The next in a series of interviews with Lindsey Parker of Yahoo Music is Megan Joy.
So on-camera, Megan and I talked abut her new post-divorce Idol lease on life; her ambitious plans to record “alternative jazz,” a children’s album, and positive music to help troubled teenage girls; and of course, THAT unforgettable “caw-caw” moment.
Megan cites Bjork and Portishead as some of her influences. Singing with Steve Martin at the finale has inspired her to check out some bluegrass.
I checked it out this afternoon. It’s very traditional Grand Ol Opry country, reminiscent in some ways of Dwight Yoakam. I like it. Very different from his Dad’s classic debut album, Guitar Town, that is the hard-edged rockabilly country/rock sound typical of his pre-prison days. I think Steve Earle is one of the great American songwriters. His body of work is pretty amazing. Who else is creative enough to do a country rock/Hindu Indian track like Transcendental Blues? I mean, wow. Or his country rock/reggae tune Johnny Too Bad? I mean, wow. Or his head-banging alt-rock tune, N.Y.C.? I mean, wow. Or his country rock Irish folk song Galway Girl? I mean, wow, but at least that one has some common musical roots — bluegrass and American country music being derived from Irish/Celtic folk music. And for pure humor, has anyone ever topped his “love song” to Condoleeza Rice, another counrtry rock/reggae tune?
BTW, I don’t really think that Meghan Joy is anywhere good enough to be successful in bluegrass or any of these Americana alt-country genres. This kind of music is the home of the most creative singer/songwriters in the world today. You aren’t winning over fans from Ryan Adams or Steve Earle or Gilian Welch or Jeff Tweedy with an amateur-hour effort.
Megan was, except for Sarver (who?!), the only Idol with no singing experience except for karaoke bars (seriously) and glee club in high school. So for her to go as far as she did is pretty amazing (of course, being very pretty and personable helped her a LOT). I think she has potential but man, does she need a good vocal coach and experience. And I agree: to put her in the same category as brilliant musicians as Ryan Adams, Jeff Tweedy, etal (and don’t forget about the Jayhawks, one of my all-time favorite bands, tho perhaps considered alt-rock) is silly *and* insulting.
Forget Meghan, I get a kick out putting Idols who finished much higher up in the voting in the class of top singer/songwriters.
I believe that Ryan Adams was 24 years old when Whiskeytown played this song he wrote on Austin City Limits:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIVVj7Zbawc&feature=related
I believe he was only 25 when he recorded Heartbreaker, one of the great songwriter albums of all time:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOuMkrL0qUY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5IOXGxHOLI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMZYRvDvgT4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kM0mjukDGRw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSX-8zQ2xOQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EawSJUF6Lng
Can’t wait for the Allison one! She was Lindsey’s 2nd fave this season (behind Adam.)
Wow….she’s a hott!!! And she has great taste in music!
Never liked her phrasing, but I love the tone of her voice. Plus, she’s got personality, and she’s so pretty. I hope her idea of making music for troubled teens becomes a reality, if not, I hope she becomes an inspirational speaker for troubled teens.
I don’t think anyone is putting Megan in the same category as some of the above listed singer/songwriters, but she does have the potential to do something interesting. As people have pointed out she lacks a lot of experience and focus, but I don’t think we can count her completely out based on those criteria. She’s figuring it out right now and if she’s got the talent and heads in the right direction under the guidance of the right manager, I think she can do something cool.
hwc, I agree about Steve Earle. An amazing songwriter and diverse artist. I have all of his albums and he brings something different to the table with each one. But it must be pointed out that he doesn’t have a great voice. As Bob Dylan proves (well, actually everyone on the radio right now), having a great voice isn’t the be-all-end-all in the music industry. It’s the song, the phrasing, the beat, the melody, the emotion, etc. Earle’s songwriting, phrasing, passion and musical instincts are what make him great.
ETA: Scott’s interview is up now as well: http://new.music.yahoo.com/blogs/realityrocks/246852/scott-macintyre-on-the-scene-at-the-idols-tour-rehearsals/
The article notes: “On the tour he gets two dueling-piano moments, both with Matt Giraud, doing a bit of the Supremes’ “You Can’t Hurry Love” and the intro to the big finale number “Don’t Stop Believin’.”
Lisa:
I think I have all the Steve Earle albums, too… at least all the studio albums. The depth and breadth of his output is pretty impressive. The thing I appreciate is how much he has put into learning from those who came before him. Gram Parsons, Townes Van Zandt, Doug Sahm/Augie Meyers, Guy Clark, Bruce Springsteen, etc.
I kind of like his voice. It’s not pretty. He’s a rock singer.
