American Idol:The Top 5 Results Show

Bottom Two:
Syesha Mercado ("Hello Again," "Thank the Lord for the Night Time")
Brooke White ("I'm a Believer," "I Am ... I Said")


Eliminated:
Brooke White








Syesha Mercado probably has good reason to thank the lord for the night time, because he once again saved her during last night's "American Idol" elimination show. If we are to believe what "Idol's" producers would like us to (but we don't), Mercado has now been in the Bottom 2 or 3 five times this season -- more than any other contestant, even Kristy Lee Cook (who last night watched the show from the audience) -- yet has continued to emerge unscathed. Her endurance nearly parallels that of Kimberley Locke (who performed on the show a few weeks ago) during Season 2, who also placed in the Bottom 2 or 3 five times before making it to third-place finisher in 2003, as Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken advanced to the finale. Don't be surprised to see a repeat of that this year. Jason Castro will very likely fall to wayside next week as Mercado, David Cook and David Archuleta move forward to the Top 3, followed by the David-David finale that everybody has predicted for weeks now.

Last night Brooke White joined the list of elimi-
nated finalists. The blonde folkster, who at the beginning of the season was projected by many to make it all the way to the finale, began to tear up even before host Ryan Seacrest said her name. She collapsed into tears murmuring "yes" as he pronounced her the contestant going home this week. As her sad-faced husband watched from the audience, Seacrest, and then Mercado embraced White as she sobbed. Her tears were still flowing after her "journey video." She dabbed at her eyes, then Seacrest swabbed her damp face, as she thanked everyone. Her tears continued during her reprise of Neil Diamond's "I Am ... I Said," as the remaining four finalists surrounded her onstage and David Cook came forward and briefly placed a hand on her back to show his support. For us, it was the saddest departure to date this season and our eyes welled up watching it.

Watch video of Bottom 2 and elimination of Brooke White:


At the top of the show, Seacrest said that the finalists had received more than 45 million votes this week. Next, it was on the Top 5 singing a medley of Neil Diamond songs. Don't know whether it was the songs or the finalists, but it was awful this week, the worst medley of the season. Perhaps the lack of Carly Smithson's strong voice was a factor. We couldn't wait for it to end.

Watch video of Top 5 Neil Diamond group medley:


Back from commercial, Seacrest walking through the audience introduced this season's new "American Idol Extra" hosts, Season 6 finalist Gina Glocksen and Season 4 finalist Constantine Maroulis, but then walked right past Season 5 finalist Ace Young, though the camera did give Young a lot of face time. Seacrest also mentioned the "rumors" about Paula Abdul on the Internet, but never addressed the previous day's gaffe by the "Idol" judge. He only said the rumors weren't true (which ones?) and brushed the entire incident under what by now must be "Idol's" crowded carpet, saying Abdul's still part of the "Idol" family and that they love her. Hopefully one day someone will roll up that carpet and expose all the lies the producers have hidden under it. Are you listening Nigel Lythgoe? You can't keep everyone quiet forever. Sooner or later someone who knows everything we're not supposed to know is going to open their mouth about the dirty little games that go on behind the scenes of this so-called "reality" series named "American Idol."

To get our minds off what he had just said buried, Seacrest rushed right into the results, calling first Jason Castro, who sounded lucid for the first time all year, onstage. The night's first (staged) surprise was when Castro was sent to safety on the couch. The second was when David Archuleta followed him there. The producers better think carefully before they crown their boy wonder. He'll be a disaster in interviews. He can barely put together a sentence and when he succeeds at that he breaks down in giggles like a 12-year-old.

Next was an interminably long pimp video for Nigel Lythgoe's "So You Think You Can Dance." Hey, we love the show and have seen every episode, but is there no end to the newly long-haired Lythgoe's greed? That promo was longer than the elimination segment. Bleech! And as if that wasn't enough self-promotional commercial filler, we next learned that Ryan Lessnow won the design-your-own Coca-Cola cup, which Randy Jackson modeled for everyone.

Back to the results. Seacrest calls out David Cook. Are they going to shock us and lie that he was in the Bottom 2? No, they'll save that lie for Syesha Mercado, who scored the highest number of votes according to DiaIdol.com. Now, we concede that the Web site's tally could have been a bit inaccurate, but there was no way Mercado was in the Bottom 2, not when for the past two weeks the Web site has correctly predicted the contestant who received the least amount of votes (Carly Smithson and then Brooke White). If anyone doesn't believe that the show's producers lie about the results and stage certain events on the show, they are on drugs or in denial. Never forget: This is not considered a game show, it is considered a reality show, which means it is classed by the FCC as a script-based program and the producers can LEGALLY manipulate or change the voting results without consequence. Don't believe it? Record a segment of the show and read the teeny-tiny print at the very end.

In an amusing turn, Ryan ask David C. his reaction to Paula calling him the next American Idol. David answered that the first thing he thought about was what Simon said to Carly Smithson the week before about it being the kiss of death. A bit of comic relief before David joins the other two remaining male finalists on the couch. That left Syesha and Brooke as the Bottom 2. After chatting "the girls," up, Ryan tells them to have a seat for now, as they have other business to take care of first. As Brooke departs, she says that's fine, they'll stay as long as they can. Even Ryan cracks up at that.

Then it's time for the Star Who Just Released a New CD filler. Up at bat, Natasha Bedingfield performing the single "Pocketful of Sunshine" from her new album of the same name. As these things go, she wasn't bad, nor was the song. We'll give it another listen. After her performance she asks to go to couch and sit next to Archuleta. Ryan suggests David take her to the prom. He goes into giggle mode. Perhaps the sandbox would be more appropriate.

Watch video of Natasha Bedingfield singing "Pocketful of Sunshine":


And yet more filler. The stupid viewer call-in Q&A, which actually got good at the end, but not before we found out why Paula is the only judge that always gives contestants a break and whether Paula is going to do another video with Randy. The last question is from Tara (age 46) who asks Simon what was more memorable, kissing Paula or kissing her at the age of 9 in his backyard? Simon blushes, especially after she convinces him she really is the Tara Miller that he kissed when he was 9. Ryan asks Tara if Simon was a good kisser and she hems and haws. Simon reminds her that he was only 9 and didn't have a massive amount of experience. Paula wonders if she is over the rabies yet? Tara jokes that she has had a lot of therapy. Simon wonders if she is still cute? Tara tells Simon that he has aged well and she thinks she has, too. Simon, apparently smitten by the whole thing, tells everyone that Tara really was the first girl he ever kissed and that she was his first crush. Ryan promises that they will get to exchange phone numbers and then does a public service announcement warning kids not to start kissing at age 9.

Watch video of Q&A with Tara Miller, the first girl Simon kissed and his first crush:


Coming back from the break we watch the Ford commercial with the Top 5 singing "Catch the Wind" in an environmentally correct Earth Week-ish video featuring a Ford hybrid car and the Idols magically restoring green to the Earth while getting rid of garbage and environmentally bad things.

Watch video of the making of the Ford commercial "Catch the Wind":


Watch video of Top 5 Ford commercial "Catch the Wind":


Finally, the week's mentor, Neil Diamond, performed "Pretty Amazing Grace" from his forthcoming CD, due out on May 6, as his mom watched from the audience. After he sang, Ryan chatted with him. Diamond said the judges were a bit harsh on the contestants, that the contestants should ignore Simon, and that if they love what they are doing they should never stop ... never.

Watch video of Neil Diamond singing "Pretty Amazing Grace":


Next week, the remaining four finalists will each sing music from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The results show will feature live appearances by Maroon 5 and Season 4 runner-up Bo Bice.

MORE ON SIMON COWELL AND TARA MILLER

After that Q&A, People magazine located Tara and interviewed her. She chatted with PEOPLE about the fateful pucker.

"He'd taken me to the bottom of his garden," said Tara, whose last name is now McDonald-Smith. "It was very cute and it was very memorable. We were just kids. We didn't know what we were doing!"

As for who made the first move, Cowell's former neighbor in Radlett, Hertfordshire swears she can't remember.

"Really, I can't," McDonald-Smith insisted. "In those days there was like three channels on the television, there were no computers. We used to play spin the bottle ... and I got him a lot of the time. It was all good."

So what prompted her to reach out after all these years? "I saw him on American Idol and [I thought] wow, that's amazing," she explained. "It was just one of those 'This is Your Life'-type situations, and I thought I'd go for it. I hope I didn't embarrass him."

And, for the record, McDonald-Smith is not at all surprised that her childhood pal turned out to be TV's favorite Mr. Nasty.

Even back then "he was pretty forthcoming and said what he thought," recalled the single mom, who has three sons Connor, 17, Rory, 16, Liam, 11. "He was not too different than he is today."

Now that they've reconnected, the North California-based sales manager would welcome an in-person reunion.

"I'd love to meet up with him. I seriously would," she said. "We were good friends... and I think it would be great fun."

e-mail Idol Addict
© 2008

American Idol Top 5 PerformThese Diamonds Not Flawless

Watercooler buzz no doubt tomorrow will center on two things: Who's leaving "Idol" Wednesday night and what the hell was in Paula Abdul's Coke cup Tuesday night? Even though she did not appear inebriated or drugged, for the first time this season she was really making no sense. How so? How about reviewing a performance before it had even occurred! You see, the producers had to squeeze so many performances into the hour show (each contestant sang two selections) that they decided to save time by having the judges only critique each singer after their second song. Then they broke their own rule.

After the Top 5 all sang their first songs, Ryan Seacrest called all 5 finalists out on stage and quickly went to the judges to get an overview of Round 1. But Randy Jackson gave mini critiques to each performer. Following Jackson's lead, Paula started to critique Jason's TWO songs (remember he had only sung one at that point). Randy mumbled to her, "just on the first song, just on the first one," and Paula looked even more stupid and disoriented when she blurted out, "OMIGOD, I thought you sang twice." You could tell Ryan was getting flak through his earpiece as this was going on, and he said to her, "Just once. But Paula, you're seeing the future, baby, you're seeing the future. He's coming back." Paula: "This is hard!"

Simon Cowell tried to get things back on track by repeatedly asking Abdul, "But who is your favorite? Who is your favorite?" while Randy was telling her "Pick a person." It was ridiculous. You can see this mess at the end of the Syesha Mercado video of "Hello Again."

Of course, the Internet forum boards are crazy with theories on the Paula business this morning. Some are saying it's proof that "Idol" is rigged (ya mean ya didn't know that yet?) and that the producers tell the judges in advance what to say about each contestant. Others are saying that the judges took notes on the dress rehearsal performances, which they don't even have to attend. It's been written in many places that Cowell watches tapes of the dress rehearsals in his trailer and doesn't even pay attention to the telecast performances, especially because with all the noise in the studio he can barely hear them anyway. Last week Simon loved that because the show airs live America got to see it when Brooke stumbled on her lyrics then stopped and restarted her song. This week we love that because the show airs live Paula stumbled on her prewritten appraisals and reviewed a performance that hadn't even occurred yet.

Neil Diamond mentored the Top 5 this week and they all sang two selections from his impressively large catalog. We actually hated the tone of the whole show. Trying to fit 10 performances into 60 minutes was way too much. The show felt rushed and uncomfortable. Instead of feeling entertained, we felt like we were in a race and couldn't catch our breath. It was very unsettling.

Jason Castro performed
"Forever in Blue Jeans" and "September Morn." We wish we could say that he was phoning in the performances, but there wasn't enough enthusiasm to believe he even dialed the phone. Castro seemed even more bored performing than we were watching him. At least people singing karaoke in a bar seem to care what the crowd thinks about them. Jason acts as if he doesn't. Case in point, when he was rehearsing with Diamond, he not only forgot his lyrics, he brought the wrong lyrics for the song he was singing. What a stoner. After his second performance his excuse for his lousy singing was he had started choking right before he went on and it screwed him up. Uh-huh. If he isn't kicked off tonight it really will be a travesty, especially when he should have been given the boot last week. How can those silly girls keep voting him back just because of his dreadlocks and blue eyes? Even Sanjaya Malakar was gone by now last year.

After Castro's first performance Randy had said, "It was just OK. Better than last week, just OK." After his second performance, Jackson said, "Dude, look check it out man ... that was just another OK whatever performance for me. Definitely not the best." Paula said after Round 1, "Jason, the first song I loved hearing your lower register, which we never really hear. Your second song, um, I felt like your usual charm was missing for me. It kinda left me a little empty. And the two songs made me feel that you're not fighting hard enough to get into the Top 4." After Jason actually performed song two she said, "I felt you took kind of the same liberty on both songs, now. And I feel like it's safe, and you need to get outside your comfort zone. Come on! Come on! Fight. Fight." After Round 1 Simon told Jason he was forgettable. After Round 2, Cowell said, "Oh Jason, come on, we don't recognize you at the moment. For the last two weeks, this is not the Jason we put into the competition. There was no attempt to make the arrangement your own. You struggled through both songs, they were both, in my opinion, forgettable and I think you're going to look back at tonight and go, 'I don't know who this person is.' " (we do, a L-O-S-E-R)

Watch video of Jason Castro singing "Forever in Blue Jeans":


Watch video of Jason Castro singing "September Morn":


David Cook selected two of Diamond's more obscure entries, "I'm Alive" and the even more obscure "All I Really Need Is You." Although the judges greatly preferred his second song to the first, we thought they were both just OK. Unless the studio versions are very much better than what we saw last night, we won't be dialing them up much on our iPod. Which is not to say they were bad, we've just seen David Cook shine so fiercely in the past few weeks (and before) that, for us, these performances paled by comparison. Perhaps this week for him it did come down to song choice and we were less than thrilled with his.

