12/21/07 - The Winner Is Chosen

Welcome to my final post as tonight "The Next Great American Band" will be chosen and the winner will be getting a recording contract. I have to say I have really enjoyed this show and look forward to buying music from several of these bands. For those of you who have not seen this show you have missed a huge treat and hopefully next time they will have it on a different night during the week so you can experience all the great talent that this show provides. Now on to the finale.

Excitement is in the air as Dominic Bowden welcomes us to the show looking handsome in his jeans, black shirt and jacket. He thanks the viewers for casting 2 and a half million votes to decide the winner and appreciates all the support the show has gotten. Before he talks about the opportunity the winner will have he introduces our judges; John Rzeznik, Sheila E, and Dicko Anderson. They also are brimming with excitement.

One of my favorites during the competition perform next. "The Likes of You" who were eliminated early in the competition do their original "When I Fall From Grace" which is a song I truly love and will be getting as I joined their fan club. I am happy to say that after they were eliminated they did get a recording contract. I think this song would be perfect for American Idol as each contestant leaves. While they play this song a nice tribute is done by showing all the bands who participated in this competition.


Another wonderful surprise as the show brings back a band who did not make the cut of the top 12. "Northmont" get to perform "Smooth" originally by Rob Thomas and Santana. They are backed-up by the horn section from Denver & The Mile High Orchestra, the dobro from The Clark Brothers and the rhythm section from Sixwire. Great job!


Before each of the 3 contenders perform one last song, they are given the opportunity to thank their fans and also let us know how they felt about competing on the show.


First to take the stage are the Clark Brothers who perform a religious song entitled "You Are Still The Same". Although done with heart-felt passion I was not overly impressed with the vocals. However this is a beautiful song which I think could be a hit.


Sheila E performs her hit "The Glamourous Life" which was a huge hit for her. She is accompanied by an all girl orchestra and I must say I felt like dancing even though the vocal prowness of Sheila is not as good as in her younger years. However she is still tops playing those drums. Way to go ladies!


My top favorites of the show take the stage in the form of Sixwire. Wow, I dig these guys the most and can hardly wait to buy their music. They mention during their clip that they once had a record deal but were dropped by the label before the cd had a chance to get off the ground. What fools that label was as this band is totally awesome! Once again giving us great harmony and muscianship they perform "The Last Time" originally by The Rolling Stones. Great job guys!


The Goo Goo Dolls are next doing their hit song "Broadway". John still sounds very good as do the other members of the band however I was not overly impressed with the performance as it bordered on boring. However, nice to see the group again.


Denver & The Mile High Orchestra give us a much better performance of "Vehicle" with Denver sounding quite edgy and of course the band was fantastic. Denver mentions that this show has given them the ride of their lives and thank all the fans. I truly enjoyed this performance and I am sure I will be getting some music from this wonderful group.

After this great performance, DMHO are informed they did not win the title and they are being eliminated. What a total downer! However Denver takes this graciously and thanks all the fans once again.


Next up is a real treat as all the bands who made it to the top 12 give us a medley of Christmas songs. Loved how all the bands interacted with each other during this musical moment. This was indeed a wonderful and shining array of having fun as each of the bands were spot-lighted. I am really going to miss seeing many of these groups. After all the bands joined in to sing the final number "Another Rock & Roll Christmas" Denver wishes all of us a very Merry Christmas.


Before Dominic announces the winner he tells us after 10,000 bands who auditioned and 14 million votes cast across the season we have come to telling everyone who won.


And the winner is.........The Clark Brothers! As you can imagine the 3 guys get very emotional as do the judges who give them wonderful compliments about how great they are. I must say I have liked many performances by this group but in the same breath I was very disappointed that Sixwire did not win. Sixwire has never given a bad performance and I know for a fact I will be supporting this group big time.

Congratulations to The Clark Brothers for winning. They get to perform one final song after Dominic thanks the viewers once again and mentions they will see us next year. (Sure hope so!) The Clark Brothers closes the show singing their original "Billy The Kid". Watch out for this song as I am sure it will be a hit.

To all the bands in their future endeavors. It has been a real joy seeing all of them perform on this show.

Well gang, that's it for this season and may I wish each and everyone of you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!