Introducing ‘David Cook,’ first album from the ‘Idol’ winner
LOS ANGELES à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’ Since David Cook won the title in May, his fans have been hungrily anticipating the arrival of the American Idol’s self-titled album, out today. Cook can empathize.
“I feel like I’ve been waiting for Nov. 18 for 25 years,” he says.
The seventh-season champ describes David Cook as the reintroduction of David Cook, not the Idol grunt at boot camp but the liberated rocker at ground zero.
‘American Idol’s’ David Cook gets some help for new album
At one point on the road he’s still on, leading from “American Idol” to the iPod promotions and summer shed tours of actual rock stardom, David Cook recently stopped for a bite to eat. In the car with him was Raine Maida, the Canadian singer and songwriter who fronts Our Lady Peace, a band Cook famously loves.
The 25-year-old newbie had seen the 38-year-old veteran perform numerous times back when Our Lady Peace was on the rise and Cook was still just a Midwestern kid making demos on the weekends. Now here they were, driving around on a break from writing songs for Cook’s major-label debut.
More Idol Headlines after the JUMP…
‘Idol’ Cook isn’t quite cooking on new album
David Cook was one of American Idol’s most appealing contestants in years, thanks to an unassuming, witty personality and a penchant for novel arrangements (some borrowed) of familiar songs. He was also Idol’s most convincing rocker since Chris Daughtry, whose 4-million-selling shadow looms large à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’ too large à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’ over Cook’s first major-label album.
But they did him a disservice. He has a more supple, versatile voice than Daughtry, and he demonstrated vastly more musical originality than most Idol finalists, but you’d never know it from this collection of formulaic, tune-averse tracks.
Cook, Archuleta and Echoes of ‘Idols’ Past
At this point in its run, it’s probably inevitable that “American Idol” would have to begin recycling its archetypes. David Cook and David Archuleta, the show’s most recent winner and runner-up, respectively, have released self-titled discs within a week of each other, and both fit neatly into niches carved out by contestants past.
The 17-year-old Archuleta — sweet-faced, asexual, beloved of mothers — has a fondness for smiley and yearning songs about the power of love. He’s this season’s Clay Aiken. The 25-year-old Cook glowers strategically, wears black sometimes and plays the guitar. He’s this season’s Chris Daughtry.
‘American Idolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ rocker David Cook lets his vulnerability shine through
If David Cook, American Idolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s seventh-season champion, seems a bit circumspect about his post-Idol career, ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s understandable.
This is, after all, a televised singing competition that for every Kelly Clarkson turns out a Ruben Studdard or a Taylor Hicks.
Nevertheless, the first full-blown rock dude to win the contest à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’ Idolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s other high-profile rocker, Chris Daughtry, was only a fifth-season finalist à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’ is confident his self-titled, major-label debut, in stores today, will give the many millions who voted for him (a total of 97 million votes were cast for Cook and David Archuleta, the season seven runner-up) a peek behind the curtain.
David Cook debut rocks ‘Idolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢sà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ pop music world
American Idol, the reigning pop cultural king- and-queen-maker, is so tightly controlled and aggressively packaged that ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s difficult for any of the contestants to break free and develop their own personalities.
There are exceptions, of course, although they tend to be largely female à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’ Kelly Clarkson, Jennifer Hudson and Carrie Underwood have each demonstrably broken free from Idolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s bonds. Chris Daughtry is, arguably, the only male to have accomplished much of note (OK, and Clay Aiken) and the lone rocker spawned by the show. Most other male contestants à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’ Taylor Hicks, where have you gone? à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’ have slipped almost completely out of the public consciousness.
David Cook’s debut is passionate, but predictable
Even if post-American Idol albums are as calculated and overblown as the show itself, they generally succeed at evoking a sound pop fans had forgotten. Before she reinvented herself as an expressive pop-rocker, Kelly Clarkson, the show’s inaugural winner, recalled the sweeping, innocuous power pop of vintage Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. The same is true about Season 3 winner Fantasia Barrino, whose barnstorming, idiosyncratic vocals were a throwback to the churchy sounds of Southern soul circa 1967.
