Season Of The Girls? NOT Wicked Cool.

Idolites -

Well, Simon was wrong, eh? We're down to five and we have just one girl left. Granted, she's the best one, but the voters seem to disagree with Simon's take on the field.

Although he did make that statement before Lilly Scott was kicked off...that's right, I told you I wouldn't let it go!

Siobhan's exit also leaves another hole in a season of bland contestants. Though she had started to sound more and more generic herself, at least there was a chance she could break out with a cool performance. Oh well.

As for the pool, Sherri Nichols retained her lead, but it was cut down to just one point over Jessica Fracker. Jessica is known for her excellent performance in this pool. Will Aaron carry her to this year's title? I think I like Sherri's chances better, but who knows.

Just a couple of things from me:

* You will probably not hear from me next week, as I am on a sales road trip in the Midwest and will most likely not even get to see either show myself. I'll have to catch them on the DVR when I get home. Sinatra Week this late? Could be interesting.

* I will send out a late pay list the week of 5/10. I'm just not going to have time to get to it before I leave for my trip. So, if you haven't sent in your payment, you have an extra 10 days!

Have a great week!!

Pool Boy Out!

WIth Just Six Left, No One Sucked!

Idolites -

Shania Twain, eh? Well, I can't say that I'm a fan of her music, but Shania always proves to be a solid contributor to Idol. Despite not loving a lot of the songs performed last night, Shania seemed to bring out the best in the contestants. With just six remaining, it's now becoming more a matter of taste for the voters, as no one was so obviously bad that they need to go...yes, that's right, Tim is gone.

Gotta give the producers props. When they introduced each contestant with a description of what they are: Lee, a painter...Aaron, a high school student...with Michael, they went with a father, officially ending his career as a trainer.

Did anyone else notice Blake Lewis sitting behind Randy Jackson? Oh my! Looks like he was out to see a Flock Of Seagulls concert. Just goes to show you that finishing second on Idol is no guarantee of recording success.

LEE - "Looks Like We Made It" What Lee has done over the past few weeks is define himself through increased self confidence. He has a look. He has a sound. He has a style. He gives another solid performance and has the judges and voters on his side. If I had to pick my pool over again starting today I'd have two things: 1) a perfect pool to date and 2) Lee as my winner.

MICHAEL - "It Only Hurst When I'm Breathing" Why do the wardrobe folks insist on putting him in tight clothing. When he stood up from sitting on the stairs, I was half expecting a groan. Overall, it was a nice job on the vocals. Again, not my cup of tea on the song or the vocals, but it was delivered clean. Kinda boring for me. Leah actually commented, like Simon, that it felt a little feminine. She did not say 'wet', but who does besides Simon? I think Big Mike's in trouble again...this time without a safety net.

CASEY - "Don't" Not often you have someone make it to the top 6 and admit they "haven't really sung yet". Casey called himself out last night, which was kind of refreshing. On the heels of admitting he hadn't really featured his voice yet, he goes out and delivers a great vocal performance. My only confusion is that if he admits that his guitar playing last night was just rhythm guitar, why play it at all? I think he would have had an even more memorable performance if he just sat up there alone on the mic. Love how Ellen cites the Seger in his voice!!

CRYSTAL - "No One Needs To Know Right Now" The judges mirrored my comments during her performance. Crystal is never not good. This could be her ultimate downfall and why many early favorites on Idol never win. The problem is that when she isn't spectacular, it stands out. That was a nice, fun, catchy tune done well. But when compared to the rest of her performances, it was just OK. Plus, the rest of the performances tonight were all pretty good, so it puts her in a vulnerable position.

AARON - "You Got Away" Aaron, the balladeer. Like Aaron. Hate his style of singing. He's kind of like a white, teen version of Anoop. Aaron is clearly the least polished one left, but may still carry forward since Tim is now gone and the young teen girls need someone to vote for. In a surprise, I say Aaron is safe tonight...and NOT in the bottom 3.

SIOBHAN - "Any Man Of Mine" I like the fact that she went with an upbeat song. I hate the fact that she seems to have lost her creative edge. She is singing all of the songs these days without switching up the arrangement or making them her own. She did go back to the scream and the long note, which works well when you're in the last spot of the night. This one she seemed to crack on the end, though. She's one of just two girls left (here in the season of the Girl...Simon?), so I think she'll last another week or two. However, unless she pulls out another "Paint It Black"-style performance soon, I think Siobhan is done soon.

