06.29.2010 - The Lonely Note Twitter Buzz Recap

Here's a roundup of some of the music news we've posted on Twitter recently:

Top 5 Cover Songs By Chuck E. Cheese's Animatronic Band

Last Monday, Tae linked to an L.A. Weekly story discussing the "recent comeback" of the Chuck E. Cheese animatronic band that many children of yore have been dazzled (or terrified) by when visiting the popular children's entertainment chain.

So, what's the big deal about the Chuck E. Cheese band?  Apparently, there is a gentleman named Aaron Fechter who will program the animatronic band to perform any song you request for a fee.  The article features several Youtube clips of the animatronic performances, including covers of MGMT and Arcade Fire.   It is quite a sight.

Passion Pit Covers 'Tonight, Tonight'

Several days later, Tae kept the buzz going strong with a ripe pick from the indie cover tree.  Linking to the Levi's Pioneer Sessions, Tae steered us to a video of Passion Pit's Michael Angelakos recording his own rendition of the Smashing Pumpkins opus, 'Tonight, Tonight.'

A video of Angelakos recording the track is available at the Pioneer Sessions page.   In my estimation, this cover is one of the better ones I've heard as of late.



The Killers Bring Some Latin Flavor to Their Cover of 'Hotel California'

On Thursday, Steve jumped onto the indie covers bandwagon and led the Twitterverse to a Latin-style cover of the Eagles' superhit 'Hotel California.'  The tune was recorded to raise money for the APE Charity.

Although this cover isn't as spectacular as the Passion Pit cover of 'Tonight, Tonight,' the version is still worth at least one spin.

Bret Michaels to Replace Simon Cowell?

Friend of The Lonely Note, Bill Lamb, elaborated yesterday that Bret Michaels is a favorite to replace American Idol's outgoing judge, Simon Cowell.  Steve retweeted Bill's post.

Bret Michaels talked at length with Parade about why he should get the job as judge, and Paula Abdul stated that Bret would be "awesome" if chosen, according to Bill.




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Latest songs

Miss Me Lyrics Mohombi	Pretty Boy Swagg Lyrics Soulja Boy
Speak Now Lyrics Taylor Swift	Never Leave Lyrics Jessica
Why They Jock My Style Lyrics Soulja Boy	Sparks Fly Lyrics Taylor Swift
Break My Bank Lyrics New Boyz	Mojo Lyrics Trey Songz
All For You Lyrics Ace Of Base	Outta My Head Lyrics Britney Spears

Get your own here.

Idol Finale Tonight

From Idolator:

"With six hours to go until the final episode of this American Idol season, our poll, DialIdol, and Zabasearch are all claiming that David Cook's grunge revivalism has won the Internet version of the show, despite the three judges last night being firmly in the tank for David Archuleta. Whether or not those predictions are correct is an outcome we'll all have to wait many hours for,..."

Go David Cook!!

Soon to be hits

Love Or Lust Lyrics Mario	Disturbia Lyrics Rihanna
Break Out Lyrics Miley Cyrus	Viva La Vida Lyrics Coldplay
Can You Hear Me Lyrics Enrique Iglesias	Glamour Girl Lyrics Pussycat Dolls
Music In Me Lyrics Cassie	Don't Tease Me Lyrics Sean Paul
Gunpowder & Lead Lyrics Miranda Lambert	New Shoes Lyrics Beyonce Knowles

More blog tools found here.

American Idol Thoughts: Male Contestants

I just finished watching American Idol tonight, and I must say there is a ton of talent on the mens' side. (The women sing tomorrow). While it is hard to choose a favorite at this early stage, I'm leaning toward Jason Castro (guy with the Bob Marley hair) and Aussie Michael Johns. Incidentally, they were the final two to perform tonight.

I liked Castro's guitar work, as well as his modern interpretation of The Lovin' Spoonful. As for Johns, his deliberate but controlled sex appeal, combined with his Roadhouse Blues voice, make him a formidable contestant.

In any event, it's nice to see some legitimate rock (beyond Daughtry) begin to gain traction on this show. What do you folks think?

'We're Brothers Forever'

I'll try not to get into too much of a habit of posting American Idol try-out disasters, but I couldn't resist this one.

Renaldo Lapuz is his name, and he composed a song with Simon in mind. It's called 'We're Brothers Forever,' and it is probably one of the catchiest, comedic songs I've heard in a long while. The good stuff begins around the 1:30 mark. From there it just gets better and better.

Pharaoh, Let My People Goooh!

The premier to American Idol debuted Tuesday night, and as it usually does during its initial audition stages, it brought to the viewer much hilarity.

This poor soul, named James Lewis, was encouraged by his coworkers to try out for the show. Unfortunately, Mr. Lewis sounded more like a slo-mo version of Robert Goulet than America's next top singing talent.

Watch the clip of James Lewis singing 'Go Down Moses.' You can watch it below:



PS: Chocolate Rain!

Daughtry, Underwood Clean Up at AMAs

Chris Daughtry and Carrie Underwood had a great showing at the American Music Awards. From E! News:

"Apparently, all the Chris Daughtry fans were just biding their time, while those Carrie Underwood fans just won't quit.

The gravelly-voiced rocker's eponymous band and the burgeoning country superstar won a leading three pointy prism trophies apiece Sunday at the 2007 American Music Awards, which for the first time in the show's history left the voting process entirely up to fans, who could choose favorites online.

Daughtry collected Favorite Pop/Rock Album honors for its self-titled debut, as well as awards for Favorite Breakthrough Artist and, beating out Norah Jones and John Mayer, Adult Contemporary Artist—not bad for a guy who finished fourth on American Idol."

