Last night, I witnessed something I had never seen on American Idol before, courtesy of contestant Blake Lewis.
The Seattle native took Bon Jovi’s You Give Love a Bad Name and spun it completely on its head. Lewis changed the tempo. He changed the way it was sung. He beat-boxed. He popped a totally different sound and showed himself to be more than a one-trick pony.
In going with this arrangement, in going with this idea, in taking this risk, Lewis elevated himself above the glorified karaoke contest that American Idol has become in the past few weeks. By far, Blake Lewis’ You Give Love A Bad Name has become arguably the most original take on any song in the history of American Idol.
For this version alone, which we know was Lewis’ brainchild, with little prodding from producers or coach Jon Bon Bovi, Lewis deserves to be in the Final Two. Lewis adds a feeling of down-home reality and charm, and he will definitely add an unpredictability to the finals. Like Elliott Yamin before him, Lewis is not afraid of taking risks, and obviously puts a lot of thought into his song choices and arrangements. Barring the Simon-anointed final of Melinda Doolittle and Jordin Sparks, a Lewis-Doolittle or Lewis-Sparks final will be mouth-watering.
(We assume, of course, hehehe, that the dreaded fourth-place elimination shocker will have Lakisha Jones’ name on it. After her past month’s performances, we would welcome it.)
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Watch the video of Blake Lewis’ You Give Love a Bad Name, complete with judges’ comments, after the jump:
