Top 3 Perform

Well, we are at the Final 3. I'd have to say that the strongest final three was Rueben Studdard, Clay Aiken, and Kimberly Locke OR Carrie Underwood, Bo Bice, and Vonzell Solomon. Our weakest final 3 was definitely Fantasia Barrino, Diana DeGarmo, and Jasmine Trias. Some of the singing last night was could have some people put this year as one of the worst top three. So, here's how it went down:

David Archuleta was up first. Paula chooses his first song, Billy Joel's "And So It Goes." This was David's best song of the night. I love BJ (STOP thinking dirty now...I'm talking about Billy Joel !) so I was a bit biased on his song. He sung it great but the one issue I had with the song was that it almost sounded like a Christmas song to me. It was so damn slow and wanted him to pick it up a little more. Still, it was a great first song for him. On a side bar, what was up with the mayor of Murray, Utah? The dude looked like clown in bull fights. Get a real outfit and cut off that ridiculous mustache. For the second song, David chose Chris Brown's "With You" which was an odd choice. And the singing was more odd witnessing a 16 year old good-two-shoes trying to pull off a R&B hip song. And he failed miserably. It was Archuleta's worst performance since some Jesus song about 7 weeks ago. I don't know what he was thinking but it was painful to listen to and just as painful and awkward to watch. His third song was the producers choice - Dan Fogelberg's "Longer" which at first I thought was a perfect song for him. Yeah, he sung it nicely but his voice was not loud and it seems the band overshadowed his voice. Plus, it was slow and a bit boring. I wish the producers gave him something a bit more recent for him to connect better with the audience and his fan base. I wish I was wow'd more, so, I only give David a B- for the night.

Syesha was next. Randy chose Alicia Keys' "If I Ain't Got You." Come on Randy. What were you thinking? How is Syesha going to distinguish herself as her own artist singing an Alicia Keys song? She has NO chance to sing this better than Alicia so why give her this song? Choosing Alicia Keys goes right with the pattern of mistakes that Syesha had all season singing artists she shouldn't touch like Whitney Houston, Celine Dion, and Mariah Carey. She actually looked her best of the season but I found my self seeing Lela Rochon doing an Alicia Keys cover. I don't know what it is with her. She sung the song well but it would have been nice if she changed it up a little bit instead of doing an exact replica of the original. The second song Syesha picked - "Fever" by Peggy Lee. Out of all the songs she chose, she picked this? It's a boring song and I relate more to Madonna's version than Peggy Lee's. This song is not going to get her any calls except for those 60 year old, fat, gray haired, cigar smoking, plaid jacket wearing, grumpy, whisky sipping men in lounges that watch girls like this sing in a black gown with a piano player with a fish bowl on the piano for tips. Besides those breed of people, not sure who the hell would vote for her, well, except Jason Castro watching from his couch smoking a joint or two while eating a 10 pack of White Castle hamburgers. Syesha's final song was the producers pick - Gia Farrell’s "Hit Me Up." Who? What? Huh? I'm not sure I agreed with the producers on choosing this piece of crap song. Not that I like Syesha but did the producers do this on purpose to force a David vs. David finale? Simon had it right saying "the song is about Penguins" (from "Happy Feet") which must have been a FOX movie coming out on DVD soon that FOX wanted to promote? If not, then I don't get the song choice. It was a repulsive performance. It as boring. It was sung poorly. I got up off of my couch about 1/3rd of the way in to figure out what my next snack would be. She was trying to put on the Beyonce / Rhianna spin on it but failed miserable. There was zero wow factor in her performances. I give her a D+ for the evening.

Finally there was David Cook. It figured that Simon was the one to pick his song. Simon chose Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" which I thought was such a bizarre choice but Simon totally did it on purpose because if David pulled it off, it would be spectacular. And, Simon was right on the money. The song wasn't even recognizable to me at first and as the song continued, the performance got stronger and stronger. He did was Clay Aiken used to do - start off slow and not as strong and mid way through the song, kick it into high gear for some power notes and a fantastic ending. G.F.J. - Great Freggin Job ! David got to chose his second song - Switchfoot's "Dare You To Move" which I've never heard of. I wish he chose something more recognizable to me but when I closed my eyes, I still was able to picture hearing it on the radio. It wasn't one of his best performances of the year but it was still solid and won't hurt him. Lastly, the producers chose Aerosmith's "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing" which is a very popular song. I was disappointed with all three of the producers choices for all contestants but the singer really has no choice. I just wish the song wasn't so recognizable to Steven Tyler's voice. That being said, David nailed it. It was a great way to end the show and the song showed off David range very well. David gets an A- for the night.

So, who goes home. David Cook was the best last night and has been the most solid all season. David Archuleta was good and has a huge fan base. So, that leave Syesha to go home to set up the finale that I predicted months ago. Hell, I'm going out for lunch to buy a Mega Million ticket now !

Until next week, Birdman Out !