American Idol
On Our TV

Tonight was pretty surprising to me. I really expected different people to go home (which is why, I guess, I’m at the bottom of the polling on Fun Office Pools— grrrr).

The night started off with the obligatory 70s medley. I fast forwarded through most of it because they always really bore me.

Then we were on to the boys’ recap and the first elimination. The back row was told to stand. Michael Johns was told to sit, then Chikezie and Jason Castro, leaving Jason Yeager and Danny Noriega standing. Jason was eliminated. He seemed truly bewildered about what he could have done differently. That’s got to be a rough position. He performed his final song, and we went to commercial.

After the break, it was the girls’ turn. Again, the back row stood. This time Kristy, Asia’h and Brooke were allowed to sit, leaving Alexandrea Lushington and Amanda Overmeyer standing. I thought this would mean Amanda was going home. But, NOOOOO, tonight was Alexandrea’s turn to go (I hope you’re happy, Vote For The Worst people). I didn’t really think she would win this, but I definitely thought she was a solid middle of the pack contender.

After the break, we returned to the girls. The front row stood, and Carly, Ramiel, and Syesha were allowed to sit. That left Alaina and Kady. To me, this was a no brainer… Kady goes home. Wrong again. Alaina goes home. I felt really sorry for her. She was so upset (possibly the most upset I’ve ever seen an eliminated contestant). She didn’t think she was going to be able to do her final song, but with the help of the remaining girls, she made it through.

Then there was a brief break to talk about Idol Gives Back. It’s returning this year on Wednesday, April 9th. This year’s stars include Brad Pitt, Miley Cyrus, Carrie Underwood, Reese Witherspoon, Daughtry, Mariah Carey and Snoop Dogg.

After that promo, it was time for the final elimination of the evening. The front row of the boys stood, and Robbie Carrico and Luke Menard were called to center stage, leaving the others safe. Again, I thought this would obviously mean Luke was going home. And that would leave me 1 for 4 for the night. I wasn’t crazy about Robbie, but I didn’t think it was his time just yet.

So, there you have it. Tonight’s eliminations. Did you do better than I did predicting who would go home?

Here’s the recap of the ones who went home tonight: Jason Yeager, Alexandrea Lushington, Alaina Whitaker and Robbie Carrico.

Who was your favorite singer last night?
Carly Smithson: 21% (4)
Syesha Mercado: 11% (2)
Brooke White: 16% (3)
Ramiele Malubay: 26% (5)
Kristy Lee Cook: 5% (1)
Amanda Overmeyer: 0% (0)
Alaina Whitaker: 0% (0)
Alexandrea Lushington: 0% (0)
Kady Malloy: 5% (1)
Asia’h Epperson: 16% (3)
Total Votes : 19

Sorry this recap is up late. We’re still not well here at my house. My recommendation? If you come across anyone who seems vaguely sick, AVOID THEM! The germs going around this year seem especially ferocious. So, I watched American Idol last night, but I was half asleep on the couch and in no mood to take notes. So far, today’s a better day.

Up first, Carly Smithson singing “Crazy on You” and admitting to working in an Irish bar. I wasn’t very impressed with Carly last week, despite all the hype, and my opinion didn’t really improve this week. I know it’s a Heart song, and that requires “rocker” singing, but really Carly just sounded like she was screaming to me. The judges were more impressed this week than last week but still didn’t sound blown away.

Syesha Mercado was up next. Her “surprise” was that she’s done commercials in Miami (seriously, the girls’ “secrets” were unbelievably bland). It was kind of fun to see her baby cry— well, fun, or weird— I’m not sure which. Syesha sang a twist on the song “Me and Mrs. Jones”. Instead of Mrs., it was Mr. This really bothered Simon for some reason, but it didn’t phase me. I still think Syesha did a really solid job with this song. For some reason the judges wanted just about everyone to be belting out things last night, but I appreciated the slower, more mellow tempo of this performance.

We all know now that Brooke White is a self-described beauty school dropout (at least that one was a bit interesting). She made an excellent song choice, choosing to sing “You’re So Vain” and accompany herself on the guitar. The judges (including Simon) all thought the song was about him— well, if the shoe fits… They could hardly complain about the song choice, since they’ve said since the beginning that she reminds them of Carly Simon. I really like Brooke. She is, in fact, one of my favorites, but I’m not sure she has the star power to stick it out to the end. Can you imagine the final two as David Archuleta vs. Brooke White? Wow, there’s a really squeaky clean pair. They’d have to compete to see who could outnice the other.

Ramiele Malubay’s surprise is that she does Polynesian dance— are we really supposed to be surprised by that? She sang “Don’t Leave Me This Way”. I thought it was okay. It wasn’t boring. It was entertaining. The judges didn’t like it, saying it wasn’t really a “singer’s song” and insisting that she should take more risks. Ramiele did crack me up when she said she had changed her song because she wanted to sing a slow song but decided not to because she was afraid people would start calling her Ramiele Lullaby. Hey, Ramiele, quit reading the message boards and just sing.

Kristy Lee Cook is up next, admitting to being a tomboy. Wow, that blows me away, seeing that she does martial arts and rides horses, and here I thought she was a girly girl. She sang “You’re No Good”. Okay, I’ve finally figured out what is odd about her performances. Her dancing/moving/performing is at a completely different tempo than her singing. It’s confusing. She’s dancing SEVERAL beats per minute faster than she’s singing. If you close your eyes, it’s not bad, but if you watch her it’s the auditory equivalent of feeling sea sick. It’s just wrong. Other than that, it was MUCH better than last week, but I could still do without Kristy Lee Cook in the top 12. The judges also thought it was better than last week but still weren’t blown away.

Amanda Overmeyer shows us that she’s smart, by admitting to being a book worm (for some reason this is appealing to Simon, versus David Cook who admitted to a very similar fact and was made fun of). She sang “Carry On My Wayward Son”, and I’m sorry to say it, but it was dreadful. Horrific. REALLY, REALLY bad. I was hoping Amanda would stay around longer, but now not so much. Randy pretty much summed it up. The song had too much melody in it for her. Do you know what that translates to? You need to sing something that doesn’t require singing. Yikes.

My brother would be proud of Alaina Whitaker— he doesn’t like his food to touch other food, either. I don’t ever recall him choosing to actually use different forks for different food, though. Alaina sang “Hopelessly Devoted to You”. She needs to either never wear a strapless dress, or she needs to learn to stand up straight. Other than that annoyance, it was an okay performance. It wasn’t fabulous, but it wasn’t horrific. The judges are similarly unimpressed and unhorrified— yeah, I made that word up. I need David Cook’s thesaurus.

Alexandrea Lushington was up next. She was the poster child for the Atlanta Fire Department since her Dad worked there. She sang a really weak version of “If You Leave Me Now”. I think she is much better than she demonstrated with this performance. She tried to look current, but she didn’t do anything to make the song current. It was just a really dreadful choice of songs. She didn’t look very pleased with it, either. The judges didn’t quite know what to say, except Simon who stated it clearly enough. “It was boring.”

Kady Malloy sings opera. Actually, she sings opera rather well. In fact, she looks a lot more alive singing opera. Hey, Kady… singing opera’s not a horrible career choice. She sang “Magic Man”, which was not as bad as last week (barely) but still not great. I don’t understand Kady. She comes across in the packages as so interesting and unique and then her performances come across as so, well, dead. The judges seem confused about what to say to her. How do you critique the fact that someone seems like a zombie onstage? Be more alive?

The final performance of the night is Asia’h Epperson who was a cheerleader throughout middle school and high school. I can see that. Asia’h sings “All By Myself”. If she could just have sung the second half of the song, it would have been okay, but the first half of the song was clearly too low for her range. Of course, if she’d sung that higher, she’d never have gotten the end notes. I have to agree with Simon here. The song was just too big for her. It did make me feel kind of bad for her, though, given how many contestants get criticized for not stretching themselves enough. She tried to stretch herself, and she gets told “know your limits”. It’s a fine line.

So, here’s my roundup of the ten girls.

