nessun Dorma.

What an amazing story! Thanks for telling us about that and finding a link.

Simon learned a lot from Clay. He went right out and formed Il Divo, which is the kind of music he would've had Clay do. Simon steals things all the time. It's no coincidence that "America's Got Talent" has an unlikely tenor this year, and that Simon is appearing in commercials for the show talking about how they have such an extraordinary find. He's never going to give credit for where the idea came from in the first place. Apparently they've already had some contestants on Idol shows in other countries doing a couple of the revamped covers that got David Cook attention on AI7. If only Simon and the Idol TPTB would just sit back and let organic moments happen more often, they wouldn't need to try to recreate them again and again. That Paul Potts video has been viewed 52 million times. Can there be anyone in America who hasn't already seen the "moment" and won't recognize that's what they're up to with the American guy?

Child found. Thank you.

Whew!

Hang in there all you folks dealing with teenage girl troubles. It must be so, so difficult! I know I was a very bad girl as a teen, and angry too. My sister and her husband are dealing with this too (her step-daughter), but she goes back and forth between parents, so her father just threw her out and wrote her off. I'm not pleased with that way of dealing with it, but no one asked me.

[Cotton]

I'm watching Jimmy Kimmel Live - only not - heh - they show it at 7pm on tvguide network here.

Jewel is on. He asked her why she switched to country?

Her answer was interesting.

"I don't feel like it was really a change for me. I feel like the radio format's changed a lot. Pop became very urban. I'm still a singer songwriter, lyric driven and this is the best home for me."

She wrote some of the songs when she was 16 and on.

"It's not like I woke up one day and became somebody else."

She went on to say she was raised on a ranch in Alaska, saddle bar, outhouse.

She also said, "That's the great thing about country, you can't be phony."

Mentioned that the program directors still care about music, not jaded.

hmmm.

Yeah, that sounds different.

Talking about being shy and meet & greets and on the bus, weird gifts from fans. She's kind of funny!

Jimmy's telling her not to fix her tooth Awww!!!

She's working with Richard Branson - Project Clean Water, wells all around the world and US.

(give a drop dot com)

I have always liked her, but this live performance isn't all that great.

It makes me wonder about Clay's live performances. I wonder if these tv studios just don't have sound that's that great.

[Gibby]

I give you....the AMAZING Aretha Franklin singing Nessun Dorma at the 1998 Grammys.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ySU8y---tM

This has been a "lost" performance until now. Don't miss it. And if anyone could rip it, I would be eternally grateful. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

THANK YOU for sharing that youtube link, Perma! WOW!! That was amazing. I LOVE how she starts to riff a little bit at the end.

And I ripped it from youtube for you! Check your PMs.

Child found. Thank you.

She was at a friend's house. The friend's mother told me some things Carrie told her. Carrie and I had a long talk. We still need to work on some things, but we ended up bawling into each other's shirts, so that's progress. Now when Kenny gets home, he'll need to talk with her because at least part of what is bothering her is something only he can deal with.

I'm exhausted. The one thing I insisted on, though, was that if she ever felt the need to just leave, to get the hell out...to PLEASE leave a note saying that...don't just disappear. That was too frightening. I was driving around looking for her and realizing that if she really wanted to disappear, it would be all too easy. And I really started getting scared.

Anyway...another day in the life, you know?

Thanks for the good wishes, everybody. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

Whew! I'm soooo glad. And it's good that she was able to talk over some things and cry with you.

[Cotton]

Is everyone at the daytime Emmy's???

Okay. I just went to the Youtube of Paul Potts. Had not seen that.

So - is there any question now of any show SC is involved with it scripted?

I had no idea that the Neil Boyd audition was a recreation of a BGT event.

Wow!

ETA:

Even to where they stopped the song and the audience gave the standing O.

And yeah, the regular guy working a regular job.

Uh. College student? Turning in "a performance like that?"

Hmm. Did that ever happen before???

Grr. That's why I hate that I love watching some of these SYTYCD,etc., cuz Simon's got his hand in the pot$ in so many of these!

