Boo! Scare you did I. Well it is almost Halloween and as Captain Jack is ever the bringer of up to date folly then like it or not we are having a mini Halloween themed blog this week Ha Ha!
So lets get down to business then for the week. As I'm no doubt aware we will all be receiving the little knocks on the front door come Halloween night of strange little local kids dressed up begging for sweets the parents won't buy for them, but Halloween is a very superstitious time in the Christian calender and has been before it got all Americanised with the trick or treat routines annoying you while your trying to watch the T.V. so here are the top ten superstitions surrounding Halloween:
1. If an unmarried girl keeps a sprig of Rosemary under her pillow on Halloween night then it is said she will dream of her future husband.
2. If the flame on your candle blows out at a Halloween party then it is said you are being visited by a ghost.
3. If you ring a bell on Halloween it will scare the evil spirits away.
4. If you put your clothes on inside out and walk backwards on Halloween night will see a witch in the sky.
5. If a bat flies into or around your house on Halloween night it is said your house is being visited by ghosts or spirits.
6. It is said if you hear footsteps behind you on Halloween night not to turn back and look as it is the dead following you.
7. If a girl carrying a lamp goes to water on Halloween night she is said to see the reflection of her future partner.
8. The old saying of 'black cats being bad luck' come from the fact they were once thought to be consumed by evil spirits
9. If you feel you are being watched by a spider on Halloween it could be the spirit of a dead loved one.
10. Owls have often been a part of Halloween, and it is said they used to swoop down to consume the souls of the dying on Halloween. It was said if you pulled your pockets out and left them hanging you would be safe.
So I'm sure that's left you salivating to learn more about the spooky night, and just for a laugh here is how to Trick Or Treat according to your star sign.
Aries - Push aside the others to get to the door first
Taurus - Only eat the finest Swiss chocolates
Gemini - Go around everyones house in a costume get changed and go around again
Cancer - Stay at home and give out chocolates to other trick or treaters
Leo - Plans a costume for months but won't use it because someone has the same idea
Virgo - Dresses up in a new suit and tells everyone they are an accountant
Libra - Stays in front of the mirror all night deciding on a costume
Scorpio - Is just in it for the chocolate
Sagittarius - Manages to wander into the next town
Capricorn - Makes a list of the houses who give out the best chocolate and then optimizes the route
Aquarius - Builds a costume out of spare bulbs and a battery then spends the whole night tinkering with it as it shorts out.
Pisces - Misses the whole night to compose poetry to the moon
And last but not least here are the top ten ways to spot you are at a bad Halloween party if you should be unlucky enough to have to go to one!
1. Instead of chocolate your parents are handing out Jehovah's Witness leaflets
2. You end up at Madonna's house and she adopts you
3. Nobody likes your Farting Clown outfit
4. The Bride Of Frankenstein had a big, pointy hair and a small arse, not the other way round.
5. You find the gits who pelted the house and car with eggs and shaving foam were the wife and kids
6. You dress up in your partners clothes and nobody complains like last time!
7. While everyone else's wife looks hot yours looks like Cherie Blair in a shell suit.
8. The attempt to dress up as the hostess' dead husband just to get laid backfires.
9. The kids fail to see the funny side of your Road Kill Badger outfit
10. The bobbing for apples contest accidentally turns into a bobbing for Grandma's glass eye contest.
Now I think that's enough Halloween nonsense for this year, and remember folks, if the kids persistently knock on your door, boiling water is a great cheap deterrent to stop the little buggers from coming around next year, and you will leave your front step clean in the process.So back on to the new weekly feature which I'm sure you are equally eager to catch up on the X Factor.
So after Sharon Osbourne had two of her acts in the bottom two last week and appeared to of quit the show live on air, all the talk was if Mrs O would even be here to grace us with her pleasure this week. But fear not she sorted out her differences and reappeared looking as fabulous as ever, and even more determined to win. This weeks theme for the show was songs from movies, yet again giving certain acts a distinct advantage over others in the early weeks, but they all have to get and and perform. This weeks special guest was Celine Dion, who gave each act some tips on how to perform.
2. Leon - Home - Last week Leon was very nervous on stage. This week he seemed to give a better performance, singing this track from Wedding Date, but was yet again slated by the judges. I think he is an easy target for the likes of Simon and Louis, as if he gains his confidence he will be a real threat to win this competition. Should get through but will need to improve to get further.
3. Beverley - I Have Nothing - Another powerful performance from Beverley singing this classic from The Bodyguard. This week Beverley went back to her basic look of short hair, and Simon said she was a lot less Stars In Their Eyes this week with her performance, a compliment i think! She did very well with a song that could of caused a lesser singer problems with the high notes. Will be safe this week for sure.
4. Alisha - Say A Little Prayer - Singing this one from My Best Friends Wedding. After being in the bottom two last week, she came out this week and gave a much more confident performance. All of the judges seemed to think she has a lot more to give, and maybe if she sang a more modern track she could show us how good potentially she could be. Will need to try and find a comfort zone to progress as she appears to be a bit overwhelmed.
