17 - Lager
So here we are down to the final seven acts and what did the show throw at them this week......Disco Week! This is the first time the show has had a disco week for all the contestants, so it was going to be make or break for certain acts, who may not be suited to this style of music. The acts also this week got to meet Girls Aloud as they were the special guests this week and were on hand to offer advice to the fledgling acts. So with Dermot and co suitably suited and booted it was off to the sparkly spotlight of the X-Factor studio for another nail biting week.
1. Leon - Relight My Fire - A fantastic start to the show. To think a few short weeks ago this young lad seemed terrified when several scantily clad dancers were on stage with him, but this week he did what all 18 year old lads would do given the opportunity and enjoyed it! The nerves appear to have gone as this was a terrific and confident performance with really great vocals. Louis said it was his best performance of the series so far. Sharon said he was likable and it was a great way to open the show. Simon said it should of been a disaster but it wasn't and that he felt the song was sang with a lot of soul, and Danni agreed with Louis and said it was his best performance of the series and that she was surprised at how suited he was to the disco style. Will definitely be safe this week and is becoming a dark horse for the final.
2. Niki - Hot Stuff - For those of you who go to the Hotel the thought of Niki singing Hot Stuff sends shivers down your spine as it brings back memories of our Nicky torturing the song. Thankfully this was not anyway like that in any way shape or form. The opening of the song was impressive, with male dancers appearing from under the smokey floor. The song was sang with lots of gusto and confidence, and once again Niki impressed with her vocals. Sharon said she was 'Hot Stuff' and she had unbelievable heart and soul, Danni said it was great and sang well, Simon said it had no place in modern music and said she looked like a 'mum at a wedding' , instantly offending the crowd and Sharon, who bit back at him, and Louis defended his act saying she sang danced and had great heart and soul and that it was proper disco.
3. Rhydian - Go West - This was always going to be his hardest week he had to face so far, and the Riddler struggled with this song. In his meeting with Girls Aloud he was advised to camp it up as much as possible, but even in his sailor suit surrounded by a stage full of other sailors, the camp factor was jut not there for me. He struggled with the routine, didn't look comfortable in fact it was a little boring. Mixed comments from the judges. Louis called it as camp as Xmas but he was using to many gimmicks each week, Sharon thought it was camp and fabulous, Simon said he my struggle tonight after the performance, and his regular fans will probably hate it, but Danni defended her man saying the crowd salutes Rhydian and he will be here to stay. Will be lucky to not be in the bottom two this week.
4. Hope - Gimme Gimme Gimme - Another very good performance from the girls tonight. Great vocals, and the Abba catsuits looked the part. They even arranged the vocals to 'mix' in the Madonna 'Hung Up' lyrics, from which the song takes it riff. It was a great track and the girls brought the proper disco feel to the night. Louis said they looked fantastic and that they are much better than the Spice Girls (Although he didn't say they were better than his Girls Aloud!), Sharon said they looked amazing and that they looked confident and comfortable, Danni said they looked like a proper band already and Simon said it was very difficult to perform that well live and that it was a terrific performance. Should be safe this week.
5. Beverley - I'm Every Woman - Another great performance by the shows newest diva. No surprise that Beverley was suited to the Disco style at all. The vocals were spot on tonight and she gave a very energetic performance for what proved to be one of her best weeks yet. Sharon said it was a fantastic strong performance and she was a special woman, Danni said she was in the zone tonight and loved it, Simon said it was a big improvement on last week and in the second half of the song she made it her own and Louis said it was the best so far tonight and that Rhydian better watch out, not sure why thought?
6. Alisha - Young Hearts Run Free - This ended up being a disaster for Alisha. Vocally she did OK, not her best but as good as some tonight. What let her down was the dancers, who surrounded her on roller skates, with the guys being obviously unable to skate properly, making her look ridiculous. As the dancer started to make mistakes, her confidence seemed to fade away, and at the end she looked glad it was all over. The look on her face showed she felt she was going to get a bad time with the judges. It started OK. Louis said she was getting better and better every week, then it went downhill fast, Danni said she didn't like the performance and the dancers and that it sounded a bit flat. Then big gun Simon laid into her saying it was a mess, the dancers ruined it and she sang out of tune, this resulted in a heated argument with Sharon and Simon about the dancers, leaving Alisha up on stage with Dermot looking upset and bemused by the ongoing row. In fact it went on so long that Sharon didn't even get to comment on her act. Will have to hope for a miracle this week.
7. Same Difference - Blame It On The Boogie - Another poor performance. The duo tried their best to at least be a little camp, but the vocals weren't great the dance routine was distinctly average and without the cheese factor these are just a couple of Butlins singers putting on a children's party performance. Sharon said it looked fun and was well done, Danni said she was not sure about the performance and it was not their best but they always worked hard, Same Difference resident hater Louis said they were nice people but they were never going to win the show with some of the other acts that were in it, and Simon admitted it was a bad song choice and was changed at the last minute and that he hoped the had done enough to rectify it next week. May be their last week on this performance.
After all the acts had finished at least three of the acts were looking in trouble this week after very weak efforts tonight, with Alisha, Rhydian and Same Difference all looking very worried as the names were being read out by Dermot as to who had made it through to the final six. As the names were read out the biggest shock was that Rhydian and Same Difference made it through, along with Leon, Beverley and Niki, leaving Alisha and Hope as the bottom two this week.
First up to perform again was a very shocked looking Hope. As they were not really expecting to be in the bottom two they pulled off another great performance, and this time tried to impress the judges with their confidence and positive attitude. Alisha came out fighting for what was her third appearance in the bottom two. The terrible roller skating dancers were dropped, and this time she looked more confident with her performance, making this a tough choice for the judges.
So as you would of expected Simon voted to send Alisha home and Sharon voted to send home Hope, leaving it down to Danni and Louis. After praising the girls almost every week, Louis voted to send home Alisha and keep Hope, as to did Danni meaning that Alisha was sent home and Sharon was out of the competition with no acts left, poor Mrs O. So here is the usual Captain Jack send off for Alisha.......
Alisha is 23 years old and comes from Wembley in London. She was inspired to audition for The X Factor after watching Leona Lewis win the show last year. Alisha lives just down the road from the X Factor studios so saw the crowds of fans queuing every week and thought “I want some of that!” Her musical background has been based mostly around her church gospel choir and she has been having singing lessons for the last year. Alisha is really close to her Mum, Sharon, who is her harshest critic and she describes them as an Ab Fab pair as they are both equally loud and flamboyant. Alisha is passionate about fashion and shopping and loves reading all the glossy magazines to get style tips and she has worked as a style advisor in Top Shop. Goodbye Alisha and good luck.........So there we go. As we wave bye bye to another contestant the show gets ever nearer to its conclusion. So as I said this is a double whammy week for the X-Factor, but as a little break before the final six battle it out, here is the conclusion to the ages of life lists, this time with you lovely ladies in mind. Handbags at the ready.........
Favourite Drink
17 - Wine Cooler
25 - White Wine
35 - Red Wine
48 - Dom Perignon
66 - Shot of Vodka with a Slim Fast chaser
Excuses For Refusing Dates
17 - Need to wash my hair
25 - Need to wash and condition my hair
35 - Need to colour my hair
48 - Need to have Pierre colour my hair
66 - Need to have Pierre colour my wig
Favourite Pastime
17 - Shopping
25 - Shopping
35 - Shopping
48 - Shopping
66 - Shopping
Definition Of A Successful Date
17 - McDonalds
25 - Free Meal
35 - A Diamond
48 - A bigger Diamond
66 - Home Alone
Favourite Fantasy
17 - Tall, Dark and Handsome
25 - Tall, Dark and Handsome with money
35 - Tall, Dark and Handsome with money and a brain
48 - A man with hair
66 - A man
Ideal Date
17 - He offers to pay
25 - He pays
35 - He cooks breakfast next morning
48 - He cooks breakfast next morning for the kids
66 - He can chew breakfast
What’s The Ideal Age To Get Married?
17 - 17
25 - 25
35 - 35
48 - 48
66 - 66
Now there you have it ladies, all the right answers there I'm sure you will agree, and if you don't, well you are ladies!!!! So after you have had chance to read and digest the first of the X-Factor editions this week here we are about to head straight into the next one, but first here is a word from our sponsor.....
It almost seems like it's never been away ha ha. Here we are back again for another nail biting installment of the UK's biggest karaoke competition. So what have our lovely judges got in store for the remaining six this week. Its Love Songs. Again this is a week that will favour some contestants with their style, and others may struggle, but the chance to be in the final five is huge and after so many weeks the remaining acts are all pretty much as good as they are going to get, so the competition is really hotting up now.
1. Beverley - Without You - A great ballad to start the evenings events off with. As this one was sang last year by the brilliant Leona Lewis, and it was one of her best week’s, this was a big risk for Beverley. But fear not the classic love song was given it’s all by the singer in her own style. She sang the song very powerfully, and yet again the vocals were top notch. As Beverley has gone on she has proved she is able to adapt to the different styles, and she is obviously a great ballad singer. The judges were impressed as well. Sharon called it a magnificent performance and that she did the song justice, Danni said it was ‘In the Zone’ and very good, Simon said she sounded nervous at the start, but made the song her own in the second half and it would be a tragedy if she went out after tonight’s performance, and Louis said he was over the moon with his act and that it was fabulous. The others have their work cut out this week.
2. Same Difference - Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now - Yet again this duo struggled to win me over this week. Without the gimmicks they are just club entertainers, and with them they are just annoying. The song was a classic by Starship that everyone recognises, but the vocal’s seemed strained throughout this performance, and by the end her voice was way to overpowering, drowning out her partner in crime. This was not a good performance. Mixed bag again from the judges. Sharon sai they had grown up a lot and gone from Blue Peter to 2007, Louis said they had sang their best week for him so far but that it would be a travesty if they won, Danni said it was great to see they made Louis uncomfortable but she did think the vocals were not great and could have been better, and Simon said he thought Louis was wrong to keep on at them and that they had a great performance and sang the song brilliantly.
3. Niki - Power Of Love - In her VT Niki told us that this was one of her Dad’s favourite song’s that he liked her singing when he was alive, and by the performance that Niki gave you could tell this was a very emotional week for her. By far this was the best song so far tonight, as Niki conveyed the emotions that the song gives out with ease, making the performance all the more believable. All the judges had praise for Niki as she held back the tears listening to them comment. Sharon said that she showed great emotion in her performance and that it was unbelievable, Danni said she had a great voice and the song really suited her, Simon said it was a million time’s better that last week and that the real competition for her had now started, and Louis said she nailed the tough notes in the song and that she was a real singer.
4. Rhydian - Somewhere - So Ok then another Musical song by the Riddler, but lets face it he can sing these songs well. This one was taken from West Side Story, and yet again he managed to pull off a great performance to redeem himself after last weeks disaster in the Disco week. This song bought him right back to his comfort zone, and he should be relieved to be able to get back into his groove with this one. A little shock from one of the judges for Rhydian. Sharon asked if it was true he had auditioned for the Any Dream Will Do Show on the BBC, and a rather sheepish looking Rhydian replied that he had, fearing a backlash was coming, but no Sharon said that Andrew Lloyd Webber must have been mad to of missed him because their loss was X-Factors gain, Simon said ha was a decent guy who is vocally perfect and that he would be an incredible winner for the show, Louis said he was the most professional of the remaining acts and that he was head and shoulders above the others and Danni was visibly holding back the tears as she called the performance incredible.
