American Idol Rock Week: May 5, 2009 Recap

American Idol's dress rehearsal for Rock Week got off to a bang - literally. During dress rehearsal, a huge American Idol globe exploded, sending glass scattering all over the stage. As if that weren't bad enough, earlier the stage manager fell down a 20 foot staircase and had to be rushed to the hospital. At last report, she is doing fine.

But the show must go on, and go on it did. For once, Adam Lambert went first, followed by Allison Iraheta, a duet between Kris Allen and Danny Gokey, a song by Kris Allen, a song by Danny Gokey, and finally a duet with Adam Lambert and Allison Iraheta.

Slash, the guitarist from Guns 'n' Roses, was this week's mentor and visiting rock star.

1. Adam Lambert sang the classic rock song, "A Whole Lotta Love" by Led Zeppelin. Even when Adam came out on the stage in the show's opening intros, he totally outshined everyone else just in his demeanor and the way he was dressed for rock week. He is a rocker at heart; it was obvious.

Then Adam sang Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love", and he blew everyone out of the water with his totally rocked out performance of this classic song. I noticed the women in the audience were going a little crazy for their newfound rock star, especially when Adam approached the lip of the stage. Adam Lambert was so good that you would think he was the visiting rock star, not a mere contestant on American Idol.

After the performance, Randy said, "This is the Adam I love... you're a rock star tonight." Kara went a bit crazy for Adam, calling him a "rock god... you've got the vocals for it, nobody else has it - yes - yes - yes!" Paula called Adam "a whole lotta perfect".

Simon, in a teasing fashion, said that he thought the performance was "understated" and then went on to agree with the other judges, calling it "one of my favorite performances you've ever done." "The only problem is," Simon continued, "is that nobody can top that now."

During all of these compliments Adam Lambert came across as being a bit abashed by all the attention and thanked the judges for the feedback and compliments. Adam said he "loved Led Zeppelin".

2. Allison Iraheta sang "Cry Baby" by Janis Joplin. I would have hated to have been in her shoes, following such a tremendous act as Adam Lambert's, and I think that showed in her face. Still, she sang "Cry Baby" well, with a bit of Janis in her voice, so much so that it might be said she was trying to imitate Janis. Slash, the visiting American Idol mentor, said Allison needed to get over her fear.

Randy said it was a good performance, but that he did not love her song choice. Paula said that if they ever did a flick on Janis, that Allison should get the part. Simon commented that although Allison has grown throughout the competition, he didn't see much originality, not like he had seen in Adam Lambert's performance.

3. Kris Allen and Danny Gokey did a duet with each other: "Renegade" by Styx. They sang the harmony well and Randy said they "were on blast". Kara said she thought "the sum of the parts was better... maybe you couldn't hear yourselves?" Paula called it "compelling". Simon said, flippantly, that Danny was better than Kris. Danny certainly has more of a rough rockiness to his voice. Kris is a bit too sweet, a bit too boy-next-door for real rock.

4. Kris Allen then sang "Come Together" by the Beatles. Kris played the guitar, having practiced earlier with Slash, and pulled off the guitar melody nicely. Kris seems like a Disney guy that came to Disney World to play Beatles songs. Just not a real rocker, but he did give it his best shot. John Lennon he isn't.

Randy said, "I wasn't blown away, but I loved your playing the guitar...I liked it." Kara said, "For me, this wasn't a great performance...you were trying too hard... wrong song." Paula called him an artist but said he needed to have "a little more energy on the stage". Simon said his performance was "like eating ice for lunch...leaves you hungry later. It was a bit of a jam... a boring song. I didn't believe anything was going to top Adam, and I was right."

5. Danny Gokey sang "Dream On" by Aerosmith. While Danny's voice is a bit more rock 'n' roll than Kris', it's also more screechy. Especially at the end, when he was doing the "dream on, dream on, dream on" part, it sounded like he was practically screaming into the mike, without near the finesse that Adam Lambert has at those higher notes.

Randy said that it was not Danny's genre, that "it was alright...I'll give you an A+ for effort." Kara said she commended him for taking chances. Paula commented that she didn't know if this was the right song for Danny, but said, "I'm a huge fan...I give you an A+ for going for it." Simon said the last note was like watching a horror movie. It was a little over the top. It worked for Adam but not for you. I still think you are going to be safe tonight."

That may be part of the problem, that contestants see Adam's finesse and try to copy it, thinking they can do it too... but they would be better off just doing the best at what they do the best, not at what Adam does the best.

Both Danny and Kris argued with the judges that they thought they had done better than what the judges had said.

6. For the last performance of the night Adam Lambert and Allison Iraheta paired up to sing "Slow Ride" by Foghat. Allison started the song and then Adam walked, or rather strutted, out to join her. They were just about perfect together, feeding off each other's energy and as one judge said, pushing each other to higher heights.

Randy said, "You guys are our two seasoned rock stars. That was the bomb." Kara called them a rock god and rock goddess." Paula said they were a perfect blend. Simon said, "You win the battle of the duets... completely different than the other one. Adam you may have given this one (meaning Allison) a chance to stay in the competition." The judges seemed to agree that Adam and Allison should both do duets on each other's albums in the future, that they fit that well together.

After the controversy last week, in which Adam Lambert placed in the bottom three, I feel sure that Adam will stay for one more week at least. In fact, I fully expect him to be in the finals.

When I Googled all the top four of American Idol Season 8, Allison had the fewest results. Based partly on that and partly on instinct, I was going to guess that Allison Iraheta would go home tonight, but after her performance tonight, I am no longer sure. It could very well be that Kris Allen goes home.

That's part of American Idol Season 8's appeal this year - that everyone is good, and that it is hard to pick out who will go home. If Adam Lambert does not win American Idol Season 8, I would be surprised - and questioning. Now, the only question for me is: who is going to come in second?

If you are relying on American Idol recaps like this to give you a feel for what it is like to actually watch the show, you are missing out on an excellent show. I encourage you to watch next Tuesday night at 8:00 p.m. on FOX.

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