American Idol Top 3 Perform

Left to right: Haley, Scotty & Lauren.

The show starts off with short clips of the kids going to their homecoming celebrations last week. Crusty also tells us James had a homecoming as well, and showed a picture of him signing autographs. But they get down to business rather quickly, as Crusty tells us there will be three songs - a contestant choice, a Jimmy Iovine choice, and a Judges choice. But he also tells us the schedule is a bit different next week, with the performances on Tuesday night, and the results on Wednesday night. With 9 performances tonight, they need to get to the job at hand, which seems to be a long video intro for a woman who needs no introduction, Beyonce. She will be helping the kids this week, a job she i looking forward to doing.



Scotty is up first, and he choices to tackle Lonestar's Amazed. He does a nice enough job with it, although there were some broken and lost notes there tonight. He was pushing his limited range, and it showed. I also look forward to the day he sings from his heart, not his memory.



Lauren is up next, and she chooses Wild One by Faith Hill. Beyonce liked her, but gave her advice to get out of her own way, to psyche herself up. It is funny, but I really start to enjoy Lauren performing when she builds a bit, but then backs away from the song and her own voice. I think she could do it, if she would just try...



Haley is next. She tells Beyonce she is singing Led Zeppelin's What Is And What Should Never Be. She has her father son stage with her, playing the guitar. During the middle of her performance she takes a spill, but gets up ready to go. She is taking the song the best she can, and is actually out-singing the other two. The judges loved her, and commented on how she commanded the stage.



In fact, when asked by Crusty, they all think Haley has taken the first round, spills and all. When they return after the break, we see Scotty's audition run in full before we go to Jimmy Iovine and find out he chose Thompson Square's Are You Going To Kiss Me Or Not. It is a cute choice, and Scotty seems quite happy. He does a nice job, even feeling it a bit. Nicely picked by Jimmy, he gave it a kids feel, which was nice to see. It could have been his best of the season to date, at least for me.



After the break, we are backstage and Crusty is watching Lauren get makeup applied to her legs, as her panty hose ran. She is embarrassed, but the show must go on. This leads us to seeing the audition when she sang with Steven. Jimmy Iovine picks Perry's If I Die Young, and thinks she should keep it light and happy, cause things tend to scare Lauren a bit. Come time to sing, she starts off a little shy, but builds with the song. By the end, she is really delivering the goods.



The judges see it a bit different than I do, and find the beginning to be the good part, and when she finally added something to it to be the bad part. Oh well. After the break, we discover Haley is singing Fleetwood Mac's Rhiannon, thanks to Mr Iovine. She does a very nice job with the song, which might not have been the best call by Jimmy. The others had somewhat unknown singers, while Haley had to compete with the image of the incomparable Stevie Nicks. The judges all said she was good, obviously being polite about being unimpressed.



It is time for Crusty to check in with the judges, and this time there is a split decision. Steven picks Lauren, while Jennifer and Randy go with Scotty. Then it is time to pay Beyonce back for spending an hour with the kids, and we watch the world premiere of her new video, Run The World (Girls).



After the break, we are back with Scotty, and see that while he was home, he got the Judge's Choice via a text. He will be singing Kenny Roger's She Believes In Me. He kicks it off a little tentative, and there was a pitch problem throughout the song. It was a bit disappointing after the last performance.



However, the judges see it differently, and think he was great. Crusty talks to his father, ripping a bit more emotion out of the situation, and even asked Dad to sing so he could have the Josh Turner moment of his own.

During her trip home, Lauren finds out she is going to sing Lee Ann Womack's I Hope You Dance for her last song. She does a nice job, but mainly cause the song doesn't have a bold moment, more of a quiet loveliness. She did a nice job, but it wasn't as impressive as I'd like to hear, but that was at least in part due to the song.



The judges love it, and Jennifer discards Haley's performance and gives the round to Lauren. Of course, I saw that coming, so she would have picked a different winner of each round. Steven and Randy loved it as well, and it seems the entire world but me are good friends with Ms. Womack. Just sayin'... After the break, we see Haley getting word on the song the judges want her to sing. She reads the text while in the limo, and she will be singing Alanis Morissette and her angry anthem, You Oughta Know. Where the judges trying to say something there?



The judges are kindly dismissive of Haley, commenting on amazing chorus', but problems on the rest. When asked, Steven gave round 3 to Haley, while Jennifer and Randy gave it to Lauren. That, of course, gave Randy and Jennifer a complete tie, with each contestant winning a round. Steven, on the other hand, went off the script, and gave Haley rounds 1 & 3, and Lauren round 2. However, on the recap, we are reminded she was the most consistent of the night. I would actually have to say Scotty won round 2, but was in the bottom on the other two. But there is no chance of Scotty going home, is there? I guess we will have to see tomorrow night when Crusty reveals the finalists for the 10th season of American Idol!

American Idol in 60 Seconds - Top 3

MTV's Jim Cantiello is back with his Idol in 60 Seconds, this week discussing Lee's "moment" and the guest artists.

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For more, click the link under the video.

AI9 Final Competitors Announced

Originally written for Rickey.Org

Tonight we will learn who is in the finals, who will be battling for the chance to be named the next American Idol. Two years ago, we learned it would be David vs David, and last year Kris vs Adam.

