David Cook – Entertainment Tonight – VIDEO

Yep MJ lots of blah, blah, blah.

On a totally superficial note. David looks smokin HOT. especially 1:08 or 1:09.

Errrr, yes record out November 18. Whats up with the mannequins, is that like an ironic statement?

Well, it’s about time we saw some footage of Cook! They should let him show up here and there more often! Nice interview!

Self titled? Oh well, nothing new there. I think in the next two weeks or so we are going to start getting some leaks of the cd contents.

Am I crazy or does that image with the mannequins look like Daughtry’s album cover?

:laugh_tb: They really could have aired that with no volume.

Evil West Coast CBS!! We got mostly the football game, and then met ET already in progress- which happened to be about 30 seconds from the end of the clip…grrrr… thanks mj for having the clip up!

Is he going with one of those close up four-pics that remind me of a photo booth? Yum!

Thanks for posting MJ! I missed it while out buying groceries I liked that little bit where host-chick is talking and DC’s in the background getting his hair and makeup fiddled with, and something is making him bust up laughing. So cute!

So no new info really (LOL at panties on the stage…this is a family show!) but it was nice to see DC, um, talking and looking all earnest and stuff.

Thanks MJ!

The album being self-titled surprised me a little. But then again, he did say that his album would be almost entirely autobiographical…I guess calling it “David Cook” would make sense. :ponder_tb:

Am I crazy or does that image with the mannequins look like Daughtryà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s album cover?

I noticed that too….if he does end up having an album cover that looks like Daughtry #2…I will start to question the sanity of RCA.

Nice. Thanks MJ

” My Other Shirt has a Skull on It ” :thumbup_tb:

ROTFL @ his shirt! I didn’t like ET’s editing of the “pitfalls of the road” however.

They really could have aired that with no volume.

Hee!

Good to see David Cook. I was just thinking that he’s getting scarce, but I guess he’s busy. He’s setting the bar quite high with an “important” album. Didn’t the important albums (Tapestry, Thriller, The Wall) take more than a few months to make? (I got a little scared for Cook when he said that.)

Looking forward to his press tour to promote the CD. He’s such a delightful interview–quick with the wit, so pleasant a person. It’s funny, lately we’ve seen more photos than live interviews. And in every picture he looks deadly serious and his eyes are often watery, like he’s about the start crying or just finished. So great to see the light, conversant David Cook again.

Mmm, an “important” album. Making those kind of announcements is always dicey. I think just a good album in the short time the Idols get is enough of a challenge.

Did Cook really said that good or great is not enough for him, he want his rushed idol record to be important? lol Let me guess, the next White Album?

He wants it to be important. It’s a goal for someone who’s been toiling the last few years in relative obscurity and knows that this is probably his one and only chance to make it, I guess it’s a hope more than it is a promise.

A lack of courage is not one of his flaws.

Young guy, hard worker, big dreams. And a lot of folks who enjoy pulling for him.

For every person who is infuriated by Cook’s hopefulness, there’s another (well, there’s me) who has a huge amount of fun with his “swing for the bleachers” attitude.

Go Cook.

He looks very handsome BTW.

He wants it to be important. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be very important to me. It would really suck if he said he wanted it to be mediocre.

Important – major album that affect music in a serious way. No one says he should say I just want to make a POS that sells. I just think good or great is enough of a target. Important sounds a tad OTT to me.

Good to see that Cookie has big goals. Why reach for mediocrity?
Awe man, he wears underwear? Bummer.

I will probably cut his important White Album crap some slack if he didn’t go on releasing a big pile of cliche like LO. I hope he is not perceiving LO as an “important” single to the music industry.

What exactly is an “important” album, anyway? And why would important be something to seek after more than good or great? What makes the examples above (Tapestry, The White Album) important?

Not rhetorical questions, here…

I don’t get it.

I think Cook is using important to mean serious and meaningful. Because LO is certainly serious but “important” as in anything new or groundbreaking. No way.

Somehow, and I maybