American Idol Season 8 - Week 8

5 is a good number. Not only do you get 5...$5...$5 footloooooongs at Subway (sorry if that jingle is running through your head now...), but 5 is also the number of one of the best Quarterbacks in the NFL who just so happens to play for the Baltimore Ravens. 5 is also the number of competitors left in this season's American Idol, and at this point, pretty much anyone could win it all. They are all pretty good singers, so it's getting harder and harder to choose who will go home this week.

When I heard that the theme was "Rat Pack Classics", I first thought - HUH??? What do these kids know about the Rat Pack? What do I really know about the Rat Pack, other than it included Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr and Joey Bishop (at least I think Bishop was part of the gang...). And the music will feature "classics" from the "American Songbook" (well, at least that sounds like something Ryan will say...). Jamie Foxx is the Idol's mentor this week, and I found him very refreshing, engaging, and thought he provided decent feedback for all of them. I didn't realize Jamie was such a well known singer, but that probably is because I'm approaching 39. I thought he was an actor?

Anyway, I'm going to try to keep this review to 5 minutes reading time - but I'm going to fail. In fact, I think we're already at 4 minutes. Alas, I'll try to keep it brief. Well, "Mort" brief. No I won't. Who are we kidding?

Before the "Idols" start singing, I realize this would probably have been a good week for Noop Dawg. Poor guy. I also wonder if the "Idols" would have been better served singing "Brat Pack Standards" like "Don't You Forget About Me" and "St. Elmo's Fire". Ok, I can't take credit for coming up with the Brat Pack reference - that was my friend Patrick. Still, it was pretty funny.

So without further adieu, Kris Allen is up first, and he's singing "The Way You Look Tonight" by Frank Sinatra. During the package, Kris says he doesn't think he can match up to anyone on Idol vocally, and I'm surprised by his lack of confidence. He starts off his song very slow, and it sounds pleasant, but I'm disturbed by his facial hair. He's got a faux 'stache going on, and it looks weird. Anyway, about halfway through, the tempo picks up, and Kris finally shows some passion singing the song. It sounds pretty good at this point, but the songs almost over. Plus, he also drops in a few Kris "falsettos" too, and they don't sound right. I thought his performance was good, not great. I certainly didn't go gaga over it like the first three judges! Randy, Kara and Paula go nuts, saying Kris is the best thing since sliced bread. Really? Who were they listening to? Randy uses the phrase "In it to win it"...ugh. Says it's Kris' best performance to date, and says he has "Mad Nice Vocals". Kara says Kris has set the standard incredibly high. Paula is wearing some fabric that doesn't look like it's finished being put together for a dress, and says something about Kris being impeccable. Simon says Kris' performance was "wet". He compares him to a "well trained Spaniel" - regardless, he doesn't think he can win the competition, and while it was good, it wasn't great. I agree with Simon, although I have no idea what he's talking about with him being "wet". When Ryan asks Simon what he meant, Simon quips, "Not dry". Um, ok.

Next up is Allison Iraheta, who reveals she just turned 17. She's singing "Someone To Watch Over Me". Jamie says she's too young to be that good. Let me say that I was blown away by this performance. I thought it was brilliant. As crazy as Randy/Kara/Paula were for Kris, I was for Allison. I wasn't really surprised, though, because Allison has really been consistently coming on during this season. But what I was shocked at was how restrained it was, yet, she definitely had her "Allison" moments. Very classy, well done performance. I can easily see her in the top 3 - at least she should be. She's a cut above Kris and Matt, in my opinion. Randy calls her "mad young" and compares her to Britney Murphy (good call, actually), and says she sings like Pink, but with 9,000 more octaves, and follows that up with YO, YO, YO...in short, he loved it. Kara loves it too, and says she's not nervous about Allison anymore. She called it a gut wrenching performance that should land her in the finals. Paula is coherent in her comments, calling it "alluring and very tender". Simon asks Allison if she thinks she can win the competition, and the 17 year old Allison looks around, thinks about it, and says any one of them could at this point. That's not the confidence Simon is looking for, so he proceeds to tell her it was ok, but not as good as everyone else thought, and then drops the dreaded bomb: "I have a horrible feeling you may be in trouble this week". WHAT?!?! Simon, I think you've been listening to Susan Boyle too much and it's twisted your brain around, because Allison was AWESOME tonight. So what if she's not confident of her skills - she IS only 17, and I think she's amazing for her age. Give the girl a break. Kara calls Simon out on this - thank you Kara! He is way off base here.

