American Idol Second Elimination: 20 to 16

Before rating Tuesday night's boys' performances, I just have to say a word about the judging. Why is Ellen Degeneres a judge? Her comments are so tentative and bumbling, her humor is so flat, and her ideas are completely generic and derivative of the others' comments. She doesn't seem to have an idea in her head. Oppositely, I have come to value Kara DioGuardi. Her comments make sense to me and she has authority in that she is a music producer and song writer. Does Kara agree with me about the boy rankings for this week? I don't know, but as always, I have my opinions. PS: Last week I only got one out of four right.

The performances are ranked from worst to best. In a fair world, the worst would be voted off, but it doesn't always happen that way. I still predict that the first two in each list will get the boot.

10. John Park sang Gravity by John Mayer and made it boring to the nth degree. Sorry Northbrook. If he stays, it's only because he's cute.

9. Jermaine Sellers is not as cute. He slaughtered What's Going On by the great Marvin Gaye. There wasn't much song left after he pulled out all of his vocal falsettos and other tricks.

8. Tim Urban, current Vote for the Worst poster boy, sang Come On Get Higher by Matt Nathanson. He was much better than last week, but still lacked charisma, distinction, and a good voice. Ellen gave her only good advice of the night: get a job on Glee.

7. Todrick Hall, What's Love Got to Do With It by Tina Turner. What? Dramatic but self indulgent with weak vocals. He gets credit for trying something different.

6. Aaron Kelly destroyed the delightful My Girl by the Temptations by adding countless vocal runs. He is only 16 years old, and it shows.

5. Michael Lynche gave a good, professional performance of This is a Man's World by James Brown. But unlike the judges and all the other American Idol bloggers, I don't like him. I think there is something fake about him. He is an actor, and I feel that he is acting his performances.

4. But I love Alex Lambert (pictured above), who sang Everybody Knows by John Legend. He has a distinctive voice and style, and a lot of sincerity.

3. Andrew Garcia has taken a lot of flack for his recent performances. The judges criticize him whatever he does. I think he has a great voice and a lot of restrained soul, although he was a little stiff. He sang You Give Me Something by James Morrison.

2. Likewise, Casey James, who played guitar and sang I Don't Want to Be by Gavin McGraw, was inexplicably slammed by the judges. His guitar playing was great, and I liked his voice. He performs with understated authority.

1. I have fallen hard for Lee DeWyze. He sang Lips of an Angel by Hinder, and is no longer a dark horse. His vocals this time reminded me of Eddie Vedder. He is an authentic artist.

Top Ten Girls

There were a lot of outstanding girls' performances on Wednesday night.

10. Unfortunately, Haeley Vanghn's wasn't one of them. She sang The Climb by Mikey Cyrus, and the judges hated it as much as I did. Haeley is the girl pick on Vote for the Worst. At 16, she is simply not ready for this competition, if she will ever be.

9. Didi Benami is a more interesting and competent singer than Haeley Vaughn, but her performance of Lean on Me by Bill Withers was excruciating both vocally and rhythmically. Maybe she has potential, but if she could be this bad, she deserves to go home.

8. Lacey Brown, singing Kiss Me by Sixpence None the Richer, was bouncy and better than last week, but kind of generic and forgettable.

7. Katie Stevens to me, is an interesting performer. She is only 17, but seems made to sing torchy old ballads of the 1940s and 50s. The judges want her to be youthful though, so she sang Put Your Records On by Corinne Bailey Rae in a meh performance.

6. Michelle Delamore competently performed With Eyes Wide Open by Creed, a risky choice. She did very well, but she just isn't that lovable.

5. Paige Miles, a more likable performer, rocked out with Walk Away by Kelly Clarkson, a song written by Kara DioGuardi. I though she was a little shouty, but good.

4. Here is where it gets difficult, because the remaining performers were all great. Katelyn Epperly played piano and gave an intense, drawn out performance of The Scientist by Coldplay. In a lesser field, she would have stood out more. The judges criticized her for being too versatile, which I don't quite get.

3. Lilly Scott. I love her. She gave an offbeat, distinctive, and moving performance of one of my favorite songs, A Change is Gonna Come by Sam Cooke.

2. Siobhan Magnus (pictured above). Could this girl be any more quirky and interesting? She gave a fearless belt out of Think by Aretha Franklin, in the style of Aretha Franklin. It was wonderful.

1. Crystal Bowersox is the girls' Lee DeWyze. She played guitar and sang Long as I Can See the Light by CREEDENCE. It was an authentic and stunning performance, organically felt.

We will post the eliminations on the signs in the AV area on the first floor. Check us out and see if I got it right.