Tonight's theme: #1 Billboard hits. Okay, that gives our finalists plenty of room to work with...
Ooh, and the mentor is... Miley Cyrus?! Really?
I cannot decide whether I'm more appalled or fascinated.
(I actually like Miley, but I'd expect a mentor to have a bit more experience?)
Lee, "The Letter" (The Box Tops)
This'd be the jazzy Carly Smithson / Michael Johns arrangement. Not bad.
Paige, "Against All Odds" (Phil Collins)
S'okay. Shaky at times, and I'm not so sure about the transitions between the softer singing and the belting.
Tim, "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" (Queen)
Not terrible! Which, for Tim, is a major achievement. That said... doesn't do Queen justice at all. His fan base'll be fine with it, but please.
Aaron, "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing" (Aerosmith) [dealing with laryngitis and tonsillitis]
Not bad!
Crystal, "Me and Bobby McGee" (Janis Joplin)
...y'know, I'm not sure Miley was right in getting her to kick it up a key. And I agree with Ellen; she still seems detached. That said, well, hey, we know she can sing. And it was a good choice of song.
Mike, "When a Man Loves a Woman" (Percy Sledge)
Nice!
Andrew, "Heard It Through the Grapevine" (Marvin Gaye) [sans guitar, per Miley's suggestion]
Eh, s'okay. Not wowed.
Katie, "Big Girls Don't Cry" (Fergie)
I'm not familiar with the song, but I think it worked? (Yes, of course I'm biased.)
Casey, "The Power of Love" (Huey Lewis and the News) [on electric guitar]
See, Miley, the thing is, he needs to connect with the audience at home more than the crowd-- oh, wait. She was onto something there. I think this is working out well. The best performance so far tonight, and quite possibly Casey's best performance yet. He's in the zone.
Didi, "You're No Good" (Linda Ronstadt, etc.)
I think we have the female equivalent of Tim's performance. Competent enough, but... I am so trying to resist the obvious punchline here.
(Simon doesn't resist... and then Didi offers a rebuttal. Bad move.)
Siobhan, "Superstition" (Stevie Wonder)
Okay, that rocked. And the scat singing put it over the top. (Though I think I could do without the big note at the end.)
I'm not sure — and I've already been wrong about this once — but I think Paige may be on her way out this week. Or maybe Andrew. Or even Katie. Or Didi? Hmm. Well, one of those four. Probably Paige. Maybe.
Place your pool predictions in the comments!
Posted by Shmuel at March 23, 2010 10:02 PMWow, there are just so many people who need to go this season. How are they okay with so many people who can't stay on pitch? It's appalling! There's what, 4 good people? Ugh. And this pool is going to be crazy, because who the hell knows, right? Oy. When Tim Urban puts in one of the best vocals of the night, what is going on? And don't even get me started on the question of where Miley's pants were.
Ahem.
So...predictions?
1. Siobhan
2. Crystal
3. Mike
4. Aaron
5. Casey
6. Tim
7. Lee
8. Didi
9. Katie
10. Andrew
11. Paige
For the love of all that is holy, Paige has got to go after tonight's performance. It was offensively bad. I LOVE that song and she...wow. No.
Posted by: Pam at March 23, 2010 11:08 PMMichael is great, I'd be happy if he wins. Crystal will never be a star, but she is the most genuinely talented person that has been on that stage. America is stupid (me too) and will never vote her champion. But our loss and gain because she will have a much longer career without the saddle on her back.
Michael Lynche
Crystal Bowersox -- she is my sunshine!
Casey James -- hotness is not going anywhere.
Siobhan Magnus
Lee Dewyze--when will people realize that we didn't want taylor hicks the first time.
Aaron Kelly -- tweens be gone.
Didi Benami
Katie Stevens -- gah, that was bad
Andrew Garcia -- he could switch w/ tim, but since tim was bottom 3 on a week he outsung people who sailed thru
Tim Urban -- that hurt. he looks like he dances on the uptick
Paige Miles -- seriously?
Standing by my call that Paige is out next/.
Posted by: Suzanne L:ambert at March 24, 2010 12:03 AMCool. To clarify, your mission is to predict the final placement of all eleven remaining finalists... next week, you get to do it again for all ten remaining. (You'll pick up one point for every exact match. See also the full rules and current spreadsheet.)
Posted by: Shmuel at March 24, 2010 12:08 AM(That said, unless I hear otherwise, I'm gonna assume you mean to let last week's slate ride this week.)
Posted by: Shmuel at March 24, 2010 12:10 AMMixing it up this week! Going with this:
1. Siobhan
2. Crystal
3. Michael
4. Lee
5. Didi
6. Casey
7. Tim
8. Aaron
9. Katie
10. Andrew
11. Paige
I am totally with Pam on the Miley pants issue, and raise it a "chew with your mouth closed, thanks" :-P
Man, it is a toss-up between Paige and Aaron on who I think will go next. They both have been dealing with vocal health issues, but Paige has has longer to heal... and was still terrible... whereas Aaron is currently, visibly ill, and he was still good, just not great. *sigh* I don't know.
Also, I really can't stand that version of The Letter. Not so much the arrangement as the performance... anyway...
1. Siobhan
2. Crystal
3. Andrew
4. Michael
5. Casey
6. Didi
7. Lee
8. Tim
9. Katie
10. Aaron
11. Paige
1. Michael
2. Siobhan
3. Crystal Bowersox
4. Casey
5. Aaron
6. Didi
7. Tim
8. Katie
9. Lee
10. Andrew
11. Paige