American Idol Top 9 - April 1, 2008
It’s that time of week again!!! I can’t wait how the American Idol Top 9 contestants work with country legend, Dolly Parton. They showed a great montage of her live and career and I think she’s just fabulous.
Brooke White is singing “Jolene” and Dolly said that there is an honesty about her that she really likes. I think it’s a good song choice for Brooke. She made it seem a little more contemporary (made me think of KT Tunstall, actually). Randy said that the music suits her voice but it wasn’t stellar, Paula said she is consistent and has an emotional connection with each song she picks and Simon said that the performance was lacking emotion and that it wasn’t one of her best performances.
MORE after the jump!
David Cook is next and before his mentoring moment with Dolly, he listed ALL of the arrangements he has used in the past weeks. CAN WE LET IT GO NOW ATTENTION SEEKERS? He made it clear that he is doing his own arrangement of Dolly’s song “Little Sparrow.” I like it! I wouldn’t know it was a Dolly Parton song! Randy said it was another hot performance and that his own arrangement was really cool, Paula said it was fantastic and Simon said it wasn’t as good as last week but that he should be congratulated for making a song about a sparrow good.
Ramiele Malubay and Dolly were almost the same size and it was really cute! Dolly said that she’s got the spunk and personality to do big things. She is singing “Do I Ever Cross Your Mind” and you can hear her big voice in there but I don’t love this. Randy said it was a 6.5/10, Paula said she was proud of her and she connected with the audience and Simon said it was not memorable and it was like a cruise-ship performance.
Jason Castro seemed to have a great time with Dolly who said he was kind of funky looking and cool. He is singing “Traveling On” and it suited him and I thought it was believable. Randy said it started a little rough and by the middle of the song he turned things around, Paula said it was one of his strongest performances and Simon said he didn’t like it at all and that this kind of music doesn’t suit him very well.
Carly Smithson wowed Dolly who said Carly picked the right song. She is singing “Here You Come Again” and it was really good! Randy said it will probably be one of the best of the night, Paula just showered her with compliments and Simon thought it was good but not great. He also said she needs to have a talk with who is dressing her at the moment since she needs to start looking more like a star. OUCH!
David Archuleta impressed Dolly who said he really felt what he was singing. He almost moved her to tears and said he has the voice to be a great, great singer. He is singing “Smoky Mountain Memories” and he sounds great! Randy said it was the best performance of the night, Paula said he is strong and has a beautiful aura and Simon said he was “absolutely on the money.”
Kristy Lee Cook moved Dolly to say that her mom was going to be so proud. She is singing “The Coat of Many Colors” and it’s okay. She’s still singing and I’ve already forgotten this performance. I wish she would take more chances. She should be dominating the competition this week. I love this song, though. Randy said it was good, Paula said it was her best performance and Simon said it was pleasant and forgettable.
Syesha Mercado chose to sing “I Will Always Love You” and Dolly liked that she struck a balance between her version and Whitney’s. It sounded great and I like what she did to it. I wish she had stood up for that last part and that last note was a little indulgent. Randy said he thought she did pretty good. Paula said that there is a velvety tone to her voice and that she’s growing. Simon said it was a good but not a fantastic version of the song.
Michael Johns was a little star-struck it seemed but Dolly said she liked his voice and hopes he will be a star so that she could write some good songs for him. He is singing “It’s All Wrong But It’s Alright” and I’m so distracted by the guitar player (I keep thinking of John Mayer) but the performance was good. Randy said it was a blazing hot performance, Paula said that he is a star and Simon said that this was Michael’s best performance.
image courtesy of FOX
Related Stories
POSTED IN: American Idol Season 7, Live Blogging
6 opinions for American Idol Top 9 - April 1, 2008
Lupita Lopez
Apr 1, 2008 at 7:35 pm
APOYO 100% A DAVID COOK.
G. Smythe
Apr 1, 2008 at 8:17 pm
Wow - David Cook did a great job on ALL fronts tonight… FIRST and most importantly - he performed amazingly well… but, equally important - Cook came clean on the whole Doxology controversy. That was great to see - Now, for all those folks doubting that band - you should feel ashamed of yourself… just imagine IF someone took something from you that you worked hard to create.
It is so easy to sling words - sad when you first don’t know the truth! Makes you look like a complete idiot, actually.
Vindication for Doxology - huge props to Cook for giving the long awaited and appropriate credit to the band.
Whew… lets move on now!
sherry
Apr 1, 2008 at 9:13 pm
I loved David Cook’s performance (but that’s no surprise, right?). And I also really liked Brooke and Carly.
I was most annoyed by Kristy because she took my favorite Dolly song and kind of ruined it by making it a very boring and emotionless song.
I’m seriously pulling for David Cook, I just hope that he doesn’t lose out because of all the young teens who scream for David A.!
Bouffe
Apr 1, 2008 at 9:33 pm
Only a small comment regarding the “covergate” fiasco: I’m frustrated David was forced into explaining himself (no one else on the show has, and many have done covers of covers), but I am glad he put it all out there. The bashers, the haters, the fame whores and the cry babies can finally stop the whining and we can move on to something else.
David’s new look is hot, and his voice was beautiful tonight. I love that he is showing us another dimension of his voice. He’s got quite the impressive range. His performance tonight will not top Billy Jean, but it was solid, beautiful, and I loved it.
The other standout was Michael Johns. WOW! That was better than last week, and I thought last week was really good! Very sexy performance, I love the bluesy feel he added to the song.
sue
Apr 1, 2008 at 9:36 pm
Maybe Clay and Eman should make a statement on the arrangement for Here You Come Again, as it was done by them for his last album.:-) Nah, it’s not likely. Besides, she did a decent enough job until she tried to glory note it. It also should have been just a bit more resigned, melancholy, like Clay did it.
Loves Dolly, by the way. A true icon…beyond an idol, that’s for sure. Talent personified.
lauren
Apr 2, 2008 at 7:58 am
David Cook is no doubt the front runner here…BUT I’m most definitely a JASON CASTRO fan allll the way. There’s something about the purity in his voice, and somewhat quiet, laid back charisma that’s very appealing. Plus, I don’t think there’s many artists out there yet with his sound. It’ll make my day if Castro makes the top 3!
oh yeah, and those eyes…those dreamy eyes. haha!
Have an opinion? Leave a comment: