#58: The man is made of awesome!

[aikim]

Wow! Sorry I was wasn't here during the show, but I was watching in my room and no computer in there...no way I was going to leave the TV...didn't even take a potty break!

Fabulous show..Clay looked stunning! They did not show the opening with his back to the audience..but opening with Mack The Knife..now I know I said it wasn't one of my favorites but I enjoyed in on the show...I really love watching Clay sing and as good as he his recorded he is better live. Did this cute rubbing his fingers together on "hard earned cash".

Not too much banter..did the "Clay Aiken tonight..tomorrow Menopause The Musical" shtick.

Lots of shots of the audience and the orchestra...actually would have preferred if they had stayed on Clay more..it was almost as if they were going in a circle at times..front to back to the side.

Next two songs "It's Only Make Believe" and "You Don't Have to Say You Love Me"...loved his version of the last song..not too different from the original. And again..It's Only Make Believe not one of my favorites on the CD, but loved it live.

First pledge break...showing the operators and I saw Cablegirl and Momo3boys from CV; some others looked familiar but I couldn't tell you names.

Clay in the studio...blue shirt and jacket like he wore during the promo...hair about the same..kind of jarring to see him looking so stunning in the special and then the more casual look live..yes there was stubble. Talked about PBS and watching Sesame Street and said he and Parker watch Clifford The Big Red Dog in the morning (pauses for big "AWE"). Phones look really busy.

Can't Take My Eyes Off of Your after break...then...in my opinion, the best song of the whole special...Crying with Linda Eder...amazing, absolutely amazing! This is my favorite on the CD...heart-wrenching and just sitting there watching this two amazing artists create this masterpiece...I have no words for how good this is...did I say amazing!

They did include the whole salute to his teachers but he talked about being a loser and introduced Mrs. Stevens and then "In My Life"...I was so hoping he would sing this song..been dying to hear it and was not disappointed...he looked verklempt singing it.

Right into Breaking Up is Hard To Do..sings the first few words and then Ruben comes out to finish..huge applause and standing ovation...cute shots of Clay backstage looking so proud.

Kind of abrupt at the end, I thought Clay would come out and talk to him..but Ruben ended the song, lots of applause and then into Suspicious Minds. Ruben looks great by the way.

Love Suspicious Minds...he did not sing the ending like he does on the CD which I was a little disappointed about...love that ending.

Pledge break...the usual promoting the gifts and stations...phones are busy. Gal mentions Michael Buble, Josh Groban, Barry Manilow, Donny Osmond and now Clay on PBS. Lots of mentions about growing up with these songs...singing UM since he was 10...his Mom's favorite songs...at the beginning one of the gals mentioned him being from SC instead of NC.

Build Me Up Buttercup...okay honesty here, while this performance was good...maybe a little too frenetic, I kind of prefer the AI version...

Misty...just beautiful.

There is a Kind of Hush...love the jazzy version of this song.

Moon River...the fog machine was in full use...very nice...he really makes this his own...no visions of Andy Williams in my head while he is singing it.

Ends show with Unchained Melody. I know we have heard him sing the note now, so no real surprise, but still impressive and you can tell he really loves this song..mentioned how thrilled he was to have his own version.

End of show, final pledge break. The gals were positively giddy over him and really fangirly. Every pledge break the phones looked busy so I hope everyone is pleased.

Can't wait until I can watch again.

Kim

[cindilu2]

They changed the order of the concert quite a bit. Interesting choices.

On the abrupt ending to the Ruben thing - at the concert Clay right came out and talked with him and then they, along with Quiana, did the Classics. It's a shame that isn't part of the special - such great comic stuff and brilliant advertising for Timeless tour. Ah well.

I am pleased they included In My Life though. I was wondering about that since they say 16 songs on the DVD blurb. So I guess that means 14 from the CD's (less Breaking Up Is Hard To Do) plus Eso Beso, In My Life and Buttercup.

[keepingfaith]

Thanks, Kim. That was a great recap. I was reading back to a list I made after the Raleigh show of all the songs ... did "I'll Take Romance" disappear into the ether? No one ever mentions it.

Did "Who's Sorry Now" include any of the banter about the fan who rode the bus from Nebraska?

