Top 13 Channel the King of Pop

I must confess: Micheal Jackson was my very first crush. The year was 1972, and my parents bought me the LP "Got To Be There" for my 7th birthday. AND I STILL HAVE IT. Yes, through moves to a different middle school and then a different town for high school, through college, grad school, and then more-than-I-can-count moves since then.....STILL HAVE IT. Needless to say, despite his current freakiness, I am a fan and was very excited to hear the intersection of Idol and MJ.

I've divided my commentary into the following categories with appropriate MJ song titles.

Got To Be There: We'll start at the top. My fav 4 performances tonight were Danny, Kris, Allison and Alexis. First off, Danny....I mean, the Church of Danny. Simon thought the dancing wasn't all that (I disagree) but I think this guy has something really special. When the three letters PYT were uttered for his song choice, my heart kind of sank...not only is it a tough song to sing for even the best (see exhibit A, Justin Guarini) but I just thought there were better songs. I'm a believer! Danny did great. Paula even said he would make it to the finals (Final two, I'm left to interpret. Bold prediction! Bold lady. Bold peacock living around her neck tonight, and I'm not sure I'll believe lots of what she says tonight since Old Paula is back....meds again?)

Kris!! OMG!! Wow. Here was a guy who had a lot of ground to cover to make an impression tonight. Not much of a back story, and certainly not much prior screen time. And I have to say, he rivals Danny in performance ability for me. In fact, we have the Battle of the Worship Leaders. Kris Allen is a worship leader for New Life Church in Arkansas, while as we know, Danny is the praise and worship leader at both Faith Builders International Ministry locations, in Beloit, WI for the morning service and then Milwaukee for the afternoon service. Can Idol handle these guys? Can't wait to see!

The ladies were outnumbered tonight by a mile, but two of them secured a place for themselves in the top 10. Allison Irehata was outstanding. love her voice, and even though I didn't recognize the MJ song she sang, I agree with Randy that she is one to watch. As if we didn't know it already that Alexis was good, since she got the pimp spot, but wow -- she was good! You just don't expect those kind of big vocals out of her little package....but she delivered.

Wanna Be Startin' Somethin: In this category I placed those from tonight who came into tonight's show with hype but didn't cut it, or otherwise fell a little bit short: Lil, Scott, Jorge, Anoop,and Matt. Course, I love Lil...and think she's a star. But in all honesty, her song choice was safe ("The Way You Make Me Feel"), and we didn't really get to see much star power from her. Disagree with Simon that her outfit was horrid, I liked it! And I appreciated that she stood there and tolerated Simon's tirade afterward, and smiled, and said nothing. She will be back next week for sure, just keeping it real.

Likewise, keeping it real for Anoop. I have mad love for him, the kind you feel deep in the stacks of the library on a Friday night when everyone else is out partying, but he just didn't hit it tonight. Adorable parents, and he will likely rock the far east vote like Jasmine Trias captivated the speed-dialing Hawaiians a few seasons ago, for better or for worse. But my luv for Anoop is fading like a 2nd grade crush after hearing his spirited take of "Beat It" (ouch), and I'm sad about that, I really wanted to see him do well in this competition.

Jorge, too, fell flat as a tortilla for me. I like the guy and just wish we could hear him sing in Spanish! I would probably weep. But as it is, his performance of the Jackson 5 classic "Never Can Say Goodbye" wasn't very good. Again, adorable parents and family. And white teeth.

Scott, too, has a very compelling family story and beautiful family. I liked finally seeing him on the piano and like Kara, I'm impressed that he just learned "Keep the Faith" this week....BUT...it just didn't wow me.

Finally, Matt Giraud has such mad love associated with him this season, it's like the judges want him to do well despite his actual performances. I was disappointed with his song choice ("Human Nature") even though the judges pretty much liked it.....and therein lies the problem. Am I being spoon-fed?

Off the Wall: There have to be some finalists who push the Idol envelope a little, in whom we see some redeeming qualities, but the jury is out. In this category tonight I've placed Adam and Megan. While he is one of this season's top-rated contestants, I am not a fan of Adam, and tonight's performance did me no favors. Too theatrical with "Black or White" (when was he going to tone it down?) and too shrilly. Tired of hearing about how spot-on his vocals are when I cringe hearing them. Found myself wondering why he didn't just take his LA self and audition for the short-lived Rock Star reality competition until wait- I remembered how badly those real rockers would kick his a**.

Again, Megan is lovely, wish her and her adorable son the best. But she sounded out of breath to me through the whole performance of "Rockin' Robin' "and what a repetitious song, showed us nothing of what she can do. Tired of waiting to see what she can do... Hmmmph. On the fence here.....

She (He)'s Out of My Life: Micheal Sarver and Jasmine Murray. These are my picks to go home tomorrow night, since they announced that 2 singers would leave during tomorrow night's show. I think they are both lovely people, but from tonight's line-up. they were the weakest. Micheal is a great guy, and he sang my fav MJ song of recent times, although just not very well. ("You Are Not Alone.") Likewise, Jasmine's song choice was perfect for her ("I'll Be There"), but the judges called her out for being "robotic" and "under pitch" at times. I did love her retro dress and earrings, and she could make it through pending someone else's demise....that is what American Idol is for!


What did you think of the new opening sequence? Did you think the pimped contestants lived up? And what did you make of Paula's bold predictions for the finals??