The top 11 perform,,,, AGAIN!

So, they used the save last week. Was it too early? They must have really felt like Casey Abrams could make it into the top 5.... and it was really nice of them to do it, because I think he totally deserves to go on tour. It was a pretty shocking results show,,, just as Ryan promised! ha ha. I'm kinda glad we are done with the save,, it just means,, you lose-you lose!

Well here we are,,, Elton John week? They haven't had this theme since season 3,, but a lot of Idols have sung his songs through the years. Remember when that red headed kid, John Stevens,  from season 3 tried to sing Crocodile Rock?? I think it might be one of the worst idol performances ever. I still have no clue how he even made it in.

Ok.. live blogging tonight.
JLO looks really pretty tonight. I like her hair straight,, and what's up with Ryan's comb over...?  hee hee.
Yes! Paul has his crazy rose jacket on,,, oh my!!! and suit pants! love it!

1. Scott McCreery - (Country Livin') Wow, he's playing the guitar. Bout time! He is reminding me of Chris Ledoux tonight. Oh boy, that shoutout to the Grandma will get him a lot of votes! so cute. This performance was alright, just a good old cowboy song. He does have a lot of stage confidence. He never appears nervous.
2. Naima Adedapo - (I'm still standin') Have they fixed her top teeth? I'm diggin' her knee high converse. K, she is so Lauryn Hill. This ain't half bad people. Let's hope there is no African dancin' in the future. She has a lot of confidence up there. I don't agree with Randy - it was not corny. oh, I remember that montage they did last year with Randy,,, "For me, For you." lol
3. Paul McDonald - (Rocket Man) one of my favorites. I agree with the producer, he needs to bring it, bring some emotion. Hmmm, interesting. I didn't hear any pitchy notes dog.. Unlike the judges, I don't think that Paul really has the ability to hit those high notes. He should be safe.
4. Pia Toscano- (Don't let the Sun Go Down) So, another ballad. Ack, did he just say that she needs to be between axl rose and fergie??? FERGIE SUCKS! Those are some crazy high shoes,,, hope she doesn't tip over! I like the choir affect with her voice. Ok, good vocal, of course, but what else does she have? Can she walk in rhythm with the beat,,, have a little gusto or something Pia!!
5. Stefano Langone - (Tiny Dancer) maybe it's his eyebrows that are too bouncy when he sings?? But if you close your eyes when he sings he is right on. The crowd is not super jumpy during this performance. He's trying hard to get things going, but the crowd's just not feeling it. I predict bottom 3. It wasn't horrible, but with the level of talent this season, he might be going home. Steven Tyler looks a little sleepy tonight.
6. Lauren Alaina -(Candle in the wind) whoa, she pulled her ear plug right before she sang,,, hope it doesn't fluster her. I want her to do well with this one. I'm pullin' for her. It's a little sleepy for me now, dang. It's like when she sings, it never goes anywhere. I want it to build and then, Bam!! It was good though for her to do a ballady song. Man, she is awkward with the questions,,, and yes,, she's in freakin' high school!
7. James Durbin- (Saturday Night's Alright) what the?? haha.. the toe touch... He's channeling David Lee Roth! oh my gosh,, the mic stand, the piano standing... OH MY THE FIRE!!!! this is crazy!! I agree with Randy, he does really enjoy his performance. He'll be just fine.
8. Thia Megia- (Daniel)  She looks really pretty tonight. um,,, bottom 3. This is super boring for me. Why won't any of the judges say anything negative about anyone!!
9. Casey Abrams- (Your Song) It's good that the producer made him watch the performance over,, and also the beard! yipee! Oh, I like the staging with all the lights, very pretty. I'm glad it's just him singing without all the faces and rhetoric. This is so tender. Good for him, he'll be safe! Steven Tyler did not make sense with that little 2 note thing.
10.  Jacob Lusk - (Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Thing) How cool to have him meet Mary J. His voice is buggin' a bit on this song. He's like bawling out there with his face. And he's a side singer. Oh, that kid that I loved who didn't make the top 13 sang this song and it was sooo good. Robbie Rosen....
11. Haley Reinhart - (Benny and the Jets) How many times has she growled?? Let's count.. ha. That was a cool note that she hit. Her shoes should not have been nude color... in my opinion. She has a great wailing voice. I'd love to hear her sing some Heart.

