Chris Mann, Lindsey Pavao and the Unknown Hand of Fate: Contributors, in varying degrees, to an impressive 'fresh factor' on 'The Voice' this season.

 

Miss “The Voice” yet? I have to admit I kind of do, if only to see another coaches’ flare-up.  So that’s why I have a couple of post-mortems (mortem posts?) in the pipeline about the show.

 

Specifically, about its music. “The Voice” had a pretty healthy season, nudging “American Idol” for top ratings honors in the 18-49 age bracket (and even overall) for a while until “Dancing With the Stars” came along to stomp it into the ground. The 18-49 ratings held up well even after “Dancing With the D-List” returned, and a lot of the credit went to the music selections from contestants and coaches. “The Voice” was seen as more current, fresher, hipper than stodgy old “Idol.”

 

That’s a comparison I want to make, but I’ll wait until “Idol” finishes its season (not long now). Meanwhile, it’s interesting to look at the “Voice” data on its own.

 

I looked at 96 songs performed on battle rounds and later episodes (no coaches’ tributes, no duets or group songs, no blind auditions – the last-named excluded to make for a level comparison with “Idol”). I classified them into three age-oriented categories: old (‘80s and earlier), recent (‘90s and early 2000s) and current (meaning the last few years). The results of this simple-minded analysis: 41% old, 40% current, 20% recent (adds up to 101% through rounding up; don’t fret about it).

 

Those figures alone, I’m pretty sure, validate “The Voice” ‘s “fresher” bragging rights. Since the recent songs include a few post-2000 songs (“Don’t Know Why,” “Beautiful Day”), fairly close to half the songs performed on “The Voice” are of 21st-century origin. I’ve got a hunch that figure is going to blow “Idol” out of the water.

 

Of course I couldn’t restrict myself to a mere chronological survey. Some sort of qualitative analysis, however pseudo-scientific, was desperately needed. So I subdivided the songs in each of the three categories into three more simple classifications: good, tolerable, and trite (or bad, in the case of newer songs that hadn’t accumulated enough age to become trite).*

 

*Of course your definitions will vary, in some cases to extremes. (We may not share the same opinions about Maroon 5 songs, for instance.) At least, however, the classifications will be consistent in both this study and the forthcoming Idol analysis.

 

The news is still pretty good in the current-songs department. A whopping 47% fall into the good range, and another 37% are tolerable. Maybe these songs haven’t existed long enough to get sick of, but taking the bias of the classifier into consideration, that’s a remarkably strong showing. (It would have been even higher except for a rule I instituted relegating all Adele songs, no matter how good they actually are, into the tolerable group because too many people were performing them.)

 

So give “The Voice” credit for introducing good newish songs by Gotye, Drake, Amy Winehouse, B.O.B., Grace Potter and the Band Perry into the mix, and keeping the fresh garbage to a minimum.

 

We’ll look at the recent and old categories in the next post.

 

 

Present and accounted for: Greed. Opportunism. Bad taste. Vultures.

Missing in action: A sense of shame. Dignity. Good taste. Integrity.

Just four months after Whitney Houston drowned in a Beverly Hills bathtub, her family has decided that the only way they can get over the shock, loss and horror of her untimely death is by filming it all, putting it on TV and making money off of it.

Yeah, everyone grieves in their own way. It’s just that when a celebrity dies, one route the grieving process can take is the one most people would choose – remembering the person’s life and achievements, forgiving the weaknesses and trying to learn from it all.

But there’s always the other route, where the surviving family – too often hangers-on who have made their whole career being parasites to the celebrity – immediately start scheming about how to cash in on it. “The Houston Family Chronicles” takes it to a new low, exploiting her daughter, niece and sister-in-law Pat Houston (pictured above in her role as Whitney's manager two days before the death) as they go through the grieving process and line their pockets with blood money.

 

The show's press release is a tawdry attempt to find some nobility in this travesty. It's repugnant in its transparent BS trying to justify this as anything but a twisted cash-grab.

The show will “follow Pat and her husband, Gary, Whitney Houston’s brother, as they take on their greatest challenge, supporting and guiding Bobbi Kristina as she faces the world alone, without the one person she relied on the most, her mother.”

And being put in the hands of the people on whom her mother apparently couldn't rely.