5. Hope - Hurt - Not heard this one before but apparently it is by Christina Aguilera. Despite that the song was yet again performed brilliantly by the girls, with Phoebe again brilliant on lead vocals. In the press this week it has been claimed that the girls were at each other throats and sick of Phoebe being singled out by the judges, and I imagine that this song will do nothing to change that view, but vocal’s in a band are about harmony as well, and these girls can harmonise together brilliantly. It was a very good performance, but I think the fact that many, like myself, were not familiar with the song may be against them. Sharon said Phoebe had sang really well again, but that the competition was getting tougher now, Louis was glad he had saved the girls last week but he did feel Phoebe was carrying the group, Danni said they should of put Phoebe through and they had missed her as a solo act, but that the group sound brilliant and Simon said they showed real confidence to come back after the week they had been through and that they sounded fantastic tonight and that it would be a travesty for them to be eliminated.
6. Leon - You Don’t Know Me - Well you may not know the song by Eddy Arnold from 1955, or the better known version by Ray Charles in 1962, but as Ray Quinn did last year with his swing style, Leon is taking the Micheal Buble big band style and making it his own. It hardly matters if people don’t know what you are singing if you sing it as well as Leon did tonight. This was by far and a way the best performance of the night. As he had grown in confidence last week with a brilliant Disco week, he again took it up a notch with this brilliant effort. It was very comfortable for him, and extremely well sang, and he got the standing ovation he deserved. Louis said he loved the song and he was getting better and better every week, Sharon said it was in his comfort zone and sang to perfection, spot on tonight and a real dark horse for the show, Simon started by saying he had wondered why he had been picked for the competition and, as Leon’s bottom lip dropped and it looked like the crowd was about to erupt on Simon, he added until now, he said it was his best week and that it was an incredible performance and Danni, yet again, almost brought to tears by her act said she felt part of Leon’s family and that he was brilliant.
So all of the acts had released the love on us all, and it seemed that this week would prove to be a difficult result to pick out who would be going, but as ever, in true X-Factor style the result this week was again a shock. Rhydian, Leon, Niki and Same Difference all made it into the final five, leaving a stunned Beverley and Hope to battle it out for the judges votes.
First up again was Beverley. As she has been in this position before she knew it would have to be something special to impress the judges this week, and she managed yet again to put up a fighting performance and made the song even more emotional than her first time around. This is going to be a tough one for the judges.
Never let it be said that if Hope are to win this year that they haven't done it the hard way. Another week in the bottom two when they really didn't deserve to be, and despite a few sound problems in the perfomance (a bit of feedback from the mike's was clearly audible) the girls, especially Phoebe, pulled off another great performance and are fighting for their futures.
So of course the judges now had to choose who was to be eliminated. Simon stuck with his act and chose Beverley to leave, and Louis stuck with his act and chose Hope to go, leaving the decision with Danni and Sharon. Danni decided to sent home Hope giving then two votes to one, but Sharon, not wanting to be the one who puts out an act, voted for Beverley to leave making it two votes each and for the first time this year there was Deadlock.
This now of course that the final decision is not down to the judges but to the public and the telphone vote. The tension was almost at bursting point as Dermot was handed the envelope with the losing act's name in it. As he paused for what seemed an eternity he read out the act going home this week...........Beverley.
So the diva spent her last week putting up a brave fight, and her to send her off is her Captain Jack farewell....
Beverley Trotman is 37 years old and hails from Luton in Bedfordshire. Beverley is a primary school teacher, a job she adores and in her spare time she has been singing in choirs since the age of four and is a member of the award winning Kingdom Choir, who have performed as backing vocalists in the past on both The X Factor and Grease Is The Word. Beverley lives in Luton with husband Jonathan and their two children Tianna, 12 and Luke 10. Beverley is from a large family and one of her nephews, Leon Barnett plays for West Brom. Beverley's favourite food is ice cream (strawberry cheesecake flavour), and her most used phrase is "it's massive" or "it's huge".She hates people who eat loudly and she's got a spider phobia. Goodbye Beverley and good luck.......
