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Pop Rock Nation

Category: People

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  • The X Factor USA Recap: Season 3 – And Then There Were 10

    X Factor usa recap

    Last week, Sweet Suspense and Rachel Potter were eliminated. I enjoyed both acts, but neither was going to win this competition, so the eliminations were fine. I thought Sweet Suspense could’ve been a fun American version of the Spice Girls, but they weren’t winning this singing competition. And even her knockout legs couldn’t save Rachel Potter. She’s just not that likable and you have to be super likable and easy to feel sorry for, to win this show.

    Dylan McKay lookBy the way, that’s the only reason Tim Oldstad is still alive in the contest. He’s figured out the look. It’s the same look Dylan McKay used to give Brenda Walsh when his dad disappointed him time and time again. No one understands me. I won’t ask for help. But, I need help. I wonder if Tim Oldstad was a Beverly Hills, 90210 fan when he was younger.

    It was British Invasion night, which doesn’t mean that everyone has to sing in a fake Madonna accent. They just have to sing songs from British artists.

    It’s time for the X Factor USA recap.

    Performances of the night

    It would actually be easier to list the duds than the performances of the night because it was actually a really good night and nearly everyone was at the very least, solid. But if I had to choose the best of the night, I think there are a couple of acts who did best.

    Rion Paige had the performance of the night with Your Song. She may very well have to win this show because the day she gets eliminated will be the saddest day in reality TV show history. She becomes her performance. She may over-emote, but that’s better than not emoting at all, which is a problem with some of the acts. She understands very much how to communicate with the audience which should equal many votes.

    The second best performance to me was the first performance on the show, Jeff Gutt’s version of Bohemian Rhapsody. It kicked off the night very well and got everyone in gear. I don’t really enjoy Gutt all that much, but I have to give props where they are deserved. I liked this much better than Constantine’s version from American Idol. What? No one remembers Constantine!

    Duds of the night

    Tim Oldstad probably expects to be here because I dislike him so much, but he’s not. He can exhale.

    But Carlito Olivero? He should expect to be here until he’s kicked out, which will hopefully be this week. He’s a one-trick pony in that he’s all thrust and no substance. Well, I guess that depends on what you think about his thrust. He doesn’t sing well and I don’t even think he dances well, but he can thrust.

    I also didn’t enjoy Josh Levi’s version of Sweet Dreams. It was weird, almost Grace Jones-esque without the crazy haircut.

    Okay, I guess I lied. Timmy Oldstad does deserve to be here. His puppy dog eyed version of Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word annoyed me third most tonight.

    Who are the front runners?

    It seems like Restless Road can do no wrong in the mentors’ eyes. I still think Khaya Cohen has the best voice of them all. Lille McCloud bounced back with her version of This Woman’s Work. And I think I’ll continue listing Alex & Sierra here until they get eliminated, but I may be biased because I want to marry Sierra. And I can take Alex for sure, so I won’t have to worry about him. He’s BBQ chicken as far as I’m concerned.

    Who goes home?

    If anyone other than Tim or Carlito leaves the show, I’ll be pretty bothered. But Tim has that Dylan McKay face down which will give hime one more week. So I’m picking thrusty Carlito.

  • Fight the power!

    Back when I was in the Peace Corps, a few of my colleagues were upset about a local kiosk owner ripping us off. A friend of mine said, “C’mon Jenny, fight the “green shack” power!

    Lately, I’ve been feeling like protesting. Ever since our move in late July, I have had to deal with several companies that seem ill inclined to either do what they are being paid to do or correct their mistakes. I don’t want to get too much into my personal issues because if I start writing about them here, I will likely get carried away and never get around to writing about music. But I will say that these recent issues, which seriously, in the grand scheme of things are probably pretty minor, have made me feel kind of feisty. No one likes to feel like they’re being ripped off or cheated. No one likes to feel oppressed by “the man”. No one likes to pay for services not received. Those feelings have led to some great songs.

    Fight The Power by The Isley Brothers

    I was first introduced to this song by my friend, Weird Wilbur, who had used it as background music for one of his videos on YouTube. There’s something about this funky groove that makes me want to fight the power.

    Fight The Power by Public Enemy

    Years later, Public Enemy had their own hit called “Fight The Power”. It was used as the theme for Spike Lee’s film, Do The Right Thing, and includes samples from James Brown’s “Hot Pants”. Granted, both “Fight The Powers” are about racial oppression, but in the end, we all hate being screwed.

    Cash In Your Face by Stevie Wonder

    “Cash In Your Face” is a great song by Stevie Wonder addressing racial discrimination. The lyrics are heartbreaking; Stevie adopts a flat voice as he plays the man in charge denying housing or employment to people of color.

