Feefs review of PI at the Docklands - part Two. Note - it is long and not for the fainthearted or those needing the toilet.
Sorry, no pics. You weren't supposed to have cameras, but there were plenty of people with them. However, I can sensibly, yet boringly predict most people's shots will not turn out. The best I could have shown you was some of the lovely banners and perhaps some shots of the tasteful merchandising stalls. I would quite like to have taken a few shots, just so I can remember the atmosphere, but I didn't even take a bag with me, so decided against considering a camera.
Anyway, back to the actual concert...
I've now found out about the mystery of Zoe not reappearing. The official line is that she had tonsillitis and the doctor advised her not to go back on stage. I can understand her dropping her final solo number that would have been quite an effort, but it seems a shame (if not strange) that she didn't go on for the finale. She can't have had much more than a few lines, and as someone else had to sing them anyway I'm sure she could have managed a couple.
Putting all that aside, here's what DID actually happen.
Nikki Chapman compered the evening, and was very good and very nice as we'd expect. The links between the songs were quite obviously scripted, but that didn't matter. They had a tight schedule, so it was best they didn't waste time prattling about. You still got a feel for their personalities, and it wasn't as if they were reading off an autocue or anything. Before each of them appeared, they showed a clip of their highlights from during the show - just in case you couldn't remember them.
They came on in reverse order of their success, so first on was
Korben singing a George Michael number. I can't remember which one, but it was very good. It must be hard being first on, especially when you were first out, but he was excellent and really got the crowd going. Fortunately he wasn't sporting the horrible hat, unfortunately he was sporting an equally horrible hairstyle.
Next up was
Aaron singing Walking in Memphis. I've never liked the song much, or been that bothered by him, but it was a very competent performance and proved very popular with the crowd getting everyone involved.
Then we had
Jessica singing Crazy for You. She was better than I had remembered her, and even if her voice is supposedly Cabaret, she filled the Docklands very well. Perhaps she doesn't have as much personality in her voice as some of the others, but she still sang it better than Madonna could, and impressed me. She talked about how much she's looking forward to representing us all in Eurovision and I think she's more than talented enough to do us proud. She didn't sing the song from that, but Nikki did mention that the single will be released next month, so 19 must be happy that this isn't encroaching on those they've signed.
Then we had
Laura singing Son of Preacher Man. During the show I thought she was unfairly picked out for having a weaker vocal, but she did struggle a bit. I'm sure she could do better, because when she sang that song in the heats I was bowled over. She was hitting the big notes fine, but was struggling to get the quieter bits right, so perhaps needs a few more tips, or to get her confidence back. She's still doing presenting work and is going to be doing some modelling too.
Surprise was
Rosie. Yes she sang well as expected, but she got a really positive response from the audience. She seemed much more down to earth on stage, and Nikki commented that she seemed more at home here than on tv. She sang "Everything I do", and still over-did the warbling for my personal preference, but it was still an excellent performance. She is clearly very talented, and if she gets the correct vocal coaching could still make quite an impression, however I can't imagine she'll ever be singing stuff I want to buy.
Hayley gave a brilliant performance of an Anastasia song, but I can't quite remember which one it was now. Not one of the obvious ones. I was thinking I might be wrong about her not having that je ne sais pas required to turn her into a star as she really held the attention of the audience and it was clear she was someone people were excited to see. However as I can't remember what she sang, and didn't really think about it again until now, perhaps not. I have no doubt she has the talent, but of the sort that many others have too. She confirmed she's been doing presenting, she'll be interviewing Britney Spears soon, but she really wants to do singing. I hope she does, because even if she isn't a massive singing star, she's very listenable, and someone I'd take an interest in.
Zoe fans were clearly in da house, as she had a massive reception. She sang "Say a little prayer" that more than impressed me. Nikki made loads of only 16 comments, but they were unnecessary. She was head and shoulders above the previous finalists (even with possible tonsillitis). It wasn't the best performance I'd seen from her, but left me wanting to hear more.
