- American Idol The Great Holiday Classics

American Idol: The Great Holiday Classics by far surpasses any of the other American Idol collections. Taking the shows top talents this is the American Idol album to have. Each performer sounds wonderful. Clay's voice is perfectly suited for The First Noel. Tamyra Gray gives a stunning version of Silent Night. Kimberly Locke lends her sultry powerful pipes to The Christmas Song, and Justin has never sounded better on I'll Be Home For Christmas. The ensemble songs are beautifully song. The best is saved for the second disc. Kelly Clarksons O Holy Night is breathtaking and Grown Up Christmas List is lovely. I wish the album included alot more songs. 10 songs seems a little short, but overall a wonderful Christmas album.

- American Idol Season 4: The Showstoppers : by Various

Where else could country, rock, funk, pop and oldies come together so easily, but on an American Idol compilation?

It gets off to great start with Season 4 champ Carrie Underwood singing her signature song "Independence Day", written by fellow country gal Gretchen Peters. This is a country song that could be sung by the likes of Martina McBride and Faith Hill, and should do really well as a single.

Other notable tracks are:

"I Don't Want To Be", by runner-up Bo Bice of the long silky locks, written by the talented "Chariot" man Gavin DeGraw. A little Matchbox 20 influence is apparent on this track.

"You Don't Have to Say You Love Me", by Nadia Turner. Well, this song stopped me in my tracks. What a voice! What a song! A definite double and triple play song.

"Total Eclipse of the Heart", by Jessica Sierra. A great rendition of my favorite Bonnie Tyler song. Slightly less raspy, but nobody can really scrape them out like Bonnie.

"Everytime You Go Away", by Anthony Fedorov. He may look more like a chess player than a singer, but he did a great job of this Daryl Hall song.

The ensemble number "When You Tell Me That You Love Me" is passable, but not outstanding.

There are a lot of good singers in Season 4, and some of them have better songs than the ones included on this album. What does a girl have to do for a little "Bohemian Rhapsody"? I would also love to hear more from Vonzell Solomon and Constantine Maroulis.

An above average album representative of an intriguing season.

- He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother

Details

* Original Release Date: April 26, 2005
* Label: Arista
* Copyright: (P) 2005 19 Recordings Limited
* Genres: Pop/General, Pop

- American Idol Theme EP : by The Idolatry Pop Orchestra

Details

* Original Release Date: July 11, 2006
* Label: StreetBeat Records, Inc.
* Copyright: 2006 StreetBeat Records, Inc.
* Total Length: 32:18
* Genres: Dance & DJ/Trance, Dance & DJ, Dance & DJ/General

- American Idol Season 2: All Time Classic American Love Songs

Well this cd in unbelieveable. I am a American Idol fan but I couldn't wait for the cd. Well here is a list of songs and rated

1. What the World Needs Now-(4/5) now the thing in this song is that it is well done but it really wasn't the greatest rendition I have heard but it is definetely good because the different vocals. Kinda cheesy at the end with Julia.

2.Superstar-(4/5) Now I am not a fan of ruben but I must say that his voice is amazing for this song.

3.On the Wings of Love-(5/5) Clay sang this song like no other. He makes any song sound amazing. His vocals are phenomenal.

4.At Last-(2/5) I am not sure but I think Julia was cute but her vocals didn't seem that great on the show and this song was pretty but it doesn't sound like her....vocals are decent.

5.Three Times a Lady-(5/5) This song is awesome for Josh. I can't believe that he sang this song so well. His country tone is heard a little bit but not obvious. This shows that he really can sing. Vocals are good.

6.Let's Stay together-(4/5) Now trenyce has great vocals and I am happy that this song is on there but it is the only upbeat song. Her live version is better. What is Trenyce's last name?

7.Back at One-(4/5) Rickey really surprised me with this song. I can't believe that he pulled off this song so well. His vocals are great his upper register sounded great.

8.Killing me Softly with His Song-(5/5) Now I have to admit that this version of the song is just superb. I can't get over that she sang this song. I have fallen in love with this song and her singing it. Her vocals are ontact. This song shows her upp register very well.

9.Open Arms-(2/5) Corey has a ok voice but it kinda gets on my nerves and I love the song but I didn't like his vocals on this song.

10.How Do I Live (Without You)- (4/5) I think this shows Carmen best singing with her voice. You can her her vibrato a little bit in only certain parts but otherwise she totally got rid of her vibrato.

