American Idol Season 10 - The Top 11 (again) Cover Elton John

     Well, even though Casey wasn't impressive to me last week, I still thought if he could outlive and not repeat that "Smells Like Teen Spirit" horror, he'd last through a while longer. So I was surprised to see him get eliminated, especially since he was standing next to Stefano for bottom three. I was not so surprised the judges saved him, but I would have understood if they hadn't. He's not going to win. So in a sense, they did waste the save. But honestly, I can't see them using it on anyone else apart from Lauren, and she's extremely unlikely to end up in the bottom. We have to remember, they're also privy to the voting amounts and orders each week. If they see that a frontrunner is never going to be in even the bottom half, they can gamble with some assurance. 

     Why wouldn't they have used it on anyone else? Naima, Haley, Stefano and Paul aren't talented enough to win. Jacob and Scotty are off point in terms of pop. Thia has a self-awareness problem, and Pia has a similar, though more self-confidence/worth problem. I'd say Pia or James would be the only other even slightly possible candidates to save, but I don't know if Pia's going to break through fully, and James would be the third male "rocker"-y winner (and probably is in a position similar to Lauren in the voting, far ahead). That leaves Casey. So it's very easy to choose to rescue him. In spite of some bad choices, he's shown true talent that hasn't really wavered, even in the horrible Nirvana singing. And he seems like such a genius, I could see why they would want to show him the respect. Plus, I'm sure he's helpful to all the other contestants. And by saving him, they can tour with eleven instead of ten. It was obvious they were going to go that route when they saved him, since the only other option would be having a "Top 9" tour. So Casey's back this week, along with everyone else. Maybe the voters will now work to have Casey stay beyond those who are actually far less talented than he. Let's hope they all do well with Sir Reginald Dwight's music, because I don't want to hear anything like Paul's terrible Top 12 performance.

     Apparently they all had style makeovers this week, but most of them look the same. I had thought the style makeovers took place when they first got there, because that's when they started changing up their looks. I couldn't believe it then, and I can't believe now that they still let Casey and Naima go on with that hair (face, head, respectively).

     Scotty McCreery found Elton's Tumbleweed Connection (more likely, someone who knew pointed him toward it, although the title easily could have tipped him off) and chose "Country Comfort," which is a great choice for him. Lucky for Scotty there was a western concept album to use! I agree with Jimmy Iovine that Scotty is stylized, and that this is his trick. But it's a natural trick, and well done---in real terms, it's his skill. He's not a pony, he's a person with a specific talent. But Scotty didn't sing this song as well as usual. He sounds off at the starts and ends of phrases. I don't know if it's his playing the guitar or just the song. He definitely picked up after the grandma line, and especially after the chorus. It wasn't his best performance, but it was still quite good.

     Naima Adedapo picked "I'm Still Standing." Shinola. I don't understand why Naima would try to turn this into a reggae song. Does she have to change every song into something else? Nothing is good enough to suit her? I'd like to hear at least one straight. But nothing could be worse than her decision to sing the song in a fake Jamaican accent. What the hell is that? Reggae doesn't mean you adopt a false personality and sing in a fake accent! Did you all do Liverpudlian accents when you were in Vegas doing the Beatles? No. Naima doesn't sound bad, but the concept of imitating the accent is just bizarre, on top of the already bizarre choice of doing the song as a reggae one. She got to AI by singing well, and everything she's been doing since finals is just gimmicks and weirdness. 

      I agree with Randy that it was corny. Not real, not from a place of truth. I don't know what Naima does in her everyday life, but if it's this kind of thing, I feel sorry for her, because it seems like she has to try really hard and be someone other than who she really is. It's a shame, because she has talent. But it's like if someone was a terrific actor, but they suddenly realized all they wanted to do was in the comedic style of Rodney Dangerfield or Sam Kinison. That person might be convincing and you might see their acting talent coming through, but who the hell wants an actor who just uses a false schtick?

     Paul McDonald is using "Rocket Man." As he cranes his neck, I think I see why Paul has the beard. Maybe they trimmed it so it's more noticeable: it looks like he has one of those long necks with little chin. I guess it's okay to leave him with the beard if he feels he has to compensate for his chin. But unless it's nonexistent, I'm sure he'd be better off showing his actual face. I thought James would do this song, so I'm disappointed. 

