Copious Notes

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When I first heard about the singing chicken catcher from Mayfield, Ky., I said, “Oh, no.”

My fears had nothing to do with cultural stereotyping, or anything like that. It was that Kevin Skinner was starting his run on America’s Got Talent hot on the heels of two spectacular reality show flameouts.

There was Susan Boyle, the frumpy Scottish woman whose first appearance on AGT’s sister show across the pond, Britain’s Got Talent, became a YouTube sensation. And then there was Adam Lambert, the enormously talented American Idol contestant whose performances put him in a class by himself.

Both looked like shoo-in’s to win their reality/competition series, and both did not.

Not to take anything away from Boyle and Lambert’s worthy competitors, but it felt from Internet chatter and general commentary that their losses were due in part to voter fatigue with them — with Boyle’s come-from-nowhere story and with Lambert’s boundless talent. In competitions like this, viewers don’t like to be told whose going to win (or who should win, in the case of Simon Cowell’s Lambert endorsement) and they can turn on frontrunners.

Skinner’s debut on America’s Got Talent (that’s the clip, above) was somewhat Boyle-esque. He came from exceedingly humble roots, had judges and the audience cackling over his accent and his accounts of chicken catching, and then blew viewers away with his rendition of Garth Brooks’ heartbreaking ballad If Tomorrow Never Comes. Right away, his clip was being singled out on morning talk shows that referred to him as an American Susan Boyle.

But fortunately for him, that didn’t happen — not that Boyle’s done bad for herself since BGT.

Now, I didn’t keep up with AGT religiously. It’s been a crazy summer. Skinner buzz sort of subsided, and there was even a moment I wondered if he was still in the running. Other acts caught the public’s attention, from opera singers to 75-year-old comedians, most of them very talented people in their own respects.

Skinner, like a humble guy from Mayfield, kept his head down and played his music, and ultimately still had the most viewer-voters on his side at the end of the competition. He avoided a trap of overexposure that had swallowed two talent show darlings earlier this year and came out a $1 million winner.

Your reaction to the choice of Ellen DeGeneres as the new judge on American Idol may depend on how seriously you take American Idol judging.

It’s been hard to take the judging seriously for a long time, at least when they get to the live broadcasts.

Ellen DeGeneres. AP Photo/Matt Sayles.

Simon Cowell is there to be nasty, Paula Abdul was supposed to be sweet, and Randy, while maybe being the most substantive of the original trio, still seemed to be caught up in spinning phrases like, “those vocals were jumpin’ off, Dawg.” Huh?

New judge Kara DioGuardi took a few shots at constructive criticism this past season, but usually found herself shut down by Simon and a crowd that had little patience for it.

So, while I can see the argument that Ellen-for-Paula was trading a real recording artist for a comedian and talk show host, I cannot say I think the talent evaluation will take a substantive dive without Paula at the desk. This was not like Robert De Niro judging an acting competition or Tom Wolfe evaluating writers. Project Runway judging looks downright egg-headed next to the AI panel, which is essentially judging as entertainment.

The verdict was delivered a long time ago: Ellen is entertaining.

And she’s a music fan. When AI gets to the live rounds, it has turned the decision over to the fans anyway. So, if a fan is on the panel, and she’s entertaining, the audience wins.

If you don’t like Ellen, there’s probably no way you’ll like the decision. But debating her credentials to be a judge is taking American Idol judging too seriously.

Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul, and Simon Cowell on stage at the "Idol Gives Back" fundraising special of "American Idol" in April 2008. AP Photo by Mark J. Terrill.

We caught up with Harlan County native and former American Idol competitor Phil Stacey this morning to talk about his new album, Into the Light, which is set to drop Aug. 25. Before we got into that, we had to ask him about the AI earthshaking news that dropped Tuesday about Paula Abdul leaving American Idol. That will presumably leave the show with Simon Cowell, Kara DioGuardi and Randy Jackson as the show’s new trio of jusges. Here’s what Phil said:

Phil Stacey. Reunion Records.

I don’t know that the audience will miss her as much after a couple of seasons, and it’s just Kara, Randy and Simon. I’m sure the audience will get adjusted to it. The ones that I feel bad for are the future contestants on American Idol.

Paula was the only one on the judge panel that knows what it’s like to put your soul into what you’re doing and have it criticized before millions of people. She judges with a tender touch. She’s always willing to say something encouraging. I appreciate that, because you can receive a hundred positive comments and feedback, and the one negative is the one that’s going to stick out. So when somebody that’s so important to the show takes the time to encourage you, it means a lot.

Not to mention the fact that as busy as her schedule was, she always took time out for the contestants. She came to visit us every week bringing gifts with little messages to encourage us and keep us going, like t-shirts that said “Shoot for the stars, and you just might become one” — far too cheesy to wear in public, but it was very nice of her. If kids were ever visiting the Idol set, she always wanted to be there to take pictures and provide gifts.

I think she’s a really special person, and I’m very sad to see her go.

Asked what viewers will miss on the panel, Stacey, who was LexGo’s Idol blogger last season said:

They’re missing a huge aspect, because now you don’t really have a performer. Kara can sing, but she hasn’t performed in front of as many people as watch American Idol for a career. She’s sang on the show, but she’s not been heard by that many people. And she’s obviously never gone through the scrutiny of trying to pursue a performing artists’ career and having doors repeatedly shut in your face, and that’s what the American Idol contestants are going through.

I think you’ll lack that aspect of it. Simon is judging what he can sell on the show. He’s the A&R guy, he’s looking for the whole, ‘What’s the bottom-line dollar figure?” Randy’s judging the raw musicality, because he’s a great musician. Paula was the artist, and the artist is gone. You have a songwriter on the panel, but the artist is gone.

