[silent_jonny]

(((American Idol Ping)))

It's David Gregory Season!

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

[pbear8]

Can we vote David Gregory off the island?

[Wolfstar]

Hi Jonny. At last, a respite from the nonsense that is modern-day reporting. I find myself watching news less and less, and turning increasingly to music and other forms of entertainment to soothe my soul.

[RMDupree]

Hi jonny!

Can't promise to be here for the duration, but I'm checking in at least! :-D

[retrokitten]

Good evening everyone!!

[Echo Talon]

im rooting for Pickler and the grey haired dude.

[EmilyGeiger]

[kevkrom]

The talent pool looks a little better after last night. I really wasn't sorry to see anyone cut (other than the way they did it from time to time, especially with the last pairs. Other than that, not much to say, except I will say that as little as I have been fond of "Sway", he certainly saved his best performance for when it mattered most -- before I heard that, I never would have expected him to make top-24.

Do they have all of the stereotypical bases covered in this group? Let's see... we've got a "crooner", a geeky kid, a "big girl", a girl who's got a much better body than voice, a "rocker", and at least one country singer. If that doesn't cover all of the bases, it at least gets most of them.

[kevkrom]

Ok... initial rankings for the gals and guys. I'll probably not mix the lists until the start of the final 12, but on the whole, I find that the pool of girls is more talented than the guys.

First up, the gals:

1. Katherine McPhee - One of my early favorites, she showed a bit more control and expression in what little we got to see from her Hollywood week.
2. Lisa Tucker - On the opposite note, Lisa struggled in Hollywood compared to her initial audition. I'd still bet on her winning the whole thing, but she needs to show improvement.
3. Paris Bennett - I'm not trying to "tear down" Paris, she is an excellent singer, I just don't think her voice fits the style of this competition. Still, there's no denying the talent, which is why she still ranks this high.
4. Ayla Brown - Cute, nice voice, will she ever stand out, though? She makes things look easy, but it's hard to tell if that helps or hurts her when the going gets tough.
5. Kellie Pickler - Something about her rings false, and she's not as cute as Carrie to be able to pull the act off. Too many other good women this year for Kellie to win it all unless she really steps it up.
6. Becky O'Donohue - Let's just say I'd pay money to watch her even if she can't sing, if you know what I mean. Certainly not the best voice, so she'll need to nail everything and show off her... um... other assets.
7. Mandisa - Voice, check. Look, not so much. She'll do OK, but not a winner.
8. Stevie Scott - Her voice is kind of weak compared to those ahead of her. She's cute and has a nice attitude, but the end will most likely come soon for her.
9. Heather Cox - Can't say much as we haven't seen much.
10. Kinnik Sky - Ditto.
11. Melissa McGhee - Ditto again... though from what little I saw, she doesn't compare well to the top gals.
12. Brenna Gethers - I don't care how long she survives the voting. With the "diva" attitude, I'm ranking her dead last on general principle.

And the guys:

1. Ace Young - The gals seem to like him, and he's got a pretty good voice, though I personally don't like the whole "breathy" thing.
2. Patrick Hall - Haven't seen much from him, but what we have seen has been very good.
3. David Radford - Toss-up between the "crooners". I'll take David higher because I was impressed with his composure during the initial auditions.
4. Will Makar - See above.
5. Taylor Hicks - Just flat-out fun to listen to. As many have said, he has the music inside him. He certainly is the most unique competitor. But he is rougher on the eyes, both in general look and in stage presence.
6. Elliott Yamin - Surprisingly good voice, and he gets bonus points for p***ing off a Brittenum brother and still outsinging him.
7. Chris Daughtry - The clips from last night showed he could do more than just "rock it out". I'm still not certain he's a top competitor, but he's in position to move up if he can deliver.
8. Bucky Convington - Haven't seen much, can't say much.
9. Gedeon McKinney - Confident, but I'm not impressed with the voice.
10. Jose Penala ("Sway") - His best performance was the final solo, but everything else before that puts him this low on the list.
11. Kevin Covais - Geek. Can't really compare to the pure voices from David and Will. Too bad, he seems like a nice kid.
12. Bobby Bennett - Talk about qualifying via the back door... he wouldn't be in this at this point without others being forced out.