I Can't Liiiiive, If Living is Without Yoooouuuu!!

Run, don't walk, to Clay's MySpace and listen to the full version of "Without You". It's his first single, and it's absolutely GLORIOUS!! Well, at least, that's what I hear. See, I'm on dial-up. The song is streaming, and on dial-up, you only get to hear about two seconds of singing before it stops to buffer. From what I read though, this song may cause one to weep, fall out of one's chair, or simply to get a killer case of goosebumps and chills. I guess I'll have to wait until September 19th to hear the full version. *cries*

Oh, and that beautimous picture down below may not be the official CD cover after all. I fear for us all if there's something hotter than that picture.

In other Clay related news, he'll be appearing on Jimmy Kimmel on Sept. 26th. Also, Clay blogged, and said that he would be on GMA close to his release date. Hopefully, there are just the first of many promotional appearances on my teevy.

Don't forget to preorder "A Thousand Different Ways" at Amazon.com.

Album Cover?

This showed up at Walmart.com. Me likey. It also says that Clay will be doing a Soundcheck on Walmart.com. Basically, there will probably be exclusive interviews and performances. Can't. Wait.

My Clay Aiken Wishlist

With "A Thousand Different Ways" coming out in just over a month, and the Great Clay Drought of '06 coming to an end, I've been thinking a lot about what I'd personally like to see happen in Clay's career in the next year or two. I have no experience or expertise at all in the music biz. I'm just a fan with a very high interest in a very talented performer who rarely ceases to surprise me. I mean, remember the HAIR!?

Keep in mind, this is MY wishlist. Some might disagree with things, like how I want another Christmas album next year.

1. First of all, I want a single released to radio right now. Preferably something that will make people say "Holy crap! That's Clay Aiken? That's awesome!"

2. I want more pictures from the Library Boy photoshoot (see pic in previous post) to be leaked onto the internet, one at a time. Preferably one a day. A girl can only handle so much pretty.

3. I want promotion for this CD in a BIG way. I want the usual suspects. I want the Tonight Show, Letterman, GMA, Today show, Ellen Degeneres, The View, Regis & Kelly, Jimmy Kimmel, and Oprah. Megan Mullaly and Rachael Ray are getting new shows. I want him on there too. I want a major primetime interview with the likes of Diane Sawyer or Matt Lauer. I want an SNL appearance. I want at least three major magazine interviews and at least one high profile cover. I want interviews with all the major radio stations in all the large markets. I want performances on the fall music awards shows. (Hello, AMAs!)

4. I want his single to be a bona fide radio hit. I want the teens who are into 80s music right now to freak out and say "Like, OMIGAWD! I totally love this song!" and the old fogies to say "Awww, that brings back memories. And what a great voice!"

5. I want a video. A HAWT video. A video that can and will be played forwards, backwards, and in slo-mo. The TITN video leaked onto the internet awhile back. It was hot, but didn't fit the song or Clay's public image at the time. I think he's ready for a sexy video. I want it to blow the roof off that crap-ass show TRL.

6. I want his album to sell millions. And I want it released internationally this time.

7. I want him to promote this album hardcore all through the fall and winter. Come spring, I want a major tour throughout the U.S. and Canada.

8. At the beginning of the summer, I want him to record another Christmas album. I want songs like "The Christmas Waltz", "Please Celebrate Me Home", "Good News", "Emmanuel", and a "Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth" duet with Bing Crosby.

9. The rest of the summer can be spent touring internationally while his third single burns up the charts here in the U.S.

10. In the fall, he can have a vacation. Who said I was a slavedriver?

11. In the winter, he can promote the new Christmas album, and do one of those Christmas tours he loves so much.

12. In the spring of 2008, he can start recording his third mainstream album and release it two years from now. None of this three years between albums crap.

13. Somewhere in all of this, I'd like him to have a major endorsement deal. Just for the money, ya know.

14. In the meantime, I want his to have the chance to do the charitable things that he likes to do. Because he's a great spokesman and people respond to him.

After that, we'll see.

It's Official!

Hmm...that's a nice picture. Have I ever mentioned that I love his new haircut? Clay's one of those lucky guys that's going to look better at 50 than he did at 20.

