After a day that started at 5 a.m. with ABC's upfront presentation, this writer is ready to settle in for a soothing trio of songs from the American Idol Top Three, a group described, in Breakfast Club-esque fashion as The High School Student, The Actress and The Bartender. Would Tuesday's (May 13) performances clarify the race to the finale or just muddy the waters?

Singer: DAVID ARCHULETA
Song: "And So It Goes"
My Take: Via the truly awesome Mayor Snard, Paula has chosen this William Joel favorite (of some people's, I guess) for Li'l' Archie. For a second, it looks like David is pulling a Bo Bice and going a capella, which would have been the gutsiest move he could have made. The slightly sad thing is that he sounds spectacular without any backing, but the minute he's joined by light accompaniment on the chorus and the music steadily becomes louder, it just becomes a standard Archuleta performance. I really wished he'd gone whole-hog, just the spotlight, the stage and David, but the guy really just doesn't take risks.
Nick, Nora and Simon Say: Randy requests that David check it out. He says that David can sing anything. Even the phone book? Yes, Randy. Even the phone book. Does anybody want to see just how many times Randy has given David this exact critique? He needs to be replaced. Randy, not David. Paula calls it "pure and stunning," but Simon criticizes the lack of surprises. He ventures that it wasn't outstanding, but the girls in the mosh pit disagree.

Singer: SYESHA MERCADO
Song: "If I Ain't Got You"
My Take: This is Randy's pick for Syesha, delivered directly to her blackberry, rather than through some mayoral intermediary with wicked awesome facial hair. Syesha doesn't have the light and nimble touch that Alicia Keys has with phrasing. The verses are drained into pleasant mumbling. She picks it up on the chorus, but she can't resist adding a few extra shouty power notes and runs that Keys knew the song didn't need (or maybe just handled in a less distracting manner). The performance is confident and personable and Syesha looks beautiful. Her greatest attribute in the competition at the point may be that she's video and magazine cover ready.
Nick, Nora and Simon Say: Randy could see her heart beaming and smiling and that she's peaking at the right time. Paula applauds Syesha for doing the song, as if she had a choice. Simon acknowledges that Syesha sang the song well, but that she didn't change the song up enough.

Singer: DAVID COOK
Song: "First Time Ever I Saw Your Face"
My Take: While countless men have covered this song, Simon's pick for David is mighty devious, a track made famous by Roberta Flack. Will he do the Johnny Cash version? Or the George Michael version? Accompanied only by the most minimal guitar, it's a straight forward rendition, less soulful than the Flack, less poppy than the Michael, less gruff than the Cash. Until the very end, it hasn't been turned emo or goth or rock at all and, as such, it's a pure showcase for David's voice. There are a few flat notes meshing with the guitar at first, but I think it's quite affecting and effective by the end. I could have done with fewer cut-aways to David's mom in the audience.
Nick, Nora and Simon Say: Randy has loved David since Day One, but he wishes Simon hadn't picked such a predictable song. Yes. Randy says that it was predictable that Simon picked a Robert Flack song for David. Moron. Paula says this was her second favorite rendition of the song. And Simon calls it one of his favorite David Cook performances of the season.

Singer: DAVID ARCHULETA
Song: "With You"
My Take: Whoa. I take back what I said about Li'l' Archie always playing it safe. This is a contemporary song that requires Archuleta to make repeated references to his "boo." Nice. And absurd. That's the complimentary part. David looks absolutely lost on the up-tempo song. He can't handle the rhythm at all. Even with all of the R&B touches from the original removed, Archuleta still has to hit words and notes on a beat and he's never had to do that before this season. He treats it as a pseudo-ballad, mumbles some of the lyrics and his normally spot-on pitch fails him repeatedly. He varies his performance slightly by going to the edge of the stage and half-heartedly cooing to the girls in the mosh pit, but he can't dance -- so much of Chris Brown's personal is based on his mobility -- and all he can do is gesture to the crowd in the same way he's been doing all season. But again, good for David taking a risk.
Nick, Nora and Simon Say: Randy isn't sure that this was the right song, though he likes the choice. For Paula, though, this was perfect. Simon expected a treacle-y ballad, but he compares it to "a Chihuahua trying to be a tiger." Nice.

Singer: SYESHA MERCADO
Song: "Fever"
My Take: Syesha is and always has been and actress, so it isn't a stretch to imagine her whipping out this vintage torch song, complete with a lone chair as a prop. I don't usually notice this thing, but the lighting is tremendous, accentuating the sultry persona Syesha's adopting for this song. I like the little notes of choreography. She sits. She walks. She twirls around the man on the standing bass. Vocally, though, Syesha's "Fever" couldn't be duller. She hits every note without a problem, but "Fever" is a song that you shouldn't bother singing at this point if you can't point to it and say, "I know the song, but I have an interpretation of it." A case in point would be Paris Bennett's marvelously jazzy version from several seasons back, a cover that was all about improvisational flair. Syesha's just stuck on "smoky and sexy and generic."
Nick, Nora and Simon Say: Randy wants to highlight that Syesha sang amazingly well. Paula, though, isn't so convinced by the song choice and what it says about Syesha as an artist. Simon warns that Syesha will regret this choice in the morning.

