Heartbreaking Night For Four As They Say Goodbye

Last night proved to be another nail biting elimination night on American Idol. America said goodbye to Jason Yeager, Alaina Whitaker, Alexandrea Lushington, and Robbie Carrico.

I was especially disappointed to see Alaina Whitaker (the Carrie Underwood look-alike) go, only 16-years-old from Tulsa, OK. Her elimination was pretty surprising to me. Although Simon criticized her fashion sense this week, he also mentioned that he thought she was a "dark horse" in the competition and I've always liked her voice. I was really hoping to see her make it to the top 12. She was visibly shaken by last night and didn't think she could sing, but the other girls stepped up to provide support and she was able to get through Spiral Staircase's "More Today Than Yesterday."

Brooke White Was "Happy Together" Wednesday Night

Brooke White gave an enjoyable performance of The Turtle's "Happy Together" last night. Although she was close to leaving her guitar out of the performance, she decided at the last minute to include it, and I'm so glad she did. I think if the artist can maintain top notch vocals while playing an instrument, then all the better. . . it's like icing on the cake.

The 24-year-old Mesa, AZ native got overall good reviews from the judges and seemed pleased with her performance. I think Brooke is so likable and sweet. I wish Simon would stop giving her a hard time for being a "good girl." I respect her for having values and standards for her life and think we'll be seeing a lot more of this talented young lady.

David Hernandez Shows His Talent With "In The Midnight Hour"

After his standout performance of "In The Midnight Hour" this Tuesday, David Hernandez should fly through to next week. A little more soft-spoken than some of the other contestants, I think some underestimate his vocal abilities. Even so, judge Randy Jackson said, " I like that you started with a gospel vibe..." Paula Abdul complimented his "brilliant vocals" and Simon added an encouraging (sort of) "It was actually better than I thought it would be."

This 24-year-old Glendale, AZ has sort of an Elliot Yamin thing goin' on, yet he has his own distinctive sound. His musical influences include Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, and Alicia Keys.

David Cook American Idol Rocker and MO Native

Although I agree with Simon that David Archuleta is the one to beat this season, there were several other performances worth noting Tuesday night when the boys took the stage. David Cook, a fellow MO native and self-proclaimed "word nerd" (love that!) revealed that he loves doing crossword puzzles. His performance of The Turtle's "Happy Together" was pretty awesome.

Although Randy said, "You worked it out... dude, it was crazy!" (That's a compliment.) D.C. seemed to take it pretty hard when Simon criticized his performance. Understandably so, but he might fair better in the future to take it with a grain of salt. It is just one person's opinion after all. Interestingly, when David C. was asked in an interview, "Who is your favorite judge and why?" His answer was, "Simon, because he's such a smart aleck I kind of can be too." Maybe they're just 2 of kind, in that way, just a thought?

All things aside, David Cook has a great rock voice and can definitely sing. We're hoping to see much more of him this season. . . .Rock on!

Recap Of Tuesday Night's Idol-David Archuleta Was the Star. . .Again!

Tuesday night's episode of American Idol was really good. Some of the boys gave an okay performance, but several really stepped it up and did a great job. At the end of the night, few could disagree that young David Archuleta gave a truly amazing performance of John Lennon's Imagine (which was my high school class song by the way)! The audience and judges were so moved by the 17-year-old's incredible talent and outstanding vocal skills. He truly made the song his own, and personally I preferred his version to John Lennon's. Did you catch the clip of him singing as an 11-year-old to the American Idol contestants (Kelly Clarkson was front and center) from Season 1? If not, you can check out the clip at the bottom of this page.

Results Of Last Week's American Idol

Last Thursday night 4 of the Idol contestants were sent home. Amy Davis from Lowell, IN and Joanne Borgella from Hoboken, NJ were the unlucky girls that had to say goodbye. On the boy's side it was Colton Berry from Staunton, VA and Garrett Haley of Elida, OH that received the bad news.
These individuals are all clearly talented, but I can't say that I'm too terribly surprised at who America voted to keep. The competition this season is particularly fierce and I've sensed more variety in styles this season.
Although Jason Castro was the only one to take advantage of the new ruling to allow contestants to play instruments, I look forward to seeing more of this. I think it really allows us to get a more accurate view of individual talent.