Song Suggestions for Idol’s April 7 Show – Songs From the Year You Were Born

Song Suggestions for Idol’s April 7 Show – Songs From the Year You Were Born

by Mordant Monkey

Whenever the Idols got their clue for the upcoming week, many of them must have had the deer caught in the headlights expression because let's face it, who actually likes the music from the year that they were born?

Just for kicks, I thought I’d offer up some suggestions to the Season 8 contestants for the April 7 show, which is themed “Songs From the Year You Were Born.” I looked up the Billboard Year-End Hot 100 Hits and have compiled a short list of plausible songs for each contestant, from youngest to oldest.

Allison Irajeta – 1992
Allison is our only competitor left who was born in the ‘90s. Poor dear. Given my druthers, I’d prefer a song from the ‘80s if I had to choose between the two. But hey! If Allison wanted to really suck up to one of the judges, she could sing “Blowing Kisses in the Wind” by Paula Abdul. What? Don’t remember it? Neither do I.

Michael Jackson, En Vogue, Michael Bolton, Elton John, House of Pain, Mr. Big, Billy Ray Cyrus, The KLF, Richard Marx, Amy Grant, and Def Leppard. All of them had hits in the top 100 in 1992.

It’s unfortunate that one of the available songs is “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen. Please, Allison, recognize your limitations and do not attempt this one. More viable choices for Allison’s rocker-chick style would be “Free Your Mind” by En Vogue, “I Can’t Make You Love Me” by Bonnie Raitt (and what an awesome elimination song that would be), or “Sometimes Love Just Ain’t Enough” by Patty Smyth.

Personally, though, I’d put money on her singing “Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Nirvana. But there’s always “I’m Too Sexy” by Right Said Fred. Too bad Adam wasn’t born in 1992. Because that would just be beyond awesome.

Anoop Desai – 1986
Second-youngest in the competition and six years older than Allison, Anoop was born in 1986. And boy, the older the contestants get, the wackier the song choices become. “Rock Me Amadeus” by Falco?? This is a year rich in Velveeta.

The Moody Blues, Toto, The Cars, El Debarge, Janet Jackson, Kenny Logins, The Bangles, The Pet Shop Boys, Eddie Murphy, Sly Fox, and Mr. Mister were among the artists who had hits in 1986.

Since Anoop fancies himself an R&B artist, I tried to find songs that fell into that genre but didn’t find many. Snore city. Lionel Richie and George Michael ballads. Ick.

“Word Up” by Cameo, “Walk This Way’ by Run-D.M.C., and “Rumors” by Timex Social Club probably aren’t going to cut it. At least not with the judges, though I personally would find any of those hysterical. So I went for some of my personal favorites instead: “Your Love” by The Outfield, “Addicted to Love” by Robert Palmer, “Higher Love” by Steve Winwood, “Amanda” by Boston

Songs Anoop should definitely avoid include “Nikita” by Elton John, “Sweet Freedom” by Michael MacDonald, “Your Wildest Dreams” by The Moody Blues, and “Glory of Love” by Peter Cetera. Don’t do it, man.

What I would really be delighted if he sang? “We Don’t Have to Take Our Clothes Off” by Jermaine Stewart, “Sledgehammer” by Peter Gabriel, or “Nasty” by Janet Jackson. What I have the feeling he will sing? “Love Touch” by Rod Stewart in an attempt to get back that sexy vibe he started off with, or “No One is to Blame” by Howard Jones.

Best elimination song from 1986: “All I Need is a Miracle” by Mike and the Mechanics.
What Adam would sing if he were born in 1986: “I’m Your Man” by Wham!

Kris Allen – 1985
I was slightly more excited about the songs in 1986, for some reason, but 1985 has a pretty good group as well. And we’ll be getting lots of mileage out of them, because we have three contestants born in 1985—Kris, Matt, and Scott.

It’s too bad that none of these three could possibly pull off “One Night in Bangkok” by Murray Head, because how cool would that be? Other amazing songs we will most likely not be seeing performed from 1985 include “Jungle Love” by The Time, “Strut” by Sheena Easton, “Would I Lie to You” by The Eurythmics, “Voices Carry” by ‘Til Tuesday, and “Some Like It Hot” by the Power Station. Yeah, the odds of one of these three picking one of those songs is pretty slim, I’d say. Sucks.

So, for Kris, our slightly ambiguous Jack Johnson/Mat Kearney guitar-playing sort, I’ve compiled a short list of songs that might suit him rather well. “All Through the Night” by Cyndi Lauper, “Every Time You Go Away” by Paul Young, and “Never Surrender” by Corey Hart. I know the first one might seem out of place, but imagine him singing it with just a piano and maybe some strings, and you’ll see what I mean.

