America Needs Taylor Hicks
Written by Major Tom
Filed under: Entertainment News
May 24, 2006
Ryan Seacrest asked that proverbial question hours ago during the penultimate show of American Idol. Would Taylor Hicks break the cycle this year? For the past couple of years, female contestants had emerged victorious in this phenomenal talent search—first with Fantasia Burrina two years ago and last year with Carrie Underwood (shutting down the very rugged Bo Bice, the one who should have won in my book).
So will Taylor sing his way thru America’s hearts tomorrow and towards ultimate stardom with his sweet and raspy voice? This question is so difficult to answer and there is really no safe prediction as of this moment. 
The result can just go either way. Katherine Mcphee has such a powerful voice that if I were to judge her (like Simon Cowell does) then I should say that she has the most powerful voice ever for an unsigned artist. She can hit the high notes anytime without any hint of uneasiness in her entire façade and she is so versatile that I wouldn’t be surprised if she sings a Maria Callas operatic piece at one time and then shift to a Britney Spears ear-candy song seconds after that. She even sang an Ella Fitzgerald song and made it sound like she owned it and sang it so well that she had virtually redefined what a jazz ballad is. Her voice is clearly her most potent weapon and I considered it vintage classic. Ms. McPhee reminds me so much of a time when female vocalists were always soulful and strong, like Gladys McKnight and Olivia Newton John in the 1970’s. Nowadays, you don’t hear that kind of voice as often and if Katherine wins tomorrow, it wouldn’t surprise me at all and it would be mostly because of a voice that is so powerful that there’s nobody like her out there in the entertainment scene at present.
But despite of Katherine’s sublime singing qualities, I am so inclined to believe that Taylor Hicks should win it all tomorrow and that way, American Idol could offer a fresher material to Hollywood. Like Mcphee, Taylor’s voice and singing prowess is so unique and distinctive that there is no one like him out there. And mind you, America loves soul music and the guy who is the soul of Soul Patrol is all about soul music. And if only for this, Taylor should be singing his way all the way to the bank tomorrow morning.
America needs Taylor Hicks. It had already been too long since America had seen a talent like Taylor Hicks, especially with a very soulful voice like his. Joe Cocker is already nowhere in sight. Huey Lewis and The News is history. Billy Joel is fading into the sunset. And so is Bruce Springsteen. Americans love soul music and Taylor Hicks can keep it alive for them.
Well it looks like you got your wish, Tom. Taylor won over Kat. Anyways, I’m postng about the AI result tomorrow.
Comment by snglguy — May 25, 2006 @ 12:54 pm
hurrah to Taylor!
Comment by bing — May 25, 2006 @ 1:23 pm
Kat’s shaky rendition of her third song made her lose the game. If she just sang it minus the shrieking, trying hard to impress, I think she could have pulled it. The 3 judges were quite unanimous in declaring that it wasn’t her best performance. But what the heck, she got all the shoes and clothes, the Mustang convertible and a recording contract so what’s there to worry!
Comment by bw — May 26, 2006 @ 3:34 am
To sngl: That was a safe guess and it proved to be that way. I’ll be watching out for what you’ll have to say bout Taylor.
To Bing: Hail Soul Patrol!!!
Comment by Major Tom — May 26, 2006 @ 3:34 am
To BW: That must have been her Waterloo, the pitchiness. Maybe she was just trying too hard. If she ain’t, her voice is just flowing and bouncy. Maybe at second place is not so bad at all. She can still be a real american idol if she make it good in her future recording career.
Comment by Major Tom — May 26, 2006 @ 5:43 am
i was rooting for katherine but i guess taylor would be better a winner for the music scene coz of his unique style and all. porque pa gayot sila yan huntu na un season lang. hehe
Comment by rudyman — May 27, 2006 @ 1:17 am
I liked Taylor Hicks from the beginning. He reminds me of Joe Cocker and Ray Charles, but more of Joe. Anyway, I’m gald he won; I was rooting for him. I did, however, miss the final show. I’m sure it was a good one.
Comment by erisac — May 27, 2006 @ 3:14 am
To Rudyman: Yeah, its kinda sad that they have to be in the same year of competition. They could have won separate titles if they had only been in different years.
To erisac: It looks like he could resemble the success of Joe Cocker, only if he is as prolific a songwriter as the great soul singer. I understand that Taylor wrote that passable but better-than-the-average song he sang for his final performance.
Comment by Major Tom — May 27, 2006 @ 3:40 am