There's been a lot of speculation as to why Chris was voted off last week. I could share my theories but instead, I wanted to share the numbers of posts on each contestant's forum at the American Idol Message Boards:
As you can see Taylor clearly is more popular or at least has a majority of the posts. I guess this blows a hole in the theory some people hold of how only "old people" like Taylor Hicks. I have a hard time seeing "old people" posting on an AI message board which is on the scary internet where Big Brother is watching you. Whether you like him or not, he has sparked almost three times as much interest as other contestants.
Now, on to the show. Clive Davis is giving the kiddies advice this week and picks out their first song.We really don't see much of Clive other than an approximate ten-second shot of him with each contestant and then another snippet of why he chose each song.
Elliot is up first and sings Open Arms by Journey. He's doing OK. I stopped paying attention a few measures into the song so I could blow my nose and eventually got distracted by Zoe. From what I heard, and as Faythe would say, the goat is under control. And he's not wearing a goofy tie! Randy talks about how he was in Journey so of course they're one of the best bands, Paula says something pretty, Simon says, "You have to loosen up and believe you can make it to the finals next week."
Clive chose R. Kelly's I Believe I Can Fly for Katherine. During her one-on-one session you can hear that she's lost her voice a little. Let's see how she does tonight. Wow, she looks gorgeous!! She reminds me of a mermaid. Randy doesn't really like her performance and points to the song choice (which seems to be the standard excuse to not like a performance), Paula talks about her dress and how beautiful is (because you know she has to say something nice about how they look if she doesn't like the song), and Simon disagree's with Randy saying that he's being unfair and she did a good job. Randy says she could have picked a better song and but Kat sticks up for herself and says "But I didn't pick it." Good for you Kat! And good for Simon for sticking up for her! Apparently he's still making up for a couple weeks ago when he was in a horrid mood and said nothing but bad things about her singing.
Next is Taylor. Clive picks Springsteen's Dancing in the Dark and says, "I think he's going be great." This song is a pretty good pick for him and he does sound great. He ends up going over to Paula, grabbing her by the hand and dancing with her on that platform behind the judges. Of course, Paula loves this and even as Taylor continues on, Paula keeps dancing. During the judges comments, she says she wishes she knew she was going to dance, she would have used double stick tape cause she was nervous about things falling down (and she adjusts her dress). Randy doesn't really seem to like her comment. I don't know what Simon said, but Paula ended up throwing herself at him, they look really cute. It's apparent that this season, they all really like each other...well, at least compared to the first season.
Next, Paula, Randy and Simon each choose a song for the contestants.Paula chooses What You Don't Do for Love for Elliot. Paula is trying to explain why she chose the song but Simon is being his usual pain the butt and keeps making "wrap it up" hand signals. Elliot's doing great! He's not wowing me or anything...yeah, and the arrangement was boring. Randy says he was sharp (I didn't hear it), Paula says "this is the kind of artist you are, you have an amazing R&B tone." Simon says it's not the best song in the world, but the style suited him very well.
Simon picks Somewhere Over The Rainbow for Katherine. His explanation is he knew from the first day he met Kat, this song would be perfect for her. She starts out acapella with some trills and runs and then starts the main melody...I'm getting chills!! She's sitting on the floor (I know Faythe doesn't like this) but she's beautiful and she's singing even better! Simon says, "that was the single best performance of the competition to date." I'm not sure if compliments from Simon get any better than this.Randy picks You are So Beautiful by Joe Cocker for Taylor. He says Taylor is like an old soul and this would be perfect for him. OK, you can hear a pin drop in the studio. I think Taylor needs to work on his facial expressions, but other than that, Taylor is spot on! Randy says, "You did the song proud, you did it Dawg." Simon says "Taylor for me, that was so far and away your best performance ever" and then claps. Ryan and Taylor point out that Randy is clapping and smiling!!
At this point in the show, I think it's clear that Elliot is being out-sung. Sure, he's great but not good enough.
Now it's the contestants choice. Elliot is singing I Believe to My Soul by Ray Charles. He finally seems to be loosening up and is comfortable on the stage. It's like he's in his own element with this song! Randy says he doesn't believe it's the perfect song for him but, "You can definitely sing." Paula rambles on about how he is very soulful and a funky white boy. Simon says, "Your songs are not going to carry you on to next week" and "You will make your Mom very proud for what you've achieved in this competition."Katherine has chosen I Ain't Got Nothin But the Blues by Duke Ellington (I think). She's wearing cute knee-high stilleto boots. She's definitely enoying her very bluesy song! I dig it! Unfortunately, Randy gets all wishy-washy and is about to say something negative when he passes for Paula. (I disagree with Randy!) Paula says Over the Rainbow was much better and Simon wishes she would have ended the night on Rainbow so that's what he'd remember her by. They all seem disappointed but my untrained ears thought she was great! What do you think?
Taylor picks Try a Little Tenderness as his final song as a dedication to "Soul Patrol." You know, he already behaves like a seasoned performer. He's obviously very comfortable as an entertainer. I noticed that he's really trying to tone down his dancing. WAIT... I spoke too soon, the funky dancing is back! The spasms have invaded his performance! But you know what? I don't mind! I find it charming and well, I like it! Randy says he's going to call him "Have a good time funky Taylor" from now on. Simon says it's a good song with a hideous ending and, "I'll see you next Tuesday." (Note how blurry Taylor is in his photo, he just wouldn't stop moving!!)
Well, I think Taylor's and Katherine are going to be in the final two. While Kat doesn't always sing the greatest, she is more of a well-rounded package than Elliot and that can help her go farther. See you tomorrow!
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