Um, the judges seriously need to start critiquing the contestants honestly. I think I missed Simon a little on this show.

My power rankings based on tonight's performances.

1.  James Durbin
2. Lauren Alaina 
3. Casey Abrams
4.  Pia Toscano
5. Scott McCreery
6.  Haley Reinhart
7.  Paul McDonald
8.  Naima Adedapo
9.  Jacob Lusk 
10.  Stefano Langone
11. Thia Megia

America's Bottom 3 will be Thia, Stefano, and Naima. ....Thia and Stefano going home.

Top 11 Perform

So I didn't live blog last night,,, I actually just wanted to sit on the couch and watch it. And I must say I really really enjoyed Motown night. I've been struggling with coming up with a bottom 3, and that generally never happens. So here's my short and sweet critiques of the remaining kids.

• Casey Abrams- I just really want to trim his beard. Um, his faces and growling/grunting faces are getting a little too much perhaps? He sang, "I heard it through the Grapevine" and my husband and I laughed because our first exposure to this song was in the 80's when the claymation commercial of the dancing raisins was ruling the tube. Um, this was an alright performance.

• Thia Megia- Her name is a delight to say,,, you can say it all crazy and funny. Almost like it should be on Yo Gabba Gabba or something.. lol. So, she sang "Heatwave",, it was fun to actually see her move around the stage and smile a bit. She does have a great tone to her voice, but I don't think she's screaming 'STAR'... I could see her on Broadway for sure. 

• Jacob Lusk - "You're all I need to get by"... So, if ever there was a theme week for Jacob,, this would be the one.. and he did a great job! I really can't handle his vibrato and his faces he pulls when he sings,, and I think he's a little 'hoppy' at times. But, he did nail it,, he was on key, and the boy knows how to sing from the inner depths of  his soul.

• Lauren Alaina - "You keep me holdin' on".. this was her best performance so far. She looked pretty and refined,, not like a 'toddler and tiara' contestant. Her makeup has been so heavy and the hair so big,,, it was nice to see her in a classier look. Her singing was good, but I wanted more from her. I wanted some high notes at the end, it built up, but then never went anywhere. 

• Stefano Langone- "Hello"... I guess I never really considered this song a motown classic. It's just a good old 80's Lionel Richie love song. Stefano's faces are bugging me. He looks like he's in pain sometimes. And like the judges said, it did look like he was concentrating too much. I can't imagine how hard it is for these kids to perform under stress/pressure/ a week of rehearsal, etc. He might be in trouble.

• Haley Reinhart - "You really got ahold on me"... I thought this was her best too. I'm not sure if she's doing anything to grab fans.... she can sing and she does have confidence, there's just something about her that's not making people vote.

• Scotty McCreery - seriously, every week I just can't believe that voice comes out of that little kid. So here's the celebrity doppleganger of the week. My hubs and I were dying over this.... what do you think? lol. We also were throwing out Howdy Doody, and Woody from toy story,.... He sang "For Once in my life"... it was good. He never sings a bad note.

 

• Pia Toscano - "All in love is fair"... didn't I mention last week that she needed to start singing some upbeat songs instead of the dead serious ones? Man,,,, she has a GREAT voice and range.. and wonderful control.
• Paul McDonald - "Tracks of my tears".. so when Adam Lambert sang this 2 years ago it was outstanding... I was a little nervous for him to do it,, but he did awesome. Loved that he brought the guitar out. It kinda forces him to not do his chicken dance on stage. He has a crazy raspy voice and his range isn't that big, but I  still feel really happy watching and listening to him.
• Naima Adedapo- "Dancin' in the streets."... what the?? she's nuts, I kinda had to look away for a bit. Not sure if the African Dancing needed to be in there, but she is who she is I suppose. She might be in the bottom 3.
• James Durbin - "Living for the city"... man he's got some pipes. I really like his voice, but his stage antics might be a little too, um, what's that word Simon used to say,, indulgent? is that what I'm thinking of? Well, he still rocked it.

