Idol Watch by Anne Neville

Post-interviews

As the dust settled, Entertainment Weekly caught up with both Jordin and Blake ... and in the mag's paired articles, Jordin discusses not making the cut in Los Angeles, a topic I've never heard her discuss and only read a single mention of, from her personal trainer. Blake explains why he didn't rework "This is My Now."

I wonder how the final two will decompress between now and the start of the Idol tour in July. Nothing that involves mug shots, but with Gina you never know, I guess .... KIDDING!

Did you miss the end?

I've now heard about one viewer who DVR'd last night's finale, and of course, the recording stopped at 10 p.m., when the listings indicated "Seinfeld" would start. So his family captured the "Golden Idols," the Beatles medley, Doug E. Fresh and Green Day, and missed the announcement, which took place at 10:04 p.m., and Jordin's final song.

Did this happen to you?

The star-studded finale

I liked a lot of things about this finale -- the African Children's Choir again, how cute were they? And as long as the "Golden Idol" winners -- Doug and Ken, "Big Bird" Margaret and that guy who sang really loudly and really flat -- took the awards in good humor, OK. The bush baby guy did look a little scary, the way he clenched his teeth and kept repeating the same line to Simon.

The stars were starlike enough, but I guess after Prince just materialized last year, when the previous winners started the Beatles tunes, I did have my heart set on seeing Paul McCartney step out from a cloud of smoke. I bet if he were still married to Heather Mills (who reportedly made him dye his gray to seem younger) he'd have been there. Bette Midler and Tony Bennett were good-ish, though they each had some rough vocals some of the time (I could hear Simon muttering under his breath, I think!). But you cut them some slack because they're legends.

However, when LaKisha and Melinda sang with Gladys Knight -- well, that was da bomb for me. I could have listened all night to their strong soulful voices twining and soaring.

I suppose they had to do a Sanjaya thing, but why did they have to let him sing!? And what possessed Joe Perry from Aerosmith? Steven Tyler astutely said he had to wash his hair or shred the knees of his jeans or something last night and couldn't make it.

Was anybody else creeped out by Blake's smoldering looks at Jordin as he sang, "Well, she was just 17/if you know what I mean ..." As young as he tries to skew, he's 25, well into "older man" territory. I don't know why her duet with Ruben (who made her look dainty, and matched her vocally, too) didn't give off the same skeeviness. Maybe because Rubin wasn't leering.

Loved seeing Jordin's parents all teary after she won -- she clamped on the professional mask and got right back into "This is My Now," through. She's a bit scary that way.

What did you like? Do you think the best person won? How will Jordin stack up in the long run with Kelly, Carrie, Ruben, Fantasia and Taylor?

Last competition

HOW AWFUL were the microphone and camera work? I know you just moved to the Kodak Theater, but sheesh, guys, get it right! I was especially appalled when the camera shot designed to show the audience looking up at the stage showed instead the back of a sign being held up right in front of the camera. Amazingly bad. Couldn't hear Randy, couldn't hear Paula ... /Simon voice/: Just appalling! /end Simon voice/

Paula looked pretty chipper for somebody with broken nose cartilage. I saw her showing off the bruise on her arm earlier, and it looked worse. Her nose seemed just slightly swollen, her speech just slightly worse than usual. And she's been so coherent all season! Let's hope she doesn't get that flesh-eating thing she got after the manicure accident a few seasons back.

The songs? Oh yes, the songs! In order from best to least best: Jordin's "A Broken Wing," Blake's "You Give Love a Bad Name," Jordin's "Fighter," Jordin's "This is My Now," Blake's "She Will Be Loved," and (insert big space here, because it was REALLY BAD) Blake's "This is My Now."

Chris Daughtry was not rockin' all that globbed-on eye makeup. He looked like he'd taken a header over Paula's chihuahua Tulip too!

Oh, and P.S.: HATED "This is My Now." Can only imagine what the rest of the gazillion entries in the songwriting contest were like, if that piece of dreck was the winner. Did love it when Simon told winning songwriter 1, "Sit down, because you're too tall and you're making me look small." Nobody makes Cresty look like a Ken doll more than your next American Idol, Jordin Sparks.

Tonight's show

Paula will be on this week's shows despite a mishap over the weekend in which she broke her nose while trying to avoid stepping on her chihuahua.

