I tried to keep my composure during this performance. It was going well on my part. Once he started the la-la-las, I couldn't contain it; I died laughing.
Like I said...it's the song itself that's so poor, not Johnny ❤️ I have to give him kudos for trying…He was 16 years old for pity's sake! Great voice...but I honestly never could stand the song or even half of the lyrics! And those la-la's are way too much to take 😔
Lol yeah, this is great to hatewatch but the kid was 16. Paula got a lot of crap for being “too nice” a lot of the time but really he just embarrassed himself on live TV and she’s being kind and constructive which is what he needed while still acknowledging it was bad. She reminds me of my favorite teachers.
I totally agree with Simon. Everytime I remember about the worst performance in American Idol history (top 12), the first thing that came to my mind is John Stevens Crocodile Rock.
Yep, 15 years later and when I think about Crocodile Rock, I think about his performance. At least I have a really good laugh though.....so it's not all bad. Haha.
Simon really was 100% right. There are a handful of performances from the old Idol days I go back and watch like Kelly's You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman, Fantasia's Summertime, Carrie's Alone....and John Stevens's Crocodile Rock is the only bad one that I still watch ALL the time. He made his mark.
This is one of my favorite moments ever! How he ever got the nerve to even do This was a masterstroke in karaoke comedy! I love watching this. Classic stupidity at its best!
0:18 "I'm afraid for Johnny on this song, it can go for you or against you." Elton knew what was coming. 😂😂😂😂 The most unforgettable performance in AI history!! 😂😂
Poor John Stevens. The guy is one dimensional singer who was way out of his element. He can pull off singing crooner classics, but sucks in every other genre. And the dancing is absolute cringe.
John Stevens is a super talented dude. This song and genre are not right for him though. Ask Sinatra to do a song like this and you’d get the same result, it’s completely out of his zone. People say John sucks because of this performance, but if you listen to the music he’s done after idol, he really found his niche. This show wasn’t right for him. He made an entire album of original jazz songs in 2015 and it’s really good. Simon was right, but it does not at all reflect John Stevens as an artist.
So true, most of my generation does not have much appreciation for Jazz or other "older" styles of music. I think he felt pressured to deliver the type of music that the audience wanted to hear and he seemed really out of place singing it. But his "Shadow of your smile" cover on that album had me nearly in tears, I am 100% playing that song at my wedding. I never found any updates of him again after his accident though. I've always wondered what he is up to nowdays...
I actually liked it. I had fun watching this performance. I don’t think it’s as bad as people say it is. I can say that it’s not amazing and it’s not award winning. But it’s fun, engaging and enjoyable at least.
That’s funny because Elton John told everyone that his favorite was Jennifer Hudson, exactly the one I knew was the best performer in a real world setting. That didn’t prevent Simon from bashing and ragging on her week after week. Then Jennifer enters the real world and only wins an Oscar, Golden Globe, Critic’s Choice Award, Screen Actor’s Guild Award and only two Grammys. Yep Simon, Hudson was out-of-her-depth in that competition, but not out-of-her-depth in the real world of entertainment. She only became a megastar after leaving Idol. When Sir Elton John says you’re the best, you’re the best. He went as far as to say she was the only one that gave him goosebumps when she sang. I get the feeling, she always gave me chills with certain notes. Jennifer has a one-of-a-kind, golden voice that Elton could hear, I could hear, but somehow the little tween voters and the Frauen, as a particular site used to refer to them (you’ll only get the joke of you’re familiar with the site) couldnt hear. That site had it right though, because every one of those American Idol tours was filled to the brim with the Frauen. Frauen whose ears would turn off once their eyes were excited by a pretty face, which were usually male faces. That was why Idol soon became WGWG stars for about five or six years, where the only winners were White Guys With Guitars. It began with David Cook, then Kris Allen, to Lee Dewyze, then to Scotty McCreery before the reigns were handed over to Phil Phillips. They should have changed the name of the show to The White Guys With Guitars hour. I guess they could have gone with we listen to a lot of Karaoke singers for weeks and then pick the cutest white guy with the shiniest guitar to win. That would be a long name, but it’s at least accurate. Idol was a total joke and in no way reflected what the music world wanted. Most winners disappeared into obscurity within a few years. Only a handful made any kind of a serious career out of it and most of those were ones eliminated early on the show, like Chris Daughtry. In a real world contest, not rigged by Fremantle Entertainment, Jennifer would have won the contest the years she competed. It probably worked out for the best that she didn’t win and end up under Idol’s draconian contract.
