July 14, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! The BFF Meets the Family, Lots of TV Talk, and an iPhone Update.

The Dude on the Right took his BFF to visit some of his family in the old country, while Stu Gotz missed a Cubs' game, and those are just some of the topics they both cover in this podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!"

Sure, they also talk about miniature golf, give a shout for The Dude's mom to "Get well soon," the uber-coolness of the iPhone update, and The Dude is psyched to see "The Dark Knight," but let's not forget Stu's love of "Burn Notice," SCUBA, and the younger Gotz's love of "Mr. Men."  Now if only The Dude would have talked about his and his BFF's lottery winnings, well, this podcast might be complete, but that might just have to wait for The Dude chatting with The WGN, and explaining to said The WGN why opening car doors for girls could be fixed by more-advanced, door-unlocker key fobs.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:31 PM | Comments (0)

July 1, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! RV-ing, Penn & Teller, Movie Talk, Toilet Paper, and More!

Some travel issues delayed Stu Gotz getting back in town so the podcast of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up!" was a day late, and even with some extra time, well, The Dude on the Right screwed up the opening.  But that's okay because they have lots to talk about, including some movie talk about "Wanted," "Wall-E," "Presto," and "Letters from Iwo Jima."  The Dude relates to Stu that he really should get Showtime so he could see "Penn & Teller: Bullshit," and Stu should also get Sirius Satellite Radio so he could hear ABBA, 24/7, for a couple of weeks.  Stu, on the other hand, relates his woes of toilet paper at airports.  They both talk about a fight at the Cubs/White Sox Crosstown Classic, they talk about tattoos, and with the 4th of July weekend coming up, they talk about how it looks like The Dude's BFF still won't get to meet any of The Dude's friends, even with the lure of REO Speedwagon.

Posted by Rightdude at 5:54 PM | Comments (0)

June 26, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: A Special Guest Podcaster, The WGN, Joins for TV, Comedian, Gun, and Socially Inept Talk!

The Dude on the Right was joined by The WGN for this Thursday podcast, and they talk about a lot of things. The Dude introduces The WGN to "America's Got Talent," the both talk about George Carlin, and The Dude learns that The WGN is making contacts for his future. They both talk about guns (how topical, what, with the Supreme Court decision today), family gatherings, and if The Dude's family is socially inept. The Dude is also happy to hear The WGN knows who Night Ranger is, hopes the two of them might be able to see Radiohead at Lollapalooza, and fears he might get sucked in to "Dolphin Olympics 2." Maybe The WGN is a worse influence on The Dude as apposed to The Dude being a worse influence on The WGN?

Posted by Rightdude at 7:24 PM | Comments (0)

June 19, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: A "The Swell Season" Preview, Meeting Family, The Bachelorette, and Missing "Nessun Dorma" on "America's Got Talent."

The Dude on the Right could really use a nap before this podcast about, mainly, going to see "The Swell Season," especially since getting back home was past his normal bedtime, but that's not important because this podcast isn't a full review of the show, just a quick blip at his still liking the folks from the movie "Once." The Dude also talks about some BFF family stuff, he's still watching "The Bachelorette," and is bummed he missed the premier of "America's Got Talent" where some dude did a great version of "Nessun Dorma" from Puccini's Turandot, complete with Jerry Springer interrupting it, because, well, it's on TV.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:52 PM | Comments (0)

May 29, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: The World's Greatest Nephew Needs a Nickname, Some Politics, Some Eddie Murphy, and Some Toilet Talk!

The World's Greatest Nephew is still in college, so The Dude on the Right might have to send him a few bucks to get a new headset, but even though the audio quality isn't the greatest, The Dude is happy to be able to do a podcast, through the magic of the internet, with his nephew. The WGN is pretty much tired of politics, but that doesn't stop The Dude from playing a clip of Father Michael Pfleger, but then they nicely settle into some banter about college, summer, movies, sex, and toilets. What better things are there for an Uncle and his nephew to discuss?

Posted by Rightdude at 8:05 PM | Comments (0)

May 26, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! The Dude sees "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" and Fireworks, Stu Wonders if He Can Get "Wii Fit."

Thanks to the internet, Stu and The Dude were able to record their "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast via Skype, and although not the most exciting of Memorial Day weekends, some things for them were the same, and some things for them were different.  Duh.

Stu is nursing a cold, which kept him keeping up with his Netflix queue, namely watching "Wild Hogs" and "Cougar Club," while The Dude on the Right ventured into Chicago to see "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," fireworks, and have a nice dinner.  Stu couldn't go backyard camping with his kids, and The Dude needed to buy a new filter for his kids.  And Stu probably didn't use his Wii Fit, while The Dude doesn't own a Wii.

Now that they know the Skype thing works, there really isn't an excuse for Stu and The Dude to not ever do a podcast again.

Posted by Rightdude at 5:57 PM | Comments (0)

May 22, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: The Best Singer on the "American Idol" Finale Didn't Win, and Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

The Dude on the Right is still flustered about yesterday's "American Idol" finale during this podcast, and it's not because David Cook beat David Archuleta. Nope, the The Dude is flustered at wasting 2 hours and 5 minutes watching a 2 hour and 2 minute commercial for Fox related programming, or singers we don't care about. Luckily Ryan Seacrest was able to announce the winner before the TiVo programming ran out, but more luckily was that Renaldo Lapuz was given the chance to regale us all with his version of "We're Brothers Forever," or "I Am Your Brother," or who cares, he was great. Other than "Lost," the Spring TV season is now over. Hooray?

Posted by Rightdude at 7:14 PM | Comments (0)

May 21, 2008

David Cook: This is your American Idol!

By: The Dude on the Right
For you west coasters, wondering who won "American Idol" this year, I would like to apologize for spoiling it for you, but for the love of any God, space alien, or cosmos wondering about how we are here on this planet, PLEASE DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME WATCHING THIS FINALE!!!!! (Although, if you TiVo it, head straight for the one hour and eleven minute mark to hear the greatest Idol singer ever).  I watched (some) of it, and here's how it went.

Yes, Ryan Seacrest bragged about how many votes were cast (something like 97.5 gabajillion, or at least 97.5 million votes), split between 56% for David, and 44% for the other David, they did a "here's what's happening in their hometown" clip, and then another lame sing-a-long.  Then David and David did a bad duet of Chad Kroeger's (he's the lead singer dude from Nickelback) version of "Hero," and then a bizarre, crappy, piece of shit, plug for the next Mike Myers film "The Love Guru,", trying to say that Guru Pitka is actually a real person, influencing our two finalists.  Oh my f-ing God!  What in the hell is this total crap? Mike Myers, you are no Sasha Baron Cohen.

The Idol folks then let Syesha come out to show she probably should be the winner, doing a duet with Seal of "Waiting for You," with, of course, Paula Abdul dancing her butt off.  And after about about a 4 minute commercial break we got Jason Castro back, singing "Hallelujah," again.  Yippee, although most of us probably already bought the Jeff Buckley version on iTunes.  And here we go, it's just want we want to see after another song, a product placement commercial for some Ford cars!  Another "Yippee" is in order!

Now we get the girl contestants singing Donna Summer's "She Works Hard for the Money," in group fashion, only letting us remember how hot some of these dudettes were before they got booted from our memories because they couldn't really sing that great, and then, for more lameness, having Donna Summer come out looking almost dazed and confused singing what is going to be her new single.  Do we really want Disco back?  Out of the groove of her latest "hit," Donna's now into "Last Dance," with her having the excitement of, well, I'm sorry for being mean, but having none, letting Syesha show that yes, she is actually a singer.  And now, with the Donna Summer debacle done we get a Diet Coke commercial from like what, 3 summers ago?

Uggghhh!!!  (Can you tell I'm really flustered watching this show?)

At least we got a T-Mobile commercial from like a year or two ago where Dad says to his daughter "Maybe you should have uglier friends."  And then with another commercial break I TiVo'd through, we get Carly Smithson and Michael John singing an overproduced and "why the hell is this being done as a duet" version Joe Cocker/The Box Tops "The Letter."

And at the 43 minute mark, thank the Lord for Jimmy Kimmel!  Oh, my God, it's only the 43 minute mark!  That means there is probably another hourish left before we actually get to find out who is the next American Idol.

Now the guys get to sing Bryan Adam's "Summer of '69."  What the hell is it with having Ameircan Idol people sing songs released when they weren't even born yet, and now, yes, we actually get Bryan Adams to sing something new from him, "I Thought I'd Seen Everything."  Don't get me wrong, I like Bryan Adams, but Bryan Adams?

Yay, now David Cook gets to sing with ZZ Top, doing "Sharp Dressed Man."  For some reason, I don't think I can actually hear David's guitar.

Oh my God, I just can't take it anymore, now I'm getting Graham Nash singing "Teach Your Children" with Brooke White.  Actually, I almost like this performance, but I still can't take it anymore, can't blog about this anymore.  I'm going to watch some baseball now to see if the Cubs, White Sox, or Indians win, and will be back later to just announce who won.

Thank God for TiVo!

Okay, yes, I couldn't resist, I checked back, seeing that the Cubs were losing, and I'm torn between the White Sox and the Indians winning their game, and what do I see back on American Idol, but the greatest singer of all time, the "I Am Your Brother" dude, Renaldo Lapuz.  I actually have him as ringtones for some of my friends!  Screw Fleetwood Mac, Renaldo singing "I Am Your Brother" with the USC Marching Band is a hell of lot better than "Tusk."

It's back to baseball....

Okay, the baseball is boring, it's back to Idol.  Oh crap, it's Jordin Sparks showing, and damn, I hate to be mean again, but why can't she lose a couple of pounds to make herself a totally hot singer?  There's that, and I'm no fashion guru, but what's up with the outfit that explodes her hips?

Oh, thank God, another "product placement" commercial filtered in to the American Idol broadcast.  Yup, there's a movie coming out called "Tropic Thunder," and you might know it now.

Okay, never mind, Carrie Underwood is now on the show, showing why I might want to convert to vegetarianism, with a skirt that, well, umm, I'm going to pause this really quick.  Did I say I love my Tivo yet?

Okay, I'm back, that was quick....

Another group song - it's back to baseball...

The Cubs are still losing, the White Sox are now beating my Cleveland Indians with a home run, I guess I'm back to Idol...

Ughhhh!  Just give me the winner already!  It's been an hour and 47 minutes already!  This is really why I'm starting to hate this show.  And oh my God, they just brought out George Michael, who, surprisingly enough, has a tour to promote, and he's singing "Praying For Time."  Okay, he did a nice job with that.  But, of course, we have to promote his tour!

Finally, please, oh for the love of God, please, just tell me who in the hell is the winner!

Final thoughts from me - get back to why we actually watch the show, quit with the crap.  The result's shows should only be a half an hour long, the contestants should be able to sing full versions of the songs and be given a chance to be performers, and if you are getting mentors for these people, get actual mentors.

And so, David Cook wins "American Idol."  Good for him!  I'm tired, I have to get this posted, and I hope you didn't waste your time watching this two-hour, bloated, version of a finale, and just TiVo'd your way to the end.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:04 PM | Comments (0)

May 20, 2008

Who Will Be Your Next "American Idol"?

By: The Dude on the Right
Yippee!  We are down to the two David's, Mr. Archuleta and Mr. Cook, and I'm only still here because, well, it's a Tuesday, there really isn't anything on TV, and I've been doing this damn "American Idol" recap for the entire season so I might as well hang in there for the last of the singing.  Who will win, who will you vote for, will any of them trip and fall on their face (God, that would be great, wouldn't it?), and how much did they have to pay Michael Buffer to say "This... is... 'Americaaaaan Idooool...'",  so...

Let's go...

First thought, quit with the "Oh, we need a theme, let's make this like a boxing match" motif.  We don't care.  We just want to hear them sing, and why are we still going back to Andrew Lloyd Webber?  Yes, I admit, I like "Cats" and "Jesus Christ Superstar," but how many 12 year old girls do?  Just frackin' sing!  And it took them over 14 minutes to get to the ...

1st Round of Songs - Picked By Clive Davis
David Cook
 - Sings "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" by U2
 - It finally looks like he might actually want to be a performer instead of just a singer.  He sounds good enough, is working the stage, and little David might have some problems if big David keeps the night like this. 

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on My" by Elton John
 - This song so much fits into his wheelhouse, and he's trying to keep his eyes open and not squint, but he fades back and forth on the eye-squinting thing that I just can't help but notice it.  He finally worked to break out of his shell, also, actually being a performer, but you still see a little more apprehension, mostly just from lack of experience, I suppose.

Here comes the...

2nd Round of Songs - From the Song Competition
David Cook
 - Sings "Dream Big" by Emily Shacklton?
 - David gets to play guitar, to a song I actually like, in the pop-rock kind of way.  Man, this could almost be a song by Jim Peterik for a "Rocky" soundtrack.  It's kind of cheesy (in a good way), but one, with the right band, could end up on every iPod of people who exercise for inspiration.  I'm guessing Simon isn't familiar with any of the "Rocky" soundtracks.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "In This Moment" by Ryan Gilmore?
 - Oh crap, David A. is back into his "I need to be the next Josh Groban" moment.  The song is nice enough, but we know exactly where Mr. Archuleta is looking to take his career - to an Oprah Winfrey performance hoping to supplant Sr. Groban.  He is still trying to open his eyes, but it still isn't working.

Here comes the...

3rd Round of Songs - Picked By The Singers
David Cook
 - Sings "The World I Know" by Collective Soul
 - Dude, if you win this thing it will only because you have the most loyal fan base because why in the hell do you pick a sort of obscure song for your finale?  Sure, you sang it nice enough, but do you actually think any of the viewers who would actually vote for you know a song that was popular in, what, 1995?  Let's see, the 13 year old girls weren't even born yet.  So much for converting any of them to your side.  I think Simon still realizes that David Cook, right now, has the best potential for a music career.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Imagine" by, umm, duh.
 - Oh, hell, who cares anymore?  He still squints, he still "croons," and the 13 year olds who aren't voting for David Cook probably heard their parents actually play the original version of this song, and are voting for this David anyway.

Let's wrap this up...
I think David Cook is the better performer, David Archuleta needs to really learn how to open up his eyes (that comes with experience), but the more curious thing will be to see, in the year 2013, who might still have a career?  I'm guessing it will be Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Daughtry, and Kellie Pickler.  And maybe next year's "American Idol."  One of these David's will win, but I just don't see long lasting careers in front of any of them.  Maybe they'll prove me wrong.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:46 PM | Comments (0)

May 19, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: I Could Have Won $0.40, or even Millions, I've Got Too Much Stuff, and Here Comes Indiana Jones!

The Dude on the Right realized, over this weekend, that he has too much stuff, and some of that stuff should have been thrown out years ago, like a phone book from 1995, so for this podcast he laments on seeing a movie he didn't care that much about, namely "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian," how he didn't win millions, or at least $0.40, and wonders why he still has a hand-held scanner that only scans in black & white. At least he still has a film idea on a 3 1/2" floppy and his hope that "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" will be good.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:59 PM | Comments (0)

May 15, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Shania Twain is Unattached, Starbucks Almost has Nudity, David Will Win American Idol, and a Tease for Monday.

The Dude on the Right is trying to figure out, during this podcast, how he will skirt the authorities in his trying to woo Shania Twain in either Switzerland or Canada, since he doesn't have a passport and she is breaking up with her hubby. He also steals a story from "The Roe Conn Show" about Starbucks and their naked mermaid, gets some audio he heard on "Howard Stern" as a tease for Monday's podcast, but does know that David will win "American Idol."

Posted by Rightdude at 6:41 PM | Comments (0)

May 13, 2008

A Judge's Pick, A Personal Pick, A Producer Pick, and Yes, Ryan, We know, This is "American Idol."

By: The Dude on the Right
So we've got the final three, it's David Cook, Syesha Mercado, and David Archuleta, and I'm starting to not care that much because this show really has lost the reason why we watch it. 

Let's go...
1st Round of Songs - Picked By The Judges

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "And So It Goes" by Billy Joel
 - So, Paula Abdul tosses David a bone for this song, because all David can sing well seems to be ballads, and David thinks it is a really pretty song.

He still can't open up his eyes if it could save the world, he's pigeonholed himself into his recording contract as a balladeer, and the underlying problem is still that he can't actually be a performer or work the crowd.  He sings nice, he squints, he just can't seem to approach the audience and get the girls to toss their underwear at him.

David, open up your f&#$ing eyes!

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "If I Ain't Got You" by Alecia Keys
 - Randy Jackson throws a song into the wheelhouse that is Syesha, and she does her hair right keeping it straight, and dresses nice, and more importantly she sings nice.  I do wish she would have "performed" a little more, but the only problem I had was she let her "glee" at being there mess up the "emotionish" of the song.

David Cook
 - Sings "First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" by Roberta Flack
 - Simon actually gives someone a challenge, and David Cook took this song and almost even made me want to download it.  What the hell is wrong with Randy?  Simon actually knows how this contest works, and...

After the first round I'm going, in order, David Cook, Syesha Mercado, then David Archuleta

Here comes the...

2nd Round of Songs - Picked By The Contestants

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "With You" by Chris Brown
 - He decides for something new, and who the hell told him that this would be the song to make him a star?  He looks so damn uncomfortable now trying to be a performer/singer, and, I'm sorry, he dances like a white guy.  He sings nice enough, but damn, he needs a few more years under his belt to actually be a star.  Sorry, I know the young girls and grandmas like him, but Randy and Simon called things right for him.  He better hope the Producer people pick the perfect song for him or else he better hope his fan-base is super-strong.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "Fever" by, Peggy Lee
 - She needs to quit smiling, although I can understand how happy she might just be to be there in the final three.  She breaks character to be happy, then flips back into serious mode, then back into happy mode.  She's flaunting her voice, flaunting her, hmm, dress and body, but can't hold the "performance" side.  Quit smiling, stay in the "serious" character, and it would have been perfect.

David Cook
 - Sings "Dare You To Move" by Switchfoot
 - He still likes picking slightly obscure songs, decides he'll try to be a rocker with the guitar strapped around his neck, and does his best to rock it out, but sadly, someone has done this before on "American Idol," and they don't give him enough time to actually develop the song.  He could have been great with this song, if he could have actually done the entire song, but if the "American Idol" folks want to know why we are tired of watching the show, it's because the only get half a song to sing.  He could have been so much better.

Second Round: Syesha, David Cook, and then David Archuleta

Here comes the...

3rd Round of Songs - Picked By The Producers of the Show
And "American Idol" Producers, you have now put yourself into "We have to cram as much as possible into this one hour show so we can't actually let them sing a full song and actually develop it, so lets rush right into...

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Longer" by Dan Fogelberg
 - He squints, but who cares anymore?  I'm almost wondering if he has eyes under those eyelids.  A lame song, he still can't be a performer for it, and still just sits there, on a stool, instead of hitting the end of the stage and wooing the girls.  And no, Randy, he can't sing the phone book.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "Hit Me Up" by, Gia Farrell?
 - So, the "Idol" folks are trying to turn Syesha into a Beyonce/Rihanna?  Do you people even know what you have here?  Gosh, she tried to work it, she worked to sing it, but this is not a song you give someone who you want to be the next Beyonce/Rihanna to try to pull off in a minute and a half, nor try to rehearse in less than a week!  Ughh you "American Idol" producer people, Ughh!  Syesha tried so hard, though, unless David Cook becomes a magic man, I want Syesha to win.

David Cook
 - Sings "I Don't Want To Miss a Thing" by Aerosmith/Diane Warren
 - He's screwed by a lame arrangement with the "American Idol" band, and he is so trying to work it.  The orchestra sucks, he only has 90 seconds to work it, and as much as he tries to promote it, I thought it was kind of lame.  I guess it sounded better on the Idol stage, because in my home, well, I hated it.  I've seen Steven Tyler sing this song, and David Cook is no Steven Tyler, mostly thanks to the band.

You know what, I'm tired of trying to figure out who might win this thing...  So...

Let's wrap this up...

My advice for the "American Idol" folks is to simply quit trying to make the show complicated, quit with not letting the singers sing full versions of songs, and I want Syesha to win because if anyone has grown during this competition, has come out of her shell, and has actually worked to be a performer, it is Syesha.  If you want my opinions on how to get "American Idol" back to actually getting people to watch, I'll just say something simple - quit with the crap, let every contestant sing the full version of the song, and keep the results-show to 1/2 hour.  All we care about on the results-show is who is getting booted.

If you want someone who is a pop-idol, that person is Syesha.  I'm rooting for her!

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:45 PM | Comments (0)

May 12, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! "Speed Racer," The Dude Leaves his Bunker, and Baseball Nuts.

The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz are finally reunited for a "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast, and they've got a lot to talk about. Sure, Stu saw "Speed Racer" and gives his review, The Dude has to explain that he had a great time shirking his duties and meeting up with a dudette from his school days, and Stu relates that he still can't understand sport uber-fans. The two of them talk about "Survivor," about "American Idol," and Stu tries to give a Netflix review of a movie that The Dude could care less about. Ah, such are Stu & The Dude!

Posted by Rightdude at 6:09 PM | Comments (0)

May 8, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: So, Like, It's Like Idol, Survivor, TV, and Like, So, Girls Just Want to Have Fun!

The Dude on the Right was mesmerized during this podcast because he was intrigued by a dudette who liked to say "like" and "so" a lot while he was eavesdropping on a conversation at Starbucks. The Dude is also a little melancholy about the end of the TV season, what with "Survivor" wrapping up on Mother's Day, and "American Idol" coming to a close soon, but thankfully the Jack Johnson wannabe, Jason Castro, is done singing.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:41 PM | Comments (0)

May 6, 2008

Umm, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame week? What the Hell is That?

By: The Dude on the Right
Ryan Seacrest says we must vote, and I'm saying I don't care how poorly Syesha might do, but vote for Syesha because do we really want a top three finish of all dudes?  It's obvious we don't always vote for the best singers, so for the love of God, don't let "American Idol" become a sausage fest!

It's "Rock and Roll Hall of Fame" night, which I really don't understand, except I guess it's songs you can pick which are from the R&R HoF.  But why are the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductions still held in New York City instead of Cleveland which is where the Rock Hall is located?  I guess that is a story for another time.  And Paula must be happy because the format is back to normal where she only has to do her talking one performer at a time.  Hooray!

Let's go...
1st Round of Songs

David Cook
 - Sings "Hungry Like the Wolf" by Duran Duran
 - He is singing okay like he usually does, but he has all of the charisma of, well, he has none.  And why in the hell do you pick a song where the lyrics we all know are "Do do do do, do do do, do do do, do do do, do do...", or something like that.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "Proud Mary" by, Tina Turner
 - She is so much looking better with the straight hair, has nice gams, and almost has seemed to have come into her own as a singer and performer and might now just be the person to be reckoned with if the dudes don't step things up in a big way.  VOTE FOR SYESHA!  Simon didn't like it, but the heck with him, every week is a bad interpretation of someone famous.  Let's just revel in the fact that someone seems to actually want to perform.

Jason Castro
 - Sings - "I Shot the Sheriff" by Bob Marley
 - Yea, go figure, Jason Castro thinks he can sing Bob Marley.  He's trying to finally be a performer, but he's smiling during lines like "I shot him down."  We will see if people don't give a crap about his singing because if after this performance he stays alive well, we know all of the stoners are voting in force.  Simon was dead-on with "utterly atrocious" and "the only similarity was the hair."

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Stand By Me" by Ben E. King
 - He's still squinting, but at least is trying to perform.  I'm not saying he should get all "crazy eyed," but dude, get used to the lights, open your eyes, and this performance would have been a hell of a lot better.  David's singing is good, but he's still got to learn to work the girls in the front row.  If he worked just one girl to show true confidence with the ladies it would have been fantastic, and his possibilities would be endless.

2nd Round of Songs

 David Cook
 - Sings "Baba O'Riley" by The Who
 - No, this song is not called "Teenage Wasteland," though many people think it is, and sadly for David he only had a short amount of time to actually sing this song.  What is really starting to piss me off about "American Idol" is they are not having the show done so the contestants can actually perform a song.  This is a song that can't be chopped into pieces for a couple of minute piece.  Ugh, the AI people are ruining this show because I almost thing David could have made this song great had he not had to chop it up.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "A Change in Gonna Come" by, Sam Cook
 - Well, Syesha is starting to show she might actually be the person out of all of these contestants who could actually have a recording career because she was fantastic.  Screw you Randy, Paula loved her, and Simon actually agreed with Paula.  As much as I say VOTE FOR SYESHA!, it might almost be better if she gets booted so she can get out of the "winner of the "American Idol" spotlight" and develop a career like Chris Daughtry.  In any case, Syesha, if you do win, don't let them drag out your career like they did with Jordin Sparks.

Jason Castro
 - Sings - "Mr. Tambourine Man" by Bob Dylan
 - He forgot lyrics, he just doesn't seem to give a damn about being in this competition anymore, and how in the hell did he even think he could pull off Bob Dylan and Bob Marley, so if he is not the one getting booted tomorrow we have found out that this show doesn't really matter anymore because the public just likes a pretty boy, or a stoner-looking boy.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Love Me Tender" by Elvis "and do we even need to end that with Presley?" Presley
 - Wait a minute, did he just say, or was he mocking me, that "I haven't really sung a romantic love song on the stage before?"  He's still squinting, the little girls and old ladies still probably love him and will text their hearts out for him, and I'll give him a few props for changing the arrangement a tad, or give credit to whomever might have changed his arrangement.  Whoever did the changes knew David would only have a short time to put this song out and hopefully made it work.  David, dude, you still need to learn how to open up your eyes.

Let's wrap this up...

All I can say is that the "American Idol" producer/director/whoever the hell is in charge of this monster is really screwing this up.  I say that because between last week and this week our contestants don't actually get to sing, nope, they get to sing a bitty-small portion of a song instead of actually getting a chance to perform a song.  The culmination of this was David Cook singing the worst, chopped version of "Baba O'Riley" ever.  Idol people, please, stop.  Get this show back to how we loved it in year one and two, because if next season is like this, well, I don't know if I can stick with it.  "Dancing With the Stars" lost my viewership, my Mom has already ditched "American Idol," but if you don't get back to actually letting the contestants learn to be performers, or at least sing an entire song, I might be done with it next year.

In any case, VOTE FOR SYESHA!  And other than being a dudette, she actually deserves it.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:17 PM | Comments (0)

May 1, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Happy Birthday to Me!, Vote for Syesha, Jason was Dumber, and Here Comes "Iron Man!"

For this podcast The Dude on the Right talks about getting a haircut, in anticipation of his birthday and having to renew his driver's license, by a dudette who blamed her sounding like she was stoned on a cold rather than, well, being stoned. He is also throwing all of his support to Syesha on "American Idol," thinks Jason might be the dumbest "Survivor" contestant ever, and wonders who he would beckon to visit him during "family reunion day" had he been a "Survivor" contestant. But as his birthday looms, and he gets out of his 40's, The Dude knows it is now movie season, and he can't wait to see "Iron Man" over the weekend.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:22 PM | Comments (0)

April 29, 2008

Neil Diamond is In the American Idol House! But Why?

