Yeah, this is the show I was expecting last week, filled with bad performances, annoying arrangements and all-around butchery of some of the Beatles’ greatest songs.
As it turned out, the ones who stuck to the originals most fared the best – as long as they didn’t make any mistakes, like Michael Johns’ off-key “A Day in the Life” and Amanda Overmyer’s wobbly start on “Back in the USSR.” That means David Archuleta’s safe “The Long and Winding Road” became the best by default, followed by David Cook’s “Daytripper,” which did not need the Vocoder solo.
Of course that was the least of the atrocities of the night. Chikezie sounded fine on “I’ve Just Seen a Face” until he countrified it and sounded like a bad “Saturday Night Live” skit. Carly Smithson beat “Blackbird” to near death with an Evanescence-ish delivery.
Were it not for Kristy Lee Cook’s awful “You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away,” a lot of early favorites could have been vulnerable.
David Archuleta, “The Long and Winding Road”
David Cook, “Day Tripper”
Syesha Mercado, “Yesterday”
Brooke White, “Here Comes the Sun”
Ramiele Malubay, “I Should Have Known Better”
Jason Castro, “Michelle”
Carly Smithson, “Blackbird”
Michael Johns, “A Day in the Life”
Amanda Overmyer, “Back in the USSR”
Chikezie, “I’ve Just Seen a Face”
Kristy Lee Cook, “You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away”
BOTTOM THREE: Kristy, Chikezie, Michael
WILL BE CUT: Kristy
SHOULD BE CUT: Kristy
ACTUALLY CUT: Amanda