American Idol: Week Five; The Top 11 Compete

Wow, was last night the night of bad performances or what?

I mean, with the exception of maybe 3 performances, not only did most of the contestants make horrible song choices, but some of the actual performances bordered on excruciating to hear. (looking at you, Andrew and Paige)

I think for an important week like this week, where the Top Ten is chosen, the contestants would be a bit more careful in what songs they choose. Not every song choice should be about you "wanting to have fun" on stage. The Billboard charts have had a boatload of #1 hits to choose from, yet some contestants fell back on songs that have been done before on Idol ad nauseum.

Most of the contestants took a step backward this week in my opinion, and some of them just took a few step forwards out the door. And I will say this for Idol...Miley Cyrus as a mentor? Really? You have a 17 yr old "mentoring" the contestants? Really? I'm glad to see the contestants gave her some respect, but with the exception of Aaron, Katie and maybe Tim...the older contestants must have been thinking the same thing: "Who is this 17 yr old to tell me how I sing, when she could barely sing herself?"

I'm not a Miley fan, as you can tell. But I digress again, I know. I try not to make a habit of it. You guys want me to get to the contestants, so away we go with:

1. LEE DEWYZE – sung “The Letter” - It was definitely not the best song choice for Lee, but I will say this for his performance; it finally showed me the great control this guy has of his voice. I'm not sure what happened between last week and this week, but Lee seem more relaxed to me this week. I didn't see that many nerves and he came off confidant. I'm not sure it was his best performance, but I think this performance will shape his future performances. He definitely should stick to the more "rock" genre, but regardless of this iffy song choice this week, he ain't going anywhere for now. SAFE

2. PAIGE MILES – sung “Against All Odds” - Oh dear God, Idol, can we please PLEASE retire this song already?! It's been done to death since the first season. I LOVE the original version, but enough is enough already. Paige's version was such a mess from the get go, she really had no hope of saving it. Aside from the ridiculous pitch problems, she was hitting only every other note. The funny thing is, as Simon pointed out, you can see the point during the song where Paige actually knew the song was a lost cause. It's shame too, because like I said week after week, I still think Paige has one of the strongest voices...but alas I don't think it's gonna be strong enough to last another week. IN DANGER

3. TIM URBAN – sung “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” - How could this song be boring? Give it to Tim Urban to sing that's how. Not only was this the corniest version of the song I've seen performed on Idol, but Tim looked like a wedding singer entertaining the guests. It was the epitome of "karaoke" performance. Tim has been labeled "the comeback kid", and I truly don't know who he keeps ducking the elimination ax week after week. In fact, bad as this was, I think Paige's performance was worse, so believe it or not, though I call him out to be in the bottom three, I think he'll be safe once again. IN DANGER

4. AARON KELLY – sung “I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing” - Well, at least there was some light in this awful tunnel. Granted it wasn't his best, or the best performance of the night, but damn, when stacked up against the rest of the performances, Aaron's performance was one of the better ones. Kara points out the "country twang" in Aaron's voice, and I hear it too. I think Aaron would make a great 16 yr old country singer. The country loving pre-teen girls would love him!! (do they even exist?) Not only was Aaron's song choice perfect, but despite having a double whammy sickness of laryngitis and tonsillitis, he still gave a better performance than some of the other contestants. I can see this kid getting pretty far in the competition. Simon was right when he said there is zero chance Aaron is going home this week. SAFE

5. CRYSTAL BOWERSOX – sung “Me and Bobby McGee” - Wow, I was blown away. Seriously, I know I spout the greatness of Crystal every week, so obviously I'm a fan, but come on, that performance was just in another league. It was as if she was the guest performer in the middle of the competition. Not only was it the perfect song choice, but she sung it with such connection, it felt like she owned the song. I don't see Crystal going anywhere this week, and though it may be far off in the distance, I think I may see a dread locked female guitarist in the finale. SAFE

