'American Idol' recap: Cake, Rattle, and Roll

Share this article

• Tweet

All About

American Idol

Get the latest photos, news, and more

The other thing that made me feel slightly on-edge, but which I respected nonetheless, was Adam's decision to choose a side in the Kris-Matt vs. Danny-Allison pairings that Ryan had created. If I were in the dude's shoes, I'd probably have Archied out and sat on the floor at center stage. Instead, Adam pointed to Danny and Allison and declared ''based on last night, probably that group'' performed better, before walking over and joining them. It all would've worked out so well for Adam if Ryan hadn't responded by grabbing his shoulder, moving him to the other side of the stage, and declaring him a bottom-three dweller alongside Matt and Kris. Lucky for Adam, he saved face by letting out a genuine whoop and yelling ''Get it!'' toward Allison and Danny. Do these contestants really like each other that much? (Anoop Desai told me that indeed they do on his recent visit to Idolatry...see video below.)

And, heck, my cynical heart thinks it's true, especially with the way the quintet grooved together during the season's second consecutive not-terrible group number — this one featuring actual real-life singing! Whaddaya know? (Side note to Kris: If in the future, you know you're going to be performing swinging standards, you might want to dress it up a little more than battered jeans and a plaid cowboy shirt.)

The evening's other musical performers were similarly upbeat. Taylor Hicks couldn't get the smile off his face as he served up the roadhouse blues of ''Seven Mile Breakdown,'' and as a result, the backup singers and band looked like they were having a blast, and Simon gave a standing O. Natalie Cole, meanwhile, remains sexy as hell despite the fact that she's waiting for a kidney transplant, and her take on ''Something's Gotta Give'' was a jazzy treat, to boot, except for that wayward bit of scatting near the end.

And finally, there was Jamie Foxx's insane, vocoderific ''Blame It,'' which might as well have been performed by wheeling out a Mac to center stage and pressing the ''singing'' button. I could not stop laughing watching Foxx bound around the stage like a man on a mission, while his mouth generated not a single noise you'd expect to hear from a carbon-based life form. True confession: When Ryan announced that Foxx's composition was ''the number one song in America,'' my husband turned to me, laughing, and asked in his loudest, most incredulous voice: ''Is it really? Really? F---ing, that's ridiculous.'' Which brings me to this week's quiz:

Which Idol results-show moment resulted in the biggest burst of awkward laughter?
A) Kara blurting ''my mouth went open again. That's what happens with Adam,'' followed by an unfortunate and unintentional ''beej'' gesture.
B) Jamie Foxx providing comfort to Matt and Adam with this nugget of self-promotional wisdom: ''It doesn't matter right now. It's what's gonna happen after this and the careers that they're gonna have after this, and that's it. And also, too, I've got a movie out called The Soloist. So check it out.''
C) Ryan accidentally referring to ''It Don't Mean a Thing'' as ''I Don't Mean a Thing.''
D) The Ford Music Video's suggestion that hybrid car emissions turn into verdant fields and flowering trees.

Also, because you haven't procrastinated enough from your job/housework/child-rearing, do check out our new video series Must List Live!, where Big Bang Theory star Jim Parsons talks about his own Idol obsession, then press play below to watch our five-part video interview with Anoop Desai. I know, I know, you're thinking ''five parts is a lot!'' But trust me, the recent Idol evictee (and regular Idolatry watcher!) is smart, and funny, and isn't afraid to dish about the show's producers, his song-arrangement strategy, and the backstage incident that almost left him with a hand injury!

What did you think of tonight's ouster? Were you shocked by (and are you buying) Adam in the bottom two? Put your answers to these vital questions, as well as your thoughts on the rest of tonight's show, in the comments section below. And if you'd like to be a call-in guest on Idolatry, shoot an email with your thoughts on this week in Idol (along with a daytime phone number) to idolatry@ew.com. Also: If you missed signing up this week for EW.com's Idol Prediction Challenge, please do it now! Even if you missed scoring on Rat Pack Night, we keep tabs on week-to-week winners on our leaderboard. I'm currently in 414th place, up from 725th last week. I can almost taste victory, I swear it!