Yes, yes. I know. It's been eight months since I last wrote a blog entry. I never intended to go that long, but time has a funny way of speeding up and getting away from you when you aren't paying attention. Plus there was the car accident to deal with (with a wonderful trip to the hospital that was proceeded with being taken out of my car in a neck brace and on a backboard) and a root canal to go through (I think I prefer the neck brace and backboard). But I'm back, now. Not that I ever blogged a heck of a lot anyway.
So what has finally brought me out of my blogging dry spell? Is it that Taylor has a new CD coming out in March? What about the fact that we get an actual single released to radio before the CD? Maybe the news about there being a real video to go with the single? Could it be that his long-awaited DVD has finally gotten a release date? Or that he is having huge success starring as Teen Angel in the national tour of the Broadway Musical Grease?
While all of that is worth blogging about, and hopefully I will actually do that someday, the reason I'm blogging today is: I'm sick and tired of people putting down Taylor Hicks without getting all of their facts straight. I mean, come on.... would a little research about the guy be too much to ask for before you skewer him and leave him on an open flame to roast?
Take Sean Daly (seriously, take him; I certainly don't want him). He is the pop music critic for the St. Petersburg Times. On the latest entry on his Pop Life blog, his topic was the "5 Worst 'American Idol' Top 12ers". He listed our Taylor Hicks as number three.
3. Taylor Hicks: My friend (and yet another upcoming Pop Life Idol Chat blogger!) Stephanie Hayes tells me the herky-jerky Season 5 Soul Patrol champ is currently touring with Grease. Not as Danny, mind you -- but as the Teen Angel! What is that, 5 minutes of stage time? Oof. Brutal. But, alas, appropriate.
Seriously? You wan't to take Taylor to task for having a 5-minute role? Does this mean that Frankie Avalon, who played the part in the 1978 movie, was less of an entertainer for playing the role? What about Davy Jones, Chubby Checker, Jennifer Holliday, and Al Jarreau? They've all played the part of Teen Angel on stage at one time or another. Do you think any less of them for playing that same 5-minute role?
So did you see the play? Read up on the play? Talk with anyone who has seen or read up on the play? Taylor's part may only be a 5-minute role, but he does get a few extra minutes when he joins everyone else on stage at the curtain call. On Broadway, this included him singing and playing the harmonica, both of which were extremely well received by the audience. Even on the National Tour, Taylor is getting additional stage time at the Curtain Call. And there have been reports that he will begin to sing a song or two from his new album for the audience as well.
Do you want more? How about this New York Post article from July 23, 2008 (while Taylor was still performing the role of Teen Angel on Broadway): "According to reports Taylor's presence alone accounts for an extra $150,000 in tickets sales per week." That $150,000 translates to around $10 million extra for the show for the 13 weeks that Taylor performed.
And lest I forget, how about the fact that Broadway Magazine called Taylor's turn as Teen Angel one of the "11 Best Star Turns on Broadway in 2008" or that he was called Broadway's Rookie of the Year?
You know, Sean, you were right about one thing: that 5-minute role was very appropriate for Taylor.
Another item about Taylor I saw recently comes courtesy of the Neon Limelight blog. The writer was revisiting one of Elliott Yamin's best performances on Idol, Home. After appropriately giving Elliott kudos for a great performance, she then said "Elliott was truly the people's idol. While Taylor Hicks shimmied and Katherine McPhee purred, Elliott made his way into America's hearts by just getting on stage and doing what he loved: sing–and sing well."
As much as I do love Elliott, how can you say he was the "people's idol"? I'm interested in knowing which people are being referred to here, because the people who voted didn't vote him the winner. I personally think that Elliott was and is a much better singer than Kat McPhee, but for me to say that Elliott is the "people's second choice of the season" would be wrong. Like it or not, Kat came in second that season and Taylor came in first.
I also take some exception to the way the blogger seemed to indicate that Taylor wasn't doing what he loved to do. I have no doubt at all that Elliott loves singing, as I think it shows in his face when I watch him perform. But it also showed in Taylor's face when he performs. And in his arms. And in his back. And in his legs. And in every part of him. The guy exudes enjoyment of what he is doing when he is singing. He loves it. And it's because of his love of singing and performing that his fanbase is as loyal as they are.
And as for all the bloggers and newspaper writers out there who repeatedly bash Taylor (and there are so freaking many of you), I have the following for you.
1) Taylor's debut album, despite your unbelief, has been certified as Platinum. Yes, I know the official sales count is about 704,000. But a Platinum certification refers to the number of units shipped, not the number of units sold. And since the certification of Taylor's debut album hasn't been revoked (and yes, folks, revocations can occur), then it means those other 296,000 units must have sold as well. So if you insist on bashing the lack of sales for Taylor's first album, make sure you properly mention it as Taylor's Platinum Certified first album.
2) Yes, we know that Chris Daughtry has sold more albums than Taylor. We get that. We don't begrudge the guy his success. But that doesn't mean Taylor isn't successful. He had a very successful 2007 tour, a very successful Broadway run, and now a very successful national tour of that same Broadway show. The guy is a success. And he's just getting started.
3) Yes, we know that Chris Daughtry has sold more albums than Taylor (deja vu, anyone?). But that doesn't change the fact that Taylor Hicks is the Season 5 Champion. Constantly repeating that Chris should have won just because Taylor hasn't sold as many albums as Chris isn't going to change the fact that Taylor won. So get over it already! Especially you, American Idol.
4) What do you mean you haven't heard anything about Taylor since he won American Idol? Have you been living under a rock for the last two-and-a-half years? If for some reason you have been living under a rock, then why not type "Taylor Hicks" into your favorite search engine? You'll get a nice list of all the forums, blogs, and sites about Taylor. And any site on that list will be more than happy to fill you in with what our favorite gray-haired singer has been doing since he won, though you may need to block out some time cause it's a pretty big list.
I could go on, but these are the basic transgressions I've noticed over the past couple of years. Will my blog entry make a difference? Doubtful. There are just too many people who write before they think and no way for me to get my little blog onto everyone of their screens. But if just one blogger or newspaper writer reads this and thinks before the next time they write something about Taylor, then my entry will have been worth it.
Tags: Taylor Hicks, American Idol, Birmingham, Alabama
# posted by Alan @ 12:45 PM
Post a Comment
