Canadian Idol: Third Show Plays To The Heart

Episode three was a slight improvement from Monday night's audition highlights. Little kids posing as each of the judges opened the show, and it was pretty damned cute. I'm not a sucker for kids, but my heart can't help but melt when tots mimic adult behaviour — like in that Super Bowl E*Trade commercial.

Ottawa was the first city visited. The nation's capital failed to produce a top 10 candidate last year, so the pressure was on to find someone deserving this time around.

Jonny Whitehead, who served a tour of duty in Afghanistan, came out with heart. His cover of Hootie & The Blowfish's "Let Her Cry" was impressive. His voice was soothing and his guitar playing matched it. His next stop: Toronto for the next round.

The first blunder came with contestant number two, Kelsi Schauerte. She set her goals high when she filled out her contestant application and told the camera that people often compare her to former American Idol Kelly Clarkson. The contestant, who said she wouldn't be where she was without the singer, fittingly sang "A Moment Like This." I think we all could agree with judge Jake Gold when he said Schauerte sounded like "Kelly Clarkson tied to a chair being tortured."

The show tapped into our sensitive side by highlighting Dan Young, who said he was auditioning for his mom — who was in hospital battling cancer at the time of filming. His voice was great and grainy, and the judges thought so, too. After earning his gold ticket, Young visited his mom to tell her the good news. It was a really touching moment that I never would have expected to come out of Canadian Idol. Sadly, Young's mother passed away shortly afterward.

Next up was Ryan Mawla, a female trapped in a male's body. His singing didn't quite do it for the judges, though Zack Werner was grateful for the audition. He said Mawla had a powerful message to get across, but that music wasn't the right vehicle. It would have been a touching moment, too, until "True Colours" started playing in the background. The cheese factor was high.

The Hamilton auditions featured who the judges proclaimed was the worst singer the show had seen. Sarah Dillon attempted Alicia Keys' "Fallin'" and failed miserably.

My number one quality pick overall is Idol repeat contestant Jessica Sheppard, who did a strong version of "Killing Me Softly." Hopefully she'll stick around for a while longer this year. The show could use some talent.

Werner got a tear in his eye with Adam Castelli's rendition of The Fugees' "Ready Or Not." The critical judge said the performance "emotionally affected" him. Gold agreed, and Castelli is going to Toronto.

Newfoundland's Mark Day was worth noting from the east coast auditions. Three of the four judges liked him enough to send him to T.O. and Werner admired his "goofy kind of charisma."

The final audition was a duet featuring two guys known as Luke and Jock who sang "The Canadian Idol Reject Song." They were rejected.

Stay tuned for next Monday's top 200 episode in Toronto. Hopefully the pace will pick up with the speed of the big city.