The remaining seven finalists performed disco tunes on tonight’s 2009 Season 8 American Idol. Remember last week they saved Matt Giraud? But this week two will be headed home… will one of them be Matt?
Here are my favorites from best to worst:
- Adam Lambert – sang If I Can’t Have You by the Bee Gees. He did a very vulnerable and touching arrangement that I personally liked better than the original. I just flat out love Adam. Randy says "you are ready right now!" Kara says, "Adam you’re brilliant." Paula says she felt his pain, his vulnerability. Simon says he didn’t quite feel the pain. Simon loved that he was original and the vocals were immaculate. As I’ve said before, and I’m sure I’ll say again… Adam Lambert will/should be the next American Idol.
- Allison Iraheta – sang Hot Stuff by Donna Summer. I really liked her version… she definitely made it her own. I think Allison is a dynamo. She has a very strong, smokey and sexy voice. Loved her tonight! Randy says I got two things… didn’t love the arrangement… you are one of the best singers in this competition. Paula, loved her edginess. Simon said it was a brilliant performance – I couldn’t agree more.
- Kris Allen – sang She Works Hard For The Money by Donna Summer. He played his guitar and the arrangement was nice. I liked the way he made it his own. I’ve never heard a guy sing this song before and he was believable. I like Kris more and more each week, because he grows each week. Kara told him he took a real risk with his arrangement and it paid off. Paula said "it had a classy Santana feel to it." Simon said it was original and well thought out. Randy, says, "you know who you are." I agree with all the judges’ assessment of Kris.
- Danny Gokey – sang Earth, Wind and Fire’s September. Danny is a sweetie for sure and I enjoyed him tonight. I don’t think it was his best, but he was really good. He has great vocals. Like Kara said his "pitch is so dead on." Paula tells him he has a sexy voice. Simon agrees with everyone … but he didn’t get any kind of star power from his performance.
- Anoop Desai – sang Donna Summer’s Dim All The Lights. He changed the arrangement to a ballad… and I thought he did well… not his best, but good. Paula, said real men know how to wear pink, referring to the shirt color Anoop was wearing. Paula, Kara and Randy really liked him but Simon, disagreed with the other three judges… saying it "was mediocre, at best." I actually agree with Simon.
- Matt Giraud – sang Staying Alive by the Bee Gees. Just not feeling it… and I don’t think he will be "staying alive", so to speak, past tomorrow night. Randy, didn’t care for the song and Kara said his vocals were okay. Paula used the analogy of bowling a gutter ball and a strike and he bowled a strike. Simon didn’t like it at all. I agree with Simon.
I think Anoop and Matt tied.
- Lil Rounds – sang I’m Every Woman by Chaka Kahn. At the beginning of season 8, I had such hopes for Lil but she has shown no improvement… in fact, she gets worse each week. Tonight, in my opinion, Lil was just plain bad. Randy said it didn’t show her vocal control. Kara, said it "wasn’t worth the wait." -Ouch! She said Lil was every other woman but yourself. Paula tells everyone that Lil had been sick and had been on vocal rest. Simon says this is going to be the last week we see you. I completely agree – especially since two will be going home. She disagrees with the judges that she wasn’t karaoke… boy is she wrong.
I’m confident Lil Rounds will not only be in the bottom two, but the one to go home tomorrow night. As for the other American Idol contestant to be in the bottom 2 – I think it’s a toss up between Anoop and Matt.
You can download all the contestants disco performances on iTune at AmericanIdol.com. And tune into Fox tomorrow night at 9:00 pm EST and see if I’m right… or wrong.