Taylor Hicks My Idol: Michael Buble

Showing posts with label Michael Buble. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

The Saga Continues

caption: Taylor Hicks and Michael Buble ... So Different and Yet

Back in December a discussion began that resulted in a blog topic here titled So Different and Yet.
My friend, and across the border partner, Karin had just watched Michael Buble's interview on The Glen Beck Show and started musing about the many similarities between Michael Buble and Taylor Hicks.

It's a hot topic here at 'The Pond' with an ongoing discussion that you are invited to join!

Just click on So Different and Yet (above) to muse along with us and to enjoy the videos of both Michael's and Taylor's interviews from The Glen Beck Show!

Continuing the saga ...

Award Winning Artists Recognized

photo caption: Taylor Hicks poses with his America's Music Award received at the Alabama Hall of Fame 2008 Induction Ceremony.
Michael Buble poses with his Fan Choice Award received at the 2008 Juno Awards in Calgary.

Reading IS Fundamental

photo caption: Taylor Hicks gets “caught reading” for the “Alabama Gets Caught Reading” Poster Series being distributed throughout the state by the Alabama Center for the Book at Auburn University.

photo caption: Just before Sunday night's JUNO Awards, Michael Buble and his manager Bruce Allen handed a $140,000 donation over to the Canadian Raise-a-Reader literacy program.
The money was raised from ticket sales from Michael's recent cross-Canada tour.

So Different and Yet ....

A new Taylor Hick's video with a great storyline, set to
Michael Buble's "That's Life"

video credit: KarinP

Karin has not only become a topnotch videographer with her montages for Taylor Hicks ... her high-quality video captures of Michael Buble from the 2008 Juno Awards have been receiving Top-Rated honors at You Tube and are linked to the Official Michael Buble site too!!

This is a copy from Karin's You Tube page, taken late yesterday.
I just want to say CONGRATULATIONS KARIN on the 12 honors your Juno Award's video capture received!!!
Way to go my friend and way to go Michael!!!

Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Honors for This Video:
#66 - Most Discussed (Today) - Canada
#12 - Most Discussed (Today) - Entertainment - Canada
#55 - Most Viewed (Today) - Canada
#24 - Most Viewed (Today) - Entertainment - Canada
#16 - Top Favorites (Today) - Canada
#6 - Top Favorites (Today) - Entertainment - Canada
#68 - Top Favorites (This Week) - Entertainment - Canada
#61 - Top Rated (Today) - Canada
#8 - Top Rated (Today) - Entertainment - Canada
#78 - Top Rated (This Week) - Entertainment - Canada

Michael Buble 2008 Fan Choice Award Winner
Juno Awards/"My Everything"
video capture: KarinP

Lastly a big thank you to my friend Darlin' (DidNotExpectThat) for her photo of Taylor I used in depicting So Different And Yet .. fabulous Darlin' ... simply fabulous!!!

Today's cup

"Imagination is the beginning of creation.
You imagine what you desire, you will what you imagine,
and at last you create what you will."
~George Bernard Shaw~

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Let The People Know

What do Taylor Hicks, Elton John, Jimi Hendrix
and Michael Buble have in common?
The obvious is talent, creativity, personality
and presence.

Today's blog is dedicated to friends and friendship, (crazy and otherwise) with some great music to listen to and a very eclectic selection of videos, including 2 new ones I have created :-)

The common denominator??
Taylor, Elton, Jimi and Michael are all singing here today to and about friends so make yourself comfy and enjoy!
(Don't forget to click on the audio player to pause it in the side-bar)

"Anybody here have any crazy friends?"
~Taylor Hicks~

Remember the first time we all heard Taylor ask that question?!?
Some of us were doing the pointing and some of us were being pointed at :-)

Taylor Hicks ~ "My Friend"
An original tune from his album 'Under The Radar' (2005)

Live at the Beacon Theater, NY (April 2007)
video capture by lacilovebug
(Thank You!)

A good friend is like a wonderful book,
the inside is better than the cover.

Elton John ~ Making "Friends"
This is a video montage I recently created about making friends.
(The pretty girl you will see towards the end, she's my baby girl)

"Friends" (1971) was a project Elton John
and Bernie Taupin (lyrics) took on before
their breakout success in the United States.
It was recorded as the soundtrack to the film Friends, and
was a minor hit in the U.S. (#34 on the pop chart).

What is a friend?
A single soul in two bodies.

This recording of Jimi Hendrix's bluesy
"My Friend" combines a humorous song with
sound effects to create a bar or nightclub atmosphere.

