10 Best Performances of American Idol 7

It's time for me to state the obvious: Most of us who watch "American Idol" want to see good performances. We want to see those magical moments where a contestant wows the audience, looks like a star and (hopefully) inspires the viewers at home to pick up the phone.

Season 7 had a lot of ups and downs, and I thought some of those ups deserved to be recognized. Here, in my opinion, are the ten best performances from this newly-completed season. You may disagree with my choices, but hey, this is my list and these are my opinions.

10. Brooke White - "I'm a Believer"

Yes, you read that right. This was one of my ten best performances of the season. If you don't want to continue reading it's your loss. After struggling for weeks with her usual serious fare, Brooke decided to do something different with this Neil Diamond-penned Monkees classic. Playing the guitar in front of a backdrop of green and purple ovals, Brooke upped the tempo for the first time all season and let loose with an energy we'd never seen from her before. Doggone it, it was fun!

9. Jason Castro - "Travelin' Thru"

Jason's performances often seemed like the same old thing, but with this one he managed to do his usual guy-with-a-guitar routine and be interesting and memorable. After the previous week's dreary "Fragile" that earned him a trip to the Bottom 3, he picked a song that was catchy, fun and positive, and it all clicked. Jason wouldn't see the Bottom 2 or 3 again until his elimination.

8. Alaina Whitaker - "More Today Than Yesterday"

When the Top 24 was named many observers (including me) predicted that Alaina would get the axe in the first week. She was one of the "interchangeable blondes", her early screen time had been limited and the only thing she seemed to be known for was her resemblance to Carrie Underwood. Sure, she had a good voice, but was she exceptional enough to get America's vote? As it turned out, she was. Fighting not to be eliminated on her birthday, she delivered an energetic, note-perfect rendition of the Spiral Starecase classic that was enough to earn her not only another week in the competition but the title of "dark horse" from Simon Cowell. Alaina was unfortunately eliminated after that second week, but her version of "More Today Than Yesterday" will forever live on in the memories of those who remember robbed contestants.

7. Brooke White - "Every Breath You Take"

This performance marked the first time Brooke had to restart her song during the voting stage of the competition. After repeating the first half of the first line she settled in behind the piano and added some sweet Brooke flavor to a song I've never been a big fan of. While Brooke openly struggled with confidence issues, she seemed to be in complete control of her performance that night.

6. David Archuleta - "Smoky Mountain Memories"

While this performance wasn't too different stylistically from Little David's usual stuff, there was something about it that I especially liked. Perhaps the emotion in his singing didn't seem quite as contrived as it did in other performances. Perhaps the song wasn't as sappy and full of clichés as some of his other choices. Perhaps it was the fact that he owned the song, sang his heart out and didn't show any signs of nerves. Whatever it was, I felt a connection with this one that I often didn't, and it inspired my mother to say "That kid is a star".

5. Chikezie - "I've Just Seen a Face"

The first time I saw this performance I wasn't sure what to make of it. It almost seemed like Chikezie was trying too hard to recreate his success from the previous week. After watching it a second time though, I loved it. It started out seeming like a return to his R&B ballad side (where he most certainly excelled) when out of nowhere he busted out a harmonica and the song became a bluegrass foot tapper. He totally seemed to be having fun out there and he stayed in the pocket the entire time (unlike certain contestants who won't be named). It kept him out of the Bottom 3, and it gave me hope that Chikezie would be in the competition for the long haul. Oh, what could've been...

4. Brooke White - "You're So Vain"

After an uncomfortable performance in the first week of Semifinals Brooke became the first "American Idol" girl to play an instrument in the second week. She accompanied her perfect song choice with a guitar, and it was then that we saw the real Brooke perform for the first time. It was clear that she could live up to the early hype, and the judges had fun discussing whether the song was directed at Simon. While Brooke didn't get quite as far as I thought she would early on, she had one of her most satisfying, engaging performances here.

3. David Cook - "Always Be My Baby"

While America raved about David Cook every week I still disliked him. I felt he was overrated and I couldn't stand his grungy style. I viewed him as a villain and hoped for a shocking elimination each week. When he was forced to do a Mariah Carey song for Top 7 week I assumed he'd just give it his own post-grunge arrangement (or one he found on iTunes) and I'd be bored as usual. Instead, he opted for an orchestra-backed rock arrangement and put feeling into his singing that I'd never heard from him before. Though it wasn't announced on the show, we internet diehards knew that his brother with cancer was in the audience that night. It likely contributed to his being emotional and made the judges' overwhelmingly positive feedback extra special. It was then that David Cook started to win me over. Though I'll never consider myself a fan of his, I was able to be genuinely happy for him when he won.

2. David Archuleta - "Imagine"

Little David had gotten a lot of hype early on with his audition and Hollywood performances. The judges pimped him to death the first week of Semifinals, and the whole time I never really got what all the fuss was about. He had an OK voice, but there was something weird about it that kept me from thinking he was anything special. I finally "got it" when David performed "Imagine" in the second week of Semifinals. Unlike some people, I'm not a fan of "Imagine". I don't see it as some sacred song that shouldn't be messed with and I think its message is a bit pretentious. When David sang it though, he added an element of innocent sincerity to it. He cut out the lyrics that expressed anything controversial and showed us he was a nice kid who just wanted everyone to love each other. That common thread in many of his songs would become tiresome eventually, but at that point it seemed real and refreshing. The season gained itself a frontrunner right then and there.

1. Chikezie - "She's a Woman"

How can you put the awesomeness of this performance into words? Chikezie fused a little bit of bluegrass, a little bit of soul, a little bit of "My Generation" and probably a little bit of a few other things I didn't pick up on into one insane burst of stand-up-and-shout excitement! A lot of viewers didn't like Chikezie due to his arguing with Simon and his outlasting fan favorite Danny Noriega, but I always defended him because I felt he had a lot of potential. With "She's a Woman" America finally got to see what I saw in Chikezie and then some! Rarely have I felt so vindicated, and never in this entire season did any contestant do anything as mind-blowingly magnificent as this performance. In a world where everything is fair Chikezie wins Season 7 of "American Idol".

Honorable Mentions:

Amanda Overmyer - "Back in the USSR"
Alexandréa Lushington - "Spinning Wheel"
Chikezie - "I Believe to My Soul"
David Hernandez - "Papa Was a Rolling Stone"
Jason Castro - "Somewhere Over the Rainbow"

So there you have it. The highlights. The best of the best. At least to me. I know my list probably doesn't look like most people's lists would, but that's the beauty of differing opinions. Care to share yours? Feel free to comment with your own best-of list or put in a good word for a performance that wasn't mentioned.

Next time: The 10 Worst Performances of American Idol 7 (that should be even more fun!)