On the syndicated TV show "Extra," she said she tore cartilage in her nose and broke a toe. (Just writing that -- "tore cartilage in her nose" -- makes me queasy!) She told the show: "I took a nasty fall ... trying not to hurt my dog. I bruised myself on my arm ... my chest, my waist all the way down to my hip. All from my little chubby Tulip."

I don't expect much to be visible except some swelling, but Mike K, in his reply to the previous post, makes a good point about the painkillers. All eyes will be on Paula's schnozz tonight, that's for sure.

In other news, if you haven't already, check out my story in today's newspaper about the finals.

Tons of speculation

Three songs tonight for Blake and Jordin. Everything from the coin toss to decide who goes first (the story is that there is such a coin toss, Blake won and he let Jordin pick .. there I lost interest, but she decided to go either first or second) to the song choices for tonight is the topic of wild speculation.

Here's what they are saying for tonight, ALL of this is unconfirmed, but from sources on the blogosphere that have been right (and wrong, too!) before:

Jordin will sing "Fighter" (Christina Aguilera), Broken Wing, and the ballad that will be her first released single if she wins.

Blake will sing "She Will be Loved," "You Give Love a Bad Name," and a different ballad that would be his first single.

Oh, who are they kidding? They'll both have singles. Testimony to the appeal of non-winners: There are also reports that Chris Daughtry will sing "Home" live tonight.

For Wednesday night's finale show, people are saying that there will be a Beatles medley (perhaps with Paul McCartney himself now that he's seen how much "Dancing with the Stars" helped his ex's PR), a Taylor-Jordin duet, a Blake-Katharine McPhee duet, and Kelly Clarkson singing "Never Again."

Sanjaya number for finale

YouTube has some clips of a skit for Wednesday's finale, featuring Sanjaya, that was filmed on Venice Beach. A crowd of young women screams as he arrives in an SUV. I linked to the clip I think is best because it shows someone from the production company swatting away the unauthorized camera. Watch for Sanjaya to reprise the towering faux-hawk on the finale, too.

What does it mean that Sanjaya's hairstyle antics are one of the most memorable things about the season? It's been clear ever since they named the final 12 (Haley Scarnato??!!) that this is no Season 5, which impressed with its depth of talent. How do you think this season compares to past seasons? Which was your favorite year, or just your favorite singer who got his or her start on the show?

Next week's shows

This is what Fox is saying right now:

"Excitement is building for next week, when the Final 2 – Blake Lewis and Jordin Sparks – compete head-to-head at the legendary Kodak Theatre in Hollywood Tuesday, May 22 (8:00-9:00 p.m.) on FOX.

"The season’s last performance show promises to be a night to remember as the Top 12 reunite on stage, along with special guests.

"Then, tune in the following night for the most anticipated event of the television season. Over 100,000 people auditioned, and now only two contestants remain – Lewis and Sparks. One of them will be crowned the next American Idol on the two-hour season finale Wednesday, May 23 (8-10 p.m.) on FOX."

Not much info, huh? Well, here's some more, from me: Traditionally the face-off between the final two involves three songs, including an old favorite (NOT "I (Who Have Nothing,)" again, PU-LEEZE!) and another a newly written song that will be the first single recorded if the singer wins. In Season 3 and 4, the contestants sang the SAME SONG. Ouch, given different vocal styles. Last year they sang different songs. Taylor Hicks' was "Do I Make You Proud," and Katharine McPhee sang "My Destiny."

On the two-hour results show, reports are that both McPhee and Hicks will sing, along with Kelly Clarkson and some other unnamed special guests. Last year one of those guests was Prince -- can they do better this year?

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And since they have two hours to fill, the show generally revisits some of the wacky people who we saw auditioning at the beginning of the season. I would count on seeing Jonathan Jayne, friend of Kenneth Briggs, the guy Simon said looked like a bush baby. Jayne was standing in the crowd when Blake showed up in Seattle.

Last year's finals also included a semi-amusing skit in which Kellie Pickler sat with star chef Wolfgang Puck and discussed various seafood that Kellie had never heard of. ("Sal-MON, Cal-a-what?") Speaking of Kellie Picker, here's her interesting comment on her enhancements. This, Kellie, you cannot be mysterious about.

Vote here for your favorite

You haven't heard their final songs -- that won't happen until next Tuesday night. But with such different competitors as Blake Lewis and Jordin Sparks, you probably have an idea right now where your official vote is going.

Share your opinion with us! On the home page of this blog, right under my photo and bio, is a place to vote. Click your choice to be counted, then scroll back up to this entry and fill out the "Comment" form to tell us who your vote is going to, and why.

What tha?

I know it doesn't matter. I know Jordin, Melinda and Blake all have promising musical careers ahead of them. And I actually kind of thought this might happen -- because when I test-dialed Tuesday night (spreading my votes here and there, doing my own little one-person DialIdol research) I always got a busy signal for Jordin, I usually got a busy signal for Blake, but I seldom got a busy signal for Melinda.

I can see Jordin winning, although, as you all know, it feels scripted and predictable to me. I'll be hugely surprised if the winner is Blake, a guy whose voice just isn't that good and whose manner irritates so many people. It's almost like having Sanjaya win.

Were you surprised too?

Wednesday's show

Two musical performances are planned:

Elliott Yamin, the fan favorite who placed third last season, will perform "Wait for You," from his new self-titled CD. Maroon 5 will show up to perform "Makes Me Wonder." Watch for Blake to weep like that little girl did when Sanjaya sang. Just kidding. But he does like the band.

Tuesday's show: who's out?

Let's figure it all out.

Jordin was uniformly very good. I was disappointed to hear what seemed like a slowed-down version of "She Works Hard for the Money," much like LaKisha's draggy "Stayin' Alive." She really likes that Shirley Bassey tune, "I Who Have Nothing," but that bit about having her nose pressed up against the windowpane was laughable for a smoldering creature like Shirley, and almost as laughable for Jordin. She acts that song as much as she sings it, and I think she could have made a better choice. What was her third song again? Oh, that one I forgot. With the sort of lilting melody that Simon picked and then complained about.

Who will vote for her: Grandmas, young teenage girls who want to be like her.

Blake was not great. His voice is not as strong as the women's, but I do like his confidence and showmanship. He seems about 10 years younger than Jordin, in tune with the modern world. "Roxanne" was a good choice for a song, but he did nothing interesting with it, and he looked like he was expecting company (maybe the ghost of Elvis?) the way he kept looking to the side.

Who will vote for him: Teenage boys who admire him, young adults who think he's cool, teenage girls who have crushes on him.

Melinda (or, as Simon says, "Melinder,") was great. Randy had her sing Whitney Houston (mentioning it in the fax to her state's governor that he'd worked with Whitney, of course!) and not just any Whitney song, but a really tough one, "I Believe in You and Me." She met the challenge and then some. and "Nutbush City Limits" -- now that was an unexpected one, and she funk-rocked it.

Who will vote for her: Maybe adults and pure talent watchers who respect the singing portion of the competition? I don't see teens texting for her.

Did you vote? For whom? Who do you think will be the final two?

The Jordin controversy

I've said it before and I'll say it again: If Jordin Sparks is not the next American Idol, it won't be for lack of trying by the show's producers. There have been rumors floating around about her from the very beginning, many of them summed up on the TabloidBaby blog.

After the Seattle auditions aired (bringing us Jennifer "The Hotness" Chapton and Darwin "Misha" Reedy, as well as the Bush Baby and his pal, not to mention Blake Lewis and a guy named Sanjaya, Seattle Post-Intelligencer TV critic Melanie McFarland wrote:

"...one shining star stood out: 16-year-old Jordin Sparks from Glendale, Ariz. She's beautiful, has a smile that can light up L.A., and tore apart Celine Dion's 'Because You Love Me.' ...

"Seeing her is supposed to drive home the reason we keep running back to 'Idol.' Young, ambitious and undiscovered, she embodies the dream of 'Idol,' the idea that someone with small but bright embers of talent can, within the space of a few months, shoot from obscurity to superstardom.

'Except that's not exactly the case with this young woman.

'Out of nowhere, Abdul says she recognizes Sparks' name -- and Sparks reveals she is the daughter of former New York Giants cornerback Phillippi Sparks. What a coinky-dink!