Anyway, I've been away from the computer for awhile, but there's all kinds of CD news. For one thing, we have an official date of September 19th. We have an official track listing, which I'll break down in a minute. And we have the official press release, which you can read here.

Also, you can pre-order the album at Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble. It's only $9.99 at Amazon right now though.

Also, Clay's Official Website is getting revamped, and he now has an official MySpace page.

Promosquad has clips of three songs by Clay including "Without You", "A Thousand Days", and "I Want To Know What Love Is", which is a duet with Suzie McNeil for Rockstar:INXS.

So there's lots of great stuff going on in the Clay world! Oh, and he was on Entertainment Tonight with footage of the photo shoot for his CD cover, and he is lookin' HAWT!

I'm going to address the negatives really quickly and then talk about the track list. First, we're six weeks away from the album release, and we don't have a single yet. No talk of a tour. And as far as I can see, there are no scheduled promotional appearances. Now, that doesn't mean that these things aren't happening. We just don't know about it yet.

Now, the track listing:

RIGHT HERE WAITING: Not a huge fan of this song, but that's because I don't like Richard Marx. However, that's because of this jerk I dated in high school who would dedicate "Now and Forever" to me while he was screwing my best friend on the side. So anything Richard Marx gets my back up. Not Clay's fault. Not Richard's either.

WHEN I SEE YOU SMILE: This is an awesome song! It reminds me of junior high, which is always a good thing. I honestly believe that the power ballads of the 80s are where Clay can truly kill with his voice.

WITHOUT YOU: This is an incredibly gorgeous song. The clip on Promosquad was understated and stunning. I'm not sure if this is a radio song, but it's definitely a "lay on the bed in the dark during a rainstorm with this coming through my headphones" kind of song.

LONELY NO MORE: Clay has co-writing credits on this song. That's all I know about it. Whenever I read the title, I hear Rob Thomas, but I'm sure it'll sound nothing like that.

SORRY SEEMS TO BE THE HARDEST WORD: Originally by Elton John. Great song. I can see Clay giving one of his softer, more tender performances with this one. Sort of like when he sang "I Can't Make You Love Me" during the JBT. Very excited about this one.

EVERYTIME YOU GO AWAY: Sung originally by Paul Young. Great 80s song. I'm interested to heard the arrangement of this.

EVERYTHING I DO (I DO IT FOR YOU): Yeah, it's the Robin Hood song!! This song defined junior high for me. Everybody loved it back then. Will they love it today? Of course, Clay will kick this song's ass.

I WANT TO KNOW WHAT LOVE IS: This is the duet with Suzie McNeil. The clip on Promosquad sounds awesome, even though there's not much Clay in it. I'm dying to heard the whole thing.

THESE OPEN ARMS: This is considered to be a new song, but it's actually a remake of a Bon Jovi song. It really has a rockin' bridge, so I'm excited to hear Clay growl his way through it.

BECAUSE YOU LOVED ME: Yup, it's Celine. Definitely opportunity for some killer glory notes here.

HERE YOU COME AGAIN: Now this is definitely the one I'm looking forward to the most, which kind of goes against most other Clay fans it seems. I think the melody is beautiful, and if Clay were to slow it down a bit, and just croon it, I think it just might kill me. I'm predicting that despite the WTF?! reaction to it's inclusion on this album, it will turn out to be a fan favorite and a possible single. By the way, it's originally by Dolly Parton.

EVERYTHING I HAVE: This is a new song, which features William Joseph on piano. WJ opened for Clay during the JNT. He's a lovely pianist, so I'm guessing this song will be piano heavy.

A THOUSAND DAYS: I'm not surprised this one is on here. I said earlier that Clay wanted singer's songs on this album, and he sings his face off on it. It's the only one of the four previewed last summer that made the cut. I think it's purty.

BROKEN WINGS: By Mr. Mister originally. I think this will be another fan favorite and possible single.

So, to sum it up, I'm excited about 95% of this album. I'm dying to hear the Dolly song. To quote the press release:
"The album shows off Aiken's vocals in a big way with songs like the Bad English hit "When I See You Smile" and Harry Nillsson's "Without You." But Aiken will surprise fans by singing in a more relaxed style on some tracks than they have heard before, showing a different, sexier side."