LdyJ, I know you are thrilled that "In My Life" is on the CD. I have too many emotions about that song -- namely falling to pieces hearing it played on the late news the night John Lennon was killed. For years I couldn't listen to that song without going back to that place. Maybe Clay will exchange the sadness with a new feeling. It's such a beautiful song.

[FearofH2O]

Thanks aikimfor the report. I was afraid that you had . I enjoyed your recap.

I'm so happy that folks who have not seen the taping or even those who forget the taping (ahem) now will have the opportunity to see it. It's also exciting that Clay feels he is starting a new phase of his life and we are part of it.

I can't do the concert and the gala, so I'm just doing the gala. But I made a small donation tonight.

[aikim]

Who's Sorry Now, Eso Beso and I'll Take Romance did not make the cut. I think the editing could have been a little tighter...going from close ups to the audience to around the stage was making a bit dizzy at times, but it really was spectacular!

When Ruben finished...he started walking across the stage and Clay started walking to him and then they immediately cut to Clay singing another song...it was kind of awkward.

Also during one of the breaks, the girl was encouraging people to pledge if they liked this show and said wouldn't be great to see him on PBS at Christmas...wouldn't that be great if they are thinking about that!

Kim

[ldyjocelyn]

Thanks aikim for the report!

I have my Chicago concert tickets, and also made a small pledge tonight. I'm planning on pledging more when my local PBS station airs the show.

Yes, "In My Life" is one of my favorite Beatle songs -- kind of because it's one that my husband and I can sing quite well together. I'm sure Clay will blow us out of the water though! LOL!

[cindilu2]

Who's Sorry Now, Eso Beso and I'll Take Romance did not make the cut. I think the editing could have been a little tighter...going from close ups to the audience to around the stage was making a bit dizzy at times, but it really was spectacular!

When Ruben finished...he started walking across the stage and Clay started walking to him and then they immediately cut to Clay singing another song...it was kind of awkward.

Also during one of the breaks, the girl was encouraging people to pledge if they liked this show and said wouldn't be great to see him on PBS at Christmas...wouldn't that be great if they are thinking about that!

Kim

It was mentioned in the chat that Eso Beso and Who's Sorry Now were 'bonus' cuts on the DVD. No mention made of I'll Take Romance (at least that I saw - but there were those ten minutes I spent yelling my credit card number across the miles to Chicago :-P)

[wandacleo]

Hello, my name is Wanda, and I'm a Clay addict.....

I completely lost my mind and bought a ticket for the Chicago concert.

[merrieeee]

Eeeeeeeee See you there!

[liney23]

Catching up this weekend will be good!

Man, we are falling apart, aren't we? I just got back from my new ENT (of whom I am very fond already, and the fact he is fairly hot helps with that). It's Dr. Pasha (if you're in Houston, he makes the "Bubble Guy" allergy commercials. After seeing the sad bubble man (and yes, I should be ashamed of picking a doctor because of his TV commercial, but I have no shame), and realizing I've been taking Zyrtec and Claritin and Benadryl and every other OTC allergy/sinus thing known to mankind (including a variety of neti pots, because I never remember where I put the damn thing) for years now, and have chronic sinusitis but have never actually been tested for allergies (even though I'll been going to another ENT for years), I show up in Dr. P's office, don't have to wait long, and he is nicely hot. Then he looks up my nose. Believe it or not, not one of the freakin' doctors I have been to in all this years have actually, like, looked up my goddam nose. Dr. Pasha is mildly disturbed at the amount of swelling and inflammation (and this is one of my GOOD days) - he has his nurse spray crap in my nostril so he can use the scope and sez, "let's do some skin tests". The nurse stabs me with eleventy-billion little pinpicks and considering my tendency toward hypochrondria, even I can tell nothing's happening. He sez, "well, we'll do the titration test anyhoo, but it doesn't look like allergies, let's get the scope up your nose and HOLY HOLLYHOCKS, GIRL...how have you been breathing!?!?!" The caps were all mine as his scope is on an LCD screen and I can see giant inflamed turbinates and big ol' polyps too! AND I actually have a deviated septum! Surgery is in my immediate future again. But at least I won't be walking on it. And yes, I will be taking concerts in account for the timing.

KAndre... only you can make a post about the inside of your nose fun to read... LOL Glad your tv dr. may have figured out your problem. I certainly support someone's suggestion of a bling covered nose cover. BWAH!!! I can see it now! You could start a new rage!

