'America's Got Talent' recap: St. Louis shows its spirit

St. Louis showed its spirit Tuesday night as "America's Got Talent" took in all the talent under the Arch. Apparently the judges liked so much of what marched across the stage in the Gateway to the West (Howard Stern posited that they'd scrubbed the whole city clean of talent, leaving none behind), only a fraction of it could be shown in an hour.

So we were treated to a bevy of people celebrating the fact that they'd snagged a ticket to Las Vegas without seeing more than a second or two of the performances that earned them that privilege. I wouldn't have minded seeing more of a hip-hop violinist that Stern said was the best fiddler he'd ever heard. Then again, a few seconds was quite enough of, just for example, a group of curly-wig-wearing, Irish-step-dancing kids, the youngest member of which capped off the performance with what Howie Mandel noted was an Angelina Jolie leg move. 

Not all the acts were waved through to the Vegas round, of course, though some were offered consolation prizes that seemed to please them nearly as much. A pint-size Ozzy Osbourne impersonator earned a hug from Ozzy's wife, "AGT" judge Sharon Osbourne. "I would die," he said, when offered the opportunity to clinch his hero's spouse.

A guy named Ron Christopher Porter Jr., whose dream is to do movie trailer voice-overs ("I don't see where this would be an act … I don't think you can go onstage with this," Stern wisely intoned) was invited to "hang out" with "AGT" host Nick Cannon. "Really? Oh my god!" Porter said, jumping up and down as if he'd just won the Publisher's Clearinghouse Sweepstakes. Porter was further rewarded with more stage time and a ride in Cannon's limo.

There were other seriously buzzer-worthy acts: a female drummer who'd lost her band, a woman who crushes soda cans with her bare hands ("This chick almost hit me in the face with her cans," quipped Mandel), a guy in a chicken costume, some dude with a lasso and a small plastic bull.

But the ones worth all the judges' fuss? They were …

Isaac Ryan Brown: A beyond-cute 6-year-old boy with personality to burn who sang the Jackson 5's "I Want You Back" and had what the judges rightly noted was serious "star quality." "As long as it's coming from your heart, that's the only thing that really matters," Brown said of performing, prompting universal "awwws."



Spencer Horsman: The self-dubbed "world's youngest escape artist" (Stern observed that he looked 14, though he's actually 26) managed to wriggle free of a straitjacket while hanging upside down just before a flaming rope keeping a jagged trap from clapping shut on him burned through, spelling his doom. It was dramatic, and he had a sweet onstage demeanor. As long as he's got some good follow-up stunts, this young Houdini could stick around a while.



The Cut Throat Freakshow: This act included a woman named "Candy Pants" who walked and did a handstand on crushed glass, a guy who picked up a chair with his eyelids and a sword swallower – and that's pretty much all the details I could make out through my fingers.



What did you think of the acts that auditioned in St. Louis?

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— Amy Reiter

Photo: From left, Ron Christopher Porter Jr., Nick Cannon, Curtis Cutts Bey at "America's Got Talent" auditions in St. Louis. Credit: Virginia Sherwood/NBC

'America's Got Talent' recap: Tampa, Fla. auditions not so hot

The judges were hot during the Tampa stop of the "America's Got Talent" auditions Monday night —  Howard Stern complained he was sweating "like a pig" — but apart from a few exceptions, the talent onstage was less so.

After the requisite upbeat urban-youth-saving crew, Inspire the Fire — complete with cheery cardigans and uplifting video intro in which they call the group "a family" — did its singing/dancing thing and made it to Vegas (the judges found it less "corny" than "Glee"), we got some guy wearing a doll in a Baby Bjorn, a self-dubbed "Scissorhands" who did something unclear to a woman's hair, and some other dude who said he was "America's escape hero" but may have been our nation's least-impressive escape artist.

We also got "bikini bombshell" dancers who couldn't dance. Howie Mandel said that, even though he added that although the women were "atrocious" hoofers with "no talent whatsoever," he "still loved" their act. But Stern, to his credit, was unmoved. "My Aunt Sally … at 95, she moved better than you," he said. "At least if your implants had exploded we would have had excitement."

