The 50s
Are Kinda Nifty On AI5

The Top 11 on American Idol 5 went back in time this week as they explored the music of the 1950s. With the help of Barry Manilow, whom the contestants visited last week in Las Vegas, several lit up the stage by turning in sizzling performances, while others fell victim yet again to poor song choice.

Following is the It's Destiny! panel's* take on the AI5 Finals Round 2: The Music of The 50s.
*Liza is on assignment this week.

Mandisa "I Don't Hurt Anymore"
Tammy: Mandisa is looking fantastic tonight, and is bringing the vocals to match. She delivers a sassy performance, one of the best of the night. Mandisa's deficiencies are not in her talent, but in her inability to make herself stand out from the rest of the pack. Mandisa has the chops to take herself all the way, but doesn't appear to know who she is, or who she wants to be as an artist.
Score: 9.0
Destiny: I concur about Mandisa looking fantastic. Cute hair and killer makeup! Her vocals are a little choppy in the first part of the song, but then she kicks it when she turns on the powerful, rich side of her voice. I am boggled as to why she doesn't do her entire songs in that voice and avoid the lower register instead of highlighting her few vocal flaws.
Score: 8.8

Bucky Covington "Oh, Boy!"
Tammy: 'Oh boy' is right. Bucky's hair continues to look like a 'don't'. That color and cut do not suit him at all. Stylists, you can do better! Bucky sounds a bit rough around the edges tonight, though he chose a song that compliments his voice. The song does him no favors, performance-wise, however. I had to force myself to pay attention.
Score: 7.0
Destiny: I agree that the song compliments Bucky's voice, but the arrangement of it is too low in parts and lacks the overall oomph needed to make a statement on the AI stage.
Score: 7.5

Paris Bennett "Fever"
Tammy: Paris is ON tonight! It is a near flawless performance. Everything that this performance should be, it is. Well done.
Score: 9.8
Destiny: Here! Here! Perfect hair. Perfect outfit. Perfect vocals. Perfect sass. This is a GREAT performance. Love the raw tone to her voice. Bravo. Oh, and hi, Constantine in the audience.
Score: 9.6

Chris Daughtry "I Walk The Line"
Tammy: Chris starts the song a bit shaky, pitch-wise, but any imperfections are made up for with his intense delivery and passionate performance. Though he was mistakenly given credit for the arrangement (which is actually a cover done by Live), Chris once again proves he is a force to reckon with.
Score: 9.2
Destiny: Despite some vocal problems throughout, I like that Chris does something new with the song (or at least I thought I did until I found out that it was an arrangement already done by the band, Live). Overall, it's the same ol' Chris. People who love him will love him, and he will probably win this competition. I just wish he would do something beyond his status quo.
Score: 8.0

Katharine McPhee "Come Rain Or Come Shine"
Tammy: Though one of the stronger performances tonight, Katharine was better last week. Tonight, the vocals are a bit off, shrieky in the middle and yelly towards the end. Also, a much better choice of dress this week.
Score: 8.4
Destiny: Yes, Katharine's vocals are quite off tonight, no matter what the judges say. She can do much better than this. A disappointment.
Score: 8.0

Taylor Hicks "Not Fade Away"
Tammy: Taylor doesn't sound impressive vocally tonight, which is perhaps because of his poor song choice, as "Not Fade Away" is highly repetitive and offers little to keep the listener entertained.
Score: 8.0
Destiny: I agree. This is a poor song choice for American Idol. He needs to choose songs that leave a strong impression and allow the audience to really hear his vocals, because they are superb. He does a great job with this song, but the material is very limiting, and therefore, it is quite forgettable.
Score: 8.0

Lisa Tucker "Why Do Fools Fall In Love"
Tammy: Someone just put this girl out of her misery already. She looked as if she was desperately trying to connect with the audience and seemed to be pleading to the viewers 'Like me! Vote for me! I'm good! Really!'. Alas, her pageant moves continued tonight, and she must be smoking a pack a day because she appeared out of breath at times, and cut notes off prematurely.
Score: 5.7
Destiny: I think Lisa is really talented, but she has a major problem in choosing songs to showcase herself. This week she looks adorable and chooses a good song, but the arrangement is a total mess. Barry Manilow did her no favors there. She just can't seem to get it all together.
Score: 6.5

Kevin Covais "When I Fall In Love"
Tammy: I wonder when America's love affair with Kevin Covais will end? I give it three more weeks. Kevin seemed to be trying to emote more tonight, and tried to channel the emotions of the song. He did a serviceable job.
Score: 6.9
Destiny: Local talent show material and nothing more. Next!
Score: 5.0

Elliott Yamin "Teach Me Tonight"
Tammy: Elliott's in Phase One of his Idol makeover. Looks good! Nice clothing choice, the facial hair works for him. He still doesn't look very natural onstage, but is still great to listen to. There's still time for him to work on the rest.
Score: 8.7
Destiny: Yes, Elliott is indeed in the midst of a great makeover. I love that he is letting his hair grow out, and I agree about the new clothes and facial hair working for him. Oh, and his voice? Beautiful! I don't love this song, but he does it wonderfully. The guy is talented. However, he seriously needs a showstopper very soon, or he risks elimination (and that means he won't get to see his Idol makeover through to completion!).
Score: 8.8

Kellie Pickler "Walkin' After Midnight"
Tammy: Pro: vocals sound great, the song perfectly suits Kellie. Con: step, point, shoulder, point, walk. Rinse, repeat. Highly annoying post song banter.
Score: 8.6
Destiny: I love this girl! This is a great song choice for her (how in the world can Barry Manilow have never heard of "Walkin' After Midnight"? Seriously.), and her voice sounds fantastic. I love the dramatics, too, as she sings. Sure, it may be corny to walk in place while you're singing about walking and then actually go walking around the Idol stage, but it sure is fun. This is AI, after all. Have fun! I look forward to seeing what Kellie will do next. Oh, and the Idol makeup artists need to back off and let Kellie do her own makeup again. This week and last she has looked almost like a different person due to the too-large and too-red eyebrows they paint on her and the rouge they spread all over her face. She was better off without their help!
Score: 9.0

Ace Young "In The Still Of The Night"
Tammy: This is a jazz version of ITSOTN? In the same way that 'if you say it enough, eventually it will be true', I suppose. Ace does his usual thing. It is better than last week's debacle, and his falsetto at the end doesn't offend. But his hair? Crime against humanity. Cut it, wash it. Please.
Score: 8.0
Destiny: I believe Ace did cut his hair this week, Tammy. I don't know about the washing part, though. As for the performance, it is just OK. He needs to step up his game and start turning in showstopper performances. This just isn't going to get him very far. You'd think last week's brush with elimination would have produced greatness from Ace, but nope. Like Tammy said, Ace did his usual thing. It's good, but not as great as I think he could be.
Score: 8.0

Who Should Be Eliminated
Tammy: Lisa
Destiny: Kevin

Who Will Be Eliminated
Tammy: Lisa
Destiny: Lisa

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We asked you, "Who Was The Best On Stevie Wonder Night?"
36% Taylor
20% Katharine
12% Paris
8% Mandisa
7% Ace
4% Chris
3% Elliott
2.5% None. They Were All Disappointing
2% Melissa
1% Kellie
0% Bucky, Lisa, Kevin

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