Mariah Carey night.  UGH.  This could be tedious. Poor Syesha will get killed by the judges.  Let me just say this up front: Vocal gymnastics a la Carey are about my least favorite form of music in the last 20 years.  This could be ugly tonight.

Speaking of Mariah: Did she borrow the high-waisted pants from Ramiele?  And where did she order up orange skin?

David Archuleta - “When You Believe” - Are those pants pleather?!?  Ah, yes, the fine art of screaming around a song, of making every syllable take up ten notes.  He did good for this kind of song.  Very strong. I just hate these songs.  It’s going to be a long night, you’ve been warned.

Carly Smithson - “Without You” - I’m very happy Mariah is naming these songs as they go along. Though I do like this one.  And there’s room in this song for her to arrange it. I want Latoya London to sing this, though.  That’s a HUGE song.  She didn’t try to scream it at the start, which is a good thing.  When she got to the second half, she powered right through it.

Paula liked her “restraint,” which I think is the perfect description of what I just spent four dozen words describing.

Syesha Mercado - “Vanishing” - Syesha can, as Randy might put it, blow. She’s amazing. She has a healthy set of lungs.  It’s awful as a song, but she kicked the song’s butt. She can sing, and the judges will NEVER give her the credit for it.  She made “whoa oh oh oh oh” sound good, technically.

Brooke White - “Hero” - She did the right thing in sticking with the piano and not bringing in the band. She truly made the song her own by NOT trying to ape Mariah at any point at all in the song.  Even as she was visibly shaking and crying in the last half, she kept it up.  I liked it.

Simon’s analogy about a hamburger without a slab of beef is all wrong.

Kristy Lee Cook - “Forever” - Wow, she sounds great tonight. She can hit those notes I never would have given her credit for.  That was impressive, possibly the best song for her of the series so far.  I didn’t think she’d go after the Mariah notes on that song, but she did.

Boy, the piano guy is keeping busy tonight.

David Cooke - “Always Be My Baby” - As Mariah said, it was “haunting” in the beginning part, and it could be a hit single for him easily.  I liked it a lot. Not much more to say than that.  This kid is goooooood.

Jason Castro - “I Don’t Want To Cry” - Poor sap has to follow David Cooke AND close out the show?  This can’t possibly be good.  Well, it’s not bad.  But I’m not inspired.  Eh.  I’m done with him, honestly.  Randy called it a “Weird beach luau” and I know exactly what he means.  Must be the drums.  Eh.

From best to worst for the night: David Cooke, Syesha Mercado, David Archuleta, Kristy Lee Cook, Carly Smithson tied with Brooke White, then Jason Castro.

Who will be the bottom three?  Syesha, Brooke, and Jason.  Dark Horse: Carly.

Syesha goes home. She doesn’t deserve it, though.

On the other hand, there’s no reason to play out the rest of the season. Give the crown to David Cooke today and let’s be done with it.  He’s running away with the show this season.  He’s the only one you can’t wait to see each week, just to see what he pulls out of his hat next.  More often than not, it’s gold.  The others have skill and personality, but Cooke has the musical power.  Even if he doesn’t win, he’ll have a hit album on his hand.

De Blieck Out!

“Expect a shocking dismissal this week.” -Me, yesterday

Well.  I very nearly got it right.  Two of my three Bottom Three picks landed there.  My dark horse candidate rounded things out and was the one to eventually go home.

Shocking.  And not shocking.

Simply put, the three best singers in the competition were in the bottom three this week: Syesha, Carly, and Michael.  (Shades of that Fantasia/Latoya/Jennifer week, so many years ago, but minus Elton John’s “racist America” component that I harp on so frequently.)

Please note that I didn’t call them the best Idol contestants.  I think, though, that those three have the best vocal abilities.  They just have other problems that prevent them from being effective contestants.  All three picked bad songs this week.  Syesha keeps falling into the trap of picking songs by divas that she WILL be compared to, unfavorably. (Wanna bet she goes with a Mariah song next week?) Carly picks songs that don’t help to define who she is as a singer.  She’s a very good singer, but does she have a style?  A niche?  Anything?  And Michael picked a song that he couldn’t possibly do anything with, aside from a decent karaoke performance/imitation of Steven Tyler.

All three picked the worst week possible to trip up — this was a week in which nobody shined and nobody faltered in a major way.  Even David Cooke’s disaster wasn’t a crash and burn.  It was a very poor song selection.  And while IDOL still had a season high voter turnout, I bet it was fairly widespread.  No single contestant likely brought out their voters, either to save them from themselves or to boost them for a job very very well done.  (Kristy likely benefitted from extremely good song selection.)

When that situation happens, it’s all up for grabs.  Anyone could go home.  And someone out of left field did.  (::ahem:: As I predicted.)  Unless Michael defined himself more clearly, he was never going to win this competition.  David Cooke outsings him more consistently from week to week in a defined rocker way.  Michael could do that well, but he also veered off into other styles that prevented easy encapsulation.

One last thing: I’m glad Brooke was safe.  She’s adorable.

It’s IDOL GIVES BACK week.  ::yawn::

It’s “Inspirational Song” week.  ::sigh::

Michael Johns - “Dream On” - Not a good song choice, I think.  It’s tough to impersonate Aerosmith like this.  I didn’t like it.  Crowd disagrees. Feh. The “dreams can come true” speech is obnoxious.  I’m glad Randy put him in his place.

Syesha Mercado - “I Believe” - Doing an Idol song on Idol?  Scary.  Snake, meet tail. Afer the judges lambasted her for doing a Whitney Houston song last week, she’s taking on Fantasia, who the three judges idolize so much?  Nutty.  She sounds good.  She can sing.  She’s got the chops.  But this won’t go well with the judges.  Good performance.  Amazing voice.  Bad choice.

My wife thought I was crazy as I was voicing all of those opinions above during the song. Then, the judges opened their mouths and hit every note I had just said.  It’s good to be right sometimes. My wife also thinks that Fantasia is overrated and nowhere near Whitney Houston’s level.  I’m so happy to be married to her at times like these.

Jason Castro - “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” - I can’t take these inspirational interviews anymore.  Good song choice for him, though.  He looks silly with the ukelele.  Technically sound, but ultimately boring.  I’ve never seen the crowd sit so resolutely on its hands.  And Randy liked it?!?  WHAT?!?  All three judges loved it.  Hunh. I’ve heard him do this with a half dozen songs in as many weeks.  There’s nothing new here.  I’m bored.

Kristy Lee Cooke - “Anyway” - A country song?  No way! She sounds great, but she’s completely unconvincing in her performance. Her eyes are just dead, when they’re open.  There’s nothing in there that draws me in or makes me want to root for her.  It’s like she’s trying to remember the lyrics more than give a performance.  Shame.  She could be a great recording artist, though.

David Cook - “Innocent” - What is that voice he started with?  Is this karaoke, or maybe an imitation?  That was nonsensical. Worst Cook Week Ever.  Bad bad bad song choice.

“Pompous,” Simon called it.  So did I, just three minutes ago. Hunh.

And I think Cook knows it, almost like he regretted the song choice shortly after he locked it in.

Carly Smithson - “The Show Must Go On” - Lotsa people do very very well with Queen.  Let’s see how she dresses this week.  Did she just compare IDOL GIVES BACK to LIVE AID? Yeah, that does make sense in the wrong ways.

Did she end sooner than she wanted to?  I kinda agree with Randy - it was disconnected.  She has a great voice, but there was something in that performance that didn’t sell it completely.

Simon approves of her fashion sense this week.

David Archuleta - “Angels” -  Good song choice.  Sounds good on power notes, but the lower end is very shaky to me.  I think he should have walked away from the piano halfway through when the choir came in.  He should have gotten up on his feet to sell the song.  As it is, some of those power notes sounded more shouty.  I’m sure the judges will love it, though.  Sure enough, Randy thinks it’s his best.

Brooke White - “You’ve Got A Friend” - Not the TOY STORY song.  Bad song choice.  The song doesn’t age well.  It seems anti-climactic for a show finale.  Maybe she would have been more comfortable sitting behind the piano for it.  She sounded good, but there’s not much that she COULD do with the song.  She should have pushed it in a couple of place more, just to vary it up.

A couple of after-the-fact thoughts: Back in the days when I listened to FM radio, I favored an adult contemporary station that catered to suburban housewives, basically. Their ratings stunk, but their demo was strong, so they survived.  “Angels” and “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” were in the daily rotation there.  I got sick of them fast enough. Simon was amazed the former was never a bigger hit, and had only heard the latter off the internet once.  I heard them both every morning for a year.  I suppose we’re all a product of our influences.

So, in the end, not a great IDOL week.  No Moments.  No standout performances.  No crashes and burns.  Sometimes, I guess you just have to get through it.  Expect a shocking dismissal this week.

Brook, Syesha, and Carly will be the bottom three. Who would be the most unexpected exit of those three?  Carly?  OK, I’ll pick her to go home this week.  I just smell the upset this week.

(Dark Horse of the week: Michael Johns.)

Finally!  I get one right.  Ramiele is gone.

Honestly, I didn’t watch the rest of the show.  Too busy with other things.  I might catch up with it on the DVR later, or I might just decided that I gained an hour of my life back from the Simon/Ryan banter and cheesy group number and melodramatic slowroll evictions and horrible viewer phone calls and Ruben Studdard so-long song.

So what did you think of the episode tonight?  What part should I watch out for, specifically, if I get around to viewing it?  What do you think of the bottom three?

