Longing for the day ...

More on Idol

Couple of late notes from other sources on Idol.

I didn't watch the finale or the results, largely because I'm bored with Idol, but I got the following by e-mail after it:

Idols gave no respect 23 November 2005

I HAD the questionable privilege of being a guest at the Australian Idol telecast on Monday night at the Sydney Opera House. It consisted mostly of watching inane video footage of our young finalists' "Idol Journeys" on a large screen, somehow making the Opera House Concert Hall feel like some very wealthy friend's enormous loungeroom. However, the thing that appalled me most, as a professional musician, was the complete lack of acknowledgement for the band. Not one singer who performed turned around to thank music director John Foreman or any of the musicians present, many of whom are degree-qualified instrumentalists and very highly experienced performers in Australia and abroad. Determined to let the band know I appreciated their efforts, I made my way down to the official after-party only to discover that the band hadn't been invited. If the Idols want to be respected as valid performing artists, they could start by showing respect for their fellow performers.

Sally Whitwell
Sydney, NSW

Can't vouch for the fact that this was published anywhere (the headline brings up nothing in Google) but Sally Whitwell is a Sydney-based pianist of some note. If this is true, it's a screaming shame because the Idol band were about the only reason I would have watched the show more often. No matter whether the singer was choking or flying, the band was always faultless and cookin'.

If they were not paid their due respect, I'll boycott the show in future. Well played guys, hope to see you back next season!

Speaking of boycotts, themusic.com.au is quoting the AFR reporting that 6 of the biggest Idol sponsors have laid down the ratings law. "Six companies including Telstra, Mazda and L'Oreal, paid $3.6 million each to sponsor "Oz Idol 3" and, according to the AFR, were given free ads in other Ten shows to compensate for the drop in "Idol" viewers."

This is hardly a surprise, given the nature of these sponsorship deals. But it again reinforces to me the false consciousness of the dream industry - not only for the performers. So the show didn't live up to ratings expectations? That happens and that's the risk you take when you sign up for it. Of course, the need to improve for Australian Idol 4 does not need to be enunciated, no matter what spin Channel Ten puts on it ...

Again, the difference between TV entertainment hype and sustainable production.

Ausculture, Oz style

Just found the Ausculture blog, which offers a reasonably unique take on the trivial (and occasionally not-so-trivial) issue in Australian culture. It's run by "Jess" and has some absolutely cracker commentary on things.

Jess is a lot more prolific than this blog is, and apparently shut down operations a while ago under he weight of blog spam. I can relate to that sentiment.

Unfortunately it's a little profane in places and some of the comments posted are singularly brainless. Still, it's a great example and one all Aussies should be aware of ...

well, that's sport.

Well done, the Kiwis, Wales and West Indies. Both Rugby results and the excellent fightback in the cricket are the result of great performances from great competitors.

I must say it was astonishing to see the League result: 24-0 and that was flattering. In the Kangaroos' defence, I can only say that despite a reasonably solid start, NOTHING went the Kangaroos' way in the first 20 minutes and very little did afer that. No close calls, no bounces of the ball, nothing.

Still, games unfold that way sometimes and you have to be good enough and smart enough to recover from it. The Kiwis put huge pressure on and the Aussies tried too hard - with the inevitable result. I have noticed, however, that Wayne Bennet-coached sides don't handle early adversity well. I have no idea why but it's a trait I have noticed in the Broncos and also in the Qld sides of a few years ago. One from the vaults.

The cricket could still go either way, but the Windies have shown a fighting spirit that the Aussies seem to have missed in the past few days - until the tail wagged. Once again, the middle order has seriously gone missing (mostly). Well done, Mike Hussey, and come on boys, finish the job!

Finally, the Rugby. Well, that result has been coming for a while. Despite Eddie Jones claiming constantly that things were improving, he's the only one I know who agreed. The most frustrating thing is that I can't comment too much on it because I haven't seen the game - Channel Seven changed its advertised schedule and did not replay it at 6am. I had an idea we might have gone poorly when that happened ...

Still, Jones can cling to his mantra about the game statistics as much as he likes. We won all the statistics except the scoreboard - again. Statistics can be misleading depending on how they're defined and when the final whistle goes, there's only one statistic that counts.

I fail to see why if, as Jones claims in this morning's papers, he's so keen to develop the youngsters, this game wasn't handed to the Australia A players as a reward for waiting so patiently on tour. They couldn't have been any worse and would have gained some valuable experience ...

Next time.

Schools, bombs and cakes stalls

"It will be a great day when our schools get all the money they need, and the Air Force has to hold a cake stall to buy a bomber."

--Unknown

Came across this quote many years ago and have always thought it was a great point. I came back to mind after I read a front-page article in my local newspaper about a mother who raised $70,000 for a hospital after her daughter was diagnosed with cancer. That's a superb effort!

Pity it took a sick child and public donations to increase the hospitals funding.

Another excuse gone ...

Excellent to read about Angus Young winning "greatest short dude" in America's Maxim magazine. That's one less excuse for me to not get anywhere! I'm the same height as Kurt Cobain and US basketball star Spud Webb (5' 7"), and they've both excelled in their chosen areas.

