Idol was BIG last night. Big new stage. Big new top twelve with the best talent ever... for real this time, even though they say it every season. Big new stage. And to celebrate it all they finally got the rights to the Lennon-McCartney song book. Take THAT Barry Manilow week!
Of course previous seasons have shown our darling idols can be as easily swallowed up by a big theme as thrive upon one. And with some of the best pop songs ever written at their disposal, song selection was not going to provide much excuse for sucking it up this week.
Ryan Seacrest lead us off dressed in his funeral parlor best, and asking Simon Cowell a very deep question about how difficult these songs were going to be. Simon's response - "It depends on which song they choose," accompanied by a rolling of the eyes - was an appropriate lead in to a night when Ryan's commentary ran the gamut from fawning over performances to making lame excuses for them. But that's sort of his job I guess. It's more annoying when Randy and Paula do the same thing. Randy was a little more "real" tonight though. Paula was her uber-medicated self, of course. Simon was Simon.
on which song they ought to sing in response to Randy Salas attempting the same, I'm going to keep track of how their actual song selections measured up.
Syesha Mercado lead us off with "Got To Get You Into My Life." It's a cute song. She went with something like the Earth, Wind, and Fire arrangement. And I found it pretty dull, really. She came out and sang it well, as usual. In previous Idol seasons this would have been easily good enough. But this season? There's a lot more interesting talent on display than "pretty girl who doesn't miss any notes." To borrow a Randy phrase it was "just a'ight." I think she needed a bit more than that.
Who chose the best song: Me - I said "Day Tripper" because she needed to stand out more. I'm even more convinced of that now than before.
Next up was
Chikezie, who sang "She's a Woman." Let me start off by saying I thought Chikezie was destined to stay in the "soul" niche. Let me further add I thought he was pretty good in that niche and flirting with disaster if he left it. Let me further add Chikezie proved me wrong with this performance. The arrangement was nothing if not daring. He started out with a cornpone jug-band type intro, which lead into a full-blown rocker. Nothing Chikezie had shown me to this point suggested any of that was a good idea for him. But it totally worked, and he totally owned it. I was taken aback by how good he was here. Original, powerful, and fun all at once. Not just the best Chikezie performance so far... one of the whole season's best so far.
Who chose the best song: Chikezie knew best, obviously.
Ramiele Mulabay followed with "In My Life." It's a pretty song, given to low key interpretive performances. And Ramiele delivered one. Big problem: that's not where Ramiele really stands out in this field. Not unlike Sayesha, you couldn't really fault her singing here. This was all about choosing something that could really show off what's special about you. Like Sayesha, Ramiele didn't do it here. There are some big and original talents bubbling up all over this top twelve. Originally it looked like Ramiele might be one of them. Increasingly she's looking like a middle of the pack, largely forgettable good singer.
Who chose the best song: Me - I said her problem is she keeps choosing second tier songs that don't show off her top tier voice and advised her to go with "Yesterday" to break that mold. She didn't, and it hurt her.
Jason Castro hit the stage next, accompanying himself on guitar again and singing, "If I Fell." It was an understated acoustic heavy arrangement, not too far off the original. Jason demonstrated his ample charm and personality, as well as a better command of falsetto than we'd heard from him in the past. That said, I mostly liked this because I like Jason's style. He didn't take any big risks or do anything especially different here. He's got an advantage over Sayesha and Ramiele in standing out from the pack more than they can by just being himself. But, to riff on a Simonism, "If I'm being honest," this was really just okay. I liked it. It was worth a replay. But it wasn't among the night's best.
Who chose the best song: Me - I know Ramiele picked it, but I still think Jason would have gotten something truly memorable out of "In My Life."
Carly Smithson followed with "Come Together." And if you just shuddered reading that, so did I when I heard she was going to do it. But, thankfully, the arrangement forced it out of being nightmarish and into making good sense. Not only that, but Carly actually showed more than a little ability to do the "rocker-girl" thing. Idol tells us she and Amanda are sharing an apartment now, so is that having an influence? If so it's a good one. This performance really worked on every level. Looking uncannily like Grace Slick in her prime, she knocked out a Patti Smyth-like vocal. All that vocal power and control she'd displayed previously was put to perfect use here to open up a knew and harder side of her personality. This one was right up there with Chikezie as a stunner and one of the night's best.
Who chose the best song: Carly, naturally. I had the right idea for style, but she picked a more original song to do it with.
David Cook came up next, eschewing the guitar for the week and singing "Eleanor Rigby." Am I the only one finding David quickly rising as a potential dark horse winner? Apparently not because Paula and Simon both said as much after watching this. I admit, initially I was a little bored by this as it was another hard-rock arrangement much like anyone might have expected. On the other hand, Daughtry-like, he's starting to really fill that niche well. About half way through the song he'd totally won me over. Among those who grabbed onto a great song selection to truly shine, I'd have to count David among them. No, it wasn't a new side we'd never seen before. It was just darn good and memorable on its own terms.
Who chose the best song: I'll give David the nod based on how well he did. I'd still like to hear him do something with "Hey, Jude" though.
Brooke White was next, singing "Let It Be." Okay I'll confess... I didn't have one vision of Brooke's scariness watching her this week. Is her sweetness actually winning me over? Or am I being set up for a "Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction" kind of shocker? I guess this week I'll just... Let it Be. Ha! Oh, right, the performance.... Good. Really very good actually. In most any other week I might have deemed it the very top. But there were a LOT competing for that this week, so she can join the club. She accompanied herself on piano again this week, and was able to use it to convey a kind of casual soulfulness and sincerity which is where she has always shined. The season's biggest crier... she was in tears just at the end of the song... and darned if that didn't make for an effective emotional closing. Not unlike David Cook, she's impressing me a lot more than I ever thought she would. Suggestion to Syesha and Ramiele: Study Brooke's performance this week compared to your own. You each sang the notes better than she did. Yet she still
outsang you. Figure out what I mean there, and you should get back on track.
