It was ‘American Idol’ Year They Were Born Wish List night on American Idol Top 8 night on April 7, 2009. Born in 1982, the 27-Year-old Adam Lambert from Hollywood, California picked a hit single from that Year, the Tears for Fears Mad World and, as with every song he covers, he made it his own.
The British rock band saw the single reach No. 3 on the UK singles chart and reach the Top 40 in several countries bringing the band international recognition and popularity. It appeared on the band’s debut album in 1983, The Hurting.
Tears for Fears Mad World lyrics and song were written by Roland Orzabal and sung by bassist Curt Smith. The song topped the charts in the UK when was covered in 2003 by Michael Andrews and Gary Jules for the soundtrack to the movie Donnie Darko.
Now with the Adam Lambert Tears for Fears performance, the song sees yet another resurgence of popularity. He performed the song in a stripped down and subtle piano-driven orchestral arrangement showcasing the sheer beauty of his voice and the emotional intensity he brought to the song. It led the audience to burst into sporadic screaming and cheering on and off throughout the song.
As he has done with all of his performance, notably the Adam Lambert Ring of Fire cover of the Johnny Cash classic, the Idol hopeful made Tears for Fears Mad World his own.
He was the last performer of the evening and with the program already running overtime, there was time for only one judge’s response. And that was Simon Cowell who said, ‘I think words are unnecessary but I want to give you a standing ovation.” This brought American Idol Season 8 Top 8 to a rousing conclusion.
Previously, the singer has delivered exceptional performances, including the aforementioned Adam Lambert Ring of Fire on Grand Ole Opry week, under the mentorship of country music star Randy Travis, with a sitar driven arrangement evoking a Led Zeppelin/Jeff Buckley Ring of Fire that seemed to fuse Ravi Shankar and The Doors.
He followed with the Adam Lambert Tracks Of My Tears under mentorship of the songwriter, Motown legend Smokey Robinson who said in the televised interview that he was ‘very proud of Adam’s interpretation of the song.’
Adam Lambert continues to reach new levels of excellence as American Idol season 8 continues, with fellow contestants Allison Iraheta, Anoop Desai, Danny Gokey, Kris Allen, Lil Rounds, Matt Giraud, and Scott MacIntyre still in the contest. Here is a recap of all of the performances.
All around me are familiar faces
Worn out places, worn out faces
Bright and early for their daily races
Going nowhere, going nowhere
And their tears are filling up their glasses
No expression, no expression
Hide my head I want to drown my sorrow
No tomorrow, no tomorrow
And I find it kind of funny
I find it kind of sad
The dreams in which I’m dying
Are the best I’ve ever had
I find it hard to tell you
‘Cos I find it hard to take
When people run in circles
It’s a very, very
Mad World
Children waiting for the day they feel good
Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday
Made to feel the way that every child should
Sit and listen, sit and listen
Went to school and I was very nervous
No one knew me, no one knew me
Hello teacher tell me what’s my lesson
Look right through me, look right through me.
From Right Celebrity, used under Fair Use.
Posted April 9th, 2009 by Armen Hareyan
