LAST EDITED ON 04-07-11 AT 10:59 AM (EST)

All in all, not a disappointing week for the R&R HOF songs. We saw a few changes in direction by some of the contestants, mostly for the better in showing something different than their usual.

1. Scotty - Well, I was wrong about him doing Johnny Cash, and he does Elvis! And he does do Elvis. For once, we see that he's more than just a one-track country singer and he captures the early R&R sound from the Elvis era with an interesting difference in vocals we haven't heard before. I'd like to see what else he can do. Thumbs up.

2. Pia - Nice change of pace over previous weeks, Pia actually does something resembling a performance to go along with her already established stellar vocals. She moved! It's like someone removed the magnets from under the stage and her feet. She needs to keep going this direction to avoid being labeled as the immobile standing diva doing a song rather than performing it. This performance was a refreshing change.

3. James - Wow, it's R&R week and James goes all soft. With a string quartet no less. This guy truly is unpredictable. It was surprising how he sang in the lower range unlike previous weeks, with only the final note going into the upper registers. There was a lot of feeling in that song, and he reminded me of Adam Lambert's performance earlier this season which was also soft in tone. It's nice to see he doesn't have to chuck mike stands and dance on pianos to shine.

4. Casey - Casey is a natural with one of my all-time fav songs, nicely capturing the spirit and rhythm of the original with a fine touch of his own with the stand-up base. He's as much a musician as he is a singer and performer. From a discriminating CCR aficionado, two thumbs up. I enjoyed this immensely.

5. Hayley - Yup, Janis is the logical pick for Hayley, and for once I'll concede she did pretty well with it - as Hayley. It lacked the rawness of the original, which surprised me with Haley's knack for the scratchy growl, and frankly I thought it was a little too smooth. All in all, though, not bad. Just not akin to the original.

6. Jacob - It figures Jacob would take the MJ pick. In some ways, he sang it better than MJ with his stellar vocals and the performance as a whole with the hip moves and duet thing wasn't too far off either. Going first is a tough place to be, but this performance won't be forgotten by the time the votes start rolling in.

7. Lauren - We've heard this song several times before on AI and this performance ranks somewhere in the midst of those. It was Ok, vocally there, but to me lacked the energy and feeling of the original. Although this was perhaps the weakest performance after the first three good ones, she'll pass.

8. Stefano - Agree with J-Lo that he showed a lot of emotion in that song, but also agree with Randy that it seemed a bit forced at times. It didn't really reach my heart, although it reached my ears. A good performance by Stefano, but relative to what else we've heard and seen this week, it's only a matter of time before he becomes Idol fodder.

9. Paul - Notice how his dancing was half a step out of rhythm with the two accompanying guitarists? And how his clapping hands was a quarter step off? And the whole thing was a step off - the cliff? Did not like at all. No way I could tell this was a Johnny Cash prison song. This performance was a capital crime.

• RE: Rankings - Top 9,emydi, 11:01 AM, 04-07-11
• RE: Rankings - Top 9,Corvis, 03:44 PM, 04-07-11
• RE: Rankings - Top 9,csnumber23, 03:58 PM, 04-07-11
  • RE: Rankings - Top 9,cahaya, 04:12 PM, 04-07-11
• RE: Rankings - Top 9,Belle Book, 06:48 PM, 04-08-11

1. Paul--Omh what a great VFTW performance Will.i.am and Jimmy telling him to go crazy WOOT!

2. Scotty-that was good, he really can win this thing...he's a WGWG too!

3. Jacob-I liked the song choice for him but he may be in trouble with his comment. I liked that they brought the writer of song...although at times it was more a duet than a solo by Jacob.

4. Haley-not a fan of JJ or the song but it was good for Haley but she's in trouble bc she doesn't have a y chromosome

5. Casey-meh

6. James-not good

7. Pia-I did not like this at all stick to ballads

8. Lauren-shd not have been singing this song in a poopy diaper

9. Stefano-what was that in the beginning...awful

As cahaya said, not a bad week at all. I like the wide open themes.

1. Casey - Perfect song choice, excellent delivery and he brought back the bass.

2. Scotty - Great performance by a talented performer. He has proved he can do a little bit more than country, allowing him to slide back into the country groove for a few weeks.

3. James - Really showed a lot of emotion with this song. Sang it well and had his trademark moment at the end just so he remember who he is. If only his ears weren't so distracting!

4. Hayley - She jumps ahead of Pia this week by showing what she's really good at - throaty rock n roll from yesteryear. I hope she continues to do this sort of thing.

5. Pia - You know, it was good, but I couldn't figure out what didn't quite make it click until JLo gave her the critique. Pia just isn't a natural on the big stage. When she stands still for the ballads, we don't notice as much but when she starts moving around, it becomes really clear.

6. Paul - I really enjoyed Paul's performance this week. I think I would enjoy listening to him in a coffee house or something. Wait, that's not really much a compliment for an American Idol contestant, is it?

7. Stefano - I thought this was the first time I really bought what he was selling. Completely. And yet it was still not as good as the six people listed above.

8. Lauren - I can't get past the fact that a child is singing about being a natural woman.

9. Jacob - I have never liked Jacob, I admit it. But now I have a very real reason to despise him after that completely asinine comment about America. He deserves to go home for that comment alone.

I thought as a whole, an excellent week!

1 - Haley - Loved this performance

2 - Scotty - I now think he might win it all

3 - James - Nice to see the change and showed versatility

4 - Casey - Great song choice and excellent performance

5 - Lauren - Good but not great

6 - Pia - Liked the change finally but she needs a lot of work

7 - Jacob - That comment was ridiculous and the performance was solid but did someone above say he sang it better than MJ?? Are you kidding me dude?

8 - Paul - Not very good but not the worst

9 - Stefano - Why is he still here? This guy can not sing, period!!

Overall - I thought the top 4 were Excellent, 5 and 6 solid, I think 7, 8 and 9 will be your bottom 3.

LAST EDITED ON 04-07-11 AT 04:13 PM (EST)

did someone above say he sang it better than MJ?? Are you kidding me dude?

That would be me. Pardon my superlatives! I did qualify that with a preceding "in many ways". No, not really as good as MJ, but probably just about the best anyone can do with a different arrangement and voice. I can imagine many Idol contestants trying this, with a train wreck result.

Here are my rankings, a day late (sorry about that, I went to see a high-school production of The Phantom of the Opera that was great):

1. James -- an excellent performance, and a surprisingly restrained one too. He's going to do well.

2. Pia -- she had the best vocals, and she moved out of her comfort zone! Nice job.

3. Haley -- this was a fine performance, but just behind the top two ones. She did much better than Nikki McKibbin, however.

4. Lauren -- don't ever do a song that Kelly blew out of the water! Still, you were very good.

5. Scotty -- you did Elvis, and you did it very well. But you didn't step out of your comfort zone too much.

6. Casey -- have to take points off for your growling towards the end. But you did well.

7. Paul -- for once you weren't the worst! But you were still near the bottom for me.

8. Jacob -- don't ever get egotistical! Also, restrain yourself a bit more.

9. Stefano -- not bad, but very predictable as well. It's only a matter of time for you.