American Idol top 5 perform Neil Diamond

The American Idol top five hopefuls may have been mentored by 70s great Neil Diamond but the performances, arrangements, show formatting and judging boofs turned a potentially shiny rock into a dusty, hard piece of coal.

Make those two pieces, literally. Each contestant sang two selections Tuesday evening.

If the readership finds this review a knock off of sometimes-surly lead panelist Simon Cowell, then let’s look at the facts:

Pretty boy Jason Castro put himself on cruise control during “Forever in Blue Jeans” and “September Morn,” a soulful piece and a heartfelt retrospective that the dreadlock-clad lad from Rockwall, Texas appeared to Cadillac his way through. Trying to create a hipper, more casual sound by trimming the legato was a flop - it deflated the tension and passion that made Diamond’s songs classics.

Panelist Paula Abdul said Castro took “the same liberty with each song.” She’s right. Castro took the liberty of being lazy. Considering Castro is only three nights from the show final round, there’s no excuse.

Syesha Mercado seldom gets audience love, despite her more-than-capable stage maneuverings (unlike many who create a bare spot in a three-foot square section of the floor) and exceptional vocal range - only to have the camera crew film the seated Mercado during “Hello Again” from behind an arm-waving mosh pit at the song’s onset.

Zero props to the production personnel. Getting the details right is part of what’s made American Idol the gold standard.

Mercado did her fighting best through “Hello” and “Thank the Lord for the Nighttime.” The former showed Mercado’s artistic vulnerability and the latter a stage command that tops all remaining contestants.

Toss a poorly planned judge interlude into the mix.

As panelists Randy Jackson, Abdul and Cowell rushed to pack first-round critiques in before a commercial break, Abdul elaborated, “The second song, I felt.” The statement didn’t line up with what viewers at home had seen. Quick responses by Jackson and Seacrest were damage control efforts but an investigator wasn’t needed to realize Abdul’s erroneous disclosure: the show has dress rehearsals and is taped.

It may have been the gaffe of the season - and possibly the show’s seven-season entirety!

Brooke White’s try at “I’m a Believer,” a tune associated with Davy Jones and The Monkeys, seemed vocally shallow. Worse yet, White’s guitar - and voice - were buried by the band and supporting singers.

With two false starts and a handful of shaky performances in the last few weeks, it is evident that White’s confidence has eroded. The blonde whose folksy sound, early song choices and nifty arrangements now scuffles, and tries to hang on. Thanks to show host Ryan Seacrest, all of America knows the Mesa, Arizona native’s cloying efforts to stay alive include writing key lyrics on her hand.

While some believe the move is Hollywood’s version of test crib notes, this writer finds it no more than a trade secret - one that Seacrest, in all his tackiness, may have symbolically planted his foot squarely on the curly blonde’s back, then pushed downward. It may be the low blow that sends White home Wednesday.

In some ways, David Archuleta is no more than a high-grade Castro, also an auto-pilot cruiser fixed at center stage and replete with the same hand gestures we’re become so familiar with. Archuleta’s try at Boston Red Sox hymnal “Sweet Caroline” was as detached as it was exacting. The SheKnows.com notepad begs the question, “Does this guy have any feeling?”

Coincidentally, polling information shows that Archuleta tends to score low in the northeastern part of the country. Hopefully, song selection wasn’t a lobbying effort for regional votes.

Then young David took a page from the Kristi Lee Cook book of surviving another week by choosing a patriotic song, “America.” Vocally, it shows off his strengths and was, according to Jackson, “another good performance.” Cowell cut through the mire, calling it “a smart choice of song, that was clever” and calculated “check-check-check.”

David Cook held serve with a relatively unknown “I’m Alive,” then sliced “All I Really Need is You” into a rock ballad that gained heaping approval from all three judges. The notoriously prudish Cowell was complimentary, and said “the second song was brilliant. You actually made it feel like that song was written this year. Well done.”

It was the shining moment during an evening that left viewers seeking a diamond and finding a solitary man.

Who will stay and who will leave? Find out during the Results Show 9-10 p.m. Wednesday night on Fox.

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