5. Same Difference - Breaking Free - A song I think the majority of the audience seemed to have no idea about, taken from High School Musical. Typically in their style they performed the song well with dancers to boot. Not sure they will be able to pull this type of act off when the more difficult theme nights come later in the show, but for now they are doing their stuff OK. Louis was not nice with his comments to the group, calling them dated and cheesy, and when asked what they could do to change his mind he told them to go home! Fun to come in the next few shows if they get through.
6. Daniel - Build Me Up Buttercup - This was an absolute tragedy. He bounced out on stage singing this song from Something About Mary looking like a bad Karaoke singer. Terrible performance and terrible dance routine made sure he looked in trouble this week, leaving some of the others breathing a sigh of relief. All three other judges, Simon especially, questioned why Louis picked such a stupid song for Daniel to sing, and Simon accused him of putting in too much effort into his other artists. Will be very lucky to get thorough this week after this.
7. Rhydian - The Phantom Of The Opera - The most predictable song of the night for the operatic nutter. He had a great stage set with fire and red carpet and smoke machines, and yet again he wowed the judges with the best performance of the night so far, although this was bound to be his best week as its his comfort zone. Simon called the performance not just good, but World Class, and the score was specially adapted by Andrew Lloyd Webber for the show. He shouldn't win the show but he will definitely have a West End career after this as he is very good at what he does.
8. Emily - Not A Girl, Not Yet A Woman - Last week she suffered as Leon did with nerves, but the shows youngest act came out fighting this week with this song from Crossroads. It was a lot more polished than last week, and showed that the girl can sing the ballads very well. She will have to do a lot more to win over the judges though as yet again Simon ripped into her saying she needs to really improve, but she hit back herself saying that as the youngest act she has to work twice as hard as the others. Good on you girl! Should be enough to get through.
9. Futureproof - If You Don't Know Me By Now - The boys were up next and gave us another very polished performance. Were a little more confident this week and it came across in the performance. All the judges seemed to be impressed by the act again. Should survive this week comfortably.
10. Andy - Staying Alive - This was an absolute howler of a song choice by Danni for the lad, and he looked very stiff in his attempted dance routine. Was bound to be picked apart by the judges, and Simon called it a bad Karaoke performance. Having said that the crowed seemed to like it. Not really his type of song but this is a competition and its about taking risks, but this may be one risk to many. Will be very lucky not to be in the bottom two with this song tonight.
11. Niki - My Heart Will Go On - One of the biggest movie songs ever, and with it being Celine Dion as the guest an enormous risk to sing her biggest hit to end the show with. But after last weeks brilliant performance Niki yet again didn't disappoint with the performance of the night. She gave a note perfect performance and got the credit she deserved from all four judges. She will sail through this week and if she carries on like this she will be a dark horse for the competition.
So as the votes were counted the bottom two were whittled down. One was obvious from tonight's performances the other was a bit of a shock. First was Daniel with his poor performance of Build Me Up Buttercup, and second up for the second week in a row was Alisha with Say A Little Prayer.
So both had to perform again for the judges vote and a place in next weeks show. Second time round was no better than the first for Daniel who seemed resigned to the fact he was going home. Alisha did seem more confident of the two in her second performance, and as Sharon rightly said she has performed on the show live more than anyone else so she should be confident. Louis and Sharon both voted to type and voted to keep in their own acts, so it was left to Simon and Danni to keep one of the acts and send the other home. Danni deliberated long and hard but felt Alisha had given more so voted off Daniel. Simon could not get the bad song choice out of his head and voted off Daniel with no hesitation.
So Alisha survived the judges vote for the second week running, leaving one of the early favourites on his way home. So here is the Captain Jack farewell report on loser Daniel.
Daniel is 31 years old and hails from London. He has a three year old son named Theron. He is a trained dancer and trained at The Royal Ballet until the age of 11. He worked briefly with R Kelly at Dreamworks, but after the company was brought out his planned single was shelved. His favourite food is sushi and his reportedly a very good golfer, something to fall back on now he has been booted out! Goodbye and good luck Daniel.......
So there you go another run down to the greatest Karaoke competition on the planet, and now that's all over with onto out Thursday night songs. This week I managed to get in five songs, four new one's for me and a guest appearance along with Shaun with Andy. So this weeks songs were 1. Shakedown by Bob Seger 2. Tie Your Mother Down by Queen 3. We've Got Tonight by Bob Seger 4. Shine by Take That and 5. Every Breath You Take by The Police.
