Reid About It

Welcome to Elvis week, everybody.

Adam Lambert is the celebrity mentor for this week. What advice can he pass on to the current crop of Idols? "Don't kiss a dude onstage in your first national appearance, because it will terrify middle America."

Crystal starts us off with "Saved," a gospel Elvis song that's not one of his more well-known hits. Nice call here, as she's basically doing a song without having to worry about comparisons to the original. As with last week, Crystal's positioning in the show indicates they're pretty high on her. She knocks this one out, as usual.

Andrew does "Hound Dog," a song that's going to be hard to cover and put an original spin on. Sadly, Andrew puts an awful original spin to the song, and it just comes across as weird. Simon calls it "lazy."

Tim does "Can't Help Falling In Love With You," sitting on a stool in the acoustic position behind the judges. He does a very pretty arrangement of the song, but there are some weird harmonies in there. Adam advises him to use the falsetto in the last chorus, but Tim wisely ignores him.

Randy's quote? "This may surprise you, right? I actually liked it."

Not exactly the highest of praise, but Tim's starting to catch on.

Lee performs "A Little Less Conversation," another good one for him. He's not as over-the-top as last week, but he's hitting his stride.

Up next is Aaron, doing "Blue Suede Shoes." Very strange pick for the youngster. It comes across as very High School Musical, especially when he drops "liquor" from the song and sings "drink my cider from an old fruit jar."

By the way, is "Blue Suede Shoes" the only song in the rock and roll era that discusses slander? Feel free to discuss.

Siobhan sings "Suspicious Minds," which the judges are split on. Siobhan tells them she can't label herself with one singing style. That's fine if you already have a fanbase, but American Idol is all about shallow, gut reactions about pop stars. People want to be able to categorize their favorites, even if they have other facets. Kris Allen is the singer-songwriter type, Adam Lambert is a glam rock star. You can't be an enigma and play on the national stage.

Fresh off his save, Michael is doing "In The Ghetto." The judges love it, even Simon gushes. I still don't think Mike wins it, but the contest is a thousand times better with him still in it.

Katie sings "Baby, What You Want Me To Do," another song that's not one of the top ten. She's got a great voice, but something about her just doesn't click with the fans. The judges are unimpressed.

Casey is the closer, with "Lawdy Miss Clawdy." He's right in his wheelhouse with this one. It's nothing different from what he does every week, but he sounds good doing it. The judges are a little disappointed in him, but he's just giving them what he is.

Top Three: Crystal, Michael
Bottom Three: Andrew, Aaron, Katie
Going Home: Andrew, Katie

---

Reid Kerr thinks American Idol should do a them night of songs about Elvis, rather than Elvis songs. Let them do Mojo Nixon's "Elvis Is Everywhere."