'And that's not all! Jordin Sparks has an exhaustive Wikipedia page, where you can find out interesting facts such as: She was the Coca-Cola Rising Star in 2002. Coca-Cola, of course, being 'Idol's' major sponsor. She also appeared in 'America's Most Talented Kids' in 2004, toured with Michael W. Smith and sang in Alice Cooper's Christmas show. Winning 'Arizona Idol' netted her a Ford Fusion and a trip to Seattle [to audition]. Wonder if she had to wait in line?”

Rumors are swirling that Jordin has perks the other contestants don't, including custom-made clothing (the USA Today article last week mentioned a fitting "for her first custom dress" with Dina Bar-El, who designed gowns for Katharine McPhee) and a personal trainer. If she does have a personal trainer, it's nothing new -- when Jordin made the top 12, The Arizona Republic interviewed her hometown trainer, Kris Siegrest.

But here's a fact that may throw cold water on this "chosen from the beginning" conspiracy theory: In early May, Phoenix TV station KNXV quoted Siegrest as saying that Jordin tried out for "Idol" last summer in Los Angeles -- and didn't even make it past the first round.

"I know she worked really hard to get in shape just to learn how to perform a little bit more," said Siegrest. "Even when she went the first time, I was shocked she didn't make it."

So what do you think? Is Jordin the chosen one, or just a very talented teenager?

Soul Patrol speaks out!

In my Gusto cover story "Catching up with the American Idols," I wrote about all five of the show's winners, as well as Jennifer Hudson, local guy John Stevens IV and three who are coming through the area this summer: Bo Bice, Kellie Pickler and Chris Daughtry.

At the very end, wrapping up the story of Taylor Hicks, I wrote: "Status: Popular with his fans, Hicks has never reached the heights that some other winners have."

Clear, right? Undeniable, right?

Not to the fans I mentioned in the first part of the sentence. I heard from a few:
"Why do you count Taylor Hicks out?  He has only been the winner of AI for less than a year.  Daughtry is more successful?  Are you contributing album sales to success?  Daughtry is playing small, and, I mean small venues.  Why does everyone measure success in numbers of CDs sold?  Artists make very little from these sales.  The real money is in the touring, which is where Hicks excels.  His genre isn't as popular as others, and, he continues to do well.  I'm sick of the media, (you included) calling him a failure.  Are you on Simon Cowell's payroll?  He only looks for immediate gratification.  After all, it was season 3 that Jennifer Hudson was eliminated. It took all this time for her to be a success, and, now everyone calls her one. No one remembered her name after season 3.  Give Taylor some respect, and, in due time, he will shine.  Daughtry is a flash-in-the-pan."

"Clarifying your incorrect statement - Chris is not more successful than Taylor.
How do you measure success?  Taylor is the #1 success story from American Idol as he won the hearts of Americans in every state and he WON the title of American Idol.  He is playing to small and medium and large SOLD OUT venues in his travels through our America and appeals to everyone from the tiny infant to the elderly adult like my 92 years young mom.  This is the measure of success!!!!!!!!!!!
Carolle - 67 years young Gramma from Calif........"

"If you have a chance go see Taylor Hicks in person.  It is not the same person who appeared on AI.  After you see him live then you will have more insight on why he shouldn't be grouped with "Idols" - he is way beyond this and in a league all his own. Years back they made fun of Springsteen, The Beatles and Elvis.... all of which took a while to really catch on.  Do you know these people?"

"Your article was interesting but why do you have to put that one last line in Taylor's blub that he has not reached the heights that others have.  He is just getting started.  Give him a chance.  The negativeness of the press towards just burns me up.  Have you seen him in concert?  He is fabulous.  Are you mouthing others who do not like him?  Cut the guy some slack!"

A local writer chimed in: "Maybe in the numbers game, but I have a feeling Taylor will be around a lot longer than the others. Too bad Buffalo won't or can't find a venue for Taylor to appear. I can think of a dozen spots for him."

And finally: "I read with great interest (and dismay) your article in Gusto about American Idol updates. HOW COULD YOU LEAVE OUT CLAY AIKEN??????????????  He has been one of the most successful and popular Idols ever!  And he is performing at Chautauqua Institute this summer."

This from me: LOVE the part about being on Simon Cowell's payroll!!

The three songs

Word is out that the three songs, as one of this blog's posters predicted, will include one chosen for each finalist by record company executive Clive Davis.

The other two songs will reportedly be one chosen by the contestant and one chosen by the judges. Any genre seems to be available.

What you didn't see

People magazine is reporting, "After a powerhouse rendition of "To Love Somebody," Barry Gibb lingered in the spotlight, blowing kisses to an audience on their feet as the show went into commercial. But just as everyone was saying goodbye to the legend, Gibb tripped while making his way backstage and took a hard tumble, instantly silencing the room. As stagehands ran to his rescue, Gibb beat them to it, springing to his feet, throwing his arms in the air and shouting, "I'm all right!""

Whew!

Loved the jeans on Barry, love the silver mane (and .. is that a playoffs beard? I'm just sayin'), love the way he's aging fairly naturally -- but the see-through shirt, that I did not love.

I also did not love the terrible sound quality on the final four's medley of his songs. I expect better from the juggernaut that is "American Idol."

Next week's show .. and the next show

All Fox has announced at this point is that each of the three remaining contestants will sing three songs. No guest mentor, no theme named yet. Maybe there won't be any? I'll keep my ear to the ground.

Also, people are wondering about this new show, tentatively titled, "The Search for the Next Great American Band," (clunky name!) that was announced during last night's Idol show.

After the initial auditions for the band show, Fox says, "Judges will narrow down hopefuls from all walks of musical life -- young and old, family and friends, garage bands and weekend warriors – to 10 semi-finalists who will perform in front of a live studio audience. Viewers will then get a chance to vote for their favorite bands via telephone and text messaging and determine who stays in the competition."

The bands will be challenged with varied musical themes, which I find interesting. It seems to make the competition not a search for "the Next Great American Band," but more a search for the country's most versatile band.

Does the idea of this show appeal to you? Will you watch it?

LaKisha's turn

Everybody knew LaKisha would be the one going home, LaKisha included -- she was reciting a list of "to-dos" to herself that included: 1) Don't cry; and 2) Sing the song right, or some variation thereof. Well, no surprise, when they showed her hugging her little daughter after she got her ticket to Hollywood, resolution No. 1 went out the window, and when she started the stroll through the crowd, there went Resolution No. 2.  But never mind. She'll go on the tour, she'll get a recording contract (I think all four of the finalists will) and not winning may work out just fine, the way it has for Daughtry.

Speaking of Daughtry, check out Friday's Gusto cover story for a look at what some of the winners and also-rans have been up to lately. Bo Bice is coming to the area Saturday, and two other finalists from last season will be touring through the area this summer.

Wednesday night's show

Pink! Who knew!? And it was a nice surprise, even if I paid no attention to what she was singing for the first two-thirds of the song because I was fixated on figuring out whether she was really wearing a dress composed entirely of black fabric straps. The camera was so skittish that I thought it must be, but then a from-the-side shot showed that it was black fabric straps held together by off-white panels. OK then. Now I can relax and listen.

Blake's tuxedo T-shirt -- painfully seeking to be ironically funny and falling so short! What's next, those rainbow-colored suspenders Robin Williams wore as Mork? A-HA! Now I know who Blake reminds me of! Same lack of lips, same manic manner .. I bet Mork was a heckuva beatboxer in his day!

Tuesday's show

I was really looking forward to this show, and I was really disappointed! Everybody kind of stunk. Even Jordin (your next American Idol, there's been no doubt in my mind for weeks now) wasn't great on her second tune, "A Woman in Love."

My favorite two songs were Jordin's "To Love Somebody" and Blake's You Should be Dancin'," even thought Blake's song was rough. His quick head-turns as he did the beatboxing portion took the mic away from his mouth, with the expected loss of volume.

Loved seeing Judge Judy. And when Cresty said, "Mum is here!" and pointed to an elderly woman next to her -- was that Simon's "Mum" mentioned last week, or does Judge Judy have a Mum too? And then Judge Judy sashays up to the judge's table to swap spit with Simon (a kissing machine -- who knew!), but the camera missed it, and then Cresty barks to the formidable judge, "Sit down! I've got to hurry!"

It's really saying something when the shenanigans in the audience are more memorable than the singing. Sad, at this point.

So who do you think will go home?

Tonight's songs!

And a whole bunch of other great stuff, courtesy of a USA Today article.

