What?? ITune download night.

Tonight the theme was popular downloads from ITunes. That meant the top nine could sing just about whatever song they felt like singing. WHATEVER SONG! Scott (and you know what I think of him) said, "This is the week we've been waiting for."

Oh, really?

Actually, I have to say that SCOTT sounded better tonight than he has all season. He sang Billy Joel's "I Love You Just The Way You Are." Still mediocre at best, he stayed in his comfort zone and sat at his piano and did a rendition of the song that would make Mr. Joel say hmmmmm. . . .

That's all I'm saying about Scott tonight. He simply shouldn't be on the same stage as the rest of the bunch.

ANOOP led off the night with Usher's "Caught Up." He did a decent job, stepped up the tempo this week, but still failed to hit us with the wow factor. Anoop is a good singer, but he lacks any other presence on stage. If he could learn a bit of booty-shaking to accentuate his more up-tempo songs, then he would be a much greater force to be reckoned with. Still, I think Anoop will make it through to the next round because everyone likes Anoop, the person.

Next up -- MEGAN. She did a shaky version of a song I've never heard before -- Bob Marley's "Turn Your Lights Down Low," (later released by Lauren Hill). Come on. If you have a chance to sing pretty much ANY song, why pick such an obscure OLD song. Bob Marley has been dead for what -- twenty years??? She whined her way through it to a very anticlimactic climax. I'm trying to think of who she should do. What artist she should cover. Hmmm. . . . Can't think of any. How bout just singing for tips at the local coffee shop. Poor Megan was born about fifty years too late. She'd have been great as a flowers-in-the-hair hippy chick warbling out tunes in Haight-Ashbury in the sixties. I won't be surprised if she packs her bags this time.

Country night was a few weeks ago, but DANNY, nevertheless, took a country turn this week with "What Hurts The Most" by Rascal Flats. With the death of his wife just months before he auditioned for the show, I'm sure Danny has TONS of emotions to pull from to put into his performances, and it shows. He seems to truly "feel" the music inside of him. Danny sounded like he always does. I said last week that he needs to do something, anything, out of the box to keep our interest. He did a decent job, but not great. Was his country choice a ploy to garner the country music lovers' votes now that Michael is gone? Good strategy. My interest in him is waning. The judges loved him. He'll definitely be back for another chance to show us what he's got.

No Doubt's "Don't Speak" was ALLISON's choice, and it was a good choice. This time, she brought her guitar with her and showed us that she is even more talented than we thought. She put her own spin on it, as usual, and sounded great. At 16 years old, this song might be an "oldie" by her standards, but was one of the most contemporary songs of the evening. Allison came out on stage wearing a bizarre looking dress which got a lot of flack from the judges, but so what??? It only added to her uniqueness. She had staying power and should be around for the weeks ahead. Does she have what it takes to win it all? I believe she does.

MATT sang "You Found Me" by The Fray. Props to Matt for choosing the most current song of the night. These are the songs that those who go on to get recording contracts will be singing. Not old stuff like most of the others chose. Matt has great talent. I liked his performance, but I also felt like it wasn't really his style. I felt like he was trying to copy the original instead of making it his own. Matt's got a ton of soul, and should stay in that zone. Robin Thicke. Justin Timberlake. Or, as the judges said, a band like One Republic. Anyway, Matt was in the bottom three last week, and with this performance this week, he'll probably be in the bottom three again. I hope not.

That brings us to LIL. This is her third bad showing in a row. Lil has moments of greatness, but is so inconsistent that I don't think she has a chance of winning this competition. Lil sang "I Surrender" by Celine Dion. Yes, you heard me -- "I Surrender" by Celine Dion. First of all, no matter how good you think you are, you DON'T do Celine Dion. Just like you DON'T do Whitney Houston. You can NEVER sound as good. Well, Lil didn't even sound marginally good. She seems to get worse and worse each week, and she has been making terrible song choices. She could have done any song she wanted to. MJ Bligh? Alicia Keyes? Rihanna? She may be in the bottom three, and I won't be surprised.

"Play That Funky Music White Boy." Remember that one? By one-hit-wonders Wild Cherry? 1976? Well, that was the song that ADAM screeched out. He had his slicked-back boufant hair-do thing going on again. The judges fawned over him to the point that almost made me puke. As far as I'm concerned, this shrieky style of his has worn out its welcome. Wasn't that the trademark sound of all those 90's hair bands? Why do the judges love him so much? Like Simon so often comments -- I had to cover my ears on this one. True genius? Really, Paula?? Puh-leez!

So, as you can tell, in this reporter's opinion, the night was pretty much a bust. By far, the worst night of the competition so far. That was -- until KRIS took the stage. He did "Ain't No Sunshine" by Bill Withers. Hands down the best performance of the night and maybe the whole competition. This time, Kris was behind the keyboard. Who knew? We've seen him with his guitar, but not with his keyboard (unless he played it Hollywood week. I don't remember). A flawless, awesome rendition of the classic song. Yes, the song is more than 30 years old, but Kris gave it his own flair and made the song work as if it were released just last year. Very quickly moving to the top of my list, Kris is the one to watch. While guys like Danny, Matt and Anoop sometimes seem like they're pushing it, or trying too hard, it all seems effortless for Kris. Not a bad performance yet. Everyone else had better bring it.

See ya next time.

Nine left standing.

OK.

Elimination time. Here we go.

