Crystal wins the night easily: best solo, best duet, and best song choice explanation.
Crystal was a little shouty on Kenny Loggins.
Mike and Casey’s duet was beautiful. Is this the first time Mike has played guitar on the show?
How many Bryan Adams songs do they sing every year on Idol? Seriously, I cry uncle. Damn you, Canada.
Best to worst:
Crystal
Mike
Casey
Lee
Lee redeemed himself for that duet…it really was great.
Ellen’s comment on “Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman” for the win!! 
Especially since that was all Ellen said.
I gotta go with:
- Lee
- Casey
- Crystal
- Big Mike
I thought Casey’s take on Mrs Robinson was pretty good, he changed it up quite a bit.
I want the end to be between Crystal and Mike.
Me too. They are the two best and most genuine performers remaining.
After watching them for this long, I always feel torn. For me it’s definitely Crystal, but I rotate between the other three for the finale. The only way I could be disappointed is if she didn’t make it to the final two.
I was bored by the whole night 
Ahem - please allow me to
[quote myself from the last Idol thread]
(http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=12424525&postcount=67) -
I agree with the criticism of Big Mike (I think it was from Kara) that he could do that in his sleep - that was terribly mediocre. I still think he has a better than average voice, but he just can’t seem to stop oversinging everything, even after Harry Connick Jr. told him to knock that shit off.
That duet from Lee and Crystal didn’t knock my socks off - it didn’t quite seem to come together for me.
I liked Casey’s solo and his duet - I thought he did well tonight.
I thought it was a great night.
Lee was the weakest one on the show. His pitch was all over the place in his solo performance.
This was also my favorite performance by Big Mike. I thought he did great on that song. I’d buy that song.
The duet on ‘Falling Slowly’ was amazing. I think that might be the best duet the show ever had. I could be wrong though - I can’t really remember them.
Casey’s take on Mrs. Robinson was very cool. He did some subtle things with the melody that really changed the entire tone of the song and gave it a groove the original didn’t have. Listen to it again, and try to put the memory of the original song out of your mind and just listen to this song as a standalone piece. It’s pretty cool.
Loved Crystal’s performance. It was nice to see her in a more in-your-face kind of performance, because she’s got the swagger and the voice to really pull that off. She can attack with the best of them.
I thought the judges were on crack. When they trashed Big Mike after that performance I thought they were nuts. Then to be lukewarm to Casey and Crystal’s solo performances? I just don’t get it.
How quickly great performances are forgotten; Allison and Adam’s amazing chemistry on “Slow Ride” last season, IMO, trumps Crystal and Lee’s “Falling Slowly” (not that I didn’t enjoy the latter).
Speaking of “Falling Slowly”, I’m curious what people think about yet another performance of something Kris Allen sang so very well last season.
Mike or Casey has to be going home this week, right? I’m kinda hoping Mike goes home so that the “male rock” vote is split between Lee and Casey in the final three, giving Crystal a pass to the finale.
Grades:
Crystal (B+)
Mike (B-)
Casey (C+)
Lee (C-)
Casey and Mike (A)
Crystal and Lee (A-)
I was disappointed with all the solos, even Crystal. I was hoping she’d work some magic with an established song, and really make it her own. That was just okay for me.
I thought Casey gave the most original performance, though it did conjure up Jason Castro (not that that’s a bad thing). He did some rephrasing and changing up of the melody and, more importantly, he controlled his voice, and didn’t sound like a goat. I liked it. Thought the male judge’s reaction re Kara was a bit sophomoric, but whatever. If Casey was going for tongue-in-cheek directed at Kara, he sure didn’t give it away during the feedback, so I’m a bit perplexed as to whether he has a rich sense of humor or an aw-shucks true innocence about him.
I thought Mike was going to kick his solo out of the ball park, but it didn’t make it past the infield. I think part of the reason is because they don’t give the contestants long enough to sink their teeth into a piece. He was going off on tangents before he’d ever established the melody, leaving the choir to do that. So to me, it sounded half cooked.
Lee got lost in that song. I don’t know who’s going to do a better take on that song than Seal. He sounded rushed the entire time and kept losing his breath. Maybe if he’d slowed it down, it would have given him time to do justice to it. But as it was, it was a huge disappointment.
I agree that both duets were much better than the solos. Not sure what to make of that.
My rankings:
Casey
Crystal
Mike
Lee
Casey
Crystal
My wife probably thought I shit my pants when they announced Crystal was doing a song from Caddyshack. I was beaming with pride. I’ve also had a bit of an Idol crush on her from the moment she got the tattoo during Hollywood week.
As much as I loved Crystal & Lee’s duet, I’d have taken that 50 bucks I’d promised Lee and doubled it for each of them if they’d have done Anyone Else But You from Juno (a crime that wasn’t on the list, btw).
At my house, the Lee/Crystal duet was the first time this season since Siobhan’s “Paint it Black” that everyone in the room turned around and looked at the TV. I actually liked their version better that what Kris did last year, because with Kris, it was weird for him to be singing a duet with someone off-stage.
I do love Lee, but that was some serious pitchiness during his solo. Mike just doesn’t hold my attention. As for Casey, well, let’s just say I really dug his guitar playing during the duet.