For Round 1, Randy told him, "Very good, in the zone, very strong, doing your thing." After Round 2, he said, "You rocked the house again tonight ... blazing! blazing! blazing!" After her Jason blunder, Paula tried to say that she had mixed up David's notes with Jason's, with this attempted lousy save, "You know what, it's your notes, David, you were fantastic (although the notes she had just read were negative, what an idiot!) and it was a song that wasn't known." After the second song, she told him, "David I'm so proud of you. You not only picked two songs that are less familiar than Neil Diamond's hits, you are the only one that was able to pull that off. I feel like I'm already looking at the American Idol." Simon pronounced Round 1 "just above average" and said after Round 2, "I thought the first song was OK, I thought the second song was brilliant. You actually made it feel like that song was written this year, and that was the point I was trying to make to Jason. You changed the arrangement, you made it work for you. That was smart. Well done."

Watch video of David Cook singing "I'm Alive":


Watch video of David Cook singing "All I Really Need Is You":


Brooke White, surprisingly chose "I'm a Believer," and, not so surprisingly, "I Am ... I Said." She accompanied herself on guitar for the former and piano on the latter. Her second song worked fairly well. The best that could be said about her first is that at least she was having a good time -- even if we weren't. For us, her performance of "I'm a Believer," originally written by Diamond for The Monkees, was reminiscent of Brooke's Top 10 performance of The Beatles' "Here Comes the Sun," wearing her yellow banana dress. It was pretty much a disaster and looked like something from a kid's party. We imagine that's what nanny Brooke is like with the twins she used to take care of. We were waiting for Barney to come onstage next. Maybe Brooke's just not meant to sing happy songs professionally. However, her take on "I Am ... I Said" was earnest and heartfelt. We wished she hadn't taken Diamond's suggestion to change "New York" to "Arizona" in the song to "make it her own." It not only didn't make it her own, it sounded awkward and stupid with the rest of the lyrics, which say:

Well I'm New York City born and raised
But nowadays, I'm lost between two shores
L.A.'s fine, but it ain't home
New York's home, but it ain't mine no more

Arizona and L.A. are hardly between two shores. Oh, well. He was the mentor. Otherwise her second performance, though not her best of the season, returned her to the mode which she does do best. That she is at the bottom of DialIdol.com this week is wrong. No one was worse than Jason. In fact, Brooke was no worse than David Archuleta. She and David should be tied for the second position in the Bottom 2.

On the first go-round, Randy told Brooke, "Better than last week. Still a little karaoke for me." After her second song, he told her, "Nice job." Paula, who didn't comment on Brooke during Round 1, decided to make up for it by acting like she was back on drugs with her appraisal during Round 2. We saw Simon whisper something to Paula just before she spoke and suspect he told her to say this, because it made absolutely no sense and he loves planting non sequiturs in the head of his favorite thimblebrain just before she speaks. Paula said, "Brooke, I think that what you just did, as opposed to the first song, I felt like you did have fun, but it was right after 'American Idol Gives Back' (?????? HUH ?????? ) and there was that whole video with 'I'm a Believer' (yeah, so, what did that have to do with anything?), but this, when you come back here with this song, it does show your vulnerability, it is how you connect with the audience. Everyone loves who you are and that works. Works, works works." Aspirin please. Simon initially called her first song "a nightmare." After song two, he said, "Brooke, I really, really hated the first song, because it was sort of like a girls' night out at a karaoke bar, wasn't it? But this, this is the Brooke we like, sitting behind the piano, singing a very good song. It wasn't incredible, but it was a million times better than the first song. Well done."

Watch video of Brooke White singing "I'm a Believer":


Watch video of Brooke White singing "I Am ... I Said":


We're pretty sure that David Archuleta's now infamous dad, Jeff, is fairly quaking in his boots, as his prodigy -- or as Paula amusingly called him "savant" -- son slips from "the one to beat," to the Bottom 3, as David Cook and now Syesha Mercado race ahead of him. And, we think, it's probably all Daddy Dearest's fault. The past two weeks Archuleta has been shaking up the arrangements of the songs he's sung, -- a la David Cook -- a deed, we're sure, that can be attributed to daddy, who fancies himself a musician. Only thing is, it hasn't been working. His first song, "Sweet Caroline" was so messed up, it was barely recognizable and nowhere as good as the original. Archuleta's second song, stolen straight from the Kristy Lee Cook patriotic playbook, was "America," and even this was manipulated, with David singing "let freedom ring" at the end, which doesn't exist in the Neil Diamond lyrics. If you believe DialIdol's stats though, it not only didn't rally the troops, it didn't even rally the country's Conservatives behind little Davy this week. Truth be told you could hear a better version of the song at Disney World. Ha! Back off Daddy Dearest.

Of course, Randy who totally pimps Archuleta every week, good or bad, said after Round 1, "Da bomb. Brilliant" Later, he told him, "You are definitely in the zone right now. Another good performance, baby." After Round 2, Paula told him, "This was the absolute perfect song for you to sing. David, your voice is so on point. I just want to see that joy, and that spirit, and that prodigy and that little (idiot?) savant I used to see. I love you, I love you. You were brilliant. Have fun. Simon told David after Round 1, "I thought it was amateurish." After Round 2, almost repeating word for word what he had told Kristy Lee Cook weeks earlier after she sang Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA," Cowell said, "Well, David, that was a smart choice of song. I've got to hand it to you, that was clever. It ticked all boxes, didn't it? ... it was absolutely the right choice."

Watch video of David Archuleta singing "Sweet Caroline":


Watch video of David Archuleta singing "America":


The most pleasant surprise of the evening was Syesha Mercado, who is blossoming into a consummate performer after dragging her feet for the better part of the competition. She not only has come into her own, she arguably had the two best performances of the evening, beginning with the tender and evocative "Hello Again," which was followed by her expressive and rousing, get-on-your-feet-and-clap-your- hands rendition of "Thank the Lord for the Night Time." Although we had never heard the latter, after the show we listened to Diamond's version and, believe it or not, Mercado's version kills Neil's version. No wonder Diamond was so enthusiastic about Syesha in the video. Voters at DialIdol.com, where she sits in the No. 1 position, apparently agreed with us. It's an astounding accomplishment, especially at this point in the competition. In all honesty, we thought she'd be eliminated this week. If she is, well, the producers will outright prove the competition is rigged. A final note: Syesha looked stunning last night. The lady seems to get more beautiful every week.

After her first performance, Randy told her, "You [sic] definitely kind of in the zone, too. I thought it was strong. It was very nice vocals. It was strong, it wasn't amazing, but it was strong." Later, he said, "I think you [sic] finally realizing who you are. I think we've been saying it all along. That is also in the zone. I mean, that could have been in some play, it could have been on Broadway, it's still that carry over for me and I like you in this. This is where I like you." Paula said, "I didn't get to say anything on the first song you sang (well, you should have been lucid), so I want to say quickly, first song: I thought that that vulnerable side, as I always say, that touch to your voice, is always beautiful and that's your magic. Having said that, on your second song, it shows a whole different side and that's your performance theater theatrical place, and then when you're pop singing you could be a toss-up between Corinne Bailey Rae and Minnie Ripperton. You've got that softness in your voice." After Round 1, Simon told Syesha "I thought it was old-fashioned." After Round 2, he said, "I think what you demonstrated there again Syesha is that you are a very good actress/singer. I think, however, you may be in trouble tonight." This had all the earmarks of the producers having Simon say that because they planned to eliminate her, especially when Syesha asked him why, and he answered, "I'll tell you why. Because there's only five of you left, so it was a calculated guess. I don't think you had a really memorable second song, like some of the others tonight." Who? Like Jason? Give us a break. That was a total BS setup to eliminate her and then say, "See? Simon predicted it." Hopefully, the DialIdol.com results will force the producers to do the right thing. Especially once they realize that Syesha's a marketable commodity -- way more so than Jason and/or Brooke. Usually their noses for $$$$ lead the way, so hopefully Syesha is safe.

Watch video of Syesha Mercado singing "Hello Again":


Watch video of Syesha Mercado singing "Thank the Lord for the Night Time":


Best: Syesha Mercado
Worst: Jason Castro
Bottom Two: Jason and Brooke/David Archulta (tie)

e-mail Idol Addict
© 2008

American Idol:The Top 6 Results Show

Bottom Two:
Syesha Mercado ("One Rock 'n' Roll Too Many")
Carly Smithson ("Jesus Christ Superstar")

Eliminated:
Carly Smithson








Watch video of Carly Smithson being eliminated:


Before the opening number, in which the Top 6 do a rather tepid ren-
dition (though the girls were better than the boys) of "All I Ask of You" from "Phantom of the Opera" (now we know why they wouldn't let Carly do the song) accompanied by Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber on the piano, host extraodinaire Ryan Seacrest tells us than more than 38 million votes were received (all wrong, appararently). He then introduces Randy Jackson by gripping his shoulders, Paula Abdul with a kiss on the cheek and Simon Cowell, also with a kiss, perhaps trying to reignite the are they/aren't they gay controversy we've heard so little of this season.

Watch video of Top 6 singing "All I Ask of You" with Andrew Lloyd Webber:


It's time to pimp the Idols Live '08 tour for the first time this season. This year, it launches in Jordin Sparks' hometown, Glendale, Ariz., on July 1st, then travels to 48 other cities. Considering last year's poor box-office receipts, perhaps the Idol folks feel more comfortable launching the tour in a rock-solid Idol town where they can almost certainly be sure of a soldout venue. We are also advised that voting for the songwriting contest ends tonight -- as if our votes mean anything, everyone knows the producers will pick the songwriter they want to work with -- before we go into the recap of Tuesday's show.

Watch recap of Tuesday night's show:


Ryan reintroduces Webber, and they chat about singing for TV vs. the stage. Ryan also asks Webber about Brooke White restarting her song, saying it was the first time it ever happened on "Idol." Er, except that it was the second time Brooke, alone, did it this season. Perhaps Ryan has short-term memory loss, but someone should replay him the video of White's "Every Breath I Take" performance. Webber defends her actions (at this point we're smelling a rat and beginning to assume she's safe), saying that even the best people lose their way, and that Brooke's a talented girl. He also said it was really a shame because in the dress rehearsal White was flawless. Moving on to Jason Castro, Webber said he probably wouldn't take his advice no matter what he said. (Do we smell the scent of a second setup here?). Perhaps because we're not going to suffer through the lame viewer Q&A tonight, Ryan finally asked Webber if he wrote a love song for Paula and Simon, what would he call it? Webber offers "Time to Say Goodbye" or "How Can I Miss You If You Won't Go Away?" Simon prefers the former title. The Ford commercial features David Archuleta as a cartoonist drawing the Top 6 as punk characters to Soft Cell's "Tainted Love." Somewhere, Danny Noriega is no doubt laughing with a finger "L" against his forehead and mouthing, "LOSERS." Maybe he'll make a video of it.

Watch Ford video "Tainted Love":


We next have to endure The President and Mrs. Bush thanking the producers for raising $65 million through "Idol Gives Back." Of course, this is played pretty low key as the show was a half-hour longer than last year's production, yet netted $11 million LESS (the ratings were also down in the millions compared to last year) and after the producers said they were aiming for $100 million, or $24 million MORE than last year's $76 million total. With those disappointing numbers don't be surprised if "Idol Gives Back" disappears next year (after all, the show is also about raising money for the producers) or is relegated to solely a Web drive.

On to the results. Ryan calls the Davids -- Archuleta and Cook, who resembled Wally and the Beaver as they entered the stage -- out first. Did anyone think they weren't safe? C'mon. Seacrest asks David Cook why he decided not to rearrange "Music of the Night," and David tells him that he keeps hearing words like predictable, and thought the most unpredictable thing would be to do the song as it was written. Ryan sends them to the couch and tells they'll be working with Neil Diamond next week.

It's now time for the "Where Are They Now" former "Idol" contestant segment, focusing on Broadway. Ryan mentions Diana DeGarmo, Fantasia and LaKisha (who was also in the audience), but the video features Tamyra Gray in "Rent" and Clay Aiken in "Spamalot." Gray looks better than in her "Idol" years, but Clay is becoming decidely middle-aged looking, especially in that Mr. Rogers outfit.

Watch "where are they now" video of Tamyra Gray and Clay Aiken:


Putting off the results even longer, Simon Cowell gets to pimp his "discovery" Leona Lewis, guaranteeing that her CD and single hold steady on the Billboard charts and make him even more $$$. Is it us, or is "Bleeding Love" the most boring No. 1 song EVAH? We needed a transfusion by the time it ended. Is this the reason Clive Davis got booted from Sony/BMG again, since he co-manages Lewis with Cowell?

