Donna Summer Revives Classic On 'Idol' Finale

You know you love it. Enjoy tonight's take on 'Last Dance' below. MP3 at bottom.


MP3: Donna Summer - Hot Stuff (Remix)

Carly Smithson Covers Heart On Ellen

Watch the latest American Idol cast-off tackling the classic single, 'Alone', below.


MP3: Heart - Alone

Annie Lennox Covers 'Many Rivers' On American Idol

Watch her perform the classic track below. Download an MP3 at bottom of post.


MP3: The Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)

Dolly Parton Visits American Idol

Enjoy her performance of 'Jesus & Gravity' below. Download a Dolly classic at bottom.


MP3: Dolly Parton - I Will Always Love You

Jarvis Cocker: Pop Is Dead

Jarvis Cocker explained his views on modern day pop music to Radio Times this week. He has some very valid points. Some highlights from the interview are below.

"It saddens me because I love pop music and these shows prove that it's become an industrialised process. They never pick people with great voices. They pick people who show off how many notes they can fit into a 10-second period.

A great voice expresses something and gives you some idea of the personality behind the voice. There's zero personality in the voices of any of the people who sing on these shows. The kind of pop I was brought up on is over. The pop charts used to be where everything happened. Now the most interesting stuff is happening outside in the independent music sector."

MP3: Jarvis Cocker - Don't Let Him Waste Your Time

Arctic Monkeys Declare Hip-Hop Dead, Hate 'Pop Idol'

In an interview with NME this week the underaged Sheffield foursome's frontman, Alex Turner, & guitarist Jamie Cook, dig into the current state of popular music:

Alex: "I hate all those 'Pop Idol' singers. And let me tell you what I can't stand - that fucking R&B cover version of 'Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before'."

Jamie: "Even music I don't usually listen to, like hip-hop, is obviously bad at the moment. There is no real hip-hop anymore. Timbaland is a good producer, but he's in every song right now. Come on, there are other producers - and other beats."

Bitchfork hates the new Timbaland record as well, tagging it with a 4.1 earlier this week. Check out that review over at B-fork!

Hmm, I wonder what the boys will have to say if Sanjaya is crowned the next American Idol... By the way, you haven't seen 'Favourite Worst Nightmare's album art yet? Well then take a stroll over here!

MP3: Arctic Monkeys - When The Sun Goes Down

Golden age for KT!!

You chaps in the States have really taken to Fife's own KT Tunstall, haven't you? Given that I even heard her blaring out in Albuquerque while I was over there last month, I think that's a fair observation....

KT's been givin' some love to American Idol, following her nominations for this month's grammy awards...

One of the odder quirks in Tunstall's career has been that her songs have been embraced by U.S. TV producers even though she dislikes television, especially reality music ones.

"My status as a musician in America is pretty much cemented by Katharine McPhee, which is really interesting and funny for me because I've never been polite about how I feel about shows like that," she says.

Even so, Tunstall, 31, authorized McPhee to use her foot-stomping, woo-hoo-heavy "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" because she realized she'd be a fool to decline.

"When she sang that song, less than 1 percent of the population knew it. I was doing quite well but it was a totally underground song at the time. Then she does it. And it worked. I have people at my gigs going, 'I heard Katharine McPhee play your song and I love your album and your gig was amazing.' That's why you say yes."

Read the rest of the interview over at CNN.com

KT Tunstall - Golden Age
Katharine McPhee - Black Horse & The Cherry Tree

Courtney Love To Replace Paula On 'Idol'??

Say it ain't so!

Well, if you can believe those trustworthy folks over at Us Magazine, then read further.

Courtney just told the tabloid that Idol's executive producer Nigel Lythgoe called her office last week inquiring into whether she would be interested in sitting in as a judge on the hit FOX show. "He called," Love tells Usmagazine.com. "He was wondering if I was interested. I thought it was kind of weird but brilliant."

Guest star or Paula replacement? That is the question!

Read our review of Courtney's latest book of journal entries, here!

Jay-Z & American Idol Runner Up Beat The Beatles & U2 On US Charts!

Whoa, across the Atlantic and the same holds true!

Over the weekend, we were stunned to find out that Westlife beat The Beatles & U2 on the UK album charts (for all of their debut weeks). Seems like neither megagroup could topple Daughtry (I guess he removed his first name, Chris, for some sort of appeal, not mine) or the 700+ debuting Jay-Z 'comeback album'.

Not only that but the latest edition of Now also faired higher than the big boys this week!


Here's how the top 5 round up (sales in parantheses):
#1 Jay-Z: 708k
#2 Daughtry: 301k
#3 NOW 23: 298k
#4 The Beatles: 280k
#5 Snoop Dogg: 274k

U2's U218 didn't even crack the top 10! They'll have to settle for #12. Although that could be because they have way too many greatest hits releases as it is. Only The Cure has more (seriously, 5 best-ofs with the same 12 songs over and over? Come on!)

Thoughts on all of this? Predictable? I don't know why it shocks me, but it does.

MP3: U2 - Acrobat (one of my favorite U2 tracks)

Kat To Take On KT

Yup, since we're on the topic of guilty pleasures today... I won't deny my love of American Idol (I just lost serious cool points, didn't I?).

Well, this season is actually pretty good and if you care to hear 'Black Horse & The Cherry Tree' as peformed by Kat McPhee, you better turn the tube on tonight.

It should be interesting to hear what she does with it.

I think it's a pretty nice fit for her (unlike her dress from last week!)