We’ll have more on Stacey’s new album next week.

Kris Allen is the new American Idol, shown here playing "What's Going On" on the May 19th final competition show. Photo by Frank Micelotta | FOX.

Well, it looks like it was well worth American Idol’s time to come to Louisville last summer.

Kris Allen auditioned in the Derby City, and then much like this year’s Derby winner, Mine That Bird, worked his way through the field and finished first. Some Adam Lambert fans had to be like Jill Baffert, wife of Pioneer of the Nile trainer Bob Baffert, at the Derby saying “Who the (bleep) is that,” as Allen advanced through the competition. His audition barely registered on the Louisville audition episode, and early on, he seemed like one of those competitors who would probably be somewhat anonymously voted off in the winter.

But the dark horse kept his head down, worked on making some terrific music and wound up in the winner’s circle.

Give the man from Conway, Ark., a blanket of roses. He earned it.

The American Idol judges at Churchill Downs in September: Randy Jackson, Kara DioGuardi, Paula Abdul, and Simon Cowell. Photo by Michael Becker | Fox.

Word came out early from the American Idol producers that Louisville had been a good city for the show. Simon Cowell dished out high praise, by his standards, telling Zap2it, “Louisville was good.”

Yes, it would have been nice to have had an actual Kentuckian who auditioned in Louisville in the final 13. That would have made the story of the Bluegrass State’s AI debut complete. But at least we can walk away from Season 8 saying Kentucky can pick a winner.

Some high notes:

• Heckuva a show for taking two hours-plus to tell us a few key words. I thought the return of Norman Gentle was great and the show kept getting better. It seemed Kiss had to be the highlight, and then Queen came out. Good Lord, Adam could front that band . . . As one who enjoys genuine surprise, Kris’ reaction to winning was delightful.
• Catch Adam Sandler’s University of Kentucky shirt in the Funny People commercial?
• Make sure to read Phil Stacey’s final Idol blog for LexGo.
• And take another look at our Louisville audition video, featuring Alexis Grace.
• Yes, Joanne Brokaw, it was the year of the worship leader.
• I was right. Wish I’d done that well at the Derby.

Simon Cowell got roundly booed for saying it on American Idol last night, but he was right: Saving Matt Giraud probably only delayed the inevitable. Frankly, anyone who has to be saved at No. 7 stands little chance of being the next American Idol.

Matt Giraud stays alive after receiving a judges save on American Idol, April 15. Photo by Michael Becker | Fox.

But the judges were running out of weeks. Next week was the last one they would have been able to invoke their new-found power to save a contestant who was voted off. And if they had waited, they could have very well ended up needing to use that privilege on Anoop Desai or passed on the much-hyped plot twist. Matt, at least, was a quasi-credible save.

If Idol really wants to make this dramatic though, next season, they should add a few more weeks. The final three would probably be a little too late, but at least the final four might give the judges a shot at saving someone with a reasonable chance of winning. As it was, this was very contrived all along, trying to create drama over saving people who barely made it into the Final 13.

Of course, if Matt wants to look for some hope, he could just glance over at his fellow regular cellar dweller. Anoop was the surprise 13th finalist, essentially the first save this season, and now he’s survived to nearly the half-way point. So, maybe there’s hope for Matt. But, particularly with two being eliminated next week, there isn’t much hope.

• Read former contestant Phil Stacey’s ‘Idol’ blog.

Tonight, we got the spectacle of American Idol’s judges acting like they might just use their save on Michael Sarver.

Seriously. I don’t even think Sarver expected they would do that. He seems like a nice guy with a sweet voice and solid stage presence. But by beating out Alexis Grace he already made it farther than he should have expected to. He will be fine. I even suspect he may be courted by the Christian market, as he has the right profile for CCM and he is a church worship leader.

Adam Lambert in one of his many great "American Idol" performances. Photo by Michael Becker | FOX.

But the judges cannot use their one-and-only save this early on for one big reason: One week, Idol Nation may collectively go off the reservation and put Adam Lambert at the bottom, and if that moment happens, the judges have to have the ace in the hole.

Don’t think it’ll happen? Two words: Chris Daughtry. Remember, season five? He seemed like a lock and finished fourth.

Now, as an alert reader notes, the judges don’t have the save after the Top 5, which is a good point. But the judges need to hold on to this new privilege to save a serious candidate for the top prize, a contestant whose fan base maybe needed a wake-up call, and not blow it on someone who never had a realistic chance anyway.

Lambert cannot be Daughtryed.

I have not been glued to Idol for eight consecutive seasons. But in what I have watched, Lambert is the most talented singer to grace that stage. First, his vocals are unreal. He can easily be a throwback to those virtuosic screamers of late ’60s/early 70s rock — think Robert Plant or Ian Gillan. Pop music hasn’t heard a voice like this in a while.

But more important, Lambert knows how to use it, and he can truly make songs his own. Just consider the psycho journey into the desert of his Ring of Fire last week, followed by a rethinking of Tracks of My Tears that floored Smokey Robinson this week.

Now, in one way, you can use that old logic that contestants are better off as runners up, thereby gaining the exposure but guiding their own careers. And you could see how that might benefit Lambert, like it has Daughtry.

But do you think Simon Cowell and Co. like seeing No. 4 rolling up the hits while the winner that year, Taylor Hicks, gets dropped by his record label? This is supposed to be about finding the next star, not the next supporting player in Broadway revivals.

So the judges need to use this little bit of actual power they have been given judiciously, to avoid a really big mistake. And leaving Lambert out of the Final 5 would be huge.

• Make sure to catch the thoughts of LexGo Idol blogger Phil Stacey.
• I also recommend my friend, my groomsman, Rodney Ho at the AJC.