However, my two favorites for him would be “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” by Simple Minds, which would totally and shamelessly pander to all of us children of the ‘80s, or “If You Love Someone, Set Them Free” by Sting. I think he would do very well with either of those.

What Kris probably will sing, though: “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” by Tears for Fears.

What Adam would sing if he were born in 1985: “Raspberry Beret” by Prince and the Revolution. While dressed as Prince. Of course.

Matt Giraud – 1985
Not to ape Randy, but Matt’s a tough one for me. He’s failed miserably on anything that even remotely moved away from him having a piano and singing soul, so let’s try to stay within those guidelines, since we like Matt and don’t want to see him go. However, 1985 was awfully short on soul songs, I’ve come to find.

So the best I can do is recommend the following songs, because I could see Matt doing a pretty good job with them and putting a bit of his own spin on them. “Summer of 69” by Bryan Adams, “Lonely Ol’ Night” by John Cougar Mellencamp, “Part-Time Lover” by Stevie Wonder (anything would be better than Kevin Covais’ version!), “Easy Lover” by Phil Collins and Philip Bailey (yes, I realize it’s a duet, but it can be modified), and my personal favorite, “St. Elmo’s Fire (Man in Motion)” by John Parr. Any of those would be perfectly acceptable, I believe. Even “Fortress Around Your Heart” by Sting could rock if approached correctly.

However, there were a few songs that I think would be incredible if Matt gave them a stab, including “Everything She Wants” by Wham!, “Boys of Summer” by Don Henley, and “I’m on Fire” by Bruce Springsteen. These are all extremely sexy songs, and Matt can do them justice if he puts his mind to it.

What Matt should avoid singing includes “Penny Lover” by Lionel Richie, “Lay Your Hands on Me” by the Thompson Twins, and “Smooth Operator” by Sade.

What Adam would sing if he were born in 1985: “Wild Boys” by Duran Duran. In one of those skimpy leotards like in the video.

Scott MacIntyre – 1985
We’re going to try to keep Scott behind the piano for this week as well as Matt, since he just seems much more comfortable there. His unassuming voice makes it a bit tricky to pick out a decent song for him, but I think I’ve come up with a few that might suffice.

“Too Late for Goodbyes” by Julian Lennon is a good pick (and a great elimination song), with the only problem being it’s a tad faster than most of the songs Scott’s done so far. I also really like “Method of Modern Love” by Hall and Oates, with the back-up singers on the M-E-T-H-O-D part, or “One More Night” by Phil Collins, though that’s a bit slow and draggy. How about “Things Can Only Get Better? By Howard Jones? That kind of messagey song is right up Scott’s alley.

I think best of all for Scott I like “Can’t Fight This Feeling” by REO Speedwagon. Tell me that doesn’t scream out his name. That would rock.

What Scott should definitely avoid at all costs: “You’re the Inspiration” by Chicago. Just say no, Scott. I know you’re tempted, but don’t do it. What Scott probably will choose: “I Want to Know What Love Is” by Foreigner or “The Search is Over” by Survivor.

What Adam would sing if he were born in 1985: “Better Be Good to Me” by Tina Turner. While dressed as Tina Turner.
What Danny would sing if he were born in 1985: “We Are the World” by U.S.A. for Africa.

Lil Rounds – 1984
This year, plus this singer, opens up a whole can of possible crap that I just do not want to see get together. I know that the judges feel it necessary to remind us every five minutes that Lil really is a great singer and she’s the next Mary J. Blige, but to me, all I get is flat shouting. I don’t enjoy flat shouting.

Some of the artists who had hits in 1984 include Billy Idol, Prince and the Revolution, The Romantics, Olivia Newton-John (Alas, Normund Gentle! We miss you!), John Lennon, Culture Club, The Go-Gos, and Wang Chung. One of the biggest hits from this year, just to put things into perspective, was “Ghostbusters” by Ray Parker Jr.

Songs that Lil might just get away with singing, if she doesn’t feel it necessary to wrestle them to the ground and then beat them to death with her overwrought, underkey, and overly praised voice? Those might include “Hello” by Lionel Richie, “Love is a Battlefield” by Pat Benetar, “I Guess That’s Why They Call It the Blues” by Elton John, and maybe even “Stuck on You” by Lionel Richie. I don’t know, honestly, I don’t want to hear her sing anything.

