Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Wow.  I was reading what other Idol watchers thought of last night’s performances.  And many are being very tough on Pia Toscano, taking her to task for singing yet another ballad.

Folks, it was Elton John night. What was she supposed to do?

As soon as Idol changed the theme from Songs of the ’80s to Elton John, I knew we were in store for a heavy dose of ballads.

Bottom line: Ballad or not, Pia turned in her best vocal of the finals. And easily the best vocal of the night, unless you live in Steven Tyler’s la la land, where a few bum notes add welcome character to a performance.

Then there’s this. Let’s just call it the Idol double standard.

Scotty McCreery shows up on stage and pretty much turns in the same performance every week. The only difference last night was the mid-song shoutout to his grandmother. He’s praised for sticking to his guns.

Jacob Lusk shows up on stage and pretty much turns in the same performance every week. Which means overbaked and full of grisly facial expressions. He’s praised. He’s hugged. By one and all.

Why should Pia have to change if they don’t?

Oh, and don’t forget this. Idol succeeded in changing Casey Abrams.  They successfully convinced him to suck all the life out of his performance.

So, last night, he sat on a stool and delivered a ballad that, in my opinion, was barely finals worthy.  I’ve had Casey ranked atop the Idol field since the finals began. I’m no longer convinced he belongs there.

I, too, am anxious to see Pia tackle something up-tempo. A couple of weeks ago, I wrote that she should be hanging out with pre-save Casey for some pointers. I’d love her to pick up a few from Haley Reinhart, too.

On performing, that is. Not singing.

Whew, thanks for letting me rant.

Anyway, I don’t expect Casey, Jacob, Scotty or Pia to go anywhere tonight, even though Idol intends to send two contestants packing.

Who should be worried?

As I said last night, Naima Adedapo tops that list. Followed by Thia Megia, Stefano Langone and … I don’t know, did Haley Reinhart sing sexy enough last night to avoid the bottom three?

Regardless, it’s going to be tough for Idol to top last week’s drama. Of course, we could be in store for more surprise guests. For instance, season eight winner Kris Allen just tweeted about how it’s great to be back at Idol. Hmm.

Scheduled performers include season three champ Fantasia and Jamie Foxx.

Hmm. Interesting. Duets on the Idol results show. First, Scotty McCreery and Lauren Alaina take on “I Told You So,” the Randy Travis-Carrie Underwood hit.

OK, Scotty sounded fantastic on that. Lauren, not so great. And now they get their results. And they’re both safe. Two of the nine spots in next week’s show have been claimed.

Next up to duet, Naima Adedapo and Jacob Lusk singing “Solid.” That wasn’t nearly as good as Scotty and Lauren. And it’s not all Naima’s fault. They just didn’t seem well matched.

Naima is in the bottom three; Jacob claims the third spot in the final nine.

Time for Fantasia, with blond hair and an ill-advised red dress. Oh, well, she’s still got that voice. She’s singing her new single, “Collard Greens and Cornbred.”

Next, a trio, not a duet. Thia Megia, Haley Reinhart and Pia Toscano singing Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream.” There you go folks. Pia sings something upbeat. Note 1: Thia barely got to take part. Note 2: Haley absolutely sparkles on stage.

Haley and Pia are safe; Thia heads to the bottom three. And five spots in the final nine are claimed.

Mystery solved. A leaking roof chases the Idols from the mansion.

Now, Paul, Casey, James and Stefano perform together for the first time as “Band on the Run.” This is fun. Rock it, guys.

More results.

Casey Abrams is safe. Ryan says he’d be proud to know how many votes he got.

That means Stefano or Paul is in the bottom three. A bit of a surprise. Paul is in the bottom three; Stefano is safe.

Hmm. I wonder if that was a case of Paul’s fans being a little overconfident on a night when a record number of votes rolled in.

Time for the verdict.

And Paul is safe.

Meaning Thia and Naima go home.

Recap blog coming soon.