Taylor Hicks - Season 5

[pillbeam]

Snoopy,
I don't particularly care for Taylor. He is just unique. It begins and ends there. He does not have an amazing voice and he is downright odd.

For me, his vocal tones are deep, gorgeous and downright sexy. And I love his oddness--the goofy physical expressions, the in-your-face talent, the consistent joy. [Why is joy such an oddity in our culture?]

[prhoshay]

I think it's seen as an oddity by people who can't relate to it; possibly, they've never experienced joy to that extent. Personally, I have!!!! I'm not so sure you can really put it into words...you've either known it, or you haven't.

[Justafan1]

I was reading some old article from an old Life magazine (1967) interviewing the great Ray Charles and I stumbled across this quote from him that explains Taylor Hicks to a "T" :



After reading this quote, I couldn't help but think about this overwhelming response to Taylor Hicks ( I mean, he's only been on TV for about 15 minutes and his only CD is already sold out and copies are being sold on eBay for $60 !! ). Suddenly, the above quote gave me a "THAT'S IT" epiphany.

Ray Charles EXPLAINED TAYLOR HICKS AND HIS MUSIC !!! The man FEELS his songs and when he sings them, they practically become a part of him.

This is what separates him from the more technically well performing singers -- GENUINE EMOTION -- HEART AND SOUL. People respond to that,

This is of course not easy to find nowadays. When you see it, you get either an overwhelmingly POSITIVE or NEGATIVE response ( depending on how you handle it ). It is either a positive freak out ( WE LOVE HIM ), or a negative freak out ( WE HATE THIS GUY ). That is why on a lot of message boards, you see Taylor with the MOST number of posts ( both positive and negative ). He is a polarizing figure, no doubt.

I for one DO NOT BELIEVE HE IS FAKING IT or IMMITATING Ray Charles. People who know him and have seen him perform in his "soul fires" circuits down south know the man well enough to tell us that he is a genuine fellow without pretensions.

Personally he evokes feelings of joy in me when he sings ( and I have his 7 song CD plus his incredible version of Georgia on My Mind <-- which I believe he will no doubt perform ).

This the best exlanation why Taylor's singing touches peoples hearts I've ever read.

yes, he doesn't have the biggest voice but his singing brings JOY which in itself is a sign of a great talent.

[nemo78]

This the best exlanation why Taylor's singing touches peoples hearts I've ever read.

yes, he doesn't have the biggest voice but his singing brings JOY which in itself is a sign of a great talent.

He just have that "extra spark" that lifts him above some techically better singers.

[Remus Lupin]

I don't think they have been. Their albums did pretty well and I think they get played on urban stations too. I think some people compare their albums to Breakaway but that's not fair. It was not Kelly's first CD.

According to Wikipedia, these are the sales figures for the four AI winners' debut albums:

Kelly - 2.4 million
Ruben - 1.7 million
Fantasia - 1.8 million
Carrie - 2.1 million

And just for comparison's sake:

Clay - 2.7 million

[LrcLinda]

He just have that "extra spark" that lifts him above some techically better singers.

When I see Taylor on-stage singing, I smile. None of the others make me smile.

[Remus Lupin]

When I see Taylor on-stage singing, I smile. None of the others make me smile.

I smile when I hear a good performance.

[Asylum-ECT-girl]

I think Taylor will win too--because it seems as though taste in popular music is swinging back towards talented singers i.e. Barry Manilow #1 CD on the charts right now. He will have the "older" persons votes, R & B lovers vote, and surely he will have the Southern region vote--he will surely win. Unless the young teeny-boppers vote in droves for Ace

[guide54]

His rendition of Levon was simply amazing. I honestly think that it was better than original! It's just so great to watch how he enjoys on the stage, and how he is into the music. There's no doubt that this guy absolutely loves what he's doing. And you can both here that as well as feel that when he's performing. I had high hopes on him and he didn't let me down.

The best rendition of Levon other than the original that I've heard is the one Billy Klippert did in Canadian Idol a few years back. It was simply spinetingling.

Having said that, I love Taylor Hicks and if I could vote would certaibly be voting for him. I think it is the joy in the music that he exudes.

[DJeterFan]

I agree- his version of Levon was better than the original. That's incredible!