Idol Worship - The Final 11 Go Country...Yee Haw!

It's Tuesday night, St. Patrick's Day, and our Idols are going to vie for your votes singing songs from the good ol' boy's country club--aka the Grand Ole Opry. Tonight is especially important because for those who make it through this week are in the Top 10 and that means they get to go on tour this summer and get even more exposure to their beloved fans.

But enough of the pre-amble, let's check out how they handled their song choices under the tutelage of Mr. Randy Travis--a true legend in this genre.

Up first was Texas oil rigger, Michael Saver, who selected the Garth Brook's classic, "Ain't Going Down til the Sun Comes Up". Accompanied by a harmonica player seated on the edge of the stage, Michael labored to get all of the words into a very short period of time. It was a bit uncomfortable watching Michael struggle to keep his breath during the performance, but it was hardly a singing song and Randy called him on that very point. Kara also commented on the lack of big notes that Michael has come to be known for as the competition has progressed. Michael said he had fun and that's what country music is all about--but Simon didn't see it the same way. Simon found it clumsy and karaoke in a country western bar--to which Michael said "if we were all perfect, we wouldn't need this show"...and cue the cheers from the audience.

Off to a rather dubious start, Ryan introduced young Allison who selected "Blame it on Your Heart" by Patty Lovelace. Randy Travis was impressed with Allison's song selection and her big voice, but warned her to NOT do a cute little dance move she showed Randy during her session with him--sounds like someone has been listening to Simon's critiques. When she finally hit the stage, Allison got the crowd going, seemed to be having fun with the song, and opted to take Randy's advice and worked the stage without doing her silly dance. I didn't really get into the song as much as Kara did who credited Allison for making the song her own--sounds pretty cliche, right?! Paula blabbed on about her big talent, but Simon kept it real and said it was just alright--however Randy summed it up in one word calling it "Dope!". I guess the Dawg is taking it to the mean streets! You go, Randy!

Kris Allen was next and chose the second Garth Brooks song of the night "To Make You Feel My Love"--like Kris, I know nothing about this song. Without his guitar, Kris pulled up a stool on center stage and actually did a nice job singing a ballad that the crowd seemed to really enjoy. Paula called it an honest and vulnerable performance with a few pitch problems (sounds like the Dawg has been influencing her). Simon called it "terrific" and complimented Kris on his song selection and the way he performed it--he even said he has a chance of going far in the competition, but he's going to have to get a little more interesting to grab my attention. After Simon finished slobbering all over him, the Dawg called Kris a "Tender Dawg"--a nickname that is sure to stick.

Resident R&B Queen, Lil Rounds, tried to go country with Martina
McBride's "Independence Day". Lil was nervous about her performance, but Randy Travis was confident her big vocals would get her through. Looking good in a red dress and appearing a bit more subdued than last week when she rocked the stage, Lil started out a bit sluggish, but by the time she got to the chorus she found her stride and was able to finish the song better. The Dawg thought she did an alright job, but seemed out of sorts--and then he gave her some song selection choices she SHOULD HAVE made like "I Will Always Love You" by Dolly Parton (and covered by Whitney), but Lil made the point that she wanted to show she could sing more than R&B. Paula babbled on and on and on...annoying Simon which was entertaining as usual. When he finally got his chance to offer his thoughts, he called her "Little"--because Lil is short for Little according to Simon! Gotta love Simon. Song selection was Simon (and the rest of the judge's) primary complaint, but Lil is money and will be back next week.

Sporting St. Patrick's Day green highlights in his jet black hair, musical theater star, Adam Lambert set out to scare Randy Travis with his version of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire". Adam was already creeping Randy out with his black nail polish and then he sprung the idea of performing the song with a Middle Eastern flavor--complete with Sitar. Listening to Adam sing this new version of a nearly untouchable song by a legend in the industry, I quite enjoyed it. Kara called it strange, but she kind of like it...ambivalent, I'd say. Paula credited him with being true to his artistry and said the song had a bit of Led Zepplin sound. Simon suggested Adam stay as far away from Nashville as possible, he called the performance "indulgent" and "horrific". The Dawg thought it was "current, fresh, and hot" and thought it would sound good on a Nine Inch Nails album.

Scott MacIntyre sang the second Martina McBride song of the evening. He selected "Wild Angels"--to which Randy Travis wanted to tell him it was a bad song choice. By the end of his mentoring session with Scott, Randy was pretty impressed with our rather gifted Idol. Seated at the Idol Grand Piano and slowing the pace of the song, Scott played and sang the country out of the song and made it sound like a fresh recording of a song people think they know. The audience went crazy--even Simon gave it a couple of claps. Paula complimented Scott on his performing, but noted that the piano might be a crutch and tends to separate him from the audience. Simon stepped all over that critique and defended Scott's decision to play the piano because there have been a few who have actually sat behind the piano and sang--like Elton John, Billy Joel, Stevie Wonder!...and they've moderate success in the music business, I guess. Havind defended him, it was time for Simon to offer his critique. He thought while Scott's performance was good, it was also very safe. All four judges encouraged him to pick better songs.

Memphis native, Alexis Grace, chose Dolly Parton's "Jolene"--a song choice that Randy Travis had very little to offer in the way of criticism. But how would she do on the Idol stage? Starting off the song on one of the spiral staircases, Alexis made her way to the stage in a very Opry looking black dress complete with sparkles and big hanging earrings. She definitely looked the part, but I didn't think she was as good this week as she was last week. She's got a great voice, but her breathing seemed to be off a bit and that ruined my enjoyment of the song. The Dawg noted her pitch problems as well as some questionable singing decisions. Kara thought she lost her edge and made a few suggestions that would have worked better--begging the question: why don't the judges help the contestants pick their songs? It's not like these guys are going to pick their own songs when/if they get a recording contract. Back to the judging: Simon called it forgetable...which pretty much sums it up. Alexis did promise to get dirty if she is around next week...which should please the judges.

Danny struggled through his mentoring session with Randy Travis. As a front-runner in the contest, it was painful watching him stumble on Carrie Underwood's "Jesus Take the Wheel". With his nerves hopefully behind him, Danny took to the stage in an odd get up: faded blue jeans, puple oxford, and a white jacket that seemed better fitted for a ski lodge. But you have got to give it up for Mr. Gokey--when it's go time, he can sing! I thought he did a great job on the song and the crowd seemed to agree--so much so that the judges had to wait for them to settle to give him his props. Kara thought the first half of the song was forgettable, but loved the second part because it allowed him to soar to the end. Paula thought the whole thing was good and wagered that Carrie would run out to buy the record--if you are reading this blog Carrie, you can download it on iTunes tomorrow. Simon thought Danny's performance was good, but hated his outfit--told you, he wasn't dressed for success so much as for a polar exploration.

North Carolina native, Anoop "Dogg" Desai spent some time with Randy Travis getting tips on how to do justice to Willie Nelson's "Always on my Mind". Randy had his doubts about his song choice, but as they ended their time together, Randy predicted that Anoop's performance would change people's mind about the Anoop Dogg! Standing under the spotlight on center stage with only a mic stand, Anoop preceeded to prove Randy's point and garner good reviews from the judges and collect votes from the viewing audience. I wouldn't say Willie is in any danger of losing his identity over Anoop's version, but he did a nice job with a beautiful song. Paula was first up and thought he delivered the song with tender, sweet vocals. Simon said Anoop went from "zero to hero" with a very good choice of song and Simon's favorite performance of the night. And then he took back his comment from last week when he said Anoop didn't deserve to be in the Top 13--talk about eating some serious crow. The Dawg loved the Dogg's arrangement and Kara called his performance the biggest surprise of the night. Anoop Dogg is officially back in the hiz-ouse!

Megan Joy met with Randy Travis to work on "Walking After Midnight"--a song Randy thought had been done every which way it could and she would really struggle to make it memorable. He found himself surprised with her arrangement, going so far as to call it unique. My first thought when I saw Megan's brown and green floor length dress was that Simon is going hate her outfit and then she started to do some Hula-like moves which I'm sure will earn her some nasty words from judge Crabby-pants. Randy liked the jazzy/bluesy version of the song and Kara complimented her on pushing through the flu and doing a fine job. When it came time for Simon's comments, he shocked me by saying Megan looked beautiful--but with every Simon compliment comes a zinger and the zinger was that she looked like she was going to prom! He did suggest she have the flu every week because he thought she sounded good with it...another backwards compliment from the master himself.

Matt Giraud, the dueling piano player, closed the show with Carrie Underwood's "So Small"--yet another song choice that surprised Randy. I'm beginning to think Randy isn't much of a mentor and certainly suffers from a lack of creativeness when it comes to young talent looking for their sound. Looking like he was born at a piano, Matt started off slow, but eventually gained steam and got the audience into the song. Kara called him a true talent, said he was amazing, and then she professed her love for him. Paula thought his performance was authentic and stumbled through a few more comments. Simon said Matt outsang Danny and Adam tonight and compared him to Michael Buble. And The Dawg thought it was the performance of the night!

With eleven more performances in the books, it's time to predict who will find themselves in the bottom three come tomorrow night's elimination show. My picks are: Michael Saver (picked a poor singing song), Alexis Grace (didn't impress tonight), and Allison (lacked uniqueness). And going home will be Michael Saver--which means he won't be invited to the tour with the Idols this summer.

And so ends another night of Idol peformances. Tune in tomorrow to see Randy Travis and Carrie Underwood entertain the viewers and watch another Idol's dreams get crushed.

Until then, I will continue watching TV so you don't have to...

Peace.