Idol Chatter & Voice Views

OK, we start tonight’s show with another of those patented hokey openings for an Idol finale.

But, hey, at least it wasn’t as bad as last year’s opening, when they compared the David Cook vs. David Archuleta showdown to a heavyweight fight. Little wonder David Cook wound up with the title, right?

And here’s a bit of good news. Each singer performs three times tonight. It’ll mark the first time in four weeks we’ve heard as much singing as we did a year ago. Of course, Ryan has already warned us the show is likely to run a little long.

On the bad news front, this year’s finale song was co-written by Kara DioGuardi. She helped co-write Kelly Clarkson’s recent single, the saccharine “I Do Not Hook Up.”

Adam Lambert kicks things off with “Mad World,” the song of his choice. Every bit as haunting as the first time he sang it. And a wonderful reminder to the audience that he’s more than just a rocker. That will be very tough for Kris Allen to top. Grade: A.

Kris Allen’s counterpunch: “Ain’t No Sunshine,” which was indeed one of his better performances of the season. And he just might have topped his earlier performance of the song. Clearly, Kris showed up to win, not just compete. Hey, and what a vote of confidence from Simon, who just awarded round one to Kris. Not sure about that. I’d call it a draw. Grade: A

Next, Adam Lambert sings “Change Is Gonna Come,” selected by Idol creator Simon Fuller (not Cowell). I’m giving Simon Fuller an “F” for song choice. Adam did what he could, reminding us of his brilliant vocal range, but I would have preferred to hear him sing a rock song of some sort because that is his forte, folks. But the judges seemed to love it. Simon (Cowell) proclaimed that Adam’s back in the game. Hey, Simon, that first round was a dead heat. Grade: B.

Simon Fuller picks “What’s Going On” by Marvin Gaye for Kris Allen. Acoustic guitar in hand, Kris does his own take on the song. Paula and Kara are now gaga over Allen instead of Gokey. Thankfully, Simon Cowell and Randy added a sense of perspective. That was not a performance deserving of winning American Idol. Didn’t love Adam’s second song. But it was much, much better than Kris’. Grade: C-

Adam Lambert gets to sing “No Boundaries” first. Thanks, Kara, for proving the point. That’s an awful song. And it took three people to write it? Are you kidding me? My regret: It’s the finale, Adam’s a rocker, and we didn’t get to see him rock. Randy was right on with his critique. That was a little pitchy, especially for Adam. And Simon was right. Please grade Adam’s vocal, not the horrendous song. My goodness, that’s going to be the first single for the winner from this competition. Grade: B-

Kris Allen now tries to sing “No Boundaries.” It’s confirmed. A terrible song. OK, Idol, it’s time to fire Kara as a judge and as a songwriter. That’s just a horrible, horrible song for a first single for the Idol winner. And Kris’ version was more tortured than Adam’s. The entire song was in the wrong key for him. Grade: C-

Verdict: The night goes to Adam.

And the worst grade of the finale goes to the writers of “No Boundaries,” Kara included. Grade: F