Top 11 Recap (From the Doc)

Let's just start by saying I'm not anti-country per se, just picky about country music. For example, I'm not a fan of Randy Travis, either as a musician or an Idol mentor. In past seasons the good mentors can take a performer who doesn't fit perfectly into his or her genre's little box and appreciate, as Paula would say, the authentic authenticity of the authentic you. In other words, whether the style is from the Middle East or Eastern Tennessee, nail polish or not, let's celebrate true artists. Heaven knows the pop world has adapted enough country songs to validate the musicality of the Grand Ole Opry. Randy Travis seemed to miss the boat on that whole crossover phenomenon that's expanded the career of many a country star. Rant. Off. (How's all of that for judging an artist's entire body of work based on a dozen or so sound bites during a hyped up Idol show?)

So I was pleasantly surprised (what's with all the Paula references this week?!) with the evening and saw fewer disappointments than I'm accustomed to on country weeks. Even Simon seemed to enjoy himself on more than one occasion, but not many more! What's with all the contestants talking to the judges so much this year. And "having fun" is a given for me. Singing well is the bigger task and the one that will get more of my votes. Randy Jackson has become really stale for me for a long time because he just seems to parrot Simon a lot, and he's so focused on getting his "dudes" and "dawgs" out there he doesn't say any thing intelligible, but tonight I liked him. He finally showed why they keep him around. He actually seems the most in tune with current music and how different artists can blend styles to suit their own strengths. Without saying much more about it, let's get to it.

Michael Sarver: And there it is. It's Josh Gracin all over again. Am I pop? Am I country? I'm "just having fun up here." Talk back. Don't listen. Criticize Simon. Wave to the crowd. Michael is a good singer, just in way over his head here. Next.

Allison Iraheta: I didn't really like the song this week. It was a bit too straight-up country for my liking, especially since she didn't really rock it out. Her performance was solid enough to stick around, but not my favorite. When they rolled the phone numbers at the end, Allison was one of the contestants that made me say, "Oh yeah. She sang tonight."

Kris Allen: I like this guy. He is very understated fashion-wise, which is a plus. He seems very comfortable up on stage and his voice is great. I think Simon was spot-on with his praise tonight, too. Kris is shaping up to be one of the four or five legitimate contenders.

Lil Rounds: She's so Season 1 or 2 for me. She has that power voice and can sing, but the music industry just isn't celebrating that kind of voice any more. Whitney, Mariah, Christina. They've had their places, but the artists of today are more artistic and less "wow!" And she did herself no favors by trying to prove she can sing other things. She can't, so stick to what you know and do it well.

Adam Lambert: If I thought Randy T. knew many songs outside of the Grand Ole Opry I'd figure he'd be humming "Dude Looks Like a Lady" to himself when he met Adam because he sure seemed to have something he wasn't saying about his experience with Adam. I am most disappointed in the judges after Adam's performance. If we want to discuss indulgence, we need to take a closer look at all of Simon's wedding singer analogies. Adam's performance was the #1 most original song this week. Randy J. hit it on the head for once--Adam sounded like an alternative rock band interpreting a country hit. I thought Kara's inability to say anything worthwhile on this one was shocking, and Simon hates country music so much I thought he would have had a bit more positive to say about this one. And anyone that can substitute the sitar for the slide guitar on country week deserves mad props.

Scott McIntyre: I can see what Paula was trying to get at here, but I think she's way off. I've long said Scott reminds me of Billy Joel in that they are both serviceable, but not fantastic singers who have a gift for using the piano to enhance their performances. Take away the piano and Billy Joel is just some guy in a bar looking for spare change. "Sing us a song, you're the man" just doesn't work. The audience sure seems connected to him each week so something's working. David Archuleta sure seemed to sing different versions of the same song each week last year and made it to the finals, so Scott may do just fine.

Alexis Grace: It was a good replication of the original for me, too. It was solid, but nothing great. I don't really have much more to say on this one.

Danny Gokey: Randy J. had the best comments on this one, too. Danny needs to support his lower register more to stay in tune so we can fully appreciate how great he is when he goes up to his higher register. Danny seemed to connect to this song and did really well with it. He would have made a greater splash if he'd parachuted from the top of the set, though.

Anoop Desai: What a great song choice and arrangement. You could really hear his own voice coming through. I like what Simon said about his attitude. There's no sense in talking back and complaining about songs and judges' opinions. Just take the criticism, use what you can, and come back stronger. I'm glad to see him redeem himself.

Megan Joy Corkrey: I'm still not convinced I like her much. She seems nice enough, and I'm sure she's a lovely person, but I can't get on board with her singing style. From her strange pronunciation (I've lived in Utah and Megan's singing accent isn't from there) to her awkward torso twist I just don't get it. She did pick the right style in which to sing this incredibly overdone song, though. I don't know.

Matt Giraud: If I had to vote for only one performance tonight it would be Matt's. I loved it. He's a great pianist who knows exactly how to use it in his presentation. His work on the ivories wasn't overdone, but was perfectly appropriate. He sounded way more confident this week and I'm glad to hear Simon give him his due. I did find it interesting that Paula didn't tell him to lose the piano at some point. When you give a great performance all that peripheral stuff doesn't matter.

PREDICTIONS FOR THE BOTTOM 3: Michael, Megan, Lil
BUYING A TICKET FOR THE IDOL TOUR: Michael
WILL THE JUDGES USE THEIR SAVE? A simple "no."

THIS WEEK'S SIGN THE APOCALYPSE IS UPON US: Ryan's IRS-inspired tie clip.