[Iseeme]

Muski - so glad you found Carrie and that you're working things out. I disagree with Play however - you don't "sign up" to be a parent and have no way of knowing what you're going to face. It's different with each child. Mine never gave me trouble other than I had to learn how to put butterfly bandages on contusions and help get him out of the bathtub when he was so beat up from football or rugby that he couldn't hardly walk. Being a parent is probably the most challenging thing a person deals with in life. You're kind of respondible for the person they end up being - but only to a certain extent. Unfortunately at a certain point in their lives you cease to be the influence you want to be and you just have to deal with the results. Eventually it usually works out and they become the big persons you always wanted them to be! Hugs to you both.....and hang in there, because its really worth it. Honestly. (Iseeme thanks Jesus, Allah and all the other Gods who shall remain unnamed that her offspring is 43...okay! okay! I was 5 when he was born! )

BTW - LOVE LOVE LOVE Aretha's version of Nessun Dorma!!!

[laljeterfan]

He blogged!

Yeah, this just about gave me a heart attack! The immediate physical reaction to seeing those words is amazing. My stomach jolts, my hands begin to shake, my vision blurs, and I struggle to remember exactly HOW to get to the OFC as quickly as possible. Boy, did I feel stupid when I got there, and there was.......nothing! But, your bracelets are beautiful, FromClaygary!!!

{{{Muski}}} Man, can I EVER sympathize! My soon to be 15 year old son is an almost constant source of anxiety. So glad you found Carrie, and I hope that your talk will help open her eyes. It's tough to be a parent (and a kid, I'm sure) nowadays!

OK, top 6 songs to be stranded with.... I confess (unapologetically) to having tastes that are very middle-of-the-road. My favorite singer prior to Clay was the much-maligned Barry Manilow, and my favorite song of his is Could It Be Magic. I've always loved piano-driven music,(loved Elton John, Billy Joel, Barry, Eric Carmen growing up), and I just love the way the song builds and builds and gets more and more passionate........GAH! Here's the album version:

http://es.youtube.com/watch?v=k7YqYzQlH6k&...feature=related

As stated the other day, my favorite female singer is Barbra Streisand. This is an obscure song from her Lazy Afternoon album, called You and I. It was written by Stevie Wonder, and this was the song that I chose for the first dance at my wedding.

http://es.youtube.com/watch?v=siWDMTptGxk

The songs that I gravitate to are the ones that I react to emotionally. I confess to being a real weeper- I cry when I'm happy, I cry when I'm mad, I cry at sentimental greeting cards. I'm just a big weenie. This song has always made me cry: Boats Against the Current, by Eric Carmen.

http://es.youtube.com/watch?v=4QFzsvB7f1U

(Honorable mention goes to this other Eric Carmen song- Desperate Fools: http://es.youtube.com/watch?v=VF4IbSP6LQY Strange video to go with it- although I always loved Richard Dreyfus. This song always made me think of the way that I imagine Clay felt about being out in LA)

Coming up with the Clay songs was too difficult, so I decided to limit myself to make the choices easier- only choosing from "Clay Aiken songs"- songs that are uniquely his. I started to waver when everyone was talking about certain Christmas songs, and I Know How the River Feels almost forced me to change my mind, but..............

From MOAM- Run To ME. My favorite live version- in Syracuse- my cousin, friend and friend's husband were all there together. At the end of the first chorus, Clay was looking over in our direction, and the reaction was PHYSICAL! Thank God it was the last song of the first half of the concert, because when it ended, the three of us went down like dominoes, while our friend's hubby was left wondering WTH was wrong with us! Unfortunately, the video that does exist from this venue is not great.

From ATDW- Lover All Alone- I remember downloading the CD at midnight, and going straight to this song first to hear it- playing it over...and over... and over- and literally sobbing. It still tears my heart out, and the lyrics fascinate me. My favorite version- Canandaigua. It was raining, and the gentle sound of the rain hitting the roof of the venue, and the absolute stillness of the audience, in rapt attention, was stunning. Again, unfortunately, the downloads don't do it justice.

From OMWH- Sacrificial Love- Yep, you guessed it- I heard it, and I was a crying fool. Can't wait to hear it live.

[djs111]

Okay. I just went to the Youtube of Paul Potts. Had not seen that.

So - is there any question now of any show SC is involved with it scripted?

I had no idea that the Neil Boyd audition was a recreation of a BGT event.

Wow!

ETA:

Even to where they stopped the song and the audience gave the standing O.

And yeah, the regular guy working a regular job.

Uh. College student? Turning in "a performance like that?"

Hmm. Did that ever happen before???

Not that this guy is not very very talented (Although Potts is, IMO, stronger and more rich).....