So there we go folks another dose of X-Factor over for another blog. It was a shame to see Beverley leave this week and it goes to show how close it is when the good acts start to leave, but it is a competition and it is there to be won. More next week.....
So onto the final night for the Thursday karaoke. To be honest it was a bit of a damp sqiub this week, with all of us feeling a bit hard done too at having our night taken from us like this, and to top it all I forgot my song list and therefore had to resort to Plan B in songs for the night, not always the best plan but hey its a plan! So what delicacies did I serve up tonight then. The song's tonight were 1. Love Is The Drug by Roxy Music 2. Let's Get Rocked by Def Leppard and 3. Paradise By The Dashboard Light by Meatloaf.
Love Is The Drug by Roxy Music Link To Video
A seventies classic to start with in honour of the upcoming 70’s nights which I’m sure will be a blast……..not! Sarcasm over for now. This was the 1975 single from Roxy Music. A number two hit in the UK, it also gave the group its first substantial exposure in the United States, reaching number 30 in 1976 on th Billboard chart. The song started as an Andy Mackay instrumental, but then gained lyrics from Bryan Ferry. Ferry said the song came to him while he was walking and kicking the leaves in Hyde Park. It remains Roxy Music's highest-charting single in the US, while in the UK it was only topped by their 1981 version of John Lennon's Jealous Guy. A cover version has been recently made by Kylie Minogue for the 2007 Radio 1. Established 1967 compilation album. Very easy to get to grips with and the vocals were not bad for an unpractised song. On the night rating 7/10
Lets Get Rocked by Def Leppard Link To Video
A rock classic next as I did feel in quite a rock mood after the recent mini-gig fest I have undertaken this month (Hence the slow blog publishing folks!) but not to worry I’m getting around to it now. Well I have sang this one already this year, and Tina has been asking me to sing it for her for weeks now, so I finally cracked under the pressure and got around to it for her! So my in depth report on the song was done way back in April when I sang it last, so instead of banging on about this one I will just let you know that the new blog I am about to start writing has an official title now, and is to be called ‘Rock Your World - The Rock Encyclopaedia’. It is still in its infancy and I have still to decide on who will be the first entry, but when it is unveiled you my lovely readers will be first to see it. It will feature Def Leppard and of course the other great British rock bands from the ages such as Little Angels, Thunder, Magnum, Iron Maiden, Thin Lizzy, The Quireboys, Terrorvision and many many more. On the night rating 7/10
Paradise By The Dashboard Light by Meatloaf link to video
As this ended up as the last song of the night, and as I dueted this one a couple of weeks ago with my partner in crime Leeane, then I feel no need to tell you about this emotional end to the Thursday karaoke night. All that is left for me to do is to say Goodbye Thursday Hello Tuesday. On the night rating 10/10
Now I normally say at this point thats it for another week, but this time this blog is thats it for this fortnight folks see you next week!. Yes normal service will be resumed next week with the brand spanking new Tuesday night Blog taking over from where this one is leaving off. As for the gig guides, well despite the fact there are still only 24 hours in a day I shall endevour to bring you th Biffy Clyro, Magnum and Thunder gig guides and picture's as soon as time will allow me too.
Now as a request has come in from one of my readers that my X-Factor blog is very good but there is another weekly competition that I should be putting my excellent linguistic skill around......thats right ' Strictly Come Dancing ' so as Captain Jack is here to keep his punters happy, John Barnes was booted off this week as he was garbage......I think anyway take a look for yourself.
" Marge: Homer! There's someone here who can help you..
Homer: Is it Batman?
Marge: No, he's a scientist.
Homer: Batman's a scientist?!
Marge: It's not Batman! "
Homer J Simpson