After the break, Ryan talks to Matt Giraud. Matt tells us this music is right up his alley, because he studied Jazz in college, so he's excited. Tonight he tackles "My Funny Valentine", and during the package, Jamie Foxx tells him it's great, then calls him back and suggests he change the key he's singing it in. Right off the bat, I'm reminded of Constantine Maroulis, who also sang this song on a previous season (see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFAoPLEBApo). It's a song that gets stuck in your head, and it is driving me nuts. Anyway, when I first heard him sing this, I wasn't impressed. True, he does have some really nice moments, but I think Randy is right in his assessment - it's pitchy in parts, and some of the runs don't really work. Some do, though, but not enough to fix the overall performance. He ends it very strong, but it's not enough. I think it was the least pleasing performance of the night so far. Kara didn't feel Matt was emotionally connected to it (he swears he was). Paula thought it was great. Again, she's very coherent. Good job Paula! Simon said it was the only believable, authentic performance tonight. He compares him to Nat King Cole, and said he was brilliant. Say whaaaaaaaaaaaat? Really? Again, he had his moments, but that's high praise for such an uneven performance. I was yelling at the TV during this, and quickly realized I need to get a life.

Danny Gokey is going to sing "Come Rain or Shine", and Jamie Foxx gets right up in Danny's personal space. It's bizarre seeing Jamie Foxx right up in Danny's grill. Funny, actually. So Danny comes out and just nails it. Normally Danny takes a while to hit his stride, but he gets it right from the first note. A bluesy performance that shows off his vocal skills. I'm glad I have him winning it all in my prediction from preseason, although the money seems to be on Mr. Lambert. I still think Danny is one of the most talented vocalist I've ever seen on Idol - it all seems so effortless. The end of the song is amazing, and as I said, he just nails it. Very proud of D-Goke tonight. Excellent performance! Randy loves it - says he could have an album of songs like that right now. "This is a singing competition, and YOU CAN SING!" Kara says Danny's got his "swagga" on. Paula says one word: Stellar. Simon agrees with Kara - saying that he was great (best so far for Danny), and that he's very confident. He also thanks Jamie for bringing it out in Danny. Great job Danny!

Last, but certainly not least, is America's favorite Idol, Adam Lambert. He's singing "Feelin' Good" by the great Nina Simone. Jamie is blown away during the package. Adam starts out at the top of the steps, and slowly saunters down during the beginning of the song. You just know this is Adam's type of song. He's wearing a white suit that Morrissey would be proud of. I didn't think it was Adam's best performance, but he does have one moment which just made my jaw drop. The last part of the song, where he holds the note for what seems like forever, was crazy. Just crazy. The guy is very talented, and while I wasn't as enthusiastic about it as everyone else was, he CLEARLY deserves to be here and discussed for the finale. He's actually restrained for MOST of the song, but that last part was off the hook. Randy said it was a little too theatrical/Broadway for him, but Adam is consistently in the zone. Kara calls it "shocking, confusing, sleazy, superb, over the top"...wow. I loved her reaction. Paula says it's like the Olympics, and he's their Michael Phelps. Simon quips, "I love Randy talking about you being theatrical, it's like complaining that a cow moos! I mean, that's what he is!" Simon says that in addition to Adam, Adam and maybe one other person feel like they can win it all (I know, Simon meant to say Danny, but said "...in addition to Adam" while talking to Adam...nevermind...).

So if I had to rank the performances from best to worst, it would be like this:

Allison
Danny
Adam
Kris
Matt

I think Matt is going home this week -Kris has too strong of a fan base. I do think Allison will be in the bottom two, though. And I can see her getting a scare, but if she leaves, it's a travesty. As the lone female left, she certainly represents very well. Great job Allison and Danny - I think clearly the two best performances this evening, with honorable mention to Adam and his typical over the top but entertaining performance.

Tune in next week for our final four! We're almost there!