RECAP:

Best Look - Lee (hip, clean)

Worst Look - Crystal HM - Siobhan

Best Performance - Lee HM - Casey & everyone else...no one was bad tonight

PREDICTIONS:

Bottom 3 (should be) - Aaron, Siobhan, Michael

Bottom 3 (will be) - Siobhan, Michael, Lee

Out (should be) - Aaron

Out (will be) - Michael

That's all folks!

Enjoy the show tonight!!

Pool Boy Out!

Idol Gives Back...Tim.

Idolites -

Before he could break out the pony hawk, Tim Urban was finally sent home last night. As with Sanjaya, the cute-boy, out-of-control hair, votefortheworst.com poster child made it as far as 7th place. Not bad, Tim!

The Idol Gives Back show was, again, an interesting mix of performances and tear-jerking stories. Can you believe the Black Eyed Peas were there? You never see them doing shows like this.

The highlight for me was Wanda Sykes. I have heard her bit about American Idol before and it still rings funny and true.

As for the pool, Sherri Nichols has increased her lead to two points over second place TexAg99, who had Didi winning. So, if Lee can pull out a victory, Sherri could be well on her way to a pool win. Things are just halfway done, though, so it's still pretty wide open. Just 10 points separate the top 24 spots.

I have been receiving payments from everyone and will have an update on who has not yet paid early next week. So, if you have not yet sent in your payment, please do so, so I don't have to call you out on the blog next week ;-).

Have a wonderful weekend!

Pool Boy Out!

Idol Gives Back

Idolites -

Sorry for the hibernation last week. I was swamped at a trade show and had virtually no extra time to make my commentary, much less see my pool go down in flames with Andrew's departure. Guess I'll be relying on Presley's pool from now on. Although with Siobhan continuing to confuse, I think Lucky is the front-runner in the Pool Boy household.

Given the theme last night I was actually relieved that Andrew wasn't there any longer. I don't think I could handle watching him struggle yet again. Alicia Keys, though I'm not a huge fan of her music, was the perfect mentor for Idol Gives Back Week. So nice...and so inspirational herself...tonight's show should be quite good.

As for last night, everyone seemed to be on their best behavior since this was the first performance show of the Top 12 to last just 60 minutes. Didn't leave much room for Seacrest to lose his mind or for the judges to ramble.

CASEY - "Don't Stop" With the field narrowing, Casey is starting to show why he isn't going to be around for much longer. Again, he goes for the road house bar scene performance. If I closed my eyes during his song, I thought to myself, "Why is Bob Seger covering Fleetwood Mac?" I think he chose the song for the guitar riffs, not the vocals. It seems to me he really isn't trying to win. He has gotten his exposure and will make a living with his music, so he's determined to audition his sound each and every week. He'll finally sniff the bottom 3 this week.

LEE - "The Boxer" Great song choice! Here is an example of a similar type of artist to Casey, but one who wants to win. If it weren't for Crystal finishing the show so strong, this would have been the performance of the night. Everyone in our household had goosebumps during this one. Lee continues to improve week to week and has put himself in the position to challenge Crystal for the title. Lee can win this thing.

TIM - "Better Days" I think that was the song? Another that was good 'for Tim' performance. Peter Brady has ridden the train into the Top 7. His hair is slowly taking over his head as it clings to his face and neck, slowly swallowing him up. Sanjaya made it this far before finally going home. Will Tim have the same fate? Or will the house money be enough for him to play one more week?

AARON - "I Believe I Can Fly" A 17-year old singing R. Kelly just seems wrong. At least it was a boy. Aaron has a great name. He's a sweet guy and he does have a nice voice, but his mediocre karaoke covers are starting to get a bit boring. Can't really call him an artist. He's a good singer...with about one to three weeks left at most.

SIOBHAN - "If You Believe" I'm finding that Siobhan is surprising me in ways I didn't think she would....and not in a good way. She is picking songs I can't stand and delivers them in a very old-fashioned way. Again, she started the song off very weird and boring. She then picks it up during the second half. The problem I am having is that she presents herself as more edgy and weird (which I like), but delivers performances I'd expect to hear from someone like Katie, if she were still here. She's not totally out of the running, but she needs to get back to where she was a few weeks ago and bring out the creativity and originality. She is certainly getting a lot of time to explain herself though.