"My Friend" is a song written and recorded by Jimi Hendrix in New York City in 1968.
The song was first released in 1971 on the posthumous album 'The Cry of Love' and later appeared on the CD 'First Rays of the New Rising Sun'.
(It was mixed posthumously by Hendrix's engineer Eddie Kramer.)
Because it was left unreleased at the time it was recorded, some people have raised doubts if Hendrix had ever intended to use that song on any of his albums.

Michael Buble's "Feeling Good"
My latest video creation is an animated get-well message filled with feel better hugs for friends.
(dedicated to Karin, she's a good egg)

Michael's "Feeling Good" is a wicked jazz tune from his album 'It's Time'.
IMO Mr. Buble's version is the best sung and arranged (David Foster) version of this number that dates back to the 1965 musical 'The Roar of the Greasepaint—the Smell of the Crowd'.

That's it my friends, MY last video for today!

May you be blessed with good friends.

May you be a good friend to yourself.

May you be able to journey to that place in your soul where there is great love, warmth, feeling and forgiveness.

May you always be in the gentle nest of belonging with your anam cara (soul friend).

A video response from my anam cara Karin!
Michael Buble and Blake Shelton (Michael's new best friend) duet together in Nashville singing "Home".

While this wasn't the special guest we were hoping for nevertheless this was fantastic!

Today's cup of karma

When the power of love,
overcomes the love of power,
the world will know peace.
~Jimmy Hendrix~

Have a Bloomin' wonderful day My Friends,
hope you enjoyed the view!
~Bloom~

Monday, January 28, 2008

So Different And Yet

Michael Buble was recently interviewed on the Glen Beck Show ... this hour long interview aired on January 19th and though I didn't catch it ... my Canadian partner Karin did!

Karin recorded it and sent it along to me for viewing.
It was a great interview and got Karin thinking along the lines of the many similarities between Michael Buble's and Taylor Hicks' careers.

Needless to say, this interview got me thinking of what a great blog topic this would be.

I'll begin with Karin's musings ...
"Yesterday, I realized as I drove 1/2 hour to my daughter's house, that when I am inside my car and taking that particular drive, it is a time when I can gather my thoughts with a clear and open mind.

As I drove along listening to Michael Buble's new CD, these are the thoughts that came to my mind.

TAYLOR HICKS - MICHAEL BUBLE - So different and yet ...

There are so many similarities, that I can't help but draw some interesting conclusions, even if they are in different genres.

Both are in their early 30's - Taylor is 31, Michael is 32.

Both have had a grandparent who made a significant impact on their lives.

Both spent 10 years waiting for their big break.

Significant events led to their discovery right at the time they were ready to give up on the music business.

Taylor ... Hurricane Katrina
Michael ... singing at the wedding of the daughter of our former Prime Minister of Canada, Brian Mulroney.

Both have been criticized for wanting to revive old classic songs.

Both have a varied fan base in age range.

It seems that 'money' is not the motivating factor in their choice to become an artist.

Both love their craft more than the money.

Both have the ability to touch the hearts of many with their voices and their personalities.

Neither owns a car.

Both have performed "Try a Little Tenderness", "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" and have an appreciation for the music of Van Morrison. (Buble has recorded "Moondance")

Both are 'sensitive', have good days/bad days, can be 'bad asses' (in that neither wants to be put on a pedestal of being perfect), can be impatient, have charisma, and seem like the guy next door - down to earth.

Can you think of any other similarities ???

MY CONCLUSION: I find it very interesting that these two artists have remained steadfast and determined to sing the kind of music that they love to sing.
They choose to perform it even if it may not be the kind of music that most of the POP fans listen to.
To me, they clearly are 'old' souls who are drawn to the music of yesterday and thank goodness for that.
Perhaps they were both put on this earth to remind us that we should try to preserve some of the nostalgia and rightly so.
Hope you enjoyed my 'musings' in the car!"
Karin

To answer your question Karin ... I found many additional similarities when I watched the interview.

First off I have to mention that both Taylor and Michael have been on the receiving end of Simon Cowell's snubs.

Both artists have proved Simon Cowell wrong!

Both Michael and Taylor are 'Living The American Dream', though I was surprised to learn that Michael is Canadian.

Both artists are known for being more of a 'live' performer ... that is where their craft really shines and they connect with their audience.

Women are obsessed with them and can't enough.

Both Michael and Taylor have a great sense of humor and aren't afraid to share it.

