So in the heartfelt season finale of Glee, Mr. Schuster takes out his ukulele and sings for his class a rendition of “Somewhere over the Rainbow” – the same version Jason Castro was known for back in American Idol, and I must say the Glee club teacher’s version pales in comparison. His voice doesn’t have that unique quality to it (I feel that Schuster’s voice is very boy band / acapella) that the dreadhead has, and musical timing and interpretation was done better by the American Idol contestant. You be the judge if you agree:
Will Schuster’s version:
Jason Castro’s version:
What’s your take on this Somewhere Over the Rainbow duel?
I am totally stoked. Jason Castro has to be like one of my top 5 favorite American Idol contestants, and to hear that his album is doing this well makes me really happy. What I always loved about him (which Paula Abdul also mentioned several times in the show) is how he uniquely interprets songs. The way he times his wordings as he sang Hallelujah and Somewhere over the Rainbow is living testament to that.
His voice also has that unique vibe to it – it has a certain twang that I cannot really describe accurately, but basically if you hear his songs on the radio, you know it’s the cute lovable dread head singing.
I have not gotten his album yet (but I most definitely will!), I’ve only bought his EP and it was a totally good buy. The acoustic version of Let’s Fall in Love Again on the EP was good but I am excited to own the full album so that I can have the original version with all the beats to it. I think this song really represents Jason Castro the best and I’m glad he released this before Love Uncompromised. If I were You is another fun tune he dishes out – the lyrics (”If I were you, I’d fall for me”), the singing, everything is so fun, and an absolute delight to the ears.
I also liked his slower songs. Sweet Medicine, for one, has a very good melody:
