Katie’s Beer

My favorite local radio station is giving away tickets to Jesus Christ Superstar and I’m sitting here wishing I had tried a little harder to win tickets. It was one of my favorites as a young teen. I had the album from the musical and played it many times a day. However, after finding the following reader comment last night posted on my favorite American Idol blog, I think that the tickets should be used to educate our youth:

“… Carly sang very good last night but maybe if she realized that “Superstar” was not a FUN song, but a song that is about Jesus dying and crying and asking why. She then would have connected with more passion to pull her thru…”

Thankfully, another reader corrected her:

“In the play, the song is sung by Judas and he was questioning some decisions made by Jesus. It was sung in rockstar fashion. ETA: I found a clip from the movie on YouTube.”

Judas sings somewhat angrily:

Ev’ry time I look at you I don’t understand, why you let the things you did get so out of hand. You’d have managed better if you’d had it planned. Now why’d you choose such a backward time and such a strange land? If you’d come today you could have reached a whole nation. Israel in 4 BC had no mass communication.

Jesus Christ Superstar is a rock opera written by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber. It follows the struggles between Judas Iscariot and Jesus based on the canonical gospels’ accounts of the last weeks of Jesus’ life, beginning with Jesus and his followers arriving in Jerusalem and ending with the crucifixion. Modern references abound in the musical. The song, Jesus Christ Superstar, was sung by Murray Head, who played Judas. Murray Head later had the 1984 hit song “One Night in Bangkok” which was originally from the “well-known” musical, Chess. Chess was a musical with lyrics by Tim Rice and music by Bjorn and Benny of ABBA.

The story involves a romantic triangle between two players in a world chess championship, and a woman who manages one and falls in love with the other. Although the protagonists were not intended to represent any specific individuals, the characters’ personalities are loosely based on those of Victor Korchnoi and Bobby Fischer.(from Wikipedia)

Tags: Religion, You Tube, American Idol 7 by TK
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Tags: American Idol 7 by TK
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Did Josiah Leming go on with his life after being eliminated from American Idol? Of course, he did. He’s been posting on various forums and here is his latest:

“”ok, sorry it took me so long to get back. i just wanted to once again thank everyone for all of the support and understanding that there was a **** ton of editing going on in the film room.

anyway, i’m looking forward to moving on past being the “homeless crying kid on american idol” lol, i’m sparking a bit of label interest, and my chances of signing with a major label are looking very good at this point. i had 100,000 plays today, and have sold over 1,000 albums, so thank you to all who have purchased the music and blown up my page, it definitely gets the attention of the label reps.

trust me, you guys have not seen the last of me, the road may change, but the destination stays the same, and i will never give up on my dreams.

feel free to ask any questions, i’ll try and keep up ( :

you people are lovely

Source: IdolForums.com

Also, it is rumored that he will appear on the Ellen Degeneres Show next week to sing.

Hat tip to MJ’s American Idol Blog - the ONLY decent place I’ve found to read verified AI information!

Tags: American Idol 7 by TK
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I will never again refer to Josiah Leming as over-emotional or immature.  He’s looking pretty normal to me now.  This is the story of his mother.  I do not remember it being discussed in the audition phase of American Idol.   It could have been a big back story.  Warning….tear alert!

Sharon’s Leming’s blog, My Life with Cancer.
She writes….

Hello! My name is Sharon Leming. I am 39 years old, the wife of a wonderful man, and the mother of 9 great children. I was an internet programmer until my health declined in September 2004. I am also living with cancer.You’ll notice that I did not say that I am “dying of cancer”, even though the doctors assure me that ovarian leiomyosarcoma with multiple metastases is indeed fatal. Maybe I will die from it some day, if I don’t get hit by a bus or fall off a cliff beforehand. In the meantime, I am LIVING with cancer. I won’t be DYING of cancer until they are ready to apply the toe tag.

I was diagnosed with ovarian leiomyosarcoma in October 2000 at the age of 33. Since that time, I have undergone 16 surgeries, 40+ radiation treatments, and 6 cycles of chemotherapy.  Leiomyosarcoma is a rare cancer that originates in the soft muscles of the body. It affects four people out of a million. Presently, there is no cure.

This is the story of my journey as a cancer patient.”

Her latest entry (2/9/08) is on Josiah.

First of all, I’d like to say hello to all of the people who have found me when searching for Josiah. I appreciate your nice comments and well wishes. In your honor, I will answer a few of the most common Josiah-related questions:

1 - I was trying to contact Josiah, but I ended up here. How can I contact him?
You can reach him at his myspace page: http://www.myspace.com/josiahleming.

2 - Did you know he was living in his car?
We did not know he was living in his car at that time, but we did know before the show aired last week.

3 - What do you think of the British accent?
Actually, I do not notice the accent when he speaks or sings. I guess I am just accustomed to hearing him.

4 - Why is he separated from his family? Don’t you love him?
I love Josiah very much, and he is very close to his family. There are no musical opportunities near us, so he wants to be near a larger metropolitan area where he can play his music and make better contacts.

5 - How do you feel about his lifestyle?
I don’t always agree with the decisions he makes, but I respect the fact that it is his life and I am 100% behind him all the way.

Tags: American Idol 7 by TK
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At first, I thought this was Josiah’s own song, but when it was referred to as the Grace Kelly song I remembered hearing about it a while back. Josiah Leming, the 18 year old from Tennessee, sang the Grace Kelly song by Mika last night on part one of the Hollywood Auditions (AI7). Because it is relatively unknown in the U.S., lots of viewers thought it was Josiah’s own creation.  I found this on Wikipedia about the song:

“Grace Kelly” is a song by Mika released for download on 9 January 2007. Produced and mixed by Greg Wells, the song entered the UK Singles Chart at number three (#3) and the UK Official Download Chart at number one (#1). One week later, it jumped to the top position, despite still being available on downloads only. The track was number one in the UK Singles Chart for the 5 weeks to and including 18 February 2007. In the U.S., “Grace Kelly” was made available for digital download on 16 January 2007. This song was also #89 on MTV Asia’s list of Top 100 Hits of 2007.^[1], and ended 2007 as the years 3rd biggest-selling single in the UK^[2]It was designed to be a mocking satire of musicians who try to reinvent themselves to be popular….

The song was featured in a season two episode of The Hills and a season one episode of Ugly Betty. It is also part of the soundtrack in the recent movie Knocked Up, … The song is also used in a trailer for the movie I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry…

Tags: American Idol 7 by TK
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Words of wisdom from Chris Sligh to those aspiring to American Idol season 7:

So, auditions for season 7 of America’s favorite show have started up already. Crazy, right?! A year ago on July 28, I had my first audition in Birmingham, Alabama, singing “Sweet Home Alabama” 37 times (yes, the same song that later got me death threats…my stupid mouth). Anyway, it’s strange to think that someone’s Idol experience is starting before mine is even done…read his long post…I’d like to give you a list of songs not to do:

Anything by Aretha Franklin
Anything by Whitney Houston
Anything by Michael Bolton
Anything by BoyzIIMen
Anything by Mariah Carey
Anything by Celine Dion
Anything by any singer who sings better than you

Tags: Music, American Idol 6, American Idol 7, Chris Sligh by TK
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