1. Brooke White
2. Syesha Mercado
3. Ramiele Malubay
4. Alaina Whitaker
5. Asia’h Epperson
6. Carly Smithson
7. Kristy Lee Cook
8. Alexandrea Lushington
9. Kady Malloy
10. Amanda Overmeyer

No big surprise here.

Who was your favorite tonight?
Michael Johns: 2% (2)
Jason Castro: 2% (2)
Luke Menard: 1% (1)
Robbie Carrico: 2% (2)
Danny Noriega: 1% (1)
David Hernandez: 2% (2)
Jason Yeager: 2% (2)
Chikezie: 3% (3)
David Cook: 4% (4)
David Archuleta: 79% (72)
Total Votes : 91

I’ve compiled a couple of versions of Imagine and put them up against David Archuleta’s performance last night.

Blake Lewis

Jordis Unga (from Rock Star INXS)

Neil Young

John Lennon

David Archuleta (an even more oversung version from 2006)

David Arculeta (American Idol 7 version)

I forgot to include my order for who I liked and in what order.

1. David Cook
2. David Archuleta
3. Chikezie
4. David Hernandez
5. Robbie Carrico
6. Jason Castro
7. Michael Johns
8. Danny Noriega
9. Luke Menard
10. Jason Yeager

Tonight was another theme week— this time the 70s. Each performer also revealed something we didn’t know about them.

Starting off the night was Michael Johns, who seemed a lot less polished than last week. In fact, he seemed a bit nervous. He revealed that he’s somewhat of a jock— he plays a lot of tennis, in particular. Tonight he sang “Go Your Own Way”. As I said, I didn’t think it was as good as last week. I thought it was a poor song for him, and he looked uncomfortable on the stage. However, since tonight was one of those nights where, almost without exception, the judges loved everything I hated and vice versa, they liked this one, although Simon did say it was Michael John’s worst performance of the competition.

Jason Castro let us in on his secret, as well— he hates interviews. He sang “Just Want To Be Your Everything” and played the guitar again. I liked this performance, even though I don’t really like the song. But for some reason, the judges didn’t like it. Randy and Paula felt like he should perform without the guitar. Simon thought the song choice was horrible and didn’t have much nice to say about the performance, either.

We found out that Luke Menard sings with an acapella group called “Chapter Six”. We also learned he shouldn’t sing Queen songs. His performance of “Killer Queen” wasn’t horrific, but it wasn’t great. It was okay and forgettable. Randy and Paula really liked it— go figure. Simon didn’t think the song choice was good. His main complaint was that Luke Menard couldn’t live up to Freddie Mercury— duh.

Robbie Carrico likes to drag race. He’s still struggling with making the rocker title stick. He sang “Hot Blooded”, which was my favorite up to that point in the night. He does need to put a bit more rocker edge and enthusiasm into his performances. Sometimes he looks like he’s doing a walk through rehearsal, rather than an actual performance. Still, I liked it, for the most part. Randy and Paula were on the fence about this performance— not THEY’RE not sure he’s really a rocker. Simon, on the other hand, thought tonight’s performance was okay and didn’t have a real problem with it.

Up next was Danny Noriega with the shocker that he’d been in a punk band his freshman year in high school. Somehow, that didn’t really come as a surprise to me. Tonight he sang “Superstar”. I didn’t think it was a good song choice, and he sang it with practically no personality, which for Danny must require work to hold all his personality in. Randy and Paula also weren’t thrilled, but Simon thought it was better than last week. Of course, I liked last week’s performance MUCH better than tonight’s, so, there you have it.

David Hernandez was a gymnast growing up. Tonight he sang “Papa Was a Rolling Stone”. This song was sung a LOT on Dance Wars, so I had that version ringing in my head. He was a lot better than last week and the most energetic of the evening. The judges actually agreed with me and with each other and had basically positive things to say about the performance.

I’m not really enamoured of Jason Yeager. I wasn’t last week, and this week did nothing to change my mind on the subject. He plays several instruments but hasn’t played any, thus far in the competition. He may not get the opportunity, as I thought his performance of “Without Love” was the weakest performance of the night. Again, the judges agreed with me and with each other.