Just saw Clay on Access Hollywood...he got bleeped again! BF is getting quite a potty mouth, LOL! Asked about the first time he was asked if he was gay and said it scared the shit out of him because he didn't know himself. It was a great interview and looked good!

You can view it here: http://www.accesshollywood.com/why-did-clay-aiken-come-out-of-the-closet_video_1233719

Kim

aikim... I loved this interview! Thanks for the link! I love how comfortable he is now just being himself! And, it's sexy as heck, too!

I am very excited about the special tomorrow night, but unfortunately I won't be able to pledge anything...between the two concerts I am going to and the trip to Ashville and my huge eyeglass bill I am afraid my credit card is tapped out. I also will not be able to make the special concert Clay is doing...just a little too much for me. But I count myself fortunate that I will be able to see him this summer. It will be so great to see him on TV and see these songs performed live!

Kim

I've never been had the self pity gene but not being able to pledge for the chicago concert is freaking killing me. My car broke down and so now I can't even pledge enough for the DVD. Sigh. The bad part is that in 2 month I'm getting a big ass check and could actually go do the Chicago show and spend time in Chicago, a city I've never been to. I didn't feel like this when I missed the PBS special taping but damn I'm really trying here not to pout.

I don't like Mack the Knife. I know this is one of Clay's "signature" songs but I've just never liked it, from anyone. So he's now 2000 to 2, Mandy being the other one. He's made me like every other song under the sun.

Today I went to my nephew's commencement. He's going to Middle School! He has spent the last 7 years at this Montessori school and it's such a wonderful school. The kid/teacher ratio this school year was 4 to 1. Can you imagine that? One teacher for every four students? He's sharp as a whip too. So now he leaves his cocoon to go to a slightly larger cocoon. LOL My sister considered public school but finally settled on a Catholic school. Public schools here suck. There was lots of tears and laughter and singing at the ceremony. And the last song of the day was I Will Be Here. It wasn't Clay's version but in my head it was and it made me very emotional. Clay really has been a soundtrack to my life since 2003. I just love that voice.

And I have to say I'm realling loving the hair and him this promotional go round. He looks fabulous.

couchie... it's great about your nephew! Congrats! Cross your fingers and call when you get the money. I thought I read somewhere that not all the tickets to the special sold during the pledge time so...

I nominate "Clay really has been the soundtrack to my life since 2003" from couchie's post for a thread title!

From experience, I can tell you that yes, it is a potential problem. Random CDs jump into my cart when I see them sitting forlornly on the shelf, and have for the past 7 years.

So I wonder how thrilled Clay is that Access Hollywood used a papparazzi photo of Parker in their lead in? I love Clay's answers but I hope there was more to that interview that we haven't seen yet (and I hope most of it doesn't end up on the cutting room floor).

Mack The Knife....never my favourite song, in fact had never heard the full lyrics until the Raleigh concert (and therefore had no idea he screwed them up royally on the first take!) On Idol I wasn't crazy about it, didn't like the song choice, but loved Clay's delivery. At the concert it was one of those "blown away" moments that took me by surprise, and I was so so happy at the end when he announced he was going to sing it again. I was in such a daze the first time that I totally missed the whole entrance with his back to the audience thing. I am looking forward to reliving that moment on the PBS special/DVD. On the CD, I love it, it gets me bopping, but the lyrics are kind of creepy. Heh.

Crazy, busy weekend ahead. So many things I am hoping to do, let's hope the weather cooperates! Calling for thunderstorms. Son #2 is flying the coop. He is moving out with his g/f (big step) so he has a truck coming about 9 a.m. for his furniture. So I'm helping then heading over to check out the new digs after that. There is the annual rhubarb festival close by (waves to heinz!) and also an Olympic celebration for Virtue & Moir up in Scott's hometown (just north of here). And the usual weekend, catch up stuff. What would we do without weekends? I just wish they were longer! Have a good one everyone!

luckiest... congrats on Son #2 moving out. I thought Virture & Moir were utterly fantastic in the Olympics so I hope the weather lets you really enjoy your entire weekend!!!

wanda... I REALLY thought long and hard about it, but I'm glad you're going. I have family in Chicago/Illinois, so it was very tempting, but I'm going to Reno and LA, so I didn't... but I'm still thinking about it. It's so tempting. Congrats!!!