     Luckily. Paul didn't do as bad a job as I feared. Maybe because he sang it with his band, so he's comfortable with it. But he doesn't have the voice and power to sing it properly. The first crest was totally lost because he ran out of air, and the "Rocket man!" is supposed to really burst there. In all, it was pretty weak, and the little baby voice he does sometimes (is that supposed to be sexy or just weird?) didn't help. I agree with the judges, he may be holding back, because in the Beatles audition he performed well. I disagree with Steven that a voice going off key can be good. Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, even Neil Young---these guys have strange voices, but they don't sing off key. I'm confused as to how that could be his (or any musician's) cup of tea. I don't know what Paul was talking about characterizing "Rocket Man" as a quiet song or not a big hit. It's not a quiet song, and it was a massive hit, with classic status. Maybe his misinterpretation is why he did such a pale, lackluster version of the song. At least he got the suit right (you'd think an imitation suit would at least mean he knew what songs were hits!)

     Pia Toscano is once again going with a ballad, "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me." This one has potential, though. She could make it special, different, soulful with toughness. It can be that if she wants. There was a ton of vibrato as she started, and then, suspiciously, it also sounded like there was some Autotune! Is there some producer-fed push for Pia? Whatever the case may be on that, there were too many runs and BS in her performance, and there was power, but she also seemed incredibly nervous again, especially with that much vibrato. It was good, but I found it boring nonetheless. This is an epic song, and you can make it pull down the sky if you carry it off. Pia's just not doing it. I think that's a terrible sign: she's just not impressing, and that's with obvious talent. There's something wrong with that. 

     I saw what Jennifer was saying in terms of seeing Pia trying to break through as she sang. It did look like she was really pressing up against it, right at the threshold, but almost afraid to go beyond it. I don't know if she has the power, ease, and self-confidence she needs. Which is sickening, given how beautiful and talented she is. She just may not have that fiery soul and gutsy drive a real artist has. After weeks of the same from her, she seems basically boring at heart, sort of vacant.

     Stefano Langone, who is singing "Tiny Dancer," needs to get that patch of crumbs off his chin. He must have fallen asleep on his plate of chocolate cake! Seriously, dude, what is that supposed to be? It looks like you scraped your chin on muddy pavement. I'm very sad Stefano's doing this song, because I love it. I mean, I love a lot of Elton John songs, but this is definitely a favorite. I might not have "owned" it in my family like I did "I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues," but it was a staple, like "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters" or "Little Jeannie" or "Levon" or "Someone Saved My Life Tonight or Goodbye Yellow Brick Road." So I'd rather not see someone halfassed do it. 

     I'm glad Jimmy Iovine encouraged him to stop shortening every word and note, but unfortunately the encouragement didn't take. The song was grossly cheapened by Stefano's rushing and shortening to get to his bullshit "baby"s, oo-oohing, and mmm-mming. He cut the phrasing like a school cafeteria cuts brownies. "Tiny Dancer"'s lines are gorgeously pulled and stretched luxuriously. They feel like fabric unfurling and whipping in the wind across water. Stefano is a total idiot. A real cheeseball, crap boy band, forgettable dance song singer. Which is a pity, because he has vocal talent. He's just stupid. This is probably the best he's done for a while, and he did connect with the audience (which he's never done before, too busy doing the bedroom hairbrush singing with his eyes closed, imagining an audience). But he just doesn't have any understanding of or any real feeling for the songs he sings.

     Lauren Adams has chosen "Candle in the Wind," which, as much as I like her, has me worried. God, I used to love this song! I liked it quite differently after it was redone as the "Goodbye, England's Rose" version, but either one is a beautiful song. I just think that Elton John must have had a different vision of both Marilyn Monroe and Princess Diana than I did/do, so I had trouble feeling like connecting the two through song was appropriate. But he certainly knew Princess Diana better than most, and maybe in his mind that's not even really connecting them. Please know that when I say "his mind" anywhere here, or "his song," even though I'm not mentioning it, I am thinking of the collective mind shared by Bernie Taupin and Elton John. I thought this was a very different choice for Lauren, and it is, but it worked fabulously. I loved the changes she made for some of the notes and phrasing. She went a bit off on the first "candle in the wind," but it was hardly noticeable. I think this was a transcendent arrangement and could absolutely be released as her own version. Although I guess they do that with all the songs now, since iTunes joined up with them. 

     I also think Lauren related the emotion of the song really well. She usually does. In this case I wonder if she feels what's being said in the song "they set you on the treadmill/and they made you change your name" is something she feels herself. I'm fairly sure "Alaina" is her middle name, and the show producers have clearly put her on a weightloss routine since she's made it on. I don't think the lyrics are quite as literal as all that, and certainly wouldn't truly compare this competition to what Marilyn Monroe went through in her early career, but I could see how a 16-year-old girl could easily say "that's exactly how I feel." I hope none of the hassle or trappings get to her. She can be her own person when it's over, like it seems Kelly Clarkson has been. All in all, it was a really endearing, wonderful performance.

     James Durbin is kind of shocking me with "Saturday Night's All Right for Fighting." I don't know why he picked the song other than he had a feel for it, or maybe was pointed toward a few of the more "rock" songs. Maybe it's because of Freddie Mercury in Queen, but I always think of this as a really slammed-up gay bar glam chanter. It's not a favorite of mine, which is odd considering how much a fan of glam I am, but not too odd considering I don't really like any of Elton's "rock" forays. James definitely put an arena rock spin on it. He sounded like a mix of Bon Jovi and someone else I couldn't quite put a finger on---a lighthearted classic rock band (not The Who). His rock scream was bad this time, though. Other than that, he did an excellent job.

     Ugh, Thia Megia is singing "Daniel." Why why why? This is a poignant song, and her attempt at personally connecting it to her brother going off to college is almost sickeningly lame. I love the song, don't get me wrong. That's why I think she's shot herself in the foot before she even started. She's going with a ballad again, a ballad whose strength lies in emotion more than vocal ability, and Thia has displayed more than her fair share of woodenness and transparent stage emotion. She sang the admittedly tricky "even seen" line poorly. And in spite of Jimmy Iovine's clear warning, she's still cringeworthy with the put-on drama. The end and beginning were best, because they felt most sincere. She sang all of it well, but missed the delicacy of the most beautiful moments. It wasn't impressive enough to overcome the fact she was singing her third ballad in four weeks, and didn't show a smidge of growth.

     Casey Abrams. Oh, jeez, maybe the problem is that I really like Elton John, so all these song choices freak me out. But he's going with "Your Song," which is another staple from my itsiest bits of childhood. Not that I was alive when it was released! But it was a warm regular around me in early life. I even enjoyed the cover of it in Moulin Rouge, although I don't think Ewan McGregor, cute as he is, had the right voice to sing it anywhere but in a scene like that. But they made some lovely changes to it there. 

     So, back to Casey. It looks like they actually did trim his beard a little. But it should have been mown right off. He has one of the more disgusting beards I've ever seen, in terms of hair texture. I think it's curly/wavy haired guys who end up with the grossest beards. It's less offensive now that it's shorter, but I think it was obvious that the advice Rodney Jergens gave him was to shave it completely so people could see his face, see him. He said "get rid of the beard." That means shave it off. But of course Casey's hiding behind it, so all he can do is trim it. Not enough. Not enough, because it's still there, hair instead of face. 

     I didn't like the in-throat endings to some of the words, but other than that, I thought Casey did well with it. It wasn't super special, though, and that's a song that even after all this time knowing it, still routinely gives me all kinds of goosebumps. I agree with Randy that it was tender, and I certainly think Casey deserves to stay over many who are left, but I prefer other performances. And I really think he should have shown his appreciation for being saved by shaving the beard off like he was advised to. I see his dad has a beard as well, but you can't base your look on daddy, especially when you look nothing like him. 

     Jacob Lusk has made a strange decision to sing "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word" even though we've heard it several times this season (seems like a million). Jacob looks a lot more polished after his makeover. I agree with Jimmy's advice again: he'd better not overdramatize. He started off in a woman's range again, but amazingly, he sang with complete emotional restraint compared to his usual. Impressive, for him. It's all restrained except for his face, and unfortunately, the bodily restraint seems to be taking a toll there in some very unflattering ways. But the song was okay. It was good. It just wasn't WOW. The judges show their uselessness again, giving a bunch of compliments. Even when they give useful information, it's so draped in flattery I could see if the contestants weren't aware of how crucial it was to listen to it.

     Haley Reinhart freaks me out again, choosing "Bennie and the Jets." Why would you choose a song with a stutter? You know you're not going to be able to do it right! And I guess the makeover truck missed her? But her dress is super cute. It gives her a Splashy mermaid look. After about two lines, I said "she should go." But then she started doing some crazy and impressive stuff, and I had to reconsider. The start was bad, her dancing was awful, she's cheesy baby beauty pageant hell, but the last three quarters of the song were pretty amazing for what we're working with this season. This was one time the growling sort of worked for me, and even though the B-B-B was rough, as expected, it's always going to be unless you're Elton John. I think this was her best performance on the live show.

Tonight's ranking:
1) Lauren

2) James (just inching out Haley, based on performance quality, since he didn't stagger around like a lounge singer marinated in the sauce)

3) Haley

4) Casey

5) Pia

6) Scotty

7) Jacob

8) Thia

9) Stefano

10) Paul

11) Naima

Who should go? It's two this week, so Naima and Paul, followed up by Stefano. I'd give Thia one more chance.
Who I want to stay: My top six, maybe minus Haley, because I don't know if she could do better. But I think she's safe anyway.
Who I'd bet on: My top seven.