Look back at the highlights from Crystal Bowersox, Katelyn Epperly, Lee DeWyze, Alex Lambert and more. By Jim Cantiello Crystal Bowersox performs “Me and Bobby McGee” on “American Idol” Photo: Ray Mickshaw / FOX The ninth season of “American Idol” has taken a wallop from critics and fans for lacking the water-cooler chatter and overall talent of previous seasons. Yet despite the negative buzz, there were still a handful of performances worth celebrating among all those “do not wants.” So, as we gear up for Tuesday’s (May 25) final performance night, sit back and grab your brain’s TiVo remote as we quickly rewind season nine and revisit 10 of our favorite performance this year. 10. Andrew Garcia, “Straight Up” : Kara called Garcia’s soulful acoustic flip on Paula Abdul’s tune during Hollywood Week “genius,” and in some ways, she was right. It respected the show’s history while introducing a new element to the aging series: the YouTube cover artist. The dude may have ended up being a one-hit-wonder dud in later rounds, but that one hit knocked us out. 9. Tim Urban, “All My Loving” : Tween heartthrob (and judges’ punching bag) Urban won over viewers with his infectious, positive attitude (his Abercrombie model looks helped too), but on Lennon/McCartney night he finally won over America with his musical ability. This confident performance added a fun boogie-woogie swagger to the Beatles hit. 8. Lacey Brown, “What a Wonderful World” : The smoldering redhead’s smoky, haunting spin on this Louis Armstrong staple during Hollywood Week made us hope that she’d be a new and (important word alert) improved Megan Joy. Fans disappointed that Lacey never lived up to her potential felt vindicated when she reprised this song to smashing success on “The Late Show With David Letterman” days after her elimination. 7. Casey James, “Jealous Guy” : When the object of Kara’s affection ditched the goofy Eddie Van Halen mugging this season, he delivered devastating, honest performances, none more moving than this John Lennon cover. Joined onstage by a cellist and bathed in a rich, colorful light, James finally appeared as though he gave a damn about the show, and we finally gave a damn about him. 6. Lee DeWyze, “Simple Man” : Song choice! Song choice! Song choice! They judges always scream about picking the right number. When push came to shove and DeWyze was free of any theme constraints, the paint salesman selected the perfect (and excitingly unexpected) song to highlight his gruff voice and his troubled past. He’s never sounded better or more relatable. 5. Siobhan Magnus, “House of the Rising Sun” : Early on, before Siobhan relied on an uncontrollable wail-of-a-high-note to wow the judges, the glassblower’s apprentice took our breath away with this reinterpretation dedicated to her father. By turning the Animals’ garage-rock masterpiece into a partially a cappella, fully mournful, ghostly lament, Siobhan broke our hearts and piqued our interest. 4. Alex Lambert, “Everybody Knows” : In week one, Alex Lambert acted as though he was going to puke all over the small semifinal stage. (Turns out, he ralphed moments before his performance.) The next week, he shot to the head of the class with a rich, soulful John Legend cover, all the more winning thanks to a pre-performance interview in which he talked about his crippling stage fright. He had framed himself as the ultimate underdog and then knocked it out of the park, with a sly self-congratulatory smile creeping onto his face midway through. Was this “unripe banana” more media savvy than he initially led on, or were we witnessing the kind of blossoming “moment” that “Idol” fans live for? Regardless, Lambert’s “Everybody Knows” will go down as one of the greatest (if short-lived) comebacks in “Idol” history. 3. Lilly Scott, “A Change Is Gonna Come” : On paper, a pasty girl with platinum hair purring a civil-rights anthem like a hybrid of Jessica Rabbit and Courtney Love should not work. But somehow this semifinal performance went over like gangbusters. Armed with a 12-string guitar and her signature feather earring, Scott took Sam Cooke’s classic and claimed it as a battle cry for indie-rock kids everywhere. 2. Crystal Bowersox, “Me and Bobby McGee” : MamaSox gave us lots to gush over, whether she was bouncing back from a hospitalization with a strong “Long as I Can See the Light,” having an emotional breakdown during “People Get Ready” or spinning a lame “Caddyshack” song into a (respectful) middle finger to the “haterz.” But strip away all the exhausting drama, and the song that lingered the most was her exhilarating cover of “Me and Bobby McGee.” When you have only 90-120 seconds for a performance, it’s hard to do more than a couple of verses and a chorus or two without veering into Michael Johns’ “We Will Rock You”/ “We Are the Champions” butcher territory. Yet Crystal’s rendition started small and just kept on building with the momentum of a freight train gaining steam. By the time Bowersox and the band hit the climactic la-di-das, strumming and grooving on a carpet brought from home, the early front-runner had whipped the audience (both in the studio and in living rooms) into a mad frenzy. 1. Katelyn Epperly, “The Scientist” : Katelyn’s piano-based Coldplay rendition was a lot of things — stirring, intense, heartbreaking, beautiful and hypnotic are the first five words that come to mind. Yet for some reason, the judges harped on the word “slow” to describe Katelyn’s star-making performance, signaling the intelligence level of criticism we had to look forward to in season nine. It may have lulled Ellen to sleep but Katelyn’s yearning interpretation awakened many home viewers who were thrilled finally to find a singer who felt contemporary in this year’s Top 24. Letting Katelyn go the following week was a huge blow to season nine’s talent pool. If only scientists could figure out a way to turn back time. “Let’s go back to the start” indeed. Did your favorite performances make the cut? Who did we snub? Share your happiest “Idol” season nine memories in the comments below. Join Jim Cantiello live on the “American Idol” finale red carpet this Wednesday at 6 p.m. ET, for our Red Carpet Live Stream, only at MTV.com. Get your “Idol” fix on MTV News’ “American Idol” page , where you’ll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions. Related Videos ‘American Idol’ In 60 Seconds Related Photos ‘American Idol’ Season Nine Performances
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‘American Idol’ Season Nine’s Top 10 Best Performances
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