American Idol Ramblings

OK, this may be dismissed as the trivial post regarding some reality TV show but what the heck? I enjoyed the show no matter what.

The theme was American standards and the contestants were mentored by the legendary Tony Bennett. So, expect lotsa jazz and swing and big band!!!! My fave!!!! And the contestants were not disappointing as almost most of them performed well. My run-down as followed:

1. Blake - "Mack The Knife"
He started the show brilliantly. Nice vocal accompanied by slick and smooth dance move. Great.

2. Phil - "Night and Day"
I always have some reservation about his vocal though Bennett thinks he's a great singer. His rendition of Night and Day can be summed up by Simon's comment, "It has all the joy of someone singing in a funeral parlour" And I couldn't agree more.

3. Melinda - "I Got Rhythm"
She had a blast and she's a bomb (taking cue from Randy). I LOVE her. She exudes so much confidence and charm during her singing though when not singing, she kinda lacks it. Some memorable remarks from Paula Abdul, "your performance has a beginning, middle and end" which drawed irks from Simon who said, "Which song has no beginning, middle and end?" Also another good remark from Simon, "I don't think we have anything to criticize you anymore?..... You know, we want to be mean occasionally"

4. Chris - "Don't Get Around Much Anymore"
Nice polished performance. He'll definitely get around very much anymore.

5. Jordin - "opss.... I forgot the title"
She sang well indeed but personal notes, I couldn't remember well cox I think her selection of song is not really well-known. Having said that, it's a nice controlled performance (again, like Randy said) and draw another quote from Paula who said she's a magnet of joy and Simon was caught laughing on the camera when she said that!!!

6. Gina - "Smile"
She's totally gonna be ousted. No doubt about it. Not very much about singing but I think she lacks the persona that can charm the audience. And choosing a ballad, no matter how beautiful it is (taken from the final scene of a Charlie Chaplin's movie, Modern Times), in the middle of nice swinging, fun and cheeky numbers is definitely risky especially there's no WOW factor in the performance.

7. Sanjaya - "Cheek to Cheek"
To me, he dun bother about the singing anymore. He focused on the performance package, which includes his attire and hair-do which I can't comment as I'm no fashion expert here. Like what Simon said last week, "You live in your own world. The audience like you. Good luck". And this week, Simon said, "Let's try different tactics this week. Incredible". And my God, he literally butchered one of my fave song Cheek to Cheek.

8. Hailey - Ain't Misbehaving
She worked out the crowd and yes, she dressed sexily. Simon said, "You have nice legs". Cheekily performed, I think it's quite a good performance.

9. Lakisha - Stormy Weather
She closed the night's show WITH A BANG! I like her and Melinda very much but after few performances, I prefer Melinda more as Lakisha looks a bit tensed when singing and seems doesn't enjoy it as much as Melinda. Having said that, she's a powerful singer which deserves to stay much longer in the competition. Simon said, "Sassy great performance"

RESULT : Hailey, Phil and Gina in the bottom three and Gina was ousted.

P/S : I'm not that fond of Gina all this while but she bowed out gracefully. I mean the song itself was such an irony to her departure. Smile? Means that she has to smile (well.... unwillingly?) though it's a sad moment for her. And the lyrics didn't help much too !!!!

Smile, though your heart is aching,

Smile even though it's breaking,

When there're clouds in the sky, you'll get by