Claudette Yamin, mother of singer Elliott, dies at 65

Mrs. Yamin died last night. She was 65.

The cause of her death was not released. She had been hospitalized during the weekend at a local hospital.

Elliott Yamin, 29, became a national celebrity during his 2006 run on the TV show “American Idol,” where he placed third. During the competition, his mother became known to “Idol”-watchers and Richmonders for her fiery spirit.

Oh, goody. It’s an April Fools gag to open things. I can’t be the only one who loathes this day, can I? It’s just ridiculous. At least go all the way and have a video clip of Simon Cowell on the set of “Moment of Truth.” Sheesh.

It’s Dolly Parton week! Yee-ha. It’s like looking into Kelly Pickler’s future, isn’t it?

Wait, that practically makes it Country Week! Kristy Lee Cook must be thrilled!

Brooke White - “Jolene” - Good song choice. And going for the guitar instead of the piano will deflect criticism that she’s hiding behind an instrument. And, look, it’s Dan DiDio on percussion! It might be too karaoke, but she sounds good. Not an Idol Moment by a long shot, but very respectable. Perhaps too safe? I don’t know; I liked it.

“You are Brooke White,” says Paula, stating the obvious. This might be a bad night for Paula, if this is how we start.

Seems weird to hear Ryan to introduce her as “Mrs. Brooke White.” I knnow she’s married and all, but “Mrs. Brooke?” Odd.

David Cooke - “Little Sparrow” - He didn’t crib this arrangement off the internet, so let’s see how he manages this one. It’s another solid performance. I don’t know the original song, so I don’t know how much he’s changed it, but it sounds nice. It fits in with his voice. It’s nothing overwhelming, but it’s good stuff. And, as the judges said, it shows that he can do the more tender things.

Oh, look: It’s corset week for the background singers. What an odd show it’s been so far.

Ramiele Malubay - I don’t know the title of the song, and I don’t care that much. It’s boring. The band is overwhelming her voice. She’s not doing anything too memorable with this song. Yawn. Am I going to have to predict this is the last week for her yet again?!?

Really, an entire week of Dolly Parton songs? What an odd odd week.

Ooh, it’s a new “I’m a Mac/I’m a PC” ad! BWAH HA HA. It’s a complete Vista hit piece. Ouch.

Jason Castro - “Travelin’ Through” - (Too bad it wasn’t “Travelin’ Prayer,” a Billy Joel song Parton had a minor hit with a few years back.) Good song choice. It’s in his wheel house. Still popping his “P”s, way too many weeks into the competition. He hasn’t learned yet. It’s a bit like Ramiele’s song: Nothing special. I think it’s better than Ramiele’s, in that he led the song and had a good arrangement of it. But, again, nothing memorable. Nothing exciting. Just good.

Simon’s wrong, though — this kind of music could suit Jason. As Randy pointed out, there’s a certain singer/songwriter vibe to the song that fits him.

Carly Smithson - “Here I (?) Come Again” - Sounds a bit old. I’m sure Simon will complain that she didn’t modernize it. But you know what? It doesn’t matter to me. She’s got some amazing vocal chops, and this song is another showcase for them. Maybe not the greatest Idol showcase song, but her voice is great.

Wow, she held the heck out of that long high note. No other singer on this show this season could have held that note at that key for that long.

Carly has no idea how to respond to Simon’s criticism of her choice in clothing. You can see her biting her lip.

David Archuleta - “Smokey Mountain Memories” - He’s safe this week. The song works for him, though it’s once again nothing that’ll excite people (outside his loyal fanbase) to download the video on iTunes tomorrow. It’s good work with a strong ending, though. The judges all thought it was great.

I’m so glad this show is only an hour tonight. I just ain’t feeling it, dawg.

Kristy Lee Cooke - “Coat of Many Colors” - Ooh, Simon is going to LOATHE that dress. Not surprisingly, Kristy excels vocally on country songs. But there’s still something about her that makes you wonder why she can’t break loose. She seems so reserved. Paula has mentioned her lack of showmanship before, and I think it’s really the one missing part of her game that’s going to keep her from going too far in this competition. In the last couple of weeks, she’s proven she can sing. Now she needs to “act.”

“Pleasant but forgettable” is Simon’s phrase, and that about fits. He didn’t give Ryan a hard time about noticing Kristy Lee’s French manicure. They all looked in pain from having to rush things through to fit nine songs in an hour. . .

Syesha Mercado - “I Will Always Love You” - Wow, this is brave. Most people think of this as a Whitney song, which is just the thing you don’t want to do on IDOL. Can she possibly live up to that? It isn’t possible, is it? I hope last week’s Idol Moment isn’t giving her too much confidence. Dolly liked her arrangement. Underplaying it might be the only way to do it.

Holy crap. Got goosebumps there in the final notes. I liked it. Nice mix of Dolly and Whitney. Gee whiz, her voice is amazing. I said before that I couldn’t imagine anyone other than Carly hitting that one note and holding it for that long. I forgot about Syesha. She could. She’s got amazing pipes. Simon was not thrilled with it, as I was. Randy was OK with it. It’s an impossible song to live up to, but I think Syesha did a great job with it, and deserves to stick around based on that performance.

Given last week’s flirt with the bottom three, I think her fanbase will get out their vote well tonight. She’ll be safe..

“PC/Mac Commercial” #2 on the night. Hilarious again, especially in light of the recent Microsoft e-mails that blame 30% of all Vista crashes on Nvidia. BWAH HA HA #2.

Michael Johns - “It’s All Wrong” (just guessing there) - It’s a male version of a torch song. He’s got a great voice for it. The scratchy rocker voice works very well on a song like this, where he can really sink his vocal claws into it, if you’ll forgive the mixed metaphor. Great performance, backed up by another amazing guitar performance. Even Simon liked it.

An off week, overall, but Michael Johns leads the pack, with David Archuleta, Carly, David Cooke, and Syesha just behind him in my mind. Brooke White is next, alongside Kristy. Then Jason. Ramiele is dead last.

I want a sing-off between Syesha and Carly, though. Let’s have an epic Idol Battle! We need a special show for that. Then you could pair off David C. and Michael Johns to go at it. What about Castro versus White? Ramiele versus a random teenager from the mosh pit audience?

So who’s in the bottom three? Heck if I know. I never guess that right, anyway. Why bother trying? Ramiele goes home this week. No, really, I mean it this week. Jason and Brooke (this week’s bit shocker) join her in the bottom three.

In reading back over my previous American Idol writeups, I noticed one or two odd choices of phrasing, so let me explain how the writeups have been done this year and why some occasional grammatical foul-ups come of it.

I’ve been writing the reviews as I watch the show. I sit on the couch in front of the tv with the DVR remote next to me and the MacBook on my lap. I literally am typing as I’m watching the show. I don’t pause that often, usually just to give myself a second to finish a thought during commercials. (Yeah, I can’t let the commercials play. I pause them rather than listening to them. Ah, DVRs. . . )

In the past, I’d always taken notes by hand and typed them up later, meaning my write-ups would be in the past tense. Now, they’re more in the current tense. Occasionally, though, I lapse back into old habits and the tenses get mixed up. Sorry about that.

I may go back to hand-written notes in the future. The writeups seem to be shorter that way. It all depends on my mood each night, really.

This has been my navel-gazing for the day. Please go back about your lives.

The bottom three were Jason, Syesha, and Chikezie. Of those three, I’m most surprised by Jason. There seems to be a youth movement this season. The younger ones that seem to stand no chance keep skating by - Ramiele, Kristy, and Jason. They’ve all been in the bottom three now, though, and they’ve all survived. Jason is just getting boring, and that’s why America failed to vote for him this week

Syesha’s problem is one of a fan base. I don’t think she has a big one at all. She doesn’t have anything to compare to the likes of Davids Cook or Archuleta, for example. There’s something about her that comes across, personality-wise, as annoying. Even if you can’t articulate it, there’s something about her that’s off-putting. She had the performance of her life last night and still wound up in the bottom three. That’s not good. She needs to either become more likable, or keep putting up amazing performances week after week, to carry on.

Chikezie picked a bad song this week and paid the price.

It’s important to remember that though we all pretend this is a talent show, it’s really not. It’s a popularity contest. I keep getting caught in the trap of predicting the worst performer to go home each week, when I should be picking on the least popular, the one who fails to excite his or her fanbase, and the previous week’s results.

All three performers were safe last week. That doesn’t help energize your fan base to vote for you this week, at all.

Syesha sang so well that many people probably figured she was safe and didn’t vote for her.

Neither Jason nor Chikezie wowed America, nor did they do so poorly that their fanbase was excited to call to protect them.

And so Chikezie is gone now.

Ah, well.

What did we learn this week? If she sings well and picks a good song, Kristy can avoid the bottom three. She can energize her country base, as she has that vote locked up by herself this season. It’ll carry her through another couple of weeks.

David Cook had a remarkably large noggin, even as a child.

And that commercial from last night where the lizards start dancing to “Thriller” is hilarious!

De Blieck Out!

I had planned on taking the week easy. I wasn’t going to write anything too lengthy up. I didn’t take notes.

And then they deliver what might be the best episode of IDOL ever. It has to rank up there. We can even float the possibility of MULTIPLE Idol Moments in one episode. When it was good tonight, it was very very good. When it was bad, it was still decent.