Chikezie explained the origin of his name (it’s Nigerian for “something well created by God”) and its correct pronunciation, which he says no one uses. He sang “I Believe to My Soul”. Even though the song got off to a bit of a slow start, I thought it was a good song choice and a good performance. The judges liked it, as well.

We found out that David Cook is a word nerd— he likes to work crosswords and do word puzzles. His performance of “All Right Now” was the best performance of the night for me. It was entertaining. He always looks like he’s having fun and seems very relaxed. All the judges liked it, for the most part, but Simon still insists that David Cook has no charisma. I disagree. He also said that the “word nerd” package only reinforced that. Again, I disagree. I found it endearing.

David Archulet’s surprise wasn’t really a surprise to me, since I have video of it here on this blog. He talked about meeting the finalists from a previos American Idol and singing for them. Now, I know a lot of people are going to disagree with what I’m going to say here, so let me preface it by saying I really like David, and I think he has a great voice. I think he did a great job singing “Imagine”, but I HATED the arrangement of the song. It was, to use one of Simon’s phrases, indulgent. It was also overly dramatic. The beauty of the original is its simplicity and for me this was a “milking it” version. So, liked the performance, hated the arrangement. The judges love it all and ate it up with a spoon.

So, those were tonight’s performances by the boys. Girls are up tomorrow, then another elimination.

What did you think of last night’s results?
I was glad to see them go.: 58% (19)
I have mixed feelings.: 15% (5)
I was really disappointed.: 15% (5)
I don’t really care.: 12% (4)
Total Votes : 33

This is going to be a brief summary. There isn’t really all that much to say. If you just want the results, just scroll to the bottom.

Ryan Seacrest asked the judges about the “ringer” controversy. Paula pointed out that there have always been contestants who have had past ties in the industry. The judges didn’t think that should be held against the contestants. (What do you think, by the way? Do past industry deals make you less likely to vote for a contestant, or do you base your voting purely on how they performed? Do you tend to judge experienced singers, such as Michael Johns, differently than newcomers like Jason Castro?)

They ran a video of the Top 24 to Daughtry’s “What About Now”. You can watch it below, in case you missed it.

Then there was the obligatory sing along— this one in keeping with the 60s theme. I thought it was pretty boring. For such a hyped Top 24, there sure are some snoozers.

Then it was time for eliminations. Ryan called up Garrett Haley and promptly eliminated him. At least they didn’t torture the poor boy. I thought Garrett had a really great attitude about the whole thing— one of the reasons I had hoped he would hang around longer. Then Ryan called up Kristy Lee Cook and Amy Davis. Kristy was safe and Amy was headed home (not a big surprise).

Then we had to, er, um, I mean “got to” watch Paula and Randy’s new video “Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow”.

More girls called up next. This time Joanne Borgella and Amanda Overmeyer. I don’t think it was any big surprise when Joanne was eliminated. Too bad, as I found her really interesting. Maybe she and Amy should both go try out for America’s Next Top Model.

And the final elimination of the night pitted Chikezie versus Colton Berry. I had listed these two right next to each other, but I actually liked Colton’s performance better than Chikezie’s. America clearly felt differently, as Colton was sent home.

In all, I wasn’t really surprised with last night’s results. I liked Colton better than about half of the guys who sang this week, partly because I thought he had more personality. I had rated Garrett third from the bottom, but mostly because there were two guys who BORED ME TO TEARS! I was pretty sure that the girls who went home were in trouble, not because they weren’t talented, but they didn’t have great performances, and they didn’t have enough buzz to keep them in it through a mediocre performance.

So, in summary here were the elimated contestants last night.

1. Garrett Haley
2. Amy Davis
3. Joanne Borgella
4. Colton Berry

I was surprised to see Ramiele Malubay with such a commanding lead. I liked her, but she definitely wasn’t my favorite. The results last night were definitely not a surprise based on this poll.