“With the certainty of a microscopic lens focused on this young woman and her every move, Pat, Gary and their tight-knit group of family and friends are committed to seeing that Bobbi Kristina can grow and experience life unscathed.”

Oh yeah, putting it all on TV will certainly help with all that.

“In this series, the multi-generations of the Houston family will bravely reveal their lives as they bond together to heal, love and grow.”

Because, after all, being on TV before worked out so well for them.

And this one from Pat Houston:

“I have been working with Simmons Shelley over the past few years developing a project suitable for myself and our family. The unexpected passing of Whitney certainly affects the direction of the show. However, it is my hope that others will be enlightened as they watch our family heal and move forward.”

Oh please.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Houston’s family took this tack. The funeral itself became a televised variety show, with singing and speeches and tributes designed to boost music sales (and it did, with Whitney’s albums roaring up the charts both digitally and physically). And former husband Bobby Brown is dealing with his "healing" by releasing a new album, the humbly titled "Masterpiece."

Unfortunately, this is just following the template that the Jackson family set when Michael died. A film, CDs, a Cirque du Soleil extravaganza and more.

The list of crass is a long one, headed by Courtney Love (who, thankfully, has been relieved of her duties as the keeper of the Cobain flame).

 

It is possible to handle unexpected death with class. Believe it or not, Yoko Ono was criticized in the ‘80s for putting John Lennon’s artwork in galleries. Decades down the line, she is seen as a careful and tasteful steward of his legacy, keeping his work and music in the public eye without the crass commercialism others have done.

The same goes for Olivia and Dhani Harrison. They held the "Concert for George" a year after the former Beatle’s death, a tasteful and star-studded tribute from people who really were his friends. Proceeds went to charity. Dhani helped finish the album his father was working on at the time of his death, “Brainwashed,” one of Harrison’s best solo albums.

So it’s possible to do the right thing. Unfortunately, the cash grab is quicker and easier.

 

 

"Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” featured Willie Nelson on Monday night, talking about his new album and the song "Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die." Don't miss MSN Music's own exclusive interview with the legend. Tonight we get Tenacious D, the great Paul Weller on Thursday and Garbage on Friday.

“Late Show with David Letterman” had Tenacious D on Monday night, with El-P tonight, Best Coast on Wednesday, Regina Spektor on Thursday (with John Mayer sitting in with Paul Schaeffer) and Beach House on Friday.

Santana is featured on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” tonight, with Bobby Brown on Wednesday, and Tenacious D on Friday. “Jimmy Kimmel Live” has a rerun of Silversun Pickups tonight, but a new show Wednesday with Rita Wilson (her album is getting surprisingly rave reviews), Delta Spirit on Thursday and The Cult on Friday. “Conan” has Gregg Allman tonight and the amazing Rufus Wainwright on Thursday.

And brace yourselves. You knew it was coming. Tom Cruise will star in “Rock of Ages” on the big screen, “singing” some of the cheesiest hits of the ‘80s. Here’s a preview clip of “Pour Some Sugar on Me.”

 

"Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” featured Willie Nelson on Monday night, talking about his new album and the song "Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die." Don't miss MSN Music's own exclusive interview with the legend. Tonight we get Tenacious D, the great Paul Weller on Thursday and Garbage on Friday.

“Late Show with David Letterman” had Tenacious D on Monday night, with El-P tonight, Best Coast on Wednesday, Regina Spektor on Thursday (with John Mayer sitting in with Paul Schaeffer) and Beach House on Friday.

Santana is featured on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” tonight, with Bobby Brown on Wednesday, and Tenacious D on Friday. “Jimmy Kimmel Live” has a rerun of Silversun Pickups tonight, but a new show Wednesday with Rita Wilson (her album is getting surprisingly rave reviews), Delta Spirit on Thursday and The Cult on Friday. “Conan” has Gregg Allman tonight and the amazing Rufus Wainwright on Thursday.

And brace yourselves. You knew it was coming. Tom Cruise will star in “Rock of Ages” on the big screen, “singing” some of the cheesiest hits of the ‘80s. Here’s a preview clip of “Pour Some Sugar on Me.”

 

Choirs -- the hidden menace: Overuse of choirs on TV singing contests can lead to the following symptoms: repertoire blandness, sickly sentiments, predictable performances and more.