Singer: DAVID COOK
Song: "Dare You to Move"
My Take: I know this song, vaguely, but I sure couldn't have told you who sang it [Switchfoot, they tell me]. Maybe the judges should just pick the songs every week, eh? The judges made three interesting choices that produced three decent performances. Whether taking ill-conceived risks (Archuleta), making wrong choices (Syesha) or doing the most predictable track possible (Cook), the middle group of performances haven't been so good. David slurs his way through the too-low-for-his-register verse. He sounds good when he gets to the chorus, but only for about 30 seconds. This was David's choice, so he should have chosen something that did his skills more justice.
Nick, Nora and Simon Say: The song was produced by a friend of Randy's, so he likes it, but he thinks David was pitchy and not at his best. Paula wished she hadn't had so much of the beginning and wanted more of the end. Simon says it's pretty much what he would have expected.

How'd those last performances go?

Well, check out the full recap over at Zap2it's It Happened Last Night blog.

Comments

Simon once again proves that he knows nothing about music by making a bold statement that "Don't Want to Miss A Thing" is one of the great songs of all time. WTF. Since when? Ugh Ugh Ugh. He pans Michael Johns and gets him railroded out of the show for performing a song that is about a million times better then the that syruppy sappy ballad.

That is one of my least favorite songs of all time because of what it represents to me . The moment that Aerosmith jumped the shark after 20 years of avoiding it. I never understood why a band that is responsible for writing some of the best songs of all time (Dream on include Simon) would hire someone to start writing their singles. It was and is one of the ultimate sell out moments of an iconic rock band. It was one step away from singing with Britney and Justin at the Super Bowl. Ugh Ugh UGh.

That being said I loved David Cook's version of the song. That;'s a measure of pure talent. Making an awful song good.

Too bad his song choice was so awful. Switchfoot? Ugh Ugh ugh? I was hoping he would do an original. But barring that I would have loved Black by Pearl Jam or Penny Royal Tea by Nirvana. He finally has a choice to make an iconic moment and choose any song he wants and Switchfoot ? Ugh ugh Ugh.

There were basically no other good performances tonight. ANd all I could think was what could have been if America had not screwed up so royally and voted out Michael and Carly.

Carly would have blown away all of syecha and Archuleta's performances easily. Michael would have made it interesting.

Instead we god an amateurish asmatic balladeer. And a sassy Broadway Bombshell. That being said I think I like Syesha better then any other R&B artist on idol (R&B is not my thing) I prefer her to Tamyra gray or Trenyce (I've never seem Season three).

I just don't understand why the judges never call Archuleta out on the fact that you can hear his Breath in between every sentence he sings. Gasp Gasp Gasp.

Cook has to win right? Is there any question at this point?

Jason S. | May 13, 2008 9:17:44 PM | #

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Cook is an artist, Archie is a good singer- Who would yu rather go see live, I could not watch Archie for more than 20 mins live. I could watch Cook sing for hours

Cook will be thewinner here, even if he does not take the crown.

Cuddles | May 14, 2008 4:37:34 AM | #

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Cook is an artist, Archie is a good singer- Who would yu rather go see live, I could not watch Archie for more than 20 mins live. I could watch Cook sing for hours

Cook will be thewinner here, even if he does not take the crown.

Cuddles | May 14, 2008 4:37:40 AM | #

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Simon's high praise for the song was obviously because the songwriter, Diane Warren, was there.

A | May 14, 2008 4:59:45 AM | #

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Funny you rag on Randy for repeating his phonebook statement, but when you have nothing inteligent to say, you have your "Ugh, Ugh, Ugh" sounds. What is this? The original batman series? Wham. Pow. Ugh.

JB | May 14, 2008 6:40:47 AM | #

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David Cook has to win. David A. is so very annoying. Reminds me of the Celebrex commercial.

Darlene | May 14, 2008 6:47:27 AM | #

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First of all.....they had to of screwed up the votes when Carly got voted off....as she and David Cook by far have the best voices ever!!!!
I would pay to see David Cook live, and Carly and Brooke.....but Archie obviously is a little too young to be the Idol fame winner. I guess we will see when the records come out....who will really be on top.

sally nan | May 14, 2008 6:53:00 AM | #

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To first commenter Jason:
The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face may be a song whose glory days predates your birth, but it does not require Simon's stamp of approval as a great song - it carries its own pedigree. No one who ever heard Roberta Flack's recording of it thought it was syrrupy or sappy. It received Grammy awards as Best Song of the Year and brought Robert Flack a Grammy for Record of the Year in 1972, and was Billboard's Number One Single of the Year. It has been covered by hundreds of artists over the years, many of whom have very good taste in music.

Chad B | May 14, 2008 7:00:04 AM | #

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Cad B - I was not referring to the Roberta Flack song. I was referring to the Dianne Warren song that Aerosmith did. The last song Cook sang.

JB - You must be referring to someone else because I never mentioned Randy's phonebook statement.

But even if I did. I am not being paid millions of dollars to judge singers and then say the same thing because the producers tell me to over praise Archuleta and then he does the same boring performance.

Jason S. | May 14, 2008 8:12:44 AM | #

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The last few weeks I have been very upset with the judges and a lot of the voters. They have assumed for the last 3 weeks that David c was going to win and said it out loud in front of the whole audience. You can think it but don't say it out loud until the last night. How do you think that made the other two singers feel. It like they did it on purpose to shake them, and how come David C gets I don't want to miss a thing and David A gets Longer.
That wasn't even Dan Folgerberg's best song. I just don't think this year's idol has been fair at all.Thanks

Sharon W | May 14, 2008 10:28:04 AM | #

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