Kansas City com

“What do you do for a living?” asks Sharon Osbourne from the judges’ table.

“I sell insurance,” the boyish 32-year-old Boyd replies.

“What would it mean to you, Neal, to win ‘America’s Got Talent’?” asks judge Piers Morgan, the show’s British-accented Simon Cowell equivalent.

“It would mean everything,” Boyd says.

Then we see Boyd nailing the big finish of Puccini’s “Nessun dorma,” a Pavarotti specialty — and pandemonium erupts.

“Fantastic!” Morgan says after the crowd calms down. “You are a very special talent.”

Sure enough, Boyd’s eyes are glistening with salty wetness.

Then the clip jumps forward and David Hasselhoff weighs in: “Your dreams are coming true right now!” the Hoff proclaims, at which point the former lineman for Sikeston High School’s football team delivers a cross-body air-punch as if his team had just scored.

The $1 million prize for “Talent” would certainly be the most Boyd has earned for singing, but it wouldn’t be the first big vocal win for the tenor (who in a 2001 profile told The Star that his childhood dream had always been to become a famous singer).

As a student at Southeast Missouri State University and the University of Missouri-Columbia he won the Music Teachers National Association Collegiate Artist Voice Competition in 2000.

He earned a professional-level artists degree from Boston’s New England Conservatory and sang a recital at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall.

Back in Missouri, he became active in politics but kept singing — performing, for example, the role of York in the 2003 world premiere of “Corps of Discovery,” Michael Ching’s Lewis and Clark opera, in Columbia.

He has become a favorite singer for Missouri political events, at one of which he was dubbed “The Voice of Missouri.” He sang for Mel Carnahan’s funeral and Gov. Matt Blunt’s inauguration.

Now residing in the St. Louis area, Boyd really does sell insurance — Aflac, to be exact. And he recently contacted his former Mizzou voice teacher, Ann Harrell, about taking vocal lessons for the summer.

Hmm. Makes you wonder, doesn’t it?

Wonder how long it took Simon to find him - I totally thought this guy was a lot younger.

Yes he does have talent, but good grief! Piers Morgan was one of the judges for Paul Potts.

[Cotton]

I have always heard RUN TO ME as a song about a man falling in love with a woman in or recovering from an abusive relationship. I may be alone in that. I have loved it from the first snippet. Remember those 5 snippets?!

I hate he didn't keep singing that one. Right? He took it out of the show. I think it was a difficult range to do routinely, IIRC.

Did y'all see the Globe mention of Daddy Clay? It was actually - like - Nice! Shocking!

[Gibby]

I agree, djs. Potts has a richer, stronger voice. Boyd is good, but I prefer Potts. Of course, I saw Potts first, so Boyd seems quite formulaic after seeing Potts.

I just converted Aretha's Nessun Dorma to a wmv. The youtube wasn't great quality, so the wmv isn't great, but it's not bad.

[Cotton]

I had read on the boards about a 4 yr old girl who sang on AGT.

Y'all got me started at YouTube.

So _ I watched her and the 6 yr old from BGT.

Anybody besides me feel icky about 4 and 6 yr olds doing these shows?

That little 4 yr old girl was precious. But IMO, she had no business being put in that arena. The look on her face when that huge audience was applauding - she was, of course, enraptured. I worry about what will happen to her. She has a lisp which she may outgrow. But - is she really talented - or just 4 yr old cute with a better than usual voice.

Scary.

I'm ready for a swing of the pendulum. I ready for a move away from reality tv to - something. Really. Haven't we reached saturation point yet???!!!

[FromClaygary]

Sorry, I've been off making money to buy beads! To answer the couple of questions:

FromClaygary... those are gorgeous!!! Love the Blogged one... how is that one done? That one ought to bring a pretty penny for BAF! How do you bid? Or, do you just put a price on them? Splain, please! Thanks!!!

The blogged one is papier mache on an unfinished wooden bangle, then glazed about a million times.

They will be at several different fundraisers that I know of right now~one that Minnesota Clayfans are doing, the SSS etsy site before Christmas, and hopefully at the Gala in October...and couchie if we decide to have one here, I'll gladly donate one for that as well.

None of them are running curently, but I'll definitely let everyone know when they do happen if you'd like to bid.

I'm so glad people like them! I've really enjoyed doing them...not that I'm finished LOL! I'll be working on more as the year goes on.

