American Idol

Last night, some of the guys redeemed themselves from the first week of live performances. But, a week after the girls showed up with some commendable efforts, will tunes from the 1970s sit well with them? It’s time to find out.

7:01 p.m.

Carly Smithson

First up, Carly Smithson. While she owns a tattoo shop, this Irish girl also works around the corner in an Irish bar. Go figure. Tonight, Carly sings Heart’s Crazy On You. It’s definitely a song and style that fits her voice. In fact, she sounds a little more hardcore with this tune than she has in past performances. It’s all about being a rocker, showing the diversity. She’s doing her thing.

“It’s great to see that you are healthy,” Paula said, referring to a strain of sickness that hurt some of the girls last week.

“I thought it was a much better performance than last week,” Simon said. “I still don’t think, yet, you’ve chosen or connected with the right song yet. … I don’t think any of these girls can touch you vocally.”

7:12 p.m.

Syesha Mercado

Syesha Mercado says people would be surprised to know she’s done a lot of commercials as an actress in her native Florida. Then she did something pretty incredible; she cried like a baby. I love it. Then, she did something even more incredible; she sang Me and Mr. Jones. This, people, is why Syesha was a favorite of mine since the beginning. She’s got an amazing look and personality and … wait for it … her voice is really soothing. And impressive.

“I don’t think this was a great song for you for me,” Randy said.

“I thought it was a bit indulgent,” Simon said. “The song, obviously, wasn’t written for a girl, so it probably was a silly thing to do.”

Brooke White

Up next is Brooke White, who says people may be surprised to know she’s a beauty school dropout. In fact, she says the reason she quit was because she discovered music while studying hairstyling. Tonight she brings a guitar to the stage to show her talent behind the microphone. Singing Carly Simon’s You’re So Vain, Brooke certainly is a fantastic performer. I’m not sure she’s good enough to win, though. There’s just a little something missing.

“It was a great song choice for you,” Randy said. “… I don’t know if you brought anything to it.”

“Your voice, I liked what you did to it,” Paula said.

“Brooke, I absolutely loved it,” Simon said.

7:27 p.m.

Ramiele Malubay

The tiny Ramiele Malubay is up next. She’s cute and perky, so how could you not like this girl? Plus, she has a pretty impressive vocal talent to back up that spunk. Don’t Leave Me This Way was a little more upbeat than what I expected Ramiele to choose for 70s week. The beginning of the song, which has a slower tempo, certainly was great. The more upbeat parts were where her voice seemed to slip a little bit out of key. It was just average for me.

“Ramiele, you also are one to beat here,” Paula said. “… It just was a song you powered through. I feel like you didn’t get to perform your magic.”

“Astonishingly, I agree with Paula,” Simon said. “The trouble with that song is I’ve heard it too many times at ghastly weddings. … This was one of those performances I’m not going to remember. … I think you’re one of the top three singers in the competition.”

7:37 p.m.

Kristy Lee Cook

She’s a self-proclaimed tomboy. She sold her horse for her chance to win Idol. Now Kristy Lee Cook is singing You’re No Good in hopes of proving she is good. There really is no questioning she is good, but is KLC the best? No. After tonight, I give her a shot at the Top 12, but certainly not the Top 5.

“You’re back, you’re back, you’re back,” Paula said. “And it was a good song choice for you.”

“I couldn’t even remember what you sang last week,” Simon said. “… My only worry with you at the moment is, I don’t know how to label you at the moment.”

7:47 p.m.

Amanda Overmyer

Amanda Overmyer is not only a nurse and biker chick. She’s also a bookworm. Wow, these revealing “secrets” sure are telling us a lot about the contestants. Holy Cruella DeVille! I think Amanda is singing, but I can’t get past that scary hair. And those pants. Oh. My. Gawd. (You know I’m serious, because I wrote “gawd.”)

