It was Rock and Roll Hall of Fame night for the Top 4.
The first round of songs…
David Cook sang “Hungry Like the Wolf.” He said he’d do something with it but he didn’t, and he was WAY louder than the band. Being a Duran Duran fan, I really didn’t like this.
Randy said: It was an OK song choice.
Paula said: He left her with a big appetite. (I couldn’t have made that up if I tried)
Simon said: It was a little copy cat in that he didn’t make it his own, but it was good enough to get him in the Top 3.
Syesha Mercado sang Tina Turner’s “Proud Mary,” complete with a cute Tina-ish dress and dance moves. It felt like she was playing the role as Tina — so I wondered where Syesha was in all of that.
Randy said: She was in the zone, and she’s showing heat late in the competition when she needs it.
Paula said: She looks like a star.
Simon said: It was a bad impersonation of Tina Turner. Syesha said she was trying to have fun, and Simon said, “I didn’t.”
Jason Castro sang Bob Marley’s “I Shot the Sheriff.” It’s probably an understatement to say the judges hated it.
Randy said: It was really karaoke Bob Marley and there was nothing special about it.
Paula said: He did perform to the audience more and he’s real and geniune.
Simon said: It was “utterly atrocious…I don’t know what you’re thinking.” To which Jason replied, “I was thinking, BOB MARLEY!”
David Archuleta sang “Stand By Me,” which was totally safe in my opinion. Still it was probably better than anything else we’d seen so far.
Randy said: He’s trying to win the show and it was hot.
Paula said: He’s learning from the mentors and the judges to get better every week.
Simon said: It was a very good song choice and the best performance so far.
The second round of songs…
David Cook sang “Baba O’Riley.” I’m starting to tire of good David Cook, so I wasn’t moved by this.
Randy said: It was the David Cook they know and love.
Paula said: She was humbled to sit there and watch him.
Simon said: “Welcome back, David Cook.”
Syesha sang “A Change is Gonna Come.” I liked her vocals, not necessarily much else, though.
Randy said: He didn’t like it as much as the first song and it felt disconnected.
Paula said: It was beautiful. “Welcome to your dream, Syesha — this is it.” And Syesha cried quite a bit.
Simon said: He agreed with Paula (more crying from Syesha) and she sang it very well.
Jason Castro sang “Mr. Tambourine Man” and completely forgot a couple of lines. Not a good night for sir Castro.
Randy said: He was not in the zone.
Paula said: “The song didn’t blow me away but you blow me away.”
Simon said: “Pack your bags.”
David Archuleta sang “Love Me Tender.” Maybe I’m too much of an Elvis fan that I don’t like people messing with Elvis, but I just didn’t like it much.
Randy said: It was another great performance.
Paula said: It was one of her favorite performances of his.
Simon said: He didn’t just beat the competition, he crushed the competition.
My pick to go home is Syesha — because I have a feeling all of Jason’s fans will flood the lines trying to keep him in despite a particularly horrible night. But who knows!
Stay tuned to Scene Now tomorrow night to see who’s kicked off!