Crusty comes out and tells us there were 47 million votes last night, all to help sort out next week's final at the Nokia Theater. Crusty brings out the final three, Casey, Crystal and Lee, and chats. Casey talks about who this has changed him from the time he wasn't sure he would make it past auditions. Crystal is amazed about the amount of work that goes into being a competitor on the show, and Lee agrees. Asked about winning, Crystal and Lee talk about thinking about winning, while Casey says he hasn't thought about it, continuing to be surprised he is still there.

Randy discusses how shy Lee was when he started, and how he blossomed. He thought Crystal has grown from indie girl to artist, and Casey delivering on the legacy of Texan artists like Stevie Ray Vaughan. Crystal talks about how each and every comment was heard and processed, while Casey laughed and mentioned not all were. Point for Casey!

Time for the homecoming video clips, starting with Casey. But before we do, we get the Ford Video, with the kids singing Wild One (Real Wild Child), with the Idols-turned-graffiti-artists singing the rock with a shot of vanilla.

Back to the homecoming, unlike what we saw on the clip last night, Casey had tons of people show up for him. There are screaming hoards of people, mostly women, and a really touching time in the hospital when Casey stopped by to thank the staff that not only saved his life, but also his arm to enable him to continue to play after a bad accident.

Now we hit the Perez Hilton segment of the show, and who discovered Travis Garland, and is, according to Hilton, better than Justin Timberlake. Then he sings. Oh, my. I am thankful for the backing tracks. Well, he dances well.

Next Crystal hits the tarmac, and we travel to Ohio with her. You get the idea the idols spend as much time in the limo as with the people! Crystal enjoys playing jack-in-the-box with the crowd. I love the Toledo mayor with the Harley outfit! and there is the reunion with her son and her father, which is very sweet. Soon they head out for a concert aptly entitled Bowerstock! We hear an original song from her, Holy Toledo, which is very nice.

Lee hits the road to Chicago, and there are many screaming girls and women, and lots of tears from Lee. After visiting his school, he visits the paint store. And time with the family. There is a big concert, and Lee singing The Boxer, breaking down a a bit. He talks about his parents and what their faith and pride mean to him.

After the commercial break, we get Justin Bieber, a natural choice for this group of contestants. Bubblegum Pop meets Rock, Southern Blues and Folk-Rock. He performs his latest release, U Smile, then moves on to his hit, Baby, which includes his drum solo. No, really.

And now it is time for the results. Crusty handles the recap, with Lee, Crystal and Casey, prolonging the tension. The first person in the finale is Lee DeWyze. Joining Lee in the final is Crystal Bowersox, and Casey is leaving us. Casey is graceful in his leaving. He sings Daughters as his exit song, He picks up a little girl, and sings with her. What a nice moment. There is a nice moment when they cut to a tearful Crystal. He hugs the judges, and leaves Crusty to run the final video without him.



And next week, it is between Lee and Crystal for the title.

AI9 Battling for Second

This post was originally written for Rickey.Org.

It is the final three. They are from Ohio, Illinois and Texas. After a nationwide search, the final three will take the stage to battle for the finals.

Casey is up first, Eric Hutchinson's Okay, It's Alright With Me, a bluesy number. I knew when he started the judges were going to hate it. I, on the other hand, like the song. It had a nice southern blues feel to it. Casey was in good voice, and seemed comfortable singing the song.

Crystal chose Melissa Etheridge's Come To My Window, an anthemic song that was truly popular at the time. She opens with harmonica, and starts off sounding very much like the original, then makes it her own in the bridge. It is a tough song, so very well known. I wasn't completely sold on this version - could have done without the harmonica. The judges like it, but don't love it. Simon pulls out the 'haven't compromised' card, suggesting others have.

Lee is up next to sing the Leonard (I know it's Lynyrd, but I am working for something here) Skynyrd song, Simple Man. Started off pitchy to me, but went to the screamy point, and stayed there. But I have been way off the mark with the judges thus far, and what do you know, the judges all loved it, and thought he crushed the other two.

Randy and Kara picked the song for Casey. He is singing Daughters, the song by John Mayer which won the Song of the Year Grammy in 2005. But before he starts, we see a hint of the homecoming, announcing the song choice. It was a lovely, low key performance, with a touching sentimentality. Randy, Ellen and Kara liked it, but Simon wanted to rewrite the song for a glory note. Really, Simon? Contract almost done, right?

Ellen chose for Crystal, and picked Baby I'm Amazed by Paul McCartney. She starts the song on the stairs, and is a little weak, but it improved immediately when she stands up with better support. While the vocals were nice, I felt like she was a little less connected than usual. The judges all love it, and Simon already pencils her into the finals with Lee, dismissing Casey.

Simon chose for Lee, picking Hallelujah, by Leonard Cohen. Oddly, both songs by Leonards. Also oddly, Simon picked a song that was already performed earlier this season by another Idol, and two years ago was performed beautifully by Jason Castro. There was also a lovely version by Justin Timberlake and Matt Morris. It is soft and haunting, not Lee usual style. While there are some notes that land noticeably flat, it is not as bad as I thought. But with the addition of the choir on stage, it is obvious who is meant to win this season. I really hate being treated like such an idiot. With that performance, Simon points out it proves he is not only a fantastic singer [really?] and a great person...

So, the end of the night we were told to send Casey home, and that Lee is the next American Idol. Why vote? Thankfully, Glee is on next with Neil Patrick Harris to occupy my time.