MICHAEL - "Hero" Kind of like Aaron, but delivered a bit better. I still don't understand why he brings out the guitar all the time. It was completely unnecessary last night and it just makes him look more gigantic than he already is. Plus, with that type of song, it didn't allow for him to truly deliver an inspirational performance. I think it held him back. He should be safe again, though.

CRYSTAL - "People Get Ready" It was about this point last season that Adam set himself apart from the rest of the pack. It was clear that he was, by far, the best performer in the competition. Crystal has done that this season. Even with Lee coming on strong, Crystal is the class of the show right now. She can do it all and has NEVER delivered a bad performance. The only thing that stands between her and an Idol win, is the fact that she was the favorite (who has never won) and a crazy voting public that could get lazy and allow her to slip when we get to the top 3 or 4. It's Crystal's to lose.

RECAP:

Best Look - Lee (like a young Paul Simon) HM - Crystal

Worst Look - Casey (getting lazy all around) HM - Siobhan (less is more...get rid of the butterflies and footwear and she's on the list above)

Best Performance - Crystal HM - Lee

Worst Performance - Tim, Casey, Aaron - Tie

PREDICTIONS:

Bottom 3 (should be) - Casey, Aaron, Tim

Bottom 3 (will be) - Casey, Aaron, Tim

Out (should be) - Tim

Out (will be) - No one...I think they'll want to end the show on an upbeat note and will carry over the votes to next week and add them to votes they get next Tuesday...yes?

Enjoy the show tonight!

Pool Boy Out!

Adam. Elvis. What's Not To Love?

Howdy Idolites!

Sorry I didn't post anything after last week's save of Michael. I just started a new job and was on a business trip. That being said, I am leaving again today for a trade show in California. I'm not even quite sure if I will be able to watch tonight's show. So, if I may be out of blogging commission tomorrow as well, but thanks to James and his pool website, we'll all be updated on the standings.

Since there is a double elimination tonight, the first one eliminated will be the 9th place finisher and the second one eliminated will be the 8th place finisher.

On to the show...

* Has anyone else noticed how weird and borderline creepy Seacrest is becoming? He's like a 9-year old with ADD. Between slow dancing with a large man during Tim's song, throwing out a dig at Brian Dunkleman and continually probing the contestants with uncomfortable questions, it seems as if he's trying to become bigger than the show. Can someone please give the guy some decaf please?

* So we get Adam Lambert as the mentor...thank goodness! It was apparent that he has been watching the show and feels the same way we all do...ZZZZZZZZ! I'm glad he called out a few of the contestants about being boring. He raised the bar last year on performance and I think his influence really helped the performances last night.

* Elvis songs had the potential to be really bad, but overall I thought most everyone did pretty well. Since Leah & I were married by Elvis in Vegas (note picture above), we certainly have some connections to him (i.e. kids named Lucky Jackson & Presley), as well as a few songs. The contestants didn't disappoint.

CRYSTAL - "Saved" WOW! I had never heard this song, but will certainly purchase Crystal's version on iTunes. That was simply one of the best performances I've seen on this show. She had her usual great voice, but injected her performance with fun and energy. Nice assist from Adam with the electric guitar suggestion. Still the one to beat.

ANDREW - "Hound Dog" This was the defining moment for Andrew. He had Adam there to tell him he was fading and his song was sounding boring. This week could determine if he is ready to make a run or will go home tonight. The song choice was horrible. No guitar either...yikes. I actually liked the arrangement. Liked the old-style microphone. Liked the Elvis-style hair. Didn't hate the performance as much as the judges, but it was apparent that Andrew (and my pool) are about to go down.

TIM - "Can't Help Falling In Love" Gotta say I was worried on this one. This was the song Leah came down the aisle to at our wedding and I didn't want to hear it destroyed. Although he didn't take Adam's advice and use his falsetto at the end, he did an admirable job and was better than Andrew. Tim seems to be going the way of Kris Allen. wearing his bland clothes and riding the guitar. Tim's 'Kris Allen-lite' persona could push him even further in the competition. At least one more week, yes?

LEE - "A Little Less Conversation" Another one of my favorite Elvis songs. Had Crystal not been so amazing Lee would have stolen the show. Great performance. Great energy. I think Kara is smoking crack when she tells him to smile more and lighten up. He was awesome in his sound, his look and his performance. Lee has put himself back in contention.

