Fans Don't Come Together For Mookie

08/20/08 5:33pm

by Michelle Singerman (CHARTattack)

Tuesday was shock and awe night on Canadian Idol, as Mookie Morris was the unlucky contestant who was sent packing. I was sad to see him go. There are now four contenders left, only one of whom I like.

The show started with the remaining contestants butchering a well-respected music catalogue. While I may have said Monday night's Beatles covers weren't as painful as I had anticipated, I never said they were painless.

Mitch MacDonald started with a lame version of "Blackbird." Drew Wright sang an ugly "Eleanor Rigby." Morris, the one to go, gave the first good performance of the night with "Get Back." Earl Stevenson's "Revolution" was made for him. Theo Tams ruined "Let It Be" with his aura of overconfidence.

The big star of the night wasn't on stage, but was instead hanging in the Idol mansion with the boys. Jully Black pried each one to share what they've learned over their time in the competition. When Black said you need thick skin to survive in the music industry, Tams got philosophical. He admitted that if he puts on a tough shell, he winds up not feeling anything at all. Deep.

When the therapeutic discussion topic changed to finding your musical self, some of the boys confessed to struggling to find their musical identity. But Stevenson rose above them and said, "If you're doing something that's natural to you, it's going to come off sounding that way." Word.

Morris and Wright landed in the bottom two, but Morris was let go, perhaps due to Monday's sub-Mookie performance. Morris reprised his rendition of "Come Together" and ended the song by smashing his guitar on the stage.

While judge Jake Gold told Morris to call him on Monday, in reference to upcoming job offers, I'm left to watch four singers — three of whom annoy me — compete for the next few weeks.

The saga will continue when Idol returns on Aug. 25 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. The four remaining contenders will return to their hometowns on Thursday and Friday, and of course they'll be followed by camera crews to capture all the excitement — including a parade in Wright's honour at 4:30 p.m. on Friday in Collingwood, Ont.

Canadian favourite Anne Murray will join the quartet for the week, and the remaining Idol wannabes will sing one of her songs and one number of their choice on Monday's program. Murray will sing on Tuesday's results show, as will American Idol winner Jordin Sparks. I can't wait.