The first half of this week's performance show worked well for Phillip Phillips, Elise Testone, and Skylar Laine.

Joshua Ledet did a good job except for some vocal hysterics that were unnecessary on some parts of the song. He went way over the top, and someone should tell him that there is wisdom in the saying, "Sometimes, less is more."

Jessica Sanchez did a pretty good job, but she clearly does not have the chops to be a rock singer. That is not the direction for her, and she knew she should make up for it by singing what she sings best in the second half of the show. The same goes for Hollie Cavanagh; she had to sing something that will transform her in the voters' point of view.

The Idol audience could only hope for the contestants to pick songs they could easily relate to, but alas, some of the Idol hopefuls, despite knowing that an obscure song has gotten Jessica in serious trouble two weeks ago, still picked some unfamiliar songs. Thursday night's results show would deliver some 'surprises' again.

Jessica Sanchez came back with Luther Vandross' "Dance with My Father," saying the song is for her father, who is scheduled to be deployed to Singapore. Sympathy points plus an excellent performance equals a number that more than made up for the unconvincing Queen rendition she did earlier in the show. Randy told her, "Now you've got the feeling in there. That's what was always missing a little for me." Just like that, and she's back on the top half of the pack.

Skylar Laine chose to cover Jason Aldean's "Tattoos on This Town." She did quite well, but not as good as she did with the Queen song. It's an ironic twist for a country singer covering Aldean, but JLo and Randy raved about her number, anyway. Steven pointed out her step back by saying, "You didn't take that song where you've taken every other song, and I kind of missed that flair." Still, he reminded her he's a fan, by adding, "But you can do no wrong." Now Skylar is somewhere in the middle.

Joshua Ledet's second song was India.Arie's "Ready for Love," and he also managed to turn things around for a safe spot on Thursday's results show. Not only was he restrained and more melodic in this number, he raised the bar for everyone else in the competition. He got another standing ovation from the judges. Skylar would later note that Joshua has so far gained 12 standing ovations from the judges. Not bad for someone who has been in the bottom three twice since the first performance episode of the season.

Elise Testone came back with "Bold as Love" by Jimi Hendrix. It was another fantastic performance, showing her tough-yet-sweet musical and personality vibe. Yet it does not secure a safe spot for her. Steven said he loved it, but he reminded Elise, "You've got to do songs that people know." She's been to the bottom three five times so far, and a lot of people were sure she was going home last week. She knew she should choose a more popular song, but perhaps she just decided to have fun and show her best - before she goes home.

Phillip Phillips chose to cover Dave Matthews, a remarkable first on American Idol's 11 years. With a fiddle and saxophone on stage, Phillip just got even sexier and more charming; he even seemed more relaxed than ever on stage singing "The Stone." He most probably knew the rule on choosing popular songs against niche music, but seeing his reaction when Colton Dixon was eliminated, this frontrunner is probably thinking, "Anyone can go home, I might as well just have fun."

Hollie Cavanagh strategized well for her second number on this show. She picked "The Climb" by Miley Cyrus, which got her a "golden ticket" to Hollywood this season. For the first time ever this season, Hollie delivered a strong and solid performance, something she absolutely needed to do to convince the audience she deserved to stay in the competition.

After two performances from each of the remaining contestants, predicting the bottom three is not as easy as it used to be. Phillip probably has gained new voters now that Colton is out of the show, so perhaps his choosing a rather obscure song wouldn't matter to the voters. The same cannot be said for Elise. The bottom three will probably consist of Elise Testone, Hollie Cavanagh and Skylar Laine.

India Hollywood American Idol Jennifer Lopez