Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Remember back to the start of Idol this season?

Simon was quoted as saying he thought a male would prevail in season eight.

Last night, we saw … heck, we heard … why.

Danny Gokey: best performance yet.

Kris Allen: best performance yet.

Adam Lambert … well, he was Adam Lambert.

Is there any doubt at all that right now, those should be the top three finishers on this year’s show?

Well, there isn’t in my mind.

Here’s the recap.

Best of the bunch: As I said in the song-by-song review, I just find myself smiling when Adam steps on stage. Because regardless of what came before or what’s going to come after, you just know he’s going to make the show worth watching. His brilliant, updated rendition of “Play That Funky Music” might just give him the three best performances so far this season.

I say might because Kris sat behind the keyboards for the first time last night and was mighty, mighty impressive with the show-closing “Ain’t No Sunshine.”

And, until Adam and Kris took center stage late in the show, the performance of the night belonged to Danny and his heartfelt performance of the Rascal Flatts song, “What Hurts the Most.”

Best from the gals: Goes to Lil Rounds, by the slimmest of margins. She just can’t please the judges with her song choice, but at least “I Surrender” gave her a chance to show her potential.

Deserves to go home: I’d hate to see this competition lose another female singer, but isn’t it about time Megan Joy’s time is up. I mean, it wasn’t illness this week. It wasn’t an ill-fitting theme. It was just a very, very boring performance and a subpar vocal.

Baffled by the judges: Vision impairment or not, Scott MacIntyre is an inspiration. But that performance Tuesday night was not nearly as good as the reviews he got. He basically paid homage to his idol, Billy Joel, by mimicking his rendition of the song. Problem is, Scott’s vocal wasn’t nearly as good as Billy Joel’s.

Please keep her: On the other hand, the judges were way too fixated on what Allison Iraheta was wearing. Granted, the getup was a little outlandish. But give the gal credit for having gumption you’re not going to find in too many 16-year-olds.

Best line of the night from the judges: Simon, on Danny’s performance, after Anoop Desai and Megan Joy kicked off the night with a solid thump: “I know we’re only three (performances) in …. but it was like two snails competing against a race horse.”

Surprise of the night: Again, a surprise in the wrong direction. It was download night, right? The contestants could choose almost anything they wanted, right? Anoop Desai and Matt Giraud should be thankful that Megan Joy is still in the competition, because they just might have performed their way into the bottom three.

Prediction for Wednesday: The camera might love Megan Joy, but will the voters? After a second bad week in a row? She can only hope that there are still too many guys in the field and they split up the vote so that Matt Giraud gets the boot instead.

The song-by-song grades:

Adam Lambert: “Play That Funky Music,” A

Kris Allen: “Ain’t No Sunshine,” A-

Danny Gokey: “What Hurts the Most,” B+

Lil Rounds: “I Surrender,” B

Allison Iraheta: “Don’t Speak,” B-

Scott MacIntyre: “Just the Way You Are,” C

Anoop Desai: “Caught Up,” C-

Matt Giraud: “You Found Me,” C-

Megan Joy: “Turn the Lights Down Low,” D