Backstage Pass

As Barack Obama completed his acceptance speech last night and awaited the fireworks (literally and figuratively), country duo Brooks and Dunn's "Only in America" provided the surprising soundtrack. It was a way to say, "Game on," since the duo played it live for President George W. Bush at his 2004 convention in New York. But symbolically, it means more.

Obama has been using U2's "City of Blinding Lights" since the Iowa caucuses, which was actually an inspired choice. Adding "Only in America," the sound of Red State America, to his campaign is equally inspiring, a song that echoes both the U2 song's theme and the "Only in America, where we dream as big as we want to" theme of Obama's entire presidential bid. It was a Big Tent Moment that will be hard to duplicate. For John McCain to pull off something equivalent, he'd have to pick something from Jay-Z's catalog for his campaign and we know how likely that is.

Our pal and boss Kevin Amorim has a big bundle of stuff in the Newsday about Michael Jackson's 50th birthday tomorrow. So that seemed like a good reason to pull out the video for "Scream," which still often serves as my personal office anthem.

On a related note, the folks at PopEater.com have had some interesting results to their recent poll -- with 71 percent of those responding saying the King of Pop has "not a chance" of a comeback. Um, happy birthday!?

On an unrelated note, they also found that 93 percent of those responding to a separate poll say Madonna and her recent anti-McCain statement will have no impact on who they vote for in the presidential election, a number that seemed terrifying to me. In an election where the economy, health care, wars and future wars are the main issues, there are 7 percent of the people who will be swayed by Madonna's thoughts? Yikes.

Politics aside, the Republicans will have a tough time beating the soundtrack to the Democratic convention next week. Sen. Barack Obama's historic run for the presidency has already inspired much of music's A-list to create tributes to him, many of which are being unveiled this week. (That's not even counting will.i.am's primary boost "Yes We Can.")

Below are a few selections:

Dave Stewart, "American Prayer"

In the middle of convention-mania, there are sure to be some head-scratching combinations of musicians and politicians, but this one will be hard to beat. John McCain and Daddy Yankee? Huh? Obviously, Daddy Yankee was won over by McCain's "Gasolina" policy. (The best part of this video is when the bored crowd behind McCain gets all ZOMG! when Daddy Yankee arrives.)

The new charity single “Just Stand Up” is a great idea, a way to raise funds for cancer research and awareness for the “Stand Up to Cancer” special to be aired on ABC, CBS and NBC on Sept. 5.
In practice, though, the song, produced by L.A. Reid and Babyface, is a bit of a diva pile-up, with 15 singers crammed into a song that clocks in around three-and-a-half-minutes. And telling one from another, especially in the middle, gets a bit dicey.

So here’s a handy guide to tell who’s who:

Beyonce is clearly the opener, followed by a pop-sounding Carrie Underwood. Next is Rihanna, with her cute accent and distinctive phrasing that makes her lines sound a bit like “Umbrella,” and a line from Sheryl Crow. Crow and Beyonce team up for the first pass through the chorus.

The second verse starts with Fergie’s distinctly not-cute accent, before she starts trading lines with Leona Lewis and then Keyshia Cole. Rihanna returns for her bit, trading lines with Miley Cyrus, before handing off to LeAnn Rimes and Natasha Bedingfield. Underwood picks up the Sheryl Crow line and they all head into the chorus together, with some powerful vamping from Melissa Ethridge.

Mary J. Blige handles the first half of the bridge, with some support from Ciara, Rihanna and Underwood. Mariah Carey takes over for the second half, supported by Ashanti – leading to an All-Long Island oasis. Then Mary and Mariah head back into the chorus, ad libbing over the group, complete with Mariah’s trademark high-register notes.

Fergie comes back for the outro and we’re out.

"Just Stand Up" goes on sale on iTunes on Sept. 2 and will make its live debut during the Sept. 5 special.