So My power rankings (and this was hard) based solely on last night's performances are as follows:

1. James Durbin
2. Pia Toscano
3. Paul McDonald
4. Jacob Lusk
5. Scotty McCreery
6. Lauren Alaina
7. Thia Megia
8. Casey Abrams
9. Haley Reinhart
10. Stefano Langone
11. Naima Adedapo (not that she did bad, it was just a little weird for me)

The Latinas are NOT back baby!

Well 2 of the 3 of my bottom 3 were predicted... But, Karen Rodriguez sang her last ballad last night with the english/espanol flava. The judges were not unanimous,, meaning J LO wanted to save her Puerto Rican connection. I'm glad they didn't save her. But isn't it interesting that 2 of the 3 people they saved 2 weeks ago, (Stefano, Naima) are still safe? That means they have redeemed themselves a bit in the eyes of the voters. Bottom 3 with Hailey, Karen, and Naima were expected. The girls will be voted off one by one until Pia is the last one standing. Oh, and they did not lip synch this week, which was evident when people's mics were off during their verse.

Lee DeWyze performed,, meh, it was alright I suppose. Black Eyed Peas performed,,, meh. I have overdosed on seeing them on every single show in the world.

Next Week's Theme will be - Motown. Jennifer Hudson and Sugarland to perform on results show.

Top 12 Perform

Here we go again! The top 12 perform tonight songs from the year of their birth. I will be live blogging this go around.

1. Naima - 1984. (What's love got to do with it- Tina Turner) May I say again I love watching the producers work their magic. I hope there's no dancing this time. Oooo,, starting off shaky. The first verse was pretty off. Is she trying to be Rihanna? This song is not really doing much for me. Glad J Lo and Randy agreed with me.. Steven Tyler is just going to say everyone is good. Is he afraid to give criticism... perhaps.
2. Paul - 1984. (I guess that's why they call is the blues - Elton John) um, he's doing ok. Is the weird stage walking distracting? perhaps.. I just love his smile though! Let's make him be the next Crest Kid. Randy had some good critiques. It's still so weird that we look to Randy the dogg for the honesty this year. He has a lot of confidence and is not awkward during critiques which I like... comes with age I guess.
3. Thia - 1995. (Colors of the Wind - Vanessa Williams)  Well it looks like she's singing another slow song where she just stands there and looks pretty. At least she's smiling this time. Oh, she didn't quite hit that high note when the key changed. That sounded like a casino performance to me. Did not get me out of the seat. She may be in the bottom 3.
4. James Durbin - 1989.  Oh my gosh, James was a cute fat baby! (I'll be there for you - Bon Jovi) I love this song! He was not on key at the beginning. No high notes this time,, I was expecting him to go way high on this one... He's still a great performer, but this was not his best performance. Oh yes,, fireworks! hee hee. Love that he said he has some music for the Finale with Aerosmith. Glad Randy said there were a couple of bad notes.
5. Haley - 1990. (I'm your baby tonight - Whitney Houston) She looks exactly the same as when she was a baby. Wow,,, lots of growling tonight. She should be singing ,"I'll be growling tonight",,, haha. She started off not soo hot. wow, 5 kids in a row now with shaky starts. Oh no, she's covered in lipstick! Like her teeth, chin, cheek, I've never seen anything like that. How sad. Yes, Ryan is helping her,, oh my GOSH!!! Ryan  just licked his finger and rubbed it on her chin!!!! I'm dying...
6. Stefano - 1989. (If you don't know know me by now- Simply Red) I like Stefano, but his time is limited here. Wow, great last note! That was super high. It was a good vocal.
7. Pia - 1988. (Where do broken hearts go? - Whitney Houston) Ug, not liking this arrangement. Like it's totally awful. She is a VERY good singer though, sheesh. Great control when she goes up. It was up tempo, but she stood in the middle of the stage and only bent her legs a few times. I want a little more movement in her performances. She'll be safe.
8. Scotty - 1993. ( Can I trust you with my heart - Travis Tritt) I predict he will be in the top 2 this season. He never has a bad note. Man he is soooo country! I love it. I hope they grow his hair out a bit more. Scotty even sounded good in his higher register. He has a lot of fans America!
9. Karen - 1989. (Love will lead you back - Taylor Dayne) Is she going for the Jennifer Lopez 'Jenny from the Block' look? What is that arch on top of her head? Well she really hasn't changed up this song any. Oh wait,, here comes the espanol! Um, it was an ok vocal. Bottom 3 perhaps.
10. Casey - 1991. (Smells like Teen spirit - Nirvana) That beard is soo ugly. Oh well, here we go Grungey. Wait, a minute. He's playing his instrument?? How come no one else did? I don't know if America is going to like this song.... it did define my middle school and high school years.... But that was not a good vocal song. People will vote for him cause it's him, but not my favorite performance. His eyes were creepy. My husband mentioned his look reminds him of the dad in Teen wolf.... Anyone think so?