6. MICHAEL LYNCHE – sung “When A Man Loves A Woman” - Zzzzzzz. Oh I'm sorry, is the song over already? If you hadn't guessed it, yes, I was VERY bored with this performance. Vocals were spot on, as I've begun to expect from Michael, but damn, it put me to sleep. I mean he didn't change it up or make it his own. There were way too many riffs and before he even got to the end of the song, I lost interest. Now granted, Michael is a fan favorite because of his personality, so I don't think he's going home. However, if he keep churning out these yawners of performances, then his personality will only get him so far. SAFE

7. ANDREW GARCIA – sung “I Heard it Through The Grapevine” - I think I had said I was officially done with Andrew last week, and this week only solidified my decision. Wow, this performance came very close to being as out of tune as Paige's and as corny as Tim's. What was he thinking?! This was possibly one of the worst song choices he could have made, and I'm as frustrated as Kara was when she described Andrew as still chasing that "moment". It's the truth, because week after week, all I get from Andrew is weird song choices that just don't fit him. Any promise this guy had has completely worn away, and I think he might find himself in a bit of trouble this week. IN DANGER

8. KATIE STEVENS – sung “Big Girls Don't Cry” - I will give Katie this; though it wasn't her best performance, nor was it the worst, the song choice was perfect. Like the judges said, kudos to her for listening and choosing a more contemporary song to perform to suit her age. I thought the beginning was the best part of it. It started to get a bit pitchy towards the middle, but by the time she hit a couple of big notes on the end, it was a decent enough performance to keep her in. Amazingly enough it wasn't a terrible performance, and compared to the others, Katie she be around at least another week. SAFE

9. CASEY JAMES – sung “The Power of Love” - I think Simon was the only one who heard what I heard; a watered down, nearly identical version of the original song. Simon was right! This song was retro when it first came out in the 80s! Casey brought nothing new to it at all. It came very close to sounding copy cat, but that doesn't mean it didn't sound good. I just think Kara is too "googly eyed" for him to see the truth. Heck, I'll be the first to admit, Casey is great eye candy. But performance wise, it did not measure up. Aside from this somewhat forgettable performance, don't expect Casey to go anywhere this week. SAFE

10. DIDI BENAMI – sung “You're No Good” - The pitch problems were rampant this week!! Didi was no stranger to the problems, because though it wasn't a very bad performance per se, it really wasn't a great song choice. Simon pointed out the irony of her singing "you're no good", and her giving the performance she did. Though I thought that was a bit harsh, he really wasn't 100% wrong. I really am starting to like Didi's voice, and how different it sounds from anyone else I've heard. With the right song choice, I think this girl could even give Crystal a run for her money. Hmm... Nah, no she can't. But that aside, I'm gonna call her safe, though a part of me thinks she may be in danger. SAFE

11. SIOBHAN MAGNUS – sung “Superstition” - Okay for once I didn't love Siobhan's performance. I thought it was a ballsy song choice, but then again as the judges pointed out, that's what's so likable about this girl; she takes chances. I thought that the beginning was the best part of the song. Towards the end, when Siobhan did her expected "big note", to me, it felt forced and off key. In fact, it seemed like it was yelled, and not sung. I don't think Siobhan is in any danger whatsoever, but this was not her best performance. I think she could do waaay better without resorting to that big note. Don't force it Siobhan, just let the song flow! SAFE

My Bottom Three Picks: My gut is telling me I should put Didi in here, but I'll stick with my choices for now: Paige Miles, Tim Urban and Andrew Garcia.

My Pick to be Eliminated Tonight: I think it's gonna be Paige Miles. Yes, her performance was that bad. Really.

So am I wrong people? Who do you think had the best performance of the night? Who had the worst? What do you guys think? Agree? Disagree? Let’s chat it up! And most of all, don't forget to vote in the poll below!

Until next week my readers, I bid you farewell for now!!