   Life is a mystery. Madonna not so much.
   Everyone was expecting some sort of controversy as she launched her "Sticky and Sweet" tour in Wales last week. It was just a matter of finding out what it would be.
   This time, she chose politics -- including John McCain's picture in a montage of Adolf Hitler and Robert Mugabe, then including Barack Obama's picture in a montage with Gandhi and John Lennon.
   Sure, it got Madge some headlines, but that's not going to last until Oct. 4 when the tour hits America and the other current gripe with her is that the massive tour has a huge carbon footprint. Well, yeah.
   Madonna's gonna need some fresher controversies so we thought we'd help out – and not just because the new single "Beat Goes On" is too good to go unnoticed.
   She should try:
-- Gay marriage support: Whether her marriage to Guy Ritchie is on the rocks or not, they sound like they need a break. Maybe they could put things on hold as a "protest" for gay marriage, vowing not to retie the knot until all people who want to marry can.
-- Michael Phelps affair: That would give her the cover to have a quick, torrid, paparazzi-covered affair with the Olympic hero. Of course, she may have to wait in line. Maybe John Mayer can pencil her in.
-- Britney reunion: With the MTV Video Music Awards set for next week, isn't it time she and Britney Spears, um, buried the hatchet again?

PHOTO: Madonna and friends arrive on stage at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium Saturday night. Photo by Joel Ryan for Associated Press.

The Jonas Brothers land their first No. 1 album this week, selling 525,000 copies of "A Little Bit Longer" making it the third-highest debut of the year behind Lil Wayne and Coldplay. All the publicity from their rollout pushed their previous eponymous album back into the Top 10, meaning they now have three albums in the Top 10, as their soundtrack from "Camp Rock" holds at No. 8.

"Longer" pushes the soundtrack to "Mamma Mia!" down to No. 2, while Kid Rock's "Rock and Roll Jesus" moves to No. 3. Miley Cyrus' "Breakout" drops to No. 4 and Sugarland's "Love on the Inside" slips to No. 5.

On the singles charts, Rihanna holds on to No. 1 with "Disturbia," though she faces a tough challenge from David Archuleta, whose debut single "Crush" debuts all the way up at No. 2. Chris Brown's "Forever" slides down a notch to No. 3, as does Katy Perry's "I Kissed a Girl" at No. 4. Coldplay's "Viva la Vida" rebounds to No. 5.

Look for the Jonases to hold on to the top spot next week. Whether they make it three in a row will depend on how strong Levittown's Donnie Klang and the reunited New Kids on the Block campaigns will be.

PHOTO: Joe, Nick and Kevin Jonas at "Jonas" Beach. Photo by Ari Mintz for Newsday.

   The season premiere of “Making the Band 4" last night pushed in one direction, while human nature pulled us all in another one. Diddy wants everyone to know that Donnie Klang’s debut “Just a Rolling Stone” arrives in stores on Sept. 2. The first single is “Take You There” featuring, well, Diddy, and it’s actually the theme song for the season apparently.
    “In case, this is your first time here, we make bands here,” Diddy explains. “They make albums and those albums go to No. 1... Donnie, his album hasn’t come out yet, but it comes out Sept. 2. Hopefully you guys will make it – what? – No. 1, my favorite number.”
    The push for Levittown’s Klang aside, the episode was really about the surprise return of choreographer Laurie Ann Gibson, who had a massive on-camera blowout with Puff, resulting in her leaving the show last season. But she’s back and fiery – in a Debbie Allen in “Fame” way – as she tries to whip Day 26 into shape.
    “How are you guys Brokedown Palace already?” she asks.
    Danity Kane is in rehearsals as well, but nothing as drama-filled as Laurie Ann’s sessions, though Aubrey does get kicked in the face at one point during an errant flip.
    In the end, it’s all a set up to Diddy vs. Laurie Ann, which comes at the end, and they agree to disagree – though in a way that’s meant to portend future drama this season between them.

PHOTO: Donnie Klang has a new album coming out. Photo from MTV.

