Top 11 Redux - Elton JohnThis week was tough, too. I had to go by past performances and personal (subjective) enjoyment more than ever to rank them. Elton John is one of my favorites, and "Your Song" is one of my favorite songs. And "Bennie and the Jets" is one of my least favorite, but I tried to ignore that and base it on performance.
B+ James "Saturday Night's Alright"
B+ Jacob "Sorry Seems To Be the Hardest Word"
B Stefano "Tiny Dancer"
B Scotty "Country Comfort"
B Casey "Your Song"
B- Pia "Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me"
C+ Thia "Daniel"
C+ Lauren "Candle in the Wind"
C Haley "Bennie and the Jets"
C Paul "Rocket Man"
C- Naima "I'm Still Standing"
In order of appearance...
Scotty, of course, picked Elton's one country tune. Same ol' from him, and I wanna hear something different for once.
S: You did it again for me; J: Have amazing instinct, good; R: Sounds like it could be on your record
Naima's reggae version was interesting, but WTF was with the fake accent, and how's raggae have anything to do with Africa??
J: Love you, but not sure about this song; R: Kinda corny; S: Picked a song that fit you
Paul was breathy and never really kicked in. I want to like him, but he makes it difficult.
R: Little pitchy, go all the way; S: I like the (imperfect) character; J: Push, push, push
Pia was typical, old-school Idol. A little pitchy, and a bit Zzzzz.
S: Nailed it, complete full sentence; J: Felt you, crazy; R: Ballad every time, slayed every time, we know, mid-tempo next time
Stefano I liked, Stevie-Wonderish, still a little theatrical.
J: Amazing, really good; R: Started connecting, very nice; S: Sweet thing with voice
Lauren was okay, kinda country but Zzzzz with some odd phrasings.
R: One of your best, very hot; S: Just perfect; J: Amazing, that was it baby
James -- I just LOVE this guy! A ridiculous showman - and Fire!!
S: Beautiful; J: Forget it's a competition; R: You enjoy yourself, great great great performance
Thia wasn't terrible, but I didn't feel it.
J: Beautiful; R: Interesting, safe; S: Sang great song well
Casey was good, but I wish it was great. Was it enough after last week's save?
R: Absolutely brilliant, well done; S: Sing different every time, true artist; J: Didn't lose sleep after saving you
Jacob I really felt. Not quite as over-the-top, but borderline. Blew me away.
S: Blew me away, slayed me; J: Congratulations; R: First half brilliant, pick *1* shining spot in a song
Haley doing "Bennie" I thought had to be a joke, but it wasn't terrible.
J: That was it Haley! All came together; R: Best performance of the night! [sic.]; S: You sing sexy
lol