4/11, "Fat Bottomed Girls"

(Screencaps coming sometime tomorrow--stay tuned! We swiped this one from Google...kudos to the unknown creator.)

It's the night after Queen-mas, and all through the Idolsphere...people are scratching their heads, actually. It was neither the trainwreck nor the triumph the audience (and the media) alternately feared and hoped for. It was a bit of everything under the sun, with much after-the-fact debate going on as we speak. (And not all of it's about the contestants--the judges might have a bit of explaining to do tomorrow as well.) What to make of it all? Nobody's sure at the moment.

One thing is sure, though--it definitely started off with a bang.

Way back when we started this blog, our first recap of a big-stage Bucky Covington performance was his take on "Superstition". And right away, we noticed something--while the traditional Idol performance radiates almost visible waves of "notice me! look at me! vote for me me me!" ego-neediness, there have been the occasional--and welcome--Idol singers who seemed genuinely interested in whether you were having a really good time out there. Bucky struck us as a true entertainer, in the best and most giving sense of the word. (And it looks like we weren't the only ones to notice--Brian May and Roger Taylor gave him a similar shout out on his "rockin' good attitude" and easy interaction with an audience. No disrespect to Paula Abdul et al, but I think I'd go with the members of Queen here.)

So was tonight a preview of the rockin' good time we can expect with Bucky on the Idol tour, and in his concerts after his Idol days are done? Yep. Did he sell a few extra tickets to that Idol tour tonight? Probably. Would we miss him for the world? No way...Bucky's far too much fun.

"Fat Bottomed Girls" is a strictly-for-fun song, and he brought the right, slightly naughty attitude to make this one work. In his leather jacket, slim cut jeans and denim shirt, bangin' fair hair flying, he looked 100% rockstarry; from what we could hear over the booming band (why is the band so dang loud on Idol this year, and why is the mix so muddy?) he sounded like his aimiably raspy, Southern-accented rockstarry self--an ideal song choice for his distinctive vocals.

As is the case all too often (with the exeception of last week's wonderful "pimp spot") Bucky was given a few hurdles to overcome--the less-than-desirable "opening act" spot (well, someone has to do it very week, we guess), bright, blah undramatic lighting, and no fancy camera work. Even so, he had the crowd on its feet, clapping and smiling and having a good time--which is the desired effect when performers are successful in, you know, the real world. We'll go on the record--Bucky's recording voice is lovely (again, go to Bucky Covington Online and give his original songs a good listen), but he's also going to be quite the live draw when all is said and done.

It's probably best to let the esteemed gentlemen of Queen have the last word on this one. "Sort of felt like us at the end", they said. Coming from Queen, that's quite a dandy compliment.

Buzz on the boards: That was one enjoyable performance. Save Bucky!
Our take: When do tickets go on sale?

See you tomorrow for screencaps (heaven willing) and the usual Wednesday fare...