The top 10 girls get their second chance

Tonight the top 10 girls get their second chance to prove themselves. Here are the songs from the 70's that they chose:

Heart paved the way for women in rock when they hit the charts in 1976 with Crazy On You. Carly Smithson grabbed the wheel and drove away with this powerful vocal challenge. She clearly has a great voice and it is easily suited to a broad range of styles. All we have to do is hop in and enjoy the ride.

Billy Paul stayed at #1 for three weeks in 1972 with Me & Mrs. Jones. Syesha Mercado embarked on her illicit affair with Mr. Jones as she grabbed the mike and belted out this R&B power ballad. She looks cute and the soft notes were sweet, but she really shines when she brings home the big notes.

Carly Simon also stayed at #1 for three weeks in 1972 with You're So Vain. There was nothing vain about pure and innocent Brooke White as she strummed her guitar to perform this wonderful song. It was very well-suited to her voice and style. She's SO making the best of her opportunity on stage.

Thelma Houston hit the top of the charts in 1977 with Don't Leave Me This Way. Ramiele Malubay dimmed all the lights at the beginning to ease the crowd in before the disco lights began to shimmer and swirl. Her strong vocals carried her through very easily, but overall, it was a pretty safe performance.

Linda Ronstadt had her biggest #1 smash in 1975 with You're No Good. Kristy Lee Cook showed us that she's quite good as she strutted her stuff across the stage. This week she chose a song that better conveyed her vocal abilities and stage presence.

Kansas had their first chart success with Carry On Wayward Son in 1977. Amanda Overmyer sported Tracy Turnblad's hairsprayed hair flip as she rocked the audience through the roof. Her vocals were exactly as raspy and limited as expected but she really impressed with her wild dance moves.

Olivia Newton-John continued her string of hits in 1978 when Hopelessly Devoted To You peaked at #3. Alaina Whitaker did her best to match the pure and simple angelic vocals of Olivia, but honestly, that's impossible. That being the case, she did the song justice, but she didn't do anything special with it.

Chicago had their first #1 song in 1976 with If You Leave Me Now. Alexandrea Lushington did her best to re-arrange this adult contemporary ballad as a soulful slow jam. Her innovative effort unfortunately failed to be a success. This performance could lead to her leaving the show earlier than she'd like.

Heart had their first top 10 song with Magic Man in 1976. Kady Malloy has successfully proven herself as a multi-faceted vocalist off stage, but once again she didn't bring that personality to the American Idol stage. Is it possible that she doesn't have the passion for singing to really take this rare opportunity seriously? Even if her performances aren't that great, at least she's having fun.

Eric Carmen made his debut in 1976 when All By Myself peaked at #2. Asia'h Epperson definitely thinks she's a better singer than she actually is as she attempted to elevate her voice to the required levels for this song. She's still pretty good, but she doesn't appear to sing with the necessary effortless ease that some of the better singers have.

I don't think any of the girls put in an over the top winning performance tonight. They are all pretty good with Carly Smithson and Syesha Mercado being slightly ahead of the rest. Any of the other girls could be in danger of going home. Alaina Whitaker, Kristy Lee Cook and Kady Malloy are almost interchangeable on stage. While Amanda Overmyer is definitely unique, it's debatable if she's winning over the voters and poor song choice is clearly going to hurt Alexandrea Lushington. I think the four lowest vote getters are going to be Alaina, Kady, Amanda and Alexandrea. My prediction is that Kady and Alexandrea will be going home.