11.Lauren - 1994. (I'm the only one - Melissa Etheridge)  Lauren is such a bug. Her mom is Waaaayyyyyyy over the top. What is that pink hat and easy on the eye liner? Good grief. This should be a good song for her to sing. This is a vocal song,,, not Any Man of Mine like last week. Here we go,,, she can sing folks. I don't like her little poses on stage. It's like Toddlers and Tiara's or something... yes? She does have the flu, and you can tell her voice is a little strained.
12. Jacob - 1987. (Alone - Heart) Wow, a lot of Idols have sung this before. Good luck Mr. Lusk. His mom was a crack up. I like what they're doing with his hair. His vibrato is a little warbley for me. Holy  Moly, I thought he was gonna tip over when he tried to move off the chair, it was like a seizure!! Augh, I just got nervous and had to look away from screen. Oopsy,,, bad notes all over the place. That's a bad sign. That was a little too much for this gal to handle. Judges??  they liked it... hmmmmm.

My power rankings based soley on tonight's performances:

1. Scott McCreery
2. James Durbin
3. Pia
4. Stefano
5. Lauren
6. Karen
7. Paul
8. Casey
9. Thia
10. Jacob
11. Haley
12. Naima

I predict the Bottom 3 for tomorrow will be;
1. Haley
2. Thia
3. Naima

Ashthon LEAVES

Results were exactly what I predicted. If America didn't vote her into the top 10 in the first place, it would take an INCREDIBLE performance the following week to change their mind. Well, that did not happen so she is taking the ride home. The bottom 3 were all deserving of being there as well - Karen Rodriguez and Haley Reinhart. I hope they both bring it next week.

Well the show went pretty well. Gotta love those group numbers...I especially loved seeing Scotty McCreery singing a little Michael Jackson in his wranglers! I don't know why they have to lip sync though. Gotta admit, I fast forward every Ford commercial. Oh my, that mansion was UNREAL. The front entry way was so big,, it looked like a hotel. I would never want to live like that.

Adam LAMBERT.... Oh my gosh I LOVE HIM! He's lost some weight and looked really good with his new haircut. His voice is soooo pure and real. I don't know how to explain it, but it just really sits well with my ears. I can't wait til his new album coming out this year. P Diddy, well, I liked the piano girl Skylar.... but I fast forwarded it a bit.

Next week's theme is Songs from the Year they were born. Some of those kids were born in 1995..... Oh my gosh, I'm getting old. That was junior/senior year for me. sheesh.

TOP 13

Woo hoo, they're doing the wave! Everything's so shiny and sparkly on my High Def. I've only had this TV for 6 months and Idol is a whole new experience! whoa those are some red lips JLO!

I love when the kids come out all Hollywood'd up. All glam and spiffy. The theme tonight is the Favorites of the Contestants. No instruments?