By: The Dude on the Right
I love Neil Diamond.  I've seen him in 1996, 1998, 2001, and 2005. I've taken some nice photos of the man, I've done some cartoon drawings of the man (scroll down for it), and I have even taken my Mom to his concert back in 2001 which would have been a better experience for her (but maybe not so much of a story), had I splurged on a limo.  He is a singer, he is a songwriter, but hopefully for our last five folks in this contest it will be his performing skills that he can impress on them.  We'll have to see how that goes as the show goes on, so let's just get to it, and here's how I thought the five folks did...

ROUND 1
Jason Castro
 - Sings - "Forever in Blue Jeans"
 - Good choice for him.  It's bouncy, light-hearted, and works with him playing guitar, but he still isn't being much of a performer. 

David Cook
 - Sings "I'm Alive"
 - Good, pick obscure Neil Diamond songs people don't know by a performer who most people know all of his hits.  David did good with the "I'm Alive" song, but most people probably don't want to hear Neil Diamond songs they don't know.  Quit trying to be so "original."

Brook White
 - Sings - "I'm a Believer"
 - "I'm a Believer" is just so wrong for a song for her to sing.  She couldn't hit the low notes, it might have been in the wrong key, and these people playing their own instruments limit themselves because they are stuck behind the mike and can't actually work the crowd.  So far the performing side of anything isn't coming out.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Sweet Caroline"
 - So David tried to bust out of his melodic groove with maybe the biggest karaoke song in existence, and he didn't even fill in the "So Good, So Good, So Good" part.  He almost wanted to work the crowd for this song, but then hunkered back to just singing, almost seeming to hope he wouldn't forget the words.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "Hello Again"
 - It's nice enough, but just seems to be lacking some kind of punch that Neil puts into it even though it's a ballad.

On a side note, Paula Abdul has finally hit an all-time high for being clueless.

ROUND 2
Jason Castro
 - Sings - "September Morn"
 - Yea, we get the performer you want to be - the laid-back, hippie dude.  We get it, the dudettes probably like your laid-back attitude, and you picked good songs this week even though I found you lame.  You're lucky the chicks probably dig you.

David Cook
 - Sings "All I Need is You"
 - Yup, another obscure Neil Diamond song, what the hell are you thinking?  Sure, you might be trying to separate yourself and be original, but in a week you had two songs to pick maybe you should choose an obscure one for the first song (good choice though), and then bring reality back with a Neil Diamond classic so everyone could remember that.  You're probably lucky that you are a pretty-boy, rocker-dude, because that is the only thing you bring.

Brook White
 - Sings - "I Am, I Said"
 - You know what, I hate the fact that the band actually joined in because for her, doing this solo, on the piano, was really working for me.  The back-up band ruined it, because as a solo song this was actually a song I liked.  I still hate that she won't shut up when the judges give her their critiques, and I only wish I could see her do this song in a smoky bar, all alone on a piano, just being herself.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "America"
 - I know you are young, but who in the hell is coaching you on the songs for you to sing?  Of all of the Neil Diamond songs this is probably the worst choice in my head for you.  I guess it sounded better for his live performance because on my TV I didn't like it at all.  Am I hearing something different?

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "Thank the Lord for the Night Time"
 - She's at least coming out of her shell and trying to also be a performer, but I think it might be a little too late because, as I'm listening to her, Syesha could have probably turned "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show" into a fabulous number, but the problem is the American Idol folks forced these people to do two songs in an hour.

Let's wrap this up...
As much as I love Neil Diamond I still have absolutely no idea why he was involved in this show.  The crappy part is that our contestants didn't need to try and fit two songs each into an hour, they really needed just one song each to fill in this hour - and perform the hell out of that song.  I hate to say this but the "American Idol" folks haven't seemed to realize why we love this show, and it's not for seeing people sing a verse and then a chorus and then being judged by Randy, Paula, and Simon, clipped because of time constraints.  Our time is precious, don't let us feel cheated.

I've pretty much given up on "Dancing with The Stars," and now I'm almost not caring about "American Idol."  Idol Producers, at least let these people try to sing.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:24 PM | Comments (0)

April 24, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Lee Elia Rants, Carly Smithson is Booted, and RIP Kenneth Keith Kallenbach.

After hearing about the passing of Kenneth Keith Kallenback during The Howard Stern Show this morning, The Dude on the Right realized he actually has a "blowing smoke through his eyes" story, and doesn't do his best to tell the tale during this podcast. He does, though, warn you as you are listening that you might want to watch your podcast volume during his visiting of the Lee Elia tirade about Chicago Cubs' fans. The Dude is also happy TV is back in full bloom, happy that Carly Smithson is finally off "American Idol," and is looking forward to seeing Neil Diamond as the A.I. mentor next week.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:01 PM | Comments (0)

April 22, 2008

It is Andrew Lloyd Webber Week. Shouldn't We Be Paying Attention to the Pennsylvania Election Results?

By: The Dude on the Right
So as a good American I suppose I should probably be hunkered down watching the Pennsylvania Primary Results to see if Hillary Clinton somehow pulls out a chance to solidly beat Barack Obama if only to further confuse who will be the Democratic nominee for President, but, dammit, it is Tuesday night, it is "American Idol" night, and there is more important voting going on in just about an hour.  Sure, it is Andrew Lloyd Webber Week for A.I., and Andrew Lloyd Webber is fantastic, legendary, a mega-force when it comes to musicals, and fine, I'll admit it, I'm a fan of "Jesus Christ Superstar" and "Cats."  Hell, I even saw "Cats" on Broadway back in 1985, although part of it is blurry as we took a high school bus ride from Ohio to New York City, and since I can't sleep on moving transportation and "Cats" was the first play we saw out there the evening we arrived, let's just say I was nodding off during part of it, at least I think so.  Man, some of those memories are blurry now, and unless my mind is really messed up, we also saw "Noises Off" out there, which I can still watch today and laugh my ass off if done even close to right.  But I digress.

So as much as I do appreciate the music of Andrew Lloyd Webber, maybe the "American Idol" folks realize no one there has the personality/performance quality to make it as a pop singer so they're trying to see if they can make some money with them on the Broadway stage.  Maybe Andrew Lloyd Webber will actually get these shlubs to be performers, but I'm still praying for "Bruce Springsteen Week" when he can teach this group about performing, and then Artie Lange from The Howard Stern Show, now that he reneged on his resignation, will have to answer to this equation:  Bruce Springsteen + American Idol = Ball Shocking.

Enough reminiscing, enough praying, let's see how our last six folks sing...

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "One Rock 'n Roll Too Many"
 - My prediction is that even though she sings nice enough, and she is trying to perform it as if she were on stage, she's the first singer of the night and only her diehard fans will stick by and vote for her.  Sadly, or maybe happily, she has shown she will be able to make it on Broadway, just not the pop/Idol scene.

Jason Castro
 - Sings - "Memory"
 - This is not a song for "laid-back"-ness, which Jason Castro is all about.  The thing is that people who know the song (like me), will probably think it sucked, but fans who have no concept of the song might actually love it.  He needed to hit the "Jesus Christ Superstar" soundtrack and become Jesus, rather than singing anything from "Cats."  Horrible song choice.

Brook White
 - Sings - "You Must Love Me"
 - Does "forgetting the song" lend her to the bottom of the pack?  Does singing a Madonna song save her?  Once she got over forgetting the lyrics she did okay, but the performance aspect waivered.  Paula seemed crushed, Simon was correct about the stopping thing, and now we will see how strong her fan base really is.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Think of Me", I think.
 - So Andrew Lloyd Webber gave David the best bit of advice ever - to open his eyes, and yet he can't.  I guess he's a squinty dude who can sing well, but still lacks the performance skills because if the dude just approached the front of the stage, worked the girls in the front row, he would have shown everyone that he is better than just a good singer.  Simon again is correct.  David has to break out his shell and be a performer - quit standing in the center of the stage.

Carly Smithson
- Sings - "Superstar"
- This song fits in her wheelhouse, but there is still something about her that makes her "over-the-top" for the show.  She still shouts too much, she still seems to have this attitude of "I deserve to win this," and this song was probably a better choice for her, even though I still didn't like it that much.

David Cook
 - Sings "Music of the Night"
 - Yea, fine, you could be on Broadway, too.  You will probably stick around for another week, and at least you seem to try and work the crowd a bit, but you have shown that there isn't a pop-idol in this group.

Let's wrap this up...

Great, this week has shown that we've got six people who could probably be on Broadway, but not one of them has shown that they have the star power to be a pop singer.  Sorry, but I really don't care that much about these people anymore.  We don't need Mariah, we don't need Broadway, now we just need to see if these people can perform, and as I have been re-iterating from week to week, we really need a performing mentor for these folks.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:15 PM | Comments (0)

April 21, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Movie Talk, Artie Lange Talk, End of the World Talk, "Survivor" Talk, and more Talk.

The Dude on the Right is flying solo for this "Weekend Wrap-Up!" podcast, mostly because of his own fault, but he still tries to blame Stu Gotz a bit even while he talks about penis and "Forgetting Sarah Marshall." The Dude also talks some martial arts with the movie "The Forbidden Kingdom," how he is happy Artie Lange is back on The Howard Stern Show," that the end of the world is coming, and last week might have been the best tribal council on "Survivor: Fans vs. Favorites." The Dude also gives his tribute, sort of, to Pope Benedict coming to the United States of America.

