AMERICAN IDOL Season 8 Recap — Salt Lake City

Now we’re talking. Tonight’s show had some very interesting, unique personalities who have Top 24 potential.

The Best:

• Frankie Jordan, a 23-year-old mom (with the cutest baby!) who stood out with Amy Winehouse’s “You Know I’m No Good.” She looked like Vanessa Carlton but had a Corinne Bailey Rae vibe. She’s spirited and cute and has a very likable persona.
• Megan Corkrey, 23, another mom, recently divorced, with gorgeous eyes, beautiful mane of long hair and a blanket of tattoos on her right arm. She sang “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” from the musical Showboat, not the most contemporary of songs, but her voice was so distinctive it’s undefinable, her range was impressive, and did I mention she was gorgeous? She’s off to Hollywood.
• David Osmond, 29, who’s living with MS. He’s Alan Osmond’s son (Donny and Marie’s nephew) but made it not because of his name; he could actually sing. Man, I really hope he stays healthy because the competition is going to be rough.
• Rose Flack, 17, the tearjerker of the day. Her parents both died within the last 4 years and she’s been living with a friend’s family. She’s a barefoot hippie wearing platinum blonde pseudo-dreads and a tie-dyed dress. Her look was already distinctive and I thought if she could sing, she’d be golden. Sure enough, she sang Carole King’s “I Feel the Earth Move” with a maturity beyond her age and a soulful ache that made it believable. I hope luck will smile on this girl in Hollywood because so far, it seems to have kicked her in the teeth.

And the Next David Archuleta Is:

• Austin Sisneros, 17, an adorable little blond version of Archie. He made boring song choices, first Train’s “When I Look to the Sky” then Raffi’s “It Takes a Village,” but he’s a smiley, nice young boy with a big, mature voice. The tween girls are going to go nuts.

Most Ridiculous “Lucky” Charm:

• Why did Chris Kirkham bring his friend dressed in a pink bunny suit? Did he think he was auditioning for A Christmas Story 2? The whole thing was not only weird, it backfired. The judges liked the bunny friend more than they liked Kirkham.

Most In Need of a Massage:

• Tara Matthews, one of the most tense singers I’ve seen. She stood around stiffly, with her shoulders around her ears, and was completely humorless. Decked out entirely in black—dress, garters and gloves—she insisted she wasn’t trying to make a statement. She sang an awful version of “One Day I’ll Fly Away” from Moulin Rouge and then gave the camera the finger when rejected. Classy.

I think Salt Lake City provided the strongest batch of candidates since Phoenix. What’d you think? Check back tomorrow night for recaps of New York City and San Juan, Puerto Rico!

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