Those acts may have left viewers cold, and a few other promising acts (Hawley Magic and Alesya Gulevich the hula-hoop artist, to name two) were coolly given only a few seconds of air time by producers.

But a handful of performers managed to generate at least some heat:

All That: A burly male clogging group who Mandel hailed for exciting the audience. "When you can bring them to their feet with just your feet, I think you've done something," he told them. Sharon Osbourne even wondered if they could teach her husband, Ozzy, to clog. (Now that could be a million-dollar act.)



The Distinguished Men of Brass: A sharp-suited band of talented fellows who'd lost their jobs and come together to make music and chart a new path, inspiringly. "Thank God for bad times because they brought you guys together," Stern half-joked.



Ulysses: This peculiar-haired, round-bellied, lucky-sweater-wearing guy proved himself to be an able singer of vintage TV theme songs. He treated the audience and the judges to "The Love Boat,"  "Green Acres" and "The Addams Family," failing to win Stern's love but advancing to Vegas thanks to Mandel and Osbourne, who saw the nostalgic entertainment value in Ulysses' peculiar talent. Yes, they were drawn to Ulysses' siren song.



What did you think of the acts on Monday's show?

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— Amy Reiter

Photo: The Distinguished Men of Brass at "America's Got Talent" Tampa, Fla. auditions. Credit: Virginia Sherwood / NBC.

'American Idol': Jessica Sanchez talks up Phillip Phillips

If Jessica Sanchez sounded a little tired when she got on the phone Thursday to take questions from reporters, who could blame her? Less than 24 hours before, the 16-year-old power singer had not only been named the Season 13 runner-up on "American Idol," losing the win to 21-year-old Phillip Phillips, she'd also turned in a duet of "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" with original "Dreamgirls" star Jennifer Holliday that brought the house down. (Phillips said it was his favorite moment of the finale.)

"It was so much fun," Sanchez said of the remarkable duet. "I was in the moment and so was she. And we were making, like, the most ridiculous faces, I know. We were just digging really deep … and singing the heck out of that song."

As "Idol" watchers know, singing the heck out of the song is what Sanchez does best, and she's promising an album that will be a little bit urban, a little R&B, and just a pinch of pop – "but not much," she adds. "Not like bubble gum."

Here's what else she gave fans to chew over:

Phillips on 'American Idol': 'I'm not that great a singer'

Only hours after being declared the winner of Season 11 of "American Idol," Phillip Phillips still sounded like he was struggling to grasp the dimensions of his accomplishment when he got on the phone Thursday to take calls from reporters.

"It's so unreal," he said, allowing that, yes, he was feeling relieved that the competition was over, but also sort of bowled over by the dramatic changes in his life the win would bring. "It's kind of crazy."

Still, though Phillips insists he hadn't expected to win -– "I honestly thought [runner-up Jessica Sanchez] was gonna win; she has such an amazing voice" -– he's nevertheless planned for the next stage in his musical career, which he'll be able to focus on without health distractions as soon as he gets his much-needed kidney surgery "pretty soon." (He expects to be 100% recovered by the time the "Idol" tour kicks off this summer.)  

His first album, he said, will fuse rock and jazz and acoustic elements into his own trademark sound. "I'm really excited to get it out there. It's gonna be cool."

Here's what else "Idol's" newest winner had to say:

'American Idol' finale recap: Phillip Phillips takes the win

After a record-breaking 132 million votes were tallied -– and just for perspective, that's more votes than were cast in the 2008 presidential election -- the winner of "American Idol" Season 11 is Phillip Phillips.

Not Jessica Sanchez.

Most of us probably aren't terribly surprised -– yes, the cute white guy won again, for the fifth straight year -– but perhaps, we can be forgiven for feeling a little disappointed. It would not only have been gratifying to see a young woman snap that streak; it would have been particularly pleasing to see Sanchez, the 16-year-old singer with the preternaturally powerful voice, be the one to snap it.

VIDEO: A season of songs from Phillip and Jessica

She was a hard worker, a proud child of a military man, an American of Mexican and Filipino heritage, a come-from-behind contender who had returned strong after her near-elimination. Sanchez was the antithesis of the white male who coasts to victory –- or perhaps is carried there by a bevy of smitten teenyboppers.

Which is not to say that Phillips, of whom I am an avowed fan, didn't earn his win. Struggling with health issues throughout the competition and eschewing some of the show's more crass aspects, he stayed unwaveringly true to himself and his talent. But he also allowed himself to grow, stretching his range, testing his voice, embracing different sorts of music and bigger production values.

Both contestants, the winner and the runner-up, in their best performances, could make the fine hairs on the backs of your arms stand up. (Jennifer Lopez has ruined that gauge of talent with her "goosies" references, but that doesn't stop us from feeling that tickle.) And yes, both stand to stake out stellar careers in the music biz.

Each of their talents was amply on display during the finale Wednesday night. Phillips' guitar-strumming duet with Creedence Clearwater Revival's John Fogerty –- on "Have You Ever Seen the Rain" and "Bad Moon Rising" -- seemed to suit him like a favorite flannel shirt. Sanchez's "I Will Always Love You" solo was impressive, but her duet with "Dreamgirls" star Jennifer Holliday on "And I Am Telling You I Am Not Going" blew the roof off the place.

On a night that also included performances by Rihanna, Jennifer Lopez, Aerosmith, Fantasia Barrino (who sang with third-place-finisher Joshua Ledet), Chaka Kahn, Neil Diamond, Jordin Sparks (who performed with Hollie Cavanagh, who came in fourth this season), Reba McEntire (who sang with Skylar Laine) and (repeatedly) this season's top 12, the Sanchez/Holliday number was unrivalled in its power and excitement and pure vocal virtuosity.

It was a propitious marriage of voices, and the evening also offered the promise of a real marriage between two former "Idol" contestants: Diana DeGarmo (second place, Season 3) and Ace Young (seventh place, Season 5). Yes, with Ryan Seacrest supervising from just a few feet away, Young got down on one knee and proposed to DeGarmo, ring and all. (After Seacrest faked us out, making us briefly think he was proposing to his girlfriend, Julianne Hough, the other week, it may have taken viewers a few seconds to believe Young was popping the question in earnest.)

But the biggest moment of the evening, of course, was the big reveal. After a few words of thanks from the two finalists, Seacrest issued his request that the lights be dimmed.

"After a record-breaking 132 million votes, the winner of 'American Idol' Season 11 is … Phillip Phillips."

How did Phillips take the news? He wept like a champ, getting through only part of his "winner's song," "Home," which we can probably look forward to hearing under next season's departing-contestant highlight reels, before becoming too overcome with emotion -– as the confetti tumbled from above –- to continue. So he left the stage and headed straight into the audience, where his family awaited him.

The 21-year-old crooner from Leesburg, Ga., had brought home the win and was heading home a victor. But the music and his bright future would have to wait. First, he just needed a hug from his mom.

I hope Sanchez got one from her mom too.

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-- Amy Reiter

Photo: Runner-up Jessica Sanchez embraces Phillip Phillips on "American Idol." Credit: John Shearer / Invision / AP

'American Idol' finale: The Season 11 winner is ...

And so after what must be acknowledged as an evening packed with show-stopping, star-studded performances as well as a marriage proposal (former contestants Ace Young and Diana DeGarmo are engaged) –- and after a record-breaking 132 million votes were officially tallied -- we have our Season 11 "American Idol" winner, America: Phillip Phillips.

The 21-year-old guitar-playing crooner from Leesburg, Ga., brought the win home on the action-packed finale of "American Idol" on Wednesday night, making him the show's fifth straight white male winner and depriving runner-up, 16-year-old power vocalist Jessica Sanchez, of her chance to break that streak.

And if any of us ever wondered if the competition or the win actually meant all that much to Phillips, who said for him it was all about the music and had pledged to stay his course with integrity and a firm grasp on who he was (and who he wasn't), we sure got our answer. After singing only a bit of his "winner's song," "Home," Phillips dissolved into tears: unable to sing, unable to play, and ultimately, unable even to stand on that stage as the confetti fell like a massive blizzard all around him.

VIDEO | Performances: Jessica Sanchez and Phillip Philips

With the music still playing, the backup singers singing, the marching band still drumming, Phillips, who'd struggled past health issues to stay in the running, took off his guitar and walked off the stage -- past the other contestants and the judges -- and straight into the arms of his waiting family, bringing home the emotions, the stakes and the implications of his victory.

He will keep on making the music that means so much to him. And now, he'll do it as the 11th winner of "American Idol."

He's gonna make this music world a … home.

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-- Amy Reiter

Photo: Phillip Phillips and Jessica Sanchez with Ryan Seacrest on 'American Idol.' Credit: Michael Becker / Fox.

'America's Got Talent' recap: It's Howard Stern's world

"America's Got Talent" may continue to hype the addition of Howard Stern to the judging table as a "Revolution," but the shock jock already has evolved into feeling right at home in his new gig. On Tuesday night's show — the second night featuring auditions in New York, Stern's home turf — the talent show's newest judge ratcheted up his attitude that the stage was his to do with as his pleased.

Before the evening was over, Stern had brought his own dad up onstage to give a "nudnik" contestant a little helpful advice of the sort Papa Stern has apparently long given his son: "Don't be stupid, you moron."



He also titillated his hometown audience with a little sexy dancing.

'American Idol' recap: Jessica Sanchez, Phillip Phillips vie for the win

Well, America, who will it be? Jessica Sanchez, the powerhouse singer with the gorgeous tone, total control and just enough grit to make it seem perfectly imperfect, or Phillip Phillips, the soulful crooner with a sound all his own?

The 16-year-old with a sweet smile, a perhaps precocious taste for high heels and a passionate performance style, or the sly guy with a sneaky glint in his eye, a handsomely scruffy look, twitchy tendencies onstage and a steady insistence on doing things his own way?

The girl, who'd be the first female winner in years and the only contestant ever to have made it to the finals after having been saved by the judges, or the boy, who resembles the show's recent winners and has never been in real danger of elimination?

INTERACTIVE: "Idol" vs. "The Voice"

Personally, I like them both, though in different ways and for different reasons. I like the way Phillips sings. I admire that he is who he is and no one else. I find his performance style peculiarly riveting. I dig his guitar riffs and I really like that chicken walk he sometimes does and the mad-bird stomp. I even find it cute that he has a hard time saying anything coherent into a mic, like a young Elvis and prefers to let his music speak for him. It makes him seem winningly shy and genuine.

Also Phillips has all along been the contestant whose album I'd be most likely to buy. (Elise Testone, perhaps, too.)

But let me be clear, Sanchez has the better voice. And it's a singing competition. If we were to choose a winner by vocal power and tone and beauty alone, Sanchez would win. Hands down. Case closed. End of story.

So who will win? It's anyone's guess, and it's hard to predict how Tuesday night's final performance show will tip the balance. Sanchez power-balladed. Phillips crooned. The judges said a few wishy-washy things. And then, after Phillips sang his final song, they gave him a standing ovation and indicated they thought he just might have hit a game-winning home run.

In fact, both contestants did well, overall, with some performances better than others. Each sang three songs: Round 1 was Simon Fuller's choice. Round 2 was the contestants' choice, reprising a song they had previously sung on the show. Round 3 was their official "winner's song," the first single they'll release following the competition. Phillips, who had won a coin toss, had chosen to perform second, giving him an advantage.

In Round 1, Sanchez turned in a powerful, polished performance of Whitney Houston's "I Have Nothing." Phillips responded with a sleepy take on the classic "Stand by Me." After some noncommittal hemming and hawing from Lopez about how voters should pick the person who made them "feel something," Randy Jackson gave the first round "probably" to Sanchez. The other judges ultimately agreed.

Round 2 was closer. Sanchez soulfully sang "The Prayer," which Ryan Seacrest reminded us had "earned her a spot in the top 24." Phillips reprised "Movin' Out," from Billy Joel night, giving a somewhat less exciting, yet also somehow sleeker and more confident performance than he had the first time around. The judges were split, with Tyler giving the round to Sanchez, Jackson calling it "a dead heat," and Lopez contending Phillips claimed it, thanks to his authenticity.

