Solid Performance of Without You for Carly Smithson Might Not Be Enough

Tonight the American Idol Top 7 contestants were mentored by Mariah Carey. This would ensure that the young singers would have to arrange the songs differently. After all, no one can sing like Mariah Carey.

Carly Smithson had a tough act to follow tonight as David Archuleta started the night off with another big performance. Carly has been criticized, mostly by Simon, about her song choice and her wardrobe. Rightfully so, Carly tends to give mixed signals with her performances.

Tonight Carly showed restraint in her vocals when she needed to and put a softer side to her act. I thought it worked. Carly sang the lower parts of the song without a rock edge to her voice, which I enjoyed. She sang the song pure and simple, and did not try to overdo in anyway (an easy thing to do with a big voice and a Mariah Carey song).

Carly's appearance tonight was reserved as well. Wearing a dark simple dress and jacket helped lend to the performance. Maybe she understood that a hardcore tattooed arm was not what the song called for.

The judging went down like this:

Randy Jackson - " ... you gotta believe and trust yourself in your lower range."

Paula Abdul - "I like the fact that you showed some restraint."

Simon Cowell - "... I don't think that you pulled it off... it was an OK version"

Overall I think it was a solid performance for Carly, but I fear that her fan base is shrinking. The older contestants may run into trouble with the tween crowd voting hard for David Archuleta and David Cook. I think it will be difficult for any of the women to break into the Top 3. Based on vocal ability Carly Smithson is the only one with a chance.