I must be honest here. For me, it was no “rock ‘n’ roll” on “American Idol’s Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Night” simply because I found the entire night absolutely boring. I was expecting a really “lively” evening but the songs selected by most of the contestants were not even close to raising my blood pressure by an iota. I’m no “rock ‘n’ roll” expert I must confess. And I’m sure all the songs that were sung during this week’s theme are classified under this genre but for common folks like myself, I imagine songs with a little more “oomph” in them. Think Elvis Presley’s “Jailhouse Rock” with all that swagger and leg shaking. Or Jerry Lee Lewis pounding wildly on the piano while blasting away on “Great Balls Of Fire”. I’m not sure if this is considered “R ‘n’ R” or “Country Rock” or what but I was anticipating more “life” during tonight’s performance and I was disappointed with what I saw and heard.

So anyhow, while the judges were busy overly-praising the contestants and their choice of songs, I must admit I was not agreeing with them one tiny little bit. For some reason I felt that on this week, not only were most of the contestants acting beyond their usual self (kind of “hyper” and not so natural), the same thing also applies to the judges. Are they losing their grip on their “praises and critiques”? Could they come up with better words than “beautiful” (think Steven Tyler) and “amazing” (think J.Lo) and “I’m not jumping up and down” (think Randy Jackson)? Are the 3 of them losing their “creative” juices? The 2 new judges started off in the season being really “sizzling” in their “colorful” comments and now it’s slowly “fizzling”. Sigh! Where’s Simon Cowell when we need him, huh??

Anyway, back to the show. Even though my top “favorite” James Durbin did not go the usual “lively” route tonight, his soft rendition of George Harrison’s (of the “Beatles”) “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” was still the best of the night. He never fails to “connect” to the audience. And to select this poignant ballad on a “R ‘n’ R” night is surely quite unexpected. My man James is pretty smart to be doing that. And while he still stays true to his singing style, I can’t say much for some of the contenders who attempted to change or adjust to another image altogether. I must say that for some, it pretty much worked but for others… well, that’s another story altogether.

Now to the other contestants. I found Jacob Lusk’s version of Michael Jackson’s “Man In The Mirror” pretty ordinary except for a certain part where it sounds a little interesting. But definitely not even as good as Kris Allen (American Idol’s 8th Season winner). And I wasn’t even a fan of his at the time because I was busy rooting for my man “Adam Lambert” in that particular season.

As for Haley Reinhart who finally did a Janis Joplin number “Piece Of My Heart”, I personally feel that the judges ought not push her towards being a clone of the infamous Janis Joplin. Mind you, I’m not a JJ fan and from the videoclips of her back in her heydays, she was a true “rocker” – raw and passionate with full abandon and even though I don’t appreciate her singing, the legendary Janis Joplin had the true makings of a “rock star”. All that came out from her tiny body – that which touches your soul when she gives her all. She was an epitome of the word “rock” because she “lived and breathed” “rock”. So in all honestly, Haley should just be Haley and sing the way she finds most comfortable and not follow the judges’ advice which though helpful may not always be right. The last thing we need
is a Janis Joplin clone. That’s just my opinion. What say you?

Now to Casey Abrams. He chose CCR’s (short for Creedence Clearwater Revival because it’s such a “mouthful” to say the whole thing) “Have You Ever Seen The Rain”. I was such a big fan of CCR’s hits back then – another one about “rain” for some reason or other entitled “Who’ll Stop The Rain” and of course there’s the famous “Proud Mary”. I truthfully did not like Casey’s interpretation of this song, bass and all but I must say that he had the right voice for it. Unfortunately he went the “Casey” way in some of the parts to the song. But then again, his “quirky” ways do make him stand out. So… looks like Casey’s back! Well, at least he’s true to his own individual style.

Lauren Alaina doing a Kelly Clarkson, song and all was not entirely a good idea. A good enough attempt, but it would probably bring about plenty of comparison to our very first “American Idol” from Season 1. And singing her trademark song “Natural Woman” was a tad asking for trouble but she did have a few moments in the song where she did sound like herself. Even though it’s an Aretha Franklin originated song, I still preferred Carole King’s version. So… what more can I say, really!!

Ah… Scotty McCreery… we have been waiting for his Elvis Presley rendition and what a surprise it turned out to be. In a completely different voice altogether, he spun “It’s Alright Mama” in his usual Scotty way, eyebrows raised and all. And while he effortlessly moved about the stage in that odd cowboy way, I am completely awed by this country boy who has endured the the past few weeks in a way nobody had probably expected. He did not become “irrelevant”. I certainly am looking forward to more surprises in the following weeks from this young man.

Pia Toscano – when can I say? She still sings good but somehow there’s still no “connection”. For some reason, week after week, I tried to feel something but again it was a let-down and more so this week because she took off from her usual “poised and elegant” self to attempt a more “up tempo” look and though the judges were raining praises upon her (what else is new?), I found it a little fake to say the least. Sorry again Pia. You’re beautiful and you can certainly sing, but there’s no warmth to looking at you or hearing you sing. I really wonder why that is. To me I somehow feel she’s a picture of “restrained emotions”. That’s the best I can describe her. I may be wrong but the American voters might tire of her soon. Singing “River Deep Mountain High” was not exactly anything new as far as her singing goes. Her voice is still good but it does nothing for me – again!

My take on Stefano Langone next. He’s back to being a little overly dramatic on his rendition of “When A Man Loves A Woman”. Call it weird-thinking on my part but didn’t he sound much better in the rehearsal clip? Did someone give him the wrong advice and asked him to switch to a different key? Anyhow, I think that he has a pretty melodic voice but has yet to prove to us how good he can be in a song. I personally don’t think he can outshine most of the other contenders in this season’s “American Idol” because he lacks the charisma and charm which the others possess but I do honestly think he has a very good voice but his chances on “AI” is pretty slim. But I must say that I think he’s the most hardworking of the lot.

Last but certainly not least and closing the night with the song “Folsom Prison Blues” is Paul McDonald. Memories of Johnny Cash comes rushing back while Paul takes a different approach to singing his song. Paul did his Paul rendition and although I’m not exactly liking it, I’m glad that his “individuality” and “uniqueness” is still there.

Well, that’s it for the Top 9. Let me end with a videoclip of my man James Durbin to sing you to sleep (in a good and not boring way).