Two Must Go!

This is the night that the "save" produced -- The night two go home. I believe the two packing thier bags will be Lil Rounds and Anoop Desai. Disco was the theme last night, and there were some impressive performances for sure. It's gonna get tough from now on.

The top seven spent the day getting choreography tips from Paula Abdul herself, which were applied to the group song, "Shake Your Body Down To The Ground" by the Jacksons. Wow. They actually sounded and looked pretty good together. Rare for the weekly collaborative effort.

Let's get started. . . .

Lil Rounds was the first to be called up. She, not surprisingly, went to the stools. Here comes the shocker. . . Lil didn't even have to wait. She was immediately eliminated and sent packing. She sang the Chaka Kahn song for her swansong and sounded just as bad as she did last night. The judges thought she was better and said the obligatory "you have a great career ahead of you blah, blah, blah".

Will there still be a bottom three? Stand by. First, 60's and 70's diva Freda Payne stepped out on stage and sang her hit "Band Of Gold." Dang, she must be 100 years old, but still worked it! Good for her! Then, Thelma Houston sang what Billboard Magazine declared was the number one dance tune of all time -- her smash him "Don't Leave Me This Way." What a treat! If that wasn't enough, Harry Casey of KC and the Sunshine Band came out and sang the disco anthem, "Get Down Tonight." It's just a plethora of disco diva-dom! It was cool to see these old-timers shake thier booties again.

But, alas, underneath all the glitter and spectacle, gloom and doom await one more of the remaining six.

Here we go: Kris stood up first. The judges loved his acoustic version of "She Works Hard For The Money." America loved it too, and Kris plopped his butt back down on the safa.

Adam was next to be scrutinized. Of course, all the judges loved him, and he got to sit back down, too.

Danny's "September" divided the judges opinions. Simon didn't care for the performance, but the others thought it was great. Danny was also safe, and sat back down.

Anoop sang "Dim All The Lights." He thought he could have done it better, and so did the voting public. To the stools with Anoop.

Allison sang "Hot Stuff," and Matt sang "Stayin Alive." The judges liked both of the performances. Matt is safe, and Allison joins Anoop at the stools. Once again, this reporter correctly predicted all of the lowest vote-getters. Mmmm kay?

Before we learn the results, David Archuleta performed his song, "Touch My Hand." One year hasn't done much to change his lack of stage-presence. Who wants to see him in concert? I found the performance to be boring. If this song becomes a hit, I'll be surprised. He's too young to be singing in the genre of Adult Contemporary. Leave that to Phil Collins, and let's get on with the show. . . .

So here we are. . . . Over 45 million votes. And the loser is. . . . Anoop Desai. Allison is safe. As good as the final seven are, the public is getting it right week by week. Those who are left are definitely the ones who deserve to be there. With only five left, the FIERCE competition begins NOW!

See ya next time!

Disco Night 4/21

Hi everyone!

Last week, Matt was granted a reprieve from the judges, and lives on for another week. Bad news: Two go home tomorrow based on the votes of the viewing public. No more "saves" are allowed.

It's Disco Night!! Should be an interesting night.

LIL started off the night singing Chaka Kahn's "I'm Every Woman," later a hit by Whitney Houston. And by the way, I rarely utter Chaka's name without prefacing it with "The Incomparable." Is Lil out of her mind? Doesn't she get it? Not only does she try and take on one incomparable diva, but TWO?????? Lil -- You don't do Whitney and you DAMN sure don't do Chaka. She was miserable. Another copy-cat showing. Miserable. Her voice was all over the place. Miserable. The judges trashed her and in my opinion, were too nice. Miserable. Almost embarassing to watch. The first ticket home is the starting position, and the second is a miserable performance. The judges hated the performance. Lil, of course, disagreed with the panel.

Next up, KRIS. An audience favorite, he sang "She Works Hard For The Money," by one of my all-time favorites, Donna Summer. Kris didn't do so well last week, but this week, turned in an arrangement all his own, certainly not trying to copy Ms. Summer. His acoustic version had an Island flair complete with bongo drums, washboard, and himself on guitar. Kris seems completely comfortable behind the mic. Stellar performance. But what the hell were Paula's comments about??? The judges and I thought he was great!