Who chose the best song: Hard to second guess her on this one, but I'd still like to see how she handled "Blackbird." I'll call it a toss-up.
David Hernandez followed with "I Saw Her Standing There." It was a weird choice, as David's thing is a big show-offy voice, and this just isn't that kind of song. And yet... David tried to make it one, which only lead to it sounding like some kind of theme park arrangement. It didn't suck, but it was a little silly. Actually more than a little. It was almost like coming out and doing a Diva interpretation of "Old MacDonald." There were plenty of songs available that DO include some real opportunities to open up the vocal range and show off. This wasn't at all one of them, and no one was fooled.
Who chose the best song: Heck, just about everyone chose better that David. I suggested "Get Back," which is what David will be lucky to do after the voting this week.
Amanda Overmeyer gave us a little palate cleanser next doing a
very Janis Joplin-like take on, "You Can't Do That." Secret message from Amanda to the "Vote for the Worst" kids "Suck it!" This is the second week in a row where Amanda has just come out and let her rocker-thing hang out, and the second week in a row where she was terrific because of it. It might have sounded even better last night coming on the heels of David Hernandez overly-ornamented laugher. But even watching the replay this was a rock-solid performance. Unless you hate Amanda's style, and some probably do, this was exactly what she needed to do.
Who chose the best song: I'll defer to Amanda here as she sang this one as well or better than anything I imagined with my "Helter Skelter" recommendation.
Michael Johns came next with "Across the Universe." I like the song. I was a little surprised to hear Michael choose it, as it seemed a little "ballady" and I've never thought of him as that kind of singer. Yet that's exactly the arrangement he went with, and the performance style he chose. So... good for changing up the expectations and showing off another facet of himself. The downside? He's really
not that great a ballad-style singer. It was another "solid" performance. It certainly shouldn't have him worried about getting booted or anything. But this will not be one we remember from him as the season goes on.
Who chose the best song: Me all the way here, for suggesting the far more lively "Lady Madonna."
Kristy Lee Cook got the penultimate position of the evening doing an aggressively countrified version of "8 Days a Week." Kristy, Kristy, Kristy... The judges were correct in pointing you in a country direction, as your voice really shines in that style. But they were thinking more "Carrie Underwood" not "Hee-Haw." It really doesn't matter how well she sang this one... which was well enough I guess. The problem was the hoe-down arrangement itself which was so over-the-top country as to be laughable. Seriously, this stripped David Hernandez of the award for the night's most comically bad arrangement. Talk about a lost opportunity! Any number of these songs would sound amazing with the kind of light-country edge Kristy put on her Journey song last week. No one else in the whole field is that kind of singer, so it would have stood out perfectly well with out the need for something so exaggerated. this was so awful I was actually feeling sorry for her before it ended. And when it did end even Paula couldn't find one of her made-up words to praise it.
Who chose the best song: Me by ten thousand percent. "I'll Follow the Sun," wouldn't have lent itself to such arrangement butchery even if you tried.
On the biggest of big nights this season
David Archuleta, the golden child of the season, got the coveted closing spot singing, "We Can Work It Out." The song choice was disappointing before he even began, as there are so many better songs he could have gone with. Really the thing that makes that song interesting is the harmony, which is kind of difficult to convey in a solo performance. Even when you remember the lyrics, which David didn't. Oops. Okay so David proved that he is actually not a super-advanced entertainment android, but in fact a seventeen year old kid, as the nerves seemed to finally hit him this week. Oh, he wasn't awful. Just awfully amateurish compared to so many of the others tonight. David can rest assured that he's just too darn popular to fear getting the boot with so many left in the field. But he certainly can't thank his performance itself for any security this week as he surprisingly turned in one of the night's weakest.
Who chose the best song: Me. "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da," would have sounded better
and it has some nonsense sounds built in to cover up word forgettage.
So let's sum up the night. There were a whole lot of good performances tonight, and a handful of really excellent ones. Only a couple of true clunkers, and those more due to arrangement than performance. Best top twelve ever? Believe the hype.
Tops of the night in my book go to Chikezie (surprise!), Carly (no surprise!), David Cook (becoming less surprising!), Brooke White (sweet surprise!), and Amanda Overmyer (effin' surprise!).
And heck... since that's almost half the field I might as well name the next I'd stick in the upper-half category, though a step down from those above... Jason Castro.
Bottom of the night would have to be between arrangement casualties David Hernandez and Kristy Lee Cook, and a suddenly nervous David Archuleta.
Rounding out that bottom group, I'd rate Michael Johns strongest of the remaining lot, and Sayesha and Ramiele more or less tied below him.
But none of that tells us who's going home, as we now lose one and only one contestant each week. So who do I think is likely to get the heave-ho?
Sorry David Hernandez, but I'm thinking it's you. Kristy is more likable for superficial reasons, and she's still the only one in her country niche. And no one seriously thinks one bad performance can derail the Archuleta Express. But I wouldn't be too comfortable if I was Sayesha or Ramiele this week either. Their talent is fine, but they're becoming surprisingly forgettable in a personality-strong field. Still... David H. is my pick to go this week.
Castro made an easy number look very tough to do somehow, seemingly out of breath or overdue for a bathroom break. He's not safe, either.
NOTE To producers: "Something" should not be ventured by a female, no matter how strong a voice.