Idol Chatter & Voice Views

So, Jermaine Jones is gone.

No one replaced him on Idol.

A contestant is still being eliminated Thursday night.

And, suddenly, the survivors of that show will qualify for the American Idol summer tour.

Meaning tomorrow night will be one of the cruelest eliminations of them all.

My recap …

Best of the night:   Joshua Ledet didn’t get to show off his vocal prowess singing Stevie Wonder last week.  Have no fear, Joshua fans, he was back in full force Wednesday night.  I get tired of hearing people who have only been with Idol for two years proclaim a performance as the best ever on the show.  But there’s little doubt Joshua was at least the best of Thursday on Idol.

Runners-up:  I find it hard to believe that little Hollie Cavanagh, the girl who bravely tackled Celine Dion’s “The Power of Love,” the girl who pointed to the camera as if to say, ”listen to this,” is the same singer who broke down during her Season 10 audition.  I tell you, she’s got the potential to become America’s darling if she keeps turning in performances like that.  She was the best of the girls on Wednesday.

And he might have chosen a song few knew — White Lion’s “Broken Heart” — but I thought Colton Dixon turned in his best performance since the voting rounds began and one of the best of the night.  I’ll be shocked if that song isn’t one of this week’s most downloaded, partly because few people know it and partly because Colton did is so well.

Worst of the night:  Oh, my, oh, my … Heejun Han better start cracking jokes on Twitter.  And I mean, this instant.  Actually, I don’t think he’s in danger of going home.  But that was an absolutely tortured version of a Richard Marx song.  And very possibly a sign that the judges did Heejun no favor by putting him into this competition based on character rather than voice.

If Heejun hadn’t sounded so horrendous, Shannon Magrane would wind up here.  Lying on her back and rehearsing “One Sweet Day” helped her not one little bit.  I have no idea what the judges were listening to when they praised that performance.

Please keep him/her:  Elise Testone didn’t look particularly comfortable on stage Wednesday.  I mean, a couple of those smiles came off as “Hey, look, Will i am, I am smiling, just like you asked.”  But Elise sounded way better than she did in week one and I think she’ll sound far better yet when she picks the perfect song for that raspy voice.

Baffled by the judges:  The judges got it flat-out wrong when they praised Shannon.  Steven got it flat-out wrong when he criticized Colton. But the absolutely most baffling critique of the night came after Jessica Sanchez blistered the stage with attitude and a perfectly adequate vocal on “Turn the Beat Around.”  Steven’s suggestion: Stick to ballads.  Forgive, Steven.  He apparently has a horrible memory.  Hey, Steven, Pia Toscano stuck to ballads last year. Where did she finish?  Does ninth place ring a bell?

Line of the night:  OK, Steven did make me smile once Wednesday night, when he told Joshua:  “You gave it up so big, God came through your eyes.”

What should happen:  Heejun Han and his jokes should be homeward bound.

Tour bound:  In addition to the three best from Wednesday — Joshua, Colton and Hollie —  other contestants who shouldn’t have to sweat on Thursday include Phillip Phillips, Skylar Laine, Deandre Brackensick and Jessica, all of whom were at least adequate in round two of the finals.

What will happen:  Heejun Han will not even be in the bottom three, if Ryan pulls a bottom three aside Thursday night.  My guess is that threesome will include Erika Van Pelt, Shannon Magrane and Elise Testone.  And I predict Erika Van Pelt will go home after a perfectly fine, but thoroughly forgettable mid-show performance of “Heaven.”

For a song-by-song breakdown, head here.

But here are the grades …

Joshua Ledet, “When a Man Loves a Woman” — A
Colton Dixon:  “Broken Heart” — A-
Hollie Cavanagh:  “Power of Love” — B+
Phillip Phillips:  “Hard to Handle” — B
Jessica Sanchez:  “Turn the Beat Around” — B
Elise Testone:  “Let’s Stay Together” — B-
Skylar Laine:  “Love’s Sneaking Up On You” — C+
Erika Van Pelt:  “Heaven” — C
Deandre Brackensick:  “Endless Love” — C-
Shannon Magrane:  “One Sweet Day” — D
Heejun Han:  “Waiting for You” — D-