DANNY chose "September," by another of my all-time favorites, Earth, Wind, and Fire. Oh, Danny boy, as good as you are, you don't try to take on the legendary sounds of Maurice White and Phillip Bailey. It almost sounded like he was trying too hard, which I'm sure he is. I'm in the minority here. The judges really liked him, but I didn't. To me, it sounded like Michael Bolton doing karaoke EW&F. He'll probably stay around based on the judges' influence.

ALLISON stepped up next with another Donna Summer tune, "Hot Stuff." She started it off slow and ballad-like, then turned it into a genuine rock song. There she was, taking a classic song from another incomparable diva. Had she tried to do it like Ms. Summer, she would have failed miserably, but, as Paula so often used to say, she REALLY made it her own and rocked it out! More and more, Allison reminds me of a combination of Pink and Kelly Clarkson. She'll definitely get the rocker's votes. I think she did a great job! The judges agreed for the most part, but didn't really like the arrangement.

And now the moment we've all been waiting for. How will ADAM spin his song? Showing up with a boufant hairdo and a suit, his choice for the evening was "If I Can't Have You" by Yvonne Elleman from the classic disco movie Saturday Night Fever. He sang it like a ballad tinged with his trademark (please make him stop) screeching. UGH! That alone wants me to see him go. Give us a break. Actually, other than the screaming, he did an admirable job. Sorry, I just don't like him. All the judges espoused their eternal love for him (anyone got a barf bag?).

And what the hell is up with Paula tonight? She "felt his pain"? What??? He'll be back, of course. And enough of Adam thanking the band. Like he's the front man for the tour. What ev!

Here comes MATT. I was really hoping he would nail it. He is loaded with talent, and I don't believe we've seen the full extent of it yet. Matt chose "Stayin' Alive," another song from Saturday Night Fever by the Bee Gees. Appropriate choice. I must say he gave it all he had. Matt is a good performer and is comfortable on stage, has great moves, and he DEFINITELY has more style than anyone else in the competition. (OK OK - Adam has style too). It wasn't the best performance, but definitely good enough to keep him in the competiton. I sure hope so.

Rounding out the night is ANOOP. Anoop has been getting through each round by the skin of his teeth. He's good. I mean, you have to be to get this far in the competiton, but he really needs to turn it out to stay out of the bottom three. Anoop chose "Dim All The Lights," yet another song by Donna Summer. The beginning almost sounded a little countrified. It was an OK effort, but by no means anything special. In fact, his voice wavered here and there, was a little pitchy, and had a bad ending. Three of the judges liked him, but HRH Simon agreed with me.

So there we have it. This reporter believes that Anoop, Allison, and Lil will be in the bottom three. I don't really think Allison deserves to be there, but who in her place??? Now it's getting difficult to make predictions. We'll see tomorrow.

See ya next time!

GET OUTTA HERE! 4/15

Let me start by saying I think last night was a low point for this season of American Idol. Just about all of the contestants did a lousy job. They seem to be getting worse. The show seems to be getting worse. Is this the Beta edition of Idol? First, there was the addition of Kara as the fourth judge. This practice has ended up biting the show in the ass. While she is an OK addition, she certainly isn't necessary. Her presence adds time to the show and has made the show run too long, and forced the producers make changes to acommodate her being there, such as just having two judges comment after each performance, thereby leaving us with two instead of the four judges that they were shooting for. Also dispensed with was the ridiculous way the fab four were being introduced, descending the stairs like big time superstars. This season is trial and error. I hope FOX sees all this and corrects it next season.

So the show started out with the Ford commercial and the group sing-a-long. Since last night's theme was "Music From The Cinema," the group tune was maniac. I really wish they would dispense with this madness. That would save time. But I guess that's all they have on Wednesday nights. I mean how long does it really take to eliminate one singer?? Wednesday is all about filler, while Tuesday's show can't even fit into the alloted time.

Anyway, after the song and some blah, blah, blah from Seacrest and some recorded crap about the contestants attending the premiere of "17 Again" (think that's a FOX movie??), the elimination began.