I listened to the TnT in the car for the first time... All I can say is it sure sounds great. Overall a very jazzy big-band flavor/sound. His voice reminds me very much of the demos. It's like he decided as a pop star he needed to sound a certain way, but for this cd he is using his natural voice, which is deeper and richer and a little smoky sounding to me. I love it! Even my 13 yr old DGS who plays Metallica on his electric guitar didn't hate it... LOL

I missed the pledge breaks, so called afterwards and got some gentleman who pronouced Clay's last name wrong "atkin" and seemed puzzled that I live in California, but it's done. He said I get the DVD in 4 weeks. I didn't correct the poor guy...LOL It is fantastic that the first show was soooo successful, by all indications. I really think this year and next are really going to be great years for Clay as he moves in a new direction.

And, I must say that as much as Clay has so obviously enjoyed singing fast music in his concerts that they will appear again in the future. Crossing fingers anyway.

[jmh123]

Two things right now ....

1. That blog is my favorite of all time. I'm just mush for him and can't wait to send PBS some money in his honor tonight. Not as much as I would like, but enough to satisfy me. Here's to all the former NJU's, like me. *clink*

2. To CT and LJ, my insurmountable obstacles have vanished in the haze of the Texas sun. I'm back on, BAYBEE! Now, I did cancel my reservation at the Silver Legacy (and they wanted to make sure I wasn't cancelling to reserve at the promo rate, so I don't feel like I can do that, in good conscience.) Does anyone have an extra bed, or can I team up with someone to share a new reservation? I don't need a whole room for my lonesome. But that's not something I need to worry about today, is it!

I AM ECSTATIC. Because of everything.

:04: :04: :04:

Aikim, thank you so much for the detailed recapping!!! I really appreciate every word.

[luckiest1]

Thanks for the recap, aikim. Sure wished I lived in Chicago last night! I called in and made a small donation but I guess all the in studio operators were busy, because I got a woman in an outside call centre who was very confused about how I could see the Chicago feed from Canada.

[bottlecap]

A few screencaps from one of the pledge breaks.

[bottlecap]

:thsign27: And somehow, my credit card jumps out of my wallet...

[aikim]

Heading to Chicago today for a book fair...annual event they have there..close off streets and have tents with book dealers and also author signings...fun way to spend the day and you can never have too many books, right?

So much fun last night...a couple of other things...Clay mentioned watching 3-2-1 Contact when he was home sick and that he had a family member who was PBS regular, David Foster.

1 Day until Clay is Hosting Sirius Sinatra (not sure about time)

8 Days until Clay is Bringing Broadway Home to NC!

26 Days until Clay is addressing The Key Club Convention!

41 Days until The Timeless Tour Begins!:09:

Happy Birthday to all celebrating!

Everyone have a great day!

Kim

[duckyvee]

Loved Clay's blog! Sounds as if things went well last night.

I missed the excitement, but it was fun to read the reports this morning. Thanks for your recap, Kim. I am beyond thrilled to know that In My Life made the DVD cut.

Catching up on song of the day......

Misty - Ah, sublime. Beautiful melody, beautifully sung, perfect match of song and singer, nice sax interlude, and Clay's diction..... I could live inside his Ls.

"clinging to a cloud"

"hopelessly I'm lost"

"violins"

"glove"

"following"

And of course... "That's just what I want you to do." Love the way he sings that line!

There are so many elements in this song that would typically annoy me - helpless/hopeless/following someone/wanting to be led on- but not in this song. I enjoy every phrase. Gorgeous.

Mack the Knife - I have always like this song, and Clay's performance of it on AI was a favorite of mine. He seemed to be at a level all by himself that night. I love the arrangement on the CD, and the big band sound. That Bay-beh and Taw-dry make me take my hands of the wheel to clap when I'm driving. And "down by the river going slow," and "droppin' on down" - love the 'downs,' Yeah, it's about a murder.... ugly mob-like story, which of course is romanticized in a Hollywood treatment sort of way, and Mack comes off as a charmer. I have to laugh at the "line forms on the right" phrase, applying it not to Mack, but to Clay, with the women who are likely to jockey for position when he comes to town. I think I might recognize Lucy Brown.

[jamar1700]

I love where Clay says "sometimes I still pinch myself" .... while actually pinching himself

[luckiest1]

aikim, love the little details you are remembering. Thank you! I wonder why the pledge breaks that have been vaulted so far don't seem to contain any of the cute things Clay talked about, like Parker and the Big Red Dog, or 3-2-1 Contact, etc? Maybe there is more to come?

[goldarngirl]

aikim, love the little details you are remembering. Thank you! I wonder why the pledge breaks that have been vaulted so far don't seem to contain any of the cute things Clay talked about, like Parker and the Big Red Dog, or 3-2-1 Contact, etc? Maybe there is more to come?

I think the big red dog and 123 contact was in the second or third station break.

[jmh123]

I think the Big Red Dog might be in the first, because it is the only one I've seen so far and I think I remember it, but everything is kind of mushed together in my head today. In a good way.

From CC via CH:

Here's a rundown by Pink Armchair posted at the CC. You'll see by the last line that she was about to "travel" herself and said that the post could do the same *g*...

Well. Finally I've had some sleep. It feels like it's been a long time.

When I woke up yesterday, it occurred to me that this is what a bride must feel like on the day of her wedding. (Not that I'd know anything about that, but I'm sure most of you can relate. *g*) Weeks -- months, really -- of frenetic activity, of pushing and shoving and asking and nitpicky attention to detail and excitement, and...it was finally here.

Only in my case, it was a mixture of gut-wrenching terror and nervous exhaustion. It was funny to read all the sweet posts from people saying I must be having the time of my life when I was sitting here chugging Pepto-Bismol straight from the bottle. I suppose having to watch 30 of my coworkers carting their belongings out the door the week before had something to do with it. That was bad enough. But then the enormity of what I had taken on really started to get to me. As someone astutely observed in the bar last night, "You stuck your neck out." Oh yes. My neck and everything else. I had thought my intestines had gotten a workout during the CITH tour, but that didn't hold a candle to this. I kept thinking, what if it tanks? With Clay and a bigwig from PBS and so many of my friends and coworkers right there to see it? The nightmares didn't stop.

I never thought I'd say this, but I'm really glad it's over -- even though instead of a honeymoon I'm going back to promoting shows like Lithuanians in Chicago and You and Your Colon. (Me and my colon are not on speaking terms at the moment. Oh, well...maybe if I sweet-talk it with some actual food, it'll come around.)

But enough of the downer stuff. Despite the pressure, I knew I was lucky to be in the position that I was. A few snapshots: I walked out into the upper lobby at 5:30 and saw about 20 of my closest friends standing there looking up at me. That was just wonderful and they did a fantastic job. We got a picture, which I'll share when I can figure out where my camera is. *g*

Getting to watch Clay tape my three intro scripts. Oh, my. After all these years of putting words in his mouth, I was actually...putting words in his mouth! Surreal. He was a real pro. Strode confidently into the studio, shook everyone's hands, asked their names and USED their names. ("Danny, couldja speed up the prompter?" Bob, how's the sound?") He had obviously read them very carefully ("thay're FAHN," he said to my pledge director) -- he just sat on a stool in front of the camera and read them off the teleprompter, with no changes that I could see, looking right into the camera with complete sincerity. He did each of them twice, and the whole thing couldn't have taken 10 minutes. I know our crew was very impressed. Did Clay know I wrote the scripts? I don't know. It doesn't matter.

I was Clay's "wrangler," meaning that I was supposed to escort him between the green room and the studio whenever he needed to go from one to the other. Which was an interesting challenge given that I was also running the live chat. Every time I ran back to the green room, I seemed to be catching Clay with a mouthful of Chinese food. He was very gracious about it, though. He did tell me, for future reference, that the rice dish was very good, but the orange chicken was "NAY-STEE!" I assured him I'd make a note of it. As we were walking, he asked me if was familiar with a particular web site (but now I can't remember what it was -- something funny). He was quite friendly and seemed happy to be there. By the way, if you're wondering if he remembered me...yes, he did. He used my name a lot. At one point when I went back there to get him, I pulled a bag from under the table and said, "Clay, you can't visit a PBS station without encountering two things: a cheesy tote bag (handed it to him) and Sesame Street (handed him a plush Elmo and a Cookie Monster). He said something like, "oh, cute!" He indicated that Parker would love the Elmo and he personally was a big fan of Cookie Monster (although I think he really meant cookies *g*). Then he thanked me for everything I had done and I told him that really, it was just fun. Which some of it definitely was.

