Tonight was a night of firsts on American Idol. For the first time ever in American Idol history the performers will be able to sing songs from the Lennon-McCartney songbook. This is obviously some of the greatest music ever. Then, for the first time this season, the men and women would be performing on the same night. Best of all for them, they got to perform on the brand new American Idol big stage. The actual set itself still had the same overall theme. There is definitely more room for the singers to perform. I think this was primarily the result of bumping Ricky Minor and the band up to the balcony. The judges still have their front row seats. Here’s what Randy, Simon and Paula though of our Season 6 Top 12:

Syesha Mercado: Gotta Get You Into My Life
It was Ok. I didn’t think it was awesome. The music seemed to overpower her voice a little for me.
Randy: “Nice arrangement… Started a little rough for me… it was awright for me, it was awright.”
Paula: “It started off pitch… midway through you found your pitch…”
Simon: “I thought it was better than alright Randy. I just think you looked very very nervous… I thought you were much better than you were last week.”

Chikezie Eze: She’s a Woman
Now that was awesome. I loved the arrangement. It was full of energy. This is one I can definitely see myself downloading. The audience loved it too they were going wild!
Randy: “Chikezie smashed it!”
Paula: “That’s the Chikezie I know! The reward payed off my dear.”
Simon: “I’m really surprised that I actually agreed with these two. You took control of the stage, the stage did not take control of you.”

Ramiele Malubay: In My Life
This song was right up Ramiele’s alley. She loves the slow ballads which require a big voice. While she has the voice to pull it off, I think that coming out week after week doing the same thing is not going to keep her in this competition until the end.
Randy: “It was pretty, but it was also pretty boring for me.”
Paula: “It was pretty safe. You are an amazing singer but, you could have gone in a lot of directions with that.”
Simon: “I was bored to tears throughout the entire song…it was a dreary song choice… I expect a lot better from you.”

Jason Castro: If I Fell
Jason sounded great as always but, I was disappointed to see the guitar reappear this week. His voice is fantastic and he sings from the heart. I just would like to see something different from him. watching him perform is like being at a James Taylor concert. He just stands or sits there and plays the guitar. I’d like to see him do something different.
Randy: “I liked it, I didn’t love it.”
Paula: “I disagree with Randy. What is so unique and special about you is I can feel your heart.”
Simon: “Last week you were incredible. Tonight it was a little too student in the bedroom. I thought the song was quite boring. You can’t keep doing this week after week. Good enough to stay another week but not as good as last week.”

Carly Smithson: Come Together
Pretty good. I liked it a lot. It was a little more rock n’ roll than the original. This is another performance that I would download this week.
Randy: “You were strong, you were confident, there wasn’t a note out of tune, stellar, stellar.”
Paula: “I felt like I was already watching a star.”
Simon: “Week after week so far I think you have chosen the wrong song until now.”

David Cook: Eleanor Rigby
I really like David Cook, I love Eleanor Rigby, and I respect the fact that he tried to mix it up but the first half of the song I hated. The end totally made up for though. Big, big finish. That was cool.
Randy: “You can definitely rock out! Once you hit the chorus it was rockin’.”
Paula: “I’ve been telling everyone you are the dark horse.”
Simon: “I thought it was brilliant. If this remains a talent competition instead of a popularity contest you could win this.”

Brooke White: Let It Be
Brooke has a nice sounding voice. I enjoyed listening to her performance but, I really don’t think she did anything special with the song to try to make it her own. Brooke showed her versatility tonight by playing the piano.
Randy: “I don’t know that was your strongest performance.”
Paula: “This is your niche.”
Simon: “It was again one of the best performances of the night. Brilliant choice of song. Its believable.”

David Hernandez: I Saw Her Standing There
I thought this was a week performance. This was at best too Broadway and at worst like a bad high school musical.
Randy: “It was a little too overdone.”
Paula: “I feel like you kinda over did it a little bit.”
Simon: “No, no, no. Corny verging on desperate. It was a little too rabbit in the headlights.”

Amanda Overmyer: You Can’t Do That
Amanda is like the female Elvis. The way she stands, the way she sounds, even the scarf around her neck, all she needs are some rhinestones. Despite this, I didn’t think You Can’t Do That was one of her best performances.
Randy: “You rocked it out in a southern bar kind of way.”
Paula: “You are a star up there. I’m blown away.”
Simon: “It wasn’t as good as last week. I think it is a good thing you are in this competition because you are a breathe of fresh air.”

Michael Johns: Across The Universe
That was good, not great, but good. That should be a strong enough performance to bring him back last week.
Randy: “I was waiting for something big to happen. I little sleepy.”
Paula: “I disagree with you again Randy.”
Simon: “I’m going to agree with Randy. It was a little bit monotonous. We still haven’t seen what you can do.”

Kristy Lee Cook: Eight days A Week
Once again I give Kristy credit for trying to mix it up. I like country but I didn’t like this arrangement. It was a little too Hee-Haw instead of Garth Brooks country. Maybe Hayseed Dixie might be a little closer to the mark. I would have preferred more guitar and less banjo. That would not be a hit on a country radio station.
Randy: “I liked the arrangement. But the vocals were just OK.”
Paula: “I didn’t enjoy it. I didn’t get it.”
Simon: “I thought it was horrendous. You sounded like Dolly Parton on Helium. It was a brave but foolish thing to do.”

David Archeluta: We Can Work It Out
David did a good job of working the stage. I thought this was one of his weakest performances though. To me he looked like a high school kid trying to sing that song tonight not a real pro (especially when he forgot the lyrics). It was good but not as big and spectacular as I would have expected.
Randy: “This is not your vibe. It felt very forced. It didn’t work for me.”
Paula: “This wasn’t your week.”
Simon: “That was a mess.”

WBM’s Most Downloadable AI Performance of the Night: She’s a Woman by Chikezie Eze

Don’t forget to stop by tomorrow morning to check out our predictions for which of this season’s American Idol Top 12 will be headed home tomorrow night. Then, make sure you come back tomorrow night after the results show and see if we were right.

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