First up, Allison found out she was safe. I'm glad about that. I was afraid she might have been in the bottom three, but she made it through. I didn't really like her cover of Aerosmith, but luckily America did. Next up, Adam, who sang Steppenwolf's "Born To Be Wild," not surprisingly made it through as well.

Then poor Anoop. Bottom three almost every time, Anoop, who sang "Everything I Do I Do For You," again heads to the stools. There he will sit until the last moments, or at least until one of the three is sent back to the safa.

After the break, Jennifer Hudson, American Idol alumna, sang her new song, "If This Isn't Love" and sounded great. She promoted a few of her projects, talked about her engagement, and a few other things. Then we took another break.

Kris was next. As was Lil. Both performances were weak as far as I was concerned. The judges were divided on Kris. All the judges didn't like Lil's performance of Bette Midler's "The Rose." Kris was safe, and Lil joined Anoop on the stools.

Matt and Danny stood up next. I didn't like Matt's performance, but thought Danny was the best of the night. Matt was sent to the stools, and Danny went to the safa. As I predicted, the bottom three are Anoop, Lil, and Matt. Deservedly so. But one gets to go back to the couch. The lucky one is Anoop. Bummer. I hate that Matt is in the bottom two.

Commercial. Commercial.

And now, the highlight of the season -- MILEY CYRUS sings her hit song "The Climb." Best performance I've ever seen anywhere by anyone! Love my Miley!! (Don't Hate!)

Here we go. . . . Simon was asked before the break if the "save" might be implemented and he said possibly for one of them, but declined to say who.

So who goes??? Lil or Matt??? Oh no!!! It's Matt!! I can't believe it!! Now it's time to sing for his reprieve. Will the judges let him have another stab at it?? I sure hope so. But I didn't like his song last night, and it's the same song tonight. I just hope the judges see that he's way more talented than Lil or Anoop, and on par with all the others on the sofa.

So now is the time. We'll see. . . Awaiting the verdict with baited breath. Will they save Matt??

YES!!!! SAVED!!!! Hmmmm. . . . . I guess I like this "save" thing after all. So Matt will be back next week for DISCO WEEK! But alas, two will exit the stage next time. I'll be here.

See ya next time!!

Songs From the Cinema 4/14

So We're down to the last seven. I believe the voters got it right, and the ones who are left are the ones who deserve to be there.

Tonight's theme is "Songs From The Cinema." For some reason, Quentin Tarrantino is the "mentor" tonight. Like I am sooooo sure he knows about music. Actually he does. He's the world's foremost authority on all music. Just ask him. Seacrest told him to feel free to pipe up whenever he felt like saying something during the competition.

Well, the show started off with ALLISON. She sang Aerosmith's "I Don't Want To Miss A Thing" from "Armageddon." To be honest, I didn't like the song when Aerosmith sang it, and I really don't like Allison's rendition of it. I guess the judges heard something different than me, because I thought it was all over the place. Out of tune in some spots, and forced in most. The judges thought it was great all the way around, but I think it was her worst performance yet. She will surely be in the bottom three unless the others really suck. That bums me out. I really like Allison.

ANOOP followed Allison with "Everything I Do, I Do For You," the Bryan Adams tune from Kevin Costner's "Robinhood." Lousy movie and lousy song. Two for two with songs I don't particularly care for. Anoop did an OK job with it, as he always. Nothing special to make him stand out. I have resigned myself to the fact that Anoop is just mediocre. I like Anoop. He's really a likeable guy, but that's not gonna keep him in the competion. Too bad. But the others are too good.

Next up, ADAM sang "Born To Be Wild," from the cult classic "Easy Rider" by Steppenwolf. This song seems aptly suited for Adam. His take on it worked for me. Still the screechy Adam, but for this instance, it was appropriate. The judges love him. The voting public loves him. The studio audience loves him. Paula is sickening with her praise. He'll be safe. No doubt. I just wish he'd stop channeling Axl Rose.

So far, Mr. Tarrantino has not contributed to the critiques.

