"I don't want to cry"... I hope you all voted for Jason Castro (or David Cook)

Mariah Carey says she was surprised that David Cook chose "Always Be My Baby" because she didn't know what he was going to do with it. David says he thinks he's taking another step outside the box with this song, that it's obviously a huge pop hit. Mariah says David did something really different and that it made her really proud as a songwriter to see that the song could stand the test of time and also a male perspective. She tells David that it sounded really pretty and haunting the way he was singing with his voice and not resolving it (No clue what she's talking about). She says she thinks it could be a big hit for him, not from a selfish point of view, but from a selfish point of view of wanting to hear it, as a listener.

What can be said about David Cook? First off, I have to say that he's looking almost hot tonight - I'm loving the facial hair and the hair is still way improved, but besides that... Is there any new word out there that can accurately describe his creativity, his vision, his talent? He's so gifted that he's too good for "American Idol." He will no doubt go on to ridiculous success. I mean, I happen to love Mariah's version of this song - it's one of the two or three songs of hers that I like - and I never imagined, ever, that this song could be sung by a man, let alone a rocker-type. And Mariah was right - he does make the song sound kind of haunting, but in a good way - he totally connected with the song, perhaps the lyrics - that it was if he wrote the song himself. He's amazing - if you missed it, you've just gotta see it.



Randy tells him that more than almost anyone else on the show right now, he's ready to make an album, that he's a hot recording artist. He stands up and says, "I've never stood up yet this season - that was the most brilliant performance yet." Paula says that the song could be on a movie soundtrack right now, and who knows? maybe it will. Simon says it was like coming out of karaoke hell into a breath of fresh air because that was original, it was daring, it stood out by a mile and this a sign of a great potential artist - someone who takes risks.

So People magazine had reported that David's brother, the one who is battling brain cancer, was cleared to travel to be in the audience tonight, and they showed him a couple of times. No mention was made of him, but David is crying right now and I have a feeling it's because his brother, who may not live much longer, just got to watch his absolute brightest moment on the show so far.


Mariah Carey says that Jason doing "I Don't Want to Cry" is really interesting and different. She says that with Jason, it's about expressing a song and singing to get that song into people's hearts. Jason says she offered some tips for the melody and he loved it. She says she's looking forward to seeing his performance, seeing if he chose to use any of her ideas, but if not, hopefully he'll do great, because she thinks he's really unique and she enjoyed working with him.

Of course, I love it - I like the funky beat he added to the song, he made it kind of mellow and laid-back. The actual singing wasn't his best, but really, I have to be honest, it's not really his singing I'm into. I'd be just as enthusiastic if he just sat there and looked pretty. Having said that, though, I still think he was in the top three or four. Even though he doesn't have the best voice in the bunch, he's interesting, he holds people's attention and I think that counts for something. Syesha has a beautiful voice, but I think she's so dull, I could tune her out. But Jason's getting better, he's making good song choices and I think he's 100% safe this week.

Randy says he didn't really love it, that he felt like he was in a weird beach luau and someone's playing some music in the distance. He says it was weird for him - he didn't get it. Paula says she'd love to be at that luau listening all night long. She says he's getting so confident and it's just lovely to hear him. Simon says, "Jason, I'm going to have to agree with... Paula." He says it wasn't the best vocal but it identified with him, that it was a cool version. He adds that the guys completely won the night.


Ah... who should go tomorrow? I think the bottom three will be Syesha, Carly and Brooke. I think Brooke will be safe because she has some fantastic performances in her past, so people will be likely to give her another shot. Between Carly and Syesha, to be honest, I don't really care who goes - I'd like to see them both go, but having flipped a coin, I say tomorrow night, it's Syesha who goes home.