1. Lauren Alaina from GA- (Shania Twain) So here we go.. Well she should have worn heals with her outfit. Singing Any Man of mine!,,,I'm not liking this song too much but she definitely can sing country music. I agree with Steven Tyler,,it needed to kick some ass, and it just didn't. Poor girl is getting critiqued across the panel, but I agree,, she needed to step it up. Her personality kinda bugs me, she's like a little lamb when she talks, or a baby in a sense.
2. Casey Abrams - (Joe Cocker) Love his personality!! Cracks me up. Singing the Wonder Years song,, What would you do?...Love that he's on the stairs just singing. Out comes the gospel choir, this is awesome. He has such a stage presence, his hair is a mess, his beard is atrocious,, but I love him! Steven Tyler "You are a plethora of passion"... i like that phrase, I may use it in my every day life! ha.
3. Ashthon Jones - (Diana Ross) Starting off a little shaky here folks..She does look gorgeous in that silver dress and makeup. This song is boring,, i'm  not a huge Diana fan though. That high note didn't quite make it. Her voice kinda grates in my ears, it's not crystal it's very tingy. Steven Tyler is going to be the judge who only comes up with one sentence. JLO was right on, she does need to sing songs America really knows. She is a good singer,, she's just not a STAR in my book.
4. Paul McDonald- (Ryan Adams) "Come Pick Me Up"  This is not starting out good, ok, the chorus picked it up. He is a cookoo dancer around that stage, but he's fun to look at. Love that smile. Um, not sure about this performance, but I have a feeling he'll be safe. Oh gosh, Ryan is trying to do around the stage, he's such a weird guy.
5. Pia Toscano- ( Celine Dion I so called that before she even said it!!!!) Geez they are really pushing the Coke ads. It's all over the screen. Start noticing it viewers, it's hilarious. "All By Myself"... Here we go. She looks beautiful. She has a powerful voice in the high register. It was good, she'll be safe.
6. James Durbin (tourette boy)- (Paul McCartney) "Maybe I'm amazed"  This is gonna be good. I can tell. They changed it up to a little rockier sound. He has such a high voice. Wow, here comes the chorus. I can't wait til he gets braces.... man he really is good. Will he ever do a bad p
7. Haley Reinhart - (LeAnn Rimes) "Blue" Whoa, hope her dress is a little higher next week. Too much cleave girl...She has a good little yodely voice. I'm not thinking this was a good choice for her to sing. She needed to come out and slay it. Sounded like I was at the State Fair Grounds. Finally Randy says what I thought,, it was sleepy.
8. Jacob Lusk - (R Kelly) he's your idol? really? I'm sure Jacob will do this 100 million times better than that skinny little white country boy last season. Remember that one? I was pulling my ears off. "I believe I can fly".. Jacob is off a little bit during the buildup as the choir came out. He seems to be yelling the song more than I would like and I don't like the end of this song, never had with the same 4 notes over and over again. But his voice is unreal. How does he hit those high freaking notes??  The judges will never say anything bad about this cat for sure. See, Randy agreed with me... off a bit in the buildup.
9. Thia Megia- (Michael Jackson) She better be good tonight cause she is not high on my list. "Smile"..these young kids are learning all about American History, she didn't know who Charlie Chaplin was. whoa. Ok, she's sounding good. Good control and vibrato. K what? they changed it up now, with a little beat to it. Producers did a fun change to that song- She has such a timid weak personality to me. Like she's about to cry and pee her pants.
10.  Stefano Langone- (Stevie Wonder) "Lately" He pulls so many funny faces when he sings, it's kind of distracting. His lower register is boring and dull, but then when he pulls out the chorus and end of the song he wails and brings it! He won't win, but he will be here for awhile.
11. Karen- (Selena) "I could fall in love" Oh no, is J Lo gonna start crying? This is not spectacular. It will only be good at the end I bet. Really boring. She does look really pretty. Told ya, one good measure that is memorable. Man, they need to hire me to judge. ha. Do you think she's gonna pull "The rhythm is gonna get you" out of her back pocket and bring out the old Gloria throwback? lol.
12. Scotty McCreery - (Garth Brooks) "The River" This kid knows who he is, and he won't ever change. I like that. Good grief, it's weird to hear that voice come out of his mouth. It still trips me out. His mic is not loud enough at times. Something weird going on. He might just win this thing folks. Wow, he is sooooo freaking country and sooooo good. It's so not an act. That's just him and I love it! So does the audience apparently.  Wonder how his hair is going to change in this new life of his. Should he Keith Urban it? Or put a 5 gallon black hat on it?
13. Naima Adedapo- (Rhianna)  "Umbrella"?? Not sure about this. Let's see. Her look is a lot different tonight. Last week she reminded me of Big Bird in her yellow get up. She sounds out of breath and she's not really finishing the phrases. Wow, the rap part... interesting. I didn't see this side of her coming. She needs to do some Lauren Hill this season. Ok. Um, not a fan of the vocals,, for real. She is confident however.Wow, Randy and I are right on this night.