Tonight, they sing twice:

Jordin: "Woman in Love" (recorded by Barbra Streisand) and "To Love Somebody"

Blake: "You Should be Dancin'" and "This is Where I Came In"

LaKisha: "Stayin' Alive" and "Run to Me"

Melinda: "Love You Inside Out" and "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart"

Interestingly, the article says, Melinda initially rejected "Love You Inside Out" in favor of "I Just Want to be Your Everything." It says, "Melinda ... is in a quandary. She really feels Love You Inside Out, but drops it because the chorus seems to have sexual overtones. "My pastor's coming" to the show, she says." After she's persuaded that the lyrics are not sexual, she chooses the song.

Every song can go two minutes, and Blake may beatbox on the group's version of "How Deep is Your Love," the tune that earned kudos for his Hollywood week group of Chris Sligh, Rudy Cardenas and Tom Lowe.

What one search engine shows

Here are some facts on the final four from the numbers-crunchers at yahoo.com. They use the number of searches done with that engine to determine how many people from what states are interested in which contestants.

Here's what they say:
Blake Lewis

Going brunet may have been the best decision Blake ever made. He has more states (41) looking him up than any other contestant, with Washington (home state), Pennsylvania, and Virginia the most passionate about him. He also has the interest of three states (Wisconsin, Ohio and New Hampshire) who love searching on Yahoo! for “American Idol” news. Plus, he could scoop up Pennsylvania, which had supported his pal Chris, although he’ll have to fight with Melinda for Missouri and LaKisha for her home of Michigan.

Jordin Sparks

The most consistent in improving herself, Jordin has 29 states backing her up but, except for her home state of Arizona, they’re not head-over-heels for her. She does intrigue top 10 “Idol” loving state Wisconsin, as well as Missouri, Massachusetts and North Carolina, which rank lower in the top 20 states checking out “American Idol” news on Yahoo!. If she wants to win Chris Richardson’s fans, she may need to face off against LaKisha for New Jersey and Texas, Melinda for New York, Ohio and North Carolina. 

Melinda Doolittle

Being from Tennessee is one of her biggest assets right now. Of the 23 states that search for her on Yahoo!, most lie east of the Mississippi. Although Melinda has less territories than Jordin, they’re more intense about her. Ohio, one of the top 10 states who look up “American Idol” online, also counts among her top 10 state supporters – but they also like Jordin. If Alabama, which is among Melinda’s top 10, decides to throw its full weight behind her, she could pull a win. Meanwhile, she can own Virginia, which had been the number one state behind Chris Richardson, but she’ll need to sway his voters in New York, Ohio, and North Carolina from Jordin to her side, and his Missouri fans from going to Blake.

LaKisha Jones

The early front runner who fizzled, she finally returned to form with a Bon Jovi tune and picked up the interests of seven states during classic rock week. Except for Michigan, though, her other 18 states are only lukewarm. She does interest Wisconsin, one of the top 10 states which search for “American Idol” on Yahoo!. Kiki could really use the states that had been behind Chris Richardson, so she needs to convince New Jersey and Texas to go her way rather than Jordin’s, and protect her home territory of Michigan from Blake.

The American Idol tour

As Chris and Joe have posted, the 56-city list of American Idol tour cities is out -- and Buffalo didn't make the cut. In fact, the only time the tour is mentioned in The News' library is in 2004, when hometown guy John Stevens was on it.

The closest the tour will be is Rochester's BlueCross Arena on Aug. 23. It will hit Toronto's Air Canada Centre on Aug 14, and will be onstage in Albany (Albany!) at the Pepsi Center on Aug. 30.

I have an email in to the Idol PR people, and if they provide any explanation for not bringing the tour here, I'll let you know.

Simon says he's not listening

I noticed during the show Tuesday, when a camera shot was used from high and behind the singer (I think it was Phil) that the judges were talking animatedly among themselves during the song. Then when Simon appeared on the Ellen DeGeneres show this week, he explained it: He's not listening. What is he doing instead?

"I'm taunting Paula throughout the performance," he told Ellen. "I'm saying to her: "Try to say something interesting, try not to use the words 'mountain' and 'lakes' in your critiques because it's
always: "You'll climb mountains, swim lakes, whatever.' And then I make things up about the song, hoping she'll say it, like, "That was the theme song from Star Wars, you should mention
that.' Anything!‘

Ellen: "How can you really critique them if you're not listening to them?"

