Last night American Idol was punctuated by the fact that more than 45 million votes were cast for the  show. To add to the fizzle of the event, Paula Abdul who had been asked to comment on one song only, commented on both the songs that Jason had sung.

The night started off with the contestants performing a group encore, as a tribute to Mr. Neil Diamond. The Neil Diamond tribute was streamed live to everyone's living room with a different approach, as the contestants were supposed to sing two Neil Diamond songs each. In addition to this, the judges also had to bear a change in their routine on American Idol. This time around, they were asked to hold their comments until the end of the second song of each contestant. Simon commented at the end of the show that, "This is officially the strangest show we've ever done."

Let the night begin!:

Jason Castro: He chose "Forever in Blue Jeans" as his first song and "September Morn" as the second song for the night. The judges found Jason's performance a bit on the edge. Randy said, “Dude, check it out man, so I don't know what's really happening tonight for you. But it was just okay. I keep thinking this is a singing competition where we try to find the best vocalist we can find. That was just another okay, whatever performance for me. Definitely not the best."  Simon added, "We don't recognize you at the moment. For the last two weeks, this is not the Jason we put into the competition. There was no attempt to make the arrangement your own, you struggled through both songs, they were both in my opinion — forgettable. I think you're going to look back tonight and go, 'I don't know who this person is."

David Cook: Preferred first song was "I'm Alive" and "All I Really Need Is You" as the second song in line. David's performance divided the judge's opinions. Paula said, “David I'm so proud of you.  You not only picked two songs that are so less familiar than Neil Diamond's hits. You are the only one that was able to pull that off. I feel like I'm already looking at the American Idol.”  Simon added to this by stating, “David, I'm going to be honest with you. I thought the first song was okay. I thought the second song was brilliant. (cheers) You actually made that feel like that song was written this year. That was the point I was trying to make to Jason. You changed the arrangement, you made it work for you, that was smart. Well done.”

Brooke White: The first song of her choice was “I'm a Believer" and the second one being "I Am I Said". Both songs took the road to disaster and none of the judges approved of Brooke's performance. Paula said, “Brooke I think that what you just did as opposed to the first song, I think you did have fun but it was right after American Idol Gives Back and there was that whole video with 'I'm a Believer.' But coming back here with this song, it does show your vulnerability. It is how you connect to the audience. Everyone loves who you are, and that just works” Simon was the harshest and at the same he took the subtle approach as well. He said, “Brooke, I really, really hated the first song. It was sort of like a girls night out at the karaoke bar, wasn't it? But this — as the guys just said — this is the Brooke we like. Sitting behind the piano, singing a very good song. It wasn't incredible, but it was a million times better than the first song. Well done.”

David Archuleta: he chose "Sweet Caroline" as his first song and "America" as his second song for the night. As before, David impressed the judges and this was clear from their comments. Paula said, “This was the absolute perfect song for you to sing. David, your voice is just so on point. I just want to see that joy and that spirit and the prodigy and the little savant that I used to see. I love you, you're brilliant, have fun.” Simon stated, “Well David, that was a smart choice of song. I've got to hand it to you. That was clever. It ticked all the boxes — it means it was absolutely the right choice. Check, check, check.”

Syesha Mercado: She chose "Hello Again" as her first song and "Thank the Lord for the Nighttime" as her second song for last night's performance. Her performance impressed the judges and also captivated the audience. Randy said, "You know what I love about you in this moment is I think that you're finally realizing who you are. We've been saying it all along. That is also in the zone. I mean that could have been in some play. It could have been on Broadway. I like you in this. This is where I like you."

Gerry Grant

Reporter
My Entertainment News

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This entry was posted on Thursday, May 1st, 2008 at 10:22 am and is filed under American Idol. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.