    Backstabbers by The O’Jays

    “What they doin’?” Smiling in your face, right? While they smile at you, they screw you over. This song is about dishonest “friends” trying to steal the singer’s woman. Personally, I don’t think it’s possible for people to steal other peoples’ significant others. However, the “smiling in your face” motif definitely comes into play when you’re dealing with politicians and customer service people. They bullshit you into thinking they’re helping you, when in fact you’re about to get it.

    Fucked Up, Fucked Over, and Hungry by Weird Wilbur

    Here’s a song by Weird Wilbur about a guy who gets screwed over when trying to launch a record deal because he fell for bullshit promises.

    If I Had The Copyright (The F Word Song) by Carla Ulbrich

    This song isn’t so much about being screwed by the man. It’s more about someone imagining being one of the wealthy making money off others. For some reason, this song skips at the end. Other versions are on YouTube, but they’re bleeped and I’m in the mood for profanity. I must warn you that the above song is not work or kid friendly.

    Anyway, I know I should write letters, make phone calls, and complain a lot. But despite appearances, I don’t enjoy complaining and I hate being on the phone with people who are both unsympathetic and uninformed. Anyway, I hope to be in a better mood by Friday.

  • Happy anniversary to me!

    Happy anniversary to me!

    Bill and me today!
    Bill and me today!

    I’m delighted to report that after eleven years of marriage, I still feel like saying “Happy anniversary to me!”

    My husband Bill and I were married on a rainy Saturday at Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Virginia. The date was November 16th, 2002. It was Bill’s second trip down the aisle and my first. It’s hard to believe all that has transpired since that fateful day eleven years ago. For the most part, time has really flown. I love Bill more today than I ever have. Every day, I find new reasons to be glad we found each other. In the spirit of my celebratory mood, I have decided to write a post about the music that has meant a lot to me in my relationship with Bill.

    The Ceremony

    I will never forget planning our nuptials. It was a stressful time, mainly because for half the time leading up to our wedding, I was finishing graduate school. We were also really broke. Nevertheless, I determined that I would choose music for the wedding that meant a lot to us. Bill and I are both of Celtic descent. I have more Scottish ancestry, while he is very Irish. I wanted our wedding to be kind of Celtic, while it was also military. No one wore a kilt, with the exception of the guy who played the bagpipes during my walk down the aisle. I chose to eschew the usual “Bridal Chorus” in lieu of a beautiful piece called “Highland Cathedral”. “Highland Cathedral” was composed by two Germans in 1985, yet it sounds like it could be an ancient Scottish piece. The first time I heard it, it was 2001 and I was at a kirk’in of the tartans in Columbia, South Carolina. I was moved to tears and determined that I would use that piece in my wedding if I ever got married. Sure enough, I used it to great success.


    This is a video I made after Bill and I visited Scotland for our 10th anniversary. I used Phil Coulter’s version of “Highland Cathedral” followed by Amy Grant’s very different version of “Highland Cathedral”.

    At my wedding, we had an organist and bagpiper play “Highland Cathedral” together and it sounded something like this…

    Other music used in our ceremony were basic hymns. I also had people sing hymns for us, since I am always singing for them!

    Love songs

    There are quite a few love songs that make me think of my relationship with Bill. Our first dance was to “Someone To Watch Over Me”, a classic Gershwin tune.


    Amy Winehouse singing “our song”.

    But there are plenty of other mushy songs that make me go weak in the knees when I hear them. For instance, I gave serious thought to us dancing to this song by Lyle Lovett…


    It captures my sense of humor, but doesn’t really reflect the truth…

    A better song might have been this one by Beth Nielsen Chapman.


    “All I Have” is a gorgeous wedding song, but harder to dance to.


    My version of Beth Nielsen Chapman’s pretty love song.

    Other songs that come to mind are Judy Collins’ version of “In My Life” and Don Henley’s “Taking You Home”, both of which I recorded recently.


    Judy Collins singing in 1966.


    I covered Judy Collins’ cover of the Beatles’ “In My Life”.

    There have been other, less lovey songs that have inspired Bill and me. While we are in love with each other, our marriage is really more like a great friendship. And we do a lot of things that great friends do together, like drink a lot of beer.


    This video includes “King of Beers” by Too Much Joy and “Beer Run” by Todd Snider, as well as photos of Bill enjoying our favorite pastime.

    In any case, I feel pretty sure tomorrow we’ll have a great time. We usually take trips for our anniversary, but this year’s move and my recent dental woes precluded that. I have high hopes for next year, though! Have a great weekend, y’all!