Well … I see for the 400th airing of American Idol Steven has graced us with some interesting (I guess) “leggings.” And, if anyone else noticed, he wrapped his microphone with a scarf. Typical Steven. All is right with the world.
Stevie Wonder and Whitney Houston tunes are the order of the evening for the Top 13. What did they do with them?
Joshua Ledet: For his “Livin’ For The City” performance Joshua mixed up some gospel notes and gospel moves to good effect. Seemed a touch frantic to me, but it was more than adequate.
Elise Testone: “The Greatest Love Of All” was her first choice, but Jimmy Iovine had her shift gears and do “I’m Your Baby Tonight” instead. Uneven performance that was countered by the judges showing some constructive criticisms instead of all the fluff that’s gone on in the past.
Jermaine Jones: That first “I don’t want to bore you with it” on his rendition of “Knocks Me Off My Feet” took on too, too much character and didn’t sound good at all. Other than than that, overall he was okay. Which was a little surprising for me. I’m not a fan of Jermaine.
Erika Van Pelt: “I Believe In You And Me” was a rather sorry effort. Erika was uncomfortable with the song, raggedy around some of the edges and seemed unsure of herself in strange places throughout. I didn’t think she did that well at all, but the judges sure were gushing over her.
Colton Dixon: “Lately” That was one big, fat *meh* for me. But, again, the judges disagreed. Except for my buddy Randy this time around — he gave Colton a little what for and constructive criticism.
Shannon Magrane: This was a song that was just too much to handle for Shannon. She pulled what she could out of “I Have Nothing” but it will wasn’t enough. Some warbly attempts to climb a few of those notes made it sound as if she didn’t know what she was doing.
Deandre Brackensick: One of my favorite Stevie Wonder tunes is “Master Blaster (Jammin’)” … but not when Deandre does it. Randy may not have wanted it to stop, but I certainly did. He didn’t do it justice.
Skyler Laine: Skyler had a little bit too much country twang going on during her take of Whitney’s “Where Do Broken Hearts Go.” She didn’t do badly, but it wasn’t the top of her game by any means.
Heejun Han: “All In Love Is Fair” I wonder if there is any genre Heejun cannot sing. He’s pulling out some pretty spiffy vocals in whatever he does. He completely comfortable with his songs and makes them look as if they’re old hat. To me? That’s the sign of a good performer.
Holly Cavanagh: “All The Man That I Need” The little fireplug belted it and didn’t do too bad a job of it. Big voice for a little girl … especially on this tune.
Jeremy Rosado: “Ribbon In The Sky” Boring. Randy “didn’t quite believe it tonight” and I really can’t blame him. Jeremy cannot possibly have too much time left on the show.
Jessica Sanchez “I Will Always Love You” Iconic song. Could she handle it? Because not many can. I’m a bit in awe of stating she could. I do not like Jessica … but I discovered a new-found respect for her in not only taking on this song but in doing it as well as she did.
Phillip Phillips “Superstition” Cool how Phil takes a piece and always puts his own flavor to it, no matter what. For example, the first couple lines? He retarded them in tempo to the music and came up with them from the rear to create a nice little unique effect behind the music. Additionally he threw in that interesting cut at the end to put it to bed.
No clue who is leaving, but it certainly isn’t Phillip Phillips or Jessica Sanchez. I don’t mind seeing Jeremy, Deandre or Erika make tracks.
Clacked by Michael Noble 
on Mar 08, 2012 @ 09:29 EST5EDT
I’m pretty sure Shannon will be Low Vote Girl and Jeremy Low Vote Boy. Of the two of em? Shannon did the worst IMO. She should go.
Shannon and Jeremy definitely should be low vote getters, but I think Jeremy has been saved by JLo’s fascination with him too many times and will get the boot tonight. After all, we do have 7 males to 6 females, and Jeremy isn’t going to get better. Shannon might, and if not, she can go next week.
Jessica did sound like this year’s winner in her rendition of “I Will Always Love You”, and I was completely ready to hate the song just because I’ve heard it so often since Houston’s death. Phillip and Heejun are definitely looking like they are ready to give her a good race for the title.
Last night’s real winning performance, however, was given by the judges, especially Randy. Improvement over last Tuesday night was tremendous, and I hope we see more of them pushing the contestants for growth. Auditions are over, and each week will be the last week for someone who doesn’t keep up.