David Cook, the grand champion of Idol’s ho-hum seventh season, loves the soaring alt-rock of the 1990s. His self-titled debut, in stores today, could have come out in 1996. Cook belts booming anthems of undying love and bruised feelings that crawl then surge then crawl again before fading out on a sustained note. The production throughout is glossy and bombastic, the lyrics sometimes sappy. The album is hopelessly predictable.
David vs. David: The two ‘Idol’ rivals now have competing albums
THEY FOUGHT to the end of season seven of “American Idol.” So how fitting is it that the two Davids – Cook and Archuleta – are now competing for your hard-earned bucks with CDs released mere days apart on the same label?
Runner-up David Archuleta – the ultrapolished and sincere 17-year-old crooner from Utah (and before that, Miami) – is now yours to enjoy on an album he likes to call, um, “David Archuleta” (19 Records/Jive/Zomba, B). Won’t be hard for even his youngest fans to remember that title.
Review: David Cook’s debut CD
Like most “American Idol” champ debuts, ” David Cook” (19/RCA) won’t go down as the rocker’s best album. It’s uneven, sort of rushed and slightly schizophrenic, held together mainly by his charming growl and producer Rob Cavallo’s rockish gloss. But that only speaks to David Cook’s considerable promise, bolstered by the album’s impressive middle. The power ballads “Life on the Moon” and “Mr.Sensitive” should prove even more durable than the smash “The Time of My Life.” He stretches boundaries creatively with the metallic, grinding “Bar-Ba-Sol” – part Pearl Jam fist-pumper, part Alice in Chains slither. Somehow, “David Cook” matches its creator – a little unfocused but brimming with potential and so much likability that the faults get forgotten.
Andrew Cook Picks His Favorite David Cook Tracks
KANSAS CITY, MO. — Blue Springs’ own David Cook released his self-titled, post-American Idol album on Tuesday. And only FOX 4 can tell you what his brother has to say about it.
FOX 4 and myfoxkc.com have been in touch with Andrew Cook during this entire process. Andrew was there with FOX 4 when David tried out for American Idol. And Andrew helped FOX 4 cover the latest round of American Idol auditions in Kansas City.
Reba McEntire, Kelly Clarkson Deliver the Goods in Birmingham, Ala.
BIMINGHAM, Ala. — Reba McEntire and Kelly Clarkson brought out an impressive number of people to the Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex on Friday night (Nov. 14), despite the struggling economy and the fact that both artists are in between albums right now.
Part of the reason for the strong turnout is that it’s been 10 years since McEntire played in Birmingham, but a more likely explanation is that the 2 Voices, 2 Worlds tour is one of those concert opportunities that may not come around again. Indeed, the itinerary concludes on Saturday (Nov. 22) in Baltimore.
Ex-à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Idolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Misbehaveà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢
Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s a few minutes before lunch, and Ruben Studdard is sitting on a bar stool at JCT Kitchen, drinking a cream ale. The à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“American Idolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ got up at 5 a.m. to make the trip from his hometown of Birmingham. He and his posse have been crisscrossing Atlanta in two black SUVs to promote the 30th anniversary tour of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Ainà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t Misbehavinà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’ - opening Tuesday at the Fox Theatre.
The first thing Studdard says is that he hopes critics will be kind to him as he makes his professional stage debut. Joined by former à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Idolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ contestants Frenchie Davis and Trenyce Cobbins for this Fats Waller revue, the so-called Velvet Teddybear is crossing over from gospel and R&B to jazz. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Honeysuckle Roseà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“The Jitterbug Waltzà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ will be added to his song list, alongside hit singles à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Flying Without Wingsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Change Me.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬
Simon Cowell and Terri Seymour say the darndest things
Simon Cowell and Terri Seymour are the George and Gracie of our generation. The two continue the “he said she said” banter over their break-up; the most boring break-up in celebrity history. The ex-lovebirds still adore chit-chatting the other up to further enhance each one’s career. After six years together, Simon Cowell and Terri Seymour are calling it quits and come only to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Extraà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ to have it out.
