Andrew Leahey: Man, did Michael Johns own that song or what? He wasn’t even in the same league as his competitors, many of whom turned in solid performances but didn’t seem quite “at home” with Dolly Parton’s music. Michael sang “It’s All Wrong, But It’s All Right” like he wrote it, mixing smoky vocals and a smartly sparse arrangement (featuring the show’s hyper-talented unsung hero, guitarist Paul Jackson Jr.) into one of my favorite Idol moments ever. It was everything Taylor Hicks tried to crystallize two seasons ago, and it beat out David Cook’s “Little Sparrow” for the evening’s best performance by a resident rocker. Well done, Michael. You rock that ascot.
Carly also sounded fantastic, even if Simon seems hell-bent on playing devil’s advocate with her undeniable talent. Why in the world would he choose to criticize her clothing? Why not focus on the voice, which is easily the best female instrument in this competition? It’s almost as if he had to criticize something — anything to challenge her status a “ringer,” perhaps, especially since both Michael Johns and David Archuleta have had to fight to regain their lost momentum. But I don’t think undue criticism gives validity to the show, and since Carly has already spent some time in the bottom three, it only undermines the good standing of a contestant who should definitely make it past this week.
Syesha is dead to me — if not for her predictable song choice, then certainly for the way she held out that final note like a self-satisfied diva. Who does she think she is, Kathleen Battle? Or Whitney Houston? Syesha’s not even a second-rate Lakisha Jones, and the fact that her self-congratulating glory note actually fell flat only proves she doesn’t have the chops to be a vocal powerhouse. If America voted smartly (ha! that would be the day…), then Syesha would populate the Bottom 3 alongside Ramiele and Kristy Lee Cook. Jason Castro might wind up there, too, but it goes without saying that David Cook, Brooke, and David Archuleta are safe tonight. Did anyone catch that high note that Archuleta let loose during “Smoky Mountain Memories?” He may be the sonic little brother of Zac Effron, but if he keeps singing those stratosphere-scraping phrases (“keep my head above the water”), he’ll sail right through to the finals.
Matt Collar: Hooray for Dollywood! I really wasn’t aware she wrote as many songs as she has. Man, they just don’t make country music stars like her anymore. Plus, her comments on the singers were spot on — Syesha is “A pretty girl and a good singer”. Yup, Dolly, and in that order too! Generally, everybody sang well, if somewhat uninspiredly. I actually thought Carly looked and sounded amazing. Simon is a twit with bad taste and Leona Lewis is proof! Both Carly and David Archuleta did big diva pop songs, but hers was organic and supple while David sang with his usual hermetically sealed, robot dolphin in a snow globe style. Admittedly — and for the thousandth time — yeah, he sounds great for a 17-year old. That is, until he tries any kind of soulful vocal inflections and then he goes all nasal teen talent-show. Similarly, David Cook sounded good, and by good, I mean exactly like Mr. Mister doing “Broken Wings”. Truthfully, last night belonged to Michael Johns who finally owned up to his Aussie-rock roots by turning in a bluesy John Paul Young-meets-John Mayer take on “It’s All Wrong, But it’s Right”.
Stephen Thomas Erlewine: Brooke: I still love Brooke — perhaps I can be loyal to a fault — and I do think she has a warm, sweet voice and, better still, she sings the songs as narratives and doesn’t grab for the big notes, unlike so many singers on Idol. Even so, I would agree that Brooke didn’t quite seem to grasp the meaning of “Jolene,” picking and grinning her way through the tune, oblivious to the heartache at the core. She sounded lovely, but perhaps a bit too lovely for what the song requires.
David C: Credit where it’s due: David Cook steered away from the hernia-inducing histrionics he’s favored in the past, which made his performance easier to take. Which doesn’t mean it was great — it hardly pushed him out of his soft-grunge comfort zone — but it didn’t feel forced, as Cook neither borrowed cred from a pre-existing arrangement (well, who else would have covered “Little Sparrow,” a song from a ‘01 Dolly album?) or pushed too hard with his own competent, unexciting interpretation of this pleasant bluegrass tune. And, as these things go, that’s an improvement of sorts.
Ramiele: At the beginning of the season, Ramiele’s voice seemed too large to be coming out of such a little girl. As the season has progressed, that voice has gotten smaller and smaller, to the point that she seemed overwhelmed by the backing vocalists last night. Ramiele had the right idea, picking a peppy tune that keeps things light and friendly, but the song doesn’t have a memorable memory nor did it give her a chance to belt out the song, so she faded into the background.
Jason: Like David C, Jason didn’t step out of his comfort zone either but he did step it up this week, seeming a bit more clear-eyed and lively than he has of late. Of course, it helps that “Travelin’ Thru” lends itself to his cheery strum-along style, as it’s light and mildly propulsive, emphasizing everything that’s endearing about Castro’s family-friendly hippie shtick…which is a relief after a few weeks where he stumbled upon almost everything that was annoying about that same shtick.
Carly: Carly picked “Here You Come Again,” the song I had pegged for Brooke — who could have done wonders with Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil’s graceful melody, making it seem effortless. Carly isn’t that kind of singer, she wants everybody to know just how hard she works, so she strips the tune down to the basics and constructs her arrangement to build to a glory note the song doesn’t need. As always, Carly does sing exceptionally well — she has power and knows how to control it — but why does the song have to serve her voice instead of vice versa? No wonder Randy is such a big fan.
David A: In what’s seeming to be a pattern, David A. scrambles to save himself after an obvious stumble by singing the big, schmaltzy ballads that are his specialty. He belts out Dolly’s song about family like the little pro he is but it all comes across as a little — OK, a lot — Star Search, the kind of performance that’s largely unheard outside of revues and telethons … or, the kind of performance that makes him seem prematurely old instead of preternaturally talented.
Kristy Lee: Leaving nothing to chance, Kristy Lee attempts to act out Dolly’s tale of her “Coat of Many Colors,” getting a pseudo-patchwork dress and shuffling across the stage in her bare feet — affectations that are not erasing my suspicion that her country girl is all an act. Kristy Lee might be docked points in some quarters for not having a big note or two in her performance, but I think that’s to her credit: she at least recognizes that many of Dolly’s tunes are story songs and that it’s better to tell the story than to stray into vocal acrobatics. That, or since she can’t really due that kind of gymnastics, she sticks to the ground. Either way, she sounds more comfortable with Parton than much of her competition, which almost makes up for Kristy Lee not quite managing to be distinctive here.
Syesha: This would have been the ideal opportunity for Syesha to have proven that she’s not just another Whitney Houston imitator, as she so disappointingly has been revealing herself to be over the past few weeks. But, no, Syesha found an emotional “in” to “I Will Always Love You,” taking the first part of the song a little bit more subdued than Whitney –- apparently, she styled it after Dolly’s original –- but then she hits the big closing note, reminding us all that she wants nothing more than being a new Whitney. And she does it well, but she does it without distinction, so it winds up being a bit forgettable, yet again.
Michael Johns: The best was indeed saved for last as Michael Johns turns “It’s All Wrong, But It’s All Right” into a stripped-down, soulful blues-rocker that not only plays to Michael’s strengths, but showed that he understood the meaning of the song — something that was in short supply last night. With this and last week’s Queen two-fer underneath his belt, Michael Johns is suddenly seeming like a star again.
Front Page 
Subject: American Idol: Hooray for Dollywood! 
Thu Apr 03, 2008 10:33 am