Who did you vote for tonight?
Kristy Lee Cook: 10% (5)
Joanne Borgella: 0% (0)
Alaina Whitaker: 8% (4)
Amanda Overmeyer: 6% (3)
Amy Davis: 4% (2)
Brooke White: 15% (8)
Alexandrea Lushington: 2% (1)
Kady Malloy: 6% (3)
Asia’h Epperson: 4% (2)
Ramiele Malubay: 27% (14)
Syesha Mercado: 8% (4)
Carly Smithson: 12% (6)
Total Votes : 52

There was 60s music, Simon’s bad mood and sickness (and I don’t mean in a good way). That was the Top 24 girls’ first night on American Idol 7. You’re getting this a day late because I was under the weather, and I didn’t have Paula to make excuses for me if I turned in a bad performance because of it.

Kristy Lee Cook drew the short straw and started off the evening with “Rescue Me”. Only after Paula pointed out that she was one of the sick ones did I consider that might be why her performance had absolutely no oomph. Or maybe it’s just because “Amazing Grace” isn’t a song from the 60s. Simon pegged her as robotic and gave this year’s first critique of someone for choosing the wrong song. He was right on both counts.

Next up was Joanne Borgella with “Say A Little Prayer”. I liked this performance and I like Joanne. Unfortunately, I may be the only one, if the judges’ reactions are anything to go by. Randy and Paula gave her mixed reviews, and I didn’t write down Simon’s exact words, but suffice it to say, he didn’t like it.

The youngest competitor of the night, Alaina Whitaker, was also the first contestant to win over the judges with her performance of “More Today Than Yesterday”. This is the same song Chikezie sang last night. Alaina chose a better arrangement and put in a better performance, so it’s a good thing they’re not competing directly against each other at this point. I did think that she’s going to have to watch not getting “screechy” when she sings, but other than that it was a good performance. The judges all loved it, even though Simon hates that song (the first inclination that he was in an “I hate all things cheerful” mood).

Perpetually “even keeled” (her words) Amanda Overmeyer sang “Baby Please Don’t Go”. I wasn’t so sure about the scatting but liked the performance aside from that. I really like Amanda’s attitutude and personality, but I’m concerned she’s going to be like Chris Daughtry for me. I’ll really enjoy the first three or four performances, but about halfway into the season I’ll tire of hearing exactly the same performance out of her. Randy and Paula gave her enthusiastic thumbs up, but I think Simon (even though he likes her) shares some of my concerns— what else can she sing?

I’ve liked Amy Davis’ voice since the early auditions. She has a pure tone to her voice that’s very appealing to me. Yes, her vocals of “Where the Boys Are” was a bit pitchy in the beginning, but it was her performance that I’m afraid may sink her. She just didn’t really do anything all that exciting with the song. She didn’t blow the vocals out of the water, and she didn’t do anything exciting on the stage, either. I’m hoping she’s spared the bottom two, but at this point, I just don’t know. None of the judges were incredibly enthusiastic either, although Simon and Paula both said she looked great. Hey, maybe if the American Idol thing doesn’t work out, she can head over to America’s Next Top Model.

Brooke White’s choice of “Happy Together” was a perfect choice for her. This was the same song David Cook sang last night, but a completely different take on it. It was a very happy performance, and I really like her voice. She’s the kind of singer I actually enjoy listening to— a bit folksy, just singing, not a lot of glitz. Will she make it to the American Idol finale? I don’t know, but I do like her. The judges really enjoyed this performance—well except that Simon wished it weren’t quite so cheerful (see, I told you he was in a mood).

I can’t believe how little hype Alexandrea Lushington has received. Am I the only one who thinks she’s really talented? She sang “Spinning Wheel” and did a bang up job with it. She used the stage, she used her voice—what more could anyone want? Randy and Paula agreed that this was a very good performance, whereas Simon said he didn’t get it. Didn’t get it? What’s wrong with you, Simon?

Houstonian Kady Malloy sang “Groovy Kind of Love”. Now I had to join Simon in expressing my musical ignorance, as I had no idea this song was around before the 80s when Phil Collins sang it, but it was actually released by Diane & Annita in 1965 and the same year by The Mindbenders, reaching #2 on the UK charts. Kady’s vocals were okay, but Simon wasn’t far wrong when he called it a “Night of the Living Dead” performance. She obviously has a lot of spunk, but I’m not sure she can figure out how to bring that to the stage. She didn’t seem to get what the judges were saying when they said she needed to be more fun, confusing joy in a performance with jumping around on the stage. Being 18, cute and blonde may save her this week, but she’s going to have to get it together if she’s going to stay in the competition.

Asia’h Epperson sang “Piece of My Heart”. I didn’t even recognize the song, as I’m accustomed to the Janis Joplin version of the song, as performed by Amanda Overmeyer during audition week. This version was really happy and sassy, rather than angry. I thought this was Asia’h’s unique take on the song, but I think she was leaning much more towards the Faith Hill version. Regardless, it was still a good performance, earning it Simon’s praise as the best of the night.

I have not been a huge fan of Ramiele Malubay up to this point. I thought she was okay but nothing really special. I do have to say she did a great job with “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me”. I don’t really have much to say about it other than that. Simon said she outsang everyone, and I’d have to agree.

Syesha Mercado sang “Tobacco Road”, which was a good song choice for her, but something about the performance felt disconnected to me. She does have a good voice, though, and I think she’ll be in the competition for a while. All of the judges liked the performance, and Simon said she’s one of the most talented girls in the competition.

Controversial Carly Smithson was the final performer of the evening. She addressed the fact that she’d been signed with a label in the past when she was 15 but gave a slightly different version of what happened than the news has been reporting. I have to give her the benefit of the doubt and assume she knows better than a bunch of rabid bloggers what happened, but it was still a bit odd to me that hers was the only former album that American Idol producers chose to address. I had never heard the song she sang before. It was “The Shadow of Your Smile”. She does have a big voice, and I think she’s capable of more, but I have to agree with Simon who said it was “old fashioned” and a let down. Randy, on the other hand, felt like it as the best vocal of the last 2 days. Paula took time to point out that Carly is really sick, so maybe that was part of the problem.

I have to say that I think the boys, overall, were a lot better than the girls. The girls should probably be very glad that 2 boys and 2 girls go home, instead of just 4 singers, or several of them might be in trouble. Here is my personal order of who I liked.

1. Brooke White
2. Syesha Mercado
3. Asia’h Epperson
4. Alexandrea Lushington
5. Amanda Overmeyer
6. Alaina Whitaker
7. Ramiele Malubay
8. Carly Smithson
9. Joanne Borgella
10. Amy Davis
11. Kristy Lee Cook
12. Kady Malloy

Tonight we’ll find out who the bottom singers are and narrow the field to 20. Who were your favorites and who do you think is going home?

Here are the results of which guy you voted for. So, should we just tell everyone else to go home and give the prize to David Archuleta right now, or does he have plenty of time to fall from grace?

Who did you vote for tonight?
David Hernandez: 5% (3)
Chikezie: 5% (3)
David Cook: 3% (2)
Jason Yeager: 3% (2)
Robbie Carrico: 3% (2)
David Archuleta: 38% (25)
Danny Noriega: 9% (6)
Luke Menard: 8% (5)
Colton Berry: 2% (1)
Garrett Haley: 0% (0)
Jason Castro: 11% (7)
Michael Johns: 15% (10)
Total Votes : 66

Feel like you need more of a voice? Want to win bragging rights when you correctly identify the winning American Idol winner from week one?

You should join our American Idol pool at Fun Office Pools. We’re teaming up to bring you the opportunity to vote and win points each week. Who will be the final winner? You have to vote to be considered. So, hurry up and click here or use the widget in the side bar to sign up and register your votes for this week.

Here are the rules:

Goal
To accumulate the most points throughout the television show’s season.

How To Score Points
There are three ways to get points:

1. Pick the American Idol winner at the beginning of the season – if you’re correct, you get 40 points. If your selection finishes 2nd, you get 20 points. If your selection is 3rd, you get 10 points. Note – if your pool allows you to join late, you will get less points (decreases each week) if you pick an overall winner late.

2. Pick who is sent home each week. You have 20 points to allocate to who you think will be sent home each week. You can bet all your points on one person, or spread your 20 points among multiple contestants. You receive the number of points you allocate to the person who is eliminated.

