One of the problems with watching this series a day or two late is that it is almost impossible to avoid reading the results before seeing the show! I tried very hard but there it was on some headlines and my heart sank. Jax gets eliminated and, as it happens, it is at the start of the show so I'm not actually giving much away telling you that now. I feel so sorry for her, having had to rehearse the whole set of three songs and goodness knows what else only to be kicked off at the start. Bad production, folks; you need to change that.
It is so disappointing, though, as she seemed to me the only fresh artist in the last few of this Season and I genuinely could see Jax performing on huge stages and selling lots of albums to real big fans for some time.
As it is, let's hope Simon signs her up with SYCO and gets her well promoted. She may then actually do better than whoever wins.
So, it's between boring old Clark, wobbling a bit and never quite finding his comfort slot, or Nick, with his 90s revival stuff and strong but not exactly memorable performances. I'll let you judge for yourselves from their three performances shown here which is what occupied practically the whole Finale show.
To be honest, neither is going to have a massive impact on the charts over here and, I suspect, not much over the longer term there unless some exceptional writer comes along and pens some particularly fine tunes or they bring back Payola.
Rayvon starts with a track that is sort of what we're getting used to hearing from him but he doesn't do this as well as some he has performed in the past. It's certainly not bad but not quite as good as I think he needs at this vital stage.
Clark did not have a great week last week but is still here and this time gets the U2 classic to perform. Once more I am hearing some lazy phrasing and not ideally placed notes. It is like he has reached a peak a few weeks ago and is either now trying too hard and losing it or just not picking the right songs to stay well within what he can do well.
He gets compliments from the judges but i felt the crowd were a little less warm. If you listen again to the judges they say it was 'pretty good' and 'I like what you did but you need to listen to the lyrics' and 'your voice is good but...' Make of that what you will.
Easily the best of the guys so far, could Nick be heading for the Final? I would never have thought that at the outset but he is consistently good, in tune and confident. A good choice once more, although this got a bit tedious after a while and ended poorly. Still, that's the song's fault not so much his. He made a good job of the main part and gets much better reviews from the panel than Rayvon and Scott. Nice guy. I see him as the runner-up now. Not a memorable runner-up but he'll get some hits and sales out of all this.
Really good performance by Jax. She just owns the stage and although My Generation wasn't the track I'd have picked for her, she did really well with it and surely has to be the winner of this whole show? Very impressed and knocks all the others into a very cocked hat. Brilliant.
Nick's second number is a sort of rock and country sounding Back Home that has never graced UK charts yet. I swear that there's a banjo in there somewhere. A jolly sort of number with a simple catchy line or two but nothing spectacular. It won't do him any harm, though. Depends what Scott does but he may even pick up some calls from Texas.
I see this as Scott's last chance really. Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay is such a classic song and, as Scott once was at the start of all this, it is exactly his sort of track. He just needs to take it gently, feel the lyrics and get the message across just like Otis did and he may make the Top 3. Unfortunately, he doesn't. It's a mess and not an attractive sound at all. Scott really has lost it, I'm afraid. he has become tedious and not even nice to watch. Pity, as I would have had him as the winner once upon a time.
Nice job, Rayvon. In complete contrast to Scott. This guy has scarped through each week for some time and may have to again but I do hope he makes it this time. That was a nice version of an interesting track for him.
Simply fabulous. Jax is really showing the others just how good she is and just how diverse she can be. You cannot get much further away from The Who than Evanescence. Brilliant choice and she can get away with just sitting there, a little vulnerable, playing the piano and there was a backing track I didn't notice it. Jennifer thinks she's amazing. Harry is clearly impressed too. Keith doesn't get a look-in. Well done, whatever. I'm sure he would have been very complimentary as well!
Better, Clark. Just standing there in a smart suit and singing a track from a modern film, '50 Shades Of Grey', this will earn him some much-needed votes. Whether they'll be enough to knock Rayvon off at last I don't know. At the end the song gets rather messy and I am still not convinced about his note selection. he would be so much better just delivering the song's message gently and in tune and with some real emotion.
Another excellent choice by Rayvon and he doesn't ruin the lyrics or notes by inclusing lots of decoration where it isn't needed. A good track to finish his entry request for the Top 3. Now, will it be granted? He deserves to be there in my opinion. Jennifer was looking for more emotion but Harry reckoned he had that and also complimented him on the arrangement, saying that was 'smart'. More than he said to Clark.