In Round 3, Sanchez was saddled with a "winner's song," "Change Nothing," that was sort of a loser. She still sounded great on it, but there really wasn't much in the lyrics or the melody to connect to. The judges were not kind. Jackson said he "did not love the song," adding he missed Sanchez's urban "swag," but praised her for doing with it what she could. Lopez advised Sanchez to assert herself more, in future, when presented with material that didn't suit her, adding, "Everything has to be you, Jessica, so you can be you, which is really good." Tyler also "didn't feel like that song was the proper song," driving the point with a pitiful, "Yeah, baby."

Then Phillips gave his best performance of the night (though he hadn't set a terribly high bar), with "Home," on which he was backed by, among other things, a passel of marching drummers.

The judges gave him a standing O.

Jackson was beside himself. "Dude, I loved the song. I loved you. I loved the production. I loved the marching band. Everything about that was perfect. I loved it," he said, dubbing it a "true artist performance … brilliant … genius."

Lopez praised Phillips for being "so different," saying the song sounded like nothing on the radio today.

Tyler compared Phillips to Paul Simon and said, "By virtue of your vulnerability and style, you have made the world your home, my friend … and I think you are the man."

So does that mean Phillips has clinched this thing? Or will Sanchez's fans feel more motivated than ever now to vote for her?

We'll find out Wednesday. Who do you think should be crowned "American Idol's" Season 11 winner?

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-- Amy Reiter

Photo: Phillip Phillips, left, Jessica Sanchez and Ryan Seacrest on "American Idol" airing Tuesday, May 22, on Fox. Credit: Michael Becker / Fox.

'America's Got Talent' recap: NYC offers tears and triumphs

It was a night of tears and triumphs that left us all chanting "What you gonna do?" as "America's Got Talent" trimmed itself down to a tidy hourlong slot Monday night.

As auditions rumbled through New York City, the home turf of new judge Howard Stern, we saw basketball-dunking acrobats, futuristically costumed Irish step dancers, a buff-bodied aerialist, a young piano prodigy, and a bunch of bands.

And then there were the memorable acts. Those included …

Mir Money, a 7-year-old rapper from Philadelphia who charmed everyone by admitting he was his favorite rapper and that, were he to win $1 million, he'd use it to take care of his family.

So when Stern and fellow judge Sharon Osbourne buzzed the adorable tyke and he dissolved into tears, well, we might all have been a bit shaken up. ("He's only 7!" my outraged 6-year-old daughter exclaimed.)

Stern hightailed it onto the stage to offer comforting words and a hug. "I'll fix everything. Let me fix everything," he told us. "I'm so sorry," he told the kid. "I don't want to make you cry."



"This job is too rough for me," the shock jock said. "I don't want to do it anymore … I'm not cut out for this."

Stern, that softie, then voted to send the kid to Vegas, but Osbourne and third judge Howie Mandel proved to have thicker skin and a better grasp of the long-term effects. No, they said, explaining that they had no wish to prolong the wee rapper's pain.

Thankfully, there were dancing, twirling, jumping, conga-line-forming, wheel-barrowing, and most remarkably, back-flipping Labradoodles to save the day.



"This is the most amazing, best animal act I have ever seen," Mandel declared.

Then after we saw the judges engage in a little alpha judge posturing about whose stage it was, we were presented another remarkable act: a man whose talent is taking massive hits in his testicles (no cup, because "cups are for cheaters," he explained) and shaking it off with barely a flinch.

"I'm here today to shock the shock jock with what I do," the guy, who calls himself "Horse," boasted.

Turned out, he both shocked and delighted.



"You have come up with an act that I can get behind," Stern said, before crowning him "the king of the nut shot." With three yeses -- "Absolutely amazing!" gushed Osbourne -- the act advanced to Vegas.

Then there was a band, Wordspit the Illest, which somehow combined rap and Phil Collins and violins and a massive leap off the stage into what Mandel dubbed "one of the most glorious moments we have had this season on 'America's Got Talent.'"



And last, but certainly not least, we met 77-year-old Burton Crane, a former amateur boxer and schoolteacher who strutted onstage in his white suit, holding his Casio music machine, and declared himself to be the "grandfather of rap."

