> Oh - and David Archuleta basically stole Eva Cassidy’s version of “Over the
> Rainbow” on American Idol and never got called on it
David Archuleta has frequently mentioned in interviews that his favorite singer is Eva Cassidy. Everybody working on American Idol knew perfectly well that he was basing his interpretations of several of his songs (like “Imagine”) on her versions. In particular, it’s known that Simon Cowell is an Eva Cassidy fan, and he commented during the show on the similarities in their arrangements.
As someone who remembers every big Hawaiian music trend since at least 1987, well…
I don’t know. Hell, I can’t tell you what made him incredibly famous in the first place. Yeah, he had a good singing voice and was pretty god with a ukulele. He wasn’t the first or last person with those qualifications. Was he an awesome songwriter? Did he do lots of community and charity work? Did he entice aspiring musicians around the world to take up the ukulele? I can’t say.
As for the song, well, there’s always been a pretty big subset of American culture (most definitely not me…for me, it’d be a fate worse than death) who really goes for uncomplicated sentimentalism (a.k.a. glurge). There’s never been any shortage of this, of course, but Iz has the advantage of 1. being well-known to begin with and 2. skilled in something that most of America normally doesn’t get a chance to hear. Throw in a dependable marketing machine, and, well, there you have it.
well he’s back - Um…you’re talking about a cornball reality show where every song has been done by someone else, where the foolish masses decide who stays and judges have next to zippo power, and where becoming forgettable is the kiss of death. What kind of blistering condemnation were you expecting Arch to get?
DKW - I didn’t expect Archie to get a condemnation - I just wanted an acknowledgement of Eva Cassidy on air. I don’t remember there being one, but Wendell Wagner does & I’ll defer to him. And yes, some contestants do get condemned vehemently for not acknowledging sources for their arrangements. (David Cook acknowledged Chris Cornell as the source for his Billie Jean arrangement and was still roundly condemned for it).
It is all very trivial, I know, but someone brought up Eva Cassidy and it came to mind.
When it pops up on my Pandora stream, I know to leave the room for awhile. 'Cuz the next four or five songs will be by John Mayr sound-alikes and wannabes. And then it goes back to 80s pop and Afro-funk and the world is alright again.
I first heard Izzy’s version of “Over the Rainbow” towards the end of a Cold Case TV show. I forget the name of the episode but there was a man who was arrested for tricking a developmentally disabled man to lie down on train tracks with tragic results. I don’t hear the song too often, so I still really like it every time I hear it.
That rings a bell. I think I heard it in that show then went looking for it after that. Latterly it’s been on a number of ads that air on Irish or British TV.