 

It was the best of “Idol.” It was the worst of “Idol.” I exaggerate (you don’t say …), but this past week’s episode certainly had its highs and lows. What Not to Sing principal Nick Straguzzi had plenty to say about them, and his site’s weekly poll of critics, bloggers and fans produced some preliminary ratings that give me plenty to say about them, so let’s get to it.

 

Joshua/It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World: 88

 

Nick: California followed by Songs I Wish I'd Written. What if you wished you'd written “Hotel California?” Could you sing the same song twice? Or maybe a duet with yourself? OK, enough. Well, J-Lo said Josh reminded her of James Brown last week, so now we'll get a true head-to-head comparison. I'm really surprised he chose this, though -- I thought he'd go for a gospel song or maybe something a bit less edgy of a soul song. This ought to be interesting.

 

I don’t know how I feel about this one. The vocals? They're incredible, no argument there, but it got a bit over-the-top in more than a few places. Still, the power and the passion in his voice are amazing. What really gets me is how good of an actor he is, one way or another, because that performance and his personality are really hard to reconcile. This one is going to be very polarizing among the critics. Not only a standing ovation, but J-Lo is speaking in tongues. Good grief.

 

I'm still not sure about "Man's"... I watched it again, and although I still say the vocals were superb, I'm really worried for Josh. I don't think that's what he needed to do to advance. The problem is that the judges have been giving standing ovations to his lower-rated performances all season. Had they kept things in perspective, this could have been a 90 rating easily. As it is, because he showed all those gymnastics at various points throughout the season, the judges had lost all credibility long before he put the whole package together. It's something of a reverse "Boy Who Cried Wolf" syndrome. ("Knuckleheads Who Cried Showstopper" is more apt, but too unwieldly as a catchphrase.) This shouldn't be Josh's problem, of course, but it is.

 

Part of my worry is that Colton, Elise and Skylar have gone in consecutive weeks. Toss in Josh and that might have been my preferred Final Four -- for imagination, musical variety and staging savvy, they are all brilliant in their own way. (Jess has a great voice, and Hollie only a little less so, but they're young and need some more seasoning ... or at least they need to be singing much more age-appropriate material, which given a combination of youthful inexperience in choosing songs plus Idol's ancient pre-cleared song list leaves them at a horrible disadvantage. Phil is way too inconsistent, though when he's on his game he's excellent; the problem is that he is more often off his game than on it, and the results in those cases range from boring to painful.)

 

Ken: Fortunately, Nick’s concerns were unfounded. Joshua was not penalized by the voters for the judges’ sustained over-praise, and the WNTS poll gave Joshua an 88, which might be a bit low for one of the season’s top two or three performances, but which also was the least polarizing performance of the night. So everything turned out all right … for now.

 

Jessica/And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going: 86

 

Nick: It's the sixth time for it, and that's just on competition nights. Toss in Hollywood and auditions and we're easily into the twenties. Enough, already. Wasn't it done on “The Voice” too? It's a showstopping song, literally, but I'm completely exhausted from hearing it. It's the ultimate singing competition cliche.

 

Absolutely fantastic. So what? Sorry, but I don't care how well she sang it, I'm sick of the song, period. Besides, I already knew she could do that; the song is designed to be a curtain-closing showstopper after all. Randy: "It's one of the hardest songs in the world to sing." Oh for goodness sakes, no it's not -- everyone and her grandmother sings it on these shows, for crying out loud.

 

Ken: I have fulminated sufficiently on this topic, here and at Idol Meter, so I’ll just express my disappointment in an overly lofty rating and move on to the next performance …

 

Phillip/Volcano: 82

 

Nick: I'm happy an Irish rocker is getting some “American Idol” love, but I only know a couple of Damien Rice's songs and I don't think this is one of them. He's started singing, and nope, it's not.

 

This was the best, most tastefully staged performance of the season. Loved the cello, the lighting, the backup singer on stage, the hoop mike ... outstanding. What a complete 180-degree turnaround from that hokey presentation on the CCR song. Not much in the way of vocal range, though it appears the song was written that way -- an Irish indie ballad in the mold of the Swell Season. He really put heart and soul into it. I liked this one a lot, whether or not it was the most breathtaking vocal performance I've ever heard. He sold me on a song I've never heard before.

 

Ken: And good to see the critics rewarded it with his best rating of the season.

