Top 4 Minus 1 - Barry Gibb Performs!

Excitement settles gently into my living room as the inevitable whispers of the impending show emanate from behind the commercials on my TV screen, which are about to give way to the all too familiar American Idol theme song...

There it is!

The judges switch seats, but not in a way which distances Paula from Simon's abusive immediacy, so what's the point?

Street interviews reveal pretty well-split opinions on the finalists. It's truly anyone's guess who will be leaving, but I consider my judgments, of course, to be semi-professional, and better than a street poll...sort of how Simon feels, divided by 1000... ; )

Both Phil Stacey and Chris Richardson had interviews and performances on the Ellen Degeneres Show today. Both did well. Phil was wearing a U.S. Navy First Class Petty Officer uniform, and he noted that he wasn't sure whether he'd get to go on tour, and that his first responsibility was to the Navy. Ellen, of course, asserted that they should let him perform.

Pink performs. It was okay, but didn't disract me from typing the above and nibbling on tempura shrimp...yum!

Lakisha looks like a manager at Burger King in the contestants' Ford commercial this week.

At this point the judges have switched their seats back to normal...? Ryan seems to make a point of having the camera show this without offering any explanation.

The contestants' choral BG medley starts off with Melinda's mic on mute. Hmph.

Lakisha is talking to herself in preparing herself for the possibility of leaving.

Thank God they took the time to spend half the show plugging The Fantastic Four (okay, my sarcasm is a little rusty. and less subtle than it could be).

The contestant background histories were interesting.

Ryan wisely lays the all too gag-me-with-a backhoe "right after this" ploy at the feet of the producers. I feel for him.

The contestants' self-protective huddle was kinda cute. Jordin is first, and is safe, not surprisingly.

AI is moving into the band business, soliciting tapes and DVDs from bands for a competition. Cool!

Barry Gibb performs. His vocalization seems a little stilted. It doesn't seem that he can hold a note for very long anymore. Another burnt out singer, but ya gotta give him props as a composer. He does seem to improve a bit as the song develops.

Melinda, predictably, is safe. Simon guesses Lakisha will go, despite objections to doing so from the other judges.

Blake is safe. Lakisha is going, just as I predicted. She sings herself out with good spirit.

See you next week!

John

TOP 4 - BARRY GIBB WEEK

Nice see-through shirt, Simon. I'd suggest a thicker cotton when you're going to be on TV...

Round 1:

MELINDA - It's Melinda so of course it's great! My only complaint is that she's fallen back into "old-fashioned Melinda" (though this may be due to the genre...) I agree with the judges, her vocals are always perfect so she's got to bring it in other ways.

BLAKE - Nice skunk stripe! :) And I sincerely mean that, I like it! Good job. I have a feeling this isn't going to be my favorite genre...

LAKISHA - This is my favorite so far tonight! I guess Lakisha's decided to try to win! Ooooooh, the judges totally disagree with me. Well I liked it, especially the first verse!

JORDIN - She had her first bad week last week, let's see how she comes back from it. I'm excited based on the prequel! I take back my previous comments...**THIS** was my favorite performance so far!!! She didn't sound old-fashioned like everybody else. WAY TO GO Jordin!

Top to Bottom so far: JORDIN, LAKISHA, MELINDA, BLAKE

Round 2:

MELINDA - That's funny that she changed the words so she wouldn't say "loser"! :) Another perfect vocal - I liked her passion! Very nice, and better than the first!

BLAKE - Good job - I did find myself drifting in the middle though, thinking about what to make for dinner, etc. I agree with Randy, he's should have only beat-boxed in one song - he's not choosing it as wisely as he has in the past.

LAKISHA - I have to admit, before last week I had written her off. She's really come back! I liked it! "Good lookin' out"???? Thanks Randy, that's so (not) helpful!!! ;)

JORDIN - Again I'm excited by the prequel! WOO HOO! Awesome!!! Jordin is terrific!!! What are you talking about Randy??? Paula??? Simon too???? Good grief. Whatever...

TOP - JORDIN

MIDDLE - LAKISHA and MELINDA

BOTTOM - BLAKE

I think Blake and Lakisha will be on the bubble.

Going Home:

Based on tonight - BLAKE
Based on overall performances - LAKISHA

I can't believe there are only 2 weeks left!!!!

Double the Disco

I forgot that Barry Gibbs has been involved with so many more songs than the ones from "Saturday Night Fever." Unfortunately, I don't think this ended up translating into a better set of performances than I expected.

RANDOM THOUGHTS: Are we sure Barry Gibbs actually sang that high, because his speaking voice wouldn't support that theory. This week is a "stick to the melody" week, as contrasted with past "way ta add ya own flava to the songs" weeks. Simon hates disco, just like he hates country. That's bad news for the contestants this week if you're keeping score at home. For a show they kept saying they had to rush through we sure saw a lot of Judge Judy, which makes sense since we have no interest in hearing what Simon has to say and would rather see a "judge" from a kangaroo court verbally spar with Simon. Melinda is the first contestant I've heard who pays attention to ominous lyrics. With as much as we all notice it, I'm sure others have, too. Do the judges want Jordin in the final 2? I think so.

