And Then There Were Five . . .

American Idol:  It's coming down to the wire - only five contestants left, at least for a few more hours.  We thought last night was a phenomenal night for everyone.  Even our least favorites had a good moment.  Here's how the points stacked up, according to me.  (The views expressed in this blog do not necessarily reflect the views of all members of our household.)

Joshua - 10+  Perfect, yet again.  After his first song, Dave said "I would pay to see that concert."  Guest that about covers it.

Jessica - 10  Finally, she puts some personality into her flawless singing!  She got lucky with the minor change in the arrangement that Steven Van Zant suggested for Proud Mary.  It was subtle, but gave a slightly different flavor to the opening. Her second song was tender and beautiful!  Fantastic job!

Hollie - 9  She came out of her shell and ROCKED River Deep, Mountain High!  Her second song was a current pop song that I was only vaguely familiar with and didn't care for, but she sang it beautifully.

Here's a shocker:  I gave Phillip 7 out of 10.  His first performance was a song I've known and loved for years - well, since the 60's, obviously.  He totally rewrote it - which can be a fine line to walk, but it worked. 4 stars!  His second song, Time of the Season, was mostly good - but, whoa, the chorus!!!  The verses were gorgeous - on pitch, mellow tone, he actually sang the melody - but then came the chorus.  Just one line - "It's the time of the season for loving." - It was horrendous.  It was too high for Phillip so he went off key and his voice faded out.  Ruined the song!  I gave him a 3 because the rest of the song was so good - but he should have lowered the key or chosen another song.

And then there's Skylar. I gave her 6 out of 10, not because she doesn't sing well, but because she's stuck in a rut.  For her first number, she took an up-tempo song where she could stomp her foot and jump around and sing as loud as possible - Surprise! 2 stars.  When she started her 2nd song I was hopeful.  It was quiet(er) and beautiful. I thought she was finally going to show a different side - but she just couldn't help herself.  She just had to blast it at the end and the last note went horribly wrong.  Note to Skylar: Restraint is your friend. Not every song needs to be belted at full volume. I gave her 4 stars for the first 3/4 of the song. 


And a quick note on Dancing With the Stars - I'm so disappointed that Jaleel White got cut.  He was miles better than Little Laura Ingalls, who's footing went obviously wrong multiple times - not to mention a vulgar lift.  Evidently more people watched Little House than Family Matters.  The top 4 contestants - Donald, William Levy, Katherine and Maria - were unbelievable.  Can't wait for the finale of this season!