‘American Idol’ recap: season 17 Hollywood part 1

Ultimately, we see just 20 opening round auditions out of 175, of which almost all make it through.

We’ll see some of the opening round singers:

Laci Kaye Booth is up first. She gets a standing ovation for an acoustic version of "Natural Woman" that is confident and mature. "I can't stop dreaming about that girl," Katy said. She is through, no surprise.

Alejandro Aranda. He has a lack of confidence going in but he offers up a cool spin on Justin Bieber's "Sorry" and his guitar playing is mesmerizing. He is also an easy yes to group rounds. (In that first round of 10, Kay Kay also gets through.)

Courtney Penry. She had the Ryan Seacrest crush (and he isn't even here!). I liked her audition but now she's just trying way too hard covering a Kelly Clarkson song. Then she forgets the words. It's over.

Madison Vandeburg. While she is being compared to Kelly Clarkson and her vocal style is similar, what little of this that we saw felt very one note to me.

Margie Mays - She's quirky and weird and quite annoying. But she can sing. 

Tyler Mitchell, country singer, gets a few seconds. But then it's on to recovering alcoholic Logan Johnson, who just celebrated 10 months of sobriety. His "A Sensible Heart" is stupendous. No doubt he makes it to the next round.

Eddie Island. The kid with the yellow-tinted Elton John glasses is super sick. But he manages just fine. He isn't the best vocalist but he's got plenty of style and panache. And he didn't barf on stage.

Shawn Robinson. The Duluth singer overdoes the runs with a Sam Cooke classic but he does it well. Colby Swift

Colby Swift. The small-town cowboy has never performed in front of big audience and has never taken a vocal lesson. He is clearly a natural talent. He is very charming and sings a song for his sister that evokes a standing ovation. He is clearly not wealthy. He is wearing shoes with holes in them. Luke Bryan notices and gives him his boots and puts him through. (Atlanta's Katie Belle also makes the cut though we don't hear her song.)

Ashton Gill. Laine Hardy’s buddy does a soulful “You Can’t Make Me Love You,” one of those overplayed “Idol” song.

Laine Hardy comes back and he sounds superb doing a Black Crowes song. What a rasp! He sounds like he’s been doing this 100 years.

And go figure. Laine stays. Ashton goes.

Jade Flores. She is Latino and not the "usual" shape of the women there but has a bright personality. She does a really pretty version of "Unchained Melody" that earned her a spot in the group round.

Myra Tran. She tackles Sia's "Chandelier" and is very very high volume. N

Jeremiah Lloyd Harmon. He has left his parents' church since they can't accept the fact he's gay. I'm not a huge fan of his voice but he does sing with heart and soul. The pain in his life exudes out of him.

Walker Burroughs and Nate Walker. I loved Walker the first time I heard her and that hasn’t changed. He has a voice that gives me goosebumps. Nate isn’t my taste but he clearly has skills.

Nick Townsend and Laura Engle. Both have sad sack stories with dead family members. Nick sounds okay if unremarkable. Laura is way off key and she knows it. You can see Katy wince.

Wade Coda and Demetrius Graham. Wade, abused by his dad, has a remarkably cool voice. Demetrius is someone we hadn't seen before. His mom was having surgery so he Facetimed his first-run audition for her. He sings "Wind Beneath My Wings." (Did he said Betty Midler???) Katy cries as she holds up Demetrius' phone. This style of run-heavy singing is not my thing but he does an okay job.

Several initial auditioners missed the cut and were noted though we don’t hear them singing:

Peach Martine, Jorgie, Sargeant Landon Knowlton. Those that make the cut: Latino heartthrob Juan Pablo, “90 Day Fiance” Emily Cormier, promising singer Ashley Hess, Elberton’s Clay Paige and Shay.

(I honestly wish they would make all 175 auditions available on YouTube.)

Group round! They cut 77 people and now have 98 remaining. That means about 20 groups are performing but we’ll only see a handful of them because, well, limited time.

Diversity

Juan Pablo dominates the ladies in terms of inter-group dynamics, pushing Jade to cry. The tension and lack of sleep hurt them. Juan Pablo shows up late and Bobby Bones hunts for him. Moriah Formica (who we had never seen before) and Jade do okay. Myra just oversings the hell out of it. Juan Pablo is okay but obviously not good enough. She says he lacks authenticity and he’s out. Yet somehow Jade is the only one who gets cut. What???

A bunch get cut including country singer Zebulon Spencer, Chloe Chanel (the one who had Billy Dean as her mentor), and Macon’s Ethan Payne (who sang with Luke a year earlier).

Diamond Dixies

Laine Hardy, Lacie Kay Booth and Katie Belle (from Atlanta) were all excellent. Colby Swift forgot his lyrics and it cost him.

Victorious Secret

Wade Costa had never heard of Mama’s and Papa’s 1960s classic “California Dreamin’”. Bobby Bones seemed stunned. As usual, remembering lyrics is a major problem during group rounds. Wade jots the lyrics on his arm. It fails and he still forgets the lyrics but somehow he survives.

Unexpected Vibes

Shayy, who is now legally blind, has to memorize lyrics without reading the lyrics of “I Want it That Way.” Demetrius Graham is part of the supportive group. The final version isn’t bad. Shayy gets better after a shaky start. The others wore glasses so they could “see” the way Shayy did. Sweet.

Ain’t Going Home. A final group featuring Nate Walker and Logan Johnson are struggling for various reasons. Nate is sick and needed medical attention and a hospital stay. Cliffhanger for tonight...