Andrews – The Blue Stage’s second season of Andrews Idol has been a wild ride of show-stopping talent the past seven weeks.
Winnowing an assortment of 32 contestants to this week’s elite eight each week has showcased both local talent from Andrews, Franklin, Murphy and Robbinsville along with several out of state performers.
This season saw standouts singing both original and cover songs as well as several returning performers from season one.
Noteworthy among the returnees were Charlie Beck, known for his innovative banjo stylings; Jerry Palmer with his smooth troubadour tunes; John Leffew, performing as a solo act after accompanying Betty Grindstaff last season; Renee Pellom with her operatic tones; and Therese Adams, better known as Momma T, belting her signature blues.
Along with this slew of returning talent, newcomers included Christy Jordan with scorching takes on sultry classics, Western Carolina student Davin Broadhurst with Broadway show tune renditions, Jason Lansing with guitar-based originals and keyboards in the second round, Jennifer Lynn Simpson with her take on several late-1990s alternative favorites and Sam Lamontagne with his one-man-band-style harmonica and guitar covers of 1970s rock standards.
Starting this week’s elite eight of round seven, Franklin’s Bo Bullman pulled out all the stops to accompany his broad brown cowboy hat with Drake White’s “Power of a Woman.” In his second set, Bullman broke out his guitar for an original sweetly dedicated to his family, “Daddy’s Right Here.” For his third and final set, he chose Jason Crabb’s inspirational hit “Good Morning Mercy.”
Vocalist Allison Hasty of Chattanooga, Tenn., brought plenty of power just like her every turn this season with her take on Miley Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball,” as well as her dreamy interpretation of “Come Wake Me Up” by Rascal Flatts. Her third set gave her opportunity to showcase her vocal range on Christina Aguilera’s “Bound to You.”
Powerhouse vocalist-guitarist Adrian Stover, of Ellijay, Ga. also accompanied by accomplished guitarist CC Loud, has consistently provided energetic and staggering interpretations of an eclectic selection of cover tunes throughout the season and didn’t disappoint with their rendition of “I’ll Follow You Down” by Shinedown.
The second set saw the duo give a blistering take on Daughtry’s “Waiting For Superman,” which had every lady in the packed house wishing she were Lois Lane. Lastly, they had the crowd singing along with many a fist-pumping and rallying to their stunning version of The Cranberries’s mid-1990s protest anthem “Zombie.”
Vocalist Kenneth Lyons of Franklin has also had a stellar season with his smooth range of classic soulful covers. Starting with Seal’s gothic and moody “Kiss From a Rose” Lyons wowed the crowd and seamlessly went into this second choice with Donny Hathaway’s emotional soul standard “Someday We’ll All Be Free.” Finally, Lyons let it all loose onstage with an impromptu dance as he belted a spirited version of Elton John’s early-1980s hit “I’m Still Standing.”
Local musician Zach Kilmer of Peachtree has also had several spectacular rounds of competition this season. Accompanied by his brother Ben Kilmer on a particularly peculiar guitar modified into a percussive masterpiece cajon drum of sorts and also by local bassist Dave Poole, the trio rode a wide-ranging wave of covers from The Band’s “Up on Cripple Creek” to Tom Petty’s “Into the Great Wide Open” to great success, along with a smattering of originals throughout the season.
Kilmer took the solo route for his first set with a pitch-perfect delivery of Hank Williams Sr.’s “Lovesick Blues” hitting every “yoda-lay-hee-hoooo” as it should be. Secondly, the trio gave a funky and energetic version of Ray Charles’s classic “I Got A Woman,” best known to Millennials as a sample riff and Jamie Foxx’s one-liner in Kanye West’s early 2000s hit “Goldigger.” Kilmer’s closer was an original titled “Rosie” which had the whole crowd drumming along on their tables.
Austin Zackary of Marble has also had a superb season, bringing his deep baritone and his outlaw country vibes. This Saturday’s performance was a crucial one for Zackary as he was suffering from a kidney stone and had to be bumped to the lead performer in the final set to get through the evening and into the emergency room.
Beginning the evening, Zackary chose Randy Houser’s rodeo ballad “Like A Cowboy.” His endurance was a testament for his second set performance of Larry Fleet’s “Where I Find God.” To finish early for the evening, Zackary’s take on the recent phenomenon Oliver Anthony’s song “Rich Men North Of Richmond” had the house cheering both to his health and wealth.
Murphy vocalist Nick McTaggart has also chosen soulful ballads that showcase his range this season. Having begun at several area open mic nights, McTaggart stunned with his opener, an acoustic stripped-down version of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Simple Man” as a dedication to his father.
Next was his melodic version of Avicii’s electronic dance hymn “Wake Me Up.” To round out the night, McTaggart sang the saddest prom song ever, Calum Scott’s “Dancing On My Own” so that there were very nearly tears in every eye.
Also returning from season one, Gage Hill’s consistent performances of crowd favorites has sustained him through season two.
Accompanied by his brother, Austin, on drums, along with season one contestant Andrew Cody on guitar, the Robbinsville trio began the evening with a heartfelt version of Bailey Zimmerman’s “Fall In Love.” Secondly, they brought the honky straight to the tonk with “Keep Your Hands To Yourself,” that cautionary tale from one-hit wonder The Georgia Satellites. To close out a cold Saturday evening, the three then launched into an incredibly chill version of The Hollies’ speakeasy classic “Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress.”
Winners of round seven advancing to the final four are Adrian Stover, Allison Hasty, Austin Zackary and Gage Hill. These finalists will each perform four songs during four different sets Saturday, Dec. 16.
The first- through fourth-place winners of Andrews Idol season two will win a combined $2,000 in prize money and dedicated studio recording time. Season three s tentatively scheduled for spring 2024.
Details: thebluestage.com/andrews-idol.