This is a judges' choice for her but I don't quite see why they chose this. It's OK but doen't do a great deal for me and I would say that Rayvon takes this last round. Jax still takes the whole day, though. She made as good a job of that as I think she could and my guess is that she can just do whatever anyone throws at her, which is quite an achievement. Jennifer says that they chose that because they thought it suited her but they felt that she was passing the attention to the guitarist and almost hiding behind him. That's not her style but if she wasn't that cool with the number I can well imagine it being a reasonable move to make. She'll still make it through.
Here's Nick chasing the Big Country vote now, and that's not a bad move at all. A good choice by the judges for him. they're on his side I reckon! A good, measured performance. he could have ruined it by going too fast or too loud but he controlled it nicely. Lots of good feedback there and he damn well should make it through. the question is: who won't get through to the Top 3 Finale?
It turns out that it was Rayvon's last day after all as he loses the votes this week. So it is Jax, Nick and Clark in the Finale.
This week Clark, Jax, Nick, Rayvon and Tyanna show their colours to win this competition. One will go home and leave a Final Four to move on next week and also have the Homecoming events.
I'm not enjoying this. It could be Clark's pooerest performance and the style and song simply don't seem to be the sort of thing he should be doing. the screaming and general approach may show a much-needed animation in someone who has been a bit robotic on occasion but it all seemed a bit over the top and possibly shots in the wrong direction.
Having said that all the initial indications are that Clark will make the Top 4. No doubt. At least that's what I thought at the start of writing this!
Another stunning performance from this girl. The cracked voice work well with this track. Just watch the moment when she decides to get up from the piano - you can almost feel the excitement that she gathers up and then shares with the audience. She is so talented and I am so impressed. Harry asks whether she was horse and she admits that she was but she gets praise for not just continuing through but almost bringing more character to a good track anyway.
Nick makes it through to sing again. Well done, Nick. He has an earthy originality about him and I can see where he gets a good number of his votes from. Territory that perhaps Clarkwanted to steal but now, I suspect, can't.
This track does just go on a bit but it does give Nick a chance to show everyone how good-looking he is and, as Harry points out, that was easily the most 'comfortable' that he'd been. A good time to get things right.
I don't like the very short hair style which only seems to emphasis the eyebrows but what's that got to do with singing? Nothing. so never mind.
As if you hadn't already guessed, Rayvon and Tyanna are the bottom two. Again and again for Rayvon but he ought to survive again too with Tyanna really having let herself down last week. Rayvon does need to do well, though, and you can hear him putting everything except the kitchen sink into this performance of the Lady Antebellum song. He's good but I do worry that he is trying too hard. We've really yet to hear him just do whatever comes naturally. I fear we may not get the chance as, even if he makes it this week to the last 5,he needs something very special if he is going to beat Nick or Clark. The judges say the same thing about pushing the lyrics and emotions a bit too much.
Oh dear. This is dreadful. The makeover team must have been on holiday when it came to her turn. But never mind her appearance; her voice is all over the place at the start and, whilst she makes some effort to get back on track, something isn't right. She starts dancing but then stops. The judges' sum-up make it fairly obvious that they must know the result. I can't see how they can but as it happens they are right and it's farewell Tyanna. Not a surprise or a loss at all.
This is where Clark falls down the popularity charts. Very pitchy, unusually for him but worrying as he is in a different zone and , despite the classy bits later, it doesn't get rescued. This is sould without much sould I'm afraid. A pity, as I had thought this would be where he closed the gap with Jax for the win.
Not on the video is an argument where Clark does not come across well. That will not have helped him either, showing a pompous side. He's not going to win now and I can even see him going home next week if Rayvon pulls his socks up.
Lovely. In complete contrast we have Jax in the mist with a beautiful version of the Christina Peri song. When she drops to her needs she perfectly interpreted the lyrics and it was a performance that you just stay with until the end. At one point I was wondering if the mist was going to take her over! A good job. Well done, young lady.
Here comes Rayvon! We'll ignore the fact that it's a Justin Bieber song but, like it or not, you have to respect the guy for the performance this time. He holds back for a change. soemone does need to teach him about breathing next to the microphone but he did a very good job tonight here and, with Clark's not doing well, I wonder whether he might not have just pulled himself into the Top 3 after all!