"Usually 77-year-old white men are ... the guys who do the best rap," Stern quipped.

But dang if Crane didn't sink a more impressive and unlikely shot than the trampoline basketball crew that kicked off the show: His "What You Gonna Do?" refrain proved to be remarkably catchy. And Crane said he had more than 100 such original songs in his repertoire.



"You found a hook," Mandel told him. "That's a song that's stuck in your head."

As the audience chanted "What You Gonna Do?" he added, "That's what's going on in every living room in America right now."

Mandel was right. What you gonna do?

What did you think of the performances?

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Photo: Nick Cannon, 7-yer-old Mir Money and Howard Stern, right, in New York on "America's Got Talent." Credit: Virginia Sherwood/NBC.

'American Idol' recap: Joshua Ledet goes out with style

No matter who was eliminated on "American Idol" Thursday night, it would have felt like a shocker. All three finalists -- Joshua Ledet, Jessica Sanchez and Phillip Phillips -- were in solid contention for the win. But heading into the finale, one of them had to go home, and that person was … Joshua Ledet.

Of course, the judges gave him one last standing ovation.

How many had they given him over the previous weeks? It was nearly impossible to keep count -- though, at least for a while, his fellow contestants apparently had. It may be that all of that judge enthusiasm had cost Ledet the win -- turning voters off or luring his fans into believing he was safe and therefore not in need of their votes. Or the judges' high praise may have been a key factor in his staying as long as he had.

We'll never know. But going out in third place ain't bad. And Ledet will likely forge a perfectly respectable – yes, Randy Jackson, perhaps even "ginormous" – career in music from here.

In any event, Ledet could hardly have taken the news better. At the show's outset, he told Ryan Seacrest he felt they were "all winners" to have made it as far as they had, and that if he was not able to continue to the finale, he'd be voting for the two remaining contestants, both his friends, because they were "amazing."

He'd also shown admirable humility and gratitude after mentor Jimmy Iovine assessed the performances he'd given the previous night. Iovine said Ledet had had a "good night," though not his best, and said the judges had been "very generous" to him on his first song, Etta James' "I'd Rather Go Blind." Iovine was no fan of Ledet's take on John Lennon's "Imagine," either, feeling that his "exciting showman" talents were wasted on the song, and that he'd overcompensated for the song's simplicity with "riffs and runs." It was, Iovine said, "kind of like putting a Ferrari in a racetrack and leaving it in first gear."

Iovine had kinder words for Ledet when it came to his own song choice, Mary J. Blige's "No More Drama," on which he felt he'd hampered the singer with "a song that didn't have enough melody." "Joshua needs melody," the veteran producer said, adding that the fact that Ledet did as well with the song as he had was testament to his talent. "Does Joshua belong in this finale? 100 percent. He should be in anyone's finale," Iovine said.

"I listen to everything Jimmy says," Ledet said afterward, noting that Iovine had been in the business "for so long." "I look up to him and he's always right," he said.

But if Iovine's praise for Ledet was a finale prediction, it turned out to be one time he was not right at all.

After Adam Lambert and Lisa Marie Presley had both sung their songs, the Season 11 top three were gathered to hear the results of the audience vote.

Sanchez, who had not had a strong night Wednesday and had been saved from elimination earlier in the season, was the first contestant to learn she'd made it to the finale.

Even she looked stunned by the good news.

That left Ledet and Phillips -- and Phillips had been credited with having the biggest "moment" on the show the previous night. (Iovine said that with his version of Bob Seger's "We've Got Tonight," Phillips had "won the night.")

If only for that reason (and not, say, because Phillips, as an attractive white guy, resembles other recent "Idol" winners), it wasn't a total shock to hear that, of the two, Ledet was the one who'd been sent home.

Ledet finished his "Idol" run with "It's a Man's Man's Man's World." During his performance, he hugged the two singers who'd bested him for the finale and the "Idol" judges who'd often deemed him the best, and never missed a beat. Then Ledet brought his mom onstage, a very sweet tribute that made his final moment not just a "moment" but, perhaps, a "moment-moment" or even a "moment-moment-moment."