Shakedown by Bob Seger link to video
This little ditty is from the Beverley Hills Cop 2 film and provided Bob Seger with his one and only number one record. The music was written by Harold Faltermeyer, who wrote the score for the film, and Keith Forsey, and the lyrics by Seger. Supposedly the song had originally been destined for Glenn Frey, Seger's old Detroit friend who had a big hit with The Heat Is On out of the original Beverly Hills Cop, but Frey was either sick or unavailable, so Seger got the nod. Its music video featured scenes from the film intercut with Seger and the band performing it, with some members approaching glam metal moves. Its one of those song that you know you've heard before but just can't place where from. Went down well and has the typical Bob Seger rock vocal to it. on the night rating 7/10
Tie Your Mother Down by Queen link to video
Them classics keep on coming tonight with one of the all time best rock bands and one of their best rock tracks. The Brian May guitar riff on this one is one of his best, and Freddies vocals are awesome as usual. It was released as a single from the band's 1976 album, A Day at the Races. On the album, the song is preceded by a one-minute instrumental intro, which is actually a reprise of the ending of Teo Torriatte. This was intended to create a circle in the album, typical, for example, of Pink Floyd's albums, and one of Brian Mays influences. May started writing the song in Tenerife, while he was working for his Ph.D. as an astronomer. He composed the riff on a Spanish guitar, and woke up early one morning and played it while singing ' tie your mother down ', a line he considered a joke. Later on Freddie encouraged him to keep the line, similar to what happened between John Lennon and Paul McCartney with the line ' the movement you need is on your shoulder ' from the Beatles song Hey Jude.
Though it was a long-time live favorite, the song had limited chart success, making only number 31 in the UK and number 49 in the US. Therefore it was not included on the band's first Greatest Hits compilation, although the song is featured on the Queen Rocks compilation album, together with some of the band's heaviest songs. on the night rating 8/10
We've Got Tonight by Bob Seger link to video
We've Got Tonight is the 1978 song written by American rocker Bob Seger, off his album Stranger in Town. A melodic, piano-based seduction ballad, it was a hit single for Seger and the Silver Bullet Band, reaching number 13 on the U.S. pop charts and becoming a mainstay of adult contemporary radio airplay ever since. Seger's recording was not an immediate hit in the UK, reaching number 41 there, but made it to number 22 during a 1995 re-release.
In 1983, country-pop star Kenny Rogers recorded the song as a duet with Sheena Easton, and made it the title track of his album We've Got Tonight. This time it was a huge crossover hit in the US, reaching number one on the Billboard Country Singles chart, number six on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart. It also reached the top 30 in the UK. This left many in the UK thinking that the song was by Kenny Rodgers and not Bob Seger, but it is in fact essentially a rock ballad and not a country song. Recently it has been covered by Ronan Keating and Lulu, but it achieved limited chart success with that version. on the night rating 8/10
Shine by Take That link to video
So this was the guest appearance I told you about, with myself and Shaun providing backing vocals to Andy on this one. We have said we will perform this one on New Years Eve, and I'm sure with a bit of work on our dance routine we will entertain the crowds on the night. Fairly easy to sing, and in fact any excuse to put up a link to a Take That song is a good excuse. on the night rating 6/10
Every Breath You Take by The Police link to video
Every Breath You Take was written by Sting and originally performed by The Police. It was released on their 1983 album Synchronicity. The single was one of the biggest of 1983, topping the UK charts for four weeks and the Billboard Music Charts in the US for eight weeks. Sting won Song of the Year and The Police won Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal at the Grammy Awards of 1984 for the song. The song ranks number 84 on the Rolling Stone list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Originally thought to be about either angels, the government, or parents, the track was in fact written during the collapse of Sting's marriage to Frances Tomelty. The lyrics are the words of a sinister, controlling character, who is watching "every breath you take / every move you make". Sting said of the track " I woke up in the middle of the night with that line in my head, sat down at the piano and had written it in half an hour. The tune itself is generic, an aggregate of hundreds of others, but the words are interesting. It sounds like a comforting love song. I didn't realise at the time how sinister it is. I think I was thinking of Big Brother, surveillance and control. " The song is played by Sting's double bass, Andy's electric guitar, Stewart's drums, a group of four violinists, and a piano player.
The songs video is also one of the most iconic of the bands history. The video, directed by duo Godley & Creme, was praised for its black-and-white cinematography. Both MTV in 1999 and VH1 in 2002 named it as one of the best music videos ever, placing it 16th and 33rd in their respective top 100 lists. Daniel Pearl won the first MTV cinematography award for his work on the video.
It has been covered by a number of artists but most notable for Puff Daddy's collaborative tribute to murdered rapper The Notorious B.I.G., entitled I'll Be Missing You, which he also performed at the Princess Diana memorial concert earlier this year. on the night rating 9/10
So another week draws to a close and yet again we find ourselves a week closer to New Year with still no idea on what the theme for the fancy dress will be this time around. Ah well maybe this week we will find an answer! Bloody doubt it. Well Captain Jack is on holiday next week, but do not fear, it a week a home polishing my barnacles, so expect an extremely drunken Karaoke night next week with lashings of ale and a good old sing song. Until next time me old hearties bye bye.
" Homer: Look, the thing about my family is there's five of us. Marge, Bart, Girl Bart, the one who doesn't talk, and the fat guy. How I loathe him. "
Homer J Simpson
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