The Next Great American Band: A Great Show And Nobodies Watching Episode 2 Recap by Gayl Killough
October 29, 2007
The introduction of The Next Great American Band starts off looking very much like the introduction to American Idol, but the blue hues are replaced with more golden hues and bands replaces the images of individuals. On the surface, everything looks pretty much the same. The stage is similar, the judges are sitting in the same spots, and there is a live stage audience that looks roughly the same size. There is also a theme for the show this week. But, first glances can be deceiving and this show deserves to be watched for its own merits.
The judges sit in their corresponding spots, however I like this group of judges much better and they all offered something to say from different perspectives. Dicko is supposed to be like Simon Cowell, however with Simon, I honestly don't understand half of what Simon says and the part that I do understand just seems mean. With Dicko, I do understand where he is coming even if I don't always quite agree and he does a great job of representing the viewpoint and interests of the recording industry. Also, his sense of humor may be biting or sarcastic, but it still is funny and does not bother me when he says it.
Sheila is supposed to be like Paula, but she talks about musicianship and is not afraid to give her opinion, plus I understand her. Most of what Paula says does not have much of an impact on me.
John Rzeznick, who I am going to refer to as John from now on, is in the role of Randy. Randy is usually the American Idol judge that I agree with the most; however Randy has too many yeas and yos. John may say awesome a lot, but he offers his experience from being a professional musician who has had the success that these bands want. To be honest, I usually totally ignore the judges on American Idol and often hit the mute button when the American Idol judges talk, but I think these judges offer some sound advice at times and I find them worth listening to overall. Also, for each band, each of the judges tried to say something both positive and negative, which gives a more balanced and fair feel to the judging.
There is a theme this week and it is a theme that suits bands really well. The theme is Bob Dylan songs, which have already been covered by bands of all genres. Each band is allowed to play the songs in their own style. Also, each band will play an original song because this show is about finding bands that can write songs. I love that the themes are based on songwriters because at the heart of great songs and bands is great songwriting. This helps keeps the focus more on where music should be, actually focused on the music.
The first band up is Denver and the Mile High Orchestra. I am little worried that they are being featured first because I think the producers of the show are going to highlight the stronger performances near the end and the earlier bands in a 2 hour format are most likely to be forgotten. The Dylan cover is "Freight Train Blues" and the original is called "One Time Show". The two songs are played back to back in a row without any break, except to announce the song title of the original. All of the Bob Dylan's covers were played first by each band and then an original following immediately after. It helps to contrast the songwriting skills of the band when they have to follow the great songwriting skills of Dylan. John says that it was a fun presentation, but that they need to twist and bend the rules of the game more. Sheila says that it was amazing, but they need to do a better job of presentation. For example, when there is a featured soloist, the soloist should come up front. Dicko thinks they need to donate the clam suits to charity and present a little better. He also said that the Dylan song was very perky for a blues song.
My opinion is oddly enough.....
About Gayl Killough
Gayl considers herself a jack of all trades and has too many interests. Gayl writes environmental legal documents for a living and hopes people find this commentary to be more interesting. Gayl likes to believe that being born on B.B. King's birthday means she was born to love the blues.
You can contact Gayl at gkilloug@yahoo.com.
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