‘The Voice’ recap: Blake Shelton messes with Christina Aguilera

Oh, that naughty, naughty Blake Shelton. He vowed to mess with Christina Aguilera, who has returned to her twirly red chair after a break from the show, and he fulfilled that promise during Tuesday night’s blind auditions, spinning at the very last second several times to give his rival coach some serious competition.

In the end, though, Aguilera got the last laugh, dueting with one talented contestant, Joe Maye, who had returned after an unsuccessful attempt last season.

Maye, who brought along two Season 9 veterans — Mark Hood (his roommate) and Ellie Lawrence — to cheer him on, picked the wrong song to make his mark last season. (So said the coaches.) This time around, he immediately captivated Aguilera with “I Put a Spell on You.” Then Shelton spun, too — and told Maye he should pick a coach who could help him successfully navigate the “gauntlet,” rather than someone who is “not really familiar with how to make it to the end” and win. A flat-out kick at Christina, who has not yet collected a team victory.

But Aguilera, ever the scrappy fighter, stepped out and sang with Maye, nabbing him for her team. Even Shelton had to admit that he’d lost the singer fair and square.

“Trying to make me look like an idiot because I haven’t won yet, but I just won that, didn’t I?” Aguilera said.

Kudos to Maye for making it on the show and making it memorable.

Here are the singers — in addition to Maye and montaged singers Theresa Gidry (Team Blake), Chelsea Gann (Team Christina) and Lily Green (Team Adam) — who made it through Tuesday:

Tamar Davis, a 35-year-old singer and actress from Houston, who, back in the day, was an original member of the girls’ group that would become Destiny’s Child and propel Beyoncé to fame. She was auditioning for the show at the suggestion of Tyler Perry (yes, that Tyler Perry), who was watching with her family in the wings. (Davis had a role in his film “The Marriage Counselor.” Oh, and she also sings in Prince’s “house band.”) Aguilera and — at the last minute — Shelton turned for Davis’ rendition of Aretha Franklin’s “Chain of Fools,” and even though Shelton reminded Davis that he had taken another backup singer, Jermaine Paul, to a win during a previous season, Davis picked Aguilera, who told her it was time for her to “step out of the background” and “shine.”

Jessica Crosbie, 21, from Cornwall, England, by way of Atlanta, who spun three chairs with her take on Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida,” which she’d rearranged, she said, to make “a lot slower and more delicate.” Aguilera, Adam Levine and Pharrell Williams were left to duke it out over Crosbie. Ultimately, she picked Williams, who told her he would “hold up the mirror” to reflect her strengths and weaknesses, in order to work on the latter. Levine wondered if he may get a chance to steal her.

Justin Whisnant, a 28-year-old former oil-field worker from Bearden, Okla. Although Whisnant said he prided himself on his “versatility,” you knew that as soon as Shelton turned for his rendition of Cole Swindell’s “Ain’t Worth the Whiskey,” the country coach from Oklahoma would be the one he picked. That was too bad for Levine, who had spun his chair first. “It doesn’t matter what I say. Nothing will work,” Levine told Whisnant, once he learned the singer was from Oklahoma. “Just go.” Whisnant did. Shelton said that, while Whisnant’s look was “slicked up,” “his voice is as country as dirt.” He’d know.

Daniel Passino, 21, of New Boston, Mich,, who was classically trained in opera while yearning to be a pop star like Justin Timberlake and Michael Jackson. After hearing him sing Charlie Puth’s “Marvin Gaye,” Aguilera and Shelton vied for him. Aguilera, who Passino said was one of his “biggest idols and inspirations,” got the guy, but Shelton got in a few good lines. Among them: “I love New Boston, Michigan. Everybody’s tired of the old Boston; I like the new Boston.” I dunno. It sounded funnier when Shelton said it.

Owen Danoff, 25, whose father, back in the 1970s, wrote the John Denver hit “Take Me Home, Country Roads” and also wrote and performed with his group, Starland Vocal Band, the No. 1 pop song “Afternoon Delight.” Danoff, who is originally from Washington, D.C., but lives in New York, turned all four chairs with his version of Bob Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right.” You knew he was going to pick Levine, even before the Maroon 5 singer told him his performance was “heartbreaking,” “crushing” and “sensitive” and pointed out that they had a lot of the same musical predispositions. And he did.

Maya Smith, a 31-year-old Los Angeles postal worker, who turned both Williams and, on the last note, Aguilera, with her performance of Aretha Franklin’s “Do Right Woman, Do Right Man.” Aguilera may have oversold herself when she told Smith that no one appreciated a soulful singer more than she. Williams took the high road, complimenting Smith’s control and range and calling her voice “super-interesting,” and nabbed the singer for his team.

Brittney Lawrence, a 21-year-old teaching student, textbook company worker and cheerleading coach from Jacksonville, Fla., who has tried out for the show seven times and only now made it as far as the blind auditions. (Talk about hard work and dedication.) Aguilera turned early for Lawrence’s take on Demi Lovato’s “Warrior,” and Shelton sneaked in at the last second. Nevertheless, after Shelton told Lawrence she had perfect pitch and the vocal quality of a country singer, she chose him.

Matt Tedder, a 20-year-old blues-loving guitar player and singer who has been trying to make it in Nashville. For some reason, Levine was the only coach to turn for Tedder’s “I’m Your Hoochie Coochie Man.” He said it was “really good news” to discover that the other coaches were “stupid” and complimented Tedder on his slide-guitar playing, which he called “really good.” After Tedder noodled a bit more on his guitar, Williams stood up and applauded, calling him “awesome.” Levine agreed.

The teams are filling up. Next week, the coaches will top them off — and the battles will begin.