Watch video of Simon Cowell discovery Leona Lewis singing "Bleeding Love":


Finally, we're back to the only thing anyone watching cared about -- the results. Ryan calls out Syesha Mercado and Brooke White, and goes into how well Syesha performed, while Brooke, well, screwed up, making us all think Mercado is safe and White is stool-bound. Surprise (was it really? we've come to know the games the producers play), Brooke is safe and Syesha is in the Bottom 2. Boo! Hiss! Next we play the same game with Carly Smithson and Jason Castro. Ryan talks about how Simon loved Carly's performance, while Randy called Jason's a train-wreck and Simon said he looked like a kid being forced by his parents to perform a song he didn't like at a wedding. Who's safe? Why, Jason, of course. Ryan tells us that Carly and Syesha will perform encores of their numbers, after which one will be sent home. On the couch, Brooke seems weepy and upset about being saved once again while someone more worthy is in danger, while Jason, with a dopey smile on his face (when isn't there?) looks as if he's thinking "Whoa, man, that was close, where's the weed?" When Ryan asks the judges if America got it right, Simon says that after watching the show back he thinks Brooke survived because she made herself human (no, actually, Simon you saved her when you said that you, too, would have stopped and restarted the song), while Jason wasn't good but he was charming.

Watch video of Carly Smithson reprising "Jesus Christ Superstar" and Syesha Mercado reprising "One Rock 'n' Roll Too Many":


After Carly and Syesha sing, Ryan asks Randy about the voting this week. Randy says it was a bit of a popularity contest, while Paula tells the women she has never seen more relaxation and joy at this stage. Carly answers that she and Syesha are roommates. Well, not anymore. Ryan tells Carly she is going home, and, to be honest, she looks happy about it. Ryan wants to give Simon and Carly one last time to talk things out, and Simon apologizes to Smithson for complimenting her the night before, calling it the kiss of death. He tells her to leave with her head held high. Carly says she's not upset about going home and that she has had the best time. We believe her.

Next week, Neil Diamond mentors the Top 5.






e-mail Idol Addict
© 2008

American Idol Top 6 PerformMusic of the Night

"Blaming it all on the nights on Broadway
Singin' them love songs,
Singin' them straight to the heart songs.
Blamin' it all on the nights on Broadway
Singin' them sweet sounds
To that crazy, crazy town."
-- The Bee Gees' "Nights on Broadway"

The Top 6 met their greatest challenge of the season to date, singing not only the sounds of Broadway, but specifically the sounds of Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber. Webber mentored the six proficiently but wasn't overly forthcoming with praise and gush. His at times dour and/or sour expressions (especially from the audience after David Archuleta's performance), made him look like a dyspeptic, fussy old dowager. But you can't deny his talent. He has composed probably half of the musicals that have appeared on Broadway and London stages for the past 40 years, racking up such hits as "Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat," "Sunset Boulevard," "Evita," "Cats,"
"Starlight Express," "Jesus Christ Superstar" and, perhaps his greatest accomplishment of all, "Phantom of the Opera." So it was with great anticipation and trepidation that we awaited Tuesday night's show. Generally, people either love or hate show music. We are part of the former group and are especially passionate about "Phantom." Here is how it all came down on Tuesday.

We feared for Syesha Mercado when we scanned the night's spoilers and saw that she was not only first up, which has not proven favorable this season, but also singing a more obscure number, "One Rock 'n' Roll Too Many," from "Starlight Express." We knew that combination could be lethal, although we also knew that her set of pipes would probably lend itself to show music better than those of the other remaining females. Happily, she did not fail to impress. Starting the number atop the orchestra's grand piano, and looking killa great in a clinging red bandage dress, Syesha was more animated than she had appeared all season and sassed it to the max, even dancing with musical director Ricky Minor. In her preperformance video, Andrew Lloyd Webber predicted she just might bring the house down and she did, to an impressive standing O. The evening began to show great promise.

Randy Jackson told her "Not only is this your element, I think you could be a huge Broadway star. That was your best performance to date, right there." Paula Abdul said, "You brought the house down right, right at the very beginning," and Simon Cowell, much to Mercado's delight, began with, "Syesha, that was very sexy," then continued, "I think this was one of your strongest performances so far. You showed masses of personality, which we haven't seen before."

Watch Syesha Mercado singing "One Rock & Roll Too Many" from "Starlight Express":


Sadly, our happpiness was short-lived with the next performance, the train wreck named Jason Castro. To say Jason was a fish out of water would be a gross understatement. He was more like a whale on a mountain-climbing expedition. It was immediately apparent that Jason knew nothing about Broadway music. To make matters worse, he chose the iconic "Memory," a song usually sung by a diva-ish voice, such as the great Betty Buckley's. He then demonstrated his complete ignorance of the song and the show it came from when he uttered, "I didn't know it was sung by a cat." Well, duh. But worst of all, he massacred the song. He looked pained singing it and it was painful to sit through. Webber said he never thought he'd see a man in dreadlocks singing "Memory" from "Cats," and perhaps it would have been better if he never had. It was also the second time in as many weeks that a mentor said of Jason, he'll probably not listen to anything I told him, and was correct.

Randy said, "It was a little bit of a train wreck." Um, not just a little bit, there were very possibly fatalities, including a good chance of Jason's deserved elimination tonight. Paula absurdly said, "I think it was a very wise choice for you to do this song, because it allows you to put your influence into it and further identifies your unique being as an artist." Earth to Paula. We had to laugh, though, watching Simon getting so totally exasperated by Paula's stupid rambling critique that he leaned back in his chair, puffed his cheeks and exhaled with a "oh god, will you shut up already" look on his face. Simon laid it out correctly. "Jason it felt to me, and I'm sure to you, like the longest two minutes of your life, right? The reality was it came over as a young guy being forced by your mom and dad to sing a song at a wedding you didn't want to sing. (as booing begins) It did, it did. You were miserable throughout, I was partly miserable throughout, it's not your style of music."

Watch Jason Castro singing "Memory" from "Cats":


Things didn't improve much with Brooke White up at bat next. For the second time this season, Brooke stopped and restarted a song. Earlier in the year, she did it when she hit a wrong note near the beginning of "Every Breath You Take." Tuesday night, she "lost her lyrics" after singing the first stanza of "You Must Love Me," from the film version of "Evita." The first time it was a bit human and endearing. This time it seemed totally unprofessional. Pros don't get do-overs when they screw up. You cover the best you can and carry on. Webber pointed out in White's video that at first she didn't get the meaning of the song at all, but after he explained to her that Evita is dying when she sings this, she really got it. Guess so, she seemed to us like she was dying throughout that performance, and we didn't feel an ounce of sympathy. The only thing that should save Brooke is Jason, but she could become the sacrificial lamb because of all his female fans. We won't cry, Argentina.

Randy told Brooke, "For me, this wasn't great. There were parts of it that got good once you got started ... but vocally it was just a little tough." Paula with a pained look on her face, was the only one brave enough to tell White, "You must never start and stop. ... if you're strong enough and you're great enough as an artist [you] pick up the pieces." In fact, in the post-critique chat with Ryan, Cowell and Jackson, supported Brooke's restart, a cowardly move. Abdul continued, "What I did love about this performance, Brooke, is that you didn't overact." Simon said, "This is why I love live TV. It was so dramatic, the beginning. The trouble is, Brooke, it completely threw you, because at the point you were so tense, trying to remember the song, your voice was straining in the middle of it all and it actually became quite uncomfortable. So, this is a tricky one. Um, I think you're going to be very disappointed when you watch this back."

Watch video of Brooke White singing "You Must Love Me" from the film adaptation of "Evita":


To his credit, David Archuleta tried to rearrange "Think of Me" from "Phantom of the Opera," changing it from a diva's aria into a pop ballad. We were actually surprised that Simon Cowell, who at the top of the show said that the contestants should try to make the music contemporary didn't credit him for that. For us, however, being emotionally wedded to "Phantom" and all of its music, it was just OK. It was just another rather bland pop ballad, another theme-park performance. It lacked the character and strength of the original and the elements we were looking forward to going into this theme night. Webber in the video said he was looking forward to seeing what a young boy would do with a song normally sung by a diva. Judging from the look on his face as he mechanically applauded at the end of performance, he wasn't thrilled with the results. He also gave Archuleta two suggestions: 1. Open your eyes when you sing, and 2. Open your eyes when you sing, saying he couldn't watch someone who keeps his eyes closed. Archuleta succeeded on this. Although squinty, he pretty much kept his eyes open throughout the performance. And has anyone else noticed that none of the contestants seems to be using an earpiece any longer?

Randy enthused, "You're exactly what this show is about." Then, using his same line from last week, he continued, "If you can sing, you can sing anything, and I knew this would be a big night for you, and you even put your own personality into it with a little Stevie riffs here and there. Dude, it was da bomb! This boy's the one to beat!" Paula said, "I think it was absolutely perfect, David. And the reason I think it's perfect is that you took a risk with a known theatrical song and were quite able to turn it into a pop ballad. I think that's perfect." Simon said, "David, I thought it was pleasant, one of your weakest performances over the live shows. It's just not one of those performances you're ever going to remember. It's absolutely going to get you through to next week, but it was all a bit forgettable to me. Sorry."

Watch video David Archuleta singing "Think of Me" from "Phantom of the Opera":


We were looking forward to listening to the other remaining Big Female Voice left in the competition, the one belonging to Carly Smithson. Carly was originally planning to sing "All I Ask of You" from "Phantom" until Webber advised her it was not the right choice for her "great big chest voice." He convinced to perform her second choice, "Jesus Christ Superstar," and she decided it was much better suited to her vibe and personality and that she was "just going to go out there and have the best fun I ever had." She certainly gave it her all, even if she was, as Simon correctly pointed out, a little shouty in the middle. However, we found it disconcerting that she seemed to be out of sync with the backup singers. It was so distracting we wished she hadn't been backed up on the number. Otherwise, the performance was fine. And, she no doubt pleased her tat-hating audience by again wearing a sleeved dress, this time one that actually blended in with the bottom part of the tattoo that remained exposed.

Randy said, "I don't know if this was you best performance (we agree), but it was definitely good. It was definitely good, it was definitely good. And I like the outfit. I think the outfit's kinda fly." Paula said, "I thought at first that it might be in too high a range for you, I love what you did in the chorus." Hmmm, for us, that was the out-of-sync part we found totally distracting. Simon said, "Other than the fact that it got a little bit shouty in the middle, it was actually one of my favorite performances of the night." Carly, screaming "yes! yes!" after getting Simon’s feedback, ran back to the piano and grabbed a blue T-shirt and held it in front of her. It read: Simon Loves Me (this week). It was hilar-
ious. Ryan Sea-
crest noted, "The parenthetical 'this week' is very appropriate, right?"

"Watch video of Carly Smithson singing "Jesus Christ Superstar":


Yes, we are an unabashed David Cook lover. Have been from Day 1 of Season 7. When we found out he would be singing "Phan-
tom's" trademark song, "Music of the Night," we were thrilled and actually hoped he would sing it straight, just so he could prove that he's not a one-trick pony. Well, saddle up, cowboys, 'cause David's leading the herd. We know others will disagree, but this was actually our favorite David Cook performance of the season (and we adored almost all of them), probably because of our passion for "Phantom." His phrasing was impeccable, his emotion shone through his eyes like laser beams and we didn't even mind his tiny bit of change on the final power note. We were captivated and rewatched the performance at least five times. It was an exceptional rendition and by far the best of the evening. Bravo!

Randy said, "Dude, that was an amazing vocal performance. Unbelievable. Another hot, molten hot lava bomb tonight! Right here!" Paula said, "This song just proved more and more that you are so well-rounded as a performer, and you have a beautiful instrument. And I thought it was fantastic." Simon added, "David, I think you made the most of the song. This is not the side of you I like. I much prefer the grittier, more raw. It was too rounded off, but you made the most of the song you were given." Not given Simon, claimed, took, possessed.

Watch video of David Cook singing "Music of the Night" from "Phantom of the Opera":


Best: David Cook
Worst: Jason Castro







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© 2008

American Idol:The Top 7 Results Show

Bottom Three:
Syesha Mercado ("Vanishing")
Brooke White ("Hero")
Kristy Lee Cook ("Forever")


Eliminated:
Kristy Lee Cook








Watch video of Kristy Lee Cook elimination:


To no one's surprise, a girl was eliminated tonight. As Simon Cowell called it Tuesday night, "I think the guys, funny enough, are going to have an easier time than the girls tonight because there's not the comparison." Ryan Seacrest said the finalists received almost 36 million votes, the highest total of the season to date.

Interestingly, the amount of money the show received for "Idol Gives Back" week may have been a disappointment, as, unlike last season, they didn't say a word about the total this week. The last total announced was $60 million last week, down from the $76 million collected in '07. The show's producers had projected they could reach $100 million year, but apparently were overpredicting the success of their year's fund drive for needy children in Africa and the United States. The "Idol Gives Back" show drew the least number of viewers for an Idol-related telecast in more than four years.

This week, the Top 7 finalists performed the Mariah Carey-Boyz II Men duet "One Sweet Day." Perhaps in an omen of what was to follow, Kristy Lee Cook performed a horribly pitchy solo.

Watch video of Top 7 group medley, "One Sweet Day":


Next, Ryan Seacrest pimped the songwriting contest, telling viewers there was only one more week to vote for the no-doubt ickily-sweet coronation song. Titles of some of the 20 finalists include "Believe," "Dream Big," "Something Like Heaven" and "The Time of My Life." The song titles are SO original, there's even a "You Believe in Me" and a "You Believed in Me." Thanks, we'll take a pass on the voting. Hearing the coronation song numerous times during the finale will be too much.

Time to begin the eliminations, and it's the old seven remaining finalists game. Ryan first sent Jason Castro to one side of the stage, then David Cook to the other. What? Everyone just knew that Cook was safe. Did this mean that Castro was in the Bottom 3? We're stunned, being sure it was going to be three ladies. Next out, Carly Smithson, who tells everyone that the judges have been hard on her, singling out Simon, who tells Carly he's hard on her because she has the potential to be great and he expects more from her. She is sent to stand with Jason. OK, that seems logical, her Tuesday night performance being sucky. Kristy Lee Cook comes onstage and continues the Simon bashing, calling him a butt. Interesting night, the women are getting daring. Perhaps they all think they're leaving and figure it's their last time to take a shot at the judge who's tormented them with his comments. Kristy Lee is sent to join David Cook.

We go to commercial break and come back to the Ford com-
mercial. In it, the finalists are puppets in an office environment singing "I Want to Break Free." They then cut their strings and escape. Hmmm, we can relate to that sentiment.

Watch video of Ford commercial "I Want to Break Free":


Season 5 third-place finisher Elliot Yamin, who, sadly, lost his mom last week, returns to the "Idol" stage to perform "Free," the lastest single from his freshman CD. Elliot tells Ryan that it's the first time he's taken the stage without his mom, but he knows she's watching him. It's hard to remember the buzzcut, fanged-toothed Elliott who originally appeared on the show. Though a little shaggy in the hair department, his makeover is still working for him. He wears jeans and a velvet jacket over a white shirt and long white scarf that almost looks like a tallis under his jacket.

Watch video of Elliott Yamin performing "Free":


Back to the results. Syesha Mercado actually looks pissed and upset when she is sent over to join Jason and Carly, who we're sure she knows is the Bottom 3 group, while Brooke White, who, unlike Syesha, actually deserves to be in the Bottom 3, comes out and is told to join the Cooks -- David Cook and Kristy Lee.

We pause the results again to go to the viewer Q&A's. We learn that the man who Kristy Lee sold her horse to won't sell the horse back to her. Ryan makes an on-air appeal to the guy to sell Kristy Lee her barrel horse back. Next, the judges recall the first records they ever bought. For Randy Jackson it was Led Zepplin, the Beatles and James Brown. Paula Abdul says she bought the Jackson 5, Earth Wind and Fire, and Carole King's "Tapestry." Witty Simon answers that as a 10-year-old he purchased Paula Abdul's "Straight Up," cracking Ryan up. Paula then takes a question from Megan, who tells Paula, "I was the Megan your TV show." Paula gives a completely blank look to the camera, obviously having no idea what Megan is referring to. Megan, oblivious, continues, asking Paula what song of hers best describes her relationship with Simon. On a roll, Simon immediately jumps in with "Straight Up," to which Paula gives a you wish retort, while Randy jokes that it's "Cold Hearted Snake," which Paula says is too obvious. She finally tells Simon it'll never be "Forever Your Girl."

And the questions continue. Simon is asked what the difference is between all of the various adjectives he employs to describe contestant performances. He obviously is annoyed by the question which sets off Randy and Paula laughing at him, so he mocks the caller with faces as she continues, then replies that all of his descriptive adjectives mean the performance was horrible and not something you want on the show. The last question is to David Cook. The caller wants to know if he's single. David asks which camera to look into, then gives an emphatic "yes." Good for him. That makeover has made him a real hottie.

Watch video of viewer question to David Cook:


Mariah Carey performs "Bye Bye" from her just-released CD "E=MC2." She then talks to Ryan about mentoring and Ryan tells her that Randy always takes credit for her success. She laughingly agrees that it is all Randy. Unlike the Tuesday night contestant videos, she comes off a bit full of herself and diva-ish on the results show, the Mariah Carey personality we hate.

Watch video of Mariah Carey performing "Bye Bye":


Finally, back to the results with the two groups. Ryan tells us that there are too many Cooks in the kitchen, and has David C. exchange places with Syesha. Now it all makes sense. David C., Jason and Carly (which is a surprise) on the safe side; Syesha, Kristy Lee and Brooke on the Bottom 3 side. Ryan calls David Archuleta out, tells him he's safe, then asks him to join the group he thinks is safe. As in previous years, David sits down on the stage, refusing to make the choice. Ryan moves over toward David, Carly and Jason, telling Archuleta that to move toward the safe group he'd have to move in that direction. Archuleta remains seated, so David C. sits down next to him, followed by Jason and a standing Carly, who can't sit because of her tight skirt. Ryan has them stand up, and declares them all safe.

The Bottom 3 ladies have to wait through another commercial break. Ryan releases Syesha to safety, then asks Randy is America picked right. Randy says it's tough every week now and he can't make the call. Paula does her patronizing BS about how she's proud of all of them. Simon, never shy, says "No surprises, maybe Kristy. You know, your time's up this time, sweetheart." Randy injects, "Oh, so positive," and Simon answers, "Well, it has to be one of you." Randy says, "Yeah, it's true." Well, duh, yeah, Randy. Kristy answers Simon, "Well, I made it past the Top 10," getting herself a round of applause. Meanwhile Brooke keeps protesting, saying "We don't know what's happening." She must have checked out DialIdol.com, which had her almost in a dead heat with Syesha for last place, while Kristy Lee was fourth from the bottom. Finally, Ryan tells Brooke she is safe. After her journey video, we see Kristy sitting on the judges' table singing the beginning of "For-
ever" to Simon, a cute and classy depar-
ture move.

Next week, the 6 remaining finalists will be mentored by and sing the music of Andrew Lloyd Webber. We would love to see David Cook do one of his daring takes on something from "Phantom of the Opera."




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© 2008

American Idol Top 7 PerformHitting Some High Notes

Here are the videos. Reviews coming ...

Mariah Carey Week, the week of the multiple train wreck, or so we thought. Actually, it turned out to be not bad at all. Perhaps not great (there was only one performance worth putting on our iPod, thank you once again David Cook), but certainly better than, say, Beatles Week #2. We were surprised by some of the song choices, especially when they worked well (David C., Syesha) and even when they didn't (Brooke). Although we knew she wrote songs, we didn't realize just how many Carey had written and then turned into hits. It definitely raised her in our esteem quite a bit. She seemed to do a decent job of mentoring as well. We loved Carey's voice from the very first time we heard it on MTV, even before her first album -- yes in those days there were still LPs -- was released. We rushed right out to a music store to buy it, but they hadn't even heard of her yet. Through the years, we still paid tribute to the voice but grew to hate Mariah the Personality, with all of its attendant publicity. Her "Idol" appearance renewed some of our respect for her that had dribbled away over the years.

Ryan Seacrest opened the show talking about the shock of Michael Johns leaving last week, but did not address the issue of the cruel way in which Johns was dispatched, nor did he issue an apology as many viewers felt he should. After last week's results show, Seacrest interviewed Johns on his KIIS-FM radio show and blamed the whole thing on executive producer Nigel Lythgoe, telling Johns, "Nigel, you know, he concocts all of these scenes. ... the note from our producers was, refer back to last year, get them thinking that they may be staying another week, and then of course let them know that they’re gone." Seacrest also told Johns, "In no way did I mean to, if I did, come across as negative or mean." You can listen to the interview here.

David Archuleta was first up. He told us in his pre-performance video that Mariah Carey was scary because he didn't feel worthy to be in her presence. He is all giggly and acting like a 12-year-old with her. That he chose to sing "When You Believe," a song from Dreamwork's animated "The Prince of Egypt" came as no surprise. At this point, it's the kind of song you'd expect Archuleta to take on -- no real challenge. He gave a respectable theme-park rendition, but it was neither exciting nor as good as the judges, who gave him a tongue bath, proclaimed.

Randy Jackson told Archuleta "If you can sing, you can sing anything. You can sing anything. That was da bomb, baby." Paula Abdul said, "It must feel great for Mariah to be able to hear your interpretation of the song, and I know she was beaming, because you made her proud." Right. We're sure Carey was living for this moment. Simon Cowell added, "I would have bet a million dollars on you choosing that song in advance. I just knew that was the one from the opening line. I thought it was very, very good. ... You set the benchmark. I think the guys, funny enough, are going to have an easier time than the girls tonight because there's not the comparison ... but I have to tell you, you performed that very well."

Watch video of David Archuleta singing "When You Believe"


Although the night's spoilers, which broke yesterday, were again correct, we had read days ago that Carly Smithson was going to sing "Without You," apparently at the suggestion of Simon Cowell, who said on air that he had been waiting for her to sing that song all season. Unfortunately, he was disappointed with the outcome. More on that later. The video of Carly's meeting with Mariah was disingenuous at best. Carly tells Mariah how nice it is to meet her, when, according to a 2002 article in News of the World, the two met when they were recording for the same company:

"But Carly's casual approach to singing paid off when one of her pop idols nipped in for a chat after hearing her song being played next door. She said: "I knew Mariah Carey was in the studio next to me but I never thought she'd be bothered about meeting me.

"I had this image of her being a big diva, throwing tantrums and making demands, but I was so wrong.

"She told me she loved my song and thought I was a great singer.

"I was completely gobsmacked, one of the world's most successful female singers was praising me."

Hmmmm. Is there anything real about "Idol" any more? In that sense, we found the photo on the right, from VotefortheWorst.com, very amusing. Perhaps in deference to all of those who complain they can't stand looking at her right arm, this week Smithson covered her tats with sleeves. We liked the soft way that Carly started the song, but when she powered up the vocals it left us cold. All we kept thinking was "Are there any other lyrics other than 'Can't live, if living is without you.' " It felt as if she sang (screamed, shouted) those words 40 times. It was a relief when she finally finished.

Randy said he didn't like the beginning but, "I think once you hit the middle of the song and the power vocals it was pretty cool. The only thing is you gotta believe you have that lower range and trust yourself and support it. ... It was pretty good." Paula disagreed, saying, "I actually liked that you showed some vocal restraint in the beginning of the chorus and then swelled and soared, that's what I love about your voice." Simon said, "I really wanted to hear you sing this song, even before Mariah week. So, the difficult part now. Could you pull it off on the night? And I don't think you did. ... Sorry, Carly, because I think you're capable of it. ... I thought that it was an OK version."

Watch video of Carly Smithson singing "Without You"


We weren't familiar with Syesha Mercado's song choice
"Vanishing," but the results were pleasantly surprising. Many people we knew thought that Syesha would be brazen and choose "Hero," because they reasoned she thinks she just as good as Mariah or Whitney. Think that she might, but she went the opposite route, choosing an obscure song and singing the hell out of it. Her vocals and emotion were spot on, making it, in our opinion, the best female vocal of the night. She also looked stunning. The folks who call DialIdol.com obviously disagree, where Syesha sits in last place but in close proximity with Brooke and Carly. It looks like one of those three is gone for sure tonight.

Randy told her, "I like that you're bold and go for all of it every week ... and I gotta tell you something, you did a good job on it all things considered." Paula said, "You’re smart because you picked a song that not many people know. ... I just think overall, tonight was unbelievably magical for you." Simon began, "Technically, it was very, very good indeed," but added, "Having said that, I’m not sure at this stage in the competition that I would have chosen a song which not many people know about. So you run a risk."

Watch video of Syesha Mercado singing "Vanishing"


We don't think anyone would have imagined that Brooke White would have chosen "Hero," and perhaps she shouldn't have, because it didn't work well for her at all. Once again, she accompanied herself on piano, but her Carly Simon/Carole King take on the song didn't work for us at all. To sell this song you need power vocals and range, neither of which Brooke possesses. Plus it was very pitchy and White seemed overwhelmed by singing it. Her normal exuberance and confidence were nowhere to be seen. Overall it was a bleh performance. Certainly one of Brooke's worst of the season.

Randy said, "I like the fact that you brought a whole singer-songwriter to the thing; I thought that was kind of cool. And I was really digging it and really down until the bridge. And then the bridge kind of threw me a little bit. ... I thought it was pretty good." Paula told Brooke, "Every ounce of you is totally authentic to who you are. And that's a beautiful thing. ... I think this unplugged version was a very great thing to do. I think you sounded really good, with the exception of a few off notes, but don't ever let that speed you up. ... It must be challenging, but for you it didn't seem so." Um, OK. Simon said, "It's a bit like ordering a hamburger and only getting the bun. In other words, the vital ingredient, the bit in the middle, was missing. The important part. Because I don't think your voice is strong enough to carry that song." The three judges then got into a discussion of whether "the meat was in the bun." Oy. Suffice it to say, Simon's was the only accurate assessment of Brooke's performance.

Watch video of Brooke White singing "Hero"


It now seems that Kristy Lee Cook's song choice will be predicting the amount of time she'll hang on: "Forever." Was her performance great? No, last week she was better. Was it good? Yup. Was she better than Carly and Brooke? Absolutely. Cook could probably have a country hit with the song. We suppose the judges are right when they tell these artists to stay true to themselves. If Cook had tried to Mariah-cize the song, it would have been a disaster. In this case, turning it slightly country worked well for her. She, too, looked gorgeous in a beautiful dress and wearing her hair down. Fashion-wise, this week, she resembled Carrie Underwood. It's a good look for her.

Randy said, "I didn't think that was amazing, I mean, there were a couple of pitchy notes in the first part, but, I gotta tell you, you definitely started stepping up towards the end. You hit that note at the end and I said 'Whoa!' " Paula said, "It wasn't just the end. ... Kristy Lee Cook, oh my god, I'm like blown away. ... You could have a hit with it in the country-western world." Simon said, "I think you managed with what you could. I think it was a little bit whiny at times. ... It just wasn't great."

Watch video of Kristy Lee Cook singing "Forever"


Next came the moment of the night we were waiting for, for a couple of reasons. First, we always wait in happy anticipation for David Cook's performances. More importantly, David's older brother Adam, who is undergoing chemotherapy for brain cancer which has spread to the spine, was in the audience with his wife, Kendra, right behind the judges and next to Teri Hatcher. Would David be able to hold his concentration at this very emotional time? Oh, yes. He gave an amazing performance, punctuated by tears in his eyes after the judges threw well-deserved kisses his way. His arrangement of "Always Be My Baby" turned Mariah's playful and upbeat pop song into an emo love song. We can't wait to snag the studio version.

Randy gave David a standing O and said, "I think more than anyone else on the show right now, you're ready to make an album. You're a hot recording artist. And I thought -- I never stood up before this season (standing) -- that was the most brilliant performance yet. Wooooooooo!!!!" Paula enthused, "Wow! That's pretty awesome. That song could be in a movie soundtrack right now." (Hate to admit it, but she's right.) She continued, "And who knows? Maybe it just will. You're it! You're it! You've got the whole package." We got nervous, when Simon began with, "David, it was like sort of coming out of karaoke hell into (pause) a breath of fresh air, because (wild cheers, Simon smiling broadly) it was original, it was daring, it stood out by a mile. And this is the sign of a great potential artist: Someone who takes risks. Congratulations."

Watch video of David Cook singing "Always Be My Baby"


Last up, in the pimp spot, which has proven to not always deserve that name, including tonight, was Jason Castro with his version of "I Don't Wanna Cry," an ironically titled tune if you have to perform it following David Cook. It was OK, just OK for us, nothing more. Perhaps we're being overly critical because it would have been hard for anyone to follow David C. and sound really impressive. Jason's voice sounded pitchy to us, but he's most assuredly safe on a night when you ladies failed to bring it.

Randy said, "You know, for me, I didn't really love it. I felt like I was at a weird beach luau and somebody was playing some music in the distance. It was weird for me, I didn't get it." Simon, laughing, said, "What?" Randy answered, "You know, a luau on the beach." Simon: "A luau, don't know what that is." Apparently Cowell has never been to Hawaii and doesn't know the word luau. Could that be possible? Paula said, "Jason, I'd love to be at that luau, listening all night long." Simon thought "I thought that wasn't the best vocal of the night. Having said that, it was identified with you, it was a cool version. I've got to tell you by the way, the guys completely won the night."

Watch video of Jason Castro singing "I Don't Wanna Cry"


Best of the night: David Cook
Worst of the night: (tie) Carly Smithson/Brooke White

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© 2008

American Idol:The Top 8 Results Show

Bottom Three:
Syesha Mercado ("I Believe")
Michael Johns ("Dream On")
Carly Smithson ("The Show Must Go On")

Eliminated:
Michael Johns (Yikes!!!)







A wave of shock and disbelief spread throughout the theater when Ryan Seacrest made the announcement. After he sequestered the Bottom 3, we're sure most everyone, like ourselves, believed that either Carly or Syesha was doomed instead. In fact, we thought David Cook, whom we love, but who had a terrible night on Tuesday would be standing in Michaels' place. DialIdol.com placed Cook and Johns in a near deadheat for the third from bottom position, with Syesha second from the bottom and Carly dead last. Carly was so sure she was leaving, when the con-
testants were still back-
stage and Ryan broke for a commercial with the words "when we come back we'll see who's going home tonight," Carly actually raised her hand. After Seacrest eliminated Johns, Smithson was seen numerous times on the couch crying more than anyone else. Almost as if she had survivor's guilt. It was interesting to watch the reactions of the other finalists on the couch when the camera panned other there. Jason Castro wasn't even looking at Johns and Seacrest onstage, he was actually looking in the other direction, automatically clapping his hands with the crowd, but seemingly unaffected and uncaring. David Cook was visibly upset, even looked angry. Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell were also caught off guard. Johns was one of the few finalists left they all seemed to like when they appeared on Larry King's CNN show Monday night. We think all three judges, at the very least, expected Johns to make it to at least the Top 5. Abdul looked stunned, Jackson and Cowell upset, especially after Johns completed his exit song by the judges' table. All three approached him. Abdul embraced him for a long time, Jackson had his hand on Johns' shoulder and Cowell stood there waiting his turn to have a word with him.

Watch video of Michael Johns elimination. Note the really cruel act by Seacrest, who, after telling Johns he'd been eliminated, said, "Now, last year during 'Idol Gives Back,' we didn't eliminate anybody at this stage of the competition," making everyone think that Michael wouldn't go. Seacrest paused, then added, "Tonight, we're going to say goodbye to Michael Johns." How mean can you be? Why was that necessary? Everyone was already shocked and upset. It was a new low blow for "American Idol."



Watch video of "American Idol" Top 8 singing "Shout to the Lord":



Watch video of Season 6 winner Jordin Sparks and Chris Brown performing "No Air" on Thursday night's show:



Watch video of Ford commercial "I Just Want to Celebrate":


Next week, Mariah Carey is guest mentor, when, according to a Fox press release, the contestants will "perform songs by Mariah Carey." Well, doesn't that sound like a train wreck waiting to happen, especially for the guys? We had imagined it more like last year's visit by Gwen Stefani, when the finalists sang "songs that have inspired Gwen Stefani." All we can say is "Uh-oh."

In other Idol news, before the elimination Seacrest told the audience that "Idol Gives Back" had raised $60 million so far. Last year, the show garnered $76 million and this year's goal was $100 million. Ratings were significantly down for "Idol Gives Back" 2008. Despite being the top-rated show Wednesday, 17.5 million viewers tuned into the show, down from last year's 26.9 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research.

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Idol Gives Back 2008

"Idol's" feel good/feel bad show of the season made its 2nd annual appearance. It was bigger (2½ hours) and better (the stars were out in force) than last year, while still being poignant and heartrending. And, of course, it was even stupid in parts while trying to be funny. Ultimately, without any real "Idol" action to look forward to, i.e. the eliminations which take place tonight, IdolGivesBackpalooza II turned into your standard begathon.

The show was a mixture of Sunday night's pre-recorded show hosted by Ryan Seacrest (Ellen DeGeneres bowed out at the last minute) and some new material, but it was made to look as if it was all happening live. During the show, all of Season 7's Top 12 were shown taking donor calls in typical telethon style. This year, "Idol Gives Back" is shooting to top last year's $76 million in donations with $100 million. Sadly, even that much money will make only a small dent in all the suffering and poverty in the world.

The show opened with those crazy kids from So You Think You Can Dance (another great Nigel Lythgoe-produced show) performing to Rhianna's "Please Don't Stop the Music" sung by "Idol's" Top 8. The combination worked really well. Now we can't wait for the new season of SYTYCD to begin. Perhaps the two shows should tour together next year instead of separately.

Click here to watch video of "So You Think You Can Dance" dancers and "Idol's" Top 8

Of course, the evening was filled with video appeals, beginning with Jimmy Johnson, George Lopez and Kylie Minogue. And surprise! Ben Stiller is no funnier this year than he was last year, his set of 2007 videos being the lamest part of last year's show.

Watch video of Ben Stiller, who's still NOT funny in 2008:


Calfornia's first lady and celebrity in her own right Maria Shriver made an appeal for volunteerism.

Snoop Dogg and Charlie Wilson performed "Don't Say Goodbye" with the Snoop Youth Football League swaying in the background.

Watch video of Snoop Dogg and Charlie Wilson singing "Don't Say Goodbye":


Next, video donation appeals from (accused rapist) Kobe Bryant and Triple H.

Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul introduce a video about poor kids in California being helped by Save the Children.

Click here to watch video of Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul at the Goshen school

Carrie Underwood, Teri Hatcher and James Denton did a short video skit in which Denton helps Underwood fix her sink. Hatcher catches them and tells Underwood "If you're going to steal my man, I'm going to steal your song," after which she takes the stage to (ugh!) sing "Before He Cheats." Don't quit your day job, Teri.

Watch video Carrie Underwood, James Denton and Teri Hatcher, then Hatcher singing "Before He Cheats":


Afterwards, Underwood came onstage to tell Hatcher she did a nice job (liar, liar, pants on fire. You guys will say anything for charity).

SYTYCD's judge and choreographer Mary Murphy did a video appeal in which she threatens to do her trademark scream until someone donates, while executive producer and fellow SYTYCD judge Nigel Lythgoe sat with his ears plugged.

The Jonas Brothers do a Give Now video appeal, followed by Billy Crystal introducing a young girl who he said wants to sing on American Idol (Miley Cyrus). After an exchange between the two she performs "Good and Broken."

Watch video of the Jonas Brothers appeal, Billy Crystal and Miley Cyrus, and Cyrus singing "Good and Broken":


Ryan Seacrest, back in the "Idols" studio with the Top 12 onstage taking calls.

Bono gives a report from Africa on the Global Fund. He talks about HIV/AIDS in Africa. Cick here to watch video of Bono in Africa.

Julianne Moore does video donation appeal.

Fergie comes out to perform "Finally" with John Legend accompanying her on piano.

Watch video of Fergie and John Legend singing "Finally":


Then Fergie introduces her idols, the group Heart. Heart performs "Barracuda," with Fergie joining them to sing the second verse.

Watch video of Heart and Fergie singing "Barracuda":


John Cena does his video donation appeal, as does Adam Sandler.

Back in the studio with Ryan and the Top 12. Ryan says you can download the songs from iTunes to donate too.

Football brothers Eli and Peyton Manning introduce a video in which they visit kids still affected by Hurricane Katrina in their hometown, New Orleans, La.

Watch video with Eli and Peyton Manning:


Watch video appeal by David and Victoria Beckham:

More of Ryan with the Top 12 taking calls, then off again to Bono and Annie Lennox in Africa talking to kids about their family who have died. Click here to watch video of Bono and Annie Lennox in Africa.

On the show, Annie Lennox performs "Many Rivers to Cross."

Watch video of Annie Lennox sing "Many Rivers to Cross":


Keifer Sutherland does a brief video appeal, followed by Celine Dion in South Africa with orphans who have been getting support from last year's Idol Gives Back.

Watch video of Celine Dion in Africa (extremely poor quality):


Jimmy Kimmel introduces Simon Cowell, he says, because no one else would do it. Kimmel jokes about Cowell's attitude, wardrobe, nipples and haircut. Simon takes it all in stride. Kimmel then introduces Simon's video, about Americans without health care. He travels to New York to visit doctors and nurses who treat them in mobile-health clinics.

Click here to watch video of Jimmy Kimmel introducing Simon Cowell.

Back on the show, Simon talks about his trip, and tells Jimmy how much he loves Jay Leno's show. Cowell then introduces Carrie Underwood, who performs "Praying for Time."

Watch video of Simon Cowell introducing Carrie Underwood singing "Praying for Time":


Whoopi Goldberg and Ellen DeGeneres do Give Now videos.

Gloria Estefan performs "Get On Your Feet" with Sheila E on drums and the SYTYCD dancers.

Watch video of Gloria Estefan and Sheila E performing "Get on Your Feet":


Sarah Silverman talks about malaria and introduces a video about Forrest Whitaker's trip to Africa.


British Prime Minister Gordon Brown says Britain will donate to the malaria cause. Ryan says they are up to $20 million donated (including corporate sponsors).

Keith Urban does a donation video, then Reese Witherspoon spotlights the Children's Defense Fund. Witherspoon traveled to New Orleans to visit families and highlight Freedom Schools.

Watch video of Reese Witherspoon donation appeal:


Ryan introduces the Top 8 singing "Seasons of Love."

Watch video of Top 8 singing "Seasons of Love":


Dane Cook talks about Alicia Keys and her trip to Africa. Dane announces that if you go to the web site and donate you can download Alicia's entire trip.

Watch video of Alicia Keys singing "Prelude to a Kiss" in Africa:


Watch video donation appeal of Vanessa Hudgens and Ashley Tisdale and Miley Cyrus returns to sing "See You Again."



Last year, Billy Ray and Miley Cyrus went to Kentucky, where nearly half the kids live below the poverty line.