The biggest difference that I found ...
Michael has been blessed with great management, Bruce Allen, since the turning point in his career, which we know has not been the case so far for Taylor.

With Taylor's new turning point, his separation from J Records ... I have hopes that Taylor will also now have a great management team behind him, and a label that will promote his music!

Below is part #1 of Michael Buble's interview with Glen Beck, it is a 4 part segment, and if you would like to see more of this interview ... just let us know!

Since we have been talking about Glen Beck's interview with Taylor Hicks, here it is, and it provides additional fodder for comparison.

Can you think of any other similarities ???
Do you agree on the biggest difference ???
We invite you to tell us what you think!

Bloom and Karin

Taylor Hicks
"Early Works"

First and foremost, these two albums represent who I am and who I am trying to represent as a songwriter.
"In Your Time" was a first attempt at recording songs that I had written at the time. Some songs that were really hitting home with me at the time.
"Under the Radar" was a second attempt at a first attempt to try to record an album that resembled the production quality of Al Stewart's "Year of the Cat." The songwriting was getting better and my direction as an artist was getting clearer. Warmth in the production was the main goal; "nostalgic" and "endearing" are the terms that I like to use for these two records.
Thanks for going on the ride!
Taylor Hicks

MTV News

'American Idol' Alum Taylor Hicks Channels Elvis, Liberace For 'Grease' Gig

In 2006, when salt-and-pepper-pelted soul singer Taylor Hicks won the fifth season of "American Idol," he probably never imagined he'd be popping out of an ice-cream cone, singing "Beauty School Dropout."

Now Hicks is doing just that, playing the Teen Angel - a role made famous by Frankie Avalon in the 1978 film version of "Grease" - in the musical's latest Broadway revival. For his first foray into acting, it's not a bad gig, and Hicks is hoping it will open more doors for him down the line.

"It's a really cool part," he said. "The Teen Angel comes down and tells Frenchy she should put down her teasing comb and go back to high school. I've kind of channeled Elvis, a little Graham Parsons and Liberace, all at the same time, for this role. It was just a perfect fit and a way for me to experience the Broadway stage in a small dose, instead of a full role. I come out in the second act. I pop in from an ice-cream cone, in a blue rhinestone suit, and rock it out for a few minutes."
Hicks said his Teen Angel is like none that has graced the stage before him, because he "Taylor-ized it."

To prepare for the role, he claims he "started doing séances to channel Elvis, and he told me that I needed to wear a midnight-blue, rhinestone-studded suit, and that's what happened. Now we're packing the place out. It's sold-out every night, and I get to play a little harmonica, which is cool. I couldn't do that on 'Idol.' That wasn't the year where you could play instruments."

According to Hicks, the "Grease" part wasn't his first offer. Earlier this year, he'd been asked to join the Broadway cast of "Hairspray," a gig he couldn't fit into his schedule. But being part of "Grease" has given him the itch to act again.

"Right now, I'm releasing a new record in the fall - hopefully - so [doing] this allows me to stay in the city, be in front of thousands and thousands of people for the next three months, and it allows me to reinvent myself, as a musician, an entertainer and possibly a Broadway actor," he said. "This is a nice way to get my feet wet in the acting field. Before, I was so entrenched in music - playing clubs and roadhouses when I was a kid - so Broadway was kind of an abstract thought for me. It's not now. It's real, and I enjoyed being directed from a theatrical aspect as opposed to a musical aspect. It's going to be an interesting road for me."

Hicks said that his fans, known as the "Soul Patrol," have been at each performance - so much so that during one of the shows, he looked down and spotted his face tattooed on a woman's body ("It wasn't anywhere revealing," he said).

Hicks' year has been full of ups and downs. It started off on a bad note, as Arista Records revealed they'd dropped Hicks from their roster after just one release. His 2006 self-titled effort has sold 702,000 copies to date, making it the worst-performing of all the "American Idol" champs' albums. But then, Hicks landed the "Grease" gig, and, with a new album to record, he's close to signing with a new label.

"I don't have a name for the album yet, but I do know that it's some of the best music that I've ever written, and from an artistic standpoint, this album, being in my control, has allowed me to really breathe as a songwriter," he said. "As an artist, you kind of understand the times and what your surroundings are and write from them. So there's some political undertones on the album. It's a serious time for us."

