Idol (Old Blue) Eyes

Might be the end of the line for Casey's choo-choo of soft-focus glory.

Harry Connick Jr. might be the coolest guy alive. But Harry, like Sinatra was to a greater degree, is inimitable. So doing the songs of Sinatra is the artistic equivalent of what a vocal challenge it would be to have Whitney Houston night. Having him arrange the songs and performing behind them is awesome, but I'm not optimistic (partially because Jim warned me in advance) that they'll be able to pull it off.

Still, this show is supposed to reveal who's got it and who doesn't. This should be informative if not entertaining.

Aaron Kelly
Aaron looks good dressed like a grown up. (When a critique starts with comments on your looks, AI performers, you shouldn't take that as a good sign, but this time it's not all bad.) I gotta say, the look helped sell the sound. The song exposed Aaron's weaknesses, most notably his lack of confidence, but I think it also revealed a lot of potential. The big problem though is that the top 5 isn't about potential; you're supposed to have realized it by now.
Odds of Going Home: 5 to 1


Casey James
Casey started shaky, finished strong. He was nowhere near as bad as the judges made it sound. To me, it sounded like Casey was just a few rehearsals away from perfecting that song, but according to Harry he was a rehearsal too early with his best work.
Odds of Going Home: 4 to 1


Crystal Bowersox
Crystal looked good too. Kara liked Crystal's phrasing, which was the very worst part of this performance. She was lost under the beat, she swallowed the key words in every phrase, and she lacked any lyrical continuity whatsoever. Crystal's still great, but that wasn't.
Odds of Going Home: 6 to 1


Michael Lynche
"The Way You Look Tonight," really is the perfect song. Michael didn't sing it perfectly, but he did it very well. He's also the very coolest of the performers, as Ellen alluded to it. And he wore the heck out of that hat. This week really played into Mike's giant hands, because this is not completely his sound, but it's closer for him than anybody. Except . . .
Odds of Going Home: 5 to 1


Lee DeWyze
Lee killed it. He really did. That drew applause from my wife. It sounded like if Michael Buble had testosterone. His "That's Life" just sounded real and natural and cool. The scary thing is, he's probably gotten better every week, which is a very bad sign for everybody else.
Odds of Going Home: Daughtry to 1


Now I'm nervous.