11.Over the Rainbow-(5/5) Kimberley pulls off this song with ease. I love when she first sang it but better when it was studio recorded.l I can listen to this song over and over again. Her vocals are the best of the girls in the competition and this song proves it.

12. Overjoyed-(4/5) Now I wish Charles went farther in the competition I liked his voice and he makes a great version of this song. Stevie Wonder is hard to pull off and I think he did it well. His vocals are good.

13.God Bless the U.S.A(Proud to be an American)-(3/5) I like them singing the song but it just doens't hit me hard like all of them together but it is a good version vocals are well blended

One thing that I am disappointed with is that Vanessa didn't make it onto the cd because I liked her voice also.

- American Idol Season 3: Greatest Soul Classics : by Various

"American Idol Season 3: Greatest Soul Classics" showcases the talents of the 12 Finalists from Fox's American Idol's third season. Each of the showcased 12 finalists performs a song individually and there is one group number.

What may surprise fans of the series is that even those performers deemed as the "weaker" of the group all turned in solid performances on the tracks making this a CD of definite keeper tracks. Fans of American Idol and Motown will love the Idols and their takes on these old school classics.

Below are the 13 featured songs with my comments on the side:

THE TRACKS

1. "Chain of Fools" - Fantasia Barrino: Outstanding rendition by the top rated Fantasia as she definitely puts the soul into it.

2. "Me and Mrs. Jones" - by George Huff: The ever popular and outstanding Huff brings new life to this classic as his voice definitely puts the groove into Mrs. Jones. One of MY favorites from this track.

3. "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" - by Diana DeGarmo: Great rendition of this classic by Diana and her Southern twang.

4. "If You Don't Know Me By Now" - by LaToya London: Good job by the top rated LaToya on this, smooth and subtle if not powerful.

5. "Neither One Of Us (Wants To Be The First To Say Goodbye)" - by Jennifer Hudson: Not one of my favorites on the track and not really one of my favorites on the show but Jennifer definitely does a good job with the song.

6. "You Make Me Feel Brand New" - by Amy Adams: Smooth version of this classic love song by the ooh to early departed Amy Adams, one of my personal favorite songs and one of my personal favorites from the track.

7. "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" - by Matt Rogers. Surprisingly well done track by Matt Rogers who does a fine job on the Otis Redding classic.

8. "Midnight Train to Georgia" - by Jasmine Trias: Not really Jasmine's genre of music but she does a good job with it.

9. "My Girl" - by John Peter Lewis: Again, another surprisingly well done performance by John Peter Lewis who does Motown proud with this rendition.

10. "Until You Come Back To Me (That's What I'm Gonna Do)" - by Camille Velasco: Never heard this song before but Camille does a real catchy rendition with it as it's a perfect fit for her voice and style.

11. "Betcha By Golly, Wow" - by Leah Labelle: Again, surprisingly a great rendition of this song as Leah's vocals and the background make it an infectious track. One of my favorites.

12. "You Are Everything" - by John Stevens: Not a bad track. This isn't John's genre but his mellow laidback sound make this track a pretty decent serenade.

13. "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" - The Top 12 Finalists: Motown never sounded better than the 12 Finalists kickin' it on this old school classic!!!

THE VERDICT:

Overall you get a SOLID bag of tracks. What I found great about this track is that they arranged to songs to play to ALL of the Finalists strengths as even the "marginal" singers in the group still turned in solid performances in the track. In my opinion there were no weak performances on the CD. Here's my rundown:

Keepers: George, Fantasia, Amy, Camille, "Ain't No Mountain High Enough"

Goods: The rest

Bad: None whatsoever

With no bad tracks on here and a truckload of classics and favorites this CD's a definite keeper.

If you were a fan of the show you'll definitely want to get this CD. Even if you aren't an A.I. fan you'll definitely dig these new takes on some old classics.

Highly Recommended

- American Idol Season 5 Encores

his one's for all the AI fans who've been faithfully following Season Five at least from the semi-finals. Warning: The choices here are in many cases not the best songs sung by the contestants during the show, and only go as far as the first couple of weeks of the finalists competition, so don't look for songs from "Queen" week and onwards.

Melissa McGhee - "What About Love" (Heart): Melissa sang this song the week before she was eliminated. (Voted off March 15, after "Stevie Wonder Songs" night)

Bucky Covington - "Superstition" (Stevie Wonder): He survived Stevie Wonder, the `50s, the 21st Century and the Country segment before he "bottomed out" on "Queen" night, April 12.