Read the rest of the article here.

Leaked tracks

No Happily Never After Lyrics Nicole Scherzinger	She Can Get It Lyrics NLT
Hey Baby Lyrics Bow Wow	Shy Boy Lyrics Jordin Sparks
Power's Out Lyrics Nicole Scherzinger	Out Of My Head Lyrics Ashlee Simpson
I`ll Still Kill Lyrics 50 Cent	Tick Tock Lyrics Omarion
Crazy Lyrics R. Kelly	Say Lyrics John Mayer

Get tools for your blog here.

'American Idol' Finale Soon Approaches; Keep the Beatbox Alive Blake!

In a solid bid to make it to next week's finale, Blake Lewis performed three hot numbers on tonight's 'American Idol.' With Paula and the producers choosing his first two songs, the performance I was most impressed with was the track Blake picked for himself: Robin Thicke's 'When I Get You Alone.'

Yes, Robin Thicke is indeed the son of esteemed Canadian and favorite sitcom dad, Alan Thicke, the much-loved patriarch on 'Growing Pains.' And while Robin has since shortened his long-haired image of last summer, the video for 'When I Get You Alone' provides a great first-look at a rising star.

Tune into the video below:

New Hits

Pleased To Meet You Lyrics Wolfmother	Hey You Lyrics Madonna
Shut Up and Drive Lyrics Rihanna	Sometimes Lyrics Cassie
I'm A Flirt Lyrics R. Kelly	Can't Tell Me Nothing Lyrics Kanye West
Hands Held High Lyrics Linkin Park	Pop, Lock, And Drop It Lyrics Huey
Glorious Lyrics Natalie Imbruglia	Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now Lyrics Joss Stone

American Idol 6 = Sanjaya Malakar

Depending on whom you ask, this year's season of American Idol is either its worst or best. While its true that the talent quotient of this year's contestants may have fallen a little more on the lackluster side (save for Melinda and Lakisha), the judges and host Ryan Seacrest have provided viewers with enough of their typical side-stage antics to keep us laughing, reading the gossip columns, and ultimately, asking for more.

So what factor this season is so polarizing that viewers either love him or hate him? If you've missed it, his name is Sanjaya Malakar, and his singing is pretty horrible.

Sanjaya made it past this year's try-outs earlier in the season with a clever combination of Tiger Beat cute, and shy, boyish charm. Early on, his singing was clearly better than the scores of other contestants around him, but as mass eliminations ensued, it became evident that Sanjaya's popularity had very little to do with his voice. In fact, the competition has since become defined by what wacky hairstyle and outfit he'll don next.

For those who view American Idol as a legitimate singing competition, it is obvious why many are disappointed with this year's season: Sanjaya continues to walk while other, more talented competitors fail to receive the votes they need to stay on the show.

So why, then, do people love the guy?

For tween girls ages 10-12, Sanjaya's appeal has everything to with his cuteness and his hair. No explanation needed. But for viewers who do not fall into that demographic, Sanjaya is the embodiment of everything that is wrong with American Idol. Sanjaya is an illustration of how the current vote-as-much-as-you-want from any phone in America isn't as much a reflection of a contestant's ability as much as it is of their folksy popularity with voters (sound familiar?). To echo past guest singing coach Peter Noone: American Idol isn't a singing competition, it is a voting competition.

Groups everywhere from Votefortheworst.com to listeners of Howard Stern have organized drives to vote for Sanjaya, all to expose the show's flaws while being able to enjoy the Court Jester of Song further embarrass himself for one more week. For them, Sanjaya serves as the revelation that the emperor has no clothes.

Honestly, Sanjaya's continued presence has provided this season with a much needed comedic detour. After all, one can only listen to talented sirens deliver flawless performances so much. And even as potential artists drop like flies in the wake of Sanjaya's vocal stench, it does prove a point that there is more than enough wrong with the show's voting system. (American Idol voting reform, anyone?)

However, at the end of the day, after all the singing is done, it should be noted that it was the judges and producers who originally put Sanjaya in the competition. Not Votefortheworst.com. Not Howard Stern. Not even the ten year old girls at home.

To Simon, Randy, and Paula: we love you (depending on whom you ask).

New Songs This Week (10)

What I've Done Linkin Park	Steam Nicole Scherzinger
Big Girls Don't Cry (Personal) Fergie	Arms of my Baby Joss Stone
When You're Gone Avril Lavigne	Me Katharine McPhee
Lil' Love Bone Thugs N Harmony	Freakum Dress Beyonce Knowles
Makes Me Wonder Maroon 5	Like This Kelly Rowland

Chris Sligh & Mute Math's - 'Typical'

American Idol is, once again, in full-swing. And although there are no Chris Daughtrys' I can rally around this year, there is another "Chris" who I'm rooting for. That "Chris" is Chris Sligh, the Jack Osbourne look-alike who isn't afraid to take verbal jabs at Simon.

Last night, Sligh sang a catchy song that I was unfamiliar with. Come to find out, after a day or so of researching the tune between working and other errands, the song is called 'Typical' and is by the New Orleans based Mute Math. Furthermore, the album that 'Typical' is contained on was only released a few months ago in September of 2006.

Kudos to Sligh for not only choosing a great song, but for highlighting a track that is fresh and under most of America's radar.

You can listen to 'Typical' here.

Michael Jackson Could Appear on American Idol

The King of Pop may appear on American Idol, and may even mentor contestants, our online source proclaims. The plan, if all goes well, is to have a Michael Jackson-themed week on the reality show, with the music star coaching the participants.

This is all part of a planned American comeback for Jackson.