MELINDA DOOLITTLE ("In-n-out Burger" and "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart"): So, Melinda is like Ruben--always good. The judges don't even know what to do because it's all nitpicking at this point. They are right that many performances on her "uncomfortable" weeks end up lacking "it" or "shazam" or "sanjaya" or something. The first performance was a bit better than a "background" performance, however. Song #2 was much better, and Barry astutely noted that Melinda was using a recent variation utilizing a bit more jazz chord voicing (Michael Buble did a cover of it recently) which ended up helping a lot. Melinda should be safe, but next week we need da noize and da funk.

BLAKE LEWIS ("You Should be Dancing" and "Exit Stage Left (Snagglepuss's Theme)" or where I came in or something): Overall this was a lackluster night for Blake by Idol standards. I do think, however, that his fans will be quite happy with his showing. He did a great job infusing his own style into it, and he did what his followers want to hear. I know Randy's endorsing a beatbox embargo this week, but Blake's interpretations were solid. Hey, Barry like them!

LAKISHA JONES ("Stayin' Alive" and "Run Away . . .er . . . to me"): I am so shocked Lakisha picked a power ballad for number 2, and even more shocked that she selected the most well-known Bee-Gees song. And I'm a bit more shocked that she disregarded the advice of an industry legend (whose songs she was singing) and ended up doing her own thing. OK, sarcasm off (but not entirely). I am so tired of her not implementing any advice the guest give her and then not sounding great. If you're going to ignore them, at least be great! If you try to follow the advice and it doesn't work I would have greater respect for the performance. Anyway, I'm bored with Lakisha and have been for ages.

JORDIN SPARKS ("To Love Somebody" and "Woman in Love"): Is she sending a message to someone. Sounds like Jordin has a crush. Number 1 was great, number 2 was OK, but not quite "pageanty" as Simon suggested. Jordin continues to work very hard and sounds great. Her voice sounds shot from what I can tell. I hope she doesn't end up straining that young voice too much before the finale. Other young singers have suffered similar fates. As long as her voice stays healthy Jordin should be a finale participant, in the good way.

Since a Top 3 would only overlap with my Bottom 3, and thus give away my Bottom 1, I'll rank them for me last night.

1. Jordin/Blake/Melinda
4. Lakisha

BOOGIES HOME WITHOUT ASKING FOR DIRECTIONS FIRST: Lakisha

How's that? I'm looking forward to tonight's show, but only because Barry Gibbs is performing. You can decide if I'm still being sarcastic or not!

Top 4 - Bee Gees Night?

This promises to be a strange night. Bee Gees music? I mean I liked his music back in the 70s, but it's dated and their vocal stylings with their unique harmony seem like a longshot for successful AI performances...but let's see - two performances each, tonight.

Melinda Doolittle 1 - 'Inside And Out' - Yeah, she handles it well and gives it some heat, and me, some chills. It's not her best, but solid. The judges agree, essentially, that she's hard to criticize but needs to bring it more, at this late stage.

Blake Lewis 1 - 'You Should Be Dancin', Yeah' - He's gonna BEAT it! Good falsetto and echo effects, and the beat boxing is not overdone, and a GREAT touch. He could sell this one right now! Wonderful job, and has that 'Eye of Tiger' added element that puts it, perhaps, a cut above Melinda. The judges unanimously disagree with my assessment, but I think the audience and his fans will agree with me.

Lakisha Jones 1 - 'Stayin' Alive' - She does a decent job, but sounds off-key at one point, and indulges in a bit of yelling. Not good for me, compared to the last two performances. The judges agree, and Simon nails the shouting and denies her a kiss.

Jordin Sparks 1 - Jordin has a real chance to improve her standing if she just listens to the feedback the judges have been giving, and sticks to singing a clean version of her song, 'You Don't Know What It's Like'. Judging by the effect of her rehearsal version on Barry Gibb, she's got it nailed. Sure enough, she does a very good job, and gives me way more chills than Melinda's performance. It wasn't perfect - the ending was a bit of a letdown compared to the power surge - but it was definitely the best so far tonight, and the judges, wisely, agree with me.

Lakisha is on the bottom, for me, at this point.

Melinda Doolittle 2 - 'How Can You Mend A Broken Heart' - She's planning to mess with the lyrics. I hope the judges don't count that against her. This is better than her first one, and very good. The judges liked it better, especially Simon.

Blake Lewis 2 - This is an obscure song choice, and he's adding more beat box. Focusing so heavily on his original style may not be the wisest move right now. It doesn't really connect with me, partly because I've never heard it before, and partly because I don't think the boxing worked as well on this song. Randy and Paula seemed to like it better, but Simon thought it sucked.

Lakisha Jones 2 - 'Run To Me' - Great looking dress and a solid beginning. The chorus adds a nice touch on this song. This is a more solid performance, and the power surge definitely brings it up a notch. The ending is a bit weak. Overall, good, but not great. Simon says she and Blake may be in trouble tonight. From his point of view, I agree, but I think Blake has more popularity than Simon believes, so I'd be more worried about Lakisha.

Jordin Sparks 2 - 'A Woman In Love' - Jordin's combination of power and vulnerability in this song put her over the top. She almost brought me to tears at the end. Randy and Paula didn't like it as much as I did, and Simon had some irrelevant critiques.

Tops and Bottoms - For tonight, Jordin, Melinda, Blake, and Lakisha. For the long haul, Lakisha may have a bit of an edge on Blake, but I think he'll edge her out tomorrow. Jordin has been so consistent for the last several performances that she has a very real chance of winning the top spot. I'd be surprised if either Blake or Lakisha unseated either one of them, unless the female listeners all align behind Blake for a boy/girl finale.

See you tomorrow!

John