The thing is: This is before AI had elaborate bands or contestants were able to come up with their own arrangements. It was basically just a karokee track in the background. Contestants were pretty boxed in artistically those first few seasons.
Well she had to in order to try to not seem hypocritical. They always bashed contestants for staying in their "safe zone" so when John takes a risk, they bash him for that too lolol!!!
I critiqued the song before Randy and Simon and i said the same thing. That was bad singing and bad dancing at it's best 😂😂😂😂😂. And paula tried harddddd to say something nice to him !!!
I swear that he somehow huffed some helium before doing the LaLaLaLala part, but I swear I can’t see him doing it. He’s a magician, because he slipped that helium in there somewhere?
I doubt that John himself chose this song. He knew his voice and he would have known this would be the wrong song choice. Producer probably did this for ratings.
He said that was worth the film ever made and he must have not seen the movie killer clowns from outer space now that dumbest mostworst movie ever made Well don't forget about Jesus Christ he died to save your life so why not give him a whole lot of thought because the end is so close but not just for that reason do it out of love it's only fair that's exactly why Jesus died for us cause he obviously loved us100⁰/⁰ truly does love u all of us he knew exactly what was going to happen and back then they were so brutal he had a choice to he could have told his father (our all mighty God) no just like saiyan did but no he didn't turn his back on us like satan did and does obviously but even though Jesus christ knew what was going to happen but he still went through it
Agreed❤️👍🏻 I detest the song itself...however I do love the way John sings with his soulful, smooth croonings....and the fact that he got all the lyrics down pat is impressive! I don't care what anyone thinks; he's a great singer...and he honestly needed more credit on Idol. Simon bashing John always frustrated me😔 I was always thinking: "This is a 16-year-old boy! He's really good! Give him a break!" 😍
Lmao Elton 100% knew what was coming
I felt so bad.......Elton John helped this boy!!!! Elton tried. He really did. Elton wanted to help him
I tried to keep my composure during this performance. It was going well on my part. Once he started the la-la-las, I couldn't contain it; I died laughing.
Sound like he had a damn voice crack
Like I said...it's the song itself that's so poor, not Johnny ❤️ I have to give him kudos for trying…He was 16 years old for pity's sake! Great voice...but I honestly never could stand the song or even half of the lyrics! And those la-la's are way too much to take 😔
Omg
iconic classic Idol performance
Not gonna lie he kinda look like young Rick astley
omg im not the only one who thought that?
But didnt perform like him
Damn, Paula actually gave really eloquent criticisms in the early seasons.
Lol yeah, this is great to hatewatch but the kid was 16. Paula got a lot of crap for being “too nice” a lot of the time but really he just embarrassed himself on live TV and she’s being kind and constructive which is what he needed while still acknowledging it was bad. She reminds me of my favorite teachers.
I totally agree with Simon. Everytime I remember about the worst performance in American Idol history (top 12), the first thing that came to my mind is John Stevens Crocodile Rock.
that comes to my mind as well
Domeju i have to admit the lalalas were hilariously embarrassing i laughed and it was humourous
Yep, 15 years later and when I think about Crocodile Rock, I think about his performance.
At least I have a really good laugh though.....so it's not all bad. Haha.
@sboudreaux27 Music of the heart was his worst in my eyes 👀
Simon really was 100% right. There are a handful of performances from the old Idol days I go back and watch like Kelly's You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman, Fantasia's Summertime, Carrie's Alone....and John Stevens's Crocodile Rock is the only bad one that I still watch ALL the time. He made his mark.
This is one of my favorite moments ever! How he ever got the nerve to even do This was a masterstroke in karaoke comedy! I love watching this. Classic stupidity at its best!
0:18 "I'm afraid for Johnny on this song, it can go for you or against you." Elton knew what was coming. 😂😂😂😂 The most unforgettable performance in AI history!! 😂😂
And this guy got further than Jennifer Hudson LMAO
1:34 omg he turned into elmo
I read this comment as he did it. Omg, I'm cryinnng! LOL
OMG that’s hilarious!
man this is classic lol. He got that pitty votes after this
I watched nearly every season from 2002 to 2006, and this is the only performance I remember.