Simon: "I'll tell you a secret. I watch the dress run, OK, so I can actually hear from the dress run much, much easier what they really do sound like, because when you're in there, it's so
loud and it's so echoy, and the audience are going nuts, so I kind of know pretty much what they're going to sound like."

So there you have it -- anybody who changes a song between the dress rehearsal and the show is out of luck. Also, since Simon didn't mention Paula also attending the dress rehearsal, we have to assume that she doesn't, and that she also isn't listening during the song because Simon is talking to her during the song. So that leaves one judge, Randy, who could possibly be paying attention, and from what I glimpsed during the show Tuesday night, that isn't happening either.

Music of Barry Gibb

Next week, the celebrity coach is Barry Gibb. Since this year the producers are doing the songs of a certain singer/songwriter rather than of a genre, the contestants will sing from his songbook, which, both before, during and after the Bee Gees, is extensive.

The logical hit choices are from the disco era, of course -- "How Deep is Your Love," "Stayin' Alive," "Night Fever," and "More than a Woman," just for starters. But what about the wonderful early Bee Gees? I'd love to hear "Massachusetts," "New York Mining Disaster, 1941," "To Love Somebody," or "I Started a Joke."

But what would Blake do with "Every Christian Lion-Hearted Man Will Show You"?????

Bye, Chris and Phil!

I was ready to see Chris go. He's fine, but the rest of them are doing so much better that he was the logical choice to hear Daughtry's tune.

But losing Phil was too bad, especially after he did so well this week. "Blaze of Glory" was the perfect song to sing as a finale, though, so there was that. I would have been shocked if Melinda, Jordin or LaKisha had gone instead -- though LaKisha was vulnerable because the votes were combined from this week, when she was fabulous, and last week, when she was not so fabulous.

Simon said at the very beginning that there were two or three good women and one good man, and now we know exactly who America thinks they are.

It's clear from the comments here that Blake's tricking up and remaking songs polarizes listeners. People who like him really like him, people who don't like him are actually annoyed as all get-out by him. I'm amused by him, think he has some good moves and love the dark hair, but would I buy a ticket to hear him perform? Not so much.

Cresty announced that next week is Barry Gibb and "boogie sounds," by which I assume he means disco -- I'll get the announcement tomorrow from Fox and pass it along, so watch for that.

Tuesday's show

My favorite moments:

--The LaKisha-Simon kiss. Cresty (what Jack Black casually called Ryan during "Idol Gives Back" last week) took an odd, gleeful stand on it, saying things to Simon like, "Wait till you see this on tape!" What was he implying? It was a sweet moment. I liked seeing it on tape -- why won't Simon? Hmph! Welcome back, Kiki. You're my favorite, though that Jordin Sparks will probably win.

-- Blake's whole out-there performance. Loved the beatboxing, loved the sounds of a record dropping -- a record! How old school! Loved the dark hair -- were his eyes always dark, or did he have contacts in, too? I usually think his lack of lips makes him look like a schmoo, but the brown hair changed his looks in some indescribable but very favorable way. Who did he look like? Kenau Reeves?

-- Melinda being her usual dorky self at the beginning, admitting she's no rocker, then flashing the horn-hand symbol front and back and front again. THEN! She struts out and owns the stage on "Have a Nice Day," astonishing everybody. Best of all, no surprise when she's praised.

-- The whole show. The inversion of what seemed like the unstoppable trajectory, the continuing improvement of Phil Stacey (Phil Stacey! Who would have thought!?) the proof that Jordin is not the immunity monster (TM Survivor) she seems to be.

Who will go home? Chris Richardson, for sure. After that ... can't the rest of them just stay? I was ready to let LaKisha go, but no longer.

DialIdol.com

This web site has been mentioned before by one of this blog's contributors -- I think one of the Daves. You download the software to your computer and punch in your vote. It uses your phone modem to speed-dial votes for your favorites, but it also "measures the busy signals" it encounters to track which contestants are getting the most votes.

Here are its predictions based on votes -- from last week? I'm not sure. Let's assume for a minute that the predictions are close to being accurate. What surprises me is that they are so close, with three people -- Phil, Blake and Melinda -- less than a point apart.

But Jordin is the clear leader, and LaKisha and Chris are trailing badly by these predictions. Of course, this Tuesday's vote could change everything up.

Would knowing the outcome in advance through a dialing/computer analysis program like this one spoil your enjoyment of the results show?