Watch video donation appeal of Miley and Billy Ray Cyrus:


Ryan introduces the "Russian Idol" (Robin Williams), or "Bob," as he tells Ryan to call him. He auditions for the judges. Randy calls him pitchy, Paula likes his shirt and Simon thinks he is brilliant. "Bob" says he loves Simon in a Brokeback way then hugs and gropes Cowell.

Watch video of Ryan Seacrest and the "Russian Idol" (Robin Williams):


Rob Schneider and Tyra Banks do video donation appeals.

David Spade talks about New Orleans and how Brad Pitt is working to get people back into their homes after Hurricane Katrina. Pitt then comes out but has microphone difficulties. A crew person comes out to fix it and says she just wanted a reason to touch Brad. Brad introduces a clip of Daughtry in Uganda singing "What About Now."

Watch video of Brad Pitt introducing Daughtry singing "What About Now":


Mariah Carey sings "Fly Like a Bird" with Randy Jackson accompanying her on bass.

Watch video Mariah Carey singing "Fly Like a Bird":


Dressed all in white like angels, "Idol's" Top 8 Idols close the show with "Shout to the Lord."

Watch video of the Top 8 singing "Shout to the Lord":


Donations to "Idol Gives Back" can be given at the American Idol Website.

All iTunes proceeds from show performances will go to the charity as well.

Peace.

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American Idol Top 8 PerformNot a World of Inspiration

This is a the second annual pre-"Idol Gives Back" performance show. The contestants were asked to prepare inspirational songs, which apparently is open to interpretation. We heard everything from Queen and Aerosmith to Robbie Williams and Martina McBride. Certainly not all the song choices, nor all the performances, were inspired. In fact, it was an upside-down kind of night where David Cook failed to impress while Kristy Lee Cook had her best perfomance of the season, probably one of the best three of the night. Yes, you read right. Many will consider Kristy Lee one of the top performances and David Cook one of the worst.

This week's DialIdol.com rankings look like a leftover April Fool's joke, with Jason Castro and Kristy Lee Cook, two contestants many predicted would be eliminated this week, ranking No. 2 and 3 respectively with no chance of elimination tomorrow night, while Michael Johns and David Cook are in a dead heat, tied for the third from last spot, with Syesha Mercado in the next-to-last spot and Carly Smithson, the so-called "ringer" many early in the season thought had been set up to win the competition placing at the bottom and likely to get the boot on Thursday. As Frankie Valli might say, "Oh, what a night!"

Michael Johns took the stage first to sing Aerosmith's "Dream On." It was an odd choice of song for us, which Johns justified by saying you should never give up on your dreams and that his dreams had come true because he is living in the United States. (Wonder how his former fellow Aussies will feel about that swipe? It's not as if he was previously living in Sierra Leone during rebel warfare.) Johns also looked semi-ridiculous with that ascot or neckerchief or whatever he thought he was wearing around his neck. Don't know why he thought to sing hard rock dressed as a dandy. The performance was OK, but paled when compared to the past two weeks, when he shined with "We Will Rock You/We Are the Champions" and his bluesy version of "It's All Wrong, But It's All Right." It was an inauspicious opening to the show.

Randy Jackson told Michael that it was a pretty good song choice, but that there were pitch problems and that he really didn't buy him as an Aerosmith-like singer. Paula Abdul chimed in with "I couldn't disagree more. First of all, I think it was the perfect song for you to pick. You sound as good as you look. The high notes that you hit -- my Chihuahuas are going to come join you on stage." Simon Cowell, whose running joke of the night then became to ask Paula what her Chihuahuas thought of the performance, said "I thought it was a very good performance. Why I am slightly with Randy is, I don't like it when you do an impersonation of a rock star. I prefer when you do blues or soul. I preferred last week."

Watch video of Michael Johns singing "Dream On" by Aerosmith:


As soon as we heard the spoilers for Tuesday's show, we knew that Syesha Mercado was in trouble. After getting bashed last week for taking on Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You," she unwisely chose to pay tribute to her idol, Fantasia, with "I Believe," a bad choice for two reasons: Fantasia has a very distinctive voice; and it's always stupid to do an "Idol" coronation song because it is attached in perpetuity to the winner who sang it first. Her blunder reminded us of LaKisha Jones from Season 6, who, after failing with Carrie Underwood's "Jesus Take the Wheel," also sang "I Believe" during the "Idol Gives Back" show the following week. It was like watching history repeat itself, although we'll give Syesha props for singing the song better than LaKisha did. Still, although beautifully sung, Syesha failed, once again, to connect with the audience, a challenge she has faced numerous times this season. The only thing that likely will save her tomorrow is Carly Smithson leaving instead. But, as always, Syesha looked stunning.

Randy said. "You took on another tiger this week. Fantasia is one of the best singers. I didn't find the connection with you. It was just okay." Paula said, "Not many people can take on songs like that. Fantasia has her own style. You made [the song] your own. I think this is hands down one of your most shining nights." Er, not. Simon added, "I think technically you sang it well. What it lacked for me was that big wave of emotion that I got when Fantasia sang it that I didn't get from you." He and Randy hit the nail on the head.

Watch video of Syesha Mercado singing "I Believe" by Fantasia:


For us, Jason Castro had the most inspired song choice of the evening. He chose "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" by the late Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, more commonly known as Iz. Iz's arrangement has gained popularity over the past several years after being used on numerous TV shows whenever the program's producers have a segment where they wanted to bring a tear to your eye. We bought two of Iz's albums right after we heard his rendition for the first time. It is amazing how differnt and heart-rending this version is, set to ukelele, with the verses somewhat askew. We like it even better than the original, which is saying a lot, as it comes from our all-time favorite movie. Anyway, the song was perfectly suited to Jason, who literally pulled a David Cook by his wise choice of both song and arrangement. And his rendition did not fail to please. It was delivered with as much tenderness and feeling as the original. It was a major coup for Castro, who hadn't scored definitively on the show since his fantastic version of "Hallelujah." After a few weeks of lukewarm and noncommital performances he had stood on the brink of elimination. He now, instead, has two "Idol" moments that will be remembered over the coming years.

Randy said, "Dude, Jason Castro is back. That was the hottest tonight. That was blazing, molten hot." "I love that version of the song," Paula agreed. "You did a great job." We waited, with a bit of trepidation for Simon. But, fortunately, he agreed, saying, "The first time I heard that version, I thought it was interesting. The second time, I loved it. The third time [nodding toward Jason] -- fantastic."

Watch video of Jason Castro singing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole:


An even bigger surprise was Kristy Lee Cook, who also chose a near-perfect song (Martina McBride's
"Anyway") for the week's theme:

You can spend your whole life building
Something from nothin'
One storm can come and blow it all away
Build it anyway

You can chase a dream
That seems so out of reach
And you know it might not ever come your way
Dream it anyway

God is great
But sometimes life ain't good
And when I pray
It doesn't always turn out like I think it should
But I do it anyway
Yeah, I do it anyway

This world's gone crazy
It's hard to believe
That tomorrow will be better than today
Believe it anyway ...

and gave her best performance of the season, both vocally and emotionally. And she did it without pandering to patriotism or showing off an inordinate amount of cleavage. In fact, she once again looked quite beautiful. Cook came into her own Tuesday night for the first time. We're not sure that we'd run out and buy a CD by her, but we applaud her for coming back with such a strong performance this late in the game, especially when many, including us, believed that she should never have made it to the finals.

Randy said, "You know what? There were a couple of pitch moments, but I loved that. It was good for you." Paula added to the praise with, "I think you outdid yourself tonight. This was your best by far. It is so easy singing songs that inspire you." Simon, Monday on Larry King's show said Kristy Lee's chance of winning are 1 million to 1, told her, "Randy made a point earlier on. With a choice this broad, you have a chance to show who you are as an artist. I thought you were very, very good indeed. You look like a star tonight." It was well-deserved praise.

Watch video of Kristy Lee Cook singing "Anyway" by Martina McBride:


Kristy Lee was followed by the Cook performance we were really waiting to see: David Cook's. We had read in spoilers that he was going to be singing "Innocent" by Our Lady Peace, one of his favorite groups. We weren't familiar with the song, so we boned up in advance, listening to it and loving it immediately. It seemed like a perfect match for David's talent. So we were really disappointed when we heard his performance. We disliked the point from which he started the lyrics, plus it sounded too fast to us. We hate to say this, but it was somewhat of a mess compared to the original. We must say though, that David is looking better and better each week. His outfit was hot (another great jacket). Add to that the new haircut and his beard growing in and he has literally becoming this season's ugly duckling-to-swan experiment for the show's stylist. We would have laughed if you told us at the beginning of the season that we would ever call this season's comb-over king "sexy." But sexy he now looks. He did pull a stunt at the end of his performance, half delivered at the judges' table, that was cheesy or touching depending on your point of view (we're tending toward cheesy and gimmicky). As his song ended, he held up his open left hand. On the palm was written "give back."

Randy told David, "I am a huge fan of yours. Every week you have been throwing it down. I didn't think it was one of your strongest weeks." Agreed. Paula told him that he is so well-defined as being the whole package and that she believed in him. Simon understandably told him, "I didn't like this performance very much at all. I thought it was a teensy-weensy bit pompous. ... It wasn't anywhere near as good as the last two weeks." Unfortunately, he's right. Paula then remarked about what David had written on his hand, to which Simon said, "That was a nice thing to do."

Watch video of David Cook singing "Innocent" by Our Lady Peace:


The oddest song choice of the evening was Queen's "The Show Must Go On," chosen by Carly Smithson, who said she found the lyrics very inspirational. Odder than the song choice was the way in which Carly performed it, as if she were angry. Although she looked good (her eyes are startlingly blue, something we never noticed before) and dressed better than in previous weeks, the whole renditio was unsettling and off-putting, making us immediately think, "Well, Syesha, Carly might have just saved you." We've been supporting Carly all season, but think this was her weakest performance. We weren't grabbed by her voice, whose tone we usually rave about, and there was absolutely no chemistry between her and the audience. Most telling, was when Simon critiqued her negatively you could hear a pin drop. Not one boo or complaint from the audience. Cowell even turned around a couple of times during his critique, as if to see whether the audience had split. If that's how the rest of the country felt she's almost certainly doomed Thursday night.

Randy said, "It started out good, got a little pitchy and ended up okay. It was disconnected for me." Paula told Carly that "Your voice, as always, was pretty perfect," but agreed with Randy on the disconnect, saying, "I didn't feel engaged with you and I usually am." After bashing Carly on her appearance last week, and explaining himself ever since, Simon started with "Carly, you look good," but continued with, "I thought it was an unusual choice of song ... I think you over-sang it to the point where you did lose control of the song towards the end. And it actually came over, strangely, as an angry performance, which kind of felt out of kilter with the evening. So, I think again, you've chosen the wrong song. And you actually might be in a bit of trouble after tonight." His appraisal was absolutely spot-on.

Watch video of Carly Smithson singing "The Show Must Go On" by Queen:


Golden child David Archuleta was up next. Acting in his opening video as if he had never heard Robbie Williams' "Angels" before, he said there were a few songs he had been thinking about, but he chose this one because "When I came to 'Angels,' there was something about that song that was so different from the other ones, that I just felt so strongly with the music, the power of the song, the message in it where that despite what you're going through there's always the light at the end of the tunnel." Well, that sounds really heartfelt and genuine, until you discover that Archuleta has been singing "Angel" since at least 2005. Check out his performance of it here. So his supposed revelation in choosing this song was just another piece of savvy marketing BS cooked up, no doubt, for David by superstagedaddy Jeff. For a change, Archuleta didn't wear his earpiece, and if memory serves, this is the first time we've seen him play an instrument. He accompanied himself on piano. Although it added nothing to the rendition, the singing, as expected, was fine, but we felt the same emotional disconnect as we did when Syesha performed. Here was another technically fine vocal that didn't touch us one whit. Of course, we knew the judges would disagree with us, and they did.

Randy began with, "You know what I loved about this performance? ... When you fdid that little refrain at the end, where you stopped and you did those runs, that's the David Archuleta dude that I love. That was your hottest moment the whole season! Crazy! Crazy! Crazy hot! Loved it! Loved it! Loved it!" Paula said, "You know what? That sums it up for me. Fantastic." Simon called it "Best song choice of the night so far. ... This is one of the best pop songs, in my opinion, written. I'm not going to say it was your best vocal. however. I thought it was a bit nasally. I thought the end part was better than the beginning." After a chorus of boos, Simon ended with, "David, I'm nitpicking here, because you are going to sail through to the next round."

Watch video of David Archuleta singing "Angels" by Robbie Williams:


Closing the show was Brooke White. When we read she would be performing Carole King's "You've Got a Friend" (which she attributed in her video to James Taylor than revealed to us, as if we didn't know, that it was actually written by Carole King -- well, DUH!), we figured it would be an easy slam dunk for her. After all, if you can't sing Carly Simon sing Carole King instead. Wearing her flower power dress, the performance was, strangely, flat. Technically nothing was wrong, it was on pitch, but there was nothing especially captivating about the performance. In fact, if Michael Johns' and David Cook's fans rallied last night on the phone, Brooke could very well find herself in the Bottom 3 again. As someone in our household noted, Brooke seems to weaken as Kristy Lee gains strength.