I think we will hear that sexier side on the Dolly Parton song. I already know that this will be better than MoaM, just from what I've heard so far. The songs are better, the production is better, and Clay is simply a stronger, more capable, and more confident singer than he was three years ago. I think we'll hear more crooning, more growling, and more wailing than ever before.

Will this CD be huge? I'm not sure. Clay's been gone a long time, and I'm getting nervous about the lack of promotion.

Will this CD be great? Absolutely.

A Thousand Different Ways

"A Thousand Different Ways". Yup! That's the title of the NEW CLAY AIKEN ALBUM! Wooooo! Great title, in my lowly opinion. Not too cheesy, self-indulgent, or obnoxious. Yes, I'm looking at you, Justin Timberlake. However, just like "Measure of a Man", ATDW can be interpreted in a completely naughty and sexual manner. But only by those with dirty minds. And there's no one of that ilk here. Heh.

No, there's still no release date, although Variety reported it as September 19th. Several stores have September 19th as well, so I think they're going to try their darndest to make sure that's the date. No sense in missing out on the itty-bitty bit of publicity this has gotten so far. Anyway, I'm pencil-ing it in for now.


There's a song on the ASCAP database called "A Thousand Different Ways". It currently has no performer listed. The writers are Stephony Smith and Judith Owen. Stephony Smith wrote "It's Your Love" by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. Judith Owen seems to be mostly a singer/songwriter. Go to towerrecords.com or something to listen to her stuff. Very melodic and pretty. Speculation is that this song will be on Clay's album.

Jaymes Foster Levy is the executive producer. She blogged at the official fanclub about the album, and was very complimentary. She said Clay was very talented and had great instincts. She also said we were going to hear him in ways that we've never heard before. That's the most exciting part to me. I can't imagine a way that we haven't heard him, so I'm preparing myself to be amazed.

Mark your calendars, people! The freight train's a'comin'.

Since He's Been Gone

Clay was with Ruben the other night at Kelly Clarkson's tour stop in Raleigh. Apparently, they were both having a grand ole time waving at the audience, signing Kelly Clarkson t-shirts, and having their pictures taken. I love seeing him out and about with a big grin on his face.

In other news, Entertainment Tonight asked viewers to vote for their favorite All-American stars. Guess who made the top ten amongst superstars such as Tom Cruise, Julia Roberts, and Jennifer Aniston? Yep, Clay! He was #5 and the only singer who made the list.
Clay is All-American!!

Still no CD news. There's a contest at the official fanclub, asking the fans to guess the acronym of the four word album title. The contest ends July 14th, so speculation is that we'll find out more news then.

Soon? Whatev.

So, back in 1996, Clay blogged that there would be CD news coming soon. He lied!! (He does that sometimes.) So, there's still no official release date, although some ambitious Clay fan picked up the phone, called Barnes & Noble, and asked about it. According to the manager dude, it's supposed to be out September 19th. Which is a pretty realistic date.

Also, three different Clay fans with different insiders all said that some of Clay's new music was played for some radio bigwigs who were all impressed and amazed that it was Clay. Maybe the bastards will play his music this time. So, that's all I got that's Clay related. I still love Clay, but what has he done for me...lately? I've had to get my kicks elsewhere, so here's some stuff to keep you occupied until "soon" becomes "now".

So You Think You Can Dance
I love this show. I don't dance. I don't know anything about dance. But it sure is fun watching really pretty people dance around in sexy outfits. For some reason, I'm crushing big time on Benji Schwimmer. He's cute and dorky and really funny and hella good. Check out
VIXEN: on the EDGE a great blog by a Benji and Clay fan. You can find some great pics of Benji and download his performances.

Band of Brothers
Buy it, rent it, add it to your Netflix queue. This is an amazing HBO miniseries from 2001 about the 101st Airborne Division in WWII. Sometimes we need a reminder of what these men went through so that we could enjoy the life we have today. Oh, and read the book as well. It was written by Stephen Ambrose.

iTunes...Nuff said.