American Idol Top 20, eliminations

Eliminated tonite:

Alaina Whitaker-Alexandrea Lushington-Jason Yeager-Robbie Carrico

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American Idol, top 10 girls performances

American Idol, Season 7, top 10 girls performed tonite. The theme was 70s music.

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Carly Smithson sang Heart’s “Crazy on You”. I’m a huge Heart fan, and I thought this was a great performance by Carly. Although no one can compare to the great Ann Wilson on this song, I think Carly did a really, really nice job on it. I think it was her best performance yet. Randy said it was sharp, had pitch problems, but was “alright”. Paula said it was an amazing job. Simon said that she was much better than last week, and that even though she hasn’t connected with the right song yet, she is “still the girl to beat.”

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Syesha Mercado sang “Me & Mr. Jones”. I think she was shaky at first, especially on the lower notes, got a little better on the big notes at the end, but was overall boring. I didn’t care for the song at all. I also think that she’s way too overconfident. Randy said it was not a good choice, was just alright. Paula said she was off pitch on the softer notes. Simon said it was an indulgent, silly song choice since the original was written for a guy. He said he was put off by her song choice and didn’t think it was clever.

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Brooke White played her guitar and sang “You’re So Vain”. I thought this was very, very good. She’s so comfortable, and sings so effortlessly. She has a very nice voice, and I enjoyed this performance. Randy said it was a greawt song choice and that he liked it, Paula said it was a perfect song choice and she liked what she did with it. Simon said he absolutely loved it, that it was the perfect song for her and that she absolutely connected with it.

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Ramiele Malubay sang “Don’t Leave Me This Way”. She was one of my favorites last week, but tonite she was just okay, there was nothing special about her performance at all to me, nothing stood out. Randy said it was a little rough and that it was a weird song choice. Paula said her vocals were amazing but no magic tonite. Simon agreed with Paula and said she was much better last week and that he wouldn’t remember her performance tonite – it was forgettable.

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Kristy Lee Cook sang “You’re No Good”. This was blah for me. I don’t think she’s anywhere near as good as she thinks she is. I think she’s too rehearsed. She seems awkward onstage, and I didn’t like her performance at all tonite. Randy thought it was good but had no breakout notes, Paula said it was a good song choice. Simon said it was a huge improvement over last week but that he didn’t know how to label her. He said she had real potential and that country music may make more of a statement for her.

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Amanda Overmyer sang “Carry on My Wayward Son”. Although she is my favorite of the girls, her performance was rough tonite. I thought she sounded shaky and out of tune. She has a much better voice for hard bluesy rock. Randy said it was not the right song choice for her as it had too much melody for a bluesy girl. Paula babbled on about dancing and doing what fits your style, then agreed that it was the wrong song choice. Simon said it felt contrived and was indulgent. He said her hair was terrible and that the song was “quite ugly” and he couldn’t wait for it to be over.

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Alaina Whitaker sang “Hopelessly Devoted to You”. I thought it was boring and blah at first, and didn’t get much better at the end. Randy said it was pitchy and sharp, Paula didn’t think it was too bad, and Simon didn’t like it. Simon said it seemed that her grandma helped her prepare for this show — but he thinks she could be a dark horse in the competition though if she becomes “relevant”.

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Alexandrea Lushington sang “If You Leave Me Now”. I didn’t like it all, felt she sounded disjointed and all over the place. I think she knew that she screwed it up. Randy said it was too safe, she has mad vocal skills but chose a boring song. Paula said she made it her own and was impressed that she took on this song. Simon felt she was struggling, that the song was boring and inconsistent and stuck in its time period. He said she looked terrific.

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Kady Malloy sang Heart’s Magic Man. I didn’t like this at all, she was out of tune and didn’t even come close to getting it right. Randy said she never quite found the notes, Paula said she wasn’t good on the lower notes. Simon said he was very frustrated with her because on her video interviews and in the impressions she does, she sounds very good, but when she performs, it’s not as good. He said the song tonite was one he had never heard before (What?!) and that she was singing at the back of her throat.

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Asia’h Epperson sang “All By Myself” by Celine Dion. I think she started off shaky in the low notes but the higher notes were okay, with a nice ending. Randy said it was a very difficult song and she did a good job. Paula said it was great. Simon said that if you are going to sing one of the great diva songs of all time that you better be a heck of a singer, and that she was not. He said the song showed her up, and was way too big for her.

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Did you vote? Who were your favorites?

I didn’t get to vote, but my favorites tonite were Carly Smithson and Brooke White. I enjoyed both their performances and think they were the best of the night. Carly hasn’t been my favorite, but she was great tonite. I really like Brooke’s style and think she’s easy to listen to and has a very nice voice. She seems so comfortable on stage and sings effortlessly. The worst of the night for me was Alexandrea Lushington, Kady Malloy, and, unfortunately, Amanda Overmyer. I hope Amanda makes it through anyway though, I love her voice when she’s singing hard rock, bluesy style songs and she’s definitely the most unique in the girls this year.

Results show tomorrow night, Thursday, 8pm-9pm, Fox.

Photos above from, and for more info on all the contestants, go to americanidol.com

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American Idol, top 10 guys perform

American Idol, Season 7, top 10 guys performed tonite. Each had to sing a song from the 70s.

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Michael Johns performed first tonite. He sang Fleetwood Mac’s “Go Your Own Way”. He had a couple of bad notes, but overall, I think he did very well. He’s charismatic, very good-looking, and he has a great rock voice. Randy and Paula both thought he did good, Simon said he was okay but felt it was a weak song choice.