Ramiele is in trouble again this week. Going first is never good. Being sick is never good. Singing a song that’s a little bigger than even your own big voice is a bit of a mistake. She didn’t sound awful, but it was a bit shouty and forced. I felt the most sorry for her when the cable from the camera wrapped around her feet. She didn’t trip over it, though, so all is good.

Jason was Jason. He picked a good song, but we’ve seen his routine already. He’s the awkward kid behind the acoustic guitar with a light and airy voice. He’s never recovered from “Hallelujah.” Still, he sang it well. Not powerful, not an Idol Moment, but he didn’t trip up. He was Jason Castro, and that was it. Simon is right — he needs to take some chances.

So far, not so good, but not bad, either. Nothing embarrassing. Nothing that will be crash and burn material. Then things ramped up:

Syesha sang a song so clearly, so memorably, and so darn pitch perfect that I’m tempted to call it an Idol Moment. It was the perfect song for her. She delivered it without missing a beat. She paid attention to the lyrics and acted them out. She hit the big power notes, but also carried the melody and the transitions. There was absolutely nothing wrong with a note in that song. I didn’t quite get goosebumps, but I think it was, at that point, the best performance of the season for any contestant. It was just that good. Is it an Idol Moment? I’d love to hear what you think.

Chikezie sang a Vandross song. When I heard that the contestants would be singing songs from the years of their births, and then Chikezie mentioned a ballad, I knew it would be one of Vandross’. It’s almost cliche. That said, he sounded great. He looked comfortable on stage. He sold the song. Some parts were better than others, but he sang it well. The judges were all over him for being cheesy or safe or something, but I thought he showed off some great range to his voice.

Brooke White did The Police with her piano. It sounded great. Yes, it’s back to her Beatles Week 1 mold, but I like that mold. I even liked the way it picked up when the band came in. It might have worked well completely solo, but I liked the way the tempo picked up and she almost seemed to lose herself in the song at that point. It seemed less well-rehearsed and more raw. More real. I really liked it, moreso than the judges did. And the gaff at the beginning was cute, too.
Anything beats that thing she did last week.

But her left hand looked like that of an 80 year old woman. It had to be a trick of the light. I thought she was wearing a glove from all the wrinkles that she had. Nah, just a lighting thing, I’m sure.

And she plays piano by ear, basically. I’m so jealous. . .

Michael Johns - I wasn’t as big a fan of his “Bohemian Rhapsody” as others were, but this Queen thing tonight was pure genius. Idol Moment, for sure. This is one people will remember for the rest of the season. Even when he was reaching hard for those power notes, he seemed confident and sold it. Great lighting, arrangement, and theatrics all around. Impressive. I even liked the slight hints of his accent that came out in this song.

Carly Smithson played the Jim Steinman card on me. “Total Eclipse of the Heart.” She sang it well, but it was pure karaoke to me. Even worse, she sang “power keg” instead of “powder keg.” OK, I’m being really nit-picky, and it might have even been the accent. She did look a little stiff on stage, but the bigger crime was in being so literal with the song. It’s tough to top Bonnie Tyler.

David Archuleta sang a song that was perfect for him. It was some weird kind of Up With People-like joint. While he had one bad voice crack in the last third, he sang it like he sings everything. Catchy little ditty. Not his best performance, but good enough.

Kristy Lee Cook, no doubt, ticked off the contingent of people who are sick of “God Bless the USA.” (Though even Simon admits it’s a well-written song.) She also cagily got all the votes from people who still love that song. Think of the song what you will, but it was her best performance so far. It was a perfect song for her voice, for the show, and for this round. I think I said it last week — odds are, she’ll have a good week and then be voted out. Uh oh.

And, yeah, it was a little karaoke.

David Cook - pure Idol Moment with “Billy Billie Jean”. I missed Ryan Seacrest’s introduction to it. Whose version of the MJ classic was this? I know I’ve heard it before, but I can’t remember who did it. Cook nailed it from beginning to end. It was amazing.

I’d rank David Cook, Syesha, and Michael Johns at the top of the charts for this week. Brooke White and Kristy Lee are close behind, with David Archuleta just behind them. Chikezie and Carly are next, with Jason close behind them. Ramiele is at the bottom.

Bottom three this week: Kristy, Ramiele, and one upset of some sort. Maybe Chikezie? I think Ramiele is really going home this week, though the sick excuse might get her enough sympathy votes to save her. Still, the patriotic vote for Kristy will trump that. Say good-bye to the girl whose closet is filled with high-waisted everything.

De Blieck Out!

Worst. Beatles. Medley. EVER.

And what was up with Amanda? Does she have laryngitis? She sang one line in the entire thing, and the rest of the time was barely lip synching. As soon as her lyric was done, the whole group immediately came to the front and her mic was silent again.

