The finalists had the chance to select any song that hit #1 on the Billboard HOT 100. They got a little bit of guidance this week from a 17 singer who has never had a #1 hit of her own, Miley Cyrus.
The Box Tops spent four weeks at #1 with The Letter in 1967 and Lee Dewyze did not do himself a favor by trying to sing this song that should have been much more fun. His tired old rock guy raspy voice just sounded like strained screaming and he had no personality up on stage.
Phil Collins spent three weeks at #1 with Against All Odds in 1984 and Paige Miles could not fall back on the excuse of having a sore throat tonight. The vocal performance she served up was weak from beginning to end. She did not take advantage of any opportunity to belt out the big notes at all.
Queen spent spent four weeks at #1 with Crazy Little Thing Called Love in 1980 and Tim Urban even slid across the stage to prove that he can get hip enough for what this song demands. The fact is that it just wasn't enough. Even with all of his attempts at stage theatrics it was still flat and boring.
Aerosmith hit #1 in 1998 with I Don't Want To Miss A Thing and Aaron Kelly brought his diminutive little self on to the stage to sing this big power ballad. He's not a very dynamic performer or vocalist but he's a nice kid....
Janis Joplin spent two weeks at #1 with Me And Bobby McGee in 1971 and let's be thankful that Crystal Bowersox got this song out of the way early in the competition. She is immediately compared to Janis and now she can put this behind her and start to really be herself.
When A Man Loves A Woman is one of the few songs that has hit #1 by two different artists: for one week by Michael Bolton in 1991 and for two weeks by Percy Sledge in 1966. Michael Lynche put in a great effort to make a hit of this song again. He showed off a very impressive vocal range and coupled that with his nice guy sincerity.
Marvin Gaye spent seven weeks at #1 with I Heard It Through The Grapevine in 1968 and Andrew Garcia hoped to liven up his image with this popular favorite. He failed miserably. His vocals are totally bland and his stage presence is embarrassingly awkward.
Fergie spent one week at #1 with Big Girls Don't Cry in 2007 and Katie Stevens made a great choice in selecting this big ballad. It was right all around in that it showed off her vocal range and it was more fresh and current.
Huey Lewis and The News spent two weeks at #1 with The Power of Love in 1985 and Casey James rocked the audience back to the past along with his bright smile and electric guitar. He's good all around - good looking, good vocals, good guitar playing. There's just nothing extra super great about his performances.
Linda Ronstadt spent one week at #1 with You're No Good in 1975 and Didi Benami tried to jazz things up a bit with her rendition. She tried to make it bigger than the original, but it took her vocals a little out of her range. While the overall performance was pretty fun, it didn't show her at her best.
Stevie Wonder spent one week at #1 with Superstition in 1972 and Siobhan Magnus brought her nerdy girl with an edge persona to this classic jam. What's special about this finalist is that she really pushes herself closer to the edge than anyone else in the competition taking risks both vocally and with her stylish look.
My prediction for the bottom three this week is Paige Miles, Tim Urban and Andrew Garcia. While it would be nice to finally stop Andrew from making a fool of himself, I think he will be coming back next week while Paige end up being the lowest vote getter.
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