Grading the IDOL TOP 9: Who Should Stay and Who Should Go?

Before we hand out the grades for IDOL from Wednesday night's show, if you didn't get to see Steven Tyler belting out a country song and 'Walk This Way' with Carrie Underwood on Sunday's ACM Awards show, check it out here!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbbIvGVQqKk&feature=player_embedded
Steven still has the magic on stage for sure!


Contestants chose songs from artists in the 'Rock and Roll Hall of Fame'. Speaking of which, if you've never been to Cleveland to see it....what are you waiting for? If you love music and the roots of rock and roll, you owe it to yourself to take the trip and check it out!

OK, let's move on with EI's thoughts on last night's performances.....dim the lights, here we go.....

• Jacob Lusk- Performs MJ's '"Man In The Mirror" instead of Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On". Good switch on his part, and a well done performance, with way better control and no 'scary faces' from him on stage. SAFE....TOP 8! Grade B
• Haley Reinhart- Sings Janis Joplin's "Piece of My Heart"....PERFECT! Great song choice suited for her voice, complete with the sexy, bluesy growling she does so well. She ripped thru this song and nailed it! Maybe her BEST performance to date. 2nd impressive performance on top of last week's "Bennie & the Jets", This girl is starting to gain momentum and on a roll, and is closing the gap between her and Pia. BEST OF THE NIGHT! VERY SAFE & TOP 8. GRADE- A         
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• Casey Abrams- Takes on CCR's "Have You Ever Seen the Rain", performing the upright bass, which is very cool. Not sure the bass could mask a so-so performance for me, thought it was just OK and not feeling all the love at all that the judges had for him, but good enough to be SAFE and TOP 8. Grade B-  
• Lauren Alaina- Wants to put a country spin on Aretha's "Natural Woman"....and does an OK job, but nothing special, certainly not nearly as good as several others have done on IDOL over the years. And sorry Gwen Stefani, who I like by the way, but the outfit and the hairdo chosen for Lauren last night....a train wreck! I think she's the lone girl in the BOTTOM 3 tonight. GRADE- C-
• James Durbin- Takes a BIG risk by performing George Harrison's classic "While My Guitar Gently Weeps". What? James my boy, it's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Night, where's 'James The Rocker'? Not that it was a bad performance, but it wasn't great either. He went on to explain that the song was for his family and his version that he put together 5 years ago, and got quite emotional, fighting back tears. I hope he's safe, and think he will be, so I'll say TOP 8. Grade- C+ 
• Scottie McReery- No surprise that he chose Elvis' "That's Alright", as Scottie told us weeks ago he used to sing Elvis songs as a kid in the back of school bus to entertain his classmates. It was a bit over the top and cheesy for me, not his best performance, but he's SAFE and in the TOP 8. Grade- C+
• Pia Toscano- Follows through on her promise earlier in the week to sing Tina Turner's "River Deep, Mountain High". She finally goes up-tempo, works the stage and the audience, and turns in a solid performance! Still the one to beat in my opinion. VERY SAFE...TOP 8! Grade-B+
• Stefano Langone- Once again crooner boy pulls a crappy song choice in choosing to sing Percy Sledge's "When A Man Loves A Woman". Are you kidding me? Why isn't Jimmy coaching this kid better on song choices? Well....it was bad, really bad, and he won't have to worry about what to sing next week, because he'll be at home watching on TV like the rest of us. BOTTOM 3 and the first guy headed home tonight! Grade- D
• Paul McDonald- Smiley gets the coveted FINAL spot of the night, and he decides that he wants to perform Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues", with the guitar for a 3rd straight week. Doesn't matter, the guitar doesn't help him much, as vocally it's a mess and he 'squeaks' the life out of this song. But.... Ryan and the judges heap love & praise on him, pimping him as best they can as a great performer. The Man in Black had to be rolling in his grave! BOTTOM 3 tonight! GRADE- D+ 

Sooooo.....Eddie Idol's BOTTOM 3 for tonight's one-hour results show: Stefano, Paul and Lauren......and with 4 girls already eliminated, it's a guys turn tonight for sure, so Stefano goes home, but I won't be at all surprised or saddened if it's Paul going home instead. But again....it will be a GUY saying goodbye tonight....count on it!  

Constantine Maroulis, the Season 4 finalist who now stars in the national touring production of Rock of Ages, will perform his version of "Unchained Melody" on Thursday's results show. Constantine released versions of the Righteous Brothers classic and Chicago's "25 or 6 to 4" to iTunes last week.  

Talented R+R Hall of Fame guitarist Jeff Beck was also scheduled to perform on tonight's show, but rumor has it that he has backed out due to illness. More from Eddie Idol tomorrow......after the VOTES!