Smokey With a Few Miracles: Idol Does Motown

Michael Becker / FOX

Is it warm in here?

American Idol's salute to Motown set out to separate the singers who've got soul from the ones who can merely carry a tune and remember some lyrics.

And it did, driving a firm wedge between the hopefuls (of which there are more than a few) and the hopeless.

The performances were hit and miss—but the hits, starting with Matt Giraud's entreaty to get it on, were well worth sitting through a few duds.

Matt Giraud: It was hard not to take Matt seriously when he implored, "Let's Get It On." The 23-year-old with the surprising falsetto chops, already praised in the past for having serious soul, had Paula Abdul and Kara DioGuardi swaying in their seats with his sultry homage to Marvin Gaye. Paula liked the "sexy, cool vibe" he was putting out there, while Simon Cowell called it "a brilliant choice of song."

Kris Allen: Well, Kris has more soul than we thought. Guitar in hand, he gave "How Sweet It Is (to Be Loved by You)" his signature troubadour treatment, turning the Marvin Gaye favorite on its pop-song head. And he didn't hide behind that guitar, either—he hit a hell of a high note at the end. "You did everything right on that performance," Kara said, though Simon advised Kris to seize his inner star—"You've got to be conceited," the Brit encouraged.

Scott MacIntyre: Scott sped up the dentist's-waiting-room act with the Supremes' "You Can't Hurry Love," which if it didn't further prove his vocal prowess certainly proved his giftedness as a pianist. But Simon didn't even like the piano playing. "Actually, it was a bit cheap, the whole thing," he complained, while Randy Jackson confirmed that "nothing great happened."

Michael Becker / FOX

Megan Joy: The magic of Megan may have run out "For Once in My Life." While she usually has a way of finagling a song to suit her unconventional pipes, most of tonight's performance just sounded wrong. The Jean DuShon/Stevie Wonder tune was way too big for her voice, which is more suited to intimate, velvet-lined cabaret halls with tiny tables and still-smoking ashtrays. "Dude, that song was a trainwreck for me," Randy, the biggest Stevie purist of the bunch, said, while Paula confirmed that Megan "didn't find the pocket." Which we think means that she never found her comfort zone.

Michael Becker / FOX

Anoop Desai: Well, isn't Anoop-Dogg Mr. Come-Hither, these days? The fan favorite's take on the Miracles' "Ooo Baby Baby" was a little low on outward energy, but he apparently was saving all his oomph to hit those sweet falsetto notes and keep the wide-ranging love song under control. Sure enough, Simon complained that Anoop seemed half asleep during the performance, but he agreed it was a great vocal.

Michael Sarver: At least the oil-rig roughneck wasn't too proud to work the audience while turning in an average vocal on "Ain't Too Proud to Beg." Michael's strong, meaty voice is well-suited to the Temptations' sound, but his performance wasn't much better than a rousing turn in front of a packed bar on karaoke night. It was "a little old Las Vegas-loungey," according to Paula, while Simon told him, "You have no chance of winning based on that type of vocal."

Lil Rounds: Sure enough, Motown was more of an inspiration for Lil than the Grand Ole Opry. The 23-year-old, embodying Martha and the Vandellas, tore into "Heat Wave" and never let go as her booming voice zigged and zagged between chest, throat and a few places in between. But the judges (except Paula) didn't think the song was right for her. Kara thought she was "screaming in parts," and Simon is still waiting for the obviously talented singer to "have a moment."

Adam Lambert: Adam followed in Smokey's footsteps and a lit a fire with "The Tracks of My Tears," performing it alongside a string trio and entirely in a high register that made the 1965 hit new and, most important, hot. Is that "the moment" Simon was talking about? "The best performance of the night," Simon, who hated what Adam did to "Ring of Fire" last week, said. "You were able to sum up everything we've were trying to say tonight about originality, choosing a great song, being a relevant recording artist, and it also shows what a brilliant songwriter Smoky is...You, tonight, really have emerged to me as a star—congratulations."

Danny Gokey: Better than Michael Sarver, but still verging on karaoke, despite a technically really nice vocal. Danny's voice, as it successfully ran the gamut from low to high on "Get Ready," was perfectly recordable and listenable, but there wasn't much originality in the performance. Randy dug "the energy and the feeling of it," but Simon thought it was "clumsy and amateurish." Well, you can't win 'em all.

Allison Iraheta: How old is this girl, really? Another musical tale of bittersweet fascination and ruefulness—in this case, the Temptations' "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone"—and another down 'n' dirty performance by 16-year-old Allison. Her raspy voice was at its most powerful, and she fully rebounded from a surprise appearance in the bottom three last week. "You sing like you've been singing for 400 years!" raved Kara. "That is from God—you can't teach that!"

Guest mentor Smokey Robinson and Ruben Studdard both perform on Thursday's elimination show, during which Idol will enter single digits after yet another aspiring star gets the boot.

(Originally published March 25, 2009, at 7:29 p.m. PT)