AARON - "Blue Suede Shoes" Cheesy. Karaoke. Cruise Ship. Amusement Park...just pick the one you like best and that would fit his performance just fine. As Leah put it, "he looks like he's giving up." Simon was right on when he said the song made him sound old and I agree. I don't know what Kara was watching last night. I think Aaron could be in trouble and certainly doesn't look to be lasting longer than a couple more weeks at best. The confidence just isn't there.

SIOBHAN - "Suspicious Minds" Another one of my favorite Elvis songs. This was weird. The first half of the performance felt like I was watching Sheena Easton perform this at karaoke in 1985. Then, she changes it up and the second half sounded awesome! I've never gone from hate this to love this so fast. I like the fact that she defended herself and didn't want to have a label placed on her. Very appropriate on an Elvis/Adam night.

MICHAEL - "In The Ghetto" Yes! Another great Elvis song. Nice assist by Siobhan on that choice. All in all, it was a pretty good performance. It kinda gets lost amongst a lot of other better performances last night, but it will be more than enough to keep Michael around. I actually hope Michael gets a career in music, because he must stop calling himself a trainer. The dude is just huge.

KATIE - "Baby, What Do You Want Me To Do?" Another song I had never heard. I actually thought is was a pretty good performance. I was actually surprised that Simon didn't jump on the fact that she sang it with a country vibe. As with Aaron, I think she is struggling with confidence (who wouldn't at age 17). She is clearly frustrated with the judges comments and has yet to find her groove. Just a few more weeks left for Katie.

CASEY - "?" I still can't figure out what song that was. Simon nailed it, though. It was a wasted opportunity for Casey. He'll definitely be safe tonight, but he could have had a great, more memorable performance that could have carried him even further in the competition...a 'moment' if you will. Instead, he took the final slot of the night and played it safe. Not bad. Not great. Just OK...and a bit too much vibrato for me.

RECAP:

Best Look - Crystal HM - Lee

Worst Look - Katie HM - Siobhan

Best Performance - Crystal HM - Lee

Worst Performance - Aaron HM - Andrew

PREDICTIONS:

Bottom 3 (should be) - Aaron, Andrew, Katie

Bottom 3 (will be) - Aaron, Andrew, Tim

Out (should be) - Aaron, Tim

Out (will be) - Aaron, Andrew (ouch, that's my first and middle name)

Time permitting, I'll make some pool updates tonight or tomorrow.

Until then....

Pool Boy out!

Can't Buy Me Love...or Votes.

Idolites -

Two seasons ago, the Idols got two swings at The Beatles. There were some memorable performances and some awful ones. Last night proved to be much more on the good side, as we saw Lee and Casey take huge strides in the competition.

AARON - "The Long & Winding Road" How many times must I ask if these contestants have ever watched the show before. Just because you're getting occasional comparisons to David Archuleta doesn't mean you need to keep singing songs he did. If you do decide to rehash a song from just two seasons ago, keep two things in mind: 1) sing it different and better, 2) don't perform in a navy straight jacket with your sleeves rolled up. Is David Letterman giving him fashion advice? That was not a good performance. He has yet to see the bottom 3, but I think: First to perform + Sleepy, rehashed performance = Trouble for Aaron.

KATIE - "Let It Be" I wasn't quite as taken by that performance as the judges, however it was a marked improvement from last week and WAY more passionate than Aaron. Very strategic of her to base her prom date on the one who votes the most for her. That, coupled with the fact that there are just three girls left should keep her out of the bottom 3 this week. Oh, and though I agree with Simon on the fact that she should go with a country edge, that was not a country performance.

ANDREW - "Can't Buy Me Love" As we go to commercial break, I see Andrew sitting on the stairs without his guitar...NO!!! OK, it's back...whew! Even if I hadn't been so stupid as to pick Andrew to win, I would be interested in seeing him go as far as possible just to see how high he can get that hair to grow. I wasn't thrilled at the song selection, but it started out quite good. Then the cheesy horn arrangement kicked in and it felt like a completely different (cruise shippy) vibe. There are less and less contestants, performances like this can't slide through any more. I think my Idol is in serious trouble tonight.

MICHAEL - "Elanor Rigby" Yet another song that's been done on the show before...much better. Have these contestants EVER watched the show before. It's not like this was done by Sanjaya or David Hernandez. It was David Cook and he killed it. That being said, it was actually done fairly well, but in typical Michael fashion, he felt like he needed to add a bunch of cheese on the end. His fans love it though and he'll, once again, sail through to next week.

