Never is “American Idol” better than when seemingly second-rate contestants emerge from the shadows to blow the annointed frontrunners out of the water.
Rocker David Cook has managed to pull that off a few times this season already, most memorably with his rock take on Lionel Richie’s “Hello” before he even made it into the Top 12. Still, the 25-year-old hasn’t garnered anywhere near the attention seen by babyfaced teen David Archuleta or Irish diva Carly Smithson.
But on Tuesday night, Cook may have shed the “dark horse” mantle once and for all. His gutsy transformation of “Billie Jean” into a rock ballad prompted judge Randy Jackson to call him “the most original, the most bold contestant we’ve ever had… dude, you might be the one to win the whole lot.”
Archuleta, on the other hand, got mixed reviews for his performance of “You’re the Voice,” with Simon Cowell telling him it reminded him of a theme park performance.
Still, on the “Idol” forums, Cook lags Archuleta in the number of posts viewers have written about him. After Tuesday’s show, hoever, at least one die-hard “Archie” came out to give Cook a hand:
“He’s showing that my second favorite (him) isn’t too far behind my first (David Archuleta, obviously)”
Keep going, David (Cook). One more week and you just might take over that other David once and for all.
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No david cook will never be better then archuleta!!
- Posted by archuleta loverrDavid archuleta has wayyy more fans and lo of ppl dont like rockk. I have never really enjoyed david cooks performances but enjoyed many of david archuletas. WE love u archie =]
i posted a comment earlier. i want to correct myself and say “the cutest thing ive ever seen”. sorry just the hick in me. i also wanted to add that i do think david cook is a good singer but we have heard that kind of voice before. david archuleta is something fresh and we could use that in this competition.
- Posted by donnadavid achuleta is a breath of fresh air, but he has to step up next week. i know he has the ability to win this whole thing. i get the feeling that he is somewhat nervous hopefully not because of his dad. i think that he will prevail if he lets go and just sings his little heart out. he is the cutest thing ive ever saw.
- Posted by donnai love david archuleta.and he better win. i think he has way better vocals than cook
- Posted by anjelicaRight on Lisa. Chris Cornell, former frontman of Soundgarden and Audioslave, recorded the version David sang last night on his recent solo album. You can check out the performance on Yahoo music, Nissan live sets. I believe Ryan introduced David by saying “Welcome David Cook with HIS version of ‘Billie Jean’”. Hope he’s not trying to pawn it off as an “original” adaptation.
- Posted by SteveI am so tired of hearing about David Cook and his supposed originality. I liked his performance, but he is not unique, original or bold. Ever since “Hello” was a hit, he does the same thing week after week. He takes a pure pop song and looks for a rock arrangement of that song (sometimes giving credit to the arranger and sometimes not). The arrangements he picks are less well known so it makes him look as if he is original and interesting. But he is doing the same as all of the other contestants - covering an arrangement put together by another person or group. His version of “Hello” was Incubus’ version, “Day Tripper” was a Whitesnake arrangement, “Eleanor Rigby” was the Doxology version, and “Billie Jean” was the Chris Cornell arrangement. The judges should know this and it is ridiculous that they continue to portray him as original and innovative. He is a good performer, but far from original.
- Posted by JaneDavid Archuleta will sell nothing more than christmas albums. There is something about Brooke White that makes her so watchable. Wouldn’t you love to see her sing Betty Davis Eyes. But David Cook is by far the best. Chris Daughtry could only dream to have the talent Cook has.
- Posted by SteveDavid Cook original? I don’t think so. He does have a good rock voice. However, how would originality even be a factor when he’s just taking already remade versions of songs and copying those? It might look original to the untrained eye/ear but he’s just copying copies (Chris Cornell last night and Whitesnake last week) . He has talent and there’s no doubt about that. He had a good week but he’s going to need a lot more to win this thing and he’s going to have to do something other than copying copies to keep people interested. David Archuleta will probably still win because he has a proven talent and track record. Plus, being 17, he “hits closer to home” with the mainstream demographic of Idol viewers and VOTERS - IE teenagers.
Also, I’ve observed that the last one to sing for the night usually gets more praise if they do well because it’s the last thing people remember. If he had sang that 2nd, for example, I don’t think there would be so much fuss about it. Lastly, the last few Idol seasons have shown that sometimes a frontrunner who doesn’t win can do MUCH better than the actual winner and have more musical freedom after the exposure on Idol. Just look at Taylor Hicks vs. Chris Daughtry or even Jordin Sparks vs. Blake Lewis. Also, American Idol came from a show called Pop Idol and has never really been about rock music. It’s about pop and maybe R&B and David Archuleta also fits that mold better.
Good luck to both Davids!
- Posted by PRDavid Cook’s win would bring credibility back to American Idol. He is the most seasoned professional of all the contestants. He looks like a guest on the show opposed to being a contestant. I don’t know anyone who can hit those notes week afer week. All the contestants have to do covers each week, but David knows how to sing the heck out of a song. His version of Billy Jean was better than the original from Chris Cornell. This guy is remarkable.
- Posted by MarePEOPLE! Why why why does everyone insist that David is ripping anyone off? Last week he said he was doing Whitesnake’s cover of the Beatles song; last night Ryan DID introduce David performing “Chris Cornell’s version” of Billy Jean. David is “original” and “bold” by taking the time and the risk of doing covers instead of the originals because they fit his style of music instead of just picking a song and singing it like everyone else seems to be doing. That is why he is brave. He IS thinking “outside the box”. If you don’t like his singing/performances, that’s one thing; rag him on that. But too continually accuse him of ripping off songs and passing them off as his own is ridiculous since he does NO such thing.
- Posted by Jelly B.I love David Cook! Picked him as my fave at the Omaha auditions. I told my family, “that boy’s gonna win it”. I’m so glad the rest of America is now riding the David C. train!
- Posted by nattifanDavid Cook DOES have a fantastic voice and is very talented, but his cover of Hello was not original. I heard that version a little over a year ago from some indie band on Myspac. I don’t remember their name, but I’m sure this isn’t a David Cook original (unless Cook’s a member of that band) because it was my Myspace song for a really long time. Two days ago, another indie-ish band called The Scene Aesthetic posted a bulletin regarding this. Honestly, I don’t mind the fact that Cook used someone else’s arrangement as long as he at least gives that band/singer credit.
I wouldn’t be surprised if David Cook just copied this version of Billie Jean from some not-so-well-known band.
Give credit where it’s due!
- Posted by reneeNot only was Cook’s version of “Billie Jean” not an original version–as some of already noted–but neither was his rendition of “Hello” by Lionel Richie. In fact, he covered the band Incubus’ version of that song. I admit he is talented, but I think it’s in poor taste for the judges to pass off Cook’s songs as “original” renditions.
- Posted by Briandavid archuleta is still my favorite. luv him!
- Posted by davidAfanhey go on votenumber1 and vote 4 david a because david cook jus got in the lead again!!!!!!!
I’ll go for David Cook. I don’t think David Archuleta is ready to become a “real” artist at this stage. But don’t get me wrong, he’s my favorite. But if we talk about talent, Cook deserves to win this time.
- Posted by EllaWhy are people so bothered that David Cook did Chris Cornell’s version. Does it really matter?? What is important is that he made a wise choice of versions that really had an impact on the crowd. For heavens sake the others choose to do Karaoke versions of the originals and that in itself makes David Cook more original.
David Cook knows how to deliver a song and has a great voice. I still can’t get over that Hello cover of Lionel Richies. It was so sexy! I hope he wins the whole thing!!
- Posted by Sally V.Archuleta is the most likable. Cook is talented, but he has never touched my heart. I will support Archuleta till the end.
- Posted by VickyDavid Archuleta is and will always be my American Idol.
- Posted by AmyDavid Archuleta is and always will be my favorite singer in this competition and I believe he will win. That being said I thought that David Cook did an awesome job yesterday and it is clearly a 2 man competition right now.
- Posted by Julie A.David Cook has turned from a dark horse to one to beat.
- Posted by Favourite Tv Program