Theo Tams didn’t have the cover of Rolling Stone or Entertainment Weekly, not before nor after he was named the winner of Canadian Idol last September. Yet he did something that had not been done before [at least to my knowledge], an out gay man won a version of the television juggernaut. He has also done something few have been able to accomplish, put out a pretty fantastic debut CD.
I will admit I didn’t see Canadian Idol, so I had no idea what he sounded like or even what he looked like. I happen to catch a video on YouTube for Lazy Lovers, and thought it was good, so I did some research and found out about CI. Another interesting thing was that it did not shy away from his sexuality, as the video features both a gay and a lesbian couple, as well as the str8 ones.
I liked Lazy Lovers enough to purchase the CD, Give It All Away, and give it a listen. Gotta say, I was impressed. Lazy Lovers is not my favorite track on the CD. I’m Gonna Say is a really nice opening track, blending Pop with a but of Soul, great for Tams’ voice. Reckless is a Pop/Rock song that lifts off and soars with Theo's vocals.
The CD has 13 songs, and Theo is listed as a cowriter on 7 of those, pretty remarkable for a young talent. These credits include the hot I’m Gonna Say and Lazy Lovers.He also cowrote on I Ain’t Cryin’, another hot track with some sexy guitar work featured. I know nothing about Canadian Idol nor it’s success rate, but I certainly hope Theo Tams has good sales numbers and will be releasing more music. I am not sure how soon or if Theo has any plans to hit the US on tour, but I would certainly be interested in catching him live. And you can go on his website and sign up to wish him a happy birthday on Sunday, July 12, as he turns 24 years old. Damn kids [LOL].
Howard, so glad you have discovered Theo's music and that you love it, especially since you didn't know who he was before! I have seen him live several times now and he is just incredible. If you ever get the chance be sure to take it! Theo has this amazing ability to just mesmerize his audience with the piano and his voice.....he is a Canadian music gem and I hope to be listening to his music for years to come :)
ReplyDeleteAnonymous, I am very glad myself. But I am jealous you have seen him several times, while I wait for the chance.
ReplyDeleteI'm another one who has been lucky enough to see Theo perform several times, and if you think he is amazing on CD, you NEED to see this man perform live. He holds the audience in the palm of his hand. When he performed "Weak in the Knees" while on tour, for example, the audience would sit and listen in awe. The place would be silent. Not the type of "silence" you hear when audiences are bored (shuffling, quiet chattering, and that sort of thing), but total silence as they just listened. It was incredible to see, and it happened at every show! And because he puts so much emotion into live performances, he never does a song the same way twice. Each performance is something different.
ReplyDeleteTheo was writing songs long before he won Canadian Idol. He released an independent CD called "Unexpected" at the age of 19, and it contained some amazing songs that he penned himself along with a cover of Edwin McCain's "I'll Be". One in particular, a song called "Broken", is a fan favourite. Very haunting and amazingly well written for such a young man.
BTW, it might interest you to know that Theo is not only a highly talented singer, songwriter, and musician, but he is also truly a nice guy - very down to earth and genuine.
I'm glad you had a chance to discover Theo, and I hope others will discover him through your kind words as well.
I'm another one who has been lucky enough to see Theo perform several times, and if you think he is amazing on CD, you NEED to see this man perform live. He holds the audience in the palm of his hand. When he performed "Weak in the Knees" while on tour, for example, the audience would sit and listen in awe. The place would be silent. Not the type of "silence" you hear when audiences are bored (shuffling, quiet chattering, and that sort of thing), but total silence as they just listened. It was incredible to see, and it happened at every show! And because he puts so much emotion into live performances, he never does a song the same way twice. Each performance is something different.
ReplyDeleteTheo was writing songs long before he won Canadian Idol. He released an independent CD called "Unexpected" at the age of 19, and it contained some amazing songs that he penned himself along with a cover of Edwin McCain's "I'll Be". One in particular, a song called "Broken", is a fan favourite. Very haunting and amazingly well written for such a young man.
BTW, it might interest you to know that Theo is not only a highly talented singer, songwriter, and musician, but he is also truly a nice guy - very down to earth and genuine.
I'm glad you had a chance to discover Theo, and I hope others will discover him through your kind words as well.
Very cool Theo is a great guy as well. I hadn't known about the previous CD, so I will have to check that out. Thanks for stopping by and giving all the great info!
ReplyDeletethe song was cute and he seems serious about his music
ReplyDeleteWonder Man, I think Lazy Lovers is not the strongest on the CD. It is good, but there are better. I hope Theo gets the support he needs to keep making music.
ReplyDeleteIf this is not his best, then I want to hear more!
ReplyDeleteThen Joy, you need to hear more. I can think of 4 songs off the top of my head that are better than Lazy Lovers, which I did think was good enough to find out more about him. The CD is impressive.
ReplyDeleteGlad you like Theo. You might check out some of his other performances from CI on You Tube such as Weak in the Knees, Apologize, Collide, Heaven, In the Arms of an Angel. Sweet Ones, Good Mother -all of them fantastic. Bryan Adams mentored Theo on one show and you can feel his excitement at finding such a talent. His song 'Broken' on his EP recorded by himself when he was 18 is absolutely brilliant- the arrangement, the song , and his performance- he is a major talent that hopefully with the right breaks will go very far. A book that came out about Theo states that he can mine the emotional core of a song like no other singer and I would agree 100 percent. Song you did not mention that I have grown to love is 'Dead Wrong" but you are right there are many songs on the Cd that could be hits.
ReplyDeleteWant to see a couple of recent performances from last week?
ReplyDeleteHere is Theo performing an incredibly beautiful rendition of Regina Spektor's "Samson".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PI-889EaoLc
And since he was doing a solo acoustic show, he reworked "I'm Gonna Say" into a slower piece with just his pure voice and the keyboard.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCAHYGoOa-o
Or here's one of him showing his incredible vocals on Five for Fighting's "Superman".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7e5x1kf4tQ
Anon, thanks for the tip, I enjoyed the vids. So much so, I am using 2 of them for a new post!
ReplyDelete