Making the ‘Idol’ transition
Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s been one heck of a year for singer-songwriter David Cook.
In the span of a few months, he went from no-name singer to household name after winning the seventh season of Foxà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“American Idolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ in May.
A few weeks after his win, Cookà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s first post-à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Idolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ single, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“The Time of My Life,à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It was the highest entry of the year at that time, sparking a fire sale of 970,000 digital downloads, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
Add in a highly touted à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“American Idolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ tour, along with appearances on à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Saturday Night Live,à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“The Tonight Show With Jay Leno,à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ MTVà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Total Request Liveà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ and other national talk shows, and ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s an understatement to say Cookà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s musical career has been cooking.
Daughtry 6th ‘American Idol’ on a sitcom or drama
Chris Daughtry, the “American Idol” Season 5 fourth-place finisher, will be one of the guest stars on Wednesday’s 100th episode of ” CSI: NY” (10 p.m., CBS/2). Here are five other former “Idols” who have appeared in either a sitcom or a drama (we’ll pass on those who have moved on to reality TV, like Nikki McKibbin on “Celebrity Rehab” or Diana DeGarmo on “Gone Country”).
Tamyra Gray – The Season 1 final four contestant had the recurring role of Aisha Clemens on the Fox drama “Boston Public,” appearing in seven episodes in 2003. She also has had guest roles on “Half and Half,” “Las Vegas,” “Tru Calling,” “What I Like About You,” ” Ghost Whisperer” and “All of Us.”
No Official Cause of Death After Abdul Fan Autopsy
Extreme Paula Abdul fan Paula Goodspeedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s autopsy has been conducted, but the official verdict on her cause of death is going wait.
“We are doing toxicology,” Lt. Cheryl MacWillie of the Los Angeles coronerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s office tells E! News. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“It will take six to eight weeks.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬
Although Goodspeedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s brother said Thursday that the body of the former American Idol auditioner would be released to the family Saturday and flown home to Maine for burial, MacWillie says the remains are still with the coroner. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“The body is ready to be released,” said MacWillie, “but the legal next of kin [still] has to make arrangements with a mortuary.”
American Idol suicide: harsh judges, heartbreaking verdict
When 30-year-old Paula Goodspeed, after her failed American Idol audition, wrote these hopeful words on her MySpace site in February, 2006, she probably had no idea she would become famous, however horribly. It has been one week since she was found dead in her car, parked close to the home of Paula Abdul, her long-time idol.
Yet the story continues to grow, as more details of Goodspeed’s state of mind and her obsession with Abdul emerge. What little there exist of Goodspeed’s written words and images are being ricocheted across the Net. Meanwhile, on YouTube, a video by à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Amandaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ (whose user name is UnificationNow) is getting a lot of mileage.
Cloris Under the Weather
“Extra” has learned that “Dancing with the Stars” competitor Cloris Leachman is currently recuperating at home after she “sought medical attention” from her doctor for a cough. According to her rep, the 82-year-old actress attended the Lint Roller event at the Hollywood Palladium Thursday night, and visited her doctor after she “wasn’t feeling totally herself.” Her rep further stated that the octogenarian hottie is expected tape something for “Dancing with the Stars” later this week, and that Cloris’ other projects would not be affected.
‘Dancing With the Stars’: Lance Bass surges into the lead
Tonightà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s semifinals of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Dancing With the Starsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ brought a big surprise: namely, that Brooke Burke messed up one dance and got her lowest score of the season. The judges also had harsh commentary for Warren Sapp and Cody Linley, but the story of the night was Lance Bassà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ two very strong performances. In addition, I was relieved to see that co-host Samantha Harrisà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ hair was back to being attractively styled after last weekà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s aberrations.
The couples performed the last of the traditional à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“DWTSà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ dances that they had not yet done, and then each got to choose one of the new dances introduced this season.
