American Idol: Top 4 perform

(S07E37) Finally, the plethora of mentors is gone and we have a potentially more expansive theme with "The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame." I'm not sure what it means exactly but if it means music by artists in the Hall that's a lot of good songs to select from, and artists that better suit the individual contestants than some of the mentors. I like the idea of mentors, I just don't think it should be limited to their specific body of work on those weeks. What do you think? Chime in about that, the performances tonight or whatever's on your mind in the live chat tonight.

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Ryan revealed that three of the final four have been number one in the votes before. If we believe DialIdol that Syesha was the top vote-getter last week (remember that Ryan never declared her and Brooke the Bottom Two, rather stating only that one was safe and one was not), then that pretty much leaves poor Jason Castro as the odd man-out. I think it's pretty safe to say that the Davids have both been in the top of the voter pool at one time or another, and probably several times each. If all of this is true, can Jason save himself this week? Luckily for him, the contestants have the best catalog of music to select from in many weeks with tonight's theme: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

David Cook
"Hungry Like the Wolf," Duran Duran
Again, I wasn't behind David when he began the song as it seems to take him a few beats before he finds the right pitch. I thought the song selection was pretty safe, but it's a song that is still very infectious. He handled the limited vocal range well, as one would expect. Otherwise, he performed it as if he was half-asleep or bored ... or both. Not that it was bad it was just ... a'ight.
Judges: Randy thought it was a solid performance of an okay song choice. Paula was left with a big appetite from his song. She then praised his growth throughout the competition. For Simon, he had to agree with Randy a bit. It was copycat in regards to the arrangement, but good enough to get through the next week.

"Baba O'Riley," The Who
The most startling thing for me was during the opening interview how much larger Cookie's head is than Seacrest's. I felt for sure it was going to reach over and devour little Ryan. But once David started singing I forgot all about that. From the first note he was dead on and I knew he was set to have the best performance he'd had in weeks. Even though his voice is so different from Roger Daltrey's, and even Pete Townshend's for that matter, he managed to put together something pretty magical throughout this piece. It was leaps and bounds more dynamic and compelling than his first song.
Judges: Randy agreed, saying that was more like the David Cook he'd come to grow and love and he was great. Paula wanted more David Cook and was humbled to sit and watch his soul. Simon simply said, "Welcome back, David Cook."

Syesha Mercado
"Proud Mary," Tina Turner
What an incredibly ambitious song, but Syesha has never shied away from challenging song choices. Still, the raspy soul that Tina brought to this joint is a far cry from the smooth vocals Syesha delivers on any given night. I thought the arrangement was much slower than it needed to be when it started so was glad when she picked up the pace. She'd have probably been better to skip trying to do the performance part of it. And for me the vocals just weren't on par with what the song demands and what Syesha has shown herself capable of in the past.
Judges: Randy thought it was the third week in a row that she's shown up "in the zone." She's showing the heat late in the competition where it is needed. Paula said she looked like a star and made magic happen on the stage. Simon saw the performance more like I did, likening it to a bad Tina impersonation and a shrieky performance.

"A Change Is Gonna Come," Sam Cooke
She likened the original incarnation of the song, as a posthumous civil rights anthem for Cooke, to her own Top 4 placement. Not sure if the two are really comparable, but I see where she is coming from. And, like David before her, Syesha stepped up her own game with this second number. You could feel the emotion in her performance, rather than just a powerhouse showcase, and that always makes for a better vocal. She missed on a few of her big notes, but her passion was unmistakable. As was that big old ending Idol Power note.
Judges: Randy did not like this one as much as her first. He didn't like the musical or vocal arrangement and thought she pushed it harder than she needed to. Once again a contestant was chastised for changing song arrangement. Paula kept it simple by giving a standing ovation and then hugging herself. Paula thought her vocal orchestration was beautiful and the performance was magnificent, a critique which brought Syesha to tears. Just in time for Simon to agree with Paula and keep her in tears. Oh, and on a side not that might net her a few votes, she looked absolutely amazing in that dress.

Jason Castro
"I Shot the Sheriff," Bob Marley
I liked that even Jason got why this was a funny choice for him. I have to give him credit, too, because he picked the perfect song for the kind of voice he has and then he put together an amazing performance with it. But he probably could have just skipped the guitar as it was used for more of a prop than anything else. Does Jason have the strongest vocals of the remaining contestants? Of course not, but he knows what kind of an artist he is and chose a song that suited that very well, I thought. It was also a vast improvement over his struggles in the past few weeks.
Judges: It was karaoke Marley for Randy, lacking anything special or deserving of being in the finals. Even Paula struggled to find positivity, praising his performance to the audience. She wasn't crazy about any of it, though. Simon called it utterly atrocious and slammed Jason for modifying the original arrangement. The judges then went on about the fact that he changed the arrangement even though they just slammed David Cook earlier for not changing the arrangement. I guess Bob is sacred and not to be touched in their minds? Honestly, they lost me here.

"Mr. Tambourine Man," Bob Dylan
Another good song selection for Jason. When it started I wasn't really behind his vocals on a song that was such a signature piece for Dylan. Then he missed an entire line and "nah-nah-nah'd" it and I think he's probably done for sure now. Like Brooke last week, Jason has a solid niche in what he does but I just don't think he's in the league of the other three at this stage in the competition. He's probably still rattled by the severe vocal beating he took after the last song as he just looked scared as hell up there.
Judges: Randy said he wasn't in the zone tonight. Paula refrained from commenting on that performance really at all, leaving it to Simon to tell him to pack his suitcase. Of course, you saw it coming but I think Simon may have this one right. Unless the beating he took tonight garners enough sympathy votes to upset things.

David Archuleta
"Stand By Me," Ben E. King
I have no idea why, but this is my all-time favorite song, and being a singer's song it's a great choice for David Archuleta. Yes, he closed his eyes throughout the performance from time to time, but all in all I found it a much more confident performance than he's given in awhile. The arrangement lost it for me a bit toward the end, but I can't fault the vocal performance that David gave throughout it all. I'd have to say that little David Archuleta took the first round of songs hands down.
Judges: Randy is glad that there's one guy who hits the stage every time trying to win the competition. Randy loved it and dubbed it "hot." Paula called him way beyond his years and admired that he continued to strive communicating with his eyes (as Andrew Lloyd Webber advised him to). Simon took the opportunity to slam Jason's performance again (Did Jason run over his cat on the way to the studio this morning?) before claiming it the best performance so far.

"Love Me Tender," Elvis Presley
Just like David Archuleta wasn't familiar with The Beatles, he wasn't familiar with this classic by The King. I'm not sure how David grew up with the singing background he has and yet has such a lack of familiarity with these staples. But other than the eye squinting that he must think comes across in a very different way than it does, he once again gave a very good vocal performance. David's biggest problems are in his presentation on stage, which should come with time, and connecting with the songs that he gives an emotional performance, which I think he actually pulled off here.
Judges: As I was recording this and it went over time (as always) Randy's comments were lost in the ether between the end of it recording Idol and the beginning of it recording Hell's Kitchen. I'll assume he said it was "the bomb" and "amazing" or something like that. Paula said it was one of her favorite performances from him. Simon summed up the night by saying David crushed the competition on the night.

Best of the Night
David Archuleta and Syesha Mercado

The Bottom Two
Jason Castro and David Cook

Going Home
Jason Castro (Unless there's a major upset in the makings, it's just his time and to top it off he had a pretty bad night overall)