'IDOL' WATCH: The Top 5

The contestants stepped out of their comfort zone tonight on a week featuring pure crooning, something surprisingly lacking from "Idol" this season. Stage and screen star Harry Connick, Jr. mentored the contestants on the songs of Frank Sinatra, even going so far as to create the arrangements and orchestrations for each song, as well as joining the singers on stage as the pianist. It's nice to see a mentor who put such dedication into his work on "Idol," though it is not the least bit surprising that this dedication came from Connick, Jr., always the consummate musician as well as performer.

The youngest contestant, Aaron Kelly, began the night and, on what could have been a tough night, he performed quite well. Kelly sang Fly Me to the Moon and strayed from his country feel, going for a dressier, older look that worked well for the Sinatra tune. The style isn't Kelly's bread and butter, but, given the circumstances, he did a nice job. Randy and Ellen said that, though they were worried about him tonight, he did a great job and "really pulled that off." Simon and Kara were a bit more apprehensive, calling it good, but not as strong as last week. As Simon put it, "If Frank was a lion, you were just a mouse." Kelly is an extremely likable performer and didn't do anything to warrant a ticket home, so expect him to make it to the top four.

Next up was Casey James, singing the hit Blue Skies. James was completely out of his element tonight, ditching the guitar and attempting the standard stand-and-sing. James had it rough tonight: he was pitchy, he looked awkward, and none of the judges liked his performance. Randy called it his "worst performance yet," while Kara said his vibrato "sounded like a lamb." It's a tough break for James, who was at the mercy of the theme he was given. Regardless, it doesn't look too good for James tomorrow night. He may make it on based on the fact that the audience could clearly tell this was not his type of music, but don't count on it.

Crystal Bowersox sang Sinatra's Summer Wind with a completely different tone than we have come to expect of her. Bowersox is a smart singer; she understands how to adjust and does a nice job adapting the style each week. The song was not the perfect choice, though she said she chose it because it means something to her, which is always a justifiable reason for picking a particular song. Randy and Simon said it was "just okay" and Simon noted that it was likely not the best song choice. Ellen and Kara were much happier with her performance, with Ellen pointing out that Bowersox has "so many sides to [her.]" Bowersox won't be going home tomorrow, but if she wants to win the competition, she will have to really step it up in the final four weeks.

Tonight's theme most lent itself to Michael Lynche's musical styling and he did not disappoint. Lynche is all about the emotional love songs and, though he has been known to go overboard in the past, he was right on the money tonight. It was clear how comfortable he was onstage and his vocals were spectacular. Randy said he "threw down the gauntlet" tonight and Kara said Lynche "found the drama, but didn't lose [himself] in the song." Overall, a fantastic performance and one that will likely keep the one-time "Idol" castoff (it has been four weeks since the judges granted him the save) around for next week.

Lee Dewyze was on fire tonight, giving the best performance of the night with Sinatra's hit, That's Life. DeWyze was able to take a classic tune and make it fit his style, while still being true to the cool nature of the song. DeWyze had an air about him that he has not had in the past, and that's what really set him apart from the other performances tonight: his confidence. Each of the judges praised his performance, with Ellen and Kara both saying how he has a great shot at becoming this season's "American Idol." It was a fantastic performance on a somewhat bland night, and one that may have put him in a different league than the other performers.

Although each of the remaining performers is extremely talented, it seems pretty clear as to who will head home tomorrow night. Casey James' performance was dismal at best and it will be remarkable if he is able to stick around after tonight. Picking the two contestants who will join James in the bottom three is somewhat of a crapshoot, though, I doubt DeWyze will be among them. I would guess that it will be Lynche and Kelly.

Tomorrow night will feature pop superstar Lady Gaga singing her hits Bad Romance and Alejandro in what's bound to be a spectacular performance. As it gets down to the wire, each results show can be unexpected. Tomorrow night we will learn who moves on to the top four on the 8:00pm EST results show.

"American Idol" is a reality competition to find new solo musical talent, created by Simon Fuller. It debuted June 11, 2002 on the Fox network and has since become one of the most popular shows on American television. It is currently the #1 TV show in the Nielsen Ratings and is one of only three that have been #1 for five consecutive seasons. The cast of "Idol" includes judges Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson, Kara DioGuardi, and Ellen Degeneres, and host Ryan Seacrest.

The program aims to discover the best singer in the country through a series of nation-wide auditions, and subsequent viewer voting. Through telephone voting, America has chosen past winners Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard, Fantasia Barrino, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Hicks, Jordin Sparks, David Cook, and Kris Allen.

Several "Idol" contestants have been seen on the Broadway stage, including Barrino (The Color Purple), Hicks (Grease), Clay Aiken (Spamalot), Diana DeGarmo (Hairspray, Hair), Josh Strickland (Tarzan), Tamyra Gray (Rent, Bombay Dreams), Constantine Maroulis (The Wedding Singer, Rock of Ages), and Ace Young (Hair).

"American Idol" airs on Tuesday and Wednesday nights on Fox at 8PM EST.

Photo Credit: AmericanIdol.com