American Idol, First Elimination Round

Twelve of the Top 36 American Idol singers performed last night. This is the first of three elimination rounds; only three people from these 12 will make it to the final rounds (one man, one woman, and the third-highest vote-getter). It was surprising - in some cases, surprisingly bad. Here's my breakdown by performer. I tend to go into excruciating details, so I'll try to be brief.

First up was Jackie Tohn. She turned out to be the one who was auditioning when the window fell down behind the judges, a scene which was played over and over. She chose to do "A Little Less Conversation", which turned out to be an Elvis song; since I was never an Elvis fan, I didn't recognize it and had to Google it to find out what it was. She gave an enthusiastic performance and seemed comfortable on the stage, but her voice was already husky and worn, and she was off-key for a lot of the song. The judges agreed with me. Simon said that she had a good voice, but she played the clown tonight. (He thought her actions on stage were overdone.) The performance was ungainly, the song was a bit gimmicky, and he doesn't think the public is going to like it at all. And besides, he hated her outfit. She was wearing black spandex pants with a wide belt. I didn't especially like it, either.

Ricky Braddy was next. I was relieved when they pointed out that he hadn't been featured in the previous three weeks, because I didn't have the faintest idea who he was. He's actually a pretty good singer. He did "A Song for You" by Leon Russell. Not my favorite style - it's what I think of as a power ballad, loud and fraught with emotion. The judges were impressed. Simon said it was very, very good, but he doesn't think Ricky has any star quality. I tend to disagree, but I don't think Ricky will be moving on to the next round - there are just too many good performers tonight. His parents were there with tee shirts that said "The Braddy Bunch."

One of the best performances of the night was by Alexis Grace. She did "Never Loved a Man" by Aretha Franklin, and she is clearly talented. She was dressed in a very sophisticated style, black minidress, cupid's-bow lips. I think she will win the women's vote tonight. Randy said he was loving her right now; Kara said "The genie is out of the bottle!" Paula sounded as if she were about to burst into tears. Even Simon had praise, for once. He thought she was the best contestant they've had. She has soul, and she may be a dark horse in this competition.

Brent Keith was up next. He's a good ol' country boy, cute, with great dimples. I'm not a country fan, but I liked his performance. He did "Hicktown" by Jason Aldean (according to Google; I didn't know the song!). Randy said he could see him "at a chili cookoff, me and you and Simon Cowell..." Kara thought he should have taken more risks. Paula agreed. Simon thought he was forgettable, and that he may have blown a massive opportunity.

Stevie Wright is just 16, and she needs to go home and grow up for a few more years before she tries to compete on American Idol. Her singing of Taylor Swift's "You Belong with Me" was horrendous, the worst performance of the evening. Her song choice didn't work for her, either; Taylor Swift is a wispy blonde teenager, and the song sounded as if it was written in her notebook during her high-school classes. The judges didn't like the performance, either.

Next up was my personal favorite going into this round, Anoop Desai. He did "Angel of Mine" by Monica. I was disappointed by his performance. He was off-key a lot, and this song didn't show what he's capable of. Randy started his comments with "Anoop Dogg in the house!", but followed up with "Interesting song choice", which means "bad song choice." Simon asked him why he chose that song. He thought it was too grown up and serious for him. Anoop responded that it was about thanks and being grateful for the people who were behind him. I hope he gets through, but if he does, it'll be the third-place vote.

One of my least favorite performers, Casey Carlson, was up next. I couldn't remember her, and then this morning I read one of my earlier entries and discovered I'd complained about her before. She totally destroyed "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic," by the Police, a song I really like. Randy didn't know what to say. “Not good for me, man,” he finally managed to stammer. He loves the song, but it was completely wrong for her and “weirdly karaoke at this point.” Kara said everything about that was wrong. She didn't think people should attempt to perform classic songs by people like Sting. Paula made a remark about how pretty she thought she was. (I disagree.) But that song – her phrasing was weird, she didn't think about what she was singing. Didn't work for her. Simon said the singing was just atrocious; she couldn't have chosen a worse song, and she shouldn't have been allowed to sing it. I don't think Casey will be with us much longer.

Michael Sarver, the oil-rig dude, performed Gavin deGraw's "I Don't Want to Be", which has the distinction of being a country song that I actually like. He didn't do well. He was all over the place pitchwise, and I thought he was graceless on the stage; his movements were jerky, almost spastic. The judges agreed. Simon said “this is a tricky one.” A good honest hardworking guy who deserves a break. But not the best performance. Simon hopes he gets another shot. I'm not sure what I think - Michael is hard not to like, but there were so many guys who were better than he was. I don't think he'll get through, but I bet Simon brings him back as a wild-card pick.

Ann Marie Boskovich did "Natural Woman" (which I always think of as being by Carole King,who wrote and performed it, but they announced as being by Aretha Franklin, who probably had a hit with it that I missed). It was a poor choice for this talented young woman. She couldn't handle it. The judges weren't especially encouraging, either.

Stephen Fowler did "Rock with You," by Michael Jackson, a song I'd never heard before. He wasn't very good. I think the song choice was wrong. His voice cracked on one of the high notes. Clearly this didn't show off what he's capable of. The judges didn't like it much, either; Kara and Paula both thought he should have performed the song he forgot the lyrics for in his earlier solo tryout, David Cook's "The Time of my Life". Simon thought it was a pointless performance with a terrible arrangement. "It was corny."

My favorite train wreck, Tatiana del Toro, chose to take on a Whitney Houston song, "Saving All my Love for You," one of my least favorite songs of all time. There were a few nice moments in it, actually; of all the women who were performing tonight, she's the only one who could have handled a Whitney song. Kara never knows what she's going to pull; thought it was very reserved. “Who are you in the industry? Where do you fit?” Tatiana says she fits anywhere. Paula says she's the most talked-about contestant on the show this year. Simon says she's a complete and utter drama queen. She's desperate to be famous. The song wasn't bad at all, and it was better than he expected, but the whole demure thing has to go. Then they all imitated her weird laugh. She just might make it through on her talent, who knows? But it's more like the disaster you just can't stop watching...

The final performance of the evening was one of the best: Danny Gokey did "Hero", by Mariah Carey, and he did a superb job. Randy says “The redeemer of the night, Danny Gokey, that was blazing hot!” “Kara said he was the hero. Paula said he was stellar, then said “Sold-out arenas.” Simon thought it was good, but not fantastic. Simon's full of crap tonight, as usual.

If Danny Gokey isn't the guys' top vote-getter tonight, I'll be very surprised. He earned it and he deserves it. Alexis Grace should get the women's top place. The third choice? It could be any of several people. Anoop Desai may have the fan base to carry him through. Ricky Braddy has the talent. Brent Keith has the stage presence. Tatiana del Toro has the weirdness factor. Michael Sarver has his blue-collar charm. Who knows? I don't watch results shows (they take 30 seconds of information and stretch it out over an hour), but I'll check in at the end tonight and find out.