I was not really that excited that they will sing Beatles songs again in a matter of a week's time.  Are they already running out of themes to do?  I enjoy hearing Beatles songs anytime, but I think they might not really be good songs for a singing competition.  And the proof was right here in this mediocre episode last night.  I heard a lot of my favorite Beatle's hits tonight, but it was a very mixed bag.

Truth to tell, there was only one contestant that was my far and away favorite performance of the night, and that was David Archuleta in "The Long and Winding Road."  This is one of my most favorite Beatles songs and little David's delivery was spot on!  Ok, he might be too young to sing this, but sang it well, he really did.

Special mentions to Syesha Mercado (pictured, with her new look) for her "Yesterday" and Carly Smithsen for her "Blackbird".  They were well-chosen songs, very heartfelt and sincere renditions.  As singers, they were also able to showcase their range, particularly Carly.    I did not get Simon's criticism that the song was "indulgent".

Also consistently good was David Cook's "Day Tripper," another Beatles favorite of mine.  The vocoder (?) effect did not work as well as David thought as it was hardly heard.  He did acknowledge that he worked off the Whitesnake version of the song.

The rest were a very messy lot. 

Amanda Overmyer did "Back in the USSR" in her usual way.  There was actually no difference in any number that she did over the past few weeks.  Simon was right to point out that Chikezie were too gimmicky in his song.  The arrangement was too all-over-the-place.  Part of his numbers were verging on noisy in my opinion.    It did not help that his song "I've Just Seen A Face" was unfamiliar to me.

It gets worse.  Brooke White and Jason Castro showed their limitations.  They need their instruments as crutches to hide their very awkward moves.  Why did Brooke choose "Here Comes the Sun"?  It was such a singsong repetitive melody with no room for variation.  The same is true with Jason's choice "Michelle".  Nothing was happening in their delivery. 

What happened to Michael Johns tonight?  This is the first week that he actually looked lost and vulnerable.  His "A Day in the Life" was unmemorable to say the least.  He seemed out of tune and out of it for most of the song, so much that Paula thought mistakenly he was having difficulty wearing an earpiece (which he WASN'T!)

I am sad to see Ramiele Malubay so much in danger of elimination after a lackluster rendition of " I Should've Known Better."  Her song is poppy and upbeat, the stage is so big, but she only stays basically in one place!  I hate to use this word "karaoke", but this is just it.  No individuality or artistry in this performance at all.  She will need the Filipino community's votes to make her part of the Top 10, to be able to join the Idol tour.  She's lucky she got the pimp spot last night but she did not play that to her advantage.  But at least it might make her number more "memorable" by default.

And finally, we have Kristy Lee Cook.  She sang another one of my Beatles favorites "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away."  I am sorry to say that, while it was better than her last week (anything would have been better, I'm sure), it was such an uneven delivery that I barely recognized it until the chorus.  She is already using her looks with her shiny mini-dress, ala Haley Scarnato in Season 6.

My bets for Bottom 3:  Kristy Lee Cook, Ramiele Malubay, Chikezie
My bet for elimination:  Kristy Lee Cook (again)

Very exciting songs.  I love Beatles music!  Not all of them though were good for a singing competition as seen in tonight's show.

The best of the night for me was David Cook.  There was just this energy in his version of "Eleanor Rigby" that made it so vital.  Loved how he sang the chorus and how it ended.  Great re-arrangement!  Simon had memorable words for him, saying he would win this competition if it was only about talent, and not popularity.

Brooke White was really very sincere with her "Let It Be".  This, and her piano playing, kept us from noticing the repetitiveness of this classic tune.  Chekezie's "She's A Woman" was very good, although I confess I was not entirely familiar with this tune.  Carly Smithsen was also good with her "Come Together."  I would agree with Paula regarding Michael Johns' "Across the Universe."  I liked its simplicity and effortlessness.  Same with Jason Castro and his guitar-driven "If I Fell".

Syesha was really forgettable. And Ramiele was boring.  She is falling into a rut, and she better extricate herself out of it fast!  Amanda was being herself, nothing particularly new or memorable about it.

3 disastrous messes:  David Hernandez with an overcooked "I Saw Her Standing There."  I guessed that when I heard his song choice there was really very little he could do with song, so I guessed he tried too hard to do unnecessary variations.  Not good at all.

Kristy Lee Cook tried to countri-fy "Eight Days A Week".  I felt it was really a bad idea.  Very corny.  Sounded like a joke arrangement, even like a polka.  And she could not move in tune with the lively music.  It is like she was standing still.  Definitely bad.

Surprisingly, David Archuleta.   For all his polish in the past two weeks, I do not know how he could have had such am error-filled performance for a song like "We Can Work It Out".  Forgotten lyrics, at this stage, and in more than one part of the song!  Unthinkable.

My bet for the bottom three:  Kristy Lee Cook, David Hernandez and Syesha Mercado.

My bet for elimination:  Kristy Lee Cook