Posted by Rightdude at 7:11 PM | Comments (0)

April 20, 2008

At First I Wondered "What Was I Thinking?" An Hourish Later My Legs Weren't Screaming "Frack!"

By: The Dude on the Right
Today was one of those weird days when I had everything planned.  My normal morning routine would easily be in place, complete with starting laundry, reading the Sunday Chicago Tribune while eating breakfast, and, at the same time, catching up some some TiVo viewing.  Okay, I realized I still can't seem to get recording the new "Battlestar Galactica" correct, muttered "What the frack!", then tried to set up a season pass I screwed up before, hoping it didn't miss this week's episode forever, or at least until the DVD season comes out.

But my Sunday also had a lot of errand-running planned, which, I know, is kind of lame, but the Sunday also had planned a one hour walk in my favorite Springbrook Prairie Forest Preserve.  I was sort of curious to see how things were looking after they torched the place a few weeks back, except with a slight wind blowing from the northwest I knew heading north would make my walk back a little easier so I wouldn't get to see the result of the torchness.  And I'm walking, and I'm walking, and I get to the thirty minute mark and realize that I'm feeling good, my legs feel spry, I've got over half a bottle of water left, and I say to myself, "Self, why don't you just do the entire loop?  Why turn back now?"  Then I said to myself, "Self, What the hell are you thinking?  Do you realize that it will add another hour to this walk and your Sunday is already scripted."  Then I said to myself, "Self, it's a gorgeous day, with a slight breeze, and it hasn't started to heat up yet."  Then I said to myself "Self, shut the hell up.  We're going for the six miles."  Yes, I'm nuts.

And so I did my first six-mile walk of the year and it felt great.  I mean, my legs didn't get fatigued, I planned my water drinking properly, and it was actually more refreshing walking into the slight breeze on the backside of the loop than letting the breeze bring me home.  I also got to see that the crispy prairie was starting to turn green, the recent warm weather has instantly put trees into budding mode, and sure, there might be one more cold snap, or a crappy day or five here, but it looks like we have really, finally, turned the corner into the Spring and Summer season.

And also and, the walk was not perfect because there was one miscalculation, especially since my original plan didn't include a six mile, one hour and fifty minute walk, and that was I was wearing jeans.  I woke up this morning, didn't get myself a gun, didn't figure for the six mile walk, and haven't put myself back into "shorts mode" yet, so I pulled on my Levi's, put on a t-shirt, embraced the subtle, slight chill in the air, not thinking that less than two hours later I would be a little sweatier than I planned, had people on the trail looking at me like "What the hell is that dude wearing jeans for?", but you know what, at the end of it all, I got to see some deer frolicking in the prairie, and sure, you can't see the mallard in the upper picture of the pond but I did (I so have to bring my better camera gear), and the burnt prairie is starting to sprout grass.

So what if my running errands were bumped by about an hour.  So what if I was the dork wearing jeans on a six mile walk.  And so what if my iPhone photos aren't up to my normal standard.  It was a beautiful day, it was great to enjoy it, and it's almost time to get my white, pasty legs in some shorts.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:30 PM | Comments (0)

April 17, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Kristy, Priscilla, and a Cougar are Gone. But Not Google.

The Dude on the Right is in a lamenting mood for this podcast. First he's sad that Kristy Lee Cook got booted from "American Idol," then he really doesn't care that Priscilla Presley got booted but is still sad that Adam Corolla was knocked out of "Dancing With the Stars" competition, he is a little torn that a cougar got shot to death in Chicago, but what makes him most sad is that Google profits makes him remember that he could be worth about $50 million bucks.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:49 PM | Comments (0)

April 16, 2008

The Gloves are, Umm, Sort of Off?

The Gloves are, Umm, Sort of Off?

By: The Dude on the Right
So as I'm updating some stories over on the "Mostly Entertainment" site while I'm waiting to see who is getting booted from "American Idol," I've got the Democratic debate between "Crazy Eyes" Clinton and "Don't Call Me Osama" Obama on, and as far as I can tell it's still the same old crap: A question is given, the candidate responds and then somehow shifts their answer to because I will help "Bring back the troops," "Save the economy," or "Fix health care," no matter what the question was. Just once I would like some fire and brimstone, and one of them, or at least in this case Barack, to just slam back "Who taught you how to down a shot.", or Hillary to blast "Nice bowling form."

At this phase I almost just really want "down and dirty."  John McCain is just kind of floating around, like "La, la, la, you know what, if I am President I'm going to get rid of the gas tax!  Won't that be swell!"  Why, because right now he has no competition, he doesn't know who he is running against, and he just needs to try to stay in the news.  Hillarity and Barackability keep going back and forth, subtlety trying to say "I'm better than they are, nyah, nyah, nyah!", but deep in their heart don't you really want to know what they really might want to say, something like:

"You're Pastor is an idiot."
"Oh yea, let me go and videotape your Pastor for a bunch of sermons."
"Well, your wife is finally happy to be an American."
"Yea, well your hubby got his pickle whistled right under your nose."
"Fine, I hate 'Crown Royal.'  That's why I didn't down it."
"Me neither, you know why?  It's from Canada!"
"Ha, ha, ha, ha!"
"Look, let's just go to the corner bar and get a shot.  You in?"
"You got it buddy.  What do you suggest?"
"The old Number 7, a shot of Jack Daniels."
"Ummmmmm, Jack Daniels."
"You do know why the bottle is square?"
"No, why?"
"So that when you get pulled over by the cops it doesn't roll out from under your car seat."
"Wow, that's cool.  How did you learn that?"
"In colle.. I mean, on the internet.  Yea, on the internet.  Man they've got a lot of good information there.  So truthful."
"Look, I'm sorry about that 'elitist' remark."
"Yea, I'm just sorry I wasn't a better bowler."
Both together: "Over the lips and through the gums, look out America here we come!"

Look, that is a joke, but everyone, in a Presidential race, especially as I have been paying somewhat attention to these races over the years, just tries to tell us what they think we want to hear.  For a change I really wish someone would quit with the posturing and just be a real person.  The sad thing is that person has no chance to win.

And if Hillary plugs her website once more during this debate, I'm going to puke.

I've got to go now and see who gets booted from "American Idol."

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:37 PM | Comments (0)

April 15, 2008

It's "Mariah Carey is in The House!" in Your Best Randy Jackson Impression Week

By: The Dude on the Right
I used to be a fan of Mariah Carey back in her singing days, when she was soulful and just different enough from Whitney Houston to make me like them both.  Now she seems to be a lot more about club and dance music, but I guess that's where the money is at.  She's the mentor of this sad-sack of singers, and, fine, most of them aren't sad sacks, but most of them really need to learn how to perform because they can already sing.  I wonder if Kristy Lee Cook will turn a Mariah song into a country song... I guess we'll find out as the show goes along.

Let's go...

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "When You Believe" by Mariah/Whitney?
 - Mariah thinks his singing is just beautiful, and David keeps things slow, which has become his forte.  Nice leather pants, he knows his element and is working it (though I would like to see him branch out and try to rock).  Right now the biggest problem I have with him is he can't open up his eyes enough to look like he is confident.  He's a squinty guy.  Hopefully being first won't hurt him so people don't forget about him by the end of the night.

Carly Smithson
- Sings - "Without You" by Badfinger/Harry Nilsson
- She covered up the tattoo, which is nice, and she picked a song that isn't really a Mariah song which lets her sort of get out the shadow of Mariah for us older folks.  She did good, looks better tonight as a singer, but this is a song that needs a performance, which she didn't give.  Her hope is that Mom's are remember this song from its original heyday, and vote for her.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "Vanishing" by, well, Mariah Carey
 - Sings nice enough, but this song doesn't lead one to be a performer.  I think I'm stuck on the performer part because so far, for the many weeks, no one is looking to be one.  She's "whoa, a whoa, a whoa-ing" all over the place, but even though she sang nice enough, where is the being a star?

Brook White
 - Sings - "Hero" by, umm, Mariah Carey
 - Boo hoo, so your sister didn't plan her wedding properly to not interfere with your being on "American Idol" plans.  She kept it in a key she could sing, did the smart thing and stuck herself at the piano, which I liked but don't know if the public will like it.  She sang nice enough, but there are only a few piano players who can connect with an audience, and she's not there yet.  And she still won't shut the hell up when the judges give their opinions, and now there is some kind of reference to a juicy burger in a bun.  Hmm?

Kristy Lee Cook
 - Sings - "Forever" by, let me guess, Mariah Carey
 - What the hell kind of hug was that, the one she gave to Mariah?  The key seems to be to sing songs no one knows on Mariah Carey night, which makes us not give a damn.  You know what, we want to compare these people to Mariah Carey, and we want them to sing Mariah songs we know even if they are from over ten years ago.  She still looks good, the performance was bland, but I don't mind her sticking around because, well, she is purty and probably has a nice career ahead of her on the country side if she doesn't screw it up.

David Cook
 - Sings "Always Be My Baby" by damn, Mariah Carey, again.
 - Yup, the dudes do have it easier this night because there is no way we want to compare them to Mariah.  His problem is the key seems wrong, just a tad too low, so he can't punch it up to the level this song could be.  He tried to do it at the end, but it's either too flat or too sharp (I always had problems figuring that out).  Sorry David, Daughtry would have done this right.  I guess it sounded better in the studio because Simon, Paula, and Randy loved it.  I found him droning. 

Jason Castro
 - Sings - "I Don't Wanna Cry" by, who would have guessed, Mariah Carey.
 - Good enough, especially for the last song so everyone will remember him, but as nice as it sounded I found him boring as hell.  It must sound better in the studio than on TV because even Simon like him.

Let's wrap this up...

I'm past the singing part because all of us know these folks can sing otherwise how in the hell did they get here, and thankfully Kristy Lee Cook seems to have gotten over her "not being able to sing" stage and is starting to dress hotter, but the bad part about this year is none of them are transforming themselves into performers.  The other crappy part is that they don't need a singing mentor, like Mariah Carey, pimping her new album, nope, these boys and girls actually need someone who can teach them to the next level, of how to touch the audience, and as much as I've been pimping Bruce Springsteen showing up on "American Idol," I'm thinking Neil Diamond, who has a new album coming out that he can promote, might not be that bad a choice, either.  Skip the "Here's how to sing" crap, let's get to "Here's how to perform."

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:33 PM | Comments (1)

April 14, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up! Golf, Movies, Religion and More!

Stu Gotz had some questions about religion for this podcast episode of "Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-up!", part of it related to priests, and part of it developed because of the news of Pope Benedict coming to the United States. Maybe Stu should forget about religion and just worry about the best way to raise the little Gotz's. The Dude on the Right gives his two cents about religion, wonders about the dislike of "Scooby Doo," but for The Dude, well, his weekend was filled with watching golf and a buttload of movies. Such is another weekend for Stu & The Dude.

Posted by Rightdude at 5:47 PM | Comments (0)

April 12, 2008

But on What Occasion Would I Wear a "MILF Island" T-Shirt?

By: The Dude on the Right
So I'm watching the TV show "30 Rock," as I am wont to do because I enjoy it, and the episode dealt partly with the "finale" of "MILF Island," with "20 super-hot moms, 50 kids, and no rules," and the first part of me, as a fan of "Survivor," knew that if there was actually a TV show called "MILF Island," I'm sure I would be watching.  The second part of me knows, now that NBC has screwed it up and probably copyrighted the concept somehow, FOX won't be able to actually make it a series, nor will CBS, who did their own exploitation of children with "Kid Nation" and all they would have to do would be add some super-hot moms.

In any case the episode of "30 Rock" made me laugh, but then quickly reminded me that I am old.  Why?  They advertised that you could actually buy a "MILF Island" t-shirt, I found that very funny, and I even thought of jumping online to order one.  Then I quickly caught myself saying "Self, you're not in college anymore, even though you may think you are.  Where in the hell do you think you could actually pull off wearing a 'MILF Island' t-shirt?"  And in listening to myself I realized there isn't any place in the entire Universe where I could pull off wearing that t-shirt, although it would be sort of funny to try, especially if I could be a fly on the wall, listening to the comments wearing it had brought about.

I might still buy it anyway since I need a new t-shirt to wear while I'm exercising at home, and I know that every time I would look in the mirror while wearing it, well, it will make me laugh, but could I wear it in public?  Maybe I should just buy one for Stu Gotz. I'm sure he would wear it, out in public, and be able to make the ladies laugh.  He has that way.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 6:20 PM | Comments (0)

April 10, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Artie Lange, Tiger Woods, and Paula Abdul. How About That Mix?

Lucky for The Dude on the Right he was listening to the West Coast Feed of The Howard Stern Show, so he was able to hear the entire Artie Lange meltdown, resigns, quits episode during the show, especially since it appears Howard might have put the nix on the replays of the show during the rest of the day. With no new information on the fate of Artie Lange, during his Thursday podcast, The Dude talks about it, doesn't relate his theories on what is going on well, but there will probably never be another day when "Artie Lange" and "Stern Fan Network" are #1 and #2 on Google Trends. Tiger Woods and The Masters were dropped in rankings, thanks to Artie, and from The Dude's observation, Kristy Lee Cook did not have a nip-slip during last Tuesday's "American Idol." Neither did Paula Abdul, but the podcast does have a new edition of "Paula Abdul Clips of the Week."

Posted by Rightdude at 6:58 PM | Comments (0)

April 8, 2008

It's "Inspirational Song" Week - Oh I Hope Someone Sings "Gonna Fly Now!"

By: The Dude on the Right
Because this is the week we are supposed to give money to the "American Idol" crusade of "Idol Gives Back," to make them look or maybe just feel better about themselves even though the Idol folks, Fox, and AT&T are making boatloads of money off of us just by our watching and texting in our votes, (can you sense my bitterness at their crusade), this week our contestants will be singing "Inspirational Songs."  I'm wondering if one of them will really put the concept over the top and sing "You're the Inspiration" by Chicago.  I'll guess we'll just have to wait and see and then, tomorrow, give all of our money to "Idol Gives Back" instead of paying our mortgage, because who pays their mortgage nowadays even though they have a big-screen TV to watch "American Idol."  Can you still sense my bitterness in their having a charity and asking us to give them money?

Anyway, let's go...

Michael Johns
 - Sings - "Dream On" by Aerosmith
 - Good song choice for him, but he's no Steven Tyler.  Any singing issues could get tossed aside if he was a better performer, with a better outfit.  He so needed to work the crowd better, somehow.  And Paula won't shut up.  Please let her keep it up, this could be a banner week for Paula quotes.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "I Believe" by Fantasia
 - So, let's suck up based on a previous Idol contestant, that I would say a majority doesn't know her music anyway.  Again, singing well enough, she did hit the high note, but I don't think she performed or connected with the crowd the way she needed to in order to make her a star.

Jason Castro
 - Sings - "Over the Rainbow" the Israel Kamakawiwo'ole version.
 - I'll leave out the "Meet Joe Black" reference, and the fact that I know the version he is doing first because of the radio dude Steve Dahl, and the fact that you would never picture a dude like Iz singing this song, which is actually wrapped with "A Wonderful World," but Jason did a version consistent to the surfer dude he portrays, and Iz would probably be proud.  Too bad he didn't have enough time to do the full version Israel does - do yourself a favor and get Israel's version from his "Facing the Future" album on iTunes.  Make sure you get the right version with both songs.

Kristy Lee Cook
 - Sings - "Anyway" by Martina McBride
 - Sticks with the totally country side, which works for her, but unless the country fans rally behind her, this song might be her downfall because she still doesn't perform.  She sings well, she looks well, but I don't give a crap.  I guess I had to be there because she didn't come off as a performer which is where I think all of these folks need to now work now.

David Cook
 - Sings "Innocent" by Our Lady Peace
 - Can these people pick any more obscure songs?  What the hell are you doing?  He's probably got enough of a fan base to keep him here, but this is a song that is all over the place musically, the band and singers had no clue how to pull it off, and maybe it's one of his favorites, and I will give him credit for probably being the best performer so far, but this was just too all over the place.

Carly Smithson
- Sings - "The Show Must Go On" by Queen
- First off, how do you not tell the history of this song when Freddy Mercury was dying at the time he sang it.  Sure it's inspirational, but Freddy's story about this song is more inspiring.  She's a singer, she knows what she's doing, and she's got a fan base.  This will keep her floating around for a while, she overdid it, but if you want to know about this song, and the ending days of Queen, head to the Wikipedia article.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Angels" by Robbie Williams
 - I'll give the dude credit for pulling out songs that people won't really remember until the chorus, and then singing them nicely, and this week he almost put an "Elton John" vibe into his performance thanks to staying at the piano.  The thing though, is if you look at his eyes, he still looks a little lost, in a "How and why and I'm here?" mode.  With this performance, though, he's back to being the one to beat.

Brook White
 - Sings - "You've Got a Friend" by Carol King
 - She sings purty, she looks purty, and you can connect with her.  It was a nice, slow song, but she still doesn't shut up when the judges critique her.  There still seems to be the lacking of performance with her.

Let's wrap this up...

The week was about inspiration, no one sang "You're the Inspiration" or a song from a Rocky movie, and for the most part, none of them, sans David Cook, seems to know how perform outside the safety of the microphone stand.  Carly had a chance but she blew it, and if David Archuleta wins, I don't care what any commenters post, he seems to be trying to set himself up as the next Josh Groban instead of, well, being better than Josh.  Rumors give David's life a complicated story, which is perfect for "Oprah."  His goal should be to get there.

Real singers show up on tomorrow's "Idol Gives Back," or at least popular singers, and then we are back to these people who sing nice enough but can't perform.  Now I've got to go back to my TiVo to see who got booted from "Dancing With the Stars."

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:37 PM | Comments (0)

April 3, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: An NKOTB Warning, Adam's Still Dancing, and Paula Abdul Clips of the Week!