Being smaller than average has its down sides but it's really no excuse for an entertainer - especially in the age of video entertainment. Angus Young and Prince are both 5' 2" and awsome entertainers (albeit with some eccentricities ...). Incidentally, I was once knocked back by a modelling agency because I was too short - even thugh you can't tell in a photograph. I decided right there and then that that industry made no sense whatsoever ...

I guess I'll just have get on with what I do and do it as best I can.

Great week for Aussie sport

Well done the Socceroos, Kangaroos, Wallabies and cricketers (keep it up, boys). It's great to have Aussie sporting teams back in the winners' circle.

That said, I have to gripe about the manner in which the Wallabies won. Same old problems, same old errors, just this time the opposition weren't up to taking advantage. At least the scrum held its own this time, which can't be said of the lineout. Why do they continue with over-complicated calls that make it hard for the thrower??

And Gregan? Well, he showed signs of passing quickly on a few occasions, but also got swamped from behind a couple of times while trying to decide what to do (and was lucky the swamper got penalised once). That's something I've not seen from any other top-level halfback, and it tells a story about the quality of service the Aussie backs are getting.

It's all got to get better, boys. The youngsters, led by Drew Mitchell, showed that they have what it takes. I reckon the final test side should be entirely made up of the players who haven't had a run so far. They showed what they're capable of in Australia A colours and should be given a chance to show Gregan et al that they can't be overlooked ...

Well done, Socceroos!

Excellent result, boys. Made hard work of it but got there in the end!

For those among you who are unsure where our opponents came from, Uruguay is here:

The CIA fact book on Uruguay is here. Notably, they have a population about that of Sydney and an arable land quota of 7.43%. On a bang-for-your-buck basis, I'd say they should be proud of their record.

Apparently, they won the first World Cup a long time ago and seem to think (or at least, said so in the newspapers) that their record gives them a divine right to turn up every time. Nothing about the right of challengers to have a crack at knocking them about if they're not up to standard each time. I guess they won't say that next time - or at least, the believers among them won't.

I gotta say, though, that, if the two qualifying games are any indication, I can understand why Soccer/Football has not taken a firm grip as a spectacle at the highest level of sport in this country (or the USA). It's consistently been one of the highest-participation sports, especially among juniors, for as long as I can remember but as a spectacle it leaves a lot to be desired. At least among us non-comprehending morons.

To start with, they need to clean up this issue of players taking each other out. The penalties seem to be almost entirely random and occur far too frequently (46 last night). If the offending player deliberately does something to take his opponent out (like holding his shirt), one caution (yellow card) and then he's gone ... that would make them think twice and might increase the scoring rate, since it would reduce the professional foul rate.

Similarly, stop the players from acting up to the ref. It seems every time they get a love-tap on the shoulder they go down clutching a shin as though their leg is broken. One even had the temerity to peek at the ref between his fingers while doing it! Wankers! Compare this to the Rugby codes, where they bash each other as part of the game and it's considered weakness to go down even for a minute ... wooses!

Anyway, I watched (bits of) the last World Cup and I'll watch the next one with a bit more interest. Go hard boys, we're all behind you. You've already done us proud!

Defending Idol

I have to defend Australian Idol from some ridiculous statements about its failure to rate on TV. I have read repeated statements, when reporting the poor ratings for this series of Idol, attributing its performance to the "end of the talent pool" or similar. This is utter crap.

If there is a shortage of talent showing up on the show (I dispute that, too) it's because of the ridiculous way they screen the talent at the start, which makes for entertaining TV (in a lowest-common-denominator sort of way) but for awful talent selection.

Most of the best available talent has more important things to do than hang around all day waiting to audition for a one-in-million TV show. They're out working on their preformance and improving themeselves - something this show does not give them! Therefore, a lot of the "talent pool" is ruled out at the very start.

The other factor that's ignored is the unrealistic expectation that people who've never been near this level of performance before can just develop and provide in it insuch a short time - and that the ones who do have anything else to offer. That assumption is completely demeaning to every artist who has spent their lives developing their art and improving their performance. It's a full-time job and not one that can be learned in the duration of an Australian Idol season. Please give credit where it's due ...

If there is a rating slump on this season, it's because a lot of people don't want to watch the same thing twice. I ignored the first series because I thought the concept was obscene, tuned in to the second because a lot of people told me it was interesting and ignored the third (current) one because I don;t have time to watch it all over again.

Of course, there's a proportion of people who will watch it, because they enjoy it, and they care about the talent on display. As Channel 10 have said, 1.2 million viewers is pretty good going for a Monday night and well worth doing again. So let's, perhaps, ask for a re-jig of the formula for screening (my own X-Factor experience was enlightening) and leave the talent alone. They're doing their best and there's plenty more where thay came from.

Getting toey

Right. Had a hit-out with Lizard Drinkin' on Saturday night. It was fun and blew out a lot of cobwebs. More have been booked in December.

I was discussing the show with my favourite critic and she reminded me that my ultimate goal is to perform originals. That has got me setting up an accoustic solo act that will feature these songs and a few others. It's been a while since I played an originals set, so I'm seeking advice from the good folk at The Rev (support original music!) as to what they want/expect.

Of course, I'm also due to start pre-production on Bun' Ber E's next album this weekend, so lots of practice and juggling will have to be had.

Hopefully I can pull it all together and get back into it. Stay tuned.