Um, it turns out she’s singing, er, screaming Carry On My Wayward Son by Kansas. I’m not sure what to say about the performance, really. It’s classic Amanda, maybe, but there’s just too much … I’m not kidding, I can’t listen to what she’s singing.
“You got some moves,” Paula said. “Don’t be all shy. … You’ve got to do what feels right. … This was not the right song for you.”

“I thought, actually, in your film, you came over very natural, very cool,” Simon said, before also pointing out the terrible hair. Cue camera panning the outfit and White Rain-induced hairstyle.

7:57 p.m.

Alaina Whitaker

Alaina Whitaker hates when her food touches each other on the plate. It’s a strange “thing you didn’t know about me,” but at least it’s not “I like books.” Hopelessly Devoted to You is such an Idol song, but it’s not really working out as well for Alaina as I would have imagined. I definitely would say she’s one of the better singers in the competition, but this performance just was a little whiny for me.

“I like that song,” Randy said. “I don’t think that was the right song for you, either.”

“I think you did a real good job, Alaina,” Paula said.

“Alaina, I like you,” Simon said. “My problem is it’s almost as if your grandmother prepared you for this audition. Everything about you, it’s very old-fashioned.”

8:06 p.m.

Alexandrea Lushington

Ryan Seacrest may never be able to say her name without stumbling, but Alexandrea Lushington is probably going to be in the competition for a good while. So, he’ll probably get some practice in before the end of the season. If You Leave Me Now is a surprising song choice from Alexandrea, but I think it was a wise choice. She certainly put her stamp on the performance, though it seemed, at times, she was ahead (or maybe behind) the band. I don’t know what it was.

“Here’s the problem for me,” Randy said. “It was just too safe for you.”

“I was a big, big fan of yours in the early stages of the competition,” Simon said. “But I think you’re struggling. … (That song) is absolutely stuck in its time.”

Kady Malloy

She’s your favorite Britney Spears impersonator this season. She’s Kady Malloy, the one with the jokes. And it turns out she’s an opera singer, too. Straying from opera, tonight Kady sings Magic Man. I’m not sure what it is about this performance, but it certainly is not the best song choice. The girls seem to be struggling in that area tonight, and I think Kady may be the biggest victim thus far. This just isn’t a song you can showcase your vocal range, and that’s apparent here.

“It just never found a pitch from you coming down the stairs,” Randy said. “You never settled on to the note.”

“When you powered, you sounded great, I think,” Paula said. “On the low notes, you lost a little bit.”

“Kady, I think I’m struggling as much as you’re struggling here,” Simon said. “Everything you do on film is impressive. Then you come out here …”

8:21 p.m.

Asia’h Epperson

Did they save the best for last? I’m sure Asia’h Epperson hopes that’s the case. This former cheerleader expects to put a little spirit in her performance tonight. That performance is All By Myself, which Asia’h struggled with a couple of times throughout the song. Still, she looks incredible tonight — and that really does matter. Plus, the song is a power ballad, and that always helps when the going gets tough. Did she nail it? Probably not. But it was one of the better performances tonight.

“I got to tell you what, the highest degree of difficulty, you did a really good job,” Randy said.

“It was great,” Paula said. “You had problems in the low parts, but the ending, that’s what counts on this song.”

“It is one of the diva songs of all time, and you have got to be one heck of a singer to pull that off,” Simon said. “And, unfortunately, you’re not. … The song was too big for you.”

WHO GETS MY VOTE: Tonight’s a tough one, really. I’m going to say Syesha Mercado deserves a few votes — and not just because she’s one of my favorites. The tough part, really, is none of these performances compared to what David Archuleta brought last night with his rendition of Imagine.

WHO SHOULD GO HOME: There’s no question Kady Malloy is in a bit of hot water this week. Things just aren’t coming together for her at this point in the competition. And, if style gets put into the picture at all, consider Amanda Overmyer as good as gone.

American Idol, Amanda Overmyer, Alaina Whitaker, Alexandrea Lushington, Brooke White, Kady Malloy, Carly Smithson, Syesha Mercado, Ramiele Malubay, Asia’h Epperson, Kristy Lee Cook