CRYSTAL - "Come Together" Despite having a cold, Crystal knocks it out of the park. That was actually a good song to sing with a slightly raspy voice. She is really starting to separate herself from the pack these days. The huge difference now is that she has finally loosened up and no longer looks embarrassed to be there. She actually seems to be having fun and is smiling. The only thing I noticed is that she seems to close her eyes quite a bit while she is singing. It didn't hurt David Archuleta, though, and it won't hurt her. Will she be the first odds on favorite to win it all? Looking good right now.

TIM - "All My Lovin" Wow, the judges have given up. They are now complimenting him on taking criticism well and judging him on a "Tim" scale (Randy.."That was a good Tim performance."). I liked the fact that he used the guitar again. It kept him from doing anything weird. It would be nice if he could actually play. He spent most of the song watching his fingers on the fret. Although, that did reign in his nuttiness.

CASEY - "Jealous Guy" WOW! I hadn't really taken Casey too seriously until now. I knew he was a lock for the top 5 and that he could play a mean guitar, but never felt like he was a contender, as he always felt like a guitar player that sings. I still think that his vocal style isn't exactly what garners votes, but Taylor Hicks won this thing, so who knows. That performance was one of the best I've seen this season. He finally ditched the cheesy smile and showed a more serious and tender side. Keeping it completely acoustic was brilliant (please take note Andrew). Being from Texas helps too. Can he ride this momentum to a win? I now say maybe.

SIOBHAN - "Across The Universe" This one killed off Michael Johns, let's hope it doesn't have the same effect on Siobhan. I totally understand why she sang the song the way she did, but it was a bit too much on the sleepy side. She is obviously quite overwhelmed by the whole Idol experience as well. She has been on the brink of tears two weeks in a row. Is Siobhan imploding? Let's hope not, but tonight she could find herself in the bottom 3. She's not going home though.

LEE - "Hey Jude" Not the most favorable back story by his competitors...He's neurotic and has a crush on Andrew. Leah & I were debating on whether or not Hey Jude would be a good song to sing on the show. I thought it was just too long and relied too much on the chorus. Lee obviously disagreed and went for it anyway. He is definitely looking more confident and relaxed, as the Dave Mathews and hunch were much more subdued...he's making progress. I find it hard to believe he was the one that said "Hey, you know what would take my performance to the next level? A bagpipe player!" That was completely distracting and random. Simon nailed it...it was like he was supposed to be on a different show and ended up on the Idol set. Lee is definitely a contender.

RECAPS

Best Look - Lee HM - Siobhan (I'm a sucker for her nutty garb), Michael (Hey! A jacket that actually fits!!)

Worst Look - Aaron HM - Andrew (suit was OK, shirt was not)

Best Performance - Casey HM - Crystal

Worst Performance - Aaron HM - Tim

PREDICTIONS

Bottom 3 (should be) - Tim, Aaron, Andrew

Bottom 3 (will be) - Tim, Aaron, Andrew

Out (should be) - Tim

Out (will be) - Andrew (not sure the judges would save him at this point either...sigh)

Enjoy the show tonight and be sure to vote for who you think will be gone.

- Pool Boy out

The South Has Fallen

Idolites -

As regular readers of this blog know, the winners of American Idol have almost always come from states in the South. Kris Allen (Arkansas) proved the South can put together votes with his massive upset over Adam Lambert last season. Well, with Miss Tennessee now out of the competition, the remaining Southern contestant is Casey James, from Texas. I thought her Tennessee roots would carry Didi a bit farther, but America got it right again.

Yes, Teflon Tim looks like he's trying to beat Nikki McKibbon's record of most times in the bottom 3 without getting eliminated, but he's only going to hang on for so long.

So here we sit. Three weeks into the Top 12 in the 'year of the girls' and we now only have three of them left. Do you think Lilly Scott would have been eliminated yet if she were in the Top 12? I don't think so. I can't believe they felt it was necessary to expand to a Top 13 for Anoop, but couldn't do the same for Lilly. I told you I'd be bitching about this for awhile.

To the pool...

We no longer have any perfect pools.