Lance Bass Says ‘NSYNC, Astronaut Past Don’t Give Him An Edge On ‘Dancing With The Stars’
Lance Bass cannot believe he is one of the four remaining celebrities in the running to win the seventh season of ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars.” Sure, he spent a good part of his early career dancing in ‘NSYNC, but Bass insists that his previous training didn’t give him an advantage on the show.
“I can’t believe we’re still standing, but everyone is so good this season. These next few weeks are going to be insane,” he told MTV News during rehearsals with his partner, “So You Think You Can Dance” alumna Lacey Schwimmer. “These judges are so wishy-washy. … This season they’re really hard-core, but I think it’s to bump you to the next level. They’re just pushing us to be better.
‘Dancing With the Stars’: Dance Mastery
It’s semifinals week on Dancing With the Stars, and you know what that means à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’ tons of pressure! Lots of drama! Top-notch performances! Well, yes, ideally. But waaaaaay more importantly: The triumphant return of the DANCMSTR vanity plate! We get this once a season on-screen, even though I force you to read it on this screen twice a week. I was terrified they wouldn’t provide a close-up of the license plate’s pristine beauty, but of course they saved it for the end of head judge Len Goodman’s (see, I know his name) ”Master Class” segment. From his Cheryl-Kym ballroom-sandwich fantasy to his solo-grinding tutorial from Warren Sapp, DANCMSTR’s shining moment was a true delight, ranking up there with Tom’s suggestion that viewers judge the contestants ”not by the sparkle of their sequins but by the dazzle of their dance.” Oh, Tom. They’re so not mutually exclusive! Just ask the judges. And Warren.
Exclusive Interview: Edyta Sliwinska of ‘Dancing with the Stars’
Edyta Sliwinska is by far my favorite professional dancer on Dancing with the Stars. She is amazingly talented, is gorgeous, to boot, and is the only pro who has appeared on every season of the show. Unfortunately, she and her original partner, Jeffrey Ross, were the very first couple to be eliminated the season, but these past two weeks, she has been back on the dance floor to fill in for Julianne Hough who was recovering from surgery.
Edyta Sliwinska graciously spoke to BuddyTV this week and shared with us her insider’s perspective on how difficult it is being on the show and why there are so many injuries this year. She also analyzed the strengths and weaknesses of the four celebrities in the competition: Brooke Burke, Cody Linley, Lance Bass and Warren Sapp.
Cody Linley dancing into the doghouse
There are conflicting reports from inside the ”Dancing With the Stars” camp about Cody Linley, but two sources do agree on one thing: The youngest-ever competitor on the show has changed dramatically from when the show’s seventh season began.
”Perhaps there was a touch of the diva there all the time, but it sure has come to the surface now — in a major way. He’s always whining about something or someone,” said a show staffer. The “Hannah Montana” actor turns 19 on Thursday.
It’s crunch time for Warren Sapp on Dancing With The Stars
Still in the running are talk show host/model/mother Brooke Burke and the best professional dancer of the group, Derek Hough; Nickelodeon Network teen actor/hearththrob Cody Linley and Julianne, his little sister (and recently appendix-freed surgery patient and two-time DWTS winner; former boy band star and proudly gay performer Lance Bass and his kind-of-grunge, black eye makeup favoring partner Lacey Schwimmer; and former NFL star and crowd charmer Warren Sapp, with Aussie dance partner Kym Johnson.
Athletes have won the last four editions: the NFL’s Emmitt Smith and partner Cheryl Burke; speedskater Apolo Anton Ohno and Julianne Hough; race car driver Helio Castroneves and Julianne Hough; figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi and Mark Ballas. Plus two other NFL players — Jerry Rice in season two and Jason Taylor last season — finished second.
Tampa Forum Final Stop For ‘Think You Can Dance’ Tour
TAMPA – They’ve been on the road together since Sept. 20, dancing through 40 cities in less than 10 weeks.
It came to an end Monday night in Tampa for the top young competitors from the fourth season of Fox’s summer reality series “So You Think You Can Dance?”
This season’s winner, Joshua Allen, and other finalists did their last moves as a group, performing hip-hop, contemporary, ballroom, tango and more at the St. Pete Times Forum.
“I’m keeping all my costumes and framing them,” said 20-year-old Comfort Fedoke, who is headed home to Texas and mom’s cooking. She joined several cast members for a media interview session Monday afternoon.
Even the part about doing the push Ups during the AI concerts… LOL It seemed more like a joke. Every answer cracked me up, because I’m not sure he was beeing serious.
Yeah, I think there was a fair amount of snark going on in that article.
Did everyone hear the Acoustic Cafe thing on WPLJ? DC (accompanied by Neal) did a gorgeous acoustic version of LO.
Where can we hear that Acoustic Cafe? I can’t find it on wplj site.
I have a picture in my head of David doing that Men’s Fitness interview with tongue firmly in cheek and his eyes just rounding up in innocence…..And the other funny thing? The interviewer dug up Mavidance! All in the name of research.
oh hey anyone got the wplj interview?
this was posted at idf, archie called in a question for david lol
NPR did a review of David Cook’s CD. Not too flattering, but here it is: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=97170653
Apparently, the acoustic cafe will be put up, but it isn’t up yet.
Oh thanks for the Men’s Fitness link. I emailed that to mj this afternoon. I LOLd at that too! PSHAW! on that review from NPR. “Histrionic singing?” I thought that was what attracted so many people to Cook. I saw it as expressive and real, not histrionic, as in:
1. of or pertaining to actors or acting.
2. deliberately affected or self-consciously emotional; overly dramatic, in behavior or speech.
Yeah, Cook has been acting all these years. Gosh, he WAS in those high school plays, ya know. And what could he possibly have to be overly dramatic about? Let’s see…could it be…LIFE, maybe? Oh, maybe men aren’t supposed to be so “emotional.” Much ado about nothing eh? And the songs are meaningless? I dunno, maybe he didn’t hear the words. Ah well, YMMV!
ETA: Oh and once again, being compared to Nickelback is a BAD thing. Is it fashionable among “music” people or “critics” to hate Nickelback for some reason? If you like them, are you not a music snob or something? I honestly don’t get it. I don’t own any Nickelback but maybe I’ll buy some to see what this is all about!
I just had to run over and do a happy dance. David Cook is #1 at this time on I-Tunes (Rock and overall) and also on Amazon CD sales. In addition, at this moment, all songs off of his album are in the top 100 downloads at Amazon. Congratulations Mr. Cook.
ETA: Take that….NPR. :tongue2_tb:
CHART UPDATES for David Cook
iTunes:
#1 overall
#1 Rock
iTunes Top Rock Songs:
#11 – Declaration
#17 – Permanent
#19 – Come Back To Me
#25 – Lie
#31 – Heroes
#37 – A Daily AntheM
#38 – I Did It For You
#39 – Light On (album version)
#52 – Bar-Ba-Sol
#56 – Life On The Moon
#64 – Avalanche
#75 – Time Of My Life (album version)
Amazon:
#1 overall
#1 Rock
#1 Pop
Amazon MP3 downloads
Come Back To Me – #14
Light On – #26
Time of My Life – #31
Declaration – #43
Heroes – #53
Permanent – #54
I Did It For You – #60
Lie – #61
Avalanche – #65
Bar-ba-sol – #66
Life On The Moon – #67
Mr. Sensitive – #69
A Daily AntheM – #71
The LA Times review of David Cook’s new CD is one of the most articulate and right on that I have read. She obviously gets David Cook. Very good read and I am really glad that she gave props to his A Daily Anthem written entirely by David himself. The CD is incredible. Interesting that Come Back to Me is doing so well on Amazon downloads. My favorite continues to be Lie, but ever song is terrific in its own right. There isn’t a single bad one. Mr. Sensitive is addictive. Barbasol is fun. Permanent is a tear jerker. He dedicated Declaration to the fans. Amazing reception for a debut album. I’m so happy for him.