Three Men Heat Up The Competition On ‘American Idol’

A trio of men stepped up their performances on Tuesday night’s “American Idol” and emerged as frontrunners in the competition.

Michael Lynche, Alex Lambert and Lee Dewyze made enough changes following the judges’ criticism last week to prove to the panel that they have the skills to make it far in the competition.

Originally, the men were going to perform on Wednesday, with the ladies going first, but things were switched around on Tuesday morning following the hospitalization of one of the “Idol” women, Crystal Bowersox.

Despite the switch, several of the men were on form, including Michael, who was first to receive the judges’ praise after he opened the show with a soulful rendition of the James Brown classic, “It’s A Man’s Man’s Man’s World.”

“This is how I feel about that dog, I gotta give it to you,” Randy Jackson said as he stood up to give his first standing ovation of the season. “Crazy, crazy, unbelievable. R&B star right there.”

Kara DioGuardi, though, offered praise, with an odd comment for the new dad, seemingly referencing the real life trainer’s size.

“Tonight, you went from being a singer to someone who could potentially be a great artist,” she said. “You owned it tonight. I don’t know what you ate between last week and this week…

“I think a lot,” Simon chimed in.

“Maybe a lot, but let me tell you, you are not the same guy,” she responded.

As for Alex, who revealed last week that he’s only ever performed in front of audiences a trio of times, he too went from “Idol” contestant, to “one to watch” as he whipped out an acoustic guitar and performed John Legend’s “Everybody Knows.”

“Under that mullet there’s a little Sam Cooke voice,” Ellen DeGeneres said, referencing Alex’s hair. “You’ve got such a great voice and of everybody here, I think you have the most unique style… You are somebody I’ve never seen before. I like it.”

It was Lee, though, that took the top praise from Simon Cowell, after he left his guitar at home and took to the stage, just showing off his voice on Hinder’s “Lips Of An Angel.”

“Let me tell you, vocally… you are head and shoulders above everyone else in your side of the competition right now,” Simon said, before adding a tip. “But… [you need] self belief, I mean, you look terrified right now.”

As for the other contenders, here’s what happened:

John Park performed John Mayer’s “Gravity” to a dull reception. “I just didn’t think there was anything special about it,” Randy said.

Pretty boy Casey James, who revealed he hasn’t had a television in his home since he was a child, brought out an electric guitar as he took Gavin DeGraw’s “I Don’t Want To Be” for a spin. While Randy loved it, Kara told her crush, “You took two steps backward for me.”

Todrick Hall changed up the Tina Turner classic, “What’s Love Got To Do With It” for his moment in the spotlight, but he too was hit with some harsh words. “I don’t know what’s going through your head at the moment, but you’re getting this completely and utterly wrong,” Simon stated.

Jermaine Sellers also tried to give a new twist to an older song, in his case Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On,” but he also found it didn’t sit well with the panel. “It just didn’t work for me,” a semi-speechless Ellen commented.

Andrew Garcia won raves for his Paula Abdul cover during Hollywood Week, but he got mixed reviews when he performed James Morrison’s “You Give Me Something” on Tuesday night. Randy called it “pitchy,” but Ellen said she “liked it a lot.”

Teenager Aaron Kelly drew from the past for his performance – giving the crowd The Temptations classic “My Girl.” Randy loved it, but Simon said it “was all over the place.”

Surprisingly, there was good news for Tim Urban, the cute contender who was brought back to the fold after Chris Golightly was eliminated from the Top 24. Randy, Kara and Ellen didn’t get his performance of Matt Nathanson’s “Come On Get Higher,” but the toughest judge of all gave him the thumbs up.

“I’m gonna disagree with these three,” Simon said as Tim’s jaw dropped. “I think you really listened to the criticism… You went back to what we liked about you initially… I thought you were more relevant tonight than a lot of the other singers we’ve seen before.”

Ellen also suggested, if he can act, he could join “Glee.”