'Idol' worship in full force at Van Andel
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
By Lorilee Craker
The Grand Rapids Press

Taylor Hicks was feeling the love from the jam-packed crowd of 11,679 in Van Andel Arena Tuesday night during his crowning segment of "American Idols Live." Midway through his "single" -- the dubious "Do I Make You Proud" -- concertgoers rose en masse and gave the silver-haired crooner a standing O.

Hicks, apparently, makes Grand Rapids proud.

OK, so the song is a dud.

Written for him by the powers that be at "American Idol," it's only marginally less hideous than Carrie Underwood's "I Wanna Be Inside Your Heaven." Somehow, though, with footage of Hicks, this year's winner, reflecting on all the mountaintop moments of the year as he went from a struggling indie artist to an "Idol" 5 winner, the tune took on some touching qualities, especially with Hicks selling it so intensely.

The guy sells it hard, that's for sure.

Gyrating his way to the front of the stage to "Jailhouse Rock," Hicks had everyone going bananas from the start. Playing to his gravelly strengths as a vocalist, Hicks wailed on "Hollywood Nights" and "Takin' It To The Streets," during which he proved he is actually a long, lost Doobie Brother. Showing proficiency on electric guitar and harmonica as well as displaying his signature odd-yet-endearing dance moves, Hicks was in winning form.

Others better, though

He was almost as good as Mandisa, Paris Bennett and Chris Daughtry, also-rans who spent their portions causing fans to beg the question: How'd they get axed so early?

Mandisa opened the show, and she totally owned such powerhouses such as Chaka Khan's "I'm Every Woman." Mandisa had the most polished and easy stage presence of all the Idols, with a voice that deserved way more R.E.S.P.E.C.T than the show's voters gave her. She also added a spiritual element to the evening with her shout out to the good Lord for "making dreams come true."

Then there was that dreamboat, Ace Young. The guy is darn cute, but also a major schmoozer, which detracted from his cuteness quite a bit. Flirting madly with the ladies, Young tripped over himself delivering broad compliments such as, "Y'all have beautiful eyes -- all of you!" This kind of pandering led to earsplitting shrieks across the arena. His spin on "Father Figure" was good, if fully over-the-top with chest-clutching drama.

Lisa Tucker was refreshing after Young with her simple yet pretty piano playing and singing on two Elton John hits, "Your Song" and "Someone Saved My Life Today."

Her "best friend," Paris Bennett, flat out stole the show with her dancing to Beyonce's "Crazy in Love." The girl can sing and dance like no one else on that stage. Also sounding great was Kelli Pickler, who brought to mind a husky Tanya

Tucker in her vocal stylings. She is one of four Idols who snagged record deals, and it was easy to tell why.

Chris Daughtry, playing guitar, was the indisputable homecoming king of the night. The crowd roared when the bald rocker thundered to "Wanted: Dead or Alive" and his trademark cover of Styx's "Renegade."

Bucky Covington, bless his heart, would have triggered one of Simon Cowell's famous "Karaoke on a cruise ship/wedding/bar mitzvah" comments after his low-wattage offerings.

That left the two runners-up -- Elliot Yamin and Katharine McPhee -- who have gorgeous voices. McPhee, who, having missed three weeks of the tour for laryngitis, ably belted out her standards from the show, KT Tunstall's "Black Horse and Cherry Tree" and "Over the Rainbow." Despite being bored with those two songs -- how many times have we heard Kat sing them? -- the girl still turned in a golden vocal performance.

Yamin delivered surprisingly rich and versatile vocals, which didn't always come across in the TV competition. He was all about blue-eyed soul, and I could have listened to him all night. All the guys except Hicks produced yummy harmonies to the Guns N' Roses ballad "Patience." Covington, to give him proper credit, accompanied the group nicely on acoustic guitar.

The group numbers, both in the encore, were super entertaining. "We Are the Champions" was kind of predictable, but it usually works for group-finale numbers, and it did so here. "Living in America," though, kicked it up with some big funk and fun.

Thanks for sharing! Guess that means Chris's voice is doing better?!