 Jesse McCartney’s new tour leaves no doubt that he is set for a while new level of stardom.
    His album “Departure,” with its smash hit “Leavin’,” recast the former teen-pop star as an R&B-leaning pop singer, with a taste for ‘80s dance music. But his concert proves the transformation is far grander than that. McCartney has developed into a true triple threat, displaying his singing, dancing and even acting skills in his well-paced entertaining show.
    McCartney rolled out 10 new songs to the shrieking delight of the mostly teenaged crowd, backing up his new sound with slick choreographed routines with his two backing singers that turned “My Baby” into an extravaganza that looked like The Temptations and sounded like it was born in the mid-‘80s (like the 21-year-old McCartney himself). Even his previous hit “Beautiful Soul” has been updated to rock out a bit in the middle.
    His new single, the Timbaland/Timberlake-ish “It’s Over,” is even more impressive in concert, as McCartney gets to show off his vocals and phrasing as he dances. His vocal agility shows up in his remarkably cover of T-Pain’s “Buy You a Drank,” as well.
    Unlike his touring partner Jordin Sparks, though, McCartney leaves the crowd wanting much more, with a knockout one-two punch of “Relapse,” which sounds apocalyptic in concert with the massive synth sounds and the fiery guitar riffs, and the light-hearted “Leavin’,” which he plays up to its poppy potential as well.
    Thanks to his acting career and Disney-backing, McCartney has been a star for years, but with his latest great leap forward, he has now become an artistic force as well.

SETLIST: Freaky / Makeup / My Baby / Beautiful Soul / It’s Over / Rock You / Runnin’ / Not Your Enemy / She’s No You / Jessie’s Girl / Oxygen / How Do You Sleep? / Buy You a Drank / Told You So / Relapse / Leavin’

PHOTO: McCartney at Zootopia in May by Charles Eckert for Newsday

When Jordin Sparks told fans that she was singing her final song of the evening and then broke into a strong version of “No Air,” they believed her. As the song wrapped up, they started heading for the exits and there was very little clapping for the already-planned encore with Jesse McCartney for a fun version of Michael Jackson’s “The Way You Make Me Feel” – so little interest, in fact, that the band had to start the song early to fill the silence at Nokia Theatre Times Square so that the place wouldn’t completely empty out.
    It’s not that Sparks was that bad, because she wasn’t. The 18-year-old was in fine voice and her winning, excitable personality was broadly on display. She just isn’t a headliner yet and she really had to stretch to fill her hour-long set – throwing in loads of covers, an unsuccessful Q&A period, a lengthy band introduction, a bit of unfocused storytelling, and lots of giggling and waving and “I love you, too”s. When she opened with her current single “One Step at a Time,” it became clear that she had to open with that because she doesn’t really have another uptempo song of that quality in her catalog.
    This isn’t really her fault either, more a product of her circumstances as a young artist. But after a while, it became painful watching her strain to make her 30 minutes of strong material last for an hour. She may have been better served letting this tour go and heading back into the studio to work on more material.
    Sparks shows plenty of star quality, but she isn’t quite a superstar just yet.

SETLIST: One Step at a Time / Just For the Record / Fallin’ / Freeze / Now You Tell Me / Tattoo / Superstition / Let Him Fly / Give Me One Reason / Virginia Is for Lovers / No Air / The Way You Make Me Feel

PHOTO: Jive Records

The futures of two popular ways for adventurous music-hunters to find new artists are now threatened.

Muxtape, the easy-to-use mixtape creator and sharer, took down the site yesterday saying they needed time to "sort out a problem with the RIAA."

Pandora, the Music Genome Project's streaming radio site, may fold because of the higher royalty rates for webcasters that the U.S. Copyright Royalty Board enacted last year. Thanks to lobbying from SoundExchange, an arm of the RIAA, the board doubled the rates, even though terrestrial radio doesn't pay any fees and satellite radio pays fees that are far less per song than webcasters are now being charged.

Pandora founder Tim Westergren told The Washington Post that the company will now pay 70 percent of its revenue to webcasting fees. "We're approaching a pull-the-plug kind of decision," he said. "This is like a last stand for webcasting."

Maybe the thriving record industry feels it doesn't need all the help it can get introducing music fans to new artists. Oh. Wait. Hmm.

