Image Credit: Michael Becker/Fox
Good news! As if to help the American Idol nation cope with the surprise departure of Pia Toscano last week, this week the Top 8 contestants will be singing songs from the movies (sorry, the “cinema,” as the show’s British producers often insist on calling it), which in years past has proven to be a solid night of music. In season 2, winner Ruben Studdard pulled off a surprisingly soulful “A Whole New World”; in season 3, winner Fantasia Barrino delivered what many believe is still the best Idol performance ever when she sang “Summertime”; and in season 8, winner Kris Allen took a big risk that paid off big time when he attempted the Oscar-winning-if-still-kinda-obscure “Falling Slowly.” Them’s big shoes to fill, but thankfully, we’re here to offer our always expert advice on what the Top 8 should sing, and what they should avoid. Check out our picks below:
Casey Abrams
DO SING: “You Can Leave Your Hat On,” Joe Cocker, from 9 1/2 Weeks and The Full Monty
DO NOT SING: “Summertime,” George Gershwin, from Porgy and Bess (It’s been done.)
Lauren Alaina
DO SING: “Save Me,” Aimee Mann, from Magnolia
DO NOT SING: “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing,” Aerosmith, from Armageddon
James Durbin
DO SING: “Uninvited,” Alanis Morissette, from City of Angels
DO NOT SING: “Born to Be Wild,” Steppenwolf, from Easy Rider
Stefano Langone
DO SING: “Come What May,” Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman, from Moulin Rouge!
DO NOT SING: “Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?” Bryan Adams, from Don Juan DeMarco (It’s been done. Twice.)
Jacob Lusk
DO SING: “Unchained Melody,” The Righteous Brothers, from Ghost
DO NOT SING: Anything from The Bodyguard
Scotty McCreery
DO SING: “Travelin’ Through,” Dolly Parton, from Transamerica (admit it, this would be awesome)
DO NOT SING: “Jailhouse Rock,” Elvis Presley, from Jailhouse Rock
Paul McDonald
DO SING: “Everybody’s Talkin’,” Harry Nilsson, from Midnight Cowboy
DO NOT SING: “Falling Slowly,” Glen Hansard & Markéta Irglová, from Once (It’s been done. Twice.)
Haley Reinhart
DO SING: “Moon River,” Audrey Hepburn, from Breakfast at Tiffany’s
DO NOT SING: “Up Where We Belong,” Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes, from An Officer and a Gentleman
Read more:
‘American Idol’: Women didn’t vote for Pia because they’re jealous? Ridiculous!
‘American Idol’: Top 8 Power List
I can just imagine Pia singing “My Heart Will Go On” if she’d stayed. There’s almost no way she wouldn’t have chosen it (or a super-treacly ballad like it) to sing.
I agree and i am an adult and really couldnt stand her, she rubbed me the wrong way and her exit i felt nothing. She had a voice yes but i would rather hear something different not a beauty pagent voice
She would sing that robotic song. I’m sick of how much people exaggerate about her. This is her fifth time auditioning for American Idol. Fifth! I found that out at the info website Wikipedia.
I am a lover of American Idol and am in my 70th. The young contestants are a pleasure to listen to without having loud instruments drowning out their voices. My iTunes library has a collection of songs from previous years. It was not only my way of voting, but also enriching my music archive.
Pia’s exit left me cold. Casey, James and Scotty of course are darlings to watch.
Fan in Canada
She is on record in saying she was going to do a ballad from West Side Story if she stayed.
“Somewhere” then? It’s been done…over and over again.
i think pia shouldve stayed she had the best voice she was always good at picking her songs:)
@Stacey: I think she would’ve changed her mind about Somewhere if she had stayed. She would’ve been more determined than ever to have her moment after being in the Bottom 3.
I wouldn’t be surprised if all of them know their songs for the following week in advance, so that they can get approved in time to start rehearsing. So yeah I think she would have stuck with the ballad because a uptempo sent her into the bottom if she had stayed. She would have gone back to a ballad, and the ballad she chose is very well known to those who love West Side Story. So it has name recognition. She would have tried to get away from a Celine song if possible because that would have been seen as predictable for her.
How about: “Goodbye Pia (We’re So Sad To See You Go).”
Umm.. how about any of the following (instead of Adam’s tired, boring suggestions):
“One Of The Living” – Tina Turner
“I’ll Remember” – Madonna
“Crazy For You” – Madonna
“It Must Have Been Love” – Roxette
“The Rainbow Connection” – The Muppets
“9 to 5″ – Dolly Parton
“Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head” – BJ Thomas
“Theme From ‘Arthur’” – Christopher Cross
“Girl You’ll Be a Woman Soon” – Urge Overkill
Anything from “Flashdance”
Love the suggestion of “Rainbow Connection.” I can just picture Paul pulling that one off well.
9 to 5, yes. Especially Allison Krauss’s stripped down version.
Rainbow Connection is totally a Paul song. That one I’d pay to hear.
Um, I actually like “My Heart Will Go On”, and I’m not ashamed of it either. And Pia should’ve stayed. Best voice in the competition, and I maintain that she had more stage presence than either of the remaining girls and pretty much all of the boys except James and perhaps Casey and Jacob.
Ick – glad I won’t have to hear that. On another note, I think a great choice for James would be “Highway to the Danger Zone” from Top Gun.
She actually said she was singing “Somewhere” this week if she stayed – so yeah, yet another lame ballad.
You know i was thinking the other day that Paul could pull of Bryan adam either Everything i Do-From Robyn Hood or to Love Someone from Hope Floats. Same voice style
should say off not of
I would love that to be a group performance
Haley: Get Happy (Judy Garland) from “Summer Stock”. She could really rock that song.
Good call on Paul singing Everybody’s Talkin’! What about Jacob Lusk singing Purple Rain???
haley as a rockin voice keep singing your heart out you did great when you sang bennie and the jets
Wow, these are actually pretty good suggestions…which is kind of surprising because many times the writers @ EW come off as retards.
Actually, I think most of these suggestions really suck.
people who say the word ‘retard’ are morons. i don’t care that this is about american idol, that term is super offensive.
Yes, I thought that was rude, too.
I have a feeling this night will be more like Disney-Ballad night.
It’s funny that a lot of people want Paul to sing Everybody’s Talkin. Maybe he should do it. I have a feeling James will be predictable as usual and will more than likely sing something from Across The Universe, Tommy or The Wall. Same goes for Scotty who will probably sing something from Crazy Heart. Casey needs to bring it this week. He should do Sound of Silence from The Graduate with just an acoustic guitar. That’s give him his moment. I’m glad Stefano sang When A Man Loves A Woman last week because that means we don’t have to hear him sing it this week. Ha.
Pia said on her exity interview last week that she would have chosen to sing “Somewhere” from West Side Story, and she would have rocked that ballad!!!!!! She will be missed tonight, but the show must go on.
she wouldve rocked that song if she stayed i was with jennifer lopez she shouldve stayed she couldve won the show.
Ummm, apparently she could NOT have won the show since she didn’t get enough votes to stay. She was never a frontrunner to begin with. She never was a top vote getter, but people are just refusing to believe this. Well…believe it.
plz stay away from the titanic song! urgh! it’s so over-used!
Good call on “don’t want to miss a thing” I bet Lauren is undeniably drawn to this song but DO NOT TOUCH IT! Please. I really hope no one does “”My Heart Will Go On” either. I will have the mute button close at hand. There are a lot of over done songs, I hope they cleared some new ones.
Just because a song is used in a move, does that make it a “song from a movie”? Shouldn’t it be limited to songs that were first introduced in a movie? Otherwise, the category doesn’t mean much as there have been so many songs that have been used in or rerecorded for a movie.
Agreed.
lauren needs to stop singing dont want to miss a thing we now that you love it but move on aerosmith is probably tired of hearing it toooo!!!!!!!!!!!!
im praying for the rest of the contestants it must be hard to wonder whos going home next. stefanio i hope you make it i always cheer for a guy that lives in gilroy california my home town ily all hope you guys last:))))
If someone sings Against All Odds, I’m going to punch my TV.
I think Jacob is the only one who could pull it off.
The save should have been for Pia
I think it has to be the theme song for the movie – not just a song in the movie.
Sorry – that was meant as a reply for Richard at 3:21pm