Ryan Seacrest began this week’s performance round on American Idol 9 from the control center, a room filled with monitors and techs. It’s here that camera angles are called out, cast members are queued - truly, it’s the hub of the entire show.

Songs from the Lennon/McCartney songbook were the feature of the week (which is almost every single tune The Beatles ever recorded, minus a few little ditties like Harrison’s “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” and Ringo Starr’s “Octopus’s Garden“). Sir Paul McCartney didn’t have enough time to mentor the Top 9, but he did offer a pre-recorded video message for the contenders.

The theme of the night was discoursed at great length by the panel of judges, with Ryan Seacrest leading the chitchat. Naturally, all the judges enthused about the legendary status of the Lennon/McCartney songbook, whose virtues are so well-known they hardly need be extolled. But when you’ve got a two-hour broadcast of nine singers, you’ve got to fill the empty spaces with something. It just wouldn’t do to have the Idols out there crooning four-minute ditties. More than half the songs recorded by the Beatles were jointly written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon, truly two of the greats.

Finally, Aaron Kelly took the stage to start the performance round. It seemed a sure thing that his strong vocals would be an excellent lead-in for a night that should be really, really good. According to the video clip that preceded his performance, Kelly is very much the “little brother” of the contestants. His choice for the week was “The Long and Winding Road,” which is something of a grim song. Wouldn’t it be great to see him perform a rock number like “Helter Skelter” instead? Kelly chooses ballads because he’s got such a beautiful voice, but he still hasn’t really proven himself as far as showmanship goes. Naturally, Aaron sounded wonderful and showed off a ton of vocal ability. And as always, he simply stood on stage and gave it to us straight - solid performance, but something we keep seeing from him over and over again.

“You got a beautiful tone,” Randy Jackson complimented, adding “it was so sleepy.” He wished Kelly had “made it something different.” “It felt like a long and winding song,” Ellen DeGeneres admitted. “Every week for me, it’s feeling like the same performance…I’d like to see you move on stage,” Kara DioGuardi commented. Simon Cowell wanted to know why Kelly chose this song, or at least didn’t alter the arrangement. “I definitely did not want to change such a great song,” Aaron explained. Cowell received a particularly loud boo when he called Kelly “boring.” He advised Kelly to “take some risks.”

Katie Stevens, who again wore a wardrobe more appropriate for a much older woman, has received five invitations to prom so far. “Send me your phone bills, and if you have voted for me…whoever’s voted for me more, I’ll go to prom with you,” she smiled at the cameras. She picked “Let It Be” for her performance, a very heavy, extremely popular Beatles tune that just happens to be one of the longest tunes they ever recorded. It wasn’t a great choice for Katie, again. Her vocals are absolutely lovely, but she was much more like a thirty-something matron than a poppy teenager. I was hoping she’d do something along the lines of “I Wanna Hold Your Hand,” an upbeat, lightweight number. She went totally the opposite route, though I will say her vocals were genuinely good.

“To me, this is your best performance ever!” Randy Jackson loved what he heard. Ellen DeGeneres loved what Katie did with the song also, saying “there is no way” she will be in the bottom three this week. Kara DioGuardi couldn’t’ find enough to say about Stevens, praising her attitude highly and saying “you never looked better, and you never sounded better.” Really? “Tonight…you got it right,” Simon Cowell praised her as well. He thought Katie did well because she was leaning toward country music, an assessment with which Kara and Randy disagreed.

Andrew Garcia is very popular with the other Idol contestants, which makes Simon Cowell’s previous remark that he has no personality seem rather odd. Garcia made the great decision to sing “Can’t Buy Me Love,” rocking out on his guitar as he stood on the judges’ platform to deliver the number. His vocals, unfortunately, sounded a little off, but Andrew is so likable I’m not sure it will even matter.

“I think it was a really solid performance, I wasn’t jumping up and down,” Randy Jackson critiqued. Ellen DeGeneres loved the song choice and Andrew’s performance. “I want to love it, I do…but I just don’t know that I’ve seen anything new from you this week,” Kara DioGuardi told him.  Simon Cowell compared the number to “when you go to a wedding, and the guitarist, not the lead singer, sings a song.” He disliked the background singers most of all.

Michael Lynche, the biggest contestant of the season, is the “teddy bear” of the group. He chose “Eleanor Rigby” for this performance, a truly beautiful but somewhat sad tune. From the word go, Michael Lynche was fabulous. The arrangement was great, and something about his soulful voice truly made the song sound incredibly different. He turned it into an R&B number, but he did it respectfully and beautifully. By the end of it, I was certain no one could put on a show anywhere near as good for the remainder of the evening.

“I’m not sure all of that worked,” Randy Jackson said, though he said he finds that Mike can do whatever he wants. Jackson even suggested that Lynche put this song on his first album. “There are so many different sides of you, and you handle each one,” Ellen DeGeneres observed, calling the performance “incredible.” “Those vocals were amazing!” Kara DioGuardi was highly impressed. “I didn’t love it as much as the other three,” Simon Cowell admitted, saying “This was the sort of thing you see and hear in musicals.”

