AI 7.2 - Beatles Catalog Mar 20 '08    Write an essay on this topic. Tweet The Bottom Line It's high time this pool of talent shows what it can do, or this might end up being the biggest letdown season ever. For tonight's show they decided to expand on last week's 'Lennon-McCartney Songbook' and go with the Beatles' catalog in general. This makes me happy – I like the Beatles. Then again, I don't love bad covers of the Beatles, so lets hope there's no repeat of Christy Lee Cook or David Archuleta's performances from last week. Amanda Overmeyer Back in the USSR 7/10 Hard driving southern rock is promised by Amanda's lead-in video. And she kinda promises. This song is definitely in her roundhouse, but the middle section was all over the place pitch-wise. Overall it was OK, but I'm not blown away. Randy gives her a seven-out-of-ten, and I think I agree. Christy Lee Cook You've Got to Hide Your Love Away 7/10 OK. I think she has the IQ of a hashbrown. Her interview with Ryan was inane. But I have to say, the song is working OK for her. I don't like the way she changed the melody on the chorus, but the arrangement is contemporary without being dorky. She still needs to work on her stage presence, but she didn't do too bad with it. David Archuleta The Long and Winding Road 10/10 This might be better for him – it's more his style than We Can Work it Out which he butchered last week. And he will win back any lost fans with this rendition. He didn't muck about much with the arrangement, he had really outstanding vocals, and some very good embellishments. Once again he found a song that he could record tomorrow and sell a jillion records to his adoring fans. I just wish he hadn't messed up the ending with the 'yeah, yeah, yeah...' at the end. Michael Johns A Day in the Life 5.5/10 He read the news today... it said Michael Johns needs better vocal range to make this whole thing work for him. His lack of a falsetto is really starting to work against him. Straining on the high notes isn't going to win him any girlfriends. This performance was only just sota OK. I didn't love it – in fact it was pretty disappointing. That could be the end of the road for Michael. ... But wait – he'll maybe win a few sympathy votes with his dedication to his dead friend, so maybe he will still be with us next week after all. Brook White Here Comes the Sun 7.5/10 There's a definite country spin on this one for Brook. I can hear Christy getting jealous back stage. I'm not sure this is her best performance, but it's still solid, on pitch, and entertaining. And I like her dress. David Cook Day Tripper 8.5/10 One of only two Davids left in this competition... and also one of two Cooks. I hope he doesn't disappear just for being redundant. But there's nothing redundant about how he performs. He found a White Snake version of the song that's lettin' him rock out as usual. And... big risk... he did the Peter Framptom squawk box thing. It was interesting and generally entertaining, but not his best performance. Carly Smithson Blackbird 10/10 A wee bit of a departure for our Irish lass. And there's not much critique to be done here. She's got an amazing voice – perfect clarity. They keep comparing her to Kelly Clarkson, but I think that was slightly reminiscent of Celine Dion. Simon didn't get it, but I thought it was great. Jason Castro Michelle 6.5/10 This might be terrible... I don't have the highest of hopes. He's doing better than the nightmare scenario I was imagining, but it's a little boring. There's nothing really to do with the song that could showcase him as a performer. Tonight he showed how truly average he can be. Syesha Mercado Yesterday 8.5/10 She looks fabulous. I am unsure about her performance though. It's not bad, but the high key makes it sound a little brittle. She had a couple of nice moments with it but I' not jumping up and down. It was good, but falls short of legendary. Chickezie I've Just Seen a Face 8/10 Singing a song that's a little less well-know could have worked against him. It would have if he's been Michael or Christy. But he did something unique that kinda managed to work in spite of itself. As with a couple of others tonight it was merely good and not great, but he'll definitely be around again next week. I have to agree with Simon though – it came across as gimicky. Ramiele Malubay I Should Have Known Better 6.5/10 My first thought is that I want to chop off her arm to keep it from flailing around like that. Her singing is ... OK. I can't say it's bad... it's just ordinary. I know there are a lot of people who are in love with this girl, but I'm just not one of them. Based on other performances tonight she deserves to be around for another week. I'd say that overall this week was mostly mediocre. Even with a couple of great performances, there is nothing that really stands out in my mind as I think back over the show. The Beatles catalog has so many potential power hits, and there really just wasn't much to hang your hat on tonight. Top of the heap – No question... it's Carly and Archuleta tonight. Bottom of the Barrel – Jason and Ramiele were not great tonight, but Michael made a really poor song choice and I think it might finally be his death knell. RESULTS I'm shocked that Carly was in the bottom three. That is just so wrong. She is by far my favorite girl in this thing, and has a real chance to be great one day. I'm mildly disappointed that Amanda got the boot this early. I will concede however, that more than anything she's just not right for this competition. She handled the news with aplomb and grace, and is probably just as happy to go back to her bars where everyone in the house gets her and appreciates the whole southern rock vibe. So, buh-bye Amanda. I wish you all luck. Go cut an album and prove them all wrong. See this review in its original habitat at www.pearannoyed.com

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