'American Idol' March 17 Recap: The First Shall Be Last as Danny Gokey, Adam Lambert Have a Rough Night

Tuesday, March 17, St. Patrick's Day, 2009 and the 11 remaining "American Idol" contestants took the stage. Who had the luck of the Irish? Who fell flat on Country Week?

It has to be said that that old Biblical adages (Beatitudes?) about the last being first came true this night. Contestants who had been "dissed" previously, such as Anoop Desai and Matt Giraud and Kris Allen gained a second life, while those who had been first (Danny and Adam and Lil) were more-or-less consigned to last.

First up was Michael Sarver, who sang a Garth Brooks song ("Goin' Down When the Sun Comes Out") that had a lot of words. To me, it sounded like noise. Simon commented that he couldn't understand a single word. So so.

Second was Allison Iraheto who sang "Blame It On Your Heart" while wearing a short reddish-brown leather jacket. Although most proclaimed it "rock solid," Simon found it "a little bit tuneless in parts," although Randy said, "It was dope." (Oh that Randy and his "dog" slang.)

Third came Kris Allen, one of the standout performers of the night, especially since he did not use his guitar. He sang "To Make Me Feel Your Love" and all of the judges found his performance to be very good, with comments like "Overall, a really smart choice for you." (Paula) "I thought that was terrific. Really, really good." (Simon) "You went out on a limb. Tender moments from my dog, Chris." (Randy) All agreed that it was a smart choice of songs.

Fourth was Lil Rounds. Aside from Simon's inability to distinguish between "Lil" and "Little" in saying her name, her version of "Independence Day" did not win kudos. Randy said, "It didn't feel comfortable on you." Simon was even harsher, commenting that she reminded him of one of those girls who is forced to sing a song they hate at a wedding. He said, "It just wasn't you." So, Lil, previously the front-running female contestant, may have lust some of her luster.

Adam Lambert---whose style is about as far from country as you can get---sang a sexy, Egyptian-tinged version of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire." I loved Randy Travis' comment: "I don't see a guy wearing black nail polish that often." Kara said, "It was all a little strange. I got my drama. Strange, but I liked it." Paula's comment that Adam had been "true to who you are as an artist' was perhaps the best. She also said, "I loved the zither sounds," and there was speculation that this was what you would get if Kashmir and Led Zeppelin merged. Simon's reaction? "What the hell was that?" He went on to pronounce Adam's version "absolute indulgent rubbish." (Does that mean Simon didn't like it?)

Scott McIntrye, the blind contestant, sang behind the piano and was "impressive and lovely," according to Paula, although she seems to want Scott to do something without his piano, which he promised to do if he makes it to the Top Ten, which he probably will. Simon and Paula had some words at this point, with Simon saying that Paula's comment was "a bit of a stupid thing to say." Simon was defending Scott's right to stay behind his piano in his comfort zone, when performing. Randy commented, "For me, I'm looking for those hot crazy vocals from you." Kara agreed, saying, "Show us. Wow us. Up your game." The comment was made "Just choose better songs." (Simon)

Next up was Alexis Grace, singing "Jolene" and Alexis may be in Big Trouble this week. She was off-key and did not get good comments. "A bunch of pitch problems. Wasn't a great performance." (Randy) and others like "Lost your edge a bit" (from Kara) and "a little bit sound-alike," from Simon. He pronounced the vocals "okay," but forgettable.

After Alexis came Danny, who sang "Jesus Take the Wheel," a Carrie Underwood composition. Simon dissed his outfit as looking like "a polar expedition" outfit (it was white and looked like something out of the North Woods catalogue) and Kara pointed out that the first part was "not spectacular" but that he improved towards the end.

Anoop Desai was up next and sang Willie Nelson's "You Were Always On My Mind." Paula said, "Anoop is back" and Simon had the best line: "You've just managed to go from zero to hero."

Megan Corkrey sang "I Go Walking After Midnight" next. She was shaky. Comments were made that she had had the flu and been to the hospital. Randy said, "I was impressed." He may have been the only one in the audience who was.

Last, but certainly not least, was Matt Giraud who was pronounced to be "a true talent" by Kara, who also said, "Amazing. I love you. I just do." Paula tried to praise Matt's "authenticity," but she had difficulty pronouncing the word. Simon said, "I don't think you've had enough credit. Tonight, I think you outsang Danny. A terrific performance. One of the best of the night." Comparisons from Randy between Matt and other artists included Michael Buble and Justin Timberlake.

So, for me, the two who may be in trouble are the girls, Alexis Grace and Megan Corkrey. Judges did not like Megan's outfit, either, which seemed a bit "overdone" in the make-up area. Stay tuned on Wednesday for the results.