American Idol 6, March 6 – Last Chance

Last week, we said goodbye to four more Idol hopefuls and pretty well guaranteed that no one will ever sing the cursed “Feelin’ Good” on this show ever again. Tonight, the guys will perform, hoping for a coveted slot in the top twelve.

Ryan introduces the judges. Randy is wearing a blue shirt with “Randy D. Jackson” on his shirt. He looks like an auto mechanic, except no mechanic would ever wear quite so much jewelry. Ryan tells us that on Thursday, not only will be find out who the top twelve are, but there will also be a big surprise about this season. Is the big surprise going to be that song writing contest? Because that’s not really a surprise. This week, the contestants will each reveal something about themselves. That should be a big challenge on Wednesday night’s show for Antonella Barba, seeing as she’s already revealed quite a bit to anyone with an internet connection.

Blake Lewis tells us that he loves improve comedy, character acting, and Halloween. He busts out a silly hat and does a voice. “I love to have fun,” he tells us.

Blake is wearing a rust colored t-shirt and some funky plaid golf pants. He’s singing 311’s “All Mixed Up.” Once again, it’s a great combination between his very clear singing and the vocal entendres he excels at. I really enjoyed it and was left wanting more. Blake is the coolest person they’ve had on this show by far.

Randy: Randy loves that Blake is the first really current artist they’ve had on the show. Randy doesn’t know the song, but he loves the performance.

Paula: Paula didn’t know the song either, but she was totally into it.

Simon: He didn’t understand a word of it, but he thinks Blake stands out in the crowd. He’s not karaoke, and he’s very current. He is confident Blake will make it to the next round.

Ryan jokes that Blake has the blessing of the judges. Blake says that 311 is his favorite band. I’m honestly surprised that Randy and Paula don’t know the song. Do they only know Stevie, Aretha, and Whitney?

Ryan chats with Sundance about how emotional he was the week before. Sundance says that he gets that way, and you wouldn’t want to watch Charlotte’s Web with him. He swears he didn’t know that the camera was on him, and that his emotions were genuine. Ryan then asks the question we’ve all been wondering – is Sanjaya surprised to still be there? Harsh! He says he was shocked when he heard the results, but he’s ready to make the top twelve.

Sanjaya’s surprise is that he can dance the hula. He says he can “shake my booty Hawaiian style.” Remember how long we were stuck with Hawaiian Jasmine Trias? I’m just saying…

Sanjaya, his hair gorgeously flat-ironed, sings “Waiting on the World to Change.” He’s wearing a sort of army jacket and jeans. To be honest, I think this is the best he’s sounded since his audition. He doesn’t have the cool, smoky sound that John Mayer has, but on the other hand, that means he doesn’t sound like an imitator. It was a big improvement. I am not a fan of Sanjaya and would trade any of the eliminated contestants for him, but I have to give credit where it’s due. And hey, somebody must be voting for him, right? Is it you? If you’re voting for Sanjaya, email me and tell me why. I promise I won’t argue with you about it; I genuinely want to know who his fans are.

Randy: Sanjaya lacked energy this week. He hasn’t been as good as his first audition, and this wasn’t that great.

Paula: Paula is having a hard time finding her words. She thinks that the older, more experienced guys are helping him improve. She recommends that he try to push out of his comfort zone and to raise his game.

Simon: “It wasn’t as ghastly as last week.” But he isn’t a fan of Sanjaya’s “Paula hairstyle.” He is popular, but vocally, Sanjaya’s not the best. Simon wonders if it’s the hair that’s keeping him in.

Ryan says that “clearly” Sanjaya’s hair is different from Paula’s. He thinks one of the two has hair extensions, but he’s not sure which one. This completely cracks up the judges.

Sundance tells us that he wears a fat suit in TV so he’s not recognized off of TV. This way, we won’t recognize the “supersexy thin guy” that he is. We see a fake photo of a skinny Sundance. Hee!

Sundance is rocking both Pearl Jam’s “Jeremy” and a fauxhawk. It’s a very cool song choice for him, and he sounds really good. It’s great to have the Sundance we saw in the auditions back. In fact, I think it’s a lot better than last week’s “Mustang Sally,” which got the anchor spot. Interestingly, my husband, who loves Pearl Jam and filled my iPod with a disproportionate amount of their songs, is considerably less impressed. He may be more of a purist.

Randy: There were some pitchy spots, but he likes the Southern rock-meets Pearl Jam thing.

Paula: He did really, really well.

Simon: Last week was better, but now he’s lost his charm. He was a generic bar singer, and it was a “very indulgent choice of song.” Randy disagrees.

Ryan asks if Sundance should stay away from rock. Simon says no, but that he should try to avoid those that are too shout-y. That’s a fair point, actually, and Sundance might have done better with “Alive” or something more melodic.

Ryan says hello to Travis Tritt in the audience. Randy is producing his upcoming album. Ryan wonders why he picked Randy. Travis swears he’s a good producer.

Chris Richardson confesses that he used to play football and was “chunky.” He’s since lost 40 pounds and feels great. Good for you, Chris!

Chris is performing Keith Urban’s “Tonight I Wanna Cry” on the stool at center stage. The audience seems to love him, but I heard a few spots that sounded a bit off-pitch. He’s definitely been better, and I’m just not that into it.

Randy: Chris put his own twist on the song and is “in it to win it.”

Paula: It was a great song to show off his intonation. He adapted well to the country song.

Simon: It was good, but not the best vocal they’ve heard. He found it “cutesy” and a bit nasal. He thinks Chris is capable of better and was a bit timid. He sold it, though.