Impressed. Not as impressed as I am with Jax by quite a long distance but impressed nevertheless.
Good move, Nick. With Clark stumbling, he is now going for the Country vote. No-one else is so why not? There's usually enough in Texas to win the damn thing so if he can pull a few thousand of those in he'll be there next week.
Nice mixture of styles here. A fairly flat, uneventful performance but it worked for all that.
Jennifer has him as the star of the night. Didn't expect that. Keith says that will storm up the iTunes chart. Maybe judges shouldn't make these predictions that can so easiliy be proven wrong. I would predict Jax by a long way.
So Jax makes the Top 5 and, from this performance, deservedly so. If she decides to do a Wendy James number then I may even buy it myself! She is looking so much sexier than the others and, for that matter, more than most entrants I can recall in this show.
Good reviews too from the judges who didn't actually say that but you could tell it was in their mind. She gets fans and looks like keeping them. Nice job.
Nick is still in the competition after some excellent and well-chosen tracks. I am not so sure about this one that isn't particularly familiar and doesn't suit him as well as some others have done. reminds me of The Voice UK winner, Steve. He did win, though, i suppose, so maybe that's no bad thing but, if you had to choose between Nick and Jax, it would be Jax that took the crown.
I am been very complimentary about Clark so far. He has never looked very inspiring but he has sung amazingly well. Here he takes on one of the big standards that everyone knows almost by heart and so it is a big, big risk to play around with it. He may just have got away with this but I do worry when he slips on the notes which can destroy an otherwise excellent song.
I am now getting quite tired of Tyanna's out of tune numbers. She picks fun numbers and is quite entertaining when she gets things right but most of the time she just doesn't. I am surprisaed the judges don't comment on this at all. She ought to be the next to go. And 5th is better than anyone would have expected for her, surely.
It's Quentin in the bottom two with Rayvon again. A great track and Quentin didn't do a bad job of this. he performs well but it was a bit bland, to be honest, whereas he shouldn't be. he is one of the contestants that has been prepared to take some chances and has a good voice and sense of what's needed. One commentator has said that the new format of leaving everyone in the lurch until they get to the last two hasn't helped and leaves everyone nervous and I agree. It can't be good to hang around before you sing, knowing that one of you has already been voted bottom or next to bottom. The old format of announcing in a second results show worked best but was more costly, of course.
OK, so this wasn't too brilliant. What about Rayvon?
Good choice, Rayvon! Sam smith is currently ultra cool and a big act that many younger voters will be following, whereas The Doors were for an older generation and, when you're looking for votes, this is the way to go. He also did actually make quite a decent job of this, the notes being in place and, apart from some heavy breathing, he did well.
Looks like a different order so here's Nick doing a 70s classic from Rod Stewart and The Faces. OK, it was fun but not exactly the sort of stuff you win major competitions with.
Tyanna singing again. Oh, can I wake up now? That was very tedious and wobbly. Seriously, she should be the one going tonight but, of course, it is one of the two lads, each of whom sings far better than this girl. She is very well-presented but it's all too serious and just doesn't work at all for me. This is the sort of performance that will let down American Idol, especially as the judges don't seem to feel able to pick any fault with her.
Clark takes a slightly different route here and it works quite well. He is not entirely believable when he gets more down and dirty, though. I reckon he got away with it but it might have been a bit high for him. It wasn't something lots of people would rush out and buy. Harry is dead right in his comments. Still, the guy's in the Top 5 so that's cool for him.
Almost going from one extreme to another, well Wendy James to Dido is some fair distance, and staying in one place, Jax is showing just how good she can be. This was superb. I see her as a Lady Gaga in time. She has that uniqueness and talent. Notes are spot-on and her instinct for what people would like to hear is just right. I do hope she wins as she is simply so watchable and you can be pretty sure that she will have some impact on the world at large, entertainment and music-wise.
Quentin's final number is the Florence & The Machine's number which he does almost impeccably well. Good choice this time and shows a moody side but will this be enough to keep him in or will Rayvon get the votes?
Now that is a song! Love the Fleetwood Mac / Stevie Nicks number and Rayvon gives it his best shot. He does seem to be marginally behind the beat for it from the start but the audience clearly love it. A very, very clever choice again. He needs to control his breathing and timing but I do feel he deserves to stay in the Top 5. Quentin, indeed, is the one who gets sent home on the instant Twitter vote.
