Magic Number 24: Who Blinks First?
February 7, 2011While We’re Waiting… Cavalier Fans, Tribe Grades and Recruiting Never Ends
February 8, 2011(This is not a typical WFNY article. It has nothing to do with Cleveland sports, but we talked about the Super Bowl halftime show a year ago. I thought I would bring it up again. If you don’t like it when we break from Cleveland sports, just skip this post altogether.)
A year ago, WFNY looked at the Super Bowl halftime show in an effort to get it set up for 2011. Last year the perspective was that The Who hadn’t really lived up to the performances that immediately preceded them. Before The Who (2010,) the Super Bowl was on a roll with Paul McCartney (2005,) Rolling Stones (2006,) Prince (2007,) Bruce Springsteen (2008,) and Tom Petty (2009.) Apparently the Super Bowl didn’t learn the lessons of the past as they started shifting toward the pre-Janet Jackson era multi-artist pop performance anchored by The Black Eyed Peas. It wasn’t all bad either for those who are fans of the Peas. Unfortunately (or fortunately?), that doesn’t include me.
Even as someone who doesn’t like the group or their songs, I have to say objectively that the performance started really well. “I Gotta Feeling” is as big a song as you can get even if I think it has an anti-chorus where the singing leads to a chant. That is a taste-based criticism and they have sold enough copies of the single to easily answer it. If you like that song to begin with, you probably enjoyed the performance. That’s all I am saying.
They then went into “Boom Boom Pow” which they also nailed pretty well. They had dancers in illuminated suits that added to the stage show looking like Tron. Unfortunately after “Boom Boom Pow” the show started to fade into that messy MTV era version of the halftime show.
Slash popped out of the stage playing the recognizable riff of Guns ‘N Roses’ “Sweet Child O’ Mine”. Fergie joined him and started singing, but the results weren’t very good. One Youtube commenter was even left to say of Fergie’s vocal performance that she sounded like Adam Sandler. After watching it again, I can’t say I disagree. I am guessing she wouldn’t appreciate that comparison anymore than Sandler wants Billy Madison referred to as Fergie-licious.
The Black Eyed Peas then took the stage back with a rendition of their song “Pump It” with a drum and brass corps onstage. That bled into a sped up version of “Let’s Get it Started.” After an unnecessary dance-heavy performance by Usher doing “OMG,” the Peas finished the performance off with “Where is the Love?” and Dirty Dancing “Time of My Life” cover before finally reprising “I Gotta Feeling.”
The Black Eyed Peas aren’t my deal. Those songs aren’t my thing. That being said, I thought the Peas handled all their own stuff really well and put on a good performance. I thought it got messy when they shoe-horned in Slash and Usher. I have seen it suggested other places that the additions of Usher and Slash indicate that someone on the committee didn’t think the Peas could handle the show by themselves. My impression after watching it again this morning is that the Peas handled their own stuff fine and the show got uneven whenever they broke from that.
So, where does the Super Bowl go from here? I have no idea. All our ideas last year couldn’t have been further from being implemented. We were talking about Pearl Jam, Bon Jovi, Jay-Z, Radiohead, Metallica, The Black Crowes, John Mayer, Coldplay and The Dave Matthews Band.
As Scott linked on Twitter today, ESPN’s polling indicates that the Peas were an utter bomb. As of this writing there were over 48,000 votes cast on ESPN.com and 35% of people gave the Peas an F letter grade. 14% gave them an A, 17% B, 18% C, 16% D.
Then again, the halftime show isn’t even aimed at sports fans. Those people who voted on ESPN were going to watch the game regardless. The halftime show is aimed at other demographics that could be drawn into the game who might not normally care about the football being played.
Anyway, thanks for indulging this break from your normal WFNY content. Some people love talking about the commercials during the Super Bowl. I enjoy talking about the halftime show. We’ll see what they cook up for next year.
54 Comments
@ Denny.. Were you serious bout Girl Talk or being sarcastic? I have to admit, I have seen him live and have been very impressed!! Good times!! If you were serious, check out Bassnectar!!
That show was a crime against singers, music, and America.
I was 100% serious about Girl Talk. It’d be awesome.
I was listing them all in a row and I forgot Springsteen. Sorry. Doesn’t mean I know nothing about music. Just means I forgot Springsteen when creating a list. Don’t be silly.