Sweet tunes from Yolo 'Idols' at ‘09 county fair
From the Daily Democrat August 20, 2009
By MELODY STONE
Created: 08/20/2009 09:43:13 PM PDT

Judge Dave Rosenberg hosted Yolo Idol Thursday night at the fair and said, "What's surprising to me is - we have talented people."

Yolo Idol First Place Winner Kayla Sheehan performs  "I Dreamed A Dream."  (Matthew Henderson/Democrat)

And the talent was there. The winning singer was Kayla Sheehan, 18, from Woodland. She sang "Dream a Dream" from "Les Miserables." The crowd and judges were struck by her vocal quality, composer, and overall performance.

"I get in a zone when I sing and I don't really pay attention," said Sheehan when asked how she thought she performed. She chose "Dream a Dream" because she's performed in the musical "Les Miserables" twice.

"I sing that song every chance I get."

Yolo Idol Second Place winner Jillian Caunedo sings "Blue Bayou," by Roy Orbison. (Matthew Henderson/Democrat)

Jillian Caunedo, 32, of Woodland, sang Blue Bayou, in the style of Roy Orbison, and received the honor of Yolo Idol runner up. In the middle of Caunedo's performance the CD skipped out and eventually stopped, she just kept going. The crowd clapped her through the rest of the song.

Technical difficulties plagued the show most of the night. Starting with 2008's Yolo Idol winner, Bri Wilson. Wilson sang, "Love Song" by Sara Bareilles, and the CD skipped toward the end and Wilson ended her performance early.

Christyna Lopez, 16, of Winters, tried out for American Idol earlier this year and during her performance at Yolo Idol her CD also skipped out so she had them stop the skipping music and she sang the remainder of the song, "The Climb" by Miley Cryus, acapella.

Yolo Idol Third Place winner Bob Chastain sings "The Man in Black: by Johnny Cash. (Matthew Henderson/Democrat)

Third place went to Bob Chastain, 75, who sang "The Man in Black," by Johnny Cash. He took second place in 2008, also singing a Johnny Cash song.

"I sing in his vocal range," Chastain said before the show. He said he used to sing with a tenor and always thought he couldn't sing well. He eventually found his calling as a bass and sang in three barbershop quartets and two choruses over the course of 20 years. This is his third year in Yolo Idol.

When Sheehan left the stage after her winning performance Chastain congratulated her saying, "You sang it like an Scottish woman."