American Idol Season 9 Week 1

Last night was the first live show for season 9!  They started off with the girlies first, and here is what I thought.  Which, btw, I was taking notes before they were judged and some of my notes were exactly what the judges would say!
--First up for the ladies was Paige Miles.  Now that girl can sang!  Yes, I said sang.  I was really impressed!  Simon also said that she had the best voice of the ladies.  She sang "All Right Now" by Free.
--Up second was Ashley Rodriguez.  She sang "Happy" by Leona Lewis.  She is a great singer but she fell flat for me last night.  I really didn't like her singing this song.
--Next was Janell Wheeler.  The song she sang was "What about Love" by Heart.  To me, she just doesn't havet the voice to make it all the way.  There are just so many better singers in the competition. 
--After Janell, was Lilly Scott.  Oh how I like Lilly!  I'm not really sure why!  She is just so genuine.  She just seems like a singer, like someone who has already made it.  She does her own thing and doesn't seem worried about what anyone else thinks, but she's not like over confindent, she has a quiet confindence.  She definately has her own style!  Btw, she sang "Fixin a Hole" by the Beattles.
    Now, I'm going to pause in the action to say something about Ellen....I LOVE Ellen. I love her show, she cracks me up, she really gets around for her age.  But....she did not do it for me last night.  To me, it seemed liked when it came her turn to judge, she was just repeating what the other judges said.  Now, it did get better as the show went on, but still.....Maybe it was nerves and she'll open up as the season goes on.  We'll see...
--So next to sing was Katelyn.  I love the name, spelled just like my little girl's except with a "k."  Anyways, she has a BIG voice!  She even reminded me of Kelly Clarkson!  She's really cute and Simon liked her.  She sang "Oh Darlin'" by the Beattles.  Lots of Beattles songs on this show!
--Haeley Vaughn followed next.  She sang "I wanna Hold your Hand" by the Beattles.  Well, she took this song to a whole other world! And not in an exactly good way.  She's a cute singer, but just not great.  I hate to see her go, but I think she will be one of the first ones to leave.
--Next we had Lacey Brown.  She did a version of "Landslide" by Fleetwood Mac.  I really love her voice and how she sang this song. None of the judges liked it though.  They thought she was all over the place, but I just did not agree with them.  I think she has a great look and a great voice.
--Michelle Delamor was up 8th. She started off shaky and to me, didn't get much better.  The judges seemed to like her pretty well.  I think her rendition of "Falling" by Alicia Keyes just wasn't that great.
--Next was Didi Benami.  She has such an original voice!  I love her!  I think she really knows who she is as an artist and she doesn't have to try to prove anything.  She sang "The way I am" by Ingrid Michaelson beautifully.  Now the judges seem to think she may not have the star factor.  I guess we will see!
--Siobhan Magnus sang next.  In my book, she will be heading out the door with Haeley.  I just can't get into her.  She is too something for me.  And I didn't like the song she sang.  She sang "Wicked Game" by Chris Isaac.  She kind of has a Demil Lovato face when she sings though.
--Crystal Bowersox was the next to last singer of the night.  She had been wowing me through Hollywood week, however, tonight she just didn't have as much gusto as normal.  She sang "Hand in my Pocket" by Alanis Morrisette.  She sounded more like Alanis and less like Crystal. I've always heard her blow songs away.  Hopefully she will do that more in the coming weeks.  I really like her and I know she really wants to make it big for her little boy and that is awesome.
--Singing last was Katie Stevens.  She has an amazing voice, especially for a 17 year old!  I think that her outfit was really cute too!  I'm a sucker for some red high heels!  She sang the Michael Buble' song, "Feelin' Good."  The judges thought the song sounded too "old" for her.  I'm not so sure.  She has such a mature voice.  I know she is young and she probably should do some younger, funner stuff, but I think she sounded great with this song too.
    That wraps things up.  My picks for the two going home first are Haeley and Siobhan. Up next the guys will be singing!  I can't wait to see what's in store with them!

The guys....

So the guys went up to perform last night and it's a good thing. If they had been the ones to perform first, I'm not sure anyone would have came back to watch the next night! They simply did not have any thrilling performances. Now that's not to say that they can't sing. There are a few of them that are incredibly talented, but they are going to have to step it up or they are going to lose a lot of votes.

--The first guy to sing was Toderick Hall. He sang a version of "Since You've been gone" by Kelly Clarkson. It was a version that he had heard in his head. One thing I can say about him is that he is definately a performer! The judges thought he had changed up the song to much, but I think he did what was his style. Which, btw, is what they always tell contestants to do!
--16 year old Aaron Kelly sang the next song. He sang."Here comes goodbye" by Rascal Flatts. He can really sing! It was a very smooth performance. He is from Pennsylvannia, but I think he could be a great country singer! Simon called his a good performance.
--Jermaine Sellers went next. He started out pretty slow and boring. He kind got better. He almost sounded Toni Braxton-ish to me. He sang "Get Here" and the judges were not all about him last night.
--Tim Urban the "alternate," I guess, went up next. He seems like a funny, cute guy. However, the song he sang last night was not the song for him. He sang "Apologize" by One Republic. As we know, it has some high notes and his high notes were not good. At all.
--Joe Munoz. He sang "You and I both" by Jason Mraz. To me, he kind of resembles Ben Stiller...don't you think? He was really kind of boring to me.
--Tyler Grady. He has SUCH a 70's style and I really like him! I could so see him in concert. He did his rendition of "American Woman." The judges thought he was too 70's and needed to change it up.
--Lee Dewyze. He sang "Chasing Cars" by Snow Patrol. Unique voice to the competition, very current sounding. However, last night he was very "pitchy."
--John Park. He has a beautiful voice but it was pretty boring and I couldn't understand all the words. He sang "God Bless the Child." It wasn't a good song choice.
--Michael Lynche. He started off very nasally and it really didn't get better. Didn't sing a good song for him. His song choice was "This Love" by Marroon 5. The judges were not big on it either. He will be back though. The story about his baby really helps too!
--Alex Lambert. He has a mullet. And he kind of sounds Dave Matthews-ish to me although the judges compared him to the singer of the song he sang. That song was "What a Wonderful World" by James Morrison. I think he was really nervous; the judges thought so too.
--Casey James. I LOVE his voice! and his guitar, and his hair, and his smile! Oh, he is definately marketable! Kara thinks he is hot...when will the rumors start?! oh he even had the shirt unbuttoned as he sang "Heaven." I think everyone was in heaven....
--Stay at home dad Andrew Garcia sang last. I really like him and I'm sure it's hard for him to follow up after he did his rendition of "Straight up" by Paula Abdul during Hollywood Week. He sang "Sugar We're Going Down" by Fall Out Boy. It just wasn't his best performance. But he will be back, he has an awesome voice.

I think Tim Urban and Jermaine Sellers will be the bottom two.
On another note, what is up with the judges always using the word, "indulgent?!!!"

The Results...
Blah. That's what I have to say about it. I loved Ashley Rodriguez and Tyler Grady was sooo endearing! Janell and Joe could definately go, but the other two? America, I'm dissappointed in you. Hopefully week 2 will be better. Let's cross our fingers...