Idol Chatter & Voice Views

You know what? I struggled to fill the 10 spots on yesterday’s worst songs list.

Oh, six or seven Idol performances from season seven jumped out as cringe-worthy. Kristy Lee Cook singing the Beatles. Not anxious to revisit those 2 minutes.

But after reviewing songs performed by the final 12 contestants, I came to the conclusion there must have been more good than bad in Idol 2008. Because crafting the list of my favorite 10 songs was much more difficult because there were too many to choose from, not too few.

So here goes, a list of 10 performances worth watching again.

10. Idol contestants got to play instruments for the first time this year. Lucky for us. We got to see Brooke White sit barefooted behind a piano and sing one of the most heartfelt renditions of “Let It Be” you’ll ever hear.

9. For one night, Kristy Lee Cook was a star on the Idol stage. It came in week five, when she sang the Martina McBride hit, “Anyway” because she identified with the lyrics as an Idol underdog. “You can pour your soul out singing a song you believe in / That tomorrow they’ll forget you ever sang / Sing it anyway.” Well, Kristy Lee, that performance shouldn’t be forgotten.

8. What does a rocker wannabe do when it’s Dolly Parton night on Idol? How about a bluesy rendition of “It’s All Wrong But It’s All Right?” It was easily Michael Johns’ shining moment on Idol.

7. Want to know why David Archuleta will be standing on the stage in the Idol finale tonight. Take a listen to this pitch-perfect version of “Stand By Me.” No doubt, the 17-year-old can sing pop ballads with the best of them.

6. Syesha Mercado had trouble getting noticed early in this year’s competition. That changed when she slipped on a slinky red dress, sat on a piano and belted out a truly memorable version of? “One Rock and Roll Too Many.”

5. OK, regular readers of this blog know I’m a Brooke White fan. I thought she struck gold again behind the piano when she performed Neil Diamond’s “I Am … I said.” The studio version is my favorite among her Idol performances. Unfortunately, it also turned out to be her Idol swansong.

4. You figured if anything could trip up David Cook, it might be country week on Idol. Nope, he did his own arrangement of Dolly Parton’s “Little Sparrow” and promptly proved he could sing as well as he could rock.

3. Take the coolest character on this season’s Idol, send him on stage with a ukulele, let him perform “(Somewhere) Over the Rainbow.” Sounds like a recipe for disaster, right? Jason Castro turned it into anything but.

2. David Cook added a rock edge to the Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby” in week one of the finals, belting out a rendition that quickly established him as a favorite in season seven.

1. And if David Cook didn’t catch everyone’s attention with “Eleanor Rigby” in week one of the finals, he sure did it when he sang Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean,” Chris Cornell-style in week three.

And, last but not least, my pick for most entertaining performance of the year …

Chikezie turning in the most original version of the Beatles’ “She’s a Woman” you’ll ever see. Chikezie, you weren’t with us long on season seven, but that will go down as one of the most smile-worthy performances in Idol history.

Coming tomorrow:

Our judges pick the winner