Harry Connick Jr. ... What More Can I Say?

First off, can I just say how much I love Harry Connick, Jr? Love, love, love him. He’s even on the playlist on my blog. Although, I must say, his quote – “As long as they sing these words to these melodies, they’ll be fine” didn’t make a lot of sense. Song choice all night long was really off, and I’m not sure if Harry chose the songs or if the contestants did.

Aaron – “Fly Me to the Moon” Aaron is not Sinatra, and he’s not Connick. The song was just too big for him. The arrangement was great, because Connick did it, but the singing … no, not much. I don’t know if the judges were listening to the same performance.

Casey – “Blue Skies” Casey held his own against the band, volume-wise, which Aaron didn’t. However, it wasn’t his style and I’m concerned for him tonight.

Crystal – “Summer Wind” Crystal showed some great versatility tonight. It wasn’t her best performance, but it was a good performance.

Big Mike – “The Way You Look Tonight” Mike has a natural talent for this type of singing and this was definitely a good night for him.

Lee – “That’s Life” Lee did a really awesome job with this song. I wasn’t a fan of the weird organ thing Harry was doing in the background, but the singing was pretty awesome.

What’s interesting about tonight’s performances is that I felt they went backward in order of how good they were. We started out really shaky and intimidated with Aaron, got a little stronger but still out of his element with Casey, then went into always awesome, and yet very different tonight, Crystal. Mike and Lee were both at the top of their game, with Lee, last, doing the best.

So for me, calling tonight’s shots is easy - mostly. Aaron and Casey, definitely. I hesitate … I really hesitate … to put Crystal in the bottom three. I thought she did an absolutely lovely job, but it was so different from what her fans are used to seeing—will they be disappointed with that, or will they keep her in? On the other hand, Mike was really in his element, but he has been in the bottom three, and Crystal’s just not used to hanging out with the almost-losers.

Hmmm. Hmmmm. You know what, I’m gonna have to say that Big Mike will be in the bottom three. I think Crystal’s fans will rise up and rally, even though she took a chance. I applaud her chance-taking.

So, Aaron, Casey, and Big Mike. And going home … Casey. Aaron’s preteen vote seems to be a little stronger than Casey’s hot guy vote. Let this not distract from the fact, though, that I think Casey did better than Aaron.