The Next Great American Band
The Next Great American Band was a reality television talent show. The show premiered on October 19, 2007 and aired on FOX at 8 p.m. Eastern and Pacific times Friday nights. The show was taped at CBS Television City in Los Angeles on Wednesday evenings in Studio 36, which is the same studio used for American Idol. The program was created by 19 Entertainment, which is one of the companies behind American Idol, and the show shared the same basic concept as Idol. This time, however, the winner was not a singer but instead a musical band. The contest was open to performers of all genres of music, and there were no age limits for the performers. The three judges were Australian Idol judge Ian "Dicko" Dickson, Sheila E., and John Rzeznik of The Goo Goo Dolls. Dickson served as a judge on Australian Idol concurrently. The host of the show was New Zealand Idol host Dominic Bowden.
Episodes
In the desert heat near Las Vegas the judges choose 12 bands which will go on to the show from the thousands of live auditions, DVD submissions,and internet submissions. Detailed recap: There were thousands of auditions, hundreds of DVDs and thousands of internet submissions. Who will be the next great American band? Tres Bien says they were raised on '60s sounds and it shows. Tres Bien will be taking their English influence and French name into the next round. On the other side of the break is Light of Doom. On the judging, Dicko says no, Sheila E. says yes and then says yes again for Johnny. The Hatch is of a more traditional band age. On the strength of their good looking lad of a lead singer, they're through to the next round. That brings us to The Clark Brothers, a family band with a traveling preacher father. That... uh... is actually the exact same backstory as Kings of Leon. Next up is Dot Dot Dot, not to be confused with ... or !!!. Rzeznik and Sheila E. are on board and although Dicko is a little shakier, Dot Dot Dot is through to Round 2. Like The Sizzling Happy Family, Northmont is off to the world of cul-de-sacs and birthday parties. Wait! Wait! Northmont is getting a second chance to take the judges' criticism and have another go at it. The Muggs are rock and rollers who know how to persevere. Their bassist, who was partially paralyzed from a stroke and now plays the bass line on keyboard, demonstrates their spirit as showed in how they rocked the stage. Kicking off Day 3 is Denver and the Mile High Orchestra. Other than Dicko calling Denver a nerd, the comments are positive and DATMHO moves on. Another Nashville band! Sixwire. Sixwire breezes into the next round. What are the chances Cliff Wagner and the Old No. 7 are from Nashville? San Pedro?! That's a port town! They should be playing... uh... port music. After a fast moving montage, we meet Franklin Bridge. They bring the funk to your face and succeed in their advancement attempt. From one all-girl band to another, we now have Rocket. Mothers, lock up your sons! Northmont is back and better than ever. Or... better than before. Actually, it seems not. But at least it wasn't Ward's fault. So after all of that, the judges powwowed and picked the twelve bands you'll have a chance to vote for. The Clark Brothers, Cliff Wagner and the Old No. 7, Denver and the Mile High Orchestra, Dot Dot Dot, Franklin Bridge, The Hatch, Light of Doom, The Likes of You, The Muggs, Rocket, Sixwire, Tres Bien. A perfect demographic mishmash!
In week 2 of TNGAB, the 12 remaining bands perform for viewer votes. Each band was assigned a Bob Dylan song to perform in their own style plus one original song. Detailed recap: The show opens with Denver and the Mile High Orchestra. It goes pretty well. Dicko wasn't crazy about it. Next up is The Hatch doing some Bob Dylan, "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue." Who knew that Dylan plugging in back in the day in Newport would eventually lead to this? That leads into an original number. The judges liked some parts, disliked others. Third is Light of Doom covering "All Along The Watchtower." Surely these kids can relate to the song's message about oppression by the man. Their original song is even heavier. Johnny liked it, Sheila E. liked it a little less and Dicko liked it even less. He also would like them to cover up their hairless chests. The Likes of You is covering "Blowin' in the Wind." After the up tempo rendition, they move into an original song that sounds fairly similar. The judges were a bit tepid in their reactions. Following that is Rocket. They are "Knockin' On Heaven's Door" and then knocking out their original tune. The judges liked them. Now we have Cliff Wagner and the Old No. 7 with "Don't Think Twice (It's All Right)." What a perfect theme night for this band. The judges liked both songs, though Dicko thought the Dylan cover was too sweet and lacking the spite of the original. In the auditions, The Muggs described themselves as the ugliest band in the world. But they rock and that's all that matters. "Meet Me In The Morning," won't you? Johnny loved the tightness and bond of the band, Sheila E. loved it and Dicko just wants some commitment to the vocals. The Clark Brothers aren't going to work on "Maggie's Farm" no more. The judges mainly liked them except for Dicko being Dicko. Très Bien! Sure are some happy fellows there. They made the judges happy as well. Franklin Bridge gets all "Tangled Up In Blue" before their original song. Johnny liked them, Sheila E. thinks they're going to win and Dicko continues being contrarian. The lead singer of Dot Dot Dot got naked in the intro piece. In public Dot Dot Dot actually gets the harshest judge commentary of the evening. The closing act is Sixwire, performing "Mr. Tambourine Man." The judges absolutely flat out plainly loved them. And that wraps up this week.
Two bands are going home this week and the other 10 will celebrate their good luck with a performance. Those performances will all feature a song from Elton John and Bernie Taupin. Detailed recap: Two bands are going home this week and the other 10 will celebrate their good luck with a performance. Those performances will all feature a song from Elton John and Bernie Taupin. So here's how we'll announce who stays and who goes. Bands will be called up to perform. You don't hear your name, away you go. Performing first tonight is Sixwire. They perform an original number followed by "Don't Let The Sun Go Down." The judges all liked it. Next up is Très Bien!, those loveable mop tops, after their original, they go into "Love Lies Bleeding." The judges were just fine with everything. Third up is Franklin Bridge from Philadelphia. Non-ironically, their Elton John number is "Philadelphia Freedom." The judges were okay with Franklin Bridge, but basically want them to take everything down a notch. Simplify! The next band up is... The Clark Brothers. Their original song is "Country Time" and the Elton John number is "Country Comfort." It seems that the covers weren't picked accidentally. The judges all loved both songs. The next band to take the stage is Light of Doom. Get ready for loud and fast. They named their band, but they don't know why. They perform an eponymous original number, and then go into "Saturday Night's All Right" by Elton John and Bernie Taupin. Johnny and Sheila E. loved it, but Dicko still can't get past the age. Now we have the wacky, wacky, wacky Dot Dot Dot. Their cover song is "Your Song." The judges were all fairly satisfied with the performance, but still aren't totally in love with the band. Cliff Wagner and the Old # 7 made the cut and they'll be taking the stage next. Their cover is "Honky Cat." The judges all rave about how fun this band is. The Muggs have made it. Their cover is "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues." The judges think The Muggs need to fix their vocals. We now have four bands competing for the last two spots. Who gets one of them... Rocket. Naturally, they perform "Rocket Man." This is another band the judges want more out of vocally. So who gets the last spot this week? Denver and the Mile High Orchestra. Goodbye to The Hatch and The Likes of You. Fittingly, Denver's cover is "I'm Still Standing." The judges liked it just fine. And that's this week.
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