Randy said that he didn't thing it was Brooke's best performance and that it was just OK for him. "I wasn't jumping up and down, but I wasn't mad at you either. It was all right." Paula, speaking Abdulese, said, "I think it is the perfect way to close the evening. And once you again you were very definitive (huh?). You are very definitive and I love you." Brooke had the same puzzled look on her face as Paula said that, as well did. Apparently she didn't understand what being "very definitive" was either. Simon said, "It was sort of like a pleasant walk in the park. Wasn't it? I mean, it was nice. Was it original? No. Was it pleasant? Yes. Thank you." Well, alrighty then.

Watch video of Brooke White singing "You've Got a Friend" by Carole King:


Best: Jason Castro

Worst: Carly Smithson

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© 2008

American Idol:The Top 9 Results Show

Bottom Three:
Ramiele Malubay ("Do I Ever Cross Your Mind")
Kristy Lee Cook ("Coat of Many Colors")
Brooke White ("Jolene")


Eliminated:
Ramiele Malubay









Watch video of Ramiele Malubay being eliminated:


The group medley this week was Dolly Parton's "9 to 5." As we've previously noted, the group sounds really tight together, though this week David Cook definitely proved he is NOT a dancer. His "Dancing With the Stars" future looks about as bright as Steve Guttenberg's! But he did shine on his solos at the judges table, unlike Jason Castro and Syesha Mercado, who paled by comparison with their onstage parts. And Brooke White proved that if she had gotten a shot at this song instead of her lame rendition of "Jolene," if probably would have been Jason Castro in the Bottom 3 instead of her.

Watch video of Top 9 group medley, "9 to 5":


This medley was followed by the yada, yada, yada recap, which included Dolly Parton on the video telling us how she was honored by what a good job the contestants had done.

Since there were two musical acts plus the other scheduled fluff, Ryan Seacrest jumped right into the results. The nine were shown huddled backstage waiting to be called out, and when Michael Johns pulled the first straw, he made a face before proceeding onstage. Ryan talked him up on his feelings about Tuesday's performance. Johns, who scored high praise from the judges, said he felt totally in his element Tuesday night. No surprise, he was sent to the safety of the Big Couch, as was David Archuleta, the next contestant sent onstage. Ryan played a bit with Carly Smithson's head, telling her she was no stranger to the Bottom 3. She looked stressed. He asked her if given the choice, which direction she would rather head in. Well, duh, The Couch, of course. So he sent her over there. She is actually either a rather good actress or honestly surprised every time she makes it through to safety. She almost kissed Ryan.

Three up, three safe, meaning the remaining six each had only a 50-50 chance now of remaining safe. So of course, it was time to let them mull that over and move on to the stupid viewer Q&A segment, which, again was only the least bit entertaining when Simon was asked a question. We *learned* that Syesha Mercado misses hanging out with family and friends, that David Cook would like to be more organized because he's a slob, which his roommates, Jason and Michael, can attest to. (hmmm, "Idol" is tripling up the contestants this year. They're really getting cheap with those hotel rooms, aren't they?) Randy in answer to who he'd like to work with who he hasn't worked with before, dodges the question by answering whomever wins Idol this year. When Ryan pushes and asks for a name, Randy says a girl or a boy. Uh-huh. Michael Johns and/or David Cook are asked what song they would love to sing on tour. Michael answers "Islands in the Stream" with David saying that he'd take the Dolly Parton part. The last caller asks Simon Cowell why he feels the need to apologize after giving negative critiques. Simon answers that he likes the caller and will never do it again.

The Clark Brothers, who won "The Next Great American Band," produced by the same folks who bring you "Idol," performed next, followed by the Ford commercial in which the contestants sang Run-DMC's "It's Tricky" while playing basketball.

Watch video of The Clark Brothers performance:


Before Ryan returns to the results, he asks Carly what she thought was going to happen to her. She evades the question by saying that she didn't know, that Ryan is full of tricks. Seacrest next asks if she and Simon have made up. Carly said, "no," because he hasn't apologized and now, apparently, he never will after that last Q&A segment. David Cook comes onstage, and before being shown The Couch, Ryan asks him about the reports of him going to the hospital the night before. Cook underplays it, says to was overblown that he has high blood pressure and that his pressure had spiked. No biggie. Well, yes it is, especially for someone his age.

Ramiele Malubay looking nervous (there are still three Bottom 3 slots left and only five contestants to go) comes out and has reason to worry. She is the first to take one of the Bottom 3 silver seats. (Having three seats is totally symbolic as the third Bottom 3 contestant never gets to sit down; they go straight to the elimination.) Kristy Lee Cook knows where she's heading, but takes it with a bit a black humor. She enters with a note in her hand that says, "Kristy's Seat." Ryan asks her "What's that for?" and she tilts her head to where Ramiele is now sitting and says, "For over there." Ryan has to assure that studio and home viewers that nobody knows the results in advance, then sends Kristy Lee "over there." Paula Abdul tells them that they both had good nights (liar, liar, pants on fire) but they just don't connect to the audience. Well, at least that part was true. Two down, one to go. Will it be Syesha, Jason or Brooke? Que the suspense and move on to more fluff.

As promised by executive producer Nigel Lythgoe earlier in the season, next comes a segment where we get to see where former contestants are now. This segment focuses on Nashville, now the home to country singers Bucky Covington (Season 5), who has two singles in release; Phil Stacey (Season 6), whose first CD is dropping later this month; and rocker Bo Bice (Season 4). Bice, whose son is now 2, spent a year off recuperating from extensive abdominal surgery, but released his second post-"Idol" CD late last fall. He was incredibly gracious and thankful to "Idol."

Back to the results. Syesha Mercado comes onstage next, which automatically means she is safe, because the drama of the last Bottom 3 contestant is always left to the last two contestants to come out. At this point, we're banking on it being Brooke White, since Jason Castro was in the Bottom 3 last week and we know the producers think the public will assume it's him again and not dear, sweet, nanny Brooke. But, ha! We knew it, since she was no better than Jason was the night before. So three women -- Ramiele, Kristy Lee and Brooke -- are the Bottom 3 this week. Ryan turns to Simon and asks if America got it right. Cowell answers yes, that he doesn't think that anyone from the couch should be there instead. Cowell also tries to make nice with Carly over the highly insulting remarks he made the night before about her choice of onstage clothing, saying he was just trying to be helpful, that he thinks she's a cute girl (oh, puleeeeze!) and she just needs to start looking more like a star. Uh-huh. Wonder who told him to apologize? So, who's gone this week? Oh, wait, we have to torture the Bottom 3 some more first, with two more fluff segments.

It's now time to pimp next week's "Idol Gives Back" begathon with a clip about two sisters in Africa who have been reunited -- because of your dollars -- after living in the streets. No matter how cynical you are about Idolgivesbackpalooza, if clips like this don't grab you, you're made of stone.

What didn't grab us was Dolly Parton's performance of "Jesus and Gravity," from her latest release,
"Backwoods Barbie." We don't know if the aging country star's voice is finally beginning to go or if her overly Botoxed face is keeping her from being able to move her mouth enough to sing well, but it was not impressive. Pair that with the cheesiest lyrics we've heard in, like, forever:

And I've got somethin' lifting me up
somethin' holding me down.
Somethin' to give me wings and keep my feet on the ground.
I've got all I need, Jesus and gravity.

Besides, everyone knows that the somethin' holding Dolly down isn't gravity but those humongous honkers.

Watch video of Dolly Parton singing "Jesus and Gravity":


After her performance, Ryan did a little schtick with Parton about letting Simon back into Dollywood (Cowell began his negative review of Jason Castro's performance of "Travelin' Thru" Tuesday night with, "This is the point where I lose my season pass to Dollywood because I didn't like that at all."). Dolly defends Simon saying that he just tells the truth and someone has to do it. She adds that there are no hard feelings and he's got a free pass to Dollywood, to Ryan tells Dolly to make Simon pay. She also tells Cowell she loves him, then says she loves Paula and Randy as, so as not to insult them. Dolly wants everyone to feel loved. Even if her performance was less than expected, we've met her and she not only appears to be, but is a genuinely sweet person.

Finally, the three women were given their fates. We have to give credit to Brooke. Someone we know said if she was in the Bottom 3 she would turn on the waterworks to assure she wouldn't land there again for the next three weeks, and sure enough, she did. When Ryan asked her, "Brooke this is your first time in the Bottom 3, and clearly you're very emotional (she verging on tears at this point with her arms around Kristy Lee and Ramiele) ... she said, "I'm emotional for a variety of reasons. We throw everything we have into this thing, here, at 'American Idol,' um, and then you watch that 'Idol Give Back' portion and you think, 'Gosh, there's a whole other meaning of difficult in that, and then Dolly comes out here and talks about Jesus and gravity and it was really amazing, she's great." Applause, applause, applause. Boy, does Brooke know how to play the audience and the cameras. Heh!

Brooke was then sent to The Couch. Kristy Lee was next told she was safe, but almost smothered teeny Ramiele in her breasts she held her so tightly. Ryan pretty much had to break them up it went on so long. Ramiele clearly was very upset (no one has cried this much since "the other side of her heart," Danny Noriega, was booted off).

But, like a tiny trouper, she sang her song one last time, and, free of the burden of having to be judged, sang it better than she did on Tuesday night. It's sad how many times this happens. You can't help but wonder how many contestants could have saved themselves if that had sung their song that well the first time.

And so it goes, onto three episodes next week: Tuesday the performances, Wednesday "Idol Gives Back" and Thursday the results show.

IDOL NEWS

Some "Idol" news stories broke yesterday. First, Mariah Carey posted on her Web site that she would perform, what we affectionately call this year's "Idol Gives Back" dead duet with Marvin Gaye, singing "What's Going On" (obviously nothing with Marvin). Remember Elvis and Celine Dion last year? But on a conference call about the show yesterday, executive producer Nigel Lythgoe told the press that the duet is off:

"Unfortunately, it's not [happening]," Lythgoe said. "We couldn't get the rights to music with Marvin, so we had to cancel it."

Then there was the bombshell was that Ellen DeGeneres was no longer hosting the portion of the show to be taped this Sunday before a paying audience in Los Angeles. "Ellen, we were told, couldn't do it due to a personal production pressure," Lythgoe said. Five days before the event? Hmmm, we smell a rat. Wonder what the producers, or someone else, did to upset Ellen so much that she backed out of the show?

The new host? Ryan Seacrest, the busiest man in show business. Lythgoe said, "We've got a lot of co-hosts, so it isn't like last year. There are a lot of really good people coming on that stage to introduce people."

He also addressed the rumor that seems to be becoming an annual event that an 11th previously eliminated contestant will join the summer tour, when he was asked whether the producers had considered using a "carrot" to get viewers to tune in next week:

"Yeah, of course we did. For my money, this isn't about a carrot. I don't want to cheat the audience here. This is about a wonderful show with incredible talent involved with it, asking you to do something about what's going on in the world, end of story. After that, carrots are just misleading the audience and stink."

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American Idol Top 9 Perform/David Cook Rushed to Hospital

NOTE: TMZ reported late last night that David Cook was taken to the hospital (not by ambulance) after Tuesday's show. He was suffering from heart palpitations and high blood pressure, believed to be due to a setback in his brother's illness. Cook began complaining that he did not feel well, but after his performance he reassured people he was OK. He ultimately realized he needed medical help. He is now back in his hotel, but his medical problem has not yet been resolved. One "Idol" executive told TMZ, "David's blood pressure was far too high."

Cook was examined by medics at the show, then taken to the hospital and treated by a private doctor. The doctor gave Cook medication to bring his blood pressure down and he will monitored again Tuesday.

The "Idol" executive says the stress and anxiety from being on "Idol" and dealing with his brother's illness -- his brother has cancer and suffered a setback within the past week -- had really put David, who normally has high blood pressure, on the ropes.

The site also says that Cook has been completely stressed out during the entire season. During one of the first shows, David broke down and said he couldn't perform that night -- and changed his mind at the last minute.

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It is April 1, and not even "American Idol" was immune from April Fool's jokes. First there was the phony list of spoilers for tonight's show that was validated by no less that EW.com's Popwatch. It had ludicrous information, such as Jason Castro singing "I Will Always Love You." But because it was presented on EW.com, even we repeated the list to our friends. April Fool! Then there was the blog listing we found that purported that Simon Cowell and Ryan Seacrest had such a severe falling out last night that Cowell had demanded Seacrest's immediate resignation. It even accused Cowell of yelling at Seacrest to "just come out of the closet you * homo." Could it be true? Uh, no, we decided as soon as we reached this paragraph:

"Last night the producers were frantically searching for a temporary replacement for Ryan until they can permanently replace him either later in the season or next year. Four names were being tossed around as potential temporary replacements - Mikalah Gordon, Matt Rogers (from Season 3), Sanjaya Malakar or Antonella Barba. Other presenters will be considered, but we're likely to see a former Idol contestant as the producers are so short on time to find a replacement for tonight."

OK, thanks. Don't we feel like a jerk? Then there was Ryan Seacrest opening the program by telling us that the show was being preempted by a celebrity edition of "Moment of Truth" starring Simon Cowell. Enough already! Is it April 2nd yet?

