Carly Smithson's Cover of "Come Together"

Last night marked the beginning of the end for the remaining American Idol contestants. For the top contestants, it's now do or die. After auditions, Hollywood week and 6 weeks of double elimination, the remaining 12 have made it through some very tough cuts and finally have their chance to shine on the big stage-- and that'd exactly what Carly Smithson did with her rendition of "Come Together." (If you missed Carly's "Come Together" performance on American Idol Season Seven Top 12, check it out here on YouTube!)

The American Idol Season 7 Top 12 week was Lennon/McCartney week on Idol, so each contestant was given the job of choosing the Lennon, McCartney or Beatles song that suits them best. Veteran singer Carly Smithson's choice was made easy when "Come Together" was on the list. In her pre-performance interview, Carly spoke about her home in Ireland, growing up listening to the Beatles as well as her current job waitressing, bartending and singing at an Irish Pub in California. She mentioned in the interview how one of her favorite songs to sing at her job is "Come Together" and while she's sung it many times, for Idol, she's adding a new twist.

When Carly hit the stage you could already see that she was going to blow the judges and the audience away. The arrangement began with a bluesy bass beat as well as some rock undertones and from beginning to end, her performance was flawless. Many are saying that she added some Janis Joplin to the performance, which can definitely be heard, but overall it was clearly a rock and roll performance at its best. She hit all her notes with clear precision and her performance complimented her singing very well.

While Carly has always gotten rave reviews from the judges, this week was her best review yet. Randy and Paula have always been big Carly Smithson fans, but with her "Come Together" performance, Simon finally hopped on board the Smithson band wagon 100%. Every week Simon has complimented Carly on her voice, but he has continually stressed that she hasn't quite found the right song for her; this week however, she was right on the money.

Carly began her journey on American Idol surrounded in semi-scandal (due to the fact that she's previously had a record contract) but week after week she has proven that she has every right to be in the competition. This week she took a song she knows and loves and she gave it her all and sang it the best she could. She has always been one of the Idol favorites but with David Archuleta's lyrics mishap this week, Carly's "Come Together" performance may have just put her at the top of the game.

Sources:

Idolfreak08. "Carly Smithson - Come Together - Top 12 Finalists." YouTube.Com