Claygary!!!! Beautiful bracelets!!!!!!!!!! Do you sell them anywhere? Am I allowed to ask?

Oh, of course! See above....No, I don't sell them anywhere...they are absolutely unique pieces. There will never be another exactly like any of these, and as with all my stuff, I ONLY do them as BAF benefits.

I have another one just about done, and lots more in the planning process.

From Claygary...wow, love the bracelets.

Hmmm we need to get back to that auction idea....for the TBAF... maybe I'll start to think on that one again.

Definitely! As I said, more than happy to donate something if you would like it.

But mainly I'm still feeling chagrined and somewhat pissed because when I first checked the board three pages ago, I was reading FromClaygary's post and enjoying the purdy bracelet pics when I read these two famous/infamous words in between the purdy pictures:

He blogged.

And I was at the OFC so freakin' fast my computer's still panting! I was cussing at Clique for making it so take so long to log in (hates that s-l-o-w way a page has of rolling on) and gearing myself up to be zen about whatever the TRUTH is as told from his own pearly pink lips and wondering why FromClaygary wrote those two little words in such a normal font size and color.

My heart's still racing, demmit.

I never even thought of that!! Sorry for your heart attack!!

ETA: Ooooooo - this was my 1,000th post! Next one takes me from managing Clay's person to "Executive Producer"... a title that now carries with it a whole new meaning... IIT, IIU, AATJ, etc.

:lmaosmiley-1:

I haven't gotten my poo together for my 3/3 list...but I am SURE enjoying everyone else's non-Clay choices! Lots of stuff I had forgotten about, and/or is new to me. LOVE it! I'm going to be doing some Itunes DL'ing or Youtube ripping for sure!!

[PermaSwooned]

I'm heading for home now, so don't y'all download all the available copies of Nessun Dorma before I can get there!!!

I'm SO GLAD so many of you liked that clip of Aretha singing it. It's funny....in some of the comments on YouTube, people remark that it's awful what she did to that song. Well, she was not trying to launch a new career as an opera singer!! What I do think she showed is that you can take a great piece of music and turn it into a bravura performance through sheer raw emotion. Love that.

I'm putting Gibby in my will for ripping it for me. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

This is so fun!!!

laljeterfan, I LOVE "Could It Be Magic". I used to sing along with Barry, emoting for all I was worth. My dream was to have someone sing that to me. I would have been a puddle. Oh wait. I was married at the time. Ooops!!

I bought that first album, and I went to one of Barry's concert that was supporting it way back in the day. I think it was the song, though, because that's the end of my Barry collection. I loved that it was based on part of Chopin's Prelude in C Minor.

Classical music rocks, y'all!!

cotton I forgot to say that I HAVE read "Death in White Bear Lake". If I wasn't a foot taller and mumble.mumble pounds heavier, I would think we were twins.

However, there will be no summer cottages in NC for moi. I believe some of you have seen me in warm temperatures. My internal thermometer is broken, big time. I would have to stay in the freezer with Clay's extra sperm to survive. I WILL, however be coming to the Gala in October!! I've done NC in October. I can do that!!

I might mention that the Beach Cities of SoCal are quite lovely in summer. We're having a bit of a heat wave at the moment, but generally 76-78 degrees (F) is the norm. We don't have humidity or bugs either. Quite lovely. Come on out!!!

Topic: Even Clay admits it's hot in NC in the summer.

[Cotton]

Perma - we must be long lost FRATERNAL twins!

Perhaps you'll have to look to the NC mountains for you vacation cabin!!!

Ooh. Now I'm even more tempted to try for the Gala!

I have not room and IIRC all the rooms are gone. And the tickets haven't gone on sale yet. I don't imagine there will be many of the "cheap seats" even offered. So - I don't know what my chances are!

I'd love to try!

Death in White Bear Lake was unusual for me. I'm into fiction.

But that book was so well-written. Shocking.

But - now - we know more about those kinds of things.

What was that young woman in SC who drove her car into the lake with her children inside? On tv pleading for their return all the while knowing she'd killed them? Chilling.

I'm catching a bit of Dateline NBC, speaking of violent acts.