From Johnny Depp's "Don Juan DeMarco," MATT sang another Bryan Adams song, "Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman." GEEZ!! Come on with the songs!! So many great songs from gazillions of movies and they're picking these dogs. This song is pretty easy to sing. No great stretches of range here. And boring at best. Matt is one of my favorites in the game, but come on, dude!! With that awesome soulful voice of yours you could have picked a song that showcased your talent. And, on top of that, it was off pitch when he did try to hit some high notes. The judges agreed with me. Matt really needs to find his niche. He definitely has one. We all know what it is. Unfortunately, he doesn't. I hate to say it, but Matt will probably be in the bottom three tomorrow. Gosh dammit!!

Still no word from Mr. T.

So far, I have been completely underwhelmed by all of the acts. Adam turned in the best performance up to this point. Didn't think I'd be saying that!! DANNY stepped up to the stage next sporting a new look -- sans glasses and manly scruff. He chose "Endless Love," the duet by Lionel Richie and Diana Ross from the movie by the same name. I must say, I thought he killed it. The D Man brought it this time, with his soulful style and even a little falsetto. Simon said he was bored, but I disagree. I saw a lot emotion in his performance. He is sure stay on the safa tomorrow.

Quentin! Care to weigh in? Didn't think so.

KRIS sang "Falling Slowly," by Glen Hansard (of The Frames) & Marketa Irglova from the movie, "Once." It was slow and funeral dirge-ish. Pretty obscure. He did an admirable job, but as I said above, I wonder why they are chosing these songs. Kris' worst performance so far. Not that it was badly done. It was just simply boring.

And now, it's LIL's chance to show us that she's the "artist" she says she is. Lil chose "The Rose" by Bette Midler from "The Rose." Again, Lil picked an iconic song from one of the all-time greatest divas in music. Will she ever learn??? This is the kind of song that builds from beginning to end. She put an old skool R&B twist to it. I guess if you like this kind of riffing, then you'd like this performance. Didn't work for me. She's trying to be the diva that she's not. She showed a little arrogance with her comments to the judges defending her average showing. What ev.

So. . . In this reporter's opinion, tomorrow's bottom three will be Anoop, Matt, and Lil. And that's who should be there. Danny shined. No one else did.

Jennifer Hudson and Miley Cyrus perform on tomorrow's results show. I'm very excited!!

Nighty nite, Quentin!

See ya next time.

Good Riddance! 4/8

As we all know, last night's performance show featured songs from the contestants' birth years. Tonight's show started out somewhat unusually. Frankie Avalon sang a song from Simon's birth year, his hit from 1959, "Venus." All the judges seemed genuinely surprised and I must say, Frankie still sounds pretty dang good.

Next, the group did their cheese-ball group number, "Can't Get You Out Of My Head," by Kylie Minogue. Good when she sang it. Bad when they sang it.

Then tonight's Ford video, complete with a behind-the-scenes look at how it was done. I always like this part. Tonight, the video's theme was magic and featured the gang singing Britney Spears' "Circus."

OK. Enough of that. . . . Now on to the reason why we're here. ELIMINATION!!!!!

First, Adam was called forth, as was Kris and Anoop. Adam, of course went back to the safe zone. No surprise here. Kris, after hearing again how bad the judges thought he was sent back to safety. The judges loved Anoop, but he was sent to the dreaded three stools.

The guest performance was next, with Flo-Rida doing "Right Round," sounding as expected. This show certainly has turned into the best showcase for current chart-toppers.

More commercials, more commercials, more commercials. . . .

When we got back, Danny was summoned. He, as expected, was safe. Then Matt. All the judges loved Matt's performance. He was also safe.

Next was my all-time favorite, Scott (insert roll of the eyes). The judges didn't particularly like his performance or his guitar strumming. Scott was NOT safe. Thank God!!

Then came Lil, consistently mediocre, and Allison, one of the best of the bunch. All the judges loved Allison's showing the night before. And so did America. Thankfully, Allison got the recognition she deserves, and went back to safety. Lil, instead was sent to the stools.

So it's Anoop, Lil, and Scott in the bottom three -- just as this reporter predicted. And once again, the three have to stew while they listen to Season 5 contestant, Kelly Pickler, now a bona fide country star. But is she really that much of a blonde? For the first time this season, the bottom three are actually the ones who deserve to be there. America was right on it this week.

