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Learn more- "Nashville Star" - Top Nine Perform - June 30, 2008
Dunkelwoman stands with the top nine and tells us they're all going to sing twice tonight.
In the audience:Randy Owen of Alabama; Vanessa Williams; Figure skater Scott Hamilton
In the "it's never too early to get them started" department Billy Ray's little daughter Noah introduces her dad and our host who informs us that it's "family night" on the show. The contestants haven't seen their families in a month and were surpised at their mentoring sessions when their relatives showed up en masse. They're also in the crowd waving signs for their kin.
Contestant #1:Ashlee Hewitt
Song#1: "Don't Stop Believin'," Journey
Video: Ashlee's dad, who was serving in Iraq, was able to come back and reunite with the whole, very large Hewitt family. John loves the idea of a Journey song, he says of her idea to start on the piano and throw on her guitar "wham, that's show business." He calls her an untapped natural resource and it's time to for her to show a whole lot more.
Performance: She starts at the piano, throws in one of those little sighing/hiccup things that is meant to connote "country." She grabs her guitar and sings. She doesn't have much pizzazz and she has a couple of trouble spots pitch-wise sliding up to notes but she's perfectly pleasant.
Jewel: Thought the move from piano to guitar was too clinical and that she needs to have some attitude and curb her nerves, but thought the singing was great.
Jeffrey: Calls it the Barbara Mandrell show since she played two instruments. Tells her it's about to get harder and to let nothing shake her confidence.
John: Thought she made the switch well, but she keeps starting weak and ending strong and he wants her to always start strong and end strong.
Song #2: "Help Me Make It Through the Night," Kris Kristofferson
Performance: This performance is much shorter, sounds fine but is kind of limp.
John: Says it sounded like a modern-day Tammy Wynette. Tells her she needs to be mentally tough.
Contestant #2: Coffey
Song #1: "Hey Good Lookin," Hank Williams
Video: Little Savannah runs to him all supercute. Jewel thought it was sweet. Jewel doesn't think the song he picked is vocally challenging enough and she warns away from the gimmicks- hollering at the crowd at the end of every line- that he thinks make him an "entertainer."
Performance:Wearing a black cowboy hat, Coffey sidles through the song. He sounds fine, but Jewel's right, there's not much to this song vocally. He throws in just one "come on band!" and does a little falsetto riff.
Jeffrey: He says it was too little, too late. He's not getting it but that the second half was alright.
John: Goes superharsh style saying that a cowboy hat doesn't make someone country and he should go audition for "American Idol" where they break pop stars. He says he's a good singer, not a country singer. Coffey sasses back that since John Rich has never been to tiny Bangs, Texas where he's been mucking out stalls and doing something with rabbits he doesn't know how country Coffey truly is.
Jewel: Calls herself the mediator and then goes on to criticize his song selection and hopes he does a ballad next time.
Song #2:"Take Me Home, Country Roads," John Denver
Performance: He barely gets out one line and immediately yells "sing with me!" He sings some more and then yells "let's sing as a family!" He is clearly rattled by what John said and seems near tears.
Jewel:Says she knows he's half country/half pop and verifies his rural roots and reiterates that he should do a ballad next week.
Contestant #3:Tommy Stanley
Song #1: "God Bless the Broken Road," Rascal Flatts; "Tiny Dancer," Elton John
Video:He hasn't seen his parents in over a year and they have a lovely tearful reunion. Dad tells him to country up the Elton John song. Jewel gives very little advice over a video phone.
Performance:He's still fidgety with his eyes and head but a little more still overall on this ballad, his pitch is not so great though. He's decidedly average.
John: Thanks him for his service and says he'd like to have a beer with him but it's not called "show friends" it's called "show business" and that it seems like he has to "concentrate" on being country and that, like Coffey, maybe he should go elsewhere or just be a Navy man full-time.
Jeffrey: Saw him power through a bad note and was impressed.
Jewel: Misses the swagger of previous weeks.
Before his second song the producers surprise him with three of his crewmates from the U.S.S. Kitty Hawk, who came from halfway around the world. He's visibly surprised.
Song #2:"Tiny Dancer," Elton John
Performance: He sounds fine but goofs the lyrics.
Jewel: Says he's had a rough couple of weeks and knows it was hard to sing all choked up with the surprise. He sounded better. And she thought that song sounded more country than the country song. She also thanks him for serving our country.
Contestant #4: Pearl Heart
Song #1: "I'll Still Be Loving You," Dan Fogelberg
Video: They're reunited with their dog, parents, and brother. Jeffrey hands them what he calls one of the best songs of all time. It's a very personal song for him and he chokes up talking about a child he lost several years ago and that if they get it right he will lose control. (My gosh, what a terrible thing to happen to a parent. God bless him.)
Performance: Someone is completely off and throwing the harmony out of whack, it's intermittently strong and awful.
Jeffrey: He says they rose to the occasion, he got a chill bump. He thinks they still look a little stiff.
John: Says when they really got it right that it was really good but they missed a few spots and they need to work on being perfect.
Jewel: Thought that when they stood up it was good.
Song #2: "One Way Ticket," LeAnn Rimes
Performance:They sound a lot better.
Jeffrey: He wants them to let the people love them and says he's so proud.
Contestant #5:Melissa Lawson
Song #1: "This One's For the Girls," Martina McBride
Video: She is surprised and pleased to see her husband and five little boys. John is on board with her song choice and her decision to play guitar.