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Jason Castro played his guitar and sang “I Just Want to Be Your Everything”. I loved his performance, love the tone of his voice. Randy said his guitar was “cool” and that his vocals were okay but not great. Paula said it was a clever song choice but wants to see him without the guitar next week. Simon thought it was “horrible, schmaltzy, weak vocals”, and that Jason looked “uncomfortable”.

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Luke Menard sang Queen’s “Killer Queen”. To be honest, I thought this completely sucked. The guy is pleasant enough to look at, with a good but not great voice. He’s definitely no Freddie Mercury, and I don’t think this was a good song choice for him. I hated it. Randy thought it was pretty good, better than last week. Paula said it was a great vocal and a perfect song choice. Simon said it was a mistake, too theatrical and whiny (I agree), and that he had no charisma.

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Robbie Carrico sang Foreigner’s “Hot Blooded”. Although Robbie is one of my favorites, this was a lackluster and boring performance. I didn’t like it. Randy said it was just okay, no wow. Paula said he played it safe. Simon said the vocal was okay, and told him not to get so defensive when questioned about whether or not he’s an “authentic rocker”.

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Danny Noriega sang Leon Russell’s “Superstar”. It was a good performance, and there’s no doubt about it, he can sing. However, his flaming mannerisms completely turn me off. He needs to tone it down a bit (just my opinion). Randy said he was thinking too much, and that he could have speeded the song up a bit. Paula said he had amazing vocal skills, but cautioned him not to “overthink”. Simon said it was better than last week, but not fantastic, said he looked good on camera and was interesting.

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David Hernandez sang “Papa Was a Rolling Stone”. I thought this was a good performance and I enjoyed it. Randy thought it was “hot”, Paula said his voice was pure, he had “amazing notes”, and called it perfect. Simon said it was the best vocal of the night and that he rose to the challenge.

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Jason Yeager sang the Doobie Brothers’ “Long Train Running”. I thought his performance was pretty good. He has a nice tone to his voice. Randy said it was pitchy and karaoke, and that it was a bad song choice. Randy obviously doesn’t like the Doobie Brothers. Paula said the song didn’t show his vocal range. Simon said it was awkward and ordinary, and that the ending was “horrific”. He said that Jason was like a drunk at a party, and a bad performer. Wow, they were hard on him. The judges must have heard something different from what I heard — I liked it and don’t think it was anywhere near as bad as they made it sound.

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Chikezie sang “I Believe to My Soul”. I think this was a good performance, lots of fun. Randy said it was blazing hot, Paula called it brilliant and clever, Simon said he looked and sounded better, and that this was a million times better than last week. I think Chikezie seems very likeable and I liked this performance.. good but not great.

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David Cook sang “All Right Now”. I thought this was a very, very good performance. I like him, he’s definitely one of my favorites. Randy called him a real rocker, said it was good. Paula said, “You’re the real deal, you got ‘it’”. Simon said it was solid and believable, but that he didn’t have a lot of charisma. In his introduction, his clip showed that David likes to do crossword puzzles, and Simon says this info didn’t do him any favors, and called him “boring”. David looked angry and became defensive, saying that he didn’t have to prove anything to Simon, but to the voters. Simon then became very defensive and over-reacted (in my opinion), and said that he was well aware of the rules of the show and that it was meant as constructive criticism. I think David realized he may have screwed up in saying what he did.. I hope this doesn’t hurt him with the voters.

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David Archuleta sang John Lennon’s “Imagine”. Although he doesn’t appeal to me, this was a good performance, he has a very good voice. I have a feeling he may by the next American Idol.. I’m sure he would be very popular with the “Hannah Montana”, “High School Musical” fans. He’s good, but I just don’t care for him much. He’s too polished, too trained, and too “cabaret” for me. Randy said it was the one of the best vocals EVER on American Idol. Paula said it was one of the most moving performances she had ever heard. Simon said “it worked”, and told him he was the “one to beat”. All 3 judges lavished praise on him. Yes, I think he’s the chosen one..

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Did you vote? Who was your favorite? I enjoyed the show tonite, much more so than the 60s theme night. Spoilers say that next week’s theme will be 80s music — that should be good! My early favorites are still my favorites — Michael Johns, David Cook, Jason Castro, and, though not based on tonite’s performance, Robbie Carrico. I gave them all four a few votes, and had no problems at all getting through on the phone lines for any of them, no busy signals at all… Who do you think will go home this week? I think it could be between Jason Yeager, Chikezie, and David Hernandez. Dial Idol says that Jason Castro is getting the fewest votes though. That surely will change! I love him! I hope David Cook gets through..

Top 10 Girls perform tomorrow night, 8pm est, Fox.

Photos above from, and for more info on all the contestants, go to americanidol.com

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Extreme weather

We have had very extreme, changing weather here today! All these photos were taken today, from early very morning until around 11pm tonite.

 

We had very strong early morning thunderstorms, lots of lightning and rain, and then fog and mist as the sun rose.

 

The skies cleared, the sun came out, and the temperature rose to 63 degrees by early afternoon. A little later, it started getting dark again, and light rain began falling…

 

Early evening brought extremely strong winds, more showers.

 

By late evening, the rain had turned to sleet, followed by snow flurries. The temperature dropped to 35 by early tonite, and the light snow is sticking in spots. It rains a few minutes, then turns back to light snow and sleet.

 

    

After midnite: nothing but snow now. Everything is white!

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Who knows what tomorrow will bring? Our local forecast, covering all the bases, says a “mix” is possible.. lol

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