One of the bottom three gets to go back to the safa (you know -- safe sofa). And it's Lil!! She gets her wish to return next week and show us what a great "artist" she is. If she doesn't bring it full force next time, she'll be out!! But as for now, it's either Anoop or Scott getting the boot - unless the judges grant a reprieve.

Here we go. Thirty-four million votes, and Scott is the lowest scorer. FINALLY!!!! JOY!!!! RAPTURE!!!

Now, here comes the fun. Sing, boy, sing!!! Sing!! Strum that Guitar Hero game piece!!!! Bad karaoke at best. After that abysmal dirge, if the judges save him, we'll know why.

The judges hemmed and hawed, and Simon, unbelieveably said it's not just about Scott, but also the other contestants, and if they believe he is more talented than any of the others. Is he serious???!!???

Well, at last, the mook is gone. Good riddance to bad rubbish!

See ya next time.

"The Year You Were Born" 4/7

THE YEAR YOU WERE BORN. That's the theme for tonight's performances. That gave the contestants a pretty durn good selection from which to choose. Albeit, the songs from their birth years are probably just as foreign to them as the songs from my birth year are to me. Even though, Allison's song, from 1992, seems pretty current to me. Even the oldest contestant, Danny's song from 1980 seems current. I guess that just shows how the show has been giving them ancient song themes in the weeks past.

The old guy, DANNY, led off. He sang "Stand By Me," the Mickey Gilley version. It sounded OK to me. Like I have been saying, Danny doesn't really do anything different from week to week. Although his particular version wasn't country, the arrangement he chose was from a country star, Mickey Gilley. That's two in a row for Danny. Maybe he IS going after the country vote. Danny is consistently good, so he'll be around next week for sure. The judges loved him. Plus, he has the likability factor. All this coupled with the country vote is a sure bet to be in the finals.

Next up -- KRIS. His choice was curious to me. Of all the songs of his birthyear, 1985, "All She Wants To Do Is Dance," by Don Henley is the best he could find to showcase his talent? Not a good choice. Also, he did the cheesy thing -- surrounding himself with admiring chicks -- while he performed. He sounded a little like Jamiroqui to me. My support for Kris has been building more and more each week, but this was not his best. Still not bad -- He stayed on key and kept it funky, but not his best. Simon said it was a "stupid, stupid song choice." Randy agreed. He'll be back, though.

LIL. Someone is giving you bad advice, girl. Lil's song, from 1984, was "What's Love Got To Do With It?", by the legendary, one-of-a-kind, incomparable Tina Turner. She did Celine Dion last week. What part of "you can NEVER sound as good" do you not understand? From the start, it looked like she was doing a TT impression, right down to her trademark walk. The performance was fair at best. The same from week to week, Lil's critiques sound like broken records. I'm starting to think she's not that good. Definitely not as good as everyone though she was in the beginning. She keeps saying that if America allows her to come back, she'll show us what a brilliant artist she is. You didn't bring it, and it's time to. Apparently you can't. Lil could be gone tomorrow, and it won't be unjustified.

Here's where I contradict myself: ANOOP did "True Colors," by Cyndi Lauper, 1986. I also put Ms. Lauper in the "legendary, one-of-a-kind, incomparable" category. She has a range unmatched by almost any singer out there. But Anoop took her on and did a more than respectable job. In fact, up to this point, Anoop was the best of the night. He took the song, and put his soulful spin on it. And it worked. He certainly redeemed himself from his unfortunate performance last week. Anoop is one of those on-the-fence kind of contestants. Will he be back next week? I hope so. He is way more deserving than some of the others. Kara said that he controlled the song, the song didn't control him. All the judges liked him. I did too.

From 1985, SCOTT chose some forgettable song. Please, make him go away. Awful.

Whoever follows Scott has the best position of the night. Tonight, the lucky girl was ALLISON.

From 1992, Allison sang "I Can't Make You Love Me," by Bonnie Raitt, a song everyone loves and can identify with. Best of the night. She's only 16, but she sang the song with the emotions of someone twice her age, and put her own label on it. Allison has been in the bottom three every week. Why? Simon said she needs to be more likeable. Everyone I know disagrees and thinks Allison is very likeable. I said before, and I'll say it again -- Allison has what it takes to win this competition. I really hope she gets to relax tomorrow and not go through the agony of being in the bottom three again. She shouldn't be.

