I started watching "American Idol" six weeks ago. At that time, I figured it was self-evident that Clay would win. I still believe he *should* win, but it's close enough to go either way and I won't be upset if Ruben takes the title. The "trouble" with Clay is that even the judges don't appreciate how good he is. That's because his delivery, or "American Idol: The Musical" as Simon Cowell would put it, falls well outside the conventional boundaries of contemporary pop. Say what you want about Ruben and Kimberly having nice voices, but they have nice R&B voices, R&B voices will slot effortlessly into contemporary R&B radio fodder. Thus, the judges completely missed the boat with Clay's rendition of "Here, There and Everywhere" on last night's program. Sure, it's a "safe" song in that it doesn't pose many vocal challenges -- unless you're Clay Aiken and you're forced to drastically change your histrionic style to avoid overwhelming a touching, petite Beatles number. Compare with Ruben's "Imagine" -- he just sang it in his usual R&B manner.

The roles were somewhat reversed with their final numbers. Ruben's "Flying Without Wings" was a midtempo singalong joy, whereas Clay's jarring "Bridge Over Troubled Water" was an impressive vocal display, but it was a mess. Everything, from the misappropriate use of the gospel choir to the annoying way he sang the word "water", made for a performance so white-bread soulless that it couldn't have been any more honky had Pat Boone himself sung it.

Clay should still win, though. With some tweaking, he can be the new Marc Almond.