Casey Abrams (singer and bassist) on American Idol last night

[Richland123]

Casey Abrams (singer and bassist) stuck up for himself too. Jimmy Iovine wanted him to do a different song and Will I. Am (who can't even sing) has no business being a mentor.

Casey did a great job and the audience and jusdges loved it.

YouTube - American Idol Casey Abrams April 13, 2011

[Voodoochild1970]

WOW! It's great to see this kind of thing on American Idol. Most people probably won't get it or like it but it's fantastic to see this stuff.

[Rickett Customs]

He did a good job on "nature boy", only problem is, they already used their 1 save on him.
Voting after that performance is on a bunch of pre-teen to 15 year old girls now, that's the part that sucks.

[DWBass]

Yeah, I saw a clip of it. Smokin! He may not win it but he's a true artist!

[chump stain]

Bass Players unite. Call and vote for this guy.

[nutdog]

Goshdarnit that was good!

[bearhart74]

I think that was his best yet.. gave props to esperanza in the process!!!

[OldDog52]

It's weird but I thought his vocals were awful. He cleared his throat in the middle of the song, twice! Maybe I need to reaquaint myself with Nat King Cole's original version before I make any judgements... It was very cool though that he chose that song and used the upright bass.

[selftitled907]

yeah that was an overall amazing performance. but like stated above.....he is left to the teens that have nothing better to do than text all day. its unfortuante that most talent like that will get shirked to the side because he isnt a favorite or because most dont understand the actual beauty of an upright bass. oh well even if he loses or gets kicked or whatever happens on that damn show....he will go on to do great things.

[Rickengeezer]

Originally Posted by OldDog52

It's weird but I thought his vocals were awful. He cleared his throat in the middle of the song, twice! Maybe I need to reaquaint myself with Nat King Cole's original version before I make any judgements... It was very cool though that he chose that song and used the upright bass.

I had a similar impression of his singing. It was also hard to hear the bass in the mix, which made me feel better about my limited volume on my cheap Chinese upright!

[bluejack]

Originally Posted by chump stain

Bass Players unite. Call and vote for this guy.

This we all must do !!!

[nutdog]

I've never voted on AI but if I did I'd vote for Lusk. I haven't seen much AI over the years but he's the best I've seen. Sorry. But that was still pretty cool. There must be some real talent this season.

[OldDog52]

I just watched a NKC version on YouTube. Didn't notice any throat clearing.

[lucas vigor]

He does need to work on his singing, but so did Bob Dylan....and he did pretty good for himself! Still, he sings 100% better then I do (and probably better then most of US as well)

No matter what, America is getting a dose of jazz on prime time TV, and that's what matters! Showing that Jazz can be hip, pleasant and current!

And my hats off to all three judges!

First Esperanza, now Casey! It's a good year for bass!

[Richland123]

Check out Casey Abrams and Haley Reinhart's duo from last night. More jazz.

YouTube - Casey Abrams & Haley Reinhart - Moaning - American Idol Top 8 Results Show - 04/14/11

[Mojo-Man]

Originally Posted by OldDog52

It's weird but I thought his vocals were awful. He cleared his throat in the middle of the song, twice! Maybe I need to reaquaint myself with Nat King Cole's original version before I make any judgements... It was very cool though that he chose that song and used the upright bass.

THANK YOU.
This kid is a joke.
Yes he can play, but it's a singing contest.
And he can't sing to save his life.
He should have been gone weeks ago.
The Judges blew it, and saved him.
No they say how wonderful he is, just to save there ass.

[mikeGJ]

It's nice to see the bass featured, and the guy clearly has a good ear and excellent chops on the upright,

but.....

His voice is weak, has very limited range and (IMO) an unpleasant, raspy tone, even more constricted than the most recently dumped guy (Paul).

They keep reminding us that "it's a singing competition", but because "he's the best musician in the competition" was the reason they "saved" him. When a second "shocking" elimination came, for someone who actually had pipes (Pia), the judges didn't have the save in their pockets.

The producer, Jimmy Iovine, is probably hoping he doesn't win, because it's going to be a nightmare to sell this guy on the charts.

I dig his bass play, but "best musician" doesn't make him a great, or even good, singer (or "Idol").

I think the show will die soon, the premise doesn't live up to the hype.
Ultimately it's not a singing contest, but a popularity contest, that seems to be driven by "cute" appeal to teen girls and to grandmas.

[lucas vigor]

Originally Posted by Mojo-Man

THANK YOU.
This kid is a joke.Yes he can play, but it's a singing contest.
And he can't sing to save his life.
He should have been gone weeks ago.
The Judges blew it, and saved him.
No they say how wonderful he is, just to save there ass.

This is one of the more asinine things I have read on this forum yet. Right up there with "SX basses are just as good as pre-CBS basses" or "steve bailey plays out of tune".

The kid is a joke? You can do better?

He is a unique artist. Very unique. The more I listen to the clip of "Nature boy", the more respect I have for him. Your post is very typical of the monday morning quarterbacking that goes on around here.

Yeah, he is not one of those polished, auto-tuned Beyonce/Mariah/Celine clones this show has been known for....and that is a GOOD thing.

[rms2]

Okay, so there are some negative aspects to AI. But, hey - it's getting LIVE singers, and LIVE musicians out in front of MILLIONS of people every week. So it may be a popularity contest and theres a lot of money at stake. But where in recent times (like the last couple decades) could you see a guy like Casey Abrams featured on upright bass doing jazz tunes. (And the judges gave him a standing O!) Or James Durbin and Zakk Wylde tearin' it up on Heavy Metal? In front of millions of people worldwide? This has done more for my kids and their friends interest in music then I have been able to in years of trying to get them to appreciate and support live music. Kids now actually want to see live music and musicians and not lip synching and beats. They're asking me to play music at home from artists they would never have heard of or been interested in otherwise. And they want to go out and see shows!

And yes, I will say it again, the thing missing from AI are ORIGINAL tunes. My hope is that Casey, and James, and the others will be able to capitalize on this experience and write and record some great new music.

This band featuring a former Idol certainly has;

District 97

With Leslie Hunt as lead vocalist, 2007 AI contestant. Their music is fantastic. They just put out an excellent live recording from Cal Prog that is pay what you choose. If you like it, send some money their way and support your fellow musicians! (and no, I am not affiliated with the band) I just really feel we all need to support great live music because our industry is HURTING. We need all the help we can getting people interested in live music again - like we had back in the 60's and 70's. People went to see live music every chance they got. I know it will never be the same but it sure as hell needs to be better then it is now. I say if AI can get people interested in live music and launch some careers then more power to them.

[DWBass]

Casey can't sing?? You crazy!