Even though The Dude on the Right is kind of lonely, he does find the time to put together another podcast complete with a quick warning about the return of NKOTB. Boy bands unite! Warning aside, most of his podcast is about TV with the return of "Survivor: Fans vs. Favorites," no London Bachelor, the booting of Steve Guttenberg while Julianne Hough is wearing too many clothes on "Dancing With the Stars," but, most importantly, The Dude got off his ass, or at least paid attention to his TiVo, and brings back "Paula Abdul Clips of the Week!"

Posted by Rightdude at 6:25 PM | Comments (0)

April 1, 2008

As Much As I Love Dolly, These Singers Need Bruce.

By: The Dude on the Right
Tonight's mentor was Dolly Parton, and I know if I were there as a contestant I would be screwed because rather than listening to anything she said I would be just mesmerized with her, umm, voice.  Yea, her voice.  The only thing I would be focusing on would be her big, giant, voice.

In any case, these contestants overcame Dolly's voices, I mean voice, and here's how I thought they did. (And, yes, the opening "April Fool's Joke" during the she show was really lame.  If they really wanted to do it right they would have teamed up with ABC's "Dancing With the Stars" and have millions of people wondering what was wrong with their TV sets.)

Let's go...

Brooke White
 - Sings - "Jolene"
 - A great song for her, and as much as I like her doing the acoustic guitar thing I think she would be more potent if she wasn't sitting on the stool and able to "work" this song more.  She's already got the fan-base so I don't think it will hurt her, but for "American Idol" this needed to be a "performance" song.

David Cook
 - Sings "Little Sparrow"
 - So David, this week, decides to actually do his own arrangement, and Dolly had nice things to say about it.  The country fans might not like it, I did, and although the singing was off a bit at time, who the hell cares?  His confidence is growing and it shows, and for him, I hate to say it, but like a dude named Daughtry, it might be better if he loses.

Ramiele Malubay
 - Sings - "Do I Ever Cross Your Mind"
 - She sings nice enough, but what a wrong genre for her to be in after last week's issues.  She's not country, and she's not rock and roll; I think she needs a "Rihanna Week" to pull her out of her funk.  Sadly she will probably be gone by that night because even though I like her spunk, but she still seems scared.

Jason Castro
 - Sings - "Travelin' Through"
 - Simple enough song, but I don't think he has the fan base to keep him going much longer.  For me I can't envision him on a big stage, but rather doing a lot of acoustic shows in the smaller clubs, with fans that love him.  He hasn't shown himself to be able to command a 20,000 seater, on a big old stage.

Carly Smithson
- Sings - "Here You Come Again"
- This might sound wrong, sexist, or whatever, but she doesn't have the look to pull off this song.  Sure, her voice is good enough, but this song doesn't seem to to in her genre of music.  Randy and Paula (especially Paula) really liked her, but Simon had his issues.  I agree with Simon.

David Archuleta
 - Sings - "Smokey Mountain Memories"
 - Dolly really loves him, she almost even cried.  Damn, I really like this young dude, and even though his voice cracked a bit, on the slow songs he seems to be fantastic.  I still, wish, that he would do something up-tempo to see if can turn into a true performer instead of just wowing the dudettes.

Kristy Lee Cook
 - Sings - "Coat of Many Colors"
 - Please tell me she is going to get off her butt and sing this song to the audience because she is singing great enough in the country genre.  Okay, she got up, and is still singing nice enough, but she needs to learn a lot about performing, and if she wanted to get any mentoring from Dolly it would be how to be a performer and not a singer - if I were her, for this song, I would ask Dolly how I could touch her, umm audiences.  Sadly Kristy was boring as usual.

Syesha Mercado
 - Sings - "I Will Always Love You"
 - She sings purty enough, and I like her sitting on the piano.  She comes across better looks-wise this week, but I really wish she could have pulled off getting her butt off the piano for the ending of the song to really blast it out for the crowd.  She almost had a chance to blow this song out of the house, but instead just sang it.

Michael Johns
 - Sings - "It's All Wrong, But It's All Right"
 - As much as I didn't like a lot of his carrying on with this song, as a "performer" and not a singer he was probably the best of the night, and since Paula talked to long, and my TiVo flipped to "Dancing With the Stars" and "The Biggest Loser," I'm not sure what Simon said.  Doesn't matter, he did great and should stick around until next week when I can re-adjust my TiVo Season Passes so Idol doesn't get clipped.

Let's wrap this up...

The thing that sort of makes me sad is that pretty much everyone on the show right now is great, or at least good singers, but only a few of them seem to have the personalities to be performers.  Every one of them you can picture singing in a smaller club, with a group of fans, but none of them have shown the step to the next level.  I suppose Dolly Parton week wasn't the time to see that (although a lot of them should have gotten tips from her about being a performer rather than a singer), but if the "American Idol" folks want to truly groom any of these kids, bring on a Bruce Springsteen as a two-week mentor to help them become a small-club person, which most of them already are, to a stadium rocker, which he is.  Pimp The Beatles if you must, but teach them Springsteen or The Rolling Stones.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:22 PM | Comments (0)

March 27, 2008

What's New? A Podcast of: Welcome "Tripping the Rift" Fans, Poor Chikezie, and "The Biggest Loser" Talk.

The Dude on the Right keeps this podcast kind of short, but he finds enough time to welcome visitors finding Entertainment Ave! thanks to looking up sixsells.com, the website for "Tripping the Rift," which is in the site because of their DVD review. He is also getting frustrated with "The Biggest Loser," and thinks Chikezie was robbed on "American Idol." Hopefully The Dude will quit worrying about the singers and get back to making fun of Paula Abdul.

Posted by Rightdude at 5:22 PM | Comments (0)

March 25, 2008

Is Seeing "American Idol" Live That Much Better than On TV?

By: The Dude on the Right
So it is "Songs the Year You Were Born" night.  Oh, goody, it is "Songs When I Was in College" night, or thereabout.  I'm sure flashbacks will be in order, but I'll only type about them if I think they will be okay for my Mom to read.  Here we go...

Ramiele Malubay - Born in 1987
- Sings - "Alone" by Heart
- A song I totally love, but man she doesn't have the pipes to pull off the chorus for this song and the bombastic sound the Wilson sisters had.  Totally wrong song choice, and I'm sorry she is sick.  Ramiele, quick shaking hands with people and then touching your eyes or picking your nose.  That's how you get sick.

Jason Castro - Born in 1987
- Sings - "Fragile" by Sting
- Does a good job by playing the guitar, it keeps him behind the mike and not having to perform.  The singing is good, the song is sort of boring, but it should be enough to keep him going, especially because I think the dudettes dig him.

Syesha Mercado - Born in 1987
- Sings - "If I Was Your Woman" by Stephanie Mills, I think.
- A really nice R&B performance.  Vocal range was good, performance was good, and this was a great performance that should keep her to the next week.
- What the hell is with all of these 21 year olds?  I remember, sort of, my 21st birthday, and I wasn't singing in 1988.  Thankfully the picture people supposedly took of me on my 21st birthday has disappeared, I hope.

Chikezie - Born in 1985
- Sings - "If Only For One Night" by Luther Vandross
- Chikezie is showing he might be the next R&B singer to blow up across the Universe.  From week to week he shows differences he can tackle, and he actually needs to lose this competition to make his own career, a la Daughtry.

Brooke White - Born in 1983
- Sings - "Every Breath You Take" by The Police
- How boring can you get.  Sure, it's nice on piano, and she screwed up the start, but unless she does something special to get her butt off the piano stool, or straddles it like Tori Amos, as much as I think she is purty, sings purty, and has talent, this week wasn't her best.  So much potential that went away.

Michael Johns - Born in 1978
- Sings - "We Will Rock You " by Queen
- Only a few words need to be written - You are no Freddie Mercury.  I guess a few more words are needed - the band didn't help.  I don't know what the judges heard, but he just doesn't seem to have the persona to be Freddie, at least on TV I guess.  For whatever reason I thought he wasn't that good.  Maybe I should just wonder what is wrong with me, or I need to be there, live.
- I was 10 or 11 when this song came out, the first album I ever bought was "Night at the Opera," and I found "News of the World" fantastic as the years went on, especially with the album art.  I always loved reading "No Synthesisers!"

Carly Smithson - Born in 1983
- Sings - "Total Eclipse of the Heart" by Bonnie Tyler
- A simple choice for her, but for me it just brings back flashbacks of high school.  Ugh!  Okay, singing wise Carly was good, but she just seems to be singing, not performing, and for Jim Steinman songs, as much as it is about the song, it's more about the performance of the song.  She just sang it, whereas Meat Loaf knows how to perform.  She needed to really find Jim Steinman history and how Meat Loaf made those songs performance art.  That is what Jim Steinman did.

David Archuleta - Born in 1990
- Sings - "You're the Voice" by Farnham Johnny?
- Is he just trying to get other people money by singing obscure songs?  That said, I really like the song, like the performance, and I was graduating college when this dude was being born.  He tried to branch out, but I'm guessing in 1990 there are better songs, that people might actually know, that he could have really blown out of the competition.  We'll see if his good looks still keep him in the competition.

