In the last performance for the guys before American Idol releases the Top 12, the men needed to take some chances with their ‘80s selections to secure their place in the final phase of the competition.
And one man stood out above the rest for taking a risk that locked his spot in the Top 12.
David Cook gets bonus points for the most original twist to an ‘80s tune. Armed with his electric guitar, Cook took “Hello” and made it a rock song. I would have never pegged him to choose a Lionel Richie song. But he did and he made it work for him.
On the other hand, Jason Castro went the safer route, choosing a song that was made for him to solidify his place. Leonard Cohen’s (yes, I know it was made popular by Jeff Buckley, but that wasn’t until 1994) “Hallelujah” totally fit Jason. And as a bonus, we got to see him without his guitar.
It was hard to evaluate Michael Johns rendition of “Don’t You (Forget about Me)” because I was flooded with high school memories (as were others I’m sure). But from what I can remember, Michael did a decent job with the Simple Minds tune, but it wasn’t a tune that really gave him the chance to showcase his talents.
Similarly, David Hernandez gave a solid showing. His rendition of “It’s all Coming Back to Me” gave him a chance to display his voice, but the performance wasn’t as good as last week. However, I still think he’s safe in the next cut.
I continue to think that David Archuleta is being overhyped. Tonight he sang “Another Day in Paradise” by Phil Collins. This guy really needs to lighten up and have some fun. Every song selection doesn’t have to be a message about healing the world. He’s 17. Let’s see a bit of that youthfulness.
The next two were a bit of a tossup. But I think that Chikeze has the edge over Luke Menard. Chikeze’s rendition of “All the (Wo)man I Need” gave him a chance to exhibit his voice, but it wasn’t his best choice for a song for him. On the other hand Luke’s version of Wham’s “Wake Me up Before You Go-Go” was decent, if not forgettable.
And lastly on the list was Danny Noriega. All I can say is what was he thinking? I’m with Simon on this one. It was horrible. I didn’t like anything about it – the purple hair, the leather outfit, the arrangement, his voice, nothing.
The rest of the hour was filled with each of the contestants revealing an embarrassing moment. While I sure these “moments” were embarrassing at the time, they weren’t very memorable for the audience.
Based on tonight’s performance, I think I might have to rethink my predictions for the Top 12 and send Luke and Danny home. What do you think?
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Here’s a recap of the semifinals:
Seed Newsvine
March 6, 2008 at 4:22 am |
[...] Top 8 Men Perform [...]
May 10, 2008 at 2:29 pm |
hey david cook, david archuleta you guys are soo good at singing your songs on american idol
love brittney
May 22, 2008 at 4:45 am |
Well his risks earned Cook a victory. Here’s my recap of the finale: http://redlightnaps.wordpress.com/2008/05/22/cook-2008-american-idol/
June 23, 2008 at 8:38 pm |
David is the best contestant american idol has ever had and will ever have and on top of that he’s hotter than hell