Barnes & Noble
Those still suffering without their weekly dose of American Idol will find comfort in this disc, featuring songs by the reality talent show's ten finalists. As on the TV program, the performances are hit-or-miss, but on record, even dull-as-dishwater crooners Jim "cry baby" Verraros's soul-lite cover of the Commodores' "Easy" and Backstreet Boys reject A. J. Gill's bland rendering of Stevie Wonder's "My Cherie Amour" boast enough spark to escape a tongue-lashing by smarmy Brit judge Simon. While belly- and cleavage-baring rocker chicks Nikki McKibbin and Ryan Starr provide entertaining karaoke queen contributions, the disc will, one hopes, give maximum exposure to more deserving finalists such as Tamyra "Move Over, Whitney Houston" Gray and heartthrob runner-up Justin Guarini, who check in with spine-tingling renditions of Luther Vandross's "A House Is Not a Home" and Oleta Adams's "Get Here," respectively. And who can forget the ultimate American Idol, Kelly Clarkson? Well, no one, because the kitschy collection includes four songs by the champ -- including the perky Texan's No. 1 single, "A Moment like This," and her powerhouse rendition of Aretha Franklin's "Natural Woman." Clarkson may be the sole winner, but all of the participants have big dreams. And thanks to American Idol's Greatest Moments and its supporting national tour, these wannabes can extend their time in the spotlight longer than the usual 15 minutes. Tracy E. Hopkins
All Music Guide
Arriving as soon as possible after the phenomenal success of Fox's American Idol: The Search for a Superstar and just before the American Idol national tour begins, American Idol: Greatest Moments collects some of the ten semi-finalists' definitive performances from the series. Though it's strange for any of these singers to appear on a greatest-hits collection before the winner, Kelly Clarkson, even released her debut album, it isn't all that surprising -- with the tremendous amount of exposure the show attracted, even the most marginally talented semi-finalists still have a few minutes of fame left. As with the show itself, where each of the performers got more or less an equal shot at proving their talent, American Idol: Greatest Moments is relatively democratic: The winner and runner-up, Clarkson and Justin Guarini, get two songs apiece, the rest of the final ten each get one song, and the album closes with an ensemble number, the lackluster rendition of "California Dreamin'" all ten finalists performed on American Idol's final episode. Though democracy is an admirable trait in other ways of American life, in American Idol: Greatest Moments it does some of the more talented semi-finalists a disservice; while it's nice to commemorate Jim, AJ, and EJ's tenures on the show with their versions of "Easy," "I'll Be," and "My Cherie Amour," respectively, it also would've been nice to hear more from some of the more memorable contestants, particularly Tamyra Gray, whose "A House Is Not a Home" was one of the show's highlights (but then, nearly every time she sang it was a highlight), and Christina Christian, whose cool, languid style -- represented here by "Ain't No Sunshine" -- just didn't translate well in a contest designed to discover the next Whitney Houston or Justin Timberlake. Some of the selections are also somewhat questionable: Nikki's performance of "Piece of My Heart" is adequate, but doesn't showcase her voice as well as her version of "I'm the Only One" did just a few weeks later. As usual, Guarini and Clarkson sound polished and professional on their signature songs, "Get Here" and "Respect." However, starting the album out with their performances means the album tends to go downhill from there. Craftily, American Idol: Greatest Moments doesn't feature Clarkson or Guarini's renditions of the official American Idol songs, "Before Your Love" or "A Moment Like This" -- you'll have to pick up their respective albums for those. Overall, the collection is definitely a product of the show that inspired it, which will doubtlessly please the fans of the newly minted pop stars on it. Heather Phares
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