Mandisa Hundley - "I'm Every Woman" (Chaka Khan/Whitney Houston): The Diva sang this one pretty early in the game, before her surprise exit on April 5 after the "Country Songs" segment.

Chris Daughtry - "Wanted Dead or Alive" (Bon Jovi): You could have heard a pin drop on May 10 when America's newest favorite rocker didn't survive Elvis night. Won't be long before we hear from Chris again, hopefully alive and rockin'

Ace Young - "Father Figure" (George Michael): The "eye candy" idol lasted until April 19, the "Great American Songbook" night. This track wasn't a great song choice for him.

Taylor Hicks - "Takin' it to the Streets" (Doobie Brothers): Brimming with confidence, Taylor looks all set to be takin' it all to sweet home Alabama, and if he does, there's no doubt he'll be dancing in the streets.

Lisa Tucker - "Signed, Sealed, Delivered" (Stevie Wonder): Lisa was in the bottom three the week she sang this song. (Voted off March 29, "Songs of the 21st Century") She's really young, and much too talented to stay out of the spotlight for long.

Kellie Pickler - "Walking After Midnight" (Patsy Cline): The Southern belle fell out of love with the voters on April 26, as Bocelli performed on the "Greatest Love Songs" night. Full props to Kellie for being brave enough to sing "Bohemian Rhapsody" as her "Queen" choice.

Elliott Yamin - "Moody's Mood for Love" (James Moody): Next comes our favorite underdog, and arguably the best male vocalist on the show, even without formal training. Maybe if he had taken dance classes with Taylor he would have survived past May 17. There weren't a lot better song choices for Elliott than this one.

Katharine McPhee - "Think" (Aretha Franklin): Definitely the prettier of the two remaining finalists at the time of writing. Whether she ends up in first or second place, Katharine's a winner all the way - even Simon would agree.

Paris Bennett - "Midnight Train to Georgia" (Gladys Knight): Finished in fifth place after choosing songs by Prince and Mary J. Blige on May 3. Young and talented, at last there's a Paris you'll want to remember.

Kevin Covais (A.K.A. Chicken Little) - "When I Fall in Love" (Nat King Cole): This is the song he sang the week he was eliminated. (Voted off March 22, "Songs of the '50s") Never before has a nickname seemed so right.

An album to buy for the collection of any AI fan, but outside of that circle it probably won't make much of an impact. Fortunately for the bottom line however, it's an enormous circle.

- God Bless The U.S.A. (Proud To Be An American) : by American Idol Finalists

This track is great! the only thing wrong with it is the cover- the photographer should be shot. i mean, he made everyone look horrible except for clay and carmen but they sounded great. This song was one of the few idol songs that had a great arrangement, although I never would have picked Josh Gracin to do the beginning solo.Thank God Clay was singing in the background, and Trenyce's solo was great too. This was a great rendtion worth buying.

- Everything Is Beautiful : by American Idol Finalists - Season 4

Details

* Original Release Date: April 26, 2005
* Label: Arista
* Copyright: (P) 2005 19 Recordings Limited
* Genres: Pop/General, Pop

- Daughtry : by Daughtry

I'm not fan of AMERICAN IDOL, but I tend to always check out the contestant albums over at iTunes when they're released, and Daughtry's self-titled album (a smart move for a rocker who built his initial following based upon name recognition of a TV show) is an overwhelmingly pleasant surprise. Certainly, as is the case with almost any album, not all tracks are to my liking, but the entire roster is surprisingly solid, especially considering this to be a debut release. Some may inevitably gripe about comparisons to other bands -- Nickelback comes to mind -- and it would be easy to dismiss Daughtry on that argument alone, but you'd be missing some terrific tracks. Do like I do and sample the tracks first, and I'm sure you'll find yourself pleasantly surprised with "What I Want," a driving rock anthem featuring the legendary Slash. Also worth a listen are "What About Now," "There and Back Again," "Over You," "Home," and "Used To."

At a glance (or a quick listen), a few of the samples do sound a bit repetitive lyrically and musically. This is a weakness of the sampling system, though, and not the entire track. Having downloaded more than half the album this morning and given them a full run, I'm convinced that Daughtry is not only here to stay, but he'll be hanging around for some years to come.