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Taylor Hicks, "Taylor Hicks" (Arista): Why did Taylor Hicks win "American Idol"?
Well, it wasn't just his soulful voice or Clooney-esque silver hair. It was his unbridled, passionate delivery and goofy charm (plus those rhythm-less dance moves, of course).
Hicks still has that amazing voice — somewhere between gruffness and sweetness. But the quirky appeal and fiery performance style that led him to be the unlikely king of this year's "Idol" unfortunately is in rare supply in his overproduced, self-titled debut.
Hicks, an Alabama-bred crooner with a penchant for soul, attempts to cover the hallowed ground of his forefathers: legends like Ray Charles and musicians such as Ry Cooder, Michael McDonald and Joe Cocker.
Does he succeed? Yes ... and no.
Sleekly produced in L.A. by Matt Serletic (Santana, Willie Nelson), Hicks' album plays on typical themes entrenched in the soul-blues tradition: heartache, journeying, more love loss.
He pays homage to Charles on such songs as the funky "Heaven Knows," which samples a riff from Charles' "What I'd Say."
Other tunes range from the horn-fueled thrust of "The Runaround" to such cheese-pop as "Dream Myself Awake," written by matchbox twenty's Rob Thomas, and the disco-funk theme "Give Me Tonight," with its slap bass line and Hicks' overt reference to gettin' jiggy.
Some of it is catchy, certainly. But there's less grit to be found here. Where is the pizzaz that drove Hicks to snatch that "Idol" crown? One wishes for the raw emotion of his heroes.
Perhaps the best song on the album is one that he wrote — "Soul Thing": "The road can be your friend, or the devil in disguise," he sings.
That track, with its ecstatic whoops, comes closest to the uninhibited soul that Hicks does so well.
This is just what is to be expected from an album coming off from appearing on American Idol. I guess we'll just have to see what he can do, on his own terms and I predict it's gonna be miles and miles better from this one. I've heard the album and agree that it's overproduced, but nevertheless, it's great.
I guess we should also expect lukewarm reviews like this when Kat's album comes out. I know it'll be fantastic, but still.
Hicks still has that amazing voice — somewhere between gruffness and sweetness. But the quirky appeal and fiery performance style that led him to be the unlikely king of this year's "Idol" unfortunately is in rare supply in his overproduced, self-titled debut
I think they have it completely wrong. His singing voice is mediocre at best. And it would have been impossbile to capture on CD his supposed "quirky appeal and fiery performance style" becuse they are entirely visual.
I have discovered along with several others here that if you turn away from the visuals and just listen to the singing, Katharine improves without the distraction of her beauty. Without Taylor's "quirky appeal and fiery performance style" you are left only with his poor "singing".
Bodes well for Katharine on the radio and poorly for Taylor.
I wish I could be more sympathetic to Taylor, but his fans have turned me off him, I really want them to suffer, not him!
How did reviews look for Carrie Underwood last year? Just asking. Because to say they'll slam people just for being off of American Idol...
As for Katharine. I didn't think of doing this until the show was almost over. But I made myself a CD because I really wanted to just listen to her to make sure that the visuals weren't influencing my opinion of her singing. And they weren't fortunately. She's an even better singer when you just listen to her without seeing her. Don't get me wrong, I want to see Katharine. But her beauty gets in the way sometimes of "hearing" her. That's not her fault. There's nothing she can do about it unless she wants to wear 20 layers of clothes and cover her face to the point where she can still move her mouth to sing.
I forgot. Taylor...I've heard some of his songs off his album. I like a few. I like "Runaround. I hate "Dream Myself Awake". I don't remember what else I've heard. It's OK. You need to see that energy on stage though. It doesn't translate to radio/CD. For me, at least.
Katharine McPhee fans around the world