And I feel the way that every child should

[sunnydlita]

We interrupt our regularly scheduled screenwriting update for this message: Folks, I have finally hopped on the ultimate pop culture bandwagon.

I have started watching American Idol. Since this show is pretty much inescapable anyway*, I've been trying to get into it for maybe two seasons now, but I've usually found it too cheesy and cheap and

Comments

[rockmarooned]

I'm thinking, if a song can't survive being oversung out of its actual melodic range, then a contestant shouldn't pick it, no matter how much cooler it is than usual.

[slightlyoffaxis]

You can tell from this comment that you definitely don't watch American Idol on a regular basis.

[sunnydlita]

I definitely don't watch American Idol on a regular basis either, and I think that the difference between Adam's rendition here and the usual oversung karaoke is that everything about the arrangement, including the vocal riffing at the end, feels like a deliberate artistic choice -- one that works. I realize that's totally subjective, though. In my opinion, whereas this is obviously nothing like the original "Ring of Fire," I think the song does survive the drastic stylistic shift.

Plus, I think Cash loved hearing weird covers of his stuff. I mean, one of his last collaborations was with Nine Inch Nails!

[aliwilliams]

"Ring of Fire" is not my favorite song, so arranging it strangely at least keeps it interesting.

I kinda get the appeal of American Idol-everyone likes karaoke and college a capella, right? And half the pro acts out there are just as shitty live. But it's nothing compared to the joy that is Any Dream Will Do on BBC America. Sara and I were falling off the cough from laughing. It's amazing.

[rockmarooned]

Oh, that was "Ring of Fire"? I was just assuming this was about that dude singing "Mad World."

[sunnydlita]

Same dude, but the clip I posted was "Ring of Fire" from a few weeks ago. Although if you didn't like Adam Lambert's version of "Mad World," you probably REALLY won't like his "Ring of Fire." Depends on how much of a purist you are, maybe?

Personally, I loved the first half of his "Mad World." I thought he sang the verses really poignantly. He kind of lost me after he stood up to deliver the chorus, and yeah, he hit that last note off-key. Apparently the studio version on iTunes is more restrained.

[aliwilliams]

I listened to "Mad World," but it didn't seem as original as that "Ring of Fire." Not different enough from Gary Jules, not better than Tears for Fears. But hey, I like the song.