Performance: She starts strong in a low register sounding a lot like Mary Chapin Carpenter and shines on the higher chorus. She's got a lovely smile too. It's light and breezy but well done. She gets huge cheers from the crowd.
Jewel: She compliments her lower register and her high notes and says she looks cute.
Jeffrey: He's got nothing and asks her what she needs to do next. She says she wants to polish her guitar skills so she can keep playing it.
John: Says if "NS" was over tonight she would be the undisputed winner.
Song #2: "Landslide," Fleetwood Mac
Performance: She sits on a stool and gets tender. Short but sweet.
John:He's worried about her nerves stealing her breath.
Contestant #6:Shawn Mayer
Song #1: "Breathe," Faith Hill
Video:She screams at the sight of her parents and sister. John thinks it's time for America to see Shawn's girlie side. She says she likes flowers and chocolate and we see her getting a pedicure.
Performance:With her head tilted she's doing that shaky lower register thing Jewel was talking about before. But once the chorus hits she's in her wheelhouse. She's waving her arms around a little uncontrollably though. She shows off her pretty smile too.
Jewel:Thinks the song was a good choice and it was nice to see her be girlie but tells her to be a little careful with her breath.
Jeffrey:Thinks the losing of her breath was kind of good and likes that it makes her voice seem less ambitious.
John: Was shocked at how well it came off but is still worried about her. He asks if she thinks she's improving and she believes she is. He's worried about her competition and thinks she showed off some nice vocals tonight.
Song #2:"Forever and Ever, Amen," Randy Travis
Performance:Strumming her guitar, short and fine, but still seems to be struggling with her breath a bit. She ends by saying "God bless you Randy Travis."
John: Says she just made his point about letting her nerves get to her and nailing one song and not the second one. He tells her that she's not competitive enough to go all the way.
Performance:Blake Shelton, "Home." Blake sings his tender ballad as video of the family reunions play on the screen behind him.
Contestant #7:Gabe Garcia
Song #1: "Wanted Dead or Alive," Bon Jovi
Video: Glad to see his mom, grandma, brother, sister-in-law, and niece. His dad passed away in October. Jewel tells him to bring out a little attitude and sex appeal.
Performance:He does the first verse in his strong lower register and goes up for the second, both sound great. He seems a little nervous with the "showing attitude" part. As he throws his hands out to the crowd for the "Wanted!!" echo in the chorus, Jewel grimaces.
Jeffrey: Wants to know what the hard-core country fans are going to think but thought it was great.
John: Thought it was like watching paint dry up until this point but that this was a good step forward.Thinks he's the best male vocalist in the competition but he needs to be more comfy onstage.
Jewel: Loved how he showed off more personality and his gravelly higher register and wants him to start flirting with the audience.
Song #2:"The Fireman," George Strait
Performance:This is right in his good spot. Jeffrey and John dance along.
Jewel:Thinks America should vote for him because he's genuinely country and that his family did a good job raising him.
John: Thinks people should vote for him because he can make hit country records all day long.
Bottom Two: Alyson Gilbert and Laura & Sophie. Each will sing once. Whoever survives will get to sing their second song.
Contestant #8:Alyson Gilbert
Song #1:"She's In Love With the Boy," Trisha Yearwood
Video:John yells at her for not taking his advice last week. She's psyched to see her mom and husband. John likes her choice and she says she's going to take his advice. Mom sits in on rehearsal and makes sure she follows John's advice.
Performance:She starts off John's way but then struggles with the lower part. She mugs a bunch with her eyes, hints of pageanty-ness are rearing their ugly heads again. She's hitting some bad notes but she's showing some pizzazz.
Jewel: Notes that the popping eyes are back and that she needs to find some soul and some hurt. She doesn't know what her head trip is because she knows she's a better singer than this.
Jeffrey:Thinks she ignored the advice to let the song just speak for itself.
John: Thought she took advice well but that she only had moments of brilliance, not a wholly good performance.
Contestant #9:Laura & Sophie
Song #1:"Walking on Sunshine," Katrina & the Waves
Video:Jeffrey advises them to be laid back and rock it up. They are thrilled to see their families. They work hard.
Performance:They slow it down and rock it out, trading lines and then harmonizing. It's very cute, as are their stripe-y tube tops. What's not so cute is the bad notes they're hitting. Halfway through they bring it up to tempo and do a little choreography, there are still a lot of bad notes though.
Jewel:Says it should've been a lot of things it wasn't. She liked the slow arrangement but it just didn't work. She accuses one of them of falling apart right before their eyes as if she was going to cry. The accusee, I think Laura, says "I don't think so." Not sassily just that she thought she was okay.
John:Thinks they're nice girls but it felt like a high school talent show and that's not a good thing. He also thinks winning would be the worst thing to happen to them because the music business would chew them up and spit them out. One nods her head in agreement. He does think there's something great there but that they're a few years away.
Jeffrey:Says he was proud of their work but that they missed a bit and if they squeak through to next week they've got to figure out how they're going to make it work.
Going Home:Alyson Gilbert. She watches her journey. She's crying, her family cheers. John tells her that she's a great singer but that her equation is not right. Her encourages her to push forward and figure out how to make it work. He wishes her well.
Song #2:"Because of You," Kelly Clarkson
Performance:The lower register girl is fine, the high-harmony singer is just murdering it. They must be incredibly stressed out.
Jeffrey:Asks them to focus and tells them they have the least to lose being young with bright futures ahead of them and they need to focus to keep from being eliminated.
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