Carly in the bottom three?!? That makes no sense. Paula and Randy are right — America got it wrong. She is one of the best singers on the show. She can’t go home yet. With a field still including Ramiele and Kristy, she should be safe.

So Ryan asks David Cook to respond to Ryan calling him “smug.” And what answer does David give? A smug one.

Kristy is cannon fodder. She’s in the bottom three, deservedly so.

Jason is safe, despite that awful performance last night. It was campy, but. . . UGH.

Ramiele is in the Top Ten, which means my prediction’s toast once again. I don’t know who’s voting for her, but not Carly. . .

It’s time for Viewer Questions! UGH.

Oh, and now we have a questioner who’s vamping past what she was supposed to ask.

Ryan’s introducing Kellie Pickler, “who’s grown in so many ways since leaving us.” Oh, Ryan, you lovable scamp. Coincidentally enough, Ryan also announced this week that Dolly Parton is a mentor this season.

Neil Diamond, Andrew Lloyd Weber (fresh off last year’s judging appearance on GREASE: YOU’RE THE ONE THAT I WANT), and Mariah Carey are also mentoring.

If I were an IDOL contestant, I’d want to go country. They take care of their own down in Nashville. Even Bucky has an album.

But let me sum this up: Kelly’s singing about her red high heels. Kat McPhee has a song about open toed shoes. By this time next year, Kristy Lee Cook should be recording an ode to her Uggs.

Wow, that leaves us with Amanda and Chikezie, neither of whom deserve to leave. Randy is rushing along here.

Amanda joins an all-girl bottom three. Ouch. If Kristy doesn’t go home in a minute, then this is an upset.

Whew, Carly is safe. America, you had me worried there for a second.

And I just said, “Wow” out loud three times. Amanda is out. Maybe we’ll find out now if she still has a voice. She doesn’t deserve to go. I don’t think she was going to win it all by a long shot, but she had something unique that I thought would carry her through a few more weeks, probably to the Top Six or so.

Maybe Simon is right — one of these little kids is going to win it all this season.

And Amanda is now stumbling her way through the song. . .

Oh, well. I better check — has VoteForTheWorst taken credit for Kristy Lee yet? I think I know what’s going to happen with Kristy, though. She’s going to finally break through and have a great week and that’ll be the week she goes home. We shall see.

De Blieck Out!

What’s up with Ryan’s hair tonight? It’s not flat-ironed. It’s semi-fauxhawk, practically.

Isn’t it a little early to talk about their favorite moment of the show?

Amanda Overmyer - “Back In The USSR” - Good song choice for her. Billy Joel did it justice on his Kohuept live album, too. Good news — she’s showing life in her eyes this week, which she didn’t do for me last week. I liked it. I don’t think she’s going to win this whole thing this season, but this worked for her.

And then she delivers the greatest response to Simon ever. Not sure she should be pushing the local dive bars on a family friendly show like IDOL, though.

First commercial break — no Beatles on iTunes. But the Kitchen Nightmares commercial looks cool!

Kristy Lee Cook - “You Got To Hide Your Love Away” - Judging by that dress, we knew it would be a ballad. Her voice sounds very weak tonight. Nice song though a bit repetitive. You could hear her struggle with wrestling a couple of those notes to the ground. The last note was good. Simon will find it boring and Paula will tell her how nice she looks.

Yup, Paula said it’s the best she’s ever looked. But Simon is right — she has no showmanship.

“Blow you out of your socks” is not fit for a family show. And Ryan and Simon can’t get around it. . .

David Archuleta - “The Long and Winding Road” - Did they really need to show him blow his lyrics from last week again? Wow. That’s harsh. In any case, I remember this song best from the Tiny Toons album. Heaven help me. This song is in his wheelhouse, though. So long as he remembers the lyrics, he should be safe. And he is. If not spectacular, he’s at least solid. He could have done MORE with the song, but the fact that he got through it will be enough. Simon thought he was amazing. Am I expecting too much now?

I know I say it every week, but I need to say it again: IDOL is beautiful on a high def TV screen. Ah, bliss. . .

Second break. No iTunes commercial. Wait - Ryan is pulling an iPhone out of the crowd. Crap, it’s just an Idol on iTunes ad. Like that chick wasn’t planted. . .

Michael Johns - “A Day in the Life” - Starting out with the mic too low. Corrected it pretty quickly. That falsetto is tough to hit. He needs more of his accent in this song, I think. Some of those notes are tough to hit. Not sure it’s a great IDOL song, but I think he did it justice. Crazy arrangement. He fell into the trap of picking a song he liked rather than one that fit him. And Randy is all over him for that.

Paula just mentioned the monitors in the contestants’ ears. Back in the day, they were only allowed to have them if they started off stage in the audience. I guess the stage is so big nowadays that they’re mandatory.

And Simon hated it. He’s right that Michael needs to nail more songs. He is starting to coast a little. He’s a better contestant than this week.

Ouch, he’s not wearing an earpiece. Paula is lost. Whoops.

Mac Book Air commercial time. Ah, well. The dream is dead for another night. For once, I’d like ONE prediction of mine to go right. At least we don’t have Mariah Carey sitting in as a guest judge. That rumor proved false.

More after the break, including the closest to a crash and burn we had this week, and my Bottom Three predictions:

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Rolling Stone : Paul McCartney Divorce Settlement: $48.7 Million

The divorce saga between Paul McCartney and his estranged wife Heather Mills has finally come to an end, with Mills receiving £24.3 million, or $48.7 million.

Last week, the pundits disagreed with me. They dared to say my prediction that the Beatles catalog would wind up on IDOL that night was bunk. They said I didn’t know what I was talking about. Everyone knew, after all, that it couldn’t and wouldn’t happen until after McCartney’s divorce was finalized.

The divorce is now a done deal. And IDOL is doing a second Beatles week this week. The timing couldn’t possibly be better, aside from Yoko Ono casting a spell to bring Lennon back from the dead to perform a duet with David Archuleta.
I thus renew my prediction — the Beatles are coming to iTunes tonight. You’ll see the announcement in an ad during the first half of the show. Bring it on!

And if it doesn’t happen tonight, then it’ll happen on the results show tomorrow night. If it doesn’t happen then, I’ll come up with a new excuse. . . Eventually, you know I’ll be right!

(Let us all just hope that rumors of Mariah Carey acting as a guest judge tonight are horribly horribly wrong.  I know she has a new album out to pimp and all, but — Mariah judging Beatles covers?  No.)

Oh, boy. Another HORTON HEARS A WHO ad. I guess the opening for every other week’s results show will be a movie promotion, eh?

Jim Carrey is there, in full elephant regalia. Curiously, the camera angle is showing the teleprompter behind Jim. This exchange is scripted, of course. Except Carrey doesn’t stick to the script at all. He has the vague outline and goes off on tangents of his own. To his credit, Ryan does the same.

Next week’s theme week - Lennon/McCartney again. Poor David Archuleta. On the bright side, it gives me another shot to be right about my Beatles/iTunes prediction!

First, a musical montage of those songs. I wonder if Archuleta will get a solo in this one, given how little of it he knows. Michael Johns is the harmony guy, there to back up the girls. Ooh, Johns can’t dance in line with the rest of them. Hernandez can dance just fine, not shockingly. Chikezie sounds good. Johns is now shaking sweat when he shakes his head.

They really need to STOP cutting to Carrey in the audience.

I’m trying to figure out if it’s the arrangements or dropped lyrics, but there are times when people aren’t singing that they look like they’re supposed to be. Odd.

Carly’s husband is keeping to the shadows in the crowd. Given his tattoo coverage, that’s likely a good thing.

Onto the results:

Jason is safe, so my prediction is already at least 1/3rd wrong. Syesha IS in the bottom three, so now I’m wrong on 2 of 3 counts. She looks in shock as she starts her song. Ohmigod. She wouldn’t shut up. She made sure to sing an extra couple of unnecessary notes long after the band stopped playing. She had to stretch out “her moment” just a couple seconds longer, didn’t she?

“The Distance” is this week’s Ford music video. I’m competely out of touch. I have no idea what that song was.

Now, we see the contestants at the Horton Hears A Who premiere. And they say the movie title often. I’m surprised their schedule includes time to go see a movie. Maybe they were just there for the orange carpet?

Ryan is teasing the fact that they’ll be taking live phone call questions during the show. I’m calling it now - that will not end well, no matter how well they’ve prepped the caller to stick to a script.

Back to the results: Kristy is asking for her microphone. She’s not dumb. But, then, she already said she thought she was going home last week. She is in the bottom three. And she’s apologizing to Simon with a smile already that he’s going to have to hear the song again. If they can just tone down the banjo, then the song will have a chance. Michael Johns and Jason Castro start doing a jig at the side of the stage. Didn’t last long. Ryan clapped along to the song for a change, though.

Simon still hates it.

Still no Apple commercial tonight. They usually have one by the end of the second commercial break.

Oh, thank goodness. They’re not taking live phone calls. They’re going with questions from the ‘net. Ryan has an unnecessary prop computer to sell the concept.

No, it IS a phone call. But the 12 year old girl is sticking to the script very well.

Second caller is a wannabe singer. Typical. Simon tells the caller to get another job. I LOVE IT. This might be OK after all.

The problem with this segment is that the caller’s question is on the screen already. There’s no need for the voice. They could just have Ryan repeat the question and save the amateur hour bit.

