american idol talk's blog

the finals -- top 8

 abuse

Songs from the year the contestants were born. That leaves a lot of territory to cover, but it still keeps us in the 1980s for the most part -- the wasteland of music in America. Yet even for all the garbage released that decade, there were some shining moments to be had. Let's see if our contestants picked the gems or started throwing rocks.

1. Danny Gokey: 1980 - Stand By Me by Mickey Gilley. OK, so I have never heard that cover, but I am more than familiar with the original. No matter how you present it, Danny's performance was still flat. Any whole note he tried to hit just didn't manage to get to where it was supposed to be. Even when the song itself punched it, the singer didn't manage to punch along with the band. He was simply weak and thready when you expected power. Fair, but not memorable.

2. Kris Allen: 1985 - All She Wants To Do Is Dance by Don Henley. Nice horns and bass action, but I couldn't even have conceived of an arrangement that bizarre. He had some nice vocals with some interesting counterpoint. Obviously he tried to jam, but managed to just stand there are bore us while being overwhelmed by the band.

3. Lil Rounds: 1984 - What's Love Got To Do With It by Tina Turner. Another performance from Lil spent pecking around looking for the right notes. She forced the enunciation of the lyrics throughout the entire song. Lil is collapsing right before our eyes and ears, week by week. I think what she is trying to do is bury her heavy southern/blues accent without realizing the whole package is her forte, not just her singing ability. Not good at all. Again.

4. Anoop Desai: 1988 - True Colors by Cyndi Lauper. Nice arrangement and great vocals. Very smooth. Excellent control especially on the high registers. The original sounds sappy and he actually added life to the song with his rendition.

5. Scott Macintyre: 1985 - The Search Is Over by Survivor. Oh please. How can you even think about trying Jimi Jamison unless you have that kind of power on the highs? Boring, boring, boring. And he's got some kind of strange accent going on that detracts from his vocals to start with. Seriously nasal tonight. I'm just not sure about his ability to keep churning out hits.

6. Allison Iraheta: 1992 - I Can't Make You Love Me by Bonnie Raitt. So I like the George Michael cover better, but no matter how you cut it Allison hit a grand slam tonight. Just how sultry can a 16 year old get before she is charged with some sort of crime against nature? Nice runs with stunning vocals. Technically and emotionally perfect tonight. She gets more and more professional and commercial with each passing week.

7. Matt Giraud: 1985 - Part Time Lover by Stevie Wonder. Seriously, what am I missing? It's not like my sound system turns into a mono AM radio from the early 1960s when he steps on stage, but I am absolutely not hearing what the judges are hearing. I mean, throw some ice on me to wake me up already. Re-arrangement is one thing. Butchering is another. And that cover had meat market written all over it. If he could have supported it with intense vocals he might have pulled it off. Having said that, he was great compared to his prior weeks, but putting him up against commercial artists is like propping up a stick figure against a bodybuilder.

8. Adam Lambert: 1982 - Mad World by Gary Jules. ( I think.) I've never heard that song and had to look it up. And for those of you who watch Idol on Tivo, you're not gonna see it anyway. They ran over again and you have to go online to find it. But it is well worth it. Total, perfect control. Imagine a performance so good, so stunning, that even Simon would give a standing ovation. Well, that's exactly what happened. Adam proved yet for another week that he is unbeatable this year.

So who goes?

Actually no one. Or at least that is what I suspect. Due to the idiotic producing of Idol and their running over the time slot, a huge audience segment did not get to hear Adam. I think what they should do is run his segment tomorrow night, then go to next week, eliminating two contestants at the same time. Just like they did several years ago when they blew the phone numbers in the graphics. Directors, stage managers, lighting people, sound engineers -- they all need to be replaced.

But if I had to toss someone off tomorrow night, I would have to go with Scott Macintyre. He's had his hour in the sun and it's time to get in the shade now.

Filed under: Music