AMERICAN IDOL Top 5 Perform

I am I said.  Ok well I didn’t say it but Neil Diamond did.  And Neil is the main man tonight as the IDOL performers take on his words and music.  Each Idol will try their best with two of Neil’s songs.  Who will give us a stunning performance and who will forget the lyrics, stop mid-way through the song and start again?  Oh look at me…I’m sooo snarky.Before we get this party started, Seacrest informs us that the Idols will only receive their critique from the judges after their second performance.  I say ‘boo hiss’ to this. Are you really going to deny me the chance to hear Simon say ‘you’re lucky you have a chance to redeem yourself with your second song because that is not enough…you daft prick” (ok I threw in that last part because I’ve always wanted to hear him say that.

On the with the show…

Jason Castro leads off the night with “Forever in Blue Jeans”. The boy has his guitar back tonight.  Let’s hope he can remember the lyrics because he struggled with them while performing for Neil.  Listen, I enjoy Jason but this performance lacked that certain something to make it great.  He was energetic but not energetic enough.  It was either Simon or Randy that recently compared Jason to to Jack Johnson, and I’ll tell you ever since then that’s all I can think of when I hear Jason.

My boy David Cook is up next with “I’m Alive”.  I can tell just by his intro video that he’s going to be amazing tonight.  It’s guitar tonight obviously because Cookie is rocking out tonight too.  This isn’t one of Neil’s most popular songs, but it’s great none the less and David is owning it.  Wow, this song was crazy short.  Definitely not my favorite performance, but come on it was still pretty damn good.

Brooke White is taking on “I’m a Believer”written by Neil and recorded by The Monkees.  I know I’ve been a little harsh on Brooke lately but pre-performance I have to say that I don’t think this is the right song. I’m worried that it’s going to come off hokey.  But I’ll hold off judgment until I hear her give it her all.  Ok yeah, she’s done.  And people, it was worse than I thought it would be.  Truly dreadful.  She looked scared shitless up there and there wasn’t anything genuine about her performance at all. Sorry [/Simon]

Neil Diamond thinks David Archuleta is a prodigy. I don’t know about that but I do want to pinch his cheeks.  Archie’s first song tonight is the Fenway favorite “Sweet Caroline”, and I liked what he did with it.  This is Neil’s song.  He owns this one.  It’s legendary.  But what David did was switch up the melody enough that I wasn’t thinking Neil’s version, just enjoying David’s.  Good job little one.

Syesha Mercado’s first number was “Hello Again” – one of my favorite Neil songs ever (and I’m a big Neil fan).  My girl is sporting the extensions tonight and is looking fabulous.  As usual, Syesha blew me away with her voice.  I think she’s the whole package and demands my attention almost every time she performs.  If the producers hadn’t decided on day one that they wanted David Archuleta to win they I think Syesha would get more  love from the judges.

Despite Seacrest telling us we weren’t going to hear from the judges, we did, albeit it quickly.  Randy was a big fan of Archuleta.  Simon thought they were all kind of sucky.  And Paula – seriously, the woman is just an embarrassment.  She either forgot her meds or chased them down with too much schnapps tonight.  She started critiquing Jason Castro on both his performance….despite him only singing one song.

And I have to throw this out there.  Performance night is not live.  It’s pre-recorded.  So why was Ryan is such a rush?  Couldn’t they just edit stuff out?  Seacret – you’re stressing me out.

So we’re back and Jason Castro has a chance to better his performance with his take on “September Morn”.  Now this song is better suited for Mr. Castro’s laid back style.  If I had a lighter I would have lit it and swayed along with the annoying little girls sitting upfront.  I hope Jason sings this at our September wedding. The ending was a bit warbly, but isn’t is always.  Jason’s not great, but he is agreeable. None of the judges were impressed.  Paula didn’t even compliment him on his outfit.  Simon thinks Jason was completely forgettable.

Someone who I can’t ever forget because he haunts my heart (how was that for dramatic) is David Cooke with his version of “All I Ever Really Need is You”. Again, not a song that I know well but it really doesn’t matter because I was so caught up in David’s version of it.  Bravo my boy.  Randy thought he rocked the house.  Paula was proud and said she was looking at the American Idol.  Simon thought his performance was brilliant and overly complimentary.  Yay!!

Next up is Brooke White’s chance to redeem herself with “I Am, I Said” – one of Neil’s more popular songs.  Come on Brooke.  I triple dog dare you to make me pay you a compliment. It wasn’t a nightmare.  I thought her performance had a lot of heart and she called back on her Carole King, Carly Simon influences.  But I think Brooke’s issue is that she has lost her confidence.  I’ll give her props.  Not stunning, but good enough. Randy and Paula thought she was vulnerable and sang the song well.  Simon thinks this is the Brooke we like.  He didn’t think it was incredible but much better than the first song.

David Archuleta is singing “America”.  Ok I know I’ve said this a ton tonight, but I really like this song.  I can’t help feel good every time I hear it. We sang this back in our college days, well Matt Y. sang and we backed him up, but I always have fond memories when I hear this song. American Pie Archuleta sang it well, but he sang it with a little too much ‘aw shucks’ for my liking.  And damn, his voice just cracked on National TV.  That’s gotta suck.  Had he rocked it out more I probably would have been happier. It was just ok for me.  Randy thought David was in the zone.  Paula thought it was the perfect song.  Simon thought it was a smart choice (Simon is a fan of of patriotic songs) and David did what he needed to do.

Syesha is closing the show with “Thank the Lord for the Night Time”.  Syesha has the best stage presence of any contestant this season.  Vocally I thought she was one again right on, but her personality really drew me in. Randy and Paula both said she has been in the zone the past few weeks. Simon gave her props for being a good actress/singer, but still said he didn’t think she was memorable enough and she should be worried.

Well once again, David Cook was the man for me tonight.  The lines are open.  I think I’m going to go ahead and vote for Cook and Syesha tonight.  With the exception of David, I can’t say that I was blown away, and this late in the game I should be.

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