It’s rough because I live in East Amherst
1:33 one of the best moments in AI history
Oh Lordy! That was really excruciating! I can understand why it was one of the worst performances in the history of American Idol!
it has to be seen to be believed
That performance was terrible.
Poor John Stevens. The guy is one dimensional singer who was way out of his element. He can pull off singing crooner classics, but sucks in every other genre. And the dancing is absolute cringe.
The lalalas were hilatious
Iconic.
It wasn't that horrible until the "la la la" part and then it just went completely off the rails.
I feel terrible for him, he was young and picked the wrong song. It was brave like Paula said
classics of idol
Am I the only one who thinks he looks a little or sounds a little like Ken Jennings from Jeapardy (even though Ken doesn't sing?
John Stevens is a super talented dude. This song and genre are not right for him though. Ask Sinatra to do a song like this and you’d get the same result, it’s completely out of his zone. People say John sucks because of this performance, but if you listen to the music he’s done after idol, he really found his niche. This show wasn’t right for him. He made an entire album of original jazz songs in 2015 and it’s really good. Simon was right, but it does not at all reflect John Stevens as an artist.
So true, most of my generation does not have much appreciation for Jazz or other "older" styles of music. I think he felt pressured to deliver the type of music that the audience wanted to hear and he seemed really out of place singing it. But his "Shadow of your smile" cover on that album had me nearly in tears, I am 100% playing that song at my wedding. I never found any updates of him again after his accident though. I've always wondered what he is up to nowdays...
He did a great job!
Good grief.... I remember this guy. 😵
He outlasted JHud 😂
My guy..
I actually liked it. I had fun watching this performance. I don’t think it’s as bad as people say it is. I can say that it’s not amazing and it’s not award winning. But it’s fun, engaging and enjoyable at least.
That’s funny because Elton John told everyone that his favorite was Jennifer Hudson, exactly the one I knew was the best performer in a real world setting. That didn’t prevent Simon from bashing and ragging on her week after week. Then Jennifer enters the real world and only wins an Oscar, Golden Globe, Critic’s Choice Award, Screen Actor’s Guild Award and only two Grammys.
Yep Simon, Hudson was out-of-her-depth in that competition, but not out-of-her-depth in the real world of entertainment. She only became a megastar after leaving Idol.
When Sir Elton John says you’re the best, you’re the best. He went as far as to say she was the only one that gave him goosebumps when she sang. I get the feeling, she always gave me chills with certain notes.
Jennifer has a one-of-a-kind, golden voice that Elton could hear, I could hear, but somehow the little tween voters and the Frauen, as a particular site used to refer to them (you’ll only get the joke of you’re familiar with the site) couldnt hear.
That site had it right though, because every one of those American Idol tours was filled to the brim with the Frauen. Frauen whose ears would turn off once their eyes were excited by a pretty face, which were usually male faces. That was why Idol soon became WGWG stars for about five or six years, where the only winners were White Guys With Guitars.
It began with David Cook, then Kris Allen, to Lee Dewyze, then to Scotty McCreery before the reigns were handed over to Phil Phillips. They should have changed the name of the show to The White Guys With Guitars hour. I guess they could have gone with we listen to a lot of Karaoke singers for weeks and then pick the cutest white guy with the shiniest guitar to win. That would be a long name, but it’s at least accurate.
Idol was a total joke and in no way reflected what the music world wanted. Most winners disappeared into obscurity within a few years. Only a handful made any kind of a serious career out of it and most of those were ones eliminated early on the show, like Chris Daughtry. In a real world contest, not rigged by Fremantle Entertainment, Jennifer would have won the contest the years she competed. It probably worked out for the best that she didn’t win and end up under Idol’s draconian contract.
Chris Daughtry came fourth and was bookies' favourite to win for much of his season.
Classic
After Elton's voice changed in 1988 he lowered the key.
No doubt he has a good voice. It just doesn't fit this genre.
i thought he was amazing!! so amazing!!
The thing is: This is before AI had elaborate bands or contestants were able to come up with their own arrangements. It was basically just a karokee track in the background. Contestants were pretty boxed in artistically those first few seasons.