For that gesture, and for a season of passion and dedication, Ledet deserves, yes, a standing O as he departs the "Idol" stage.

Are you sad to see him go?

'Idol' vs. 'The Voice'

More than 300,000 reader votes have been cast in The Times' agnostic poll on the talent on the Fox and NBC singing competitions. Even before the results Thursday, San Diego native Sanchez had the most so far, with Phillips in second place and Ledet in third. Juliet Sims has the most votes for any "Voice" contender.

The poll below includes the top 15 reader vote-getters. Vote for your favorites and check back to see Friday to see who tops the chart and where our experts stand on the talent after watching all season.

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— Amy Reiter

Photo: Joshua Ledet performs on "American Idol," airing Wednesday, May 16, on Fox. Credit: Michael Becker / Fox

'American Idol' recap: The top three vie for the finale

The three "American Idol" Season 11 finalists -- Joshua Ledet, Jessica Sanchez and Phillip Phillips -- took the stage Wednesday night to compete for a spot in next week's finale and, ultimately, the "Idol" crown. It was a surprisingly unexciting fight for the finish.

How could that be? You may ask. After all, the three remaining contestants are all talented, all have dedicated fan bases, all have a shot at the win. This neck-and-neck-and-neck race should have had us on the edge of our seats.

Yet many of the show's performances didn't seem to fully gel. There were, as Randy Jackson was wont to point out, few "moments." (Though I will say that the critique in which Jackson used the phrases "moment-moment" and "moment-moment-moment" for emphasis was itself a great moment.)

Each contestant sang three songs apiece: one picked for them by the judges, one they chose themselves, and one selected by "Idol" mentor Jimmy Iovine.

Part of the problem may have been the judges' less-than-stellar choices, which in two out of three cases didn't do much to highlight the singers' talents. (Jennifer Lopez said there'd been a lot of back-and-forth, so perhaps they've overthought it.)

Part of it may have been that the contestants' "hero homecoming" montages lacked a certain drama this year. (Phillip Phillips Sr.'s heartfelt description of the pride he felt in his son for pursuing his dreams "with integrity and passion" was lovely, however.)

And who knows? Maybe the fact that it could be anyone's game doesn't add to the excitement, but instead detracts from it because we don't have a clear favorite to root for. (At least, now that arguably the best three have made it to the top three, I don't.)

In any event, even the judges, after rising to their feet to applaud Ledet for singing the song they'd chosen for him (it was their one good song choice), didn't feel moved to scramble onto their tootsies again until the very end. (Steven Tyler gamely stood after Sanchez sang one of his songs, but no one joined him, and he quickly re-took his seat.) They rolled out the superlatives, but then -- to paraphrase Tyler after Ryan Seacrest asked him if, in praising Sanchez, he'd just predicted a winner, which Tyler had also just done while praising Ledet -- don't they always?

Here's how the performances broke down:

Joshua Ledet
Ledet proved to be the evening's most consistent performer, kicking off the evening with a song the judges said would highlight his classic R&B style: Etta James' "I'd Rather Go Blind." Ledet gave a solid performance there. (Coincidentally -- or not -- the very same song was used in a commercial aired immediately thereafter.) Then Ledet pulled back to give a restrained, if somewhat schmaltzy, take on his own pick, John Lennon's "Imagine," later explaining that he picked the song after hearing it on the radio. And then he pulled out all the stops on Iovine's pick for him, Mary J. Blige's "No More Drama." His energetic bouncing was a bit distracting, as was all his jacket removal as the song reached its emotional peak, but he can't be faulted for lack of enthusiasm.  

Jessica Sanchez
Poor Sanchez got saddled by the judges with one tough song, Mariah Carey's "My All," which was pitched low for her and had a complicated melody and a lot of lyrics to remember, but she managed to pull it off. Then she tasked herself with singing Aerosmith's "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" in front of Tyler, the man who'd made it a hit. Tyler often looks irritated when other people sing his songs, but in this case, he generously stood for Sanchez and told her she'd made the song even better. Iovine's selection for Sanchez, the Jackson Five's "I'll Be There," may have brought her best performance of the evening, no matter what Randy Jackson said, showing off her vocal sweetness and the power of her upper range. But Sanchez, usually a compelling presence onstage, seemed to lack a certain weight on Wednesday. Will that spell her doom?
 