I want to apologize about the "live chat." That's in quotes because I quickly discovered that wasn't what it was at all. What it REALLY was was a live blog that apparently was capable of accommodating a few commenters. I wish I had known that ahead of time...I would much rather have used PRoC chat. I was frantically approving comments and trying to read and respond at the same time...and pretty soon I was seeing messages that I had reached my limit (which I think was 25 "readers" and 25 "panelists/producers"). Anyway, I felt awful about that, and hoped that somebody was relaying what I was saying. Ironically, the folks at home saw way more of Clay than I did...from my vantage point I was completely blocked by a monitor and couldn't hear a thing over the din of the phones. And every time Clay was finished or they needed him back in the studio, I had to get up and do a 100 yard dash, leaving my "commenters" to talk amongst themselves. No, not an ideal system. Next time, I'm taking it easy!

There was a lady (Linda, one of our regular volunteers) sitting next to me on a phone who kept turning to me and saying, "Oh my God...the Bronx! Minneapolis! Cincinnati! Atlanta! What IS this?" She was amazed at the calls she was getting. The buzz in the studio was great and the phones were ringing off the hook, which was wonderful to see. My coworkers seemed very happy about that. I understand there were plenty of locals who pledged, some of them just thanking us for running such a wonderful show and telling us how much they were enjoying it. But I'll let the volunteers tell their own stories...there were some real doozies. At one point, the trainer walked up to me and said, "Wow! They're calling right on cue!" Of course they are, I said. That's what they do. *g*

Once Clay was done with his pick-ups (retapes) but the phones were still ringing, he needed to get out of there (had a flight someplace, I suppose). The talent and some of the staff wanted quick photos with him, so we gathered in the back lobby. A couple of my coworkers showed up especially to meet him, which was pretty cool -- after all, we get lots of celebs coming through here and they tend to be pretty jaded about most of them. We got various and sundry photos and then our makeup artist said, "Julia, of all people, YOU should get a picture. Get in there." The others, including Clay, seemed to agree, and she gave me a shove. So I "got in there" (I remember that Clay pulled me in and grasped me firmly) and we got the shot. I glanced at it quickly afterward -- a smiling Clay with a glazed-over zombie! I'll share when I can. And then he, his assistant (nice, discreet and protective) and the lady from International Media (very sweet) were quickly gone.

Went to The Grafton Bar afterward...miraculously, their entire back room was empty and available, and we took it over. That was great fun. So wonderful to be with these fantastic supportive friends -- I was so glad they were there.

Again, I want to thank everyone who participated...who called in or went online and pledged. You still can, if you want. They don't share numbers with me, but I could tell it did really, really well. And I think the other PBS stations will sit up and take notice, which is what we -- Clay, the producers, the station, the fans -- were ultimately working for. It was definitely a success, and we should all be very proud.

This post may travel, because I've got to, right now!

[ldyjocelyn]

I've only watched the first pledge break, but that's the one that he mentioned Clifford and Parker.

And jmh stole the rest of my post. Great minds and all....

[canfly172]

Taking a quick Report Card break...

Quite amazing what Pink pulled together! Oh to have been a fly on the wall in the studio there yesterday!

I was able to copy the entire WTTW chat in it's entirety, so that I can actually read the whole thing sometime when I'm less busy... hopefully next weekend. Would you guys like me to post it here somewhere? It's obviously quite long.

Or did somebody else already get it copied and posted somewhere?

It does have everybody's names as they entered them on the chat, so Cindilu2's full name etc... , so maybe somebody would wanna go through it and delete out last names first? I dunno.

[wandacleo]

I emptied all my piggy banks this morning and took them to the Coinstar machine at the grocery store--$185. Since that's mad money, the concert ticket REALLY only cost me $65 instead of $250.

What a relief. Practically free (not counting hotel, airfaire, food).

[FearofH2O]

Where do you get those rationalzation pills wandacleo? I might need some for my trip to NYC and Verona.

[ldyjocelyn]

wanda, isn't "found money" the best? Glad I'll be seeing you there!

I started a thread for planning the Chicago show attendance HERE. As we get closer to the time, we can figure out where to stay, eat, etc.