Good Evening, America! Here we are, down to the Final 3. In a season that sometimes felt longer than “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”, we’re rapidly approaching the finale faster than Kara can say “Here’s the thing”. I know most of us are still mourning the loss of Allison Iraheta. I just keep telling myself that she’s only 17, and she’s got a bright future ahead of her. But we must not dwell on the past. With only one week to go before our winner is crowned, we must focus on the here and now. Because this… is American Idol!

Tonight, our Idols will be singing two songs. The first is a choice by the Judges. The second one is chosen by the Idols themselves. In seasons past, the Judges’ Choice songs have always been perfect selections for each contestant. (Can’t wait to see what they pick for Adam Lambert-Martin!)

First up tonight is Danny “I should have gone home last week” Gokey singing “Dance Little Sister” by Terence Trent D’arby, chosen by Paula. The song seems well suited to Danny’s gravelly voice. It’s up-tempo and fun, but he doesn’t seem to be veering away from the same four notes. Not a lot of range. Thankfully, that keeps him from repeating last week’s Screamfest ’09. It’s rough, and he keeps shouting. Fun way to kick off the show, but not exactly the way to tell America that you deserve to make it to the finale. (Though I’m sure his rabid fanbase will make sure he wins it all. Ugh.)

I interrupt this blog for a special announcement. While Seacrest is trying to read Gokey’s numbers, Simon is attempting to murder Paula. Kara can be heard screaming “Help! Help! Help!” in the background. Not to worry, Paula defended herself by dealing a deadly blow to Simon’s chest. His pec implants deflected the punch though.

Kris Allen is second with “Apologize” by One Republic, chosen by Randy and Kara. (How pissed do you think Randy is that he got stuck with the new girl?) This is an amazing song, and Kris could do something absolutely wonderful with it. Or he could do a complete sound-alike version… like he did. He’s behind the piano, which is a nice touch, but it just shows off how dirty his fingernails are. (If I were appearing before 30 million people, I might make the time to wash my hands, but that’s just me.) He’s not fantastic, but he’s not awful. It was too much like the original for my taste, and One Republic did it better.

Another side note. I completely disagree with Simon about the whole “Kara, you can’t call him out on doing the song when you chose it for him”. Kara chose a song that would work well for Kris’s vocal abilities, but it’s not up to her to arrange it for him and make it different. Mr. Allen should want to help himself stand out in the competition. Instead, he stayed middle of the road, once again.

Adam Lambert-Martin is third with “One” by U2, chosen by Simon. I’m not a huge U2 fan, but I’m willing to give this a listen since Adam’s singing it. I love how understated this performance is. Simple lighting. Piano on the stage. Adam just standing in the middle. His vocals are spot on, and the beauty of the lyrics can really shine. I really don’t think that there’s anything he can’t do. This was perfection. Simply brilliant. (When Adam told America to go back and listen to the lyrics, I think he was not-so-subtly telling the audience that the LGBT community deserves equal rights. Adam is publicly edging his toe out of the closet, ever so slowly.)

Danny Gokey is back to start Round 2 with “You Are So Beautiful” by Joe Cocker. I truly dislike this song. Always have. Danny’s sitting on a stool surrounded by just a few band members. His phrasing is subtle, and the performance is understated, just as it should be. This is more of him singing and less of him making noises while trying to pass a kidney stone. Much, much better than his first performance. (Not sure I would have gushed as much as the Judges though.)

Kris Allen is singing “Heartless” by Kanye West. I love this song! Interested to see what he’ll do with it. His acoustic take on this is very reminiscent of Mia Caruthers’s version on MTV’s “Taking the Stage” (which features some of the best and brightest at Cincinnati’s School for Creative and Performing Arts). This is so fresh and contemporary. I figured Kris would be an also-ran tonight, but after that performance, he has a real shot of making it to next week’s finale. Severely impressive!

Adam Lambert-Martin closes the show with “Cryin” by Aerosmith. (Note to Kara, this is not “classic” or “early” Aerosmith.) This is song is perfectly suited for Adam vocally. (The sound people seem to have turned up the back ground microphones a little too much for the chorus.) He’s not straying far from the original, but as he said, with a song like this, you don’t need to. (And no, that isn’t hypocritical of me to say that when I called out Kris on the same thing earlier. And do you know why it isn’t hypocritical? Because it’s my blog, and I said so.) There aren’t enough good things to say about my Adam.

Well, that’s our show for tonight. There were 3 truly spectacular performances. (And 2 of them were by Adam!) For Round 1, I think it went hands-down in favor of Adam. For Round 2, I think Kris Allen’s take on “Heartless” helped him barely edge out Adam. As for tomorrow night, I think it’s anyone’s guess. I would love to say that it will be Adam and someone else in the finale, but you never know. Danny’s fans are extremely loyal (and by loyal, I mean rabid). There’s only one way to find out. Tune in. Same Steve Time. Same Steve Channel.