Knowing the score
Connick is already tuned in to the ‘Idol’ scene
JOINING THE judging panel on “American Idol” for Harry Connick Jr. is like sitting down at the piano and seeing the sheet music to a tune he already knows. “I feel very comfortable,” says Connick, who joins prodigal daughter Jennifer Lopez and ret u r nee Keit h Urban on the panel when the show resumes Jan. 15 on Fox. “From being a mentor before, I know how the show works and what it’s about.”
If he feels any pressure to help restore some of the ratings glory “Idol” has lost in the last two years, he says that won’t lead to any over-flamboyance.
“There was a performance the other day that I thought was terrible,” he says. “So I said that. I said I couldn’t wait for it to end. And then you move on and maybe the next one will be great.”
He does admit he likes to “clown around,” but says all three judges share that trait.
“Where I bring something different,” he says, is on the professional side. “I haven’t made the same kind of movies Jennifer has made. My concerts aren’t the same as Keith’s. So I bring my own element to it.”
Since much of Connick’s music is big band and jazz, he admits it’s unlikely “Idol” will find the next Harry Connick Jr. — and he says he’s okay with that.
“This show is looking for pop stars, not jazz or big band,” he says. “Of the 600 artists we’ve watched, not one fit those categories.”
His biggest challenge so far, he says, has been spending weeks away from his wife, Jill, and their three daughters.
“You go back to your hotel room at night and you wish you could see them,” he says. “But we all know it’s a temporary thing. It could be worse.”