Dead or Alive?

On last night's American Idol, Jon Bon Jovi served as teacher with the contestants singing from the Bon Jovi songbook. I totally loved it. It is exactly what Idol needed.

For 11 weeks now, I've seen great performances but not one that was a "wow." I've wanted to see young singers risk their Idol dreams by reinventing or rearranging well-known songs in bold, audacious ways. I've dreamed of seeing the finalists step outside their comfort zones and discover that their musical limitations were entirely self-imposed. I've wanted these wannabes to understand the judges' well-worn advice to always "sing like it's your last time on stage."

This week, all four of those wishes got fulfilled, and while credit must be spread among four individual contestants, my first (standing ovation goes to LaKisha Jones. Tonight, LaKisha did not borrow. She absolutely frickin' owned "This Ain't a Love Song" — and no matter what happens on Wednesday night's results show, it will always be hers. Her odd red-lace and black-Lycra corset-leotard thingie could not detract from the emotional intensity of a transcendent performance. LaKisha has never been a professional backup singer. She hasn't been groomed for stardom since childhood. She's just a humble bank teller from Fort Meade, Md. Simon actually broke character and adorably shared a kiss with her— but also reinforced my fear that because last week's votes also count toward this week's eliminations, we've probably heard the last of Miss Jones. I'm just glad she also got to show a little of the trademark sass that's been so muted the past few weeks, especially when she told Ryan, "I want the camera to get my slim side."

Maybe I'm wrong, though. After all, Bon Jovi himself declared he'd bet that LaKisha would survive the week. But if I had to put money down at this very moment on which singer is most likely to stick around, I'd place my wager on Blake Lewis, whose electrifying retooling of "You Give Love a Bad Name" has become the season's watercooler performance. Bon Jovi was right that "16 measures of him not singing on a show that's supposed to highlight singers" was a risky move, and Blake's whooshing opening sound effects were a wee bit indulgent, but the rest of the performance was exhilarating — breathing life into one of my favorite '80s songs. The "you give love-lllll-love-love-lll-love a bad, bad name" breakdown had me absent-mindedly clapping like Paula, and while the judges seemed a little tentative in their praise, this was the performance that — whether or not it secured Blake a spot in the final two — pretty much guaranteed him a record deal.

Yet as much credit as I give Blake for bending his song choice into his own personal style, I've got to give Melinda Doolittle equal credit for venturing into new genre territory, and (almost) completely conquering it. Indeed, I'd argue she rocked harder on "Have a Nice Day" than any of her five competitors — shimmying back-to-back with the guitarist, making that fearsome facial expression after her closing note, letting the gravel in her voice jeopardize (but not ruin) her record of total pitch perfection. As Simon rightfully noted, Mindy Doo discovered her inner Tina! My only issue with the entire performance was the way Melinda refused to take ownership of her performance after she'd finished, offering a tentative shrug when she should've kicked over the mike stand. Oh, also, I thought she was just slightly behind the beat on the final 30 seconds, but the expression "rock on with your bad self" nonetheless applies — and a Melinda-free final four is inconceivable.

I'm not so certain about Phil, whose clear, strong rendition of "Blaze of Glory" was the best performance he's given all season, but perhaps only the evening's fourth best. Combine it with a slightly forgettable showing during "Idol Gives Back" week, and he might be giving a repeat reading of the line "I'm goin' out in a blaze of glory" during Wednesday's results show. If he does make his exit, the young gun can leave with his head held high. The judges are never going to love him — was Paula's comment that "this is a year of your life you'll never forget" supposed to come off as praise? — but the bald-headed dude did not miss a single note.

It is very sad to say but we're left with Chris Richardson and Jordin Sparks bringing up the back of the pack? And yes, I'm listing them in order. "Wanted Dead or Alive" was certainly one of Chris R.'s personal-best performances, mostly on key and with very little "nasally," but at this point, he just seems outclassed — compared with both the current crop of finalists. Indeed, given Chris R.'s own mention of Chris Daughtry's superior season 5 cover of "Wanted," you have to wonder why he didn't opt for a different song. Maybe he's got the same hunch as Simon: He did as much as he could have possibly hoped to do, and it's probably not enough to help him crack the top four. Even so, I thought it was kind of a low blow for Ryan to introduce the dude as "Justin Timberlake," which made Chris visibly upset.

Oh, and speaking of low blows, how bad did Jordin's lower register blow on "Livin' on a Prayer," my all time favorite Bon Jovi song. I was very upset over this. Not so much because she blew a favorite of mine, but because she is my favorite too and I'm worried for her safety. Right from the opening seconds, it was clear most of the verse's notes would be out of the perky front-runner's grasp. And yet, somehow, Jordin finished the song but then blissfully admitted to the judges that her performance left something to be desired. She did know how bad it was and she accepted it. Hopefully, she got in a windfall of votes for last week's "You'll Never Walk Alone." That said, if the camera crew is as unkind to her next week as they were tonight she could wind up with this season's Tamyra Gray/Chris Daughtry Trophy for most shocking early exit.