Beth Shanaman has held on to her first place lead, but it is down to just one point. Who is in second place you ask? Well, it's Season 7 pool champ Nancy Ging (mother of Ginger) and, yes, your's truly!! I actually had Didi out last night (along with 5 others) to give me two in a row. My problem...I have Aaron in 12th and Andrew winning. So, I'll savor my standing for a week.

With Didi's departure, the first four people lost their Idol.

It will be that way from here on out. Yes, someone actually picked Tim to win.

Until next week...

Pool Boy Out

Andrew's Back With A Touch Of Ginger

Idolites -

Well, one of you came through for me and passed along her magic touch to Andrew Garcia, getting him back on track in this competition. That's right, Tracy Ging (Ginger) is seen in the photo to the left with Andrew Garcia, who she met this weekend. Thanks Ginger! Maybe if we coax her, she can tell us more about their meeting in the comments section below?

On to the show...

So when Usher first comes on to talk about him being a mentor, it sounds like he's gonna be kind of a hard ass. Turns out he was a pretty nice guy.

SIOBHAN - "Through The Fire" OK, if any of you read my blog last week, you would have noticed that this was one of the songs I suggested for Andrew. Love the song. Love Siobhan. Hated that performance. Just seconds after Usher says Siobhan has a true shot at becoming an incredible artist, she delivers her worst performance of the season. Not a good spot to do that either. First out of the gate is not a good time to deliver a dud. Her vocals were off, her clothing was off, her makeup was off, her hair was off...yikes! She was really holding back the tears too. It was like a funeral when she went backstage. She'll be fine, but I think this may have been a bit of a wake up call.

CASEY - "Hold On" Casey continues his feel good blues guitar vibe, but delivers a much more solid performance. He continues to sing with that cheesy smile on his face throughout the song. I'd like to see him tone that down a bit. How about Ellen providing him with the slap down on playing it safe? For all of you that have been (unjustifiably) complaining about how Ellen is too nice, how was tonight for you? She was almost as negative as Simon. I love Ellen! Casey has made it clear who he is and what he'll be doing. I don't think it will translate into a win, but it will carry him into the Top 5 and a nice career. Good for you Casey!

MICHAEL - "Ready For Love" Big Mike did a nice job on this song from a vocal standpoint. I still don't understand why he ever brings out the guitar. It was completely unnecessary for this song, as you couldn't hear it at all. It also always looks like a ukulele up against his gigantic body. I still think he's a cheeseball, but this was a nice performance.

DIDI - "What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted?" YIKES! Well, Brooke White was back during her rehearsal session with Usher. I don't think he knew what to do while she was crying. I don't understand why contestants choose songs that have a sad emotional connection for them. Especially someone like Didi. She came out there looking like she was dressed for the grand buffet on her cruise ship. I felt like i was watching a performance at a beauty pageant. "Ladies and gentlemen, Miss Tennessee!" It was one of the worst performances I've seen on Idol. Nothing worked. Then, Seacrest somehow felt like he needed to save her and shill for extra votes by trying to pry out of her why she sang the song. To her credit, Didi was not ready to go there, but Ryan's 'Extra' persona kept picking and picking at her incessantly. Let her be Ryan!

TIM - "Sweet Love" HA! Anita Baker, Tim? I guess the producers of the show have been reading my blog, as they have now picked up on the Teflon Tim moniker. The poor kid doesn't even realize what it means. It means you are most definitely the second coming of Sanjaya. The song was just awful. It did come with two of the best quotes from the night, however. Ellen.."You can't walk like you're sneaking into a bedroom." HA!!! My favorite was from Tim, though. In his 'behind the scenes' clip he says (referring to the judges comments) "It wasn't as bad as it could have been." He just got beaten up, but could still see the bright side. Gotta love denial!

ANDREW - "Forever" So, the first thing I hear out of Andrew's mouth is that he's singing a Chris Brown song. Dude? Are your trying to get eliminated? Let's just piss off all the female voters. It all got better from there. He brought back the guitar!! He rocked the silver suit and Elvis hair do, looking much like Adam Lambert during R&B week last year. I didn't know the song and the lyrics were definitely cheesy, but I can't imagine it wasn't WAY better than the original. He has his mojo back, but I have a bad feeling about the results tonight anyway. Will a judges save happen?

