The show begins with Ryan asking, "Who will set the standard?" Whoa, the finale is three weeks and there are so many votes, they needed to add a second phone number for each of the top five! The theme is "standards from the rat pack" and the signs are out! There's a lot in store for us!
There's a mystery mentor! Is it Michael Buble or Rod Stewart? Kris thinks all the possible mentors are dead, lol. Wrong! It's Jamie Foxx! In Spring 2009, he had the number one song, Blame It, featuring future act that Kris Allen would open for in 2019, T-Pain. Jamie explains the rat pack lifestyle to the Idols.
Kris is up first and gets an interview with Ryan. He also gets a ton of screams, as he should, because he dressed very nicely and looks very handsome. I read an interview once that he blew his entire Idol clothing budget on the suit he wore in this show. (Please send a link if you know of it!)
After a commercial break, he comes back and sings a pristine version of The Way You Look Tonight. It's a perfect choice for him. But first, he gets high praise from Jamie Foxx, who calls Kris his "Number One" and says he'll do a record with him. (For his part, Kris recently said in a Reddit AMA that Jamie was his favorite mentor.)
Randy is looking to see who is "in it to win it" and "Dude, this was your best performance tonight!" Kara says that he has "set the technical standard" high tonight and he's truly a "dark horse." Paula says he's transitioned to becoming a gentleman and a contemporary crooner. Simon thought it was good but "a little bit wet." He doesn't think Kris can win. Randy strongly disagrees.
As for the remaining performances, my time is limited this week so I'll just quickly summarize them. Allison Iraheta had just turned 17 and sings Someone to Watch Over Me. She does really well, but Simon is weirdly critical of her too. Matt Giraud sings My Funny Valentine. He's stoked for this week. He got a B in college in jazz music. It's a touch boring and a little off. Randy and Kara agree with me. It's the first song Simon liked tonight. Danny Gokey is going to sing Come Rain or Come Shine. First, Jamie Foxx gets up in his grill, lol. He yells the song when performing. The judges love his swag and his vocals. Clearly, Allison and Kris had been getting more votes than Danny and Matt because Simon takes the opportunity to bash them again. Adam Lambert is last with Feeling Good. The vocals were too over the top screaming for me but it is an interesting and dramatic arrangement. Randy thought it was a little theatrical and Simon says that's like complaining that a cow moos. (LOL!) Then he gets in another dig at "two others" (hmmm, who could he mean?) for "not wanting to win." I'm sure I was a motivated voter and faced another date with three cell phones for three hours voting for Kris.
Watch the entire performance episode here
The intro is the usual hyperbole recap of the performance shows. Jamie Foxx tells us to "shock the world." Not happening tonight, Jamie, although there were 47 million votes cast! Asked to rate the performances, Simon says "everyone was good, all five of them." Not what he was saying last night, hmmmm. The guests are Season 5 winner Taylor Hicks, Natalie Cole and Jamie Foxx.
Yay, one of my favorite Ford Music Videos! Energy by the Apples.
The concept is that the top 5 race a Ford. Kris wins the race and had fun making the video. Actually, they all seem like they enjoyed this shoot! This was Kris' first visit to a desert, but not his last, as both his videos for Live Like We're Dying and The Truth were shot in deserts.
Next up, a fun Rat Pack medley of It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing) and I Got Rhythm!
They all report to the couches for a discussion of Allison and Danny's birthdays. We see their infamous food fight.
They give Gokey the cleaning bill. Good. $6000! No, Gokey, Idol won't pay for it unless you win.
Time to pull out the ... HUFF! For those who don't know what the Huff is, Idol started something in Season three with their top five contestants where they put them in groups of two and then made the fifth one pick the group that was not the bottom two. Usually either the contestant going home or the "sure winner" would be the Huff. (It's called the Huff because Season Three's George Huff was the first person.) Sometimes, the Huff of the Season would sit down in protest. Sometimes they'd just pick someone. Sometimes like Huff, they went home.
Anyway, the groups of two are Matt and Kris, and Danny and Allison. Kris gets screams. Kris is asked if he has determination to win. He does. Simon believes him. That means Season 8's Huff is Adam! OOH! Adam is asked which group he belongs with. He awkwardly tries the "I love everyone card" but then says, based on last night, he should be with Danny and Allison. Ryan clarifies that Danny, Allison and Adam are not the bottom three, then he grabs Adam and walks him over to Kris and Matt and declares that they are the bottom three! OOH! As Huffs go, this was a pretty good one. (Also, I must admit, I didn't recall that Kris had made a bottom three but there it is. This will be his only one.)
Everyone is shocked. Allison doesn't even want to go to the stools. Paula says she wishes they could have a five-way tie but someone has to go. Ryan calls out Simon on his "bad calls" and Simon says America decides who they like. Jamie Foxx told Randy the five finalists are talented. Kara says her jaw is always open for Adam. Randy makes fun of her inadvertent dirty joke.
We take a break for a live performance of a jazz standard with Natalie Cole. I don't remember this at all. I'm sure I was posting all sorts of "SAVE KRIS" posts on Facebook and Twitter and ranting away.
Matt, Kris and Adam wait nervously backstage for their results. They have to wait some more while Taylor Hicks performs. My kid's current tennis coach is a dead ringer for Taylor Hicks. It always freaks me out a little.
Aw, Simon gives Taylor Hicks a standing ovation. (Simon was usually hard on him and desperately hoped Daughtry or Katherine McPhee would win that year.) Taylor in 2009 was apparently fresh off a diet and touring the country playing the teen angel in Grease. Taylor advises the contestants to make good song and performance choices.
Matt, Kris and Adam come back on stage. It's time to send one of them to safety. It's KRIS! YAY! He looks so relieved. Simon is probably wondering who to blame. Just ask Jamie Foxx, who's up next performing a heavily autotuned Blame It. He's interviewed after the performance and says that the top five are five of the most talented people he's met and they want to be artists, so "support these cats." His girlfriends like Adam best but no wonder who wins, they're all artists. Asked if America got the bottom two right, Jamie says it doesn't matter and by the way, his latest movie is out now. LOL!
It's time to send Matt or Adam home. No saving anyone now. Ryan sticks it to Simon again about his bad calls on performance night. He's right, Kara and Randy had the most on-point critiques. Then he announces that Adam is safe, and Matt, to no one's surprise, is going home. We get to see the save again, and then Matt's goodbye video. Matt reprises My Funny Valentine and gets life advice from his fangirls Paula and Kara.
Watch the entire results episode here
Mp3s!
- The Way You Look Tonight (Idol performance)
- The Way You Look Tonight (Idol single)
- Rat Pack Medley (Group number)
Next week: Top 4 Rock Week
Past Kris Allen on Idol recaps:
Audition in Louisville
Hollywood Week, rounds one and two
Making the top 36
Group 2, aka the Best Idol Group ever and the one where we get to see him sing Everything
Top 13 week (Michael Jackson songs)
Top 11 week (Opry songs)
Top 10 week (Motown songs)
Top 9 week (iTunes downloads)
Top 8 week (Year contestants were born)
Top 7 week 1 (Movie week)
Top 7 week 2 (Disco week)
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