The show welcomed its first guest mentor of the season, country singer Dolly Parton. The contestants all sang songs that Parton either wrote or sang. It was a mixed evening: a couple of hot performances, but also a lot of mediocrity. Even the best singers have done better in the recent past, including David Cook.

Brooke White opened the show with her version of "Jolene." It might have sounded better had we not just heard a piece of Parton's haunting rendition of the song during the video clip that introduced her. Sadly, it made Brooke's version pale by comparison. She also sang it way too uptempo with a smile on her face for most of the song, which has lyrics such as: "He talks about you in his sleep/There's nothing I can do to keep/
From crying when he calls your name, Jolene." Obviously, there's nothing happy about those words, but smile Brooke did, as if she were singing about a day in the park. Perhaps it would have been more acceptable just listening to it rather than watching her perform it. As it was, we've seen (and heard) Brooke do a lot better.

Randy Jackson said that the music definitely suited her voice, that she could make an album out of it, but that it wasn't a stellar performance for him. There were some pitch problems and she sometimes rushed the music a little bit. Paula Abdul pretty much babbled her critique. She began by praising Brooke for her consistency, then rambled into "You are who you are ... You have an emotional connection with each song that you pick. And I think that's what record companies and executive want." Meanwhile Simon Cowell was providing funny running background commentary to what Paula was saying. She ended with, "You are Brooke White (Simon, "Yes she is"), excellent and wonderful." Simon then totally disagreed with Abdul's appraisal, saying that he thought "what was lacking on that song was any emotion. It looked like you were busking your way through the song. ... It wasn't one of your better performances ... I wasn't that crazy about it." And not only did Brooke (as usual) interrupt him with her commentary to his critique, Cowell also was cut off by the segment-ending music.

Watch video of Brooke White singing "Jolene"


As "Idol" has been doing most of the season, they used a Coke segment prior to David Cook's performance to deflect controversies that have cropped up about the show, in this case Cook's use of arrangements by other artists that have brought him great praise. He paid kudos to Doxology, White Snake and Chris Cornell, then, in answer to Ryan's question, said that the arrangement he was doing on "Little Sparrow" was his own. In the video segment, Parton said it was one of her favorite songs and praised David on his voice. We certainly liked it and thought he did a fine job. Was it as momentous as some of his prior songs? No. But it was still one of the better performances of the evening and proved that Cook can score points even when he's not rocking out. Plus, Cook is getting better looking every week. The show's stylists have obviously had a positive influence on his appearance. His now monochrome-colored hair was attractively cut and tousled. Where previously he looked as if he was sporting a comb-over to cover baldness, his hair now looks fuller (were extensions added? Who knows.) And instead of that raggy soul patch under his bottom lip, he now has a slightly unshaven sexy look and rocks a light moustache and goatee.

Randy told him, "You're a rocker but you've been showing that you've got this unbelievable range. I liked how you went into the false[tto] there. You made your own arrangement which was very cool, and once again another hot, consistent performance." Paula first praised David on his haircut, then said, "I've never heard a guy do that song and it was fantastic hearing you do that ... It shows how well-rounded you are as an artist." Simon, who, with the exception of two of the night's singers, was in a hyper-critical mood, threw Cook a crumb, "I'm not going to say it was as good as last week because it wasn't, but if you can make a song about sparrows good, which actually you did, congratulations." Simon obviously is not a bird-lover. A couple of weeks ago he crapped on Carly's "Blackbird" and now on Cook's "Little Sparrow." Oh, well.

Watch video of David Cook singing "Little Sparrow"


Ramiele Malubay gave perhaps her final (forgettable) performance on the show. She did a bit better than she has in the past few weeks, showing a little of her personality, but it was definitely the weakest performance of the evening. She tried to be bouncy and cute with her version of "Do I Ever Cross Your Mind," but came off more as a scared rabbit. We have no doubt that she won't escape the Bottom 3 this week and will probably beat even Kristy Lee out the door, but in all honesty she's been no better (and perhaps worse) than Kristy Lee has the past two weeks and at this point deserves the boot. That she hasn't appeared in the Bottom 3 previously is nothing short of a miracle, and we can't help but wonder if Hawaii's not insubstantial vote has been instrumental in saving her thus far. It's worked in the past for Camile Velasco and Jasmine Trias, keeping the Season 3 finalists on the show far longer than they deserved to be.

Randy told her, "It was alright. You showed some signs of strength right there and conviction. I thought it was a pretty good performance. I would say 6½ out of 10." Paula disagreed and told Ramiele, "I'm very proud of you because I was a little worried that you weren't going to connect. But I think that you really had a great minute and 30 seconds and you really connected with the audience and you were having fun." Well, not quite, Paula. Simon, cutting to the chase, said, "Look, we're not going to remember this in 10 year's time are we? It was cute. You sang it quite well. But overall, I thought it was forgettable, and I thought it was very reminiscent of something you would see and hear on a cruise ship, if you want my honest opinion." And, you know, he was right.

Watch video of Ramiele Malubay singing "Do I Ever Cross Your Mind"


Though we thought Country Week would be a breakout genre for Jason Castro, he also had another weak showing, though it was still much better than his lame performance of Sting's "Fragile" last Tuesday. He chose "Travelin' Thru," Parton's Oscar-nominated song from the transgender film "Transamerica." Castro gave a pleasant, laid-back performance, pitchy in spots, but not totally unsatisfying. It's just there are much better singers left in the competition than Jason, and it will be a struggle for him to even reach sixth place, despite his baby blues and dreds. He again placed dangerously close to the bottom in DialIdol's voting this week and should be making a return appearance in the Bottom 3 (though we think it was a toss-up between him and Brooke as to who belongs there more).

Randy said it started a little bit rough for him, but that by the middle of the song Jason had "picked it up" and worked it out. Paula called it one of Jason's strongest performances (how could she say that after "Hallelujah"?) and that he seemed comfortable, that his voice sounded strong and rich and that he was confident. She said, "It was great. I loved it." Er, OK. In total contrast, Simon said, "This is the point where I lose my season pass to Dollywood because I didn't like that at all. It sounded like the same song as before (which one? Ramiele's? It wasn't anything like it????). I didn't think you sang it particularly well. I don't think this kind of music suits you well. If this had been the first time I'd seen you or heard you, I wouldn't get it. Sorry." But then, we didn't get Simon much this week. Sorry. Randy was probably the closest to the real truth on this one.

Watch video of Jason Castro singing "Travelin' Thru"


Although many will disagree with us on this, our favorite performance of the evening belonged to Carly Smithson. We absolutely adored her arrangement and interpretation of "Here You Come Again," singing it gently and poignantly for the most part, but hitting a couple of money notes. Even Parton said that the song, which she didn't write, was far better suited for Carly's voice than her own. We don't care what anyone says, for our money Smithson is one of the top singers in this competition. We're not sure if we'd buy a CD by Brooke or Syesha, but we guarantee you that we'll own the next one that Carly puts out. The tone of her voice is just amazing. Yes, we know, a lot of people can't get past the tats on her right arm, and for that reason we wish she'd cover up on performance nights, but it is what it is and she is what she is. And we think that is wonderful.

Randy proffered the praise, "I do believe that that will probably be one of the better performances of the night. Nice job." Paula jumped in with, "Carly, that was glorious. You are such an amazing talent. You are beautiful, that voice of yours -- oh my god! And you look great!" Simon wasn't nearly as enthusiastic. "I thought it was good. I don't think it was great." Then he nastily dug into her appearance with, "I also think that you've got to have a word with whoever's dressing you at the moment ... I think at this stage, without being rude, you've got to start looking more like a star and I'm not seeing that progression at the moment." Well, check out some of the other performers. For god's sake, Brooke looked like a banana two weeks ago in that horrible dress and was dressed very ordinarily this week. Ramiele dresses like a 12-year-old most weeks. Why aren't you picking on anyone else? It's become patently obvious that Simon is always overly harsh with and doesn't like Carly. Probably because he doesn't want to see her anywhere near his precious Brooke in the finals. Boo! Hiss!

Watch video of Carly Smithson singing "Here You Come Again"


Yes, we know you all love David Archuleta, but, sorry, we still don't get him. Did he give a good performance? Yes. Was it the best of the evening? No. But the judges and those folks calling into DialIdol are all hearing something we're missing. No way would we buy this kid's album. The performance was mechanical and exuded no real depth or emotion for us. Yes, we know Dolly thinks he really gets it and it almost made her cry ('cept she didn't want to lose her false eyelashes). Us? Sorry, not moved at all. Call it our Season 7 blindspot. But the staff did make David's earpiece look a lot less distracting this week and that was a plus. Still, if Daddy Jeff is such a rampant stage father, how come he didn't invest a little money in his sonny boy's overbite? The kid needs braces in the worst way, and everytime those girls scream we think they need glasses.

Randy, screwing Carly, said, "David Archuleta is back tonight and I stand corrected. That was the best performance of the night right there." Wrong-O! Paula, who we think either wants to molest or adopt David, gushed, "You have an amazing tone in your voice, you're strong, you have a beautiful aura about you. You're just glorious." Eeech! Simon, squarely back in Archuleta's corner, told him, "I had issues with your choice of song last week. This week, absolutely on the money." Sorry, not convinced.

Watch video of David Archuleta singing "Appalachian Memories"


We have to admit, we knew if Kristy Lee Cook made it to Country Week she'd do OK. Not great, but OK, and that's exactly how she did. In fact, her "Coat of Many Colors" was certainly better than Ramiele's performance, and perhaps even better than Jason's and Brooke's. But we'd classify all of them in the Bottom 4 of the night. Brooke, no doubt, will come out of this unscathed. The others will probably comprise the Bottom 3, which would be a fair call. At this point, which one of them leaves isn't much of an issue, as none has a snowball's chance of winning the competition. They've already secured their spots on the tour and that's their real prize. It's worth noting that Kristy Lee looked really nice last night, something that will help garner her some extra votes.

Randy said, "Country music is definitely your wheelhouse, and I think you gave a very nice performance ... This is kind of the Kristy Lee week." Paula told her, "You look stunning tonight (usually the kiss of death, but probably not in this case) ... You just gave a beautiful performance. I think this was your best performance." Simon's appraisal was pretty accurate: "I totally disagree. I thought last week was your best performance, and I thought this was pleasant but forgettable."

Watch video of Kristy Lee Cook singing "Coat of Many Colors"


We're sure our opinion of the next act will also be at odds with our readers. (Maybe we're just as bitchy as Simon is this week). We thought Syesha Mercado was one of the top three acts of the night. Her sensitive, powerful and emotional arrangement, which combined both Dolly Parton's and Whitney Houston's versions of "I Will Always Love You" harked back to her performance of "Yesterday" a couple of weeks ago. So we were really annoyed when Randy and Simon bashed her. Is she Whitney Houston? No! But, you know, Brooke White wasn't Dolly Parton, either. In fact, she wasn't nearly as good as Syesha but the two women received approximately the same level of critique. Mercado's performance, including the next-to-last (money) note, was absolutely stunning. It might not have been perfect but it certainly was as good a performance as David Archuleta's, which was highly praised. Where so many others shouldn't, Syesha proved she had the goods to take on a Whitney Houston song.

Randy started the Syesha bashing with, "You took on the biggest tiger of the night, and I think you did pretty good. It's still hard for me to hear anyone else sing that song. It was alright." Huh! Just alright? Give us a break. Paula started with Syesha's appearance, never a good sign. "You look beautiful. That color's gorgeous on you." Then, in another one of her I-don't-really-want-to-say-what-I-think-if-I-really-didn't-love-it critiques, Paula said, "Let's talk about your voice. Your voice [has] like a velvety tone. That's it for you and I just think you're growing and growing and growing and you're connecting with the audience so much more and I love it." Uh-huh, thanks for the support, Paula. Simon said, "I almost wish you hadn't got it [the song] in a strange way because the first part was good, the second part, as I had a feeling, unfortunately paled by comparison to the Whitney version, so, therefore, I don't even know if it helped you that much. It was a good; it wasn't a fantastic version of the song."

Watch video of Syesha Mercado singing "I Will Always Love You"


Michael Johns received the prized "pimp" spot this week for his bluesy version of "It's All Wrong, But It's All Right." We thought it was really strong, one of his best performances, but we didn't love it quite as much as everyone else obviously did. (Although we liked it a lot better on second listen). The singing in some spots was brilliant and no one can deny his stage presence. After this week, many will consider Johns to be at his best as a blues singer. Personally, we preferred his performance of Queen last week. And so it goes.

Randy began the accolades with, "You keep on bringing it up every week a notch, dude. That was a blazing hot performance. Nice job." Paula added, "You're a star, a rock star, a blues star, soul and you look gorgeous." Simon put it simply with, "I think this is the best I have heard you sing throughout the competition."

Watch video of Michael Johns singing "It's All Wrong, But It's All Right"


Top 3: Carly Smithson, Michael Johns, Syesha Mercado

Bottom 3: Ramiele Malubay, Kristy Lee Cook, Jason Castro/Brooke White (tie)

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© 2008