Taylor Hicks - Free Download From "The Distance" Available Now!

Amazon.com is offering a sample from Taylor Hick's new album, "The Distance" - a free download of "Seven Mile Breakdown" - a pure rockin' southern blues/rock ditty that will blow your socks off!! For those of you who haven't heard this song before, be prepared to pick your mouth up from the floor and then run to buy it! It's *that* good!

Don't forget, The Distance drops next Tuesday, March 10! There will be 3 versions of album with 3 different bonus tracks. One version, available at Walmart, will have the extra track, Hide Nor Hair, a Ray Charles cover. Another version containing a superior cover of Foy Vance's Indescriminate Act Of Kindness can be found at your local Target store and the last version of the album, available for download at ITunes will contain Yes We Can, a song made famous by The Pointer Sisters.

FREE DOWNLOAD

Taylor Hicks Picks David Archuleta to Win; Readies for Release of 2 CD Set Of Early Works

According to the Courier-Journal, who is "American Idol" winner Taylor Hicks rooting for on this season's show?

"David Archuleta. He kind of reminds me of Wayne Newton. You know, the "Danke Schoen" at (17). He's a young entertainer. (He'll do great) if he could just sustain himself when he tours. From that show, it doesn't necessarily have to be music, it could be film. The show form is television. There could be ample opportunities (for him) in the entertainment industry."

Hicks, meanwhile, will drop a new album this fall; a DVD called "Whomp at the Warfield," a two-disc set of his pre-"American Idol" songs and is planning tours in Asia and Italy.

"I never thought country boy from Alabama could go over to Asia and have a fan base," he said, sipping on a Jack Daniels and 7. "The soul patrol reaches around the globe. It's an international concept."

So I have to assume from this nugget of information that the Early Works CD will include more than "In Your Time" and "Under the Radar" because those two can easily fit on ONE CD (14 songs). What do you suppose the other CD will be? Re-dos? Ain't No Sunshine? Abraham, Martin & John? People Get Ready from the 'Nashville" gig? This may turn out to be one 'hell of a set', eh?

Taylor Hicks - #4 Top Audition According to TV Guide

According to TV Guide, Taylor Hicks is #4 on their American Idol's Best Auditions List! Woo hoo!! The following is their complete list of the Top 5 men and Top 5 women. See if you agree!

This Wednesday's American Idol is a "Best of the Rest" recap of the Season 7 auditions we didn't see throughout each city. That got us thinking about some of the best auditions we've seen, regardless of whether the candidate went on to Idol greatness. Instead of a top-10 list, we thought we'd have a battle of the sexes: the best women's auditions versus the best from the men. — Erin Fox

Top Five Men's Auditions

5) Chris Sligh, "Kiss from a Rose" | Watch on YouTube
Not only did Chris crack us up with his "wanting to make David Hasselhoff cry" comment, he wowed us with his soulful rendition of Seal's hit song. Paula even stood up and clapped at the end.

4) Taylor Hicks, "A Change Is Gonna Come"/"Swanee River Rock" Watch on YouTube
The funny thing about this is that Simon clearly didn't like Taylor from the get-go. You can tell his vote is a no, but Randy and Paula are really impressed by his soulful, funky voice. When Simon says he should stay in the background and will never get to the final group, we wish we could have fast-forwarded to the moment of Taylor's victory and shoved it in Simon's face.

3) Justin Guarini, "Who's Lovin' You" | Watch on YouTube
We know what you're thinking: "Justin? Seriously?" But take a look at the video, and you'll see why the judges went nuts for this unknown. Why he didn't excel as a crooner after Idol is anyone's guess, but it's fun to look back at his raw talent.

2) Chris Daughtry, "The Letter" | Watch on YouTube
Though poor Chris looks like a dear caught in headlights, his voice speaks for itself. Again, Simon thinks Chris isn't ready and gives him a no, but thank goodness Paula and Randy step in to send this mega-hit-producing rocker to Hollywood. That's right, Simon, you were wrong!

1) Clay Aiken, "Always and Forever" | Watch on YouTube
Clay looked like the elf from Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer, but he sounded like a superstar. The judges didn't know what to make of his dorky style mixed with his insanely good vocals. But they voted him through and Clay went on to sell millions of records. Frighteningly enough, he also became the object of affection for thousands of "Clay-mates."

Top Five Women's Auditions

5) Frenchie Davis, "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going" | Watch on YouTube
Holy crap, we think our ear drums just burst listening to her amazing vocal power. Randy and Paula gave her a standing ovation (Simon, of course, stayed seated but clapped as enthusiastically as he could), and if she hadn't been kicked off the show for those naughty pictures, there's no telling how far Frenchie could have gone.

4) Carrie Underwood, "I Can't Make You Love Me" | Watch on YouTube
Who knew this farm girl who sported the '80s wardrobe and glamour-shots makeup at her audition would become the Idol winner and sell a bazillion country records? Well, check out this video and you'll see why this country girl's star rose so quickly.

3) Paris Bennett, "Cowboy Take Me Away" and "Take Five" | Watch a Clip
Yes, that's right... Paris got to sing two songs because the judges were so impressed. She did a fine job with "Cowboy" but really blew us away by singing a Billie Holiday song with the grace and depth of someone much older than her 17 years. My one question is, "Where is she today, and why isn't she way more famous?"

2) Katharine McPhee, "God Bless the Child" | Watch on YouTube
Paula had goosebumps, we had goosebumps; Kat cried, we cried.... This was one of the best and most natural voices in the show's history. Now this Idol runner-up is filming movies, singing with Andrea Bocelli, and just married her boyfriend of several years. She's on a roll.

1) Melinda Doolittle, "For Once in My Life" | Watch on YouTube
For such a shy little thing, boy could she rock the house! Melinda proved that she was not only talented but also that she was a unique and refreshing addition to Idol. Can you believe she was a backup singer for so long?