3. Bonus questions – this is an optional feature in the pool as designated by your pool commissioner. Bonus point questions are created by Fun Office Pools and are typically worth 2-5 points each. A sample bonus question is “Who is in the bottom three?”. Your pool can have 0, 1 or 2 bonus questions each week.

When Are Picks Due

Picks are due each week before the elimination show airs on the east coast – typically 8:00 pm ET on Wednesdays (Thursdays when there are more than 12 contestants). You can change your picks after submitting them up until the deadline, so it is advisable to get your picks in early. Picks for the overall winner are due with the first week picks.

Default Picks

If you forget to get your picks in you’ll get the default picks (picks made by Fun Office Pools admins), so you won’t be shut out if you miss a week. However, there is no default pick for the overall winner – so you need to make that pick after you sign up or you’ll lose your chance for 40 points at the end of the pool.

I think this is going to be lots of fun, so I’m hoping you will all join in.

Tonight we got to see the first of the Top 24— the guys. Oddly enough, there was a theme tonight. I wasn’t crazy about that choice. Normally, at this stage they just sing whatever they want. When we’re faced with some singers we’ve never seen, that has always seemed more fair to me. If they’re going to pick a horrible song, at least they have no one to blame but themselves. From the number of “old fashioned” and “irrelevant” comments tonight, I’d say everyone was better off with no theme.

David Hernandez started off the night with a slow-starting “Midnight Hour”. I thougt it was pretty boring. I have an imaginary hour long concert test that I apply to new performers. Would I want to sit and listen to them sing for an hour straight? I’m sorry to say David Hernandez failed the test. I thought it was a pretty blah way to start the top 24. The judges, on the other hand, all had fairly positive things to say about the performance.

Next up was Chikezie. I like Chikezie. One, his name is fun to say. Two, he’s almost always smiling. Three, he’s persistent, as demonstrated by the fact that he made it to the final round last year before beng cut, and he still came back this year. His version of “More Today Than Yesterday” didn’t live up to my opinion of Chikezie, unfortunately. It was an odd arrangement, and his pitch was off a bit here and there— but he still had that great smile. Randy pegged it as old-fashioned, while Simon thought it was corny and hated it.

My man David Cook was up next singing “Happy Together”. This was the first modern take on a song that we saw tonight. I also like how laid back David is. Oh, and yes I still think he’s better than Chris Daughtry. The judges liked his performance, as well.

I really wanted to like Jason Yeager. After all, he’s a Texan. What’s not to like? Well, his performance of “Moon River”, for one. He sat on a stool and sang. Generally, it was pretty boring, I’m sorry to say. The judges weren’t crazy about it, either.

Robbie Carrico was up next with “One is the Loneliest Number”. It wasn’t boring, but it wasn’t the best ever, either. All the judges really enjoyed it, and Simon even said it was a “current” performance.

Judges’ favorite and former Star Search competitor David Archuleta sang “Shop Around”. I really like him for a number of reasons. He’s very personable. He’s enthusiastic and fun. He sings songs that are age appropriate. His performance tonight was a reflection of all of those things. And he did a good job using the stage and interacting with the cameras. Overall, it was great. Did you expect anything other than enthusiastic thumbs’ ups from the judges?

Another of my favorites, Danny Noriega, was up next. Danny sang “Jailhouse Rock”. Unfortunately, he wasn’t as good as I think he might have been, although he was tons better than Simon’s “grotesque” gave him credit for. I still think it was a solid performance for the first night, and Randy and Paula agreed.

Luke Menard was one of the people we haven’t seen a lot of up until now. I wish we’d seen more of him, since I don’t think his performance tonight of “Everybody’s Talkin’” lived up to his previous auditions (just based on the clips they showed). Still, I think he had a very soothing voice— and it doesn’t hurt that he vaguely resembles Orlando Bloom. The judges weren’t big fans of Luke’s— especially Simon who gave the dreaded “forgettable” critique. Ouch.