Next up was
Darius singing "It's not unusual". The man sat next to me (30s, no children, arrived late and kept his jacket on) finally realised he was in the presence of greatness and exclaimed "wow" during the introduction. It was the sight of Darius walking down the corridor that was heavily used during the early episodes. Darius was the consummate professional and wiggled his hips in all the right bits and sang it better than Tom Jones IMHO. I found this highly entertaining and generally funny, but many a teenager and older mum type clearly found this VERY sexy. It looks like his market could be as a younger Tom Jones, which doesn't appeal to me, but would have people queuing up. I'd rather he went down the blues and Bacharach route, but I suspect Will has first dibs on that. There were a couple of scripted jokes about pants being thrown on stage and a pair of boxers getting held at Simon Cowell level, then it was time for Darius to leave the stage...
The time had come for insertion of the earplugs. There was plenty of amusement to be had from the faces accompanying the pant wetting anticipation that was
GARETH. Young and old seemed to be caught up by this affliction, and I'll admit to forgetting myself that the lad is in fact of this earth while they were showing his introduction. The young man himself appeared - those who had been behaving themselves by remaining seated jumped up. Banners were aloft (until miserable security people told them to put them down). Teasing us by not wearing the white suit (yet) he gave the fingers to all the critics by hitting all the high and low notes with plenty of gusto to be heard through the screams. There's a bit in the song where it goes low just after the high bit, and I had wondered if that required to be pieced together in the editing room, but he proved more than capable of the vocal gymnastics for the task in hand. I've always had a soft spot for the lad, but he cleared away any lingering doubts that he was weak on the musical side of things. Even the miserable man next to me was entranced and told his girlfriend how impressed he was. Nikki fought her way on stage through the wall of sound and sort of chatted to Gareth without him having to say much more than "yeah, it's amazing". She annoyed the girls down the front by demonstrating she was able to put her arm around him, but moved away quickly out of fear for her safety.
At this point the neckless wonder appeared on screen to tell us that one of the great talking points of PI was the relationship between Gareth and Zoe - queue her reappearance for a duet. A piano came out of the floor for Gareth to play, and her to sit on from time to time. I can't remember the actual song - it wasn't one I was familiar with, it was very nice. The video screens had shots of Gareth looking very earnestly at Zoe while she was singing. I thought - oh, he's so earnest, but perhaps he really does fancy her, or perhaps he was concerned about her throat problems?
They disappeared and there was a minor lull in the noise as angst ridden fans realised he was gone, before they (we) realised
Will would be on next. It seemed as if the great divide between Will and Gareth fans isn't that wide after all - at least not amongst those going to the PI tour. I thought the family behind me couldn't get any more excited than when they were phoning their friends going "It's Gareth!", but it seems I was wrong. "It's Will!" was exclaimed repeatedly to accompany grasping each other's hands for support. To do it right, you have to pronounce Will "WEEEEEEL". Anyone who had made the error of sitting down after Gareth was back on their feet to welcome THAT smile. Mr Pop Idol himself sang Light my Fire then Evergreen. Again he had a lot of competition from screams, but sang brilliantly fulfilling the Idol part of his new title very nicely. There were even flame things for Light My Fire that the girls behind me particularly enjoyed. Everyone sang along to Evergreen, and if he still doesn't like the song, he did an amazing job of hiding it. Even though I've never rated the song much, it was a really special moment getting to hear him sing it live. Especially as it was the existing number one, and only a few minutes earlier heard a live rendition of the song to replace it. I felt it was quite a moment in history and something to bore my grandchildren with should I convince someone I'm of fit enough mind to be a parent.
It was the end of the first half! Will told us we all had to go and buy posters of him ... if we want. He and the others were off for a milkshake … or something (funny face). He looked completely stunned and overwhelmed by the response, yet it suited him. That lad was born to perform.