Songs that could be great but that she’ll never choose in a million years would be “99 Luftballons” by Nena, “The Glamorous Life” by Sheila E., “Missing You” by John Waite, and “Break My Stride” by Matthew Wilder.

The number-one song to avoid from 1984 would be “What’s Love Got to Do With It” by Tina Turner. Which, you know, is going to be the only song she sees on the entire list.

Best song to go out with: “If This Is It” by Huey Lewis and the News.
What Adam would sing if he were born in 1984: “Let’s Hear It for the Boy” by Deniece Williams.

Adam Lambert – 1982
Well, since there’s nothing on the list that Adam cannot sing, I don’t even know if there’s much point in making suggestions. But I shall try. The best part is that Adam has seemed to assume roles when he’s been performing of late, so it’s fun to try to image him dressed up as, say, Billy Idol and singing “Hot in the City.”

Artists who had hits in 1982 include A Flock of Seagulls, Jackson Browne, Van Halen (with David Lee Roth), Stevie Nicks, Kenny Rogers, Loverboy, Journey, and the J. Geils Band. Heh. This is going to be fun.

First of all, I want to say that I was very disappointed to find out that the Loverboy song that was a hit in 1982 was “Working for the Weekend,” NOT “Lovin’ Every Minute of It.” Because if the latter had been from 1982, we could’ve called it a day and the song a lock. But it didn’t come out until 1985. Dammit.

But! Songs that would be amazing for Adam to sing that did come out in 1982 are plentiful. “Eye of the Tiger” by Survivor brings back memories of Rocky, which can either be good or bad, but whichever it is, it’s a great song. If he wanted to go big and ballady, “Open Arms” by Journey. “Do You Believe in Love” by Huey Lewis and the News would be fun with the right arrangement, too.

If he wanted to get kinky, he could do “Leather and Lace” by Stevie Nicks and Don Henley? Maybe not.
“Get Down on It” by Kool and the Gang certainly has suggestive overtones. “Don’t You Want Me” by Human League would be hysterical, and so would “I Love Rock and Roll” by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. “I Can’t Go for That” by Hall and Oates could allow him to show off his range nicely, as would “Always on My Mind” by Willie Nelson.

I’ve normally included songs that the contestant would never consider singing but are awesome, but this doesn’t apply to Adam, so songs in this category are “Tainted Love” by Soft Cell (yes, I remember Danny Noriega sang it), “Abracadabra” by the Steve Miller Band, “Hurts So Good” by John Cougar Mellencamp, “Centerfold” by J. Geils Band, and “Gloria” by Laura Brannigan. I would die so very happy if he chose to do any of those.

What Adam should not sing? Anything by Air Supply. And god knows, 1982 was rife with those guys. What Adam will sing? It’s anybody’s guess. I won’t even try.

Danny Gokey – 1980
Ah, 1980. Just coming out of the disco era into the era of the synthesizer. How lovely you were! Some of the artists who had hits in 1980 are Pink Floyd, Kool and the Gang, The Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, Barry Manilow, Peaches and Herb, Michael Jackson, and the Rolling Stones. Trust me, there’s no shortage of what Danny likes: schmaltzy, sappy, inspirational songs.

“Ride Like the Wind” or “Sailing” by Christopher Cross is right up his alley, or “Babe” by Styx could work. “Too Hot” by Kool and the Gang would work with his smokey voice. So would “Against the Wind” by Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band. I’d love to see him do “Let My Love Open the Door” by Pete Townsend, but that’s mostly because I like that song and not because it would fit him that well. So scratch that. I can see him doing well on “September Morn” by Neil Diamond, though.

Songs that Danny could dedicate to the memory of his wife would be “Shining Star” by Manhattans, “You Decorated My Life” by Kenny Rogers, “She’s Out of My Life” by Michael Jackson, “Longer” by Dan Fogelberg, “Biggest Part of Me” by Ambrosia, and “We Don’t Talk Anymore” by Cliff Richard. (Okay, that was mean.)

Songs that totally rock but that Danny would never choose in a million years would include “It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me” by Billy Joel, “Fame” by Irene Cara, “Working My Way Back to You” by The Spinners, “Funkytown” by Lipps, Inc., “Cars” by Gary Numan, and “Pop Musik” by M.

What would be my top pick for Danny? “The Long Run” by The Eagles. Or “Ladies’ Night” by Kool and the Gang. But I’ll bet even money he picks “All Out of Love” by Air Supply. Do you even doubt it?

Best elimination song from 1980: “Don’t Let Go” by Isaac Hayes.
What Adam would sing if he were born in 1980: “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” by Queen. Duh!