Top 5: Performance Results

This week, the contestants are singing songs from the Rat Pack, so we are obviously expecting slower songs from the 60's. This is a far cry from some of the other nights that we've had this season. The guest mentor is Jamie Foxx. This was sort of odd to me at first, but then they explain how he has transcended the entertainment business, much like the Rat Pack did, so it made more sense. He was actually very entertaining and very good at critiquing the contestants and getting them to enhance their performances with his suggestions. Now, to see how they actually did. On to the reviews!

Kris Allen - Frank Sinatra "The Way You Look Tonight"

Kris opens up the show with a solid performance of "The Way You Look Tonight." I enjoyed this, but it was definitely not one of his best. I'm not sure how to describe it. It was good, but not spectacular, and at this point in the show, you need to be spectacular to prove that you should be there. I liked the slower parts of the song. I feel like Kris' tone was good and he used some interesting phrasings to shake up the song a bit. The faster parts left a little more to be desired, however. His falsetto wasn't quite there and the band swallowed up what is already a pretty thin voice to begin with. I did enjoy the end. The notes that he was hitting were difficult notes to find and added a degree of musicality to the song that I was unaware he was capable of. I enjoyed him choosing the 5th in his ending note rather than resolving it, but I can see where some wouldn't. Overall, a good performance, but not necessarily enough to keep him in the finals. Hey, there is always a duet with Jamie Foxx waiting post-Idol. I bet that thought is pretty tempting...

Allison Iraheta - Frank Sinatra "Someone to Watch Over Me"

FINALLY! Allison does a ballad! Vocally, this was one of Allison's best performances. It was pitch perfect and sang with confidence and feeling. The comparisons to Joss Stone and Pink are undeniable and I think that Allison is probably the most ready to release a successful album right now. Simon is correct, however. She does seem too content in the stride that she's on right now. She does not have that look that makes you feel like she thinks she can win. This might be where her age and immaturity are rearing their ugly heads. She needs to shock us with something unique and spectacular in order to stay in for the long haul. Is there a chance that she can win the competition? Yes, but it's small. And every week that the guys show her up, it's getting smaller and smaller. That's what she said.

Matt Giraud - Frank Sinatra "My Funny Valentine"

This was hands down my least favorite performance of the night, sung by my least favorite contestant left on the show. Did he deserve to stay on the show longer than Lil or Anoop, probably, but the save was pretty pointless, since he has no shot of winning. Matt chose to sing "My Funny Valentine," a very difficult song to sing. People have said to me "Hey, give him credit for trying to sing a song that hard." My answer to them. No. If you don't have the vocal chops to pull off a song, then you shouldn't sing it! Period. I mean, come on. Doesn't he remember Melinda Doolittle SLAYING this song? Watch that and see what I mean. He was pitchy and didn't take Jamie Foxx's advice to just sing the song without so much melisma. The performance was not TERRIBLE, I suppose. There were some OK spots, but overall, he really showed that he's not deserving of that spot. I hope that this week, there is a double elimination...Matt and the little monster that lives on his forehead that he tries to hide with God-awful looking fedoras. It seems harsh, I know, but I'm just tired of listening to him.

Danny Gokey - Frank Sinatra "Come Rain or Come Shine"

Danny has been in a rut lately. He is consistently good, but not outstanding. He changed that this week with his version of "Come Rain or Come Shine." It started off with the same formula that he tends to use: tiny bit rough at the beginning with some of his tone, then growing into a solid performance that shows that he is a very good singer. He kicked it up another notch this week. It's like he flipped on a switch and just decided, "hey, I'm going to kill this ending right here." And he did. This was the best I've heard him sound thus far. It was the most original that he has been with a melody line and he looked like he actually WANTED it for a change. With this performance, he wiped the floor with Kris Allen and regained his spot in the finals, in my opinion.

Adam Lambert - Sammy Davis, Jr. "Feelin Good"

Adam gets the pimp-slot tonight and is the only contestant to choose a song NOT sung by Sinatra. Go figure that Adam is the "different" one. Though not his greatest performance ever, he still did not disappoint. The song was like a roller coaster ride for me. I loved the beginning. The 8th note triplets on the piano, matched with the softer side of his voice, completed with the stairs, the lights, and the pearl suit created the best entrance I've seen on the show. It was the initial rise before the first drop out of the chute. Once the band kicked in, he seriously strutted down the stairs like this was his concert and we all paid money to see him. The arrangement was great at first- it was very full and sounded like it used every instrument in the orchestra equally. Things, however, got a little weird for me during the first part of the bridge/interlude. It seemed like everything was musically correct, but it just sounded a bit awkward to me. This was the part of the ride that just sort of let up for a bit to let you catch your breath. Then, he hit you with a 12 second glory note. This was the double loop at the end of the ride. I was sort of shaking my head in disbelief at this point. It shouldn't surprise me when he does stuff like this, but it still does. That is what is making him so popular in this competition- his ability to keep surprising you. Though not his best performance of the season, it was still solid and consistent with what he has been delivering so far.

Rat Pack week turned out better than I thought it would, overall. This was the most uniform that I've seen the contestants all season. They were closer to the same level with each other than they have ever been. No performance was terrible, though Danny and Adam stood above the rest and Matt fell behind. I expect that Matt, Kris, and Allison will be in the bottom 3 this week, with Matt going home. If he doesn't, the show is rigged and I'm going to send them hate mail.

Power Rankings:

1. (1) Adam Lambert
2. (3) Danny Gokey
3. (2) Kris Allen
4. (4) Allison Iraheta
5. (5) Matt Giraud


Danny overtakes the #2 spot again from Kris and shows that he is still just as deserving of the finals. This is going to be an interesting finish this season. I wouldn't be surprised if we see some of the closest vote tallies in the history of Idol. Dun, dun, DUN! What do you all think? Are we going to have an upset this year or is the most consistent contestant going to win the show? What do you all think of the performances last night? Let me know in the comments.


Your American Idol Junkie,


Billy