Phillip Phillips
The judges picked Madcon's "Beggin'" for Phillips, Tyler explained, because they wanted to pull the melody out of him. But no matter how much the judges were beggin' for it, the song proved not terribly melodic in Phillips' hands. Of course, that didn't keep Tyler from predicting that Phillips could be the new Springsteen. Phillips' selection for himself, Matchbox Twenty's "Disease," didn't go much better. But on Iovine's pick, Bob Seger's "We've Got Tonight," we saw what felt like a new side of Phillips. He sat still, facing front, unsmiling, with no guitar and none of his trademark leg moves. And he sang the melody faithfully, looking almost fearful in the process, as if he himself was unsure if he could hit all the notes. He did hit them. It was an honest moment -- Jackson hyperbolically called it "giant" -- and startling for its simplicity. Will the audiences respond well to this tame, tender, terrified-looking Phillip Phillips, as they have to him all season long?

We'll find out tonight.

What did you think of the performances? And who do you predict will be sent home?

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— Amy Reiter

Photo: Joshua Ledet performs in front of the judges Wednesday on "American Idol." Credit: Michael Becker / Fox

'America's Got Talent' recap: San Francisco, land of 'big talent'?

Good thing Nick Cannon isn't afraid of heights. The "America's Got Talent" host ushered in the second night of Season 7 auditions from atop the Golden Gate Bridge. Yep, the "America's Got Talent" audition caravan had rolled -- like some kind of unhinged cable car, with Howard Stern, Sharon Osbourne and Howie Mandel waving wildly out the windows -- into San Francisco.

There, in the home of Rice-a-Roni and (some naked guy with blurred private parts told us at the outset of the show) "huge talent," the focus shifted ever so slightly away from new judge Stern and onto the motley assembly of singers and magicians, animal acts and acrobats, dance crews and dramatically "different" novelty acts, those who are crazy and those who are admirably rising above crazy personal challenges.

In other words, it was more or less back to "America's Got Talent" business as usual. But without heartless Piers Morgan and with bighearted Stern, who already seems like family.

The best auditions of the night included. …

David Garibaldi and His CMYKs: A performance art group that blended graffiti, music, art and dance and -– moving to the music of Beethoven's 5fth -- painted a gigantic portrait of Beethoven, which Stern shamefacedly confessed he'd at first thought was a painting of him. (Actually, it looked a little like Sting, no?) 



Funk Beyond Control: A cute, energetic teen dance group.

Luiz Meneghin: A registered nurse -– born in Brazil, living in Utah -- who has always dreamed of making it in music and who sings opera to his elderly patients. He won over the judges, including Stern (no opera fan), with his tone and emotion.



Dave Burleigh: A comedian who does impressive impressions of stars, including Nicholas Cage, Bruce Willis and Charlie Sheen. Stern urged him to get edgier material, but Osbourne disagreed.

Turf: A formerly homeless 21-year-old street performer with a sweet smile and interesting hair who calls himself an "extreme hiphop contortionist and dancer." He wept when the audience applauded and said, "100%. I've never done anything like this. This right here, dream came true. Thank you." Aw.

Tim Hockenberry: A soulful singer who is a recovering alcoholic with a pretty wife and a new baby.

Jarrett & Raja: An impressive magician/concert pianist act that pulled off a trick in which the pianist played his instrument while he was cut in half.

Michael Nejad: A performer who comes onstage dressed like a custodian, then plays his broom and dustpan like flutes.

And there were more, many more. But I can't leave without telling you about an act so odd it might have been the most memorable. No, not that poor dog who rode a pony, hanging on for dear life.

Of course I'm talking about 80-year-old Paula Nelson, who uses a walker, wears pearls and orthopedic shoes, calls herself "Granny G" and raps about randy youth and family responsibility.

Here she is doing her thing:



And you thought Stern was going to push the boundaries of taste on this show. …

What did you think of this episode?

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-- Amy Reiter

Photo: Howie Mandel in San Francisco. Credit: Virginia Sherwood / NBC