It’s time for Katharine McPhee, who didn’t change her name after her nuptuals. She’s singing “Something.” She sounds great. The right person won that season. (Really, my mind turned to mush last night after typing for an hour.  Just ignore that line.)  She’s still got the power, and can handle the softer parts just fine. She did shop at the same costume shop as Carly Smithson, obviously. The front row had an interesting view, I’m sure.

Jim Carrey is still hanging around.

Archuleta should be kicked off the show for the double popped collar. That look was ugly two years ago when it first reared its head. It’s 2008. There’s no excuse anymore, not even his youth.

The last person in the bottom three is — David Hernandez. Ramiele is safe and I’m completely wrong on the bottom three this week.

I’m fast forwarding through this song. I can’t listen to him talking about dancing again. It’s too creepy.

David has a girl on each arm. Again, creepy.

Paula just said she’s never seen a “more stronger bottom three.” Putting aside grammatical issues, I guess she forgot about that Three Divas week a few years back when Jennifer Hudson went home.

Syesha is safe.

29 million votes can’t be wrong. Kristy is safe. David is gone. The country voters came through as I predicted yesterday. The Dancer is gone. Whew. He had a good voice, but a REALLY bad week. REALLY REALLY bad. I am sad that the first person to do a Jim Steinman song is out already.

Whoops, in the middle of the “journey” video, they cut to a live shot of the darkened theater with the Idol signs the only thing aglow. Ruben has a predictably boring song to play us out.

It just now dawns on me that for the first time in many many years, I didn’t predict the order in which these top 12 will go out this season. Crap. Too late now.

De Blieck Out!

It’s a new stage that looks like it came straight over from Europe. It reminds me a lot of the European Idol stages I’ve seen videos of on YouTube.

New opening graphics — looks like a congressional meeting in the Star Wars universe.

And Ryan is reading off the teleprompter, which is sadly just to the right of the camera. It’s very distracting to see Ryan looking off to the side of me instead of at me.

Syesha Mercado - “Got To Get You Into My Life” - I like the little jazz riffs. The quiet opening is weak, but the power notes mid-way through the song are going to sell it. Overall, a little weak. Not memorable.

Chikezie - “She’s A Woman” - This one will be remembered. I never would have pictured him singing a song like this, nor inspiring Ryan into the madness of prancing in circles around the stage before exchanging barbs with Simon or breathlessly trying to read the phone number.

In any case, I was a bit worried in the prepackaged piece when Chikezie said he was “putting my own funk on it,” but it works. It was a bit weird to see him running across the stage like that, but you can’t deny the entertainment value.

And Paula is trying to do a “high risk, high reward” metaphor tonight that just isn’t working, no matter how many times she tries to drag it kicking and screaming towards her.

As Simon said, “You looked like you were completely drunk.” Now THAT is rock and roll.

Ramiele Mulabay - “In My Life” - Pleasant vocals. Very pretty. But boring. It’s a great sample of her vocal talent, but a bad American Idol song. It won’t move anyone to vote for her.

Jason Castro - “If I Fell” - This is his schtick. It’s wearing out, though. He’s way too close to the microphone. He’s practically swallowing it with every syllable, which is audibly distracting. He avoids any long notes, pulling out of them as soon as he starts them. He’s just boring, honestly.

Hell’s Kitchen is returning on April First! Yay! This is one of the pleasant side effects of the Writer’s Strike, right up there with Winter Big Brother.

Carly Smithson - “Come Together” - HEY! Isn’t that bar in the Gas Lamp District? I think I’ve walked by it multiple times during previous San Diego Comic Cons. I’ve never eaten in it, but I know I’ve passed by it before. Wild. In any case, the song is good. She can sing. She does a weird little cutesy sexy dance thing with it, and the front row of the mosh pit must be getting an upskirt eye full.

I’m not sure this compares to Kelly Clarkson’s Round of 10 performances six seasons ago, though. It’s good, but not that kind of break through.

David Cooke - “Eleanor Rigby” - So this will be his schtick. It works. Yes, he’s creepy, but he can do this rock thing. And Simon is right: if this is a talent competition and not a popularity contest, he stands a very good chance of winning it. Sadly, we know better.

I feel guilty doing such a short writeup on such a great performance, but let’s move on.

Lots more after the break, including my Bottom Three predictions.

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As I write this, we’re only 2.5 hours away from an announcement of the Beatles on iTunes. I’m guessing it’ll be announced on a commercial at the first break. Come to think of it, tonight’s show was already taped. So I bet Seacrest didn’t make the announcement. (That would have leaked by now, unless they laid it in afterwards.)

It has to be a commercial.

Update: It’s 9:32 and we have no Beatles on iTunes yet.  I’m beginning to think it’ll be announced during the results show tomorrow.  That’s live, so there’s no need to keep things a secret during the taping of the performances.

Yeah, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Failing that — yeah, the Beatles songs ARE on the iTunes store.  They’re just sung by the IDOL contestants. . .