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Subject: DioGuardi Pitching "Better Off Alone" To Other Artists

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Username: dbroom
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06/02/2007 5:22 AM	Alert
In the most recent Billboard Magazine there is an article on the "Day in The Life of Hit Songwriter Kara DioGuardi." As they follow her through the day, they highlight at different times what is happening. Here is the noon segment: NOON "Where are the Austin songs?" an exasperated DioGuardi asks. She's referring to Austin Carroll. a contestant on "The One," a quickly canceled ABC singing competition on which she was a judge. After the show, DioGuardi let him stay at her house for two months and signed him to ArtHouse for publishing on the strength of "Better Off Alone, a soulful ballad he wrote. The track ended up on Katharine McPhee's album, but DioGuardi has repitched it to Tina Turner and Cher, hoping for a single. "Clive Davis made a career of finding songs that slipped through the cracks and bringing them back" , she said. So that pretty much lays to rest any hope of Kat making BOA a single (though I doubt anyone really thought it would be anyway).

Username: groucho
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06/02/2007 9:12 AM	Alert
Posted By dbroom on 06/02/2007 5:22 AM The track ended up on Katharine McPhee's album, but DioGuardi has repitched it to Tina Turner and Cher, hoping for a single. "Clive Davis made a career of finding songs that slipped through the cracks and bringing them back" , she said. So that pretty much lays to rest any hope of Kat making BOA a single (though I doubt anyone really thought it would be anyway). Now wouldn't that just be too ironic for words.

katpedia.com - watch and listen to Idol, pre-Idol, and post-Idol McPhee performances all in one convenient location "And everything around her is a silver pool of light... She makes you calm, she holds you captivated in her palm"

Username: Minnie
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06/02/2007 1:46 PM	Alert
BOA has been repitched to Tina Turner and Cher???? It'll be another "missed opportunity" for Kat.

We are definitely working together -- working on a record together. She sings so magnificently, it's just amazing -David Foster-

Username: zzyzx
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06/02/2007 2:12 PM	Alert
I'm really disappointed. First, Katharine moved over and left the blues/jazz genre for another singer to excel with, now she missed the boat with BOA. Tina Turner could make a KILLER recording of BOA.

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06/02/2007 2:56 PM	Alert
Honestly, I find the song far superior to the DioGuardi penned Home, let us hope that the next artist who records it sees it as more than just a "weird, not-the-greatest cheesy, schmaltzy ballad". I actually cringe a bit for Austin Carroll every time I read that gross mischaracterization of that great song.

Username: trsf
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06/02/2007 3:38 PM	Alert
Yeah, I prefer Better Off Alone to Home as well. The lyrics to Home are a lot cornier, so I'm surprised that it's in line for the third single, if the CD sticker is to be believed. Wasn't Austin Carroll the contestant who had a showmance with another contestant AND an open crush on Kara DioGuardi at the same time?! What a silly show "The One" was. I guess we shouldn't be surprised if BOA and Ordinary World become hits for some other high profile artists. EDIT: Austin was NOT the amorous singer I referred to above. It was a different guy contestant.

Username: groucho
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06/02/2007 5:54 PM	Alert
Posted By trsf on 06/02/2007 3:38 PM I guess we shouldn't be surprised if BOA and Ordinary World become hits for some other high profile artists. Please, my lunch backs up on me at the mere thought.

katpedia.com - watch and listen to Idol, pre-Idol, and post-Idol McPhee performances all in one convenient location "And everything around her is a silver pool of light... She makes you calm, she holds you captivated in her palm"

Username: GB3535
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06/02/2007 7:07 PM	Alert
This type of situation has happened plenty times in the past, but it still makes no sense. Why re-invent the wheel when a perfectly great rendition of the song is already on CD? But, sometimes it can have a ricochet effect; meaning that if another, supposedly high profile singer does the song, sometimes the original can get pretty popular too. It still seems dumb to me, especially since we all know nobody is going to outperform Kat.

Username: ric_mcpheever
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06/02/2007 7:11 PM	Alert
I LOVE BOA

Username: dbroom
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06/02/2007 8:51 PM	Alert
(I posted this over at IDF) Well my take on it for whatever it is worth is that there simply isn't a strong enough market in the POP or HAC world for this song, which is where they seem to be positioning Kat's music at the moment. BOA is a perfect AC song, but that is not her market at the present time. I also do not think there is any love-loss between Kat and Dio. It is obvious that Dio thinks that this song could still be a winner and if RCA has decided it is not going to be a single for Kat, than Dio is simply being smart in trying to find another home for it somewhere else where it can find its way to radio. Since BOA is buried on Kat's album, it is not like Dio is asking someone else to do a song that another artist made popular or is known for. There are plenty of tunes that are covered by multiple artists. And eventually one of them finds their way to radio. It is pretty typical in the industry. It isn't a slap in Kat's face nor insulting to another artist. I agree with most though that I don't see Cher making it popular. I could see Tina Turner doing a killer version of the song though. And as some have pointed out, if someone like Tina Turner turns it into a hit, that could bode well for Kat's version finding its way to the airwaves someday. Its a tough business and it is all about making hit music, not sensitivity to an artist. Dio is in the business of making hit records, and finding homes for good music that will find their place on radio, if she can't do it with one artist, she will do it with another. That's what she does. No hard feelings.