 

Hollie/Faithfully: 64

 

Nick: Zzzzzz ....... OK, I suppose this is a pretty enough song and I'm sure Randy Jackson's going to be happy to hear it. It feels like it's been done a billion times on “Idol,” but in fact only Kristy Lee Cook sang it before in competition, to a 40 rating. I just don't really consider this song terribly "Californian", so to speak, though I know Journey is from San Francisco. (Now, had she sung "Lights"...) At least it wasn't "Open Arms" or "Don't Stop Believin'." One must always look on the bright side.

 

Zzzzzz ..... Sorry, used that gag already. But it seemed apt once again. She sang it fine. She seemed a little shaky in the beginning (I don't think she was quite in key on the first line) but once she settled in, it was good, and those last few notes were absolutely fantastic. Her growth in confidence is stunning; I don't even want to think how that would've sounded a month ago. Still, like so many of Hollie's previous performances, there's only so much one can do with "Faithfully." Just like Jessica the last couple of weeks, Hollie time and again chooses a song that has a built-in "ceiling," and those choices are holding her back.

 

Ken: Perceptive analysis. Better song choices might have allowed Hollie to sneak by the increasingly erratic Jessica, but instead they were her downfall.

 

There's always room for J-Lo: Although she's one misstep away from being smothered by a mob of shirtless dancers on the 'Idol' results show Thursday. This photo has nothing to do with the actual 'Idol' competition, but I've already used shots of all four contestants.  

 

Jessica/Steal Away: 63

 

Nick: Not sure whether this is going to be the Robbie Dupree song or the old spiritual. The former would be a total left-field (and rather pointless) choice. The latter doesn't seem Californian at all. OK, she's started singing and I see that the answer is "neither" -- I don't think I know this song. Let's see how she sells it.

 

That was not vocally pristine...and that's actually a good thing in some ways. Everyone already knows she can sing in tune, so it's time for her to show us that she can interpret songs. This one seemed a little "old" for her ... well, actually, a lot "old" for her. She seemed to be doing some play-acting there, so in some ways it came off as a bit too precious, but it was reasonably convincing and the growl actually made for a decent change of pace for her. I'd strongly recommend, though, that she not try a song like this again, or to start growling all her songs a la Haley Reinhart last season. Neither are the strongest parts of her game, and even this late in the competition, America will get tired of it quickly. Do it once and move on.

 

Ken: Yes, songs about adultery aren’t Jessica’s best options now. Although there sure were a whole bunch of Southern soul classics on the subject in the second half of the ‘60s: Jimmy Hughes’ original of this one, James Carr’s “Dark End of the Street,” Clarence Carter’s “Slip Away,” Johnnie Taylor’s “Jody” series … I recommend Jessica stay away from all of them.

 

Joshua/You Raise Me Up: 50

 

Nick: Uninspired. I'm guessing his second song will be uptempo, because he's been mixing things up the past few weeks. To my absolute, face-melting shock, this is the first time the song has been done on “AI” in competition.

 

Great start, as if that's anything new. OK, I'm docking him for the choir. I'm sick of choirs. What's worse is that he absolutely didn't need it -- he was doing just fine on his own, and the choir almost pushed it to "overbaked" status. Still, as usual, that was a knockout vocal, and in the first half especially he seemed completely connected to the lyrics. I think three weeks ago he would have gone into full-bore "wailing" mode at the end; now, however, he seems much more comfortable in staying more or less restrained. What kept that performance from being truly great was the blasted choir. Can't we viewers get a restraining order or something?

 

Ken: And order one up for the song while we’re at it, along with “I Believe I Can Fly,” which I still harbor a morbid fear that Joshua will sing before this season’s over. With a choir, of course.

 

Phillip/Have You Ever Seen the Rain: 45

 

Nick: I never dreamed I'd write that I was getting tired of Creedence Clearwater Revival, but the last couple of weeks are starting to wear on me. Still, this is a great song, and its style ought to fit him beautifully. Um, just like "The Letter" and "Time of the Season" last week did. Casey Abrams did a good job on this last year (65).

 

Not bad. He's still next to impossible to watch, but at least there was some joy in that performance, and that's something we haven't seen out of him in quite a while. The song doesn't require much range, so he kept the mis-hit notes to a minimum. My problem is that I'm not sure if "Rain" works as a honky-tonk, feel-good song -- his total disconnect with the lyrics was pretty jarring, and the shot of the surfer riding a wave in the background was almost comically incongruous for one of the all-time best protest songs. Throw in his usual contortions and facial expressions and that was visually awful. But it was aurally one of his best in quite some time, and he needed that. It's just too hard to get past how that looked.

 

Ken: That’s a great way to express it. And the critics continue to downgrade Phillip’s performance of popular classic rockers, to no apparent effect.

 

Hollie/I Can’t Make You Love Me: 41

 

Nick: Hmm....a grown-up song from Hollie. I had a little trouble with Alison Iraheta singing this in Season 8, because she (and Hollie) are so young and this is a very mature lyric to be singing on national TV. Fifth time it's been performed on “AI.”

 

Look, she's going home tomorrow -- we all know that. She's been in the B3 forever, and I don't see her having the fan base to pull her through when there are only four singers remaining (which may be why she chose this song now that I think of it). But it's another solid vocal. My complaint is that, much like Jessica earlier, the song is a bit too "old" for her. Good finish, but not as good as on "Faithfully." Wow, the judges are really ripping her. Too much vibrato in her vocal? It's the same vibrato she's had all year. I don't get it, but then I rarely do when it comes to those three.

 

Ken: Who on earth does? Nick wrote the bit about “she’s going home tomorrow” before the judges went into ecstatic overdrive after “Man’s World” and Nick therefore convinced himself that all that gushing would backfire on Joshua and he would be the one sent home. Happily, Nick was right the first time.

 

Bonus coverage: The duets (sorry, no quartet*)

 

*Let’s just classify that tepid version of Foreginer’s “Waiting for a Girl/Guy Like You” as an equivalent to the bland group songs that usually open the results shows and consign it to a merciful oblivion.

 

Hollie & Jessica/Eternal Flame: 42

 

Nick: It's new to “Idol.” Not the Bangles' best song (I love their cover of "Hazy Shade of Winter"), but it was inevitable that these two had to do a big ballad, so this is as good as any.

 

Swings? For real??? OK, they're adolescent girls, we get it – but whose idea was that? Unlike Josh and Phil, these two can harmonize, though it took two-thirds of the song before they stopped taking turns with the melody and sang together. That wasn't bad. Naturally, Randy hates it. I don't understand ... two guys who can't sing together to save their lives are great, two girls who can do so effortlessly are boring? 1984 is upon us -- war is peace, freedom is slavery, etc., etc.

 

Ken: The rating is a bit harsh, but that was bland and poll voters were probably feeling the same way Nick did and docking them for the swings.

 

Joshua & Phillip/This Love: 35

 

Nick: This is actually quite a good song. This was way before Maroon 5 became insufferably annoying, and it's one of my favorites from them.

 

OK, I've got a huge grin on my face ... again. They can't sing in harmony What. So. Ever. And, although this one is going to get another minuscule rating from the Idolsphere, just like last week, I sort of liked it. They're hammy. It's a throwaway performance. Okay, look: I have no clue what the hell the judges are talking about with this praise of "the marriage of their voices" and "perfect fit." And this is coming from the one and only guy in America who actually likes their duets.

 

Ken: A couple of points: Nick was right that the Idolsphere rated this low, although not low enough by a long shot. Nick is wrong about the song. This was the precise moment when they became insufferably annoying.

 

Extra Bonus Coverage: Nick critiques the first and second rounds

 

Round 1: Overall I was disappointed in the song choices. With a theme of "California Dreaming," I was really looking forward to hearing the Beach Boys (whom I don't even like very much), the Byrds, and Jefferson Airplane for the older stuff, maybe some punk/new wave (Social Distortion or the Go-Gos,  anyone?) and some West Coast hip-hop. The performances were OK, but nothing show-stopping.

 

Round 2: Yes, I heard Joshua (and yes, he's still my favorite of the final four). Yes, I heard Jessica too. And yes, I think Phil is the weakest singer left by a ridiculous margin and should have been eliminated in at least two if not three of the past three weeks. So what does it say if I tell you that I liked Phil's performance the best this round? And, quite honestly, it wasn't all that close. Good singing is more than just hitting notes that nobody else can reach. It's about making people sit up and take notice and appreciate every aspect of music, from the melody to the lyrics to the interpretation to the emotion to the delivery. Phil was the only one who scored well across the board for me.

 

 

 

“Yesterday.” “My Way.” “Summertime.” “White Christmas.”

Depending on whose list you believe, those rank among the most covered songs of all time, with “Yesterday” claiming the top spot after more than 3,000 artists recorded their versions of the Beatles classic. And no, that doesn’t count the billions of renditions of “Happy Birthday to You” being sung by amateurs every day.

Looks like Radiohead is giving them a run for their money. In the 20 years since “Creep” blasted the band into the public consciousness that song has been picked up by everyone from Macy Gray (who performed it this week on “Letterman”) to the Pretenders to Prince.

Maybe the most visible recent version was when the Scala choir did it a cappella in “The Social Network.” And Carrie Manolakos has a new version coming out that Gawker promises "will make your ears orgasm." Be careful if you're at work; a lot of the artists use the album version that contains the f-bomb in several spots.

I'd argue there are better ones out there. The Pretenders jumped on it early, giving it an acoustic reading in 1995. Moby does a pretty fair live version himself. Brandi Carlile has given the song a good workout. Kelly Clarkson certainly does it justice. Ingrid Michaelson has a downloadable take on the song that is simply sublime. Tears for Fears? Not my favorite version. The take by Korn is fairly uninspired also. Weezer did it with a roomful of guitarists.

The best version out there? Prince, totally reworking and expanding it at Coachella.

The worst version out there? For my money, it's hands-down Blues Traveler's reggae spin on it.

But I still go back to Radiohead's version, especially the acoustic reworking. Because despite all the other cover versions, nobody does it better.

 

I can't make you love me till the finals: Hollie looks a bit dwarfed onstage singing the Bonnie Raitt song that probably scuttled her Idol hopes. The song was a bit too big for her as well. 

 

After all the debate and breathless anticipation about who would lose on “Idol” this week, the results turned out to be much ado about nothing.*

 

*Or, since we’re talking about farewells, much adieu

 

Hollie, who had outlasted superior singers Colton, Elise and Skylar, was clearly out-sung Wednesday (even by, unusually, Phillip), and she paid the price. Sometimes the logical scenario on Idol turns out to be the correct one. (Sometimes …)

 

Meanwhile, despite an apparent bottom-two finish (we don’t really know for sure, but that’s how it was presented), Phillip rolls into next week on the momentum of his finest performance, “Volcano.” So  does Joshua (“It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World”). So does -- to those who buy the idea that “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” is a glorious anthem of female empowerment, as opposed to a contrived ersatz-soul vehicle for would-be divas to practice their melisma assaults – Jessica.

 

That should set up an epic battle between the season’s best male and female singers and an undeniably popular contestant who restored his capacity to surprise this week. Not a bad result at all.

 

 

 

 

There's always room for cello: Phillip Phillips perches on the edge of 'Volcano,' delivering his best performance of the season.

 

“American Idol” was in fascinating and infuriating form Wednesday, incorporating in one episode two singers’ peak performances, one seasonal low point, and -- culminating (I hope against hope) a series of irritating duets and trios – the worst duet yet.

 

Singers first sang “California” songs, a theme that was interpreted as “songs by Californian artists.” So it wasn’t a night of “California Dreamin’,” “Hotel California,” “Going Back to Cali,” “California Girls,” “California Gurls,” etc. A couple of these song choices were interesting (although one was rather indirect), the other two spanning the divide between bland and dreadful.

 

In the second round they sang songs they wished they had written, which proved entirely more interesting and generated the two best performances. But let’s stop being vague and get down to specifics, ranked in my estimation of the four singers’ overall showings.

 

Phillip: Now here’s a first – me rating Phillip top dog, but on average he deserved it. His first song, Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Have You Ever Seen the Rain,” may have been just another entry in a very good “Idol” year for John Fogerty, but it’s also a mellower CCR tune that fit Phillip’s laid-back style better than most. Of course, he had to lay it back even further, with a pointless sax and a bit of a wildly inappropriate island lilt, but it was pleasant and competent enough.

 

Then he came up with a stunner, choosing Damien Rice’s evocative “Volcano,” a rather thrilling demonstration of musical connoisseurship. And he did it full justice, with his most restrained and individual vocal of the season, wed to a simple and highly effective cello-and-single-fem​ale-background-vocal​ arrangement. I’ve harbored the notion that Phillip was capable of something this good ever since he auditioned, and while it’s sad it took so long for it to happen, it means I can feel much happier about his probable victory this season than I was anticipating.