Nothing much on tv. :pffft:

[claytonic]

Here's my recommendation to the wonderful list of must-see talent:

Audition: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4PKRLxwZnok

13 year old Andrew Johnston blows the audience away with Pie Jesu

Semi-final:

Unbelievable rendition of Eric Clapton's Tears in Heaven

Final: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=es-43w8pAek...feature=related

Pie Jesu -He came 3rd but don't let that steer you away from what was missed in the audition...

ETA

and now for something completely different...

EATA

and now for something completely, utterly and ridiculously different...

(Can you really say you've seen this before???)

[Gibby]

It's In Every One of Us - One of my favorites from OMWH! To me it sounds like an old gospel type song, and it's great to hear yet another style of music on OMWH! The song is actually kind of simple, especially compared to some of the more complex harmonic structures and melodies of the other OMWH tracks. But, maybe that's one of the things that's appealing about it. It showcases how well Clay can take something simple and make it beautiful.

I just listened to some other versions of IIEOOU on youtube, and it's interesting to see how Clay sings it a bit differently. He adds a tiny bit of melisma here and there, and uses vibrato to make the sustained notes more beautiful. He also is quite a bit more precise about the rhythm, which makes the song more interesting. I was actually surprised to hear dotted rhythms sung without much precision by some other singers. Just goes to show that Clay is a great song stylist! I like it that he keeps the song somewhat restrained; it fits the mood and style of the song. The vocal range is pretty small, from an E below middle C to the G above middle C.

It's in the key of G. For those who play piano or other instruments, the harmonic structure is pretty traditional: I- IV -V, with a III and VI thrown in there once in awhile. The instrumentation is pretty traditional, too - piano, strings, drums, a little bit of guitar and organ, and, of course, a gospel choir. As a pianist, I naturally listen to the piano part, and there are some cool blues notes added here and there.

I agree with Cotton - this is a great harmony song! I can't listen to it without singing harmony. Apparently Clay had the same dilemma, because you can hear him singing a descant in the background on the last verse. I love it when Clay sings with himself!

[Claygasm]

{{{Muski}}} I am so glad Carrie was found safe and sound. That's the most important thing. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

You mean to tell me my Muppet song was the song of the day and I almost missed it?????????

I LOVE THIS SONG!!!!!!!!!! He MUST sing it in concert so we can all sway with our Bic lighters!!!!!! His voice is amazing on it and its just a feel good, uplifting song.

And his voice is amazing on it.

And I just LOVE it!!!!!!!!! Not really even sure why. I just do. A lot!!!

[muskifest]

laljeterfan OMG! That Streisand song! I used to listen to one Barbra record after another when I was in college and afterwards. I don't have ONE Streisand song on my iPod because I don't have any of her music on cd---it's all still on vinyl...if I even still have them. I think they were in my box of favorites that got lost when I moved from Delaware to California.

I remember singing You and I at the top of my lungs while washing dishes!

Love to sing to Barbra.....

So...hubby, Carrie and I went to a local place for some dinner and had a good time. Hubby had his own talk with her beforehand. Now she's showered and after unloading the dishwasher and feeding the dog is ensconced in the den upstairs to watch a Disney movie starring......

The Jonas Brothers!

Of course, that's okay with me. At least she's not listening to L'il Wayne's "Lollipop" song... holy shit. With all the hubbub today, I didn't get over to visit my mom. I actually stopped by there when I was driving around looking for Carrie, but they were all in some sort of regular meeting called "Circle of Elders"...so I just turned around and slipped out before she saw me...

First softball tournament tomorrow---in Napa. Today was a scorcher here! )(Couchie, did you and your mom stay cool?) When I was riding on the freeway, the car temperature gauge read "106". Of course, I know the actual temp wasn't that high, but still! Usually it's only a few degrees off...

I'm not a hot weather gal.

Ooops...a squeal from upstairs---must mean the movie started. She's singing, Couchie, and now she's squealing again while stomping her feet in pure, unbridled teenaged lust over the cute guys. oy.

And the wheels on the bus....

Oh and re: the America's Got Talent opera guy. Although I liked listening to his voice, I was gagging over all the bullshit so obviously planted around him. Jerry Springer exclaiming, 'They're standing up! The audience's standing up!" and then 'The judges are standing up. The judges are standing up!"

:rolleyes:

[muskifest]

this is a great harmony song! I can't listen to it without singing harmony. Apparently Clay had the same dilemma, because you can hear him singing a descant in the background on the last verse. I love it when Clay sings with himself!

Oh, is that what we're calling it now, Gibby?