Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Strange, strange night on American Idol.

I mean, how many Idol episodes have featured a bagpipe player and a didgeridoo player?

Problem is, for every performance that worked, another fell flat.

And some of the front-runners left me mostly disappointed.

Look, I apply a simple formula to an Idol critique: Would I want to hear that version of the song again?

Lee DeWyze and a bagpipe player on “Hey, Jude?” No thanks.

Michael Lynche doing whatever he tried to do to “Eleanor Rigby?” Nope.

And Siobhan Magnus’ sleepy rendition of “Across the Universe.” Only if I was suffering from insomnia.

So what happens after a night when front-runners fall flat and tail-enders do better than usual?

Watch out, Katie Stevens.

My recap.

Best of the Bunch: Casey James is proving he’s no former Idol hunk Ace Young, and that’s a good thing. He stopped smiling. He put some soul into “Jealous Guy.” He sounded even better than a week ago, when I thought he was the best of the bunch. It’s time to forget the audition striptease. This guy is for real.

Runner-up: She had a cold, and Crystal Bowersox still sounded so great, a didgeridoo player couldn’t steal her thunder. That version of “Come Together,” now that’s a rendition I wouldn’t mind hearing again. Over and over, as a matter of fact. MamaSox did it again.

Deserves to go home: Andrew Garcia took a tiny step forward last week and a big step back this week with a peppy performance of “Can’t Buy Me Love” that just didn’t work and once again made me wonder what he’s doing in the American Idol finals.

Surprise of the night: Tim Urban didn’t stink. OK, that really didn’t surprise me too much. I mean, I figured it was just a matter of time before he turned in a finals-worthy performance. He’s got a decent voice. Sooner or later, he was going to pick a song that fit. “All My Loving” fit. And it was nice to see the judges give him credit for the improvement.

Please keep her: Katie Stevens has landed in the bottom three two straight weeks. Ellen guaranteed she won’t be there this week, after a fine performance of “Let It Be.” Don’t know about that, but this competition can’t afford to lose another female singer. And, come on, only five guys want to take Katie to the prom at Pomperaug High School?

Baffled by the judges: After two weeks of ballads, I wanted to see Big Michael Lynche ratchet up the volume. But turning “Eleanor Rigby” into a show tune? Big Mike laid a big egg in week four. But three of the judges liked it (Simon, of course, being the dissenter.) But Big Mike also has a big voice and a big following, so he shouldn’t have any problems surviving an off week.

Best line of the night from the judges: Simon, about Lee DeWyze’s bagpipe player, who marched onto stage halfway through “Hey, Jude.” Said Simon: “I would not have done that. It was like he turned up on the wrong show.”

Prediction for Wednesday: Lots of viewers will tune in to see David Archuleta sing “Imagine,” and they’ll love it. (I mean, there are 27 comments of support for David on a blog announcing the performance. Talk about loyal fans.) And Aaron Kelly might pick up a few pointers from watching.

Oops, sorry, that’s a given.

An Idol elimination prediction … Well, if Tim Urban survived three scathing critiques from the judges, he’s not going to go home after his best performance in weeks. And Andrew Garcia deserves to go home, but he hasn’t landed in the bottom three yet.

Bottom line: I fear Katie Stevens will be leaving Idol in plenty of time to pick an escort for that prom.

Song-by-song grades: (link to the blog)

Casey James — “Jealous Man,” A
Crystal Bowersox — “Come Together,” A-
Tim Urban — “All My Loving,” B
Katie Stevens — “Let It Be,” B
Siobhan Magnus — “Across the Universe,” C+
Lee DeWyze — “Hey, Jude,” C
Aaron Kelly — “Long and Winding Road,” C
Michael Lynche — “Eleanor Rigby,” C
Andrew Garcia — “Can’t Buy Me Love,” C-