American Idol III___The Country Eleven__~covered by ~SpaceCase

To vote for one of tonight's contestants, dial 1-866-IDOLS- __ __ or text your vote into 57 __ __ ...yeh, you know it!

01 - Diana Degarmo - "A Broken Wing" - As Martina McBride is my hubby's favorite, Diana didn't fair well in our household tonight. We felt the performance was not her best, but at least her finish was stronger than her begining. Randy said it WAS her best performance and he was blown away, incredible. Paula said she couldn't picture Diana doing anything else, saying, "You'll be singing for a long time to come!" Simon said the image suited her and she performed effortlessly, but her nerves aren't allowing her to connect with the audience yet...and the audience booed...not suprising, as Simon's brutal honesty usually evokes the worst from a crowd of Americans.

02 - George Huff - "I Can Love You Like That" - Though he did a fine job, I felt he lacked the emotion demanded by the chorus of this particular song and (for this song) his voice was a bit too gravelly...needs to work on adding crescendos and decrescendos into the mix :) Randy said tonight he showed us the 'serious George' and he didn't feel the energy as in past performances. Paula said he has the Sexiest Voice Ever and Simon said he had that connection that he previously told Degarmo that she lacked with the audience.

03 - Fantasia Barrino - "Always On My Mind" - Everyone that knows me, knows Willie is my own American Idol, and I was very much pleased with Fantasia's rendition of one of my most favored Nelson classics. Her touch was like a caress, her emotion knowing of the emotion needed to make this song gold!! She only enhanced Willie's song as she more than served it to us with justice! Randy said she was controlled and unbelievably great! Paula said the performance was subtle, subdued and very classy, and Simon said odd things like, "You've proven you aren't a one trick pony" & "Don't get old" referring to her more conservative look for the evening.

04 - John Stevens - "King of the Road" - Another of my all time favorite songs and right up to the end where he realized the song wasn't ending, and there was more to be sung, this young, handsome, twinkle-eyed crooner nailed it, giving us a treat with his best, most conifident perfomrnace to date! Bravo and way to go kiddo!! Keep it up! He's gonna be the next Red-headed Stranger ;) Randy said he enjoyed John for the first time, even though he forgot some of the words. Paula said he covered the classic very nicely and he's becoming more seasoned with each performance. Simon said, "I think you're great!" And then went on to say he's the worst dancer ever on the American Idol series and he needs to learn to exude his personality.

05 - Camille Velasco - "Desparado" - Folks, this may be the last we see of this Somolian sweetheart, at least on this season's AI. That wasn't a natural vibrato, but the product of her nerves physically shaking her so bad that her voice couldn't even hide how nervous she was. She attempted to take an Eagles song and add her touch, but she only succeeded to show me (at least) that she needs more time, unlike some of her competition. Randy said it felt jerky, just aiight. Paula said she did a great job and is beautiful (maybe she was just building her up a bit before Simon was coming...I'm still thinking about sending Paula a box of Q-tips...what do you think?!) Simon said she was out of tune and she has yet to conquer her nerves.

06 - Jennifer Hudson - "No One Else On Earth" - I can officially say she has been consistantly unconsistant. Parts of this performance were solid, if not impressive, but they fell inbetween moments of vocal insecurity...or overembellishing, LOL I don't even know anymore. All I know was this was not my favorite Jennifer performance...I still preferred her first offering of S&G. Randy said he was worried at first, but she broke into it at the end. Paula said she loved her straight hair, but Jennifer needs to get her personality back. And Simon said she was 'out of her depth' in this competition. oooooooh, I wonder what that means, LOL...

BTW, my hubby just loved the "Simon Who?" sign that an audience member held up right behind Cowell's head from time to time.

07 - Jon Peter Lewis - "She Believes In Me" - Stop rocking this boat!!! I swear, between the seesaww I ride with Jennifer and this crazy shipwreck of a voyage I've begun with Jon, I am beginning to get a little sea sick. Tonight Jon chose the wrong song and the wrong feel for his talents. He more than sold himself short, but I doubt few girls even noticed, as he was busy hynotizing them with his sparkly blues. I believe he will slide by on his shoddy performance tonight on looks alone! Go figure *shrugs* Randy said without his funk he isn't vocally as good, he was pitchy and his game wasn't on. Paula said it was safe but pleasant, and he tended to go a bit flat. Simon said he has an odd voice, but it seems America loves him. He then said that Jon looks like John boy from The Waltons...a bunch of teenaged chicks were like, "Who's John Boy?" LMBO!

08 - Jasmine Trias - "Breathe" - Another amateur performance for a less than thrilling evening for the finalists. I guess these guys just don't appreciate country, eh? I felt she was trying to hard, was too nervous, and at time barely audible. Randy said she looked beautiful, but it wasn't her best performance, and was pitchy in places. Paula agreed, and so did Simon, but added that it was a very safe choice and too sweet. Yeah, we figured Simon liked girls like Courtney Love ;) :P

09 - Matt Rogers - "Amazed" - Though I've never been incredibly impressed with Matt, I gotta hand it to him tonight for offering up a fantastic cover of a great Lonestar song! I feel this was his best performance to date and he almost delivered it flawlessly. Vocally, he still has room to grow, but he has a personality of gold...like a teddy bear :) Randy said, "I liked that, man! That was one of your better vocals." Paula said it was sensitive and intimate, you crooned, and I liked that! Simon said, "I do like you, you are a fun and nice guy, BUT it was nauseating--a sell out!" Simon's so mean ;)

10 - LaToya London - "Ain't Goin' Down 'Til the Sun COmes Up" - Wasn't it nice to see ol' Josh again? Glad to hear he's almost done with his service...a little curious to hear his new song...I didn't think he was All That-last year, did you? Anyhow, LaToya lit the stage on fire and impressed the judges a lil' more than she did me. I felt she chose a challenging song and did aiight, as Randy is known for saying. Randy, however said, "Anouther fantastic performance!" Paula said it was the most fun performance of the evening. And Simon told everyone, "That's what I was waiting for! You took a risk and it worked!"

11 - Amy Adams - "Sin Wagon" - I was waiting to hear what country song she would make sound "Celinish", but she blew me away with her confident and flawless performance of the Dixie Chick's scandelous (In the Bible Belt) hit!! She was my favorite for the night along with Fantasia and John Stevens! Randy said it was her style of music and "Incredible!" Paula told her that she could release that cut tomorrow and it would go up the charts to number 1. Simon, who confessed to hating country, didn't understand the song and simply told Amy that he hadn't a clue of what to say!

So what do you have to say about the country theme and the darn 2 hour length of the show, LOL Shout it out girls, I missed you guys talkin' it up last week!!

>SpaceCase<

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