The next to take the stage was MATT. He chose "Part Time Lover," by another legend, Stevie Wonder from 1985. Bad choice in my opinion. I like Matt, but I think he could have chosen a way better song for his performance. The judges LOVED it, and it made me wonder if I was being over critical, or not hearing the same thing they were, but I stand by my original opinions -- Matt could have done much better with a different song. He's been in the bottom three before, so he has to bring it from now on. I hope he comes back.

ADAM closed the show with Tears For Fears' "Mad World," from 1982. I defected from the Adam camp a couple of weeks ago. He sat on a chair for half the song, and stood still for the second half. It was more of a ballad than we're used to hearing from Adam. This week was a little toned down, and not so shrieky, but still, why do the judges think he's so great??? The show was running out of time, so only one of the judges rendered an opinion. Simon said words were unnecessary, so he gave Adam a standing O? Is there something I just don't get about this guy???

So there you have it. One falls tomorrow. In this reporter's opinion, the bottom three will be Lil, Anoop, and Scott. You all know who I think should go.

See ya next time!

Ax Time!

Wednesday night and that means time for someone's hopes and dreams to be dashed. With last night's dismal performances all the way around (almost), it's anyone's guess who should go. In my opinion, the best performance of the night was Kris and the worst was either Lil or Megan. It's too bad the girls aren't doing well because there are only three left, and it would be nice to have a balance. It's all I can do to hold myself back from saying that Scott should go. Who knows? He may be on the upswing. A little late, though. I think last night was a fluke for him.

So. . . Here we go. . .

The show started out with possibly the best Ford video yet. I actually enjoyed it. You can check out the video at http://www.americanidol.com/. Catchy tune. Matt seemed in his element with his rap. If he makes it through, he should definitely stick with that exact style of music.

And then, there's the cheeseball lip-synched group effort, "Don't Stop Believing," by Journey. Why do they make them do that?

OK. . . Megan, Matt, and Kris were the first to get called up. They went to the left side of the stage. Then Adam, Lil, and Allison were called up. They went to the center of the stage. Then Scott, Danny, and Anoop went to the right side of the stage. Is one of those groups the bottom three? If so, I'm hoping it's the middle, simply because Matt is in one of the others, as is Kris. We'll see. . .

First, last year's AI winner (and my choice), David Cook performed his new hit, "Come Back To Me." I really like this song. And the video is really interesting. Check it out on YouTube if you haven't seen it. At the end of Cook's performance, Seacrest presented him with a plaque representing one million copies sold of his debut album -- platinum. From obscurity to stardom in one year. I love it!

Now, on with the results.

Kris was the first called up from his group. He is safe as expected. Next, Matt was called up. Safe this week. Sigh of relief from me. Next, Megan steps up. Disses Simon by telling him she doesn't care what he thinks. She is in the bottom three at last. In fact, Megan seemed to be making a mockery out of the whole affair by making goofy faces into the camera, waving hysterically into the camera, and flapping her arms and making pteradactyl noises while crossing the stage. Is she losing her mind? Lil was next. Safe. Allison. Also in the bottom three. I was surprised at this, but she wasn't. Adam next. Safe. Bummer. I'd like to see him go.

Next came Danny. The judges loved him. So did America. Then, Scott and Anoop were called up together . The judges liked Scott, but not Anoop. Scott was safe (no comment), and Anoop joins Megan and Allison sitting on the dreaded stools of despair in the bottom three.

And sit there they must through a performance by Lady Gaga. A dynamic out-of-the-ordinary show.

After Lady Gaga, Seacrest asked Simon if there was anyone worth "saving" in the bottom three. "One," he replied, but he didn't say who.

After the break, Allison got sent back to safety. I'm glad about that. Then the final call -- Megan was the biggest loser. Because of the dis of the judges mentioned earlier in this blog, the judges didn't even let her try to sing her way back to safety. Simon told her that because she said she didn't care, then neither did the judges. Good-bye Megan. She was ready and so were we.

See ya next time!