Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Randy Jackson didn’t know what was “in the air,” he’d seen so many superb performances on Wednesday.

Well, I think I know what was in the air.

For the first time since the finals began, the contestants got to sing songs they loved.

No one was being forced to sing Whitney Houston, Billy Joel or Stevie Wonder.

No one was being forced to sing songs they barely knew.  Or didn’t know at all.

The Idols were singing songs made famous by their own idols.

And it showed, with one great performance after another.  Performances that kept the judges on their feet for most of the night.

It was one of the best performance shows on Idol we’ve seen in a long time.

The recap …

Best of the Night:   Jessica Sanchez gets the nod in my opinion.  I mean, she gave me the goosies, which doesn’t happen often.  Heck, I think a tear might have formed in the corner of my eye.  I mean, she took a popular Beyonce song (“Sweet Dreams”), slowed it down, poured a ton of emotion into it and was spot on vocally from start to finish.  It was my favorite vocal of the season so far.

Runners-up:   Elise Testone and Phillip Phillips rocked it on Idol Wednesday night.  Elise isn’t going anywhere tomorrow night after that brilliant rendition of Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love.”  The gal who looked so unsure of herself just two weeks ago took to the stage with a vengeance and wailed her way right into the Top 8.   Phillip Phillips took on a less likely Idol in Johnny Lang, sang “Still Raining” and was sensational.  I’m seeing a separation begin to form between the contenders and the pretenders on Idol.  Jessica, Elise and Phillip should be contenders.

Worst of the Night:   Heejun Han might survive because he was being hailed as the comeback kid after slowing things down with an emotional version of Donny Hathaway’s “A Song for You.”  It was a wise strategic move after last week’s goofy performance, which seemed to tick off some folks in Idol land.  (I don’t get it; Heejun was merely playing to the character they helped create.)  But Heejun’s vocal shortcomings were evident again, and were reinforced during the group song with Deandre Brackensick and Joshua Ledet.

Please keep her:   I’m beginning to lose hope that adorable little Hollie Cavanagh will challenge for the Idol crown.  Her song choice Wednesday was a no-win proposition.  She mimicked Carrie Underwood’s version of “Jesus, Take the Wheel.”  That meant she risked falling way short of the original or, at best, was going to do an adequate imitation of the original.  Her performance landed in the latter category.  On the bright side, she looked great after last week’s fashion disaster courtesy of Tommy Hilfiger.

Funniest moment of the night:  Heejun Han tried to take us to commercial break — before Ryan gave out the numbers fans should call in order to vote for him.

Baffled by the judges:   As great as the closing performances were — and Joshua Ledet also deserves mention — I thought the judges reverted one big step Wednesday night, becoming too complimentary of just OK performances from Skylar Laine and Deandre Brackensick.  Truth be told, compared to what came later,  Colton Dixon’s performance wasn’t that special either.

What should happen Thursday:  I’ll miss his sense of humor, but it’s time for Heejun Han’s time on the show to end.  This cast is just too talented to send anyone else home after the way they performed Wednesday night.

What will happen:   I won’t have to worry about missing Heejun’s sense of humor, because fans will rally to his cause.  I don’t think they’ll rally behind Deandre, however, and I think he could very well become the third guy eliminated from Season 11.  The big question is who joins him in the bottom three:  My picks would be Heejun and …. Skylar Laine.

If you missed the song by song grades, head here.

But the grades were as follows …

Jessica Sanchez:  “Sweet Dreams” — A
Elise Testone: “Whole Lotta Love” — A
Phillip Phillips: “Still Raining” — A-
Joshua Ledet: “Without You” — B
Colton Dixon: “Everything” — B-
Hollie Cavanagh: “Jesus, Take the Wheel” — B-
Skylar Laine: “Gunpowder and Lead” — C+
Deandre Brackensick: “Sometimes I Cry” — C
Heejun Han: “A Song for You” — C-

Trios

Phillip, Elise, Colton: Fleetwood Mac medley — A-
Joshua, Heejun, Deandre: Michael Jackson medley — D+
Skylar, Hollie, Jessica: Madonna medley — B-