The best thing about "Escape from Rehab" -- a new minigame promoting the "Disaster Movie" spin-off from the "Scary Movie" parody series -- is that it makes Amy Winehouse look kinda awesome.

Yeah, the underlying "joke" is about her druggie persona and her habit of walking around London looking, um, undone. But in the game, she comes off as a kind of an obscenity-spouting superhero, taking on some of the summer's stars -- the Hulk, Iron Man, a cosmo-carrying Carrie Bradshaw from "Sex and the City" -- throwing various drugs or head-butting them with her trademark beehive, as she struggles to get to her beloved husband Blake Fielder-Civil.

Winehouse has a long road ahead of her, dealing with her addictions and other personal problems. But the game does show her as a force to be reckoned with and, in the end, she does conquer all. Hopefully that will happen in her real life as well. [Below, a reminder of how amazing Winehouse is musically.]

Rihanna's "Disturbia" finally boots Katy Perry's "I Kissed a Girl" from the No. 1 spot on the Billboard charts to No. 3 after seven long weeks.

Now, it's no secret that we've been rooting for Perry's removal for weeks, but it's kind of a surprise that it's Rihanna and not Chris Brown's "Forever" (which holds at No. 2) pushing her out. Did the outing of Brown's hit as an undercover reworking of Wrigley's Doublemint commercial hurt its popularity? Did the exposure "Disturbia" gets throughout the new Circuit City ad campaign (which seems to run on NBC whenever Michael Phelps wins a gold medal) give Rihanna, whose "Take a Bow" is still at No. 4, the added boost? Either way, it's becoming clear that outside forces -- and not radio or traditional promotion -- is what is launching many of the biggest hits. Look at M.I.A.'s massive leap to No. 5 this week for "Paper Planes" thanks to its use in the "Pineapple Express" movie.

Does this explain the success of Perry's "I Kissed a Girl"? No, but that song is inexplicable.

Over on the album charts, the soundtrack to "Mamma Mia!" climbs to No. 1 on sales of 130,000 copies, passing Miley Cyrus' "Breakout," which holds at No. 2 and Sugarland's "Love on the Inside," which slips to No. 3. Kid Rock's "Rock and Roll Jesus" holds at No. 4 and Lil Wayne's "Tha Carter III" sticks at No. 5.

They will all be demolished by The Jonas Brothers, whose "A Little Bit Longer" is on pace to sell 700,000 copies this week according to Billboard estimates. Given the slow release schedule for the next few weeks, Team Jonas should have an easy time at the top until at least Sept. 2, when they will battle the New Kids on the Block (no, really) and Levittown's own Donnie Klang, who will go for the hat trick of No. 1 debuts this year from MTV's "Making the Band 4" acts.

PHOTO: Rihanna from Def Jam Records.

The convention line-ups are set -- well, at least the musical ones.

Daughtry, Everclear and up-and-comers Flobots will appear at the Democratic convention on Aug. 26, as part of the Grammy Foundation's "Rock the Conventions," an attempt to convince conventioneers of the importance of music education and lobby them on other "issues that affect the creative community."

For the Republican convention, they have Brett James, who wrote Carrie Underwood's "Jesus Take the Wheel," and singer-songwriter Greg Laswell on Sept. 2. Um, really, Grammy Foundation? Was Ted Nugent not available? Are there really no musicians willing to even hang out with the Republicans?

After all, the Creative Coalition Gala at the Republican convention will have Spike Lee, Susan Sarandon and Maggie Gyllenhaal on Sept. 3.

UPDATE: Rage Against the Machine will play the Denver Coliseum on Aug. 27 as part of the Tent State Music Festival, with Flobots, The Coup and Wayne Kramer. Tent State is meant to confront the Democratic convention about stopping the war in Iraq.