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06/02/2007 9:24 PM	Alert
BOA is a good song, but not a great one, and it won't be a guarranteed hit for anyone... that is unless there is plenty of media and radio support put behind it. I don't blame the songwriter peddling it around. That's what songwriters do, especially when there isn't anyone beating down the door to do it.

Username: groucho
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06/03/2007 12:15 AM	Alert
I didn't say anything about DioGuardi. I was just envisioning someone else turning one of those songs into a hit, and then someone listening to Katharine's version and accusing her of copying them. Remember the Monheit flap? But if it worked positively for her, then fine. I'm not concerned about what happens to anyone else, really, but if the songs on Katharine's album have any kind of hit potential, as far as I'm concerned, RCA or somebody should be turning them into Katharine's hits, not someone else's.

katpedia.com - watch and listen to Idol, pre-Idol, and post-Idol McPhee performances all in one convenient location "And everything around her is a silver pool of light... She makes you calm, she holds you captivated in her palm"

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06/03/2007 6:16 AM	Alert
I agree, BOA is not a great song, but people will flock to buy ANYTHING by Tina Turner or Cher and before too long, it would be "Oh, that's Katharine McPhee trying to sing a Tina Turner song."

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06/03/2007 6:24 AM	Alert
I have issues with DioGuardi anyway, but imo this is another way to sabotage Kat. What hasn't been said here is that DioGuardi would be producing this song for another artist. She isn't the producer on Kat's album. Just another example of the blatant cutthroat reality of the music industry of today.

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06/03/2007 9:09 AM	Alert
I once heard Some Hearts was recorded by someone else before Carrie. Is that true? Right now the Fergie Song (something about Big Girls Don't Cry) is being used again. A previous artist sang it. And now it's a hit for Fergie, who actually does a better version.

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06/03/2007 9:40 AM	Alert
Posted By zzyzx on 06/03/2007 6:16 AM I agree, BOA is not a great song, but people will flock to buy ANYTHING by Tina Turner or Cher and before too long, it would be "Oh, that's Katharine McPhee trying to sing a Tina Turner song." What decade are you living in???? (just joking)..... Even if Cher or Tina Turner did the song, it would not be a home run, unless a lot of hype were to surround the song. I don't see either one of these 2 artists making a comeback in a big way. The last time I saw Tina, she didn't fill the auditorium and her voice was pretty much gone..... Still a great showperson, but her voice isn't there anymore. But, when it is all said and done, I don't think it's a good enough song to worry too much about it. It's not going to a major thing even if a proven, name artist does the song.

Username: CEM-STEVE
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06/03/2007 12:15 PM	Alert
I SAID AND WILL ALWAYS SAY THAT BOA IS THE BEST SONG IN KAT'S CD SINCE THE CD CAME OUT.

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06/03/2007 12:19 PM	Alert
Posted By CEM-STEVE on 06/03/2007 12:15 PM I SAID AND WILL ALWAYS SAY THAT BOA IS THE BEST SONG IN KAT'S CD SINCE THE CD CAME OUT. Typing in all caps isn't going to make the song any better...... Seriously, I respect your opinion.... If everybody liked the same things, this world would be a pretty boring place.

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06/03/2007 2:40 PM	Alert
Posted By CEM-STEVE on 06/03/2007 12:15 PM I SAID AND WILL ALWAYS SAY THAT BOA IS THE BEST SONG IN KAT'S CD SINCE THE CD CAME OUT. I actually like that at that size in ALL CAPS. I disagree with the people who say Better Off Alone isn't a great song. I think it is head and shoulders above everything else on this album both lyrically and vocally too. I think Austin Carroll's MySpace version is much closer to the sound that the song calls for. Katharine' voice and a piano would do this song just fine, thank you. The back story on this, of course , is Kara D. has taken Austin C. under her wing (he lived in her house for two months after that TV show he was on got axed) and is trying to help him get his song the recognition that she (and I) feels it deserves. She didn't write this song but she realizes the songs potential is much greater than it will ever see tacked onto the end of Idol alums debut disk when the Pop/R&B stuff is being pushed by both the label and the artist. Moreover the artist herself has taken the liberty of adding the insult of all but called it outright "a weird, not-the-greatest cheesy, schmaltzy ballad" Better Off Alone actually is nothing of the sort. It is soulful in both sound and lyric without delving into the saccharin sentimentality that often infects ballads. In fact, this song balances those quite well, being affective without affectation. On a similar note, Walter A. should take this idea and do exactly the same thing with Ordinary World: Shop it around. a3boymom's deleted Armed Forces YouTube tribute video has convinced me that song has merit well beyond what I originally thought. Marry that song with a good popular movie (animated Disney soundtrack anyone) and Walter A. might have another Hero or My Heart Must Go On on his hands. Both those songs are cheesy ballads that he produced and or co-wrote that hit #1 on the charts. No song will reach its potential languishing ignored, with no support on an album of an artist who openly loathes their presence on the disk. I would love to see these songs have success with or without Katharine.

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06/03/2007 3:47 PM