Ok, the thoughts on the night. I really liked how they are showing the producers working with the contestants. Yipee, last year we had Miley Cyrus mentoring them. What a difference a year makes. These producers are super talented.

My Power Rankings based solely on tonight's performances:
1. Casey Abrams
2. Scotty McCreery
3. James Durbin
4. Pia Toscano
5. Paul McDonald
6. Jacob Lusk
7. Stefano Langone
8. Thia MegiaPi
9. Naima Adedapo
10.Haley Reinhart
11.Karen
12.Lauren Alaina
13. Ashthon Jones

Woo hoo,,, Adam LAMBERT is performing tomorrow! Can't WAIT!

SEASON 10 BEGINS!

Hello my friends. It's been awhile. Since May I believe, when I decided to give up on a horrific season we called Season 9. Do I remember who won?? Some Lee character,,, did I care? NO!! I didn't even finish blogging the season after the top 3. Lee has sold the least amount of albums,, even less than old what's his gray hair face Taylor Hicks. I think having three white boy guitar playing soulful guys (Kris Allen, David cook) win 2 years in a row was not the best idea.

So as January rolled around this new season, I was excited for a new crop of talent, changes in the show, and for 2 new judges. And may I say, I have LOVED the judges. I think it's something new and refreshing, a breath of fresh air (to coin one of Paula's phrases). Randy actually has a brain for the first time and has taken the leadership role which I have enjoyed watching. Last year with 4 judges it was just too much... Kara wanted an 'artist' and I just got sick of it. Do I miss Simon a little? Yes I do, but only when it was someone singing really sucky during auditions and I would try with my best British accent to come up with something clever and snarky he would say.

Hollywood was of course stressful and wonderful to watch. That crazy crazy eye girl that had a breakdown every 5 minutes was just classic. She was no Tatiana del torro, but it was good TV. A marriage, a flubbed up solo song of Michael Buble??,, and her crazy eyes! Lol. My favorites started to show up and I got excited for our top 24.

After watching each contestant sing their first song I had about 7 guys and 6 girls who I felt deserved to go through. It was interesting to not allow their instruments, since I think that the last 2 seasons have been really heavy on the guitar singer. I won't go through each person, but I was disappointed that the Bette Midler girl didn't go through, I thought she had some pizazz and deserved it. This little 15 year old Thia Megia robbed her blind. Also the beautiful girl who didn't really connect with the song, but had a good voice from the beginning. I thought the OMG guy sang the WRONG song. Good grief, don't try and do Usher and dance for America for your first go 'round. Doesn't anyone give these people some sort of advice. Love the Maggie Mae guy's weird voice and perfectly perfected white teeth/smile. Love me my Santa Claus Bass player, he's got grit and musicality coming out his wazoo! The way he feels the music is just TALENT. And then there's our country boy Scotty,,,, oh brother, that voice,, at his AGE! He could leave the competition tomorrow and sign with any freaking country label and be set for life. And the rocker is starting to rival Adam Lambert's range (but no one will ever EVER be like Adam!) Still love him!

So I will be live reviewing the show tonight and will post my thoughts tomorrow. Put on your seatbelts everyone and get ready for the ride of Season 10. Man, we needed some changes with this show and I think so far they've been just what it needed. Adieu!