 

Joshua: For the first time during a performance by Joshua, I found myself bored to pieces. “You Raise Me Up,” which I just finished eviscerating as a song choice in Monday night’s “Voice” analysis (after Chris Mann dredged it out of the Josh Groban songbook), is such a simple-minded “Wind Beneath My Wings” knockoff that I just zoned out, and when the inevitable choir came  on, it was all I could do to keep from fast-forwarding to a Ford commercial.

 

But after diving into that trough (his worst performance yet), Joshua came up with his best. Even though James Brown’s “It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World” (or its semi-legitimate descendent, “Fallin’ “) have been done endlessly on music competitions (most recently, “Man’s” was “Voice” runner-up Juliet Simms’ peak moment), I’m partial to it. For one thing, its powerful simplicity makes it one of the rare songs that can not only handle vocal excess but actually invites it. And Joshua didn’t have to be asked twice – he poured it on, stretching syllables like Play-Doh, singing in tongues, and delivering the ultimate Idol soul spectacular. Best of the night, probably best of the season.

 

 

And I am telling you I'll stay up as late as I want: Jessica proves she can sing as petulantly as Jennifer 'Dreamgirl' Hudson can act. 

 

Jessica: When Ryan teased that she’d be doing an Etta James song, I jotted down “At Last,” just to get a jump on it. So I was pleased that she avoided that particular bowl of diva chow and picked the bluesy and much more obscure “Steal Away,” better known in its original version by Alabama soulster Jimmy Hughes. She growled and strutted entertainingly, but 16-year-olds singing the blues makes for a potent disconnect, and she’s certainly not taking Jimmy Iovine’s thoughtful advice to aim younger.

 

And unfortunately, she couldn’t resist making a statement about nearly being voted off, and chose to make it by singing that ultimate prefabricated diva vehicle, the anthem of every pageant singer and everyone who believes that persistence trumps talent (a philosophy that, sadly, seems to be mostly on the money), the “Dreamgirls” centerpiece, “And I Am Telling You I Am Not Going.” It was the sixth time it had been sung on “Idol,” let alone the countless audition performances and versions on other shows, so it could hardly sound fresh. And Jessica was also inviting comparisons to Jennifers Holiday and Hudson, a perilous course of action.

 

The judges (and the critics in the early returns of the What Not to Sing poll) thought it was just dandy, a tour de force. To me, it sounded like, as it will say tomorrow in USA Today’s Idol Meter, “one long, petulant rant.” She never let up on the intensity or varied the attack, and it sounded less like a declaration of independence and fortitude than a teenager throwing a tantrum about an early bedtime.

 

Hollie: Her increased assurance onstage is readily apparent and quite impressive. But she still can’t pick songs. Given all the great Californian artists, she went straight to a Journey ballad, “Faithfully,” which she delivered adequately but soporifically. Then she chose a lovely heartbreaker by Bonnie Raitt, “I Can’t Make You Love Me,” which turned out to be too mature for her and was delivered mechanically, like so many of Hollie’s technically solid but emotion-deficient renditions.

 

What’s going to be really interesting is whether Hollie will pay the price in Thursday’s results. The judges certainly set her up for it, outdoing themselves with hyperbolic hosannas for the other three performances in the second round while taking Hollie to task for poor song choice and an inferior interpretation. But what effect will that have on the voters?

 

This is the kind of philosophical question that, for Idol pundits, is the equivalent to the medieval debates about how many angels could dance on the head of a pin. (Or was it a pinhead?) Some think Hollie was getting the bum’s rush from the judges; others think that when the judges embark on one of their rare objective critiques, it fires up the victimized singer’s fans to vote in heavier droves than usual, either out of fear that their favorite is imperiled or out of anger at the presumption of the judges’ outrageous attempts to sway the electorate against their favorite.

 

By the same token, there are theorists who contend that when a singer receives over-the-top raves from the judges (as Jessica did before she was nearly voted off and Joshua does every time he opens his mouth now), there will be a voter backlash. It’s a lot of sound and fury signifying very little, but it does make Idol-watching even more intriguing.

 

Oh yeah, about that worst duet ever, briefly. Maroon 5. "This Love." Phillip (and a hapless Joshua). Aural torture.