Hicks said he's not worried about the future, because he knows he has what it takes to sustain a career in music. "It would be scary if I didn't really believe that I was supposed to do this," he said. "For me, as a kid, I knew I was supposed to entertain and perform for folks. When you have that self-belief and inner-determination, you understand there are peaks and valleys in this business, and you just keep working at it. You show up to work, whether it's 25 people at a Steak & Ale, or Wembley Stadium and there's 500,000 people. If you keep working, and you're good to people, you'll be blessed."

Despite the poor sales, Hicks said he's still proud of his debut album. "As many songs as were thrown at me in the 10 minutes I had to choose them, I kept a good guard up, because I knew my artistic guard would allow people to say that I really took the integrity to keep my art," he said. "I've been working 15 years to make it in this business. I didn't want to not make it anymore. I'm proud of that record. I just wish we would have had more time to record it, but I'm proud of it. That's key."
MTV News (click MTV for video)
By Chris Harris, with reporting by Jim Cantiello

PEOPLE.COM - TAYLOR HICKS ADMITS ...

Taylor Hicks is used to being the object of adoring fans – but when the Jonas Brothers made a TV appearance in New York, the American Idol swapped roles.

Hicks, who is currently starring in Grease on Broadway, couldn't resist partaking in Jonas Brothers mania with thousands of other fans outside of the Live With Regis & Kelly studios in New York City Thursday morning, he told PEOPLE.

"Once I arrived and saw all the Jonas Brothers fans, I got in on the screaming.
We were all having a great time out there," said Hicks, who grabbed a sign from a fan and proudly held it up when the band arrived for the show.

"We were all just being fans and that's a cool thing."
Asked if he's really a true fan, he told PEOPLE "I am!"
"What they do is awesome because it gets kids into music," said Hicks who was at the ABC studio to tape a performance of "Beauty School Dropout" for the show's Broadway Week celebration, to air on Friday.

"They are a classy act," he added, noting that Nick is his favorite Jonas Brother because "he's the leader of the band."
Sadly, Hicks didn't get to bond with the guys.
"I just saw them in passing. They’ve got some pretty heavy security."

In addition to starring on Broadway, Hicks is busy recording his second album, which he hopes to release in the fall.
"I love New York.
I'm working on Broadway and it’s a great way for me to get my feet wet in acting and a great way to season yourself as a performer," he said.

"I've been able to breathe more as a songwriter, having the time and being able to find the right songs."

A Soulful Night On The Farm

Boot, Blues, and BBQ with Taylor Hicks
a Benefit for Hannah Home Shelby
(A Ministry of The King’s Ranch and Hannah Homes)
Saturday, May 10th
Presented by Governor and Mrs. Riley

Hannah Homes provide long term shelters for women, and women with children, who are fleeing domestic violence.

This Christ-centered home provides free housing, food, clothing, transportation, counseling, parenting classes, dometic violence classes and a host of other services to aid residents on their journeys toward healing and wholeness.

"We've probably all called Hannah Home to come get some stuff from us at one point in time," says Taylor Hicks - musical guest for the fundraising event.

"It's a great cause ... and I'm wearing the old boots, and got some blues, and I just had some barbecue."

Taylor Hicks escorted Alabama's first lady Patsy Riley, as the Governor was on crutches and unable to attend.

Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind

Taylor Hicks Donates Autographed Harmonica for 23rd Annual Event
TALLADEGA, AL

April 25th @ the International Motorsports Hall of Fame SPEED Channel Dome at the Talladega Superspeedway.

Alabama’s own soulful singer/songwriter and 2006 American Idol winner, Taylor Hicks, is supporting the Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind by donating an autographed harmonica for the upcoming live auction at this year’s Race Fever.

Autographed during the 2008 Alabama Music Hall of Fame Induction Banquet and Award Show where Hicks received the 2008 America’s Music Award, this “Taylor-made” item is sure to “Make You Proud” when you “Take it to the Streets”.

Opportunity

You never know when it will knock.
My big opportunity came during an audition in Birmingham, Alabama.
I walked through that door and when I came out, I had the opportunity of a lifetime.

We probably walk through a million doorways in our lives – some more important than others.
Some of those doors lead to opportunities that are beyond our imagination.

I believe your home should represent your outlook on life. The front door to your house leaves a strong impression on guests.
My front door is a symbol and it says when you enter my home, you are entering a place that is very special.

I’ve teamed up with Harmony Doors to create a series of distinctive doors designs inspired by the same influences that have shaped my music.

The Taylor Hicks Orleans Collection

Taylor Hicks My Idol

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

The Saga Continues

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Let The People Know

Monday, January 28, 2008

So Different And Yet

TO TAYLOR HICKS MY IDOL

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