[silent_jonny]

(((American Idol Ping)))

Enjoy it while you can, Pee Wee

Click here for Pics & Bios of the Top 12

Click here for Pics & Bios of the Top 24

As always, if you want on or off this ping list, just let me know :)

[RMDupree]

I made it!

[retrokitten]

Good evening, all!

[freedumb2003]

LOL

Jonny, your pics always ROCK!

In California now -- worse than being in Denver for AI (and TAR)

[Global2010]

This is funny to me. Our home gave up tv watching for the Lent season. yeah ok ya say. Here is the clincher I MISS SIMON

[Jrabbit]

You all are great! Even though I missed it all, great thread! One of my dogs, Tiki, gashed his side open right before 7 tonight...so, we spent 3 hours at the emergency vet clinic. yuck

I'm sad Taylor didn't do too well. And I can't imagine Gherkin doing Patsy Cline...I adore Patsy Clines music...just can't picture it.

And the adorable baby pics! Stop! I want to be a grandma sooooo bad! And all I get are dogs and cats...grrrrrrrrrr!

Again, thanks for the great descriptions. Hopefully, I'll be here tomorrow for the "toss off" show! :-)

[kevkrom]

On the whole, I think the contestants had a good week, especially when compared to their struggles last week. The was a clear winner of the week (Mandisa) and a clear second-place (Katherine), in my mind, but you can order #3 through #9 almost any way you want, and I won't argue with you. The bottom two (Bucky and Kevin) also turned in good performances by their standards -- it is just altogether too clear, however, that these two are way, way out of their league in this competition.

So... the breakdown:

1. Mandisa - I've been asking for weeks whether she could do anything other than "belt". The answer is an emphatic YES. This was a smoking hot, jazzy performance that I really can't find anything to criticize about it. My Grade: A
2. Katherine - Sultry, sexy, jazzy. It seems like the bigger the stage, the more relaxed and intimate she becomes. There's just something that seems a little "off", though... kind of a smirk or something while she sings that is ever so slightly distracting. My Grade: A-
3. Chris - Ok, I don't like Chris' style, but I can recognize when he's doing it well. The beginning was a bit of a mess, mostly spoken on pitch, and I'm being generous with the "on pitch" part. Other than that, he managed to take this song and turn it into his own. My Grade: A-
4. Kellie - She certainly chose the right song for her voice, and she sang it well from a technical standpoint, but I think there was something lacking in the "selling" of the song. I wanted to see and hear more expression. My Grade: B+
5. Taylor - I don't think this was the best choice of song. It was fun, and easy for the audience to get into, but it was a bit too easy and repetitive for this level of competition. Still, my 11-month old son really liked him (was dancing along). My Grade: B+
6. Paris - She sang this too "old". It looked like she was going for smoky nightclub, but it came across more as Broadway revue. I think she should have tried to be more playful with the song and show off her personality more. No complaints about the technical aspects, though. My Grade: B+
7. Ace - This was a decent, solid job, and an interesting arrangement. he clearly knows his limitations and is playing to his strengths. I thought he did a bit too much sliding into and out of notes. My Grade: B
8. Elliot - The beginning almost made me tune him out. It was too "affected" and had pitch problems in the lower register. From the mid-point on it was very, very good. Just not enough to put him ahead of several other good performances on the night. My Grade: B
9. Lisa - After the video clip, I was expecting much more from the opening. There really wasn't anything wrong with this performance... there just wasn't all that much right, either. I'm losing confidence in Lisa, as she puts in solid, professional performances, but isn't showing that "star" quality I thought I had seen in the initial auditions. My Grade: B
10. Bucky - I think he put a lot of effort into this song, and he did the best he could. The problem is, he's just not good enough of a singer to pull that style off. My Grade: C
11. Kevin - I still refuse to grade or critique him.

Overall Standings:

1. Katherine McPhee (+2)
2. Mandisa (+2)
3. Chris Daughtry (+2)
4. Paris Bennett (-2)
5. Lisa Tucker (-4)
6. Taylor Hicks (+1)
7. Elliott Yamin (-1)
8. Ace Young (NC)
9. Kellie Pickler (+1)
10. Bucky Covington (-1)
11. Kevin Covais (NC)