PHOTO: Daughtry by Danny Clinch for 19/RCA

De La Soul, "Me, Myself & I"

De La Soul, the Amityville-based trio that broke the barriers of hip-hop with its breakthrough album “3 Feet High and Rising,” is among this year’s honorees for VH1's “Hip Hop Honors,” along with Cypress Hill, Naughty by Nature, Slick Rick, and Too Short.
Tracy Morgan was announced as the event’s host yesterday, but performers for the event, set to air Oct. 7 on VH1 and VH1 Soul, have not yet been named. “‘Hip Hop Honors’ has come to represent the pinnacle of innovation and achievement in hip hop music,” said Tom Calderone, VH1's executive vice president and general manager.

The good news: Metallica is planning its first tour in four years to support the upcoming "Death Magnetic" album, to be released on Sept. 12, and the tour includes a stop at Nassau Coliseum.

The bad news: The Nassau show is at the tail-end of the tour, which kicks off Oct. 21 in Glendale, Ariz., meaning they won't get to the New York area until Jan. 29.

Ticket info hasn't been finalized yet, but the band says Mission Metallica platinum members will get first crack at the tickets.

PHOTO: Metallica for Warner Bros.

The song Jay-Z premiered at Kanye West's MSG show last week is apparently complete and all over the Internets now, poised for being part of Hova's upcoming "Blueprint 3" album, though it doesn't really sound like a first single, does it? And does Oasis' Noel Gallagher really need more attention, with a name check here, even if it is a negative one?

Jockin' Jay-Z Blueprint 3!!! [Kanyeuniversecity.com]

Diddy is nothing if not pre-emptive.

Sensing MTV News' James Montgomery was going to trash Donnie Klang's new video "Take You There" on "FNMTV," the way he has criticized videos from Klang's "Making the Band 4" co-stars Danity Kane and Day 26, Diddy rushed the stage to lean on Montgomery to do the chorus of Maino's "Hi Hater."

When Montgomery tries to gingerly say there was nothing new in the video, Diddy, who is featured in the video and on the track, says, "Who are you? Where did you come from? What hit records have you ever made? The guy is a star! Donnie Klang is a star!"

Time will tell who's right. Klang's debut "Just a Rolling Stone" hits stores on Sept. 2.

Diddy Goes After MTV News' James Montgomery on 'FNMTV' -- Why? [MTV]

PHOTO: Diddy gives Jordin Sparks a kiss after trying to "intimidate" MTV's James Montgomery (left) into saying something nice about Donnie Klang. Photo by Chris Polk for MTV.

Billy Joel is used to shrugging off criticism, but apparently New Zealand critic Grant Smithies went a bit too far in a recent article, saying "most of his output from the 1980s and 90s is sentimental rubbish."

"You didn't bring any of this up during the interview, and I certainly would have welcomed the opportunity to discuss those kinds of things, person to person," Joel wrote in a letter to Smithies' paper, the Sunday Star-Times, published today. "I believe that it's always best to be upfront with someone when you have strong opinions about their work or their image, simply as a gesture of respect, or if the respect isn't there, then purely as professionalism. Had I known you felt this way, I still would have done the bloody interview, but your comments reveal you to be already critically predisposed and somewhat insincere. You are still welcome to attend our concert in Auckland, but just as a safety precaution, please wear a hockey mask."

Smithies responded: "I've never had a letter from someone in the big league before. It's actually made him go up in my estimation. He just wants respect for his work and I think good on him for making direct contact."

But he doesn't plan on going to the Auckland concert. That's probably a good idea, not because of Joel, but Joel fans can be quite an intimidating bunch.

PHOTO: Joel at Shea Stadium by Ari Mintz for Newsday.

Billboard's Hot 100 chart turned 50 this week and what more appropriate way for it to celebrate than with more charts. The first of a series of charts leading to a special edition next month is online today, chronicling the artists who have had the most No. 1's on the chart in the past five decades.

The surprises aren't No. 1 The Beatles, with 20, or No. 2 Mariah Carey, with 18, but farther down the line. The Bee Gees come in at No. 9, with nine chart-toppers, ahead of The Rolling Stones with eight. And The Stones are tied at No. 12 with Usher, who apparently rehired his mother as his manager yesterday, firing manager Benny Medina and his publicists because of the disappointing showing of his album "Here I Stand." (Yeah, it couldn't be because the album wasn't, you know, um, good.)