After the oh-so-cheesy group tribute to Motown, Ruben Studdard performed. The season two Idol winner sounded great. Why don't we hear more from him on the radio??

Getting on to the eliminations -- Adam was the first to escape being sent home. Not surprisingly. But then Matt???? In the bottom three??? What????

Kris made it through to the next round, as did Lil, but Michael joined Matt in the bottom three. Not surprised at any of those.

Allison, no surprise here, either, was the next to enter the safety zone. Then Anoop was also safe. Danny was the next in the hot seat. He too made it through to the next round.

Scott and Megan were next. Both should go home, but, alas, only one can be eliminated. It was Scott in the bottom three. Well, shocker of shockers -- Scott got to back to the safety zone. How can anyone vote for this schmo over someone like Matt??? Unbelievable!!

In the cruel wait for the inevitable results, Stevie Wonder performed a medley of his hits. He still sounds great after all these years.

So -- Here we go -- Who goes home?? Who stands before the judges wishing for a final reprieve?? Matt? Michael? After the break. . . . . .

Envelope please. And the loser is Michael. Matt returns to safety. Will the judges (aren't they really just critics now) grant him a stay of elimination?? Sing, Michael, sing. Sing as if your life depends on it. Or at least your career. Simon was called upon to deliver the verdict. Nope. Sorry big man. Back to the oil rigs.

One last thought -- I think the judges' "save" thing is too much. Let us decide and leave it at that.

Tune in next week.

WESMIX on Idol

Motown night!!!

What happened, LIL? You should have shined! "HEATWAVE"????? Give me a break! With all the great women of Motown (Diana Ross, Mavis Staples, Gladys Knight and Valerie Simpson to name a few), you chose Martha Reeves??? And you screamed the song. Go back and listen to the original -- Martha sang it with ease, not like she was struggling to get every lyric out. It's very unlikely that you'll go home tonight (you get the black vote no matter what), but if you do get eliminated, after last night's performance on top of last week's, it wouldn't be an injustice.

And don't get me started on SCOTT! How did this guy ever get into the top 12, or even the top 36?? We all know he gets the synpathy vote because he's blind. Boo Hoo. But that sympathy vote is taking away from the others who deserve to be there when he doesn't. And who the hell dressed him in those pink pants?? Himself?? GEEZ!!! Enough!! Get rid of that psycho-looking no-talent! "You Can't Hurry Love?" by Diana Ross and the Supremes and then later by Phil Collins. If they were dead, they'd be turning over in their graves!

My choice is MATT. This one is the total package. He's got soul. He's got swagger. He's got looks. He can sing. He can play the piano! He kind of snuck up on us. For weeks in the preliminary rounds, he flew way under the radar. His rendition of Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On" was damn good. Marvin would approve. He put his own spin on it and has proven to all of us that he has what it takes to win the competition. I haven't seen a bad performance from him yet. You go, boy!

KRIS is also quickly becoming front-runner. He sang "How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You," and his rendition sounded just as good as the original hit makers, Marvin Gaye and James Taylor. His all American good looks and pure voice are thrusting him into the running for the top spot. I think we all have been pleasantly surprised by his emerging talent and his self-confidence. Simon is off on this one -- Kris is loaded with self-confidence.

Oh, dear, dear MEGAN. Go home. We've had enough of you pseudo-hula thing. Shades of Brook White from last year. Who told her she could do Stevie Wonder?? Puh-leeez! Who is voting for this chick?

"Oh Baby Baby," by this week's mentor himself, Smokey Robinson was ANOOP's choice this week and he did an admirable job with it. Anoop isn't great, but he's not terrible either. He's such a likeable guy that he'll be around for a few more weeks at least. We all got into his corner partly because to the goofy songs he chose, like "My Perogative," or "Beat It," and I think that if he stays with the ballads, he will become boring. Step it up, Anoop Dogg!!

MICHAEL "churched it up" by singing "Ain't Too Proud To Beg" by the Temptations. Well, he had better start begging for votes, because performances like that one ain't gonna make it. He mostly yelled it and was off pitch more than a few times. And aren't we all tired of his "well bite me, judges, the country folk will vote for me" attitude? Sure he's an big all-American looking lug, but that's definitely not enough to will the competition. Back to the oil rigs with you, big man!

ADAM decided to sing another Smokey Robinson tune, "Tracks Of My Tears." He showed up with his hair combed back, wearing a suit, looking like Harry Conick, Jr. A completely different look for him, which was refreshing. He sang the song in his trademark high-pitched falsetto, and was right on the mark as far as pitch, but am I the only one getting tired of his wierd style?

My original choice for the top spot, DANNY chose "Get Ready," originally by The Temptations, and then an even better rendition by Rare Earth in 1970. Danny sounded his usual self. Unfortunately, he's not doing anything out of the box to keep our interest. His look was a carbon copy of the previous weeks. Surprise. He's kinda klutzy when he dances. He pretty much screamed the whole song. Hopefully, people aren't getting tired of him, because he's still one of the best.

And then there's ALLISON. She's the only rocker, and the only latina. Those are two huge contingencies to have in your corner. In Allison's case, however, it is well deserved. Is she really only 16? Her song choice for the night was "Papa Was A Rolling Stone" by the Temptations, one of my all-time favorite songs ever of all time in perpetuity. And she ROCKED IT. I wouldn't be surprised if she goes all the way (at least to the top three). She's that good, and she definitely has her own style. Great job!