KATIE - "Chain Of Fools" To me, a huge step back for her this week. First of all, she looked like she just got back from a shopping spree at Claire's and Hot Topic. The shorts were reminiscent of Paige's Crocodile Hunter outfit a few weeks ago. As for the song, Ellen nailed it again..she sounded old fashioned. Randy & Kara keep telling her this is the style she needs to keep singing. Simon is right if she wants a career. Pop country is her strength.

LEE - "Treat Her Like A Lady" Yes, this was kind of a rebirth of Lee as well. He sounded great and seemed to have more confidence. I still just can't get over the fact that he looks and hold himself just like Dave Mathews on stage. Tonight sounded like a mix of DM and Eddie Vedder. He just continually stands in one place holding his guitar way up high rocking back and forth like a mental patient. If this was his 'life changing' moment, as Simon asserted, then the talent pool truly is weaker this season.

CRYSTAL - "Midnight Train To Georgia" Nice! I get what Simon was trying to tell her, but what tonight did for Crystal was (much like Adam Lambert last season) to capture voters that probably weren't on her side previously. She was more accessible in her look and sound. She also made it clear that she is thinking about the compeition and wants to win. It was the first time, to me, that she looked like she wanted to be there. Ellen nails it yet again.

AARON - "Ain't No Sunshine" Blah. Didn't do much with the pimp spot of the night. Judges were right. It was OK. He'll be safe. Why do contestants consistently choose songs that have been done on the show before? Kris Allen killed that one just last year. You were watching, right Aaron?

RECAPS:

Best Look - Andrew HM - Casey, Lee

Worst Look - Katie HM - Siobhan, Didi

Best Performance - Crystal HM - Casey, Andrew, Lee

Worst Performance - Didi HM - Tim, Siobhan

PREDICTIONS:

Bottom 3 (should be) - Tim, Didi, Katie

Bottom 3 (will be) - Andrew, Tim, Katie

Out (should be) - Tim

Out (will be) - NO ONE!! That's right, here is my bold prediction tonight. Andrew will be in the position to sing for his life and will be saved. I hope this isn't the case, because I'll be freaking out, but I gotta feeling!

Be sure to vote on you you think will go.

- Pool Boy Out

Turn The Paige...Idol Summer Tour Is Set

America is 2 for 2.

I guess this isn't such a surprise. As in past seasons, the first couple of cuts in the Top 12 are usually the weaker contestants. Neither Paige or Lacey really had any business being there in the first place (did I ever mention how I thought Lilly Scott got a raw deal?).

Now, this 'season of the girls' only has four of them remaining. Albeit, the best two contestants (by far) are both female. However, the boys are getting votes...including the teflon pair of Tim and Andrew.

Of course I was thrilled to see that Andrew not only avoided the bottom 3 yet again, but also let Seacrest know that his musical strength is in doing acoustic songs. Duh! So, I'm hoping he listens to himself, ignores Usher and Simon, and does a completely stripped down version of a song by, say Chaka Khan ("Through The Fire" or "Ain't Nobody"), Terence Trent D'arby ("Wishing Well"), TLC ("Waterfalls"), Amy Winehouse ("You Know I'm No Good"), or even Joss Stone ("Put Your Hands On Me"). Yes, I want Andrew back. I want Idol back. I think he is one of the few contestants left that can bring some originality to challenge Siobhan and Crystal...and, yes, my pool hopes are riding on his back.

As for the pool, we now only have two perfect pools remaining. Gavin Fysh & long-time Idolite Beth Shanaman are two for two. They each have 20 points and hold a 3 point lead on the rest of the field. They each have Tim going out next week as well. Unless he continues to pull a Nikki McKibbon and survive the bottom 3 week after week, they could be building a sizable lead.

This brings me to a request of some of you. Many of you are new to the pool this year. Also, many have entered their own pools on the standings website with user names I do not recognize. In order for me to understand who has paid, as well as allow me to acknowledge throughout tthe season, can those of you that DO NOT have your full name as your user name, please e-mail me directly with both? (asoenkeruona@gmail.com) It would really be helpful.

Lastly, I have determined the payouts for the pool. We have a total of 93 entries, for a total of $930 in the pot. I have decided to pay out the Top 14 spots as follows:

1st Place - $300, 2nd - $150, 3rd - 100, 4th - $75, 5th - $60, 6th - $40, 7th - $35, 8th - $30, 9th - $30, 10th - $25, 11th - $25, 12th - $20, 13th - $20, 14th - $20

Until next week,

Pool Boy Out!