Details Release Date: Oct 01, 2002; Lead Performances: Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini; Genre: Pop

First the surprises: Justin comes off like a cruise-ship lounge act, Nikki's growl is almost credible, and Ejay got robbed. Kelly's four-song lesson in unchecked riffing bookends these flaccid soul covers, with Tamyra and Christina's first moments of recorded greatness providing the only solace. For bonus smiles, don't miss an all-hands-on-deck atonal rendition of ''California Dreamin''' that would do John Cage proud.

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Originally posted Oct 18, 2002 Published in issue #678 Oct 18, 2002 Order article reprints

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