Self-proclaimed Ellen Degeneres look alike Colton Berry was the next to sing. He chose a great song— “Suspicious Minds”. He does have a good voice and good stage presence, but I can understand Simon’s complaint that it wasn’t relevant to modern music. It wasn’t the best performance of the night, and it wasn’t the worst.

There’s something very sweet and innocent about Garrett Haley. He was on vacation when he auditioned, and it sounded like it was something of a whim. He’s only 17, and he did look a bit intimidated tonight, but when half the other people performing have had MAJOR professional experience, I guess that could make you a bit nervous. Garrett sang “Breaking Up Is Hard to Do”. Other than seeming nervous, I didn’t think it was horrible. For me, it was less boring than some of the other performers that the judges liked better, but that’s just my opinion.

I was disappointed with the first Texan to perform tonight, but Jason Castro redeemed the state Even though he’d only sung in front of other people about five times prior to auditions, he seemed very relaxed. That was really impressive since he accompanied himself on the guitar while he sang Lovin’ Spoonful’s “What a Day for a Daydream”. It was a really good, solid performance. “Effortless” Paula called it. Even Simon liked it.

The final performer of the night was Michael Johns. As we probably all know by now, Michael brings a lot of experience to the table, including a former recording contract. He’s really good, don’t get me wrong, but tonight’s performance of “Light My Fire” did feel a bit slick to me. Is it possible to be too good for American Idol? He just might be. Of course, none of the judges mentioned the record deal as they fawned all over him. I don’t know, I don’t think it should really be held against the “pros” but, at the same time, it does make things a bit awkward that you have people who have toured professionally on the same stage as people who’ve sung in front of an audience five times.

So, here’s the order of my favorites for the night:

1. David Cook
2. David Archuleta
3. Michael Johns (pro, or not, he was still good)
4. Jason Castro
5. Danny Noriega
6. Robbie Carrico
7. Colton Berry
8. Chikezie
9. Luke Menard
10. Garrett Haley
11. David Hernandez
12. Jason Yeager

That would put David Hernandez and Jason Yeager going home if my vote were the only vote that counted. Who did you vote for?

This year Hollywood week was a bit different. First, it seemed like a huge number of people— over 160. Second, no group singing and no one went home the first day. This is how it worked. The first two days everyone sang a solo, with an instrument if they liked, which was also a change. If they were good enough, they automatically went through to the final day. If not, they were given a second chance to sing on the third day. On that day, they would line people up in groups of ten, allow each to sing about 30 seconds and then after everyone sang, they were either put through to the last day or sent home. On the final day, everyone left sang a song with the band and backup singers. They were then either put through to the final decision making process or sent home. 48 singers earned free passes to the final round. Over 100 people were cut before it was all over. And then they had to narrow it down to 24.

Here’s the quick rundown of the cuts we were shown on the final day (I think there were a few that they didn’t show, as well).

Ronald Hodge
Nina Shaw
Mycale Guyton
Lisa Aukerman
Brandon Green
Amanda Hawkins
Buck Smith
Shaun Barrowes
Lorena Pinot
Drew Poppelreiter (Awwww…)
Natasha Blach
Josiah Leming (He didn’t sing his last song with the band, and I think that was his undoing, unfortunately.)
Kyle Ensley (Simon really fought for him to stay in it, but Randy and Paula thought he was boring.)
Cardin McKinney

And HERE are the TOP 24!

Girls

1. Carly Smithson
2. Amanda Overmyer
3. Kristy Lee Cook
4. Brooke White
5. Alexandrea Lushington
6. Ramiele Malubay
7. Syesha Mercado
8. Kady Malloy
9. Amy Davis
10. Alaina Whitaker
11. Asia’h Epperson
12. Joanne Borgella

Boys

1. David Cook
2. David Archuleta
3. Danny Noriega
4. Jason Castro
5. Luke Menard
6. Michael Johns
7. Robbie Carrico
8. Garrett Haley
9. Chakezie Eze
10. Jason Yeager
11. David Hernandez
12. Colton Berry

So, that’s the American Idol 7 Top 24! See you next week for the beginning of America’s voting. Who will be the first to go?