Look at that. A musician showed up for the American Idol auditions in St. Louis, and the show didn’t try to pass him off as a paint store worker or a bartender or a sanitation worker.
There was Ethan Jones, 22, of Pontoon Beach, Fla., with an Idol blue bar identifying him as “musician.”
Despite all the aspiring singers who try out for the show, you don’t see that too often.
Of course, in Ethan’s case, it would have been hard to deny.
After all, he dropped out of college to join his dad’s band.
And his back-story included his father taking a hiatus from that band for drug and alcohol rehabilitation.
If you’re wondering about the band, it’s the St. Louis-based Well Hungarians. The group released albums in 1999 and 2004 that are still available on iTunes.
You can head to the band’s MySpace page to hear some of its music. Ethan sings and plays acoustic and electric guitar; Todd Jones sings and plays lead guitar.
The Well Hungarians classify their music as classic rock, southern rock and country and have played in concert with everyone from Blake Shelton to Dr. Hook. That includes an absolutely star-studded list of country musicians.
Ethan also makes music on his own, which he classifies as singer-songwriter, acoustic rock and folk. He has a separate MySpace page where you’ll find four songs.
Ethan talked about the difference in sound with the judges after his audition.
“I play country music because that’s what I was born and raised on,” he said. “I love to do it. But my heart’s in soul.”
For his audition, he sang “I’ll Be” in a performance that impressed all three judges. Said Steven Tyler: “I love the way you sing.”
As for his dad’s situation, Ethan sounded anything but bitter on Idol.
“I just want to move forward and I want that positive synergy to bring us closer together,” Ethan said, before sharing a sentimental phone call with his dad to tell him about his Idol audition success.
Here are a couple of Ethan’s non-Idol performances.
“Superstition”
“You Made Me” (original song)
“Isn’t She Lovely” with Well Hungarians
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