 Kristy Lee Cook - Born in 1984
- Sings - "God Bless the U.S.A." by Lee Greenwood
- Gosh girl, I like you, but how the hell did you get this far in the competition.  You sing nice enough, at least this week, sort of, but you aren't a performer in any sense of the word.  Thank your lucky stars you got to the final 10 to go on tour because a lot of other singers are better than you.  And from the judge's comments, what the hell am I not hearing nor seeing on my screen tonight.

David Cook - Born in 1982
- Sings - "Billy Jean" by Michael Jackson
- Nice change of a Michael Jackson song.  If anyone ever says "How do I make a song my own?" this is the performance they should show.  He works the stage, he sings like a rocker, and if he doesn't win he will probably have a fantastic career anyway.  He actually got in touch with a song with the year he was born, and if I had a dollar I might actually download that song version from iTunes. (Dude note: As I laid in bed last night I couldn't sleep because I just had to figure David's version probably wasn't his own arrangement. Sure enough, I did some quick research this morning and guess I missed at the beginning where they said it was Chris Cornell's version. Thought he did a good job, anyway. DOTR)

Let's wrap this up...

From a lot of the comments I'm guessing that the performances came off a hell of a lot better live than on my TV because, well, when I thought some of them didn't do well, Simon-Paula-Randy thought they were great.   I know live is better than TV, but is there that much of a difference.  If the "American Idol" folks want to prove it to me, fly me out for next week's show, otherwise, I don't think anyone did that well this week except David Cook.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 9:26 PM | Comments (0)

March 24, 2008

What's New? Stu & The Dude's Weekend Wrap-Up Podcast: The Dude's a Handyman and Stu's Bad Days.

Both The Dude on the Right and Stu Gotz survived their respective Easter Weekends, and here they are for their Weekend Wrap-Up Podcast! Stu has been having some bad days, with today's reason being because he had to poop, while The Dude shows he still can be a handyman although he isn't very good at picking winners during March Madness. They both talk about movies they didn't see, talk about "South Park" which they did see, and Stu celebrated Easter on Friday - Find out why by listening.

Posted by Rightdude at 6:24 PM | Comments (0)

March 23, 2008

Davidson and San Diego - I Hate You. And I Love You.

By: The Dude on the Right
I'm back!  It was an Easter Weekend, and with my Dad's passing in January, and my sister making her way to the cold weather, instead of normally visiting a week earlier to avoid the holiday traffic, well, I ventured to Ohio this Easter Weekend just in time for about 6 inches of snow to shovel.  I also changed a bathroom sink faucet, but those are both stories for another blog or maybe a podcast.  This blog is about basketball, and my not being able to scream at my internet screen.

You see, for the first time in years, I wasn't able to sit at work and waste the bosses money, umm, my money, by paying attention to the first weekend for the NCAA March Madness tournament.  And then, when I was able to take a look, my picks were already looking bad.  Siena beating Vanderbilt hurt me a lot, although it probably hurt a lot of people, except those folks who were Siena alumni, but what really hurt in that first round was San Diego beating U Conn, one of the teams I had in the final two.  I figured I was sort of screwed, but who, other than San Diego fans, were actually thinking San Diego could win?  And as my brackets started to fall, it was today that I knew I was done, because, well, my final four is left at a final two, with one of them not getting to my finals.

That said, Davidson College, University, whatever the hell you are, I hate you, because my last chance for maybe a couple of big screen TV's, or some cash, well, was left with Georgetown.  If you had a fun college name like Gonzaga, or a fun mascot name like the Saluki's, or maybe a name referenced with God (Like St. Mary's who didn't seem to have God on their side losing to Miami), I would have picked you, but you were playing Georgetown, Hoyas, and you were a 10 seed, v. a 2 seed, whom I had at least going to the final four.  In my goofy name category, Wildcats v. Hoyas, I'm picking a Hoya.

And I lost.

And so, pretty much, I'm done with this year's NCAA March Madness season.  Davidson and San Diego, you both took me out of winning cool stuff, but with that winning I can quicklier get back to my life after one weekend.

For me it's one weekend and done for my NCAA Tourney picks, and now I have to go back to the Mega Millions this week, with a jackpot of $95 Million on Tuesday.  With numbers like 65, 87, 69, 87, 96, and a Mega Ball of 102, I know I can win.  Oh, wait, I don't think I can pick any of those numbers.  Maybe I'll just go with 1,2,3,4,5 and a Mega Ball of 6.  I think it has the same odds.

Happy March Madness!  Umm, it's almost April.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 10:16 PM | Comments (0)

March 19, 2008

It's March Madness Baby! And I've Got North Carolina? And Politics?

By: The Dude on the Right
It's March Madness Baby!  I suppose I could go back and look at the calendars, but doesn't this College Basketball tournament season seem to be a week later, we all know Easter is at its earliest, and my being on the road tomorrow is going to drive me crazy because I won't have an instant wireless connection to update the scores of every NCAA tournament game so I know that I'm still alive to win $5 Million bucks thanks to Yahoo!.  That, and it's also snowing at home (the picture on the right I stole from my sister).  I am also torn because I entered about six online pools and wondered if I should go for broke, with the same picks on every site, winning tickets to next year's Final Four, about $20,000 bucks, a couple of flat-screen TVs, and something else, or should I change my picks for every site hoping to just win something.  I went for broke.  Come sometime in April I will have a very cool Dude-Pad with money to spare and TV's, that is, unless, Michigan State can't get through a few rounds and Kansas State can't, at least, beat USC in the first round.

Also, with it being Easter weekend and today being the 5th year anniversary of our looking for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq (at least we found Saddam Hussein, but where is Osama bin Laden?), I still wonder if I should get into political thoughts on my website.  His wacky Pastor aside, especially because as I have been sitting in a Church and took what my Pastor said with a grain of salt, I still think Barack Obama shows himself as a better states-person.  There, I said it again, I'm a Barack Obama man, and why in the hell can't we just get rid of all of this delegate crap since we seem to know how to count votes in 2008.  Maybe.

Good luck with your March Madness picks, especially since I have Vanderbilt beating Kansas.

That's it for this one!  I'm The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Posted by Rightdude at 8:24 PM | Comments (0)

March 18, 2008

Watching Singers v. Dancers

By: The Dude on the Right
Last night I sort of watched "Dancing With the Stars," especially for my favorites, Julianne Hough, Edyta, and Kym Johnson.  Isn't it kind of funny that we don't need to reference Edyta with her last name anymore?  Anyway, I don't care about any of the "celebrity" female dancers much (nor the dude celebrities, but I did find Adam Carolla and Penn Jillette fun to watch), wonder why Julianne wore a giant, yellow outfit (rather than a skimpy, yellow outfit), and Kym actually looked hotter than Julianne.  But tonight the dancing is over because tonight is about singing (and cuter dudettes).

My brilliant dancing analysis will come later as their Spring season goes on, but here are my musical musings about tonight and singing, and it's The Beatles night, as opposed to John Lennon and Paul McCartney night last week.  How much did the "American Idol" folks pay for the rights to use these songs that mediocre singers could butcher, anyway? ...

Amanda Overmyer
- Sings - Back in the U.S.S.R.
- Something just sounds wrong, like she's not in synch with the band or something, but it's not working for me.  This song doesn't need a southern twang to it.  And I don't like her bouncing up and down while she is singing.

Kristy Lee Cook
- Sings - You've Got to Hide Your Love Away
- What the hell did you ever listen to on the radio?  You picked the song based on title.  You don't know any Beatles' songs?  It's kind of "new" to you?
- She's cute but the song is in the wrong key (she can't hit the low notes), and if she keeps going on it's because she is cute.  She did hit the high note at the end, but the performance seemed kind of lame.  At least Paula thought she looked gorgeous.

David Archuleta
- Sings - The Long and Winding Road
- You thought "Dang it!" when you forgot the lyrics last week.  Luckily you didn't think "Oh, F&^$, how in the hell could I forget the words to a song in front of 30 million F$#%ing people?"
-  He shows his vocal pipes this week (again) so we know he can sing the slow songs, and if this keeps up he's the next Josh Groban.  He needs to prove he can sing something up-tempo in my book to make it to the ultimate pop level.  He'll be in it for the long haul even if he sucks just because the girls like him.

How stupid was that iPhone commercial.  I understand product placement, but Ryan Seacrest should be fired because he isn't even trying anymore.  Last week he busted on Jim Carrey promoting "Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who!", and this week it was the iPhone.  Either he is the worst pitch-man ever, or he is the greatest at scripts written up as "Promote this by having the attitude of "What the hell is this shit?"

Michael Johns
- Sings - A Day  in the Life
- This is not a good song to trim, though I thought he did a decent job trying to pull it off.  To do it his way he probably needed a month to work to rehearse it (and a different band), but I think the dudettes will find him cute enough to pull him to the next round.

Brooke White
- Sings - Here Comes the Sun
- She's married.  Damn, so much for fantasies about my future wife.
- No matter what, I think we have already found our next "Carrie Underwood Country Star" no matter if she wins or not.  She performs, is purty, and somehow seems to be able to put her mark on every song.  I don't care what Randy says, what Paula says, or what Simon says, because I really liked her "fly-a-way" performance and her attitude, but Brooke, don't beat yourself up so much because for me it worked.

David Cook
- Sings - Daytripper - The White