Have you seen his To Hell and Back DVD? Part of his parole agreement was to perform a free concert at a prison in Tennessee. This DVD is his show for the inmates at Cold Creek Correctional Facility in Memphis, shortly after his own release. It’s intense. He opens the show with an angry I Feel Alright. Then, sings a song about an executioner on death row to his prison audience, Ellis Unit One. Damn. Got real quiet in there. Then, he closes the show with a hard-rocking version of Dylan’s It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhj5Y4gG1Ss
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puYfbV5epWg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNjV5gVBH7I
Here’s a live version of Transcendental Blues in all its Hindu Alt Country Rock glory. It lacks the sitars and tabla drums of the studio version.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icaBLF2U9FI
Maybe when Megan Joy gets her bluegrass thing going, she can open for Steve Earle! Or, better yet, we need a Steve Earle week on Idol next year. I bet he could mentor the hell out of some Idol wannabees. Whatcha think?
Come to think of it, Ryan Adams would make an “interesting” mentor, too. Maybe he and the missus, Mandy Moore could mentor together.
Megan was my original fave. I think her lack of experience (and musical instincts, actually) really showed, but her audition was one of the first I ever paid attention to on this show. I usually just have that in the background and never care for the auditions, but I actually really liked hers. Megan also had the tendency to sound better in her clips before her performances. Oh well.
Still, since I am going to the tour this year, I would like to see Megan. If she wasn’t there I would arrive very late.
O.M.G. Gillian Welch is my husband’s idol!!!! He and his partner cover some of her songs. Such a rare name to see and now I’m thrilled.
I haven’t gotten far in the comments yet, but Elvis Presley Blues is one of the songs they cover.
ETA: Perhaps this explains why Megan was a fav. of my hubby’s early on. Too bad she petered out too early, perhaps due to lack of experience. However, he is also a fan of Kris’s because sees the artist he is.
Your hubby is not alone. Jimmy Buffett covers Elvis Presley Blues on his newest album.
Gilian Welch and David Rawlings are on almost every song on Ryan Adams’ Heartbreaker album. Rawlings co-wrote To Be Young with Adams.
Oh that’s so cool, he said he thought he saw something on her website re: Jimmy Buffet covering one of her songs.
We’ll have to check out Ryan Adams. Gotta run for now.
I aree with comments that Megan had very little prior experience, and will need a lot of training (vocal, as well as general in music). However, she does have a special voice and a lot of potential to bring something different to the table. Hopefully, we will see more of Megan with experience.
Here’s a video of Ryan Adams’ show stopping performance of A Song For You at the Gram Parsons tribute concert Emmylou Harris put together in 1999, featuring Gilian Welch, David Rawlings, Steve Earle, Chris Hilman, and others.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9hNExzwlhA
This was right around the time that Adams was recording his first solo album Heartbreaker with Gilian David and Ethan Johns (the drummer on this video) producing it. Heartbreaker was Adams tribute to the signer songwriters of the 1960s/70s with heavy influences from Dylan, Van Morrison, etc. It’s on Rolling Stones’ list of top rock albums. His sophmore album, Gold, is equally amazing, a tribute to the solid gold hits of the 1970s, inspired by Elton John, the Stones, etc.
Between the two, it’s an incredible outpouring of songwriting talent.
She is a sweetie and I really think she is a much better singer than she ever showed on Idol. Her Regis & Kelly performance of Walkin’ After Midnight was better, vocally, than her Idol stuff and I think she was over her head on Idol and pretty much psyched herself out. Once the judges flipped on her (from praise to criticism) she was a basket case.
CRB wrote:”I think she was over her head on Idol and pretty much psyched herself out. Once the judges flipped on her (from praise to criticism) she was a basket case.”
I agree, and I agree that she has some of the goods — cool, interesting voice, fun personality, looks. But what you wrote about her becoming a basket case is one of the reasons I’m pretty skeptical. Becoming a basket case when you aren’t getting an only half-deserved tongue bath every five minutes and you’re getting criticism, which is at least partly deserved, isn’t a recipe for doing well in show business (or the writing business, for that matter). She doesn’t seem to have a very thick skin.
She wants to be a role model to teens? Oh my! And she seems like a scatter brain too.
hwc, thanks for that. I have to say what puzzles me is that “the kid who won” (aka Kris Allen) displays the potential of being this great. His phrasing and storytelling ability in his songs stood out to me all season. Perhaps since AI is presented on a medium (TV) where people are looking for visual entertainment, some were not able to see this. However, artists like Gillian Welsh, David Rawlings, Ryan Adams do not have the larger than life personalities, but their artistry more than makes up for it…