And speaking of not good, Katy Perry's "I Kissed a Girl" remains at the top of this week's Hot 100, for the seventh week. Watch out, Beatles.

BLUEPRINT 3 from kwest on Vimeo.

Closing out his show last night at Madison Square Garden, Kanye West revealed that he's producing Jay-Z's much-anticipated "Blueprint 3" album, right before Hova appeared to deliver a new song. But is this Oasis-baiting song ("Jockin' Jay-Z"?) going to make the album or just another clever Jay freestyle? Guess we'll have to wait 'til the holidays to find out ...

Joseph Dionisio, Backstage Pass guest contributor, dishes on the last Long Island show The Police may ever give:

"I had a house, a job as a teacher, a mortgage. What the ---- happened?" Sting asked in mock incredulity at last night's concert at the Nikon at Jones Beach Theater.

What happened is that the band stayed true to its spirit during its second of two nights at the Beach, careening through its hit-laden catalog with virtually the same zeal it exhibited during the Reagan administration. If you missed it ...

• If you want proof that Sting doesn't take himself too seriously -- no easy task, considering the Nabokov references that irked critics early in his career -- check out the tail of Elvis Costello's set. Shortly after Sting, wearing a Seinfeld-esque white silk puffy shirt, shared Costello's mike on "Alison," he, Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers donned Elvis costumes (Costello, not Presley), and in wigs and glasses, cavorted like the Marx Brothers.

• During the band's encore, Summers doled out an earnest rendition of Jimi Hendrix's "Purple Haze."

• Before the encore began, the crowd roared at a shirtless photo of Sting, circa 1978, looking fitter than an Olympian. So when Sting picked up his bass for one last time -- shirtless, of course -- fans could only marvel that the man's waistline had barely gained an ounce. We can only guess that Copeland can't match the fitness level of Sting, who repeatedly tried in vain to lift the drummer's shirt.

Wow, there's a lot of anger about this whole Jason Castro "flubbing" thing. Yes, I know he's doing the Israel Kamakawiwo'ole version of the song. He flubs a little at around 1:30 in this clip, something about "dreams that you dare." It wasn't a big deal to me, but it was noticeable. Nevertheless, I still thought he did a fine job with it. Can we stop the name-calling now, Jason Castro fans? We're on the same side.

From our pal and boss Kevin Amorim:

"I remember the first time we played Long Island," a firm and fit Sting told Jones Beach about seven songs into The Police's Monday night show. "We played My Father's Place. Well, not my father's place, but your Father's Place. And then we came back and played the Nassau Coliseum."

Nostalgia is good . . . in small doses. And last night's historic Police concert at the Nikon Theater at Jones Beach hit the spot. For more than an hour and a half, the Anglo-American trio -- calling it quits (again) after Thursday's show at Madison Square Garden -- played with the exuberance of a band half its age. Say what you will about Sting, the man looks and sounds good. Still. Drummer Stewart Copeland and guitarist Andy Summers, though not as physically well-preserved as their bass-playing boss, have more chops than a kung-fu flick. Still.

Throw in opening act Elvis Costello and the Imposters (whose keyboardist, Steve Nieve, and drummer, Pete Thomas, are from the Attractions), and, well, you have the makings of a WLIR concert that could have taken place in the early '80s at the Malibu.

But before we try and tune in Larry the Duck on the old 92.7 FM frequency, let's get back to the show.

The Police put out hits – all of them. During the first encore, "Roxanne" made neck hairs stand on end. "Can't Stand Losing You," another biggie off the 1978's "Outlandos d'Amour" (A&M) debut was more rave-up than reggae number. "I guess this is our last goodbye," Sting sang, without realizing the importance of his words.

"Wrapped Around Your Finger" was turned into an epic on us, with Copeland utilizing chimes, kettle drums and other percussion. (He also opened the show around shortly before 9 with a bang on the gong behind his drum kit.) And Summers shone on most every number, but his squealing intro to "Driven to Tears," may have caused some to cry, in a good way.

