My wife and I went to the American Idol concert in Columbus, Ohio Saturday night. The top ten contestants performed at the show: Blake Lewis, Chris Richardson, Chris Sligh, Gina Glocksen, Haley Scarnato, Jordin Sparks, LaKisha Jones, Melinda Doolittle, Phil Stacey and Sanjaya Malakar.
I really enjoyed the show. Each of the performers did at least one song that they had done really well on the television show. There were lots of duets and trio numbers. The five men performed a couple of songs as a band, with Blake on electric guitar, Chris Richardson on drums, Chris Sligh on bass, Phil on keyboard and Sanjaya on acoustic guitar and tambourine. Chris Richardson, Chris Sligh, Blake and Jordin each did at least one song in which they accompanied themselves on acoustic guitar. Blake did a great job on the Maroon 5 song She Will Be Loved using a looping station and acoustic guitar. Sligh played electric guitar on a couple of songs where an additional guitar was need to supplement the 5-piece show band.
The show was well-choreographed, staged and lit. The band was excellent. All of the performers appeared to have benefited from rehearsing and touring. Despite my season-long preference for Blake and Melinda, I must say that Jordin looked and sang like a winner.
Overall, it was an entertaining evening, and I would encourage anyone who enjoyed the past season to try to attend one of these concerts if you can.