He needed to Gay it up a little more.
This was the one time I wanted Paula to go to the dark side and just bash a contestants performance. Bless her for trying to be positive.
Well she had to in order to try to not seem hypocritical. They always bashed contestants for staying in their "safe zone" so when John takes a risk, they bash him for that too lolol!!!
I thought it was great. John is a legend.
Voice crack
Woof. This was like bad karaoke.
You know you’re a good singer if you sing Crocodile Rock better than this guy
It wouldn't take that good of a singer at all to be able to do that
@@nsncilove4517 thanks for explaining the joke
It was an absolute mess from start to finish
Ok this boy is Rick Astley not Elton John
One of my most favorite bad moments in television! An absolute embarrassment to watch!
How did this guy even get this far ?
The fact that he out lasted Jennifer Hudson is hilarious!
Pity votes were a big problem, especially for younger contestants.
John Stevens Mandy plz :)
I critiqued the song before Randy and Simon and i said the same thing. That was bad singing and bad dancing at it's best 😂😂😂😂😂. And paula tried harddddd to say something nice to him !!!
He got put through lol
HAHAHAHAHAHA
It was going so well until.. “LA La lA lA La LA LA”
The gal who followed him was WORSE and she was the one to go home!! 😂😂
He should have skipped that mid section! 😸💀
Dude’s got a 20s ragtime voice
I swear that he somehow huffed some helium before doing the LaLaLaLala part, but I swear I can’t see him doing it. He’s a magician, because he slipped that helium in there somewhere?
Funny enough he made it out of that week lol
0:41 song starts
This performance made me so uncomfortable. I thought it was bad back then. It’ seems even worse now.
1:32 me
Catastrofe! Hehe
1:34 John Just Turned Into Elmo
egads!!!!
I doubt that John himself chose this song. He knew his voice and he would have known this would be the wrong song choice. Producer probably did this for ratings.
I would’ve stopped the music and sent him home within 5 solids seconds
No dude no
What the fuckAm I watching
one of the worst performances in all of the show is what your watching
this is the 3 divas bottom 3 week right?
Nope! This was Elton John week, 2 weeks later, the 3 divas in the bottom 3 during Barry Manilow week!
Camille Velasco was eliminated in this week. this week was 2 weeks prior to the 3 diva bottom 3.
Yeah not Elton's week but he was famously extremely critical of the voting when it happened
i thought the chorus was worse than John...
This is so ridiculous
This is probably the worst I've ever seen anyone do anything
And you have had an easy life then a real easy life
When I was an eight-year-old kid watching this live I wanted him to win so bad! but now as an adult, I realize how bad of a singer he actually was lol
Was he good? No. One of the worst? Excruciating? That's harsh.
Poor arrangement of this song for this type of singer. They set him up for failure
He said that was worth the film ever made and he must have not seen the movie killer clowns from outer space now that dumbest mostworst movie ever made
Well don't forget about Jesus Christ he died to save your life so why not give him a whole lot of thought because the end is so close but not just for that reason do it out of love it's only fair that's exactly why Jesus died for us cause he obviously loved us100⁰/⁰ truly does love u all of us he knew exactly what was going to happen and back then they were so brutal he had a choice to he could have told his father (our all mighty God) no just like saiyan did but no he didn't turn his back on us like satan did and does obviously but even though Jesus christ knew what was going to happen but he still went through it
There is no energy
The Worst Performance
And camille followed my goodness might be the worst back to back ever!!
This was horrible!!
Elton John's version of Crocodile Rock is really bad, John Stevens did a better job of the song.
No!!!! SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!
SING BETTER
That was terrible.
Man this was sooo much worse than I remembered
Gotta be the worst idol performance right?
In all fairness...it's the song that sucks, not Johnny😔
Nooo this is just a pretty hard song to sing
Agreed❤️👍🏻
I detest the song itself...however I do love the way John sings with his soulful, smooth croonings....and the fact that he got all the lyrics down pat is impressive! I don't care what anyone thinks; he's a great singer...and he honestly needed more credit on Idol. Simon bashing John always frustrated me😔 I was always thinking: "This is a 16-year-old boy! He's really good! Give him a break!" 😍