American Idol Recap – Top 7, Take Two
Kris Allen and Adam Lambert Hustle to the Front on Disco Night
Apr 21, 2009
Last week marked an American Idol first, as the judges decided to use their ‘save’ and spared Matt Giraud from elimination. As a result, all 7 Idol finalists were back this week to take on the world of Disco, but there is a catch; since the judges saved Matt, two contestants are going home this week. Here’s how each one did, and who might be going home.
Lil Rounds – “I’m Every Woman” by Chaka Kahn (written by Ashford and Simpson)
Lil definitely picked the right type of song, and she did her best job so far in the competition of connecting with the crowd, but the real problem was that she was singing a song where she would immediately be compared with Chaka Kahn and Whitney Houston – and it was just too much for Lil to live up to. While the judges were critical of the performance and there is a decent chance she will land in the bottom three, she put on a good enough show that she might be able to hang around for another show.
Kris Allen – “She Works Hard for the Money” by Donna Summer
Kris went back to the guitar and the whole Dave Matthews/John Mayer vibe, and this time it totally worked; Kris took a song that nobody expected him to sing and made it into a funky acoustic number that was by far his best and most original performance of the entire competition. Kris jumped right back into the thick of the competition with this one, and should have no problem making it to next week.
Danny Gokey – “September” by Earth, Wind and Fire
Danny really picked a song that was perfect for his voice; Earth, Wind and Fire is about as soulful as Disco gets, and he really made it work. If there was a knock against Danny, it is that he is not quite as original as Adam or Matt, but Danny responded this week, mixing up the arrangement while still staying true to the original song. Danny cranked it up a notch this week, but needs to go another two more notches to really compete with Adam. It seemed like Danny actually forgot a few of the words, but he covered well. He should not have any problem getting through to the next round.
Allison Iraheta – “Hot Stuff” by Donna Summer (written by Belotte, Faltermeyer and Forsey)
Allison keeps getting better every week. She was pretty original on this one, too; her arrangement of the song was a little Donna Summer, a little of the Pussycat Dolls rendition and a whole lot of rock thrown in to make it completely hers. Not only did she do a great job with the song, but Allison looked completely comfortable on stage and really put on a good show. It would be a shock not to see her back next week, and if she keeps getting better, Allison could be one of the final-four on the show.
Adam Lambert – “If I Can’t Have You” by the Bee Gees
With it being Disco night, everyone expected Adam to go crazy with a wild song, but instead he went totally the other way, pulling out his early-Elvis look and a subdued version of a lesser known Bee Gees song. Once again, Adam did what he does best – anticipated what the audience would expect, and then gave them something completely different. The vocals were great, and although there is a slight chance his performance will get a little lost amongst all of the other Idol finalists’ up-tempo offerings, Adam is still at the front of the pack vocally. It is just too bad that Meatloaf songs are not considered Disco – that would have been fun.
Matt Giraud – “Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees
If Maroon 5 ever cover “Stayin’ Alive”, this is probably what it would sound like. Randy did not like the song choice and Simon did not like the performance, but it actually gave Matt a chance to show off some of his range, and he performed the song in a way that was much more difficult than the judges thought it was. It was far better than last week, but Matt’s real problem at this point is the competition; there were so many good performances, that he will probably end up in the bottom three despite his improvement.
Anoop Desai – “Dim All the Lights” by Donna Summer
After this one, we may be dimming the lights on Anoop. The judges were being really nice to Anoop, because he is not a bad singer, but his song choice and performance were no where near the level of the other contestants. It was uneventful, boring, and Anoop looked really uncomfortable up on stage for some reason. After a couple of really good weeks, Anoop simply was not up to the level of the competition, and there is a really good chance he will be in the bottom three, and he might be going home.
Surprisingly, American Idol Disco night was the best overall show so far this season. The competition is getting better each week, and there is no question that the voting will be closer than ever. There has to be a bottom three, though, and there is a very good chance that Anoop and Lil will be in it, possibly along with Matt. Of the three, Matt really showed the most improvement from last week and probably deserves to stay, and since two finalists are going home, things are not looking too good right now for either Lil or Anoop.
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