Yes, since the dawn of Season 7, I have been a David Cook supporter... and since the last half of the season, so has the AI website...
Have you noticed that little David Archuleta used to be featured in the center of the weekly group photos, but in the past few weeks, David Cook has been the man in the middle.
I think AI finally realized that they should support Cook because in the end, he's going to rack up more record sales than little Archie... and probably have a stronger career. Week in and week out, David Cook has improved, covering pseduo-obscure covers or coming up with his own awesome arrangements which pique the interest of viewers. Archie sings well, there is no arguing that, but he's plateaued. He hasn't had any amazing performances as of late, unlike Cook.
Also, there is the age/maturity factor... David Cook is 25, went to college, had some "life experiences", worked as a b"arrrrgh"tender, has been in some bands and has given the music industry a whirl. Little Archuleta is 17, still lives with his parents, and seems like a genuinely nice teenage boy who has yet to face the harsh reality of the "real world". He's been groomed to be a performer, but do you actually believe him when he's singing songs about "love" and relationships and heartache and sorrow? Because I don't... not one bit. When Cook sings, the lyrics have that extra punch of "yeah, I've been through this" whereas what Archuleta is belting out are just words. Mostly in tune words, but just words nonetheless.
So, how about tonight's performances? It was the last time the Top 2 performed for the viewer's votes... and by the judges tally, little Archuleta won. (Boo/Hiss)
Up first was David Cook:
1. Clive's pick - "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" - now, I'm not a U2 fan, but Cook's performance was great, in my opinion. True, he didn't change a huge amount of stuff, but his vocals were solid, and I felt like he was saving himself for his later performances. He wasn't wielding his guitar on this song, which is fine - as he is awesome enough to rock a song with or without an instrument.
2. AI song - "Dream Big" (?) - Pretty lame song, but because David Cook was singing it, I dug it. I enjoyed the guitar and it had a decent beat. At least it didn't have the word "moment" or the phrase "this is my now" in it.
3. David's Choice - "The World I Know" - I know this Collective Soul song just like everyone else, but it never meant anything to me. It still doesn't, but David's performance was endearing - with his accoustic guitar and the orchestra behind him. I liked the arrangement and when it was over, and David was getting a little emotional (you could tell he realized how big all of this is and how he knows the end is near and he's probably almost at a breaking point) and it actually made me tear up.
The judges (well, Randy and Simon at least... Paula is just a seat filler who spouts kind things to anything that moves) gave Cook sub-par scores throughout the evening, especially Simon. Which was totally weird b/c Simon was on Leno and Ellen last night and today and told them that he wanted David Cook to win. So, Simon, what's with the harsh Cook critiques? He didn't suck, and he certainly didn't do worse than Archie... what gives?
Speaking of little Archie:
1. Clive's pick - "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" - Um, didn't Clay Aiken sing this on Season 2? (Answer: Yeppers) And the judges went wild with praise... but from my recliner at home, I could hear some pitch problems... it sounded a little shrieky even at times. And that little boy still moves his microphone around like it's the secret to how he manages to hit the right notes on those runs he puts into every freakin' song.
2. AI Song - "I Wanna Be" (?) - Lametastic... one of those little HSMesque numbers talking about how you are in your moment blah blah blah. Yes, he was in tune - he best be in tune - no one should make it to the finale if they can't sing well - but that song was hideous. If I heard that on the radio, I'd flip the channel. Though, I'd probably only hear that song if I was on Radio Disney or some other teen ballad station that features the Jonas Brothers and Miley Cyrus 24/7. And that's not what I listen to...
3. David's pick - "Imagine" - Wow, that was such a *surprise*. Of course he chose the song he got the most praise for. (Cook went with a song he had never sang on the show before - a gutsy move on his behalf, as everyone and their moms are fans of his versions of "Hello", "Billie Jean" and "Always Be My Baby"...) So, of course the crowds were on their feet. And little Archie was so overwhelmed he looked like he was going to tip over.
The show ended with Ruben Studdard "Celebrating" himself "home"... and I turned off the TV in Idol anger (I'm taping my Dancing show finale... I'll get to it in a minute - this way it'll be mostly commercial free... thanks DVR:) )
Why were the judges so harsh on Cook? Is it some kind of reverse psychology to America? If Archie wins, he'll be super happy, and maybe throw up a little in his mouth, and then have to go off and do a bazillion interviews. Have you watched this kid give interviews before? It's almost painful. He still has some growing up to do - his voice is there, but his social skills are not. If we plaster the title of American Idol on him, he's never going to get a chance to live a little bit. He'll just be thrown into the machine that is the music industry, and I'm sincerely afraid it will chew him up and spit him out. He seems like such a nice little person and as much as I think he'll do fine with a music career, I just don't think he's quite ready yet.
So, dial 1-866-IDOLS-01 (03 or 05) with me, America, and vote for David Cook. This guy has a lot to offer - he's a talented musician and vocalist, appears to be a genuinely polite guy and though he's teared up on occassion (only because he's a real person and not a musical robot), he seems mature enough to handle himself on his road to music stardom.
You can be sure I'll be plastered to my recliner tomorrow night watching the 2 hour Finale. I look forward to seeing some Idols past and some Idols present singing their cheesetastic group numbers and some duets with established musicians. And after David (hopefully Cook) is annouced this season's American Idol, I'm off to the movie theater for a midnight screening of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (woot!).
So, my final Idol thoughts on this blog will probably be coming sometime this coming weekend, after I've had some time to process it all (and enjoy some Indy 4).
Happy Idoling, and to those of you also partaking in some Indy goodness - I'll see you at the movie theater :)
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