American Idol Top 10

Watching on the DVR right now – so here we go Dee!!

Theme = Songs from the year they were born. Uh, what’s with Paula’s outfit? The gloves? Someone needs to remind her it is in not 1988 perhaps?

Ramiele Maluby – 1987 – Alone – Oh, great song for her IMHO. She can finally shows off her voice. Some parts though she sounded like she was screaming. Uh oh, more AI flu and Ramiele has it. Heck, it sounds like Paula has it! I really cannot imagine singing on that stage and being sick. Eh, she was ok. She’s a middle of the pack or low tier talent for me. Cute though! I kinda liked the way her hair was done and the casual look.

Jason Castro – 1987 – Fragile – Scores points with me doing Sting! It’s a good one for him because he does the soft folksy thing very very well. Spinning in some Spanish was a nice touch. It was nothing amazing, but it was a good show of what he does best. However….he needs to step out of this rut. We need to see more from him. He is not showing off his vocals enough recently. I completely agree with Simon’s assessment. Dreadlock boy needs to take the competition more seriously.

Syesha Mercado – 1987 – If I Were Your Woman – VERY good song choice for her. She sounds very good. Nice performance of the song. She expressed the emotions very nicely. Best I’ve heard her I think. Range and pitch were totally spot on. She should move on easily.

Chikezie – 1985 – If Only For One Night – I am having a total brain fade as I don’t remember this song at all. Should I know it? Anyway, he started out quite rough. Seems like that is common problem isn’t it? Nerves or whatever and they just don’t start out quite in tune. As usual, he found a groove though and ended it very nicely. He has such a rich tone, especially in the lower register. But, it was very boring for me. Given how much originality is in this group, he was really bland in comparison. Lower tier for me.

Brooke White – 1983 – Every Breath You Take – Uh oh, false start but she recovers well. She’s sitting at the piano for this one. Hair is straightened – not sure if I like that. The curls give her a softer look. Good song for her. She got to show more range vocally. Interesting to hear The Police on the piano! What she has is true originality and she knows her style, but I am not sure if this was her best. She’ll be fine though.

Michael Johns – 1978 (finally, the 70s!) – We Will Rock You/We Are The Champions – Clearly this man should just sing Queen because he is HAWT. He does Freddie Mercury proud. He’s a little more of a rocker. Lost a couple of the high notes at the end – hey, it IS truly impossible to totally duplicate the range of Freddie 🙂 Doesn’t matter though – that was great.

Carly Smithson – 1983 – Total Eclipse of The Heart – Oh, hard song. She has the voice for it of course, but I am not in love with her performance. She’s simply imitating Bonnie Tyler – no original spin. I felt like she couldn’t inject her personality into it. Seems like the judges agree with me. I am worried about her – I truly love her (and she’s got the San Diego connection. Have I mentioned that I’ve been to The Field several times before Padre games? Love that place!), but I am concerned that she landed in the bottom three last week and I don’t think she did anything to propel herself beyond that. She just didn’t seem relaxed.

David Archuletta – 1990…1990???!!! Pass me my aarp card please thx – You’re The Voice – Never heard of that song before. Ok, cute little David should not *ever* dance! Beyond that painful part, his vocals are fabulous as usual. He has such control over his voice. I am sure I would have enjoyed it more if I knew the song. Still, as Randy said – he can sing whatever!! Or the phone book as Paula said. Nothing I will remember though. He has still not come close to Imagine again. He’s safe though – he has the screaming girl vote.

Kristi Lee Boremetotears Cook – 1984 – God Bless The USA – Can’t we just send her home now? Do I have to sit through this? I need some anti-nausea meds *stat*! Oh, this will sound so unpatriotic, but I am done with this song. I adored it for a very long time and I will always belt it out proudly during a 4th of July fireworks show. But…on American Idol? It’s cloying and too sugary sweet. Yes, she sounds lovely. Yes, this was the best – for her. Yes, she probably won next week with that song choice. Bleargh.

David Cook – 1982 – Billy Jean – This guy has really really come on strong in the last 4 weeks. This is another fabulous rocker rendition of a very non-rocker song. I think Soundgarden did a version like this, but dayum, is this GREAT. This guy has it down perfectly. Great use of HIS style and vocals. Now, I tell you he sounds a lot lot lot like Chris Daughtry did to me. He’s taking a lot of the same kinds of risks and they actually sound quite alike to me. I hope hope hope that he does not get a big head over this as I sense that in him, BUT…he is far and away the one to beat now. Funny huh? Not the David we thought would be separating himself from the pack at all. Just goes to show you how people can learn and step into their own.

So, who goes home (heck, who went home really since it already aired on the east coast, but I wont see it for an hour yet)…..I pray that it is not Carly…if I had been home last night I would have been voting for her a ton just to save her for another week. So, I go instead with Ramiele. Chikezie an outside possibility too. Update: Chikezie. He and Syesha and Jason were bottom three. That’s fine. I have a pretty solid bottom group now – Syesha, Ramiele, Kristi & Jason. The top five should be the two Davids, Carly, Brooke and Michael. That is how I separate them in my mind anyway!