American Idol 8 - Top 3

The grand finale of American Idol season eight is one week away. This season seems to have flown by a lot quicker than last for some reason. Nonetheless, it's almost over and tonight is typically the night that makes it or breaks it for all three finalists. Obviously one gets sent home and at this stage of the game with all three singers highly qualified, it's going to come right down to the wire. One little flaw, flat note, or forgotten lyric could prove to be the death knell. At this stage of the competition, you want proven winners and people that will stand out from the rest of the pack. I think in this season's top three, they are all very talented people. Tonight is a very fun show because the contestants themselves get to make their own song picks and in prior seasons, their picks get scrutinized by the judges. Meanwhile, the judges attempt to make a song pick that suit their genre of music and their voices. Some are brilliant picks while others fall flat. This is the first season where Clive Davis or the producers won't get to make a third pick for the contestants (not really a big loss) due to an extra judge yakking and eating away precious performance time. So what's gonna happen tonight? Let's find out what went down on that Idol stage!

Danny Gokey - "Dance Little Sister" : Interesting song choice from Paula in that it's very obscure - or at least I've never heard it before. It's a fun, upbeat little ditty to open the show. Danny's all shouty right from the get go. And then we get the saxophone solo and he's scatting along with the saxophonist. Not finding that to be all that great. I will say this, his stage presence is quite good - he's moving around on the stage pretty freely, dancing, and showing a ton of confidence. Maybe he's having too much fun on stage because it's throwing off his vocals some. Overall, this was just an okay performance. I actually agreed with Kara in that this performance is pretty forgettable. Heck, I really don't remember much about the performance as I'm typing it and I don't really feel like watching it back again. More major pimping from Randy and Paula - they desperately want him in the finale. Danny talks way too much.

Kris Allen - "Apologize" : What on earth was Randy and Kara thinking when choosing this song for Kris, especially when David Archuleta did a killer version with One Republic themselves on last season's results finale? These judges are so clueless. Really loved the start of Kris' performance - playing on the piano where we hadn't seen him play all that much. I feel the song is a bit too high for Kris to handle - at least he doesn't seem comfortable going that high and he kind of drops an octave while going through a run on the first chorus. Despite that, it doesn't throw him off too badly. I thought the band drowned him out too much, particularly when Kris was attempting to hit those higher notes and this might have been nicer if it had a more acoustic sound to it. I didn't really pick up on the one bad note that Paula mentioned. Overall, I thought it was a decent performance from Kris.

Adam Lambert - "One" : You know, I was actually digging Simon's song choice for Adam when I first heard the news. But after the performance, it kind of landed a bit flat for me. Maybe "Wicked Games" would've been better - I dunno. I really liked the set-up for Adam in the beginning; him at the center of the stage with the blue mood lighting. Kind of reminded me of his "Mad World" performance. Manic Adam is in full effect a lot sooner than I was expecting. I don't know if I am enjoying the wicked-high vocals and shoutiness for this particular song. For me, I like it as more of that ballad sound. Adam is turning it more rock-ish towards the end. I've got nothing bad to say about his vocals because for what he did, they were spot on. But the song arrangement left me a tad bit disappointed. It might have worked better if he was toned-down throughout the entire song.

Danny Gokey - "You Are So Beautiful" : We're back for round two, where Danny makes his own song selection. He actually makes a pretty decent pick in "You Are So Beautiful" by Joe Cocker. The performance starts at first with no instruments, then an acoustic guitar, and gradually more instruments, but from the stage floor. I wouldn't say it was pitch perfect because I detected a few bum notes here and there. I am finding it to be a generally nice performance. Once again, is it something we're going to remember at the end of the day? Now the Danny we've all come to love - the shouty version! I am finding this much less enjoyable than the first part. I just prefer Danny when he's not trying to over-sing. I actually think he could've done more with the song than what he did. He made a few tweaks here and there and even injected some gospel into this classic song. But all in all, another average performance from Danny.

Kris Allen - "Heartless" : Well I'll be - Kris is actually getting some awesome lighting effects as he begins his performance. This is starting off really, really nice. It's just Kris and his guitar - the rest of the band is silent. The audience is just getting to focus on Kris and his guitar playing and it's pretty spectacular. I've got to admit, I wasn't sure if this song was going to work for Kris but he certainly made it his own and he put a completely different spin on the song and it's superb. It kind of reminds me of David Archuleta last year picking "With You" and while he made a great choice picking a contemporary song, I don't think it worked quite as well as he hoped. Now with Kris and this selection - it totally worked. The judges loved it, he was getting a great reaction from the audience, and this performance is one of many that we've come to love from Kris Allen. Best moment of the night right here with Kris' second song.

Adam Lambert - "Cryin' " : Ah, Adam tackling an Aerosmith song ... didn't somebody want Adam to perform an Aerosmith song? I'm thinking Melinda Doolittle - but she's obsessed with Aerosmith as a whole. Right from the get-go, his voice and one of the background singers is not meshing. I think that background singer is REALLY pitchy. But Adam Lambert is a pro - it's not throwing him off in the least. This is another strong rock-style vocal from Adam. I am actually liking this much more than his first performance and I agree with Randy that this is more of what works the best for Adam. What more can you say? This is Adam at his best being a rock star. It's a high energy performance; showing off his killer vocal skills. He truly nailed this song and he displayed great vocal control. American Idol has born it's newest star in Adam Lambert.

Hmm, my spell check isn't working! So if you notice any misspellings, blame blogger, not me. Anyways, here is how I rank tonight's performances:

ROUND #1:
Adam Lambert - best
Kris Allen
Danny Gokey - worst (actual eliminee - 5/13/09)

ROUND #2:
Kris Allen - best
Adam Lambert
Danny Gokey - worst (actual eliminee - 5/13/09)

This is going to be an absolutely tough choice in deciding who gets sent home. I've become a big Kris fan, so I'd like to see him stay. I've enjoyed Adam for most of the top 13. And Danny has fallen out of favor for me. Based on tonight's performances, I've got to say that Danny should be going home. But I've got to take into account his massive fan base. Meanwhile, Kris is a regular, everyday, humble guy and his fan base has been growing. Adam is popular because he's flashy, theatrics, and has amazing vocals. I mean honestly, it's truly a toss-up. With that being said, here is goes. Adam is safe - and in a shocker, Danny goes home and Kris makes it to the finale. That's right, I said it! Let's see if it all comes true tomorrow night. I have a feeling tomorrow's results show is going to be extremely tense. Be sure to enjoy it!

YIPEE!! Danny Gokey gets the boot on tonight's results show! So that means our finale will consist of Adam Lambert and Kris Allen. What a great pairing! I love it ... it will be awesome.