It was Sting's show, however. And so he was responsible for many of the night's little annoyances. Sure, his bass playing as supple as ever, but after a while, all those "ee-oo-ee-oo's" (and variations thereof) became grating. (Fine, "Walking on the Moon" needs a few "ee-yo-ee," but did he have to sing "Roxanne-o" during one verse?) And those howls? Oh, boy.

Opener Costello and his band played songs off the new "Momofuku" (Lost Highway) album, but it was the classics that livened the place up. "Pump It Up," Everyday I Write the Book" and "Watching the Detectives" may have taken a few notes each to become recognizable. One guy who was immediately identifiable during "Alison" was Sting. Dressed in his pre-concert khakis, the Policeman walked out on stage and began sharing verses with Elvis. Now that would have been something to hear back in, say, 1980.

BONUS: If you want to see The Police's final show, the last two sections at the rear of the stage have opened up for Thursday's Garden show. The seats can be had for a $50 contribution. All proceeds from Thursday's show go to Public television's program for the arts.

SETLIST: Message in a Bottle / Walking on the Moon / Demolition Man / Voices in My Head / When the World is Running Down / Don't Stand So Close to Me / Driven to Tears / Hole in My Life / Every Little Thing She Does is Magic / Wrapped Around Your Finger / De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da / Invisible Sun / Can't Stand Losing You // ENCORES: Roxanne / King of Pain / So Lonely / Every Breath You Take / Next to You

PHOTOS: Andy Summers and Sting at Nikon at Jones Beach Theater on Monday night: Newsday Photos / Thomas A. Ferrara

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Unlike any other "American Idols Live" tour, this year's version had 10 singers who could easily hold the stage for their three songs. However, that also made this year's version the least different from the TV show ever. Even the group finale of Rihanna's "Don't Stop the Music" had been seen before. That said, there were a few unexpected things at the first Nassau Coliseum show:

TOP 5 SURPRISES AT "AMERICAN IDOLS LIVE" LAST NIGHT

5. Jason Castro doesn't get "Crazy": It's hard to believe, but somehow he made the Gnarls Barkley song "Crazy" annoying. It was slowed down, kinda noisy and a little messed up, even after he flubbed the words of "Over the Rainbow," though he smoothed it over nicely.

4. Ramiele Malubay's Strong Island salute: Sure, she probably doesn't know that Taylor Dayne is from Baldwin, but that doesn't really matter. Her version of "Love Will Lead You Back" was strong and sweet and connected well.

3. Kristy Lee Cook still working it: She wasn't the best singer, but she still knows how to give a crowd what it wants. She got a big ovation, in part, because she was the only one who handed out t-shirts.

2. Brooke White, arena rocker: Nothing fazed Brooke White. Not the big crowd, not the faulty mic stand that get slipping so that she had to stop playing guitar and hold it up a couple of times, after skooching down slowly to keep singing into the mic. And when it came time to bring it, she knocked Coldplay's "Yellow" out of the park.

1. Michael Johns' booty pop: He had the best set of all the Idols (sorry Davids), belting out "We Are the Champions" and "Dream On" like he had been playing arenas for years. But the way he enjoyed himself during the two group songs made Johns all the more endearing, especially his half-joking version of the Beyonce booty pop from "Crazy in Love" that he did during "Don't Stop the Music." It was one of the evening's only moments where it looked like someone was enjoying with working with everyone else.

SETLIST: Chikezie - I Believe to My Soul / Caught Up / So High // Ramiele - I Want You Back / Love Will Lead You Back / If I Never See Your Face Again // Michael Johns - We Will Rock You/We Are the Champions / It's All Wrong, But It's All Right / Dream On // Kristy Lee Cook - Squeezin' the Love Outta You / God Bless the USA / Cowgirls // Carly Smithson - Bring Me to Life / Crazy on You / I Drove All Night // Brooke White - Let It Be / 1234 / Yellow // Chikezie, Ramiele, Michael, Kristy Lee Cook, Carly, Brooke - Pride (In the Name of Love) /// Jason Castro -