Crystal Bowersox had a cold during her performance, and this season has seen more illnesses than any other. Why keep cramming these kids in unvented rooms, or whatever the hell is going on. She’s done so well on the show, Crystal’s tiny hometown has put up a new sign which reads “Home of Crystal Bowersox.” “She’s a mothering type of person,” Siobhan Magnus said of her fellow contestant. Crystal chose “Come Together,” a tune I was absolutely certain Casey James was going to sing. But, I was not at all disappointed in Crystal’s decision. The tune is certainly in her wheelhouse, and she was completely on-point during her performance.

“Another solid performance,” Randy Jackson praised. “The only thing I have to worry about is a new way to tell you how great you are,” Ellen DeGeneres smiled. Kara DioGuardi found this performance to be one of her “favorites.” She thought the number was “slinky” and “sexy.” “It just worked,” Simon Cowell declared. During the conversation, Crystal called one of the musicians over and stood at his side with a wide smile. She’s already a superstar, people.

Tim Urban is known for his smile among the contestants (something the judges have come close to ridiculing him for doing). His choice for the week was “All My Loving,” an upbeat number he sang while playing the electric guitar. I have to admit it: he had me at “all.” Tim’s performance this week was probably one of his best, and his swagger gets a little bit greater as more time goes by. There’s something very fun about seeing him on stage, and his vocals were pretty pleasant when he crooned the song.

“You’re like in your own category,” Randy Jackson observed. “I think that was really a much better performance than you’ve had in the past couple of weeks,” he added. Ellen DeGeneres loved the song choice and found his to be “a really good performance.” “That was solid, and you’re to be commended for that,” Kara DioGuardi told him, then encouraged him to smile. “I think we have to judge you based on everything we’ve heard and seen tonight,” Simon Cowell told him. “Taking everything into consideration, I think you did really well with that song.” He found the performance “very current,” and even praised Tim for taking criticism “like a man.” I think Urban has finally managed to win over even Idol’s toughest critic.

Casey James gets teased by the other contestants because of his obvious good looks and very loud laugh. He picked John Lennon’s “Jealous Guy,” something of a different choice for James (though, as usual, he kept his guitar close at hand). Predictably, James delivered the song like a country joint, truly telling a story with his pretty vocals. He’s got a good thing going, and if he can hang onto it after this Idol gig is over, James should do quite well in the industry. I will say this: he shouldn’t have curled his hair.

“I loved seeing the whole sensitive vibe,” Randy Jackson told him. “I really felt you with that,” he praised. “That, to me, was your best performance to date,” Ellen DeGeneres enthused. “I was moved by it,” she added. “What you showed tonight was a vulnerability,” Kara DioGuardi told him. She thought the performance was “very tasteful” and enjoyed Casey’s “depth.” “I think it was the best performance of the night so far,” even Simon Cowell delivered high praise.

Siobhan Magnus was described with a lot of polite euphemisms for “strange” by the other contestants, though all seemed to agree that she has amazing pipes. She chose the timeless favorite “Across the Universe,” because she likes the “mood” of the song. Wearing a very odd creation with a leather vest, Siobhan sat on stage to very gently croon her number. Hers is truly a beautiful voice, and she was mesmerizing on the Idol stage.

“Nobody in this competition, for me, screams ‘artist’ more than you,” Randy Jackson told her. He found the performance “a little sleepy,” but loved seeing her “tender side.” “I’m a big fan of people who march to the beat of their own drum,” Ellen DeGeneres said, calling Siobhan “really special.” “You hit the notes. You showed control,” Kara DioGuardi praised, though she also found the performance “very polite.” “I think you had a pretty disastrous week last week. I think you came back much, much stronger,” Simon Cowell said.

Lee DeWyze is the worrier of the group. He seems to be BFF with Andrew Garcia, as the two are roommates going all the way back to Hollywood Week. DeWyze chose the extremely popular “Hey, Jude,” which really is quite a risky decision. Written by Paul McCartney for John Lennon’s son, this classic Beatles number is very hard to tackle. There was no need to worry. DeWyze delivered as always, his raspy vocals adding something fresh and unique to well-known tune. The performance did get a little bizarre when the bagpiper came walking down the stairs, but Lee DeWyze truly looked and sounded like a star while on the big Idol stage.

“That guy was funny, man,” Randy Jackson laughed as he referred to the bagpiper. “You don’t have to be nervous, baby, you’ve got this,” Jackson offered Lee a shot of confidence. “You didn’t even get rattled by that guy showing up,” Ellen DeGeneres joked as she praised Lee’s performance. “I can hear you on the radio,” Kara DioGuardi was having visions of the future. “I don’t know what you lot are drinking in the house,” Simon Cowell was amused by the bagpipes as well. “No disrespect to you, but I wouldn’t have done that…It was like he turned up on the wrong show…Was it your idea?” Simon Cowell could not keep from laughing. “Hundred percent,” DeWyze answered with a grin.

When asked about the decision to add the bagpipes to the arrangement by Ryan, DeWyze responded, “Why not, man?” Great answer, and I’ll tell you why. The Beatles were well-known for experimenting with instruments and arrangements, adding mismatching elements to tunes that somehow turned out beautifully. How many other rock bands really have the chops to seamlessly add sitar music to a song, for instance? In a way, I think the Fab Four would have enjoyed Lee’s daring.

Which one did you like the least - and will the rest of America agree with you? The results will unfold on Wednesday night, when one more contestant will be sent packing. Stay up-to-date of everything as it unfolds: check out all our American Idol 9 posts.