Two songs each tonight from the seven who have survived from last week, one of whom will go as the Top 6 are decided. Qaasim is the one missing tonight.
Tyanna still sounds a bit amateur to me and is very wobbly tonight. This ought to be right up her street but that high 'why' is really quite painful to listen to. She has made the Top 6 but I am not sure she should have done.
I think I've heard enough of Stevie Wonder songs and this isn't one of either his best or one that shows Clark off particularly well. For all that, the guy is looking increasingly like a winner and he's made the Top 6 easily.
This is quite impressive. Jax is so confident and, once more, shows us just how well she can interpret the Janice Joplin number. She was, once again, made up well and not too frightening for the voters. I can see her making the finale with Clark and she is the more interesting of the two.
What a great song choice for Nick. Well done whoever was responsible for that Tom petty classic. He has made the last 6 and deservedly so. Nice track which suits him very well. His supporters will like it and should keep him in for another week in comparison to Tyanna and Rayvon.
Are You Going My Way? A Good performance by Quentin and he's done well to get this far. I don't know how well that'll go down with the voters out there. Solid and in tune but, after a while, nothing spectacular. despite the makeover team's excellent work.
In complete contrast, Joey sings My Funny Valentine and whilst she is normally pitch perfect and just delivers each time, on this occasion, and actually quite an important one as it will be her or Rayvon going home, she just picked a key that didn't quite work. So unusual but very risky. A talent, for sure, but I ahve always queried whether this is the right show for her.
You can't deny that Rayvon puts everything into this and it does suit him so much better than several previous efforts. That was one of his best performances and he seems to be getting better each week. I reckon he might win through with that.
This version of Moon River was not up to his previous standards at all. Distinct wobbles here and there and that wasn't so good. He's fine and will be there next week but he needs to be a bit careful.
Better this second time, but the first slow bit and very last note would be enough for me to say that she is coming to the end of her AI run.
Another good song choice for Nick. Safely into the Top 6 and I think he'll make the Top 5 without too much trouble. He has a great ability to add power to his voice when he needs it and every note was spot on. Excellent.
So many cool second songs this week. This is quite unexpected and a strange, moody transition for the Paul Simon song.
Anyone doing Beat It must be brave and Jax is proving throughout this series that she will take on almost anything and turn it into an entertaining performance. This is pretty good and she's obviously having fun. I reckon that will go down very well with her fans and she'll be safely into the Top 5.
Another very good choice and this sees Rayvon through. It was in tune and he is beginning to look familiar as he stays true to image with the hat and the black shirt. I don't know how long he'll survive, having hit the bottom two twice now, but I wish him well. He may be in competition with Tyanna next time.
I like this song a lot and Joey tries hard but I think she realises that it isn't going to work half way through when she looks to one side very very briefly and, despite an excellent recovery, possibly realises that Rayvon's choice was the better one for the voters this year.
It is indeed her turn to go and so we move towards the final with just six. I don't recall the very young chap Daniel going. Obviously he has at some stage but I simply don't remember writing about it. The way the show is organised, it is not until the end that you realise that so-and-so hasn't been asked to perform and, without a performance, there's no video evidence of their departure. One week they're singing, the next week they're gone.
Jax sings Lady Gaga's Poker Face. She is competent but is neither sufficiently outrageous nor engaging to keep my attention. The audience are not so sure either from what little we can tell. She does make the effort to make songs her own and that she deserves credit for. I still want to hear what she can really do. She could make a big difference but hasn't yet.
Nick puts on a strong performance and reminds me of the guy who just won The Voice UK. he is on his last chance, age-wise, for this sort of competition and this must make him feel good to have got this far. I think he is more professional and in tune than several of the others still remaining and may make the last few. It was good but, like Jax, not sufficiently engaging or memorable. Of the two, though, Jax would be the better bet for a longer-term star.
Quentin sings a song that's new to me. Latch is neither one thing nor the other. I suppose it's current and that's in his favour but it seems to float from one key to another and is definitely not anything inspirational that would make me annoyed to have missed it. His falsetto bits are not that great either. The staging is sound but it just seems so average to me. Harry liked it and the judges generally give him a good review. Clearly I am not getting it on my small screen. Too much thinking about the show and not enough natural performance. He could be at risk after that.
Joey Cook is getting the full benefit of the makeover people these days. This was the first performance this week that captured me. She is also very competent and quite different, like Jax. Of the two she has done the better song this week. It was a little similar to the Miley Cyrus original. Not a problem as it is a very well-written song anyway.
Clark has done really well so far and, once again, it is an exquisitely tempered performance. A great voice and presence but there is something about him that makes him look uncomfortable on the stage. Sure, he can make the albums but I am not so sure about the stage shows. Jennifer hits the nail on the head by saying that the style and image have to fit. In other words, they don't. He is 'uncool'. He will almost certainly make the Final but he won't win unless something changes to make him stand out. All the judges say something similar. If he could have done it, though, I feel he would have done already. He is just a little too sweet perhaps. But then plenty of very 'sweet' guys have won in the past and beaten the interesting ones.
Tyanna has also benefitted from the makeover team's work. This starts well but ends a bit tediously having not really gone anywhere in the middle. She's a nice girl and can sing reasonably well. I do feel that Adunna should have had her spot and quite how Maddy Walker went in preference to Tyanna still frustrates me. She isn't a contender in my book, I'm afraid. Nice enough voice and that was not a bad performance but will anyone be inspired to vote? I don't know. Depends how bad the others are, I guess.
I keep forgetting the format of this show. Tyanna has, of course, made it to the Top 7. She was the last certain to make it. It is now between Rayvon and Qaasim. Rayvon is first up with a good song, Set Fire To The Rain is well known but I wasn't very impressed. He has a good tone and range and is pretty competent but he is a bit forgettable. Nice fellow, of course, but I don't know where he is going to fit if he proceeds further. Harry wants to know what is his 'gravy'. We get a glory to God response which is neither here nor there.
So this is the one special contender that the judges used their sole save for? I like his performance style for Hey Ya but he can't sing well. It is all about the oddities of his entertainment act and I just don't see enough people getting excited to save him again. To be honest neither Qaasim nor Rayvon will be around long, whatever happens tonight. I wish them both well and hope they get a chance to go on a tour or something. They've worked hard to get this far but we're looking for a winner now, someone who will make a future star and neither are going to get that sort of big contract just now. One's too boring, the other is too weird and the facial expressions are not pleasant. The lips need some control.
Rayvon wins the vote and so it's farewell to Qaasim. I suspect the judges are wondering whether they wasted their vote earlier. We miss those girls.
OK. That's it. Down to 7 and I think we can see who the next two to go will be.
Daniel's track is really not good. His singing is cracking up. He does look good on camera, as Keith points out and he gets on well with the audience. Clearly he is getting plenty of votes but he has to do better or we'll have a dud winning this thing.
A far better vocal from Quentin Alexander but still not one that convinces me that he deserves the Idol crown this year. A nice production all round, although far too short of course. This is one talented individual and I certainly see him selling albums and getting a contract. whatever happens on the show. Great song choices so far as well.
Joey tried to do Cindy Lauper this week. She looked great but her singing was a bit odd and Harry doesn't look too impressed. She is better than that.
Tyanna was one I was thinking might go home this week. She seems to have survived, though. This version of Whitney Houstons' I Want To Dance With Somebody is OK but a bit light and lacking in the passion the song usually has. Disappointing again.
Nick is a little more inspired with Man In The Mirror. I just don't see him winning either. I guess that was one of the better acts tonight but he will have to do a whole lot more.
Rayvon isn't making the grade either in this rather sad week for the show. He just sings along and does a little oohing here and there but it is actually quite boring. He hits the right notes but then most of the contestants are doing that. There is just not a lot I can think to say about that performance.
This could be a winning performance on a quiet tight. Nicely done. Every Breath You Take is not an easy Police song to perform but he got it just right. Well done. Streets ahead of the others. This guy could well take this thing after that sort of performance.
Doing Bon Jovi's You Give Love A Bad Name takes some courage but Jax can be relied upon and this performance has bags of originality and you can just tell that she is trying hard to reach people but has a great deal of confidence. She deserves to be here and will make an intriguing finalist.
Lucky still to be here and that means that the two girls, Maddie Walker and Adanna go home. That's quite a surprise, as I had Maddy down for the Country vote and Adanna as a potential winner with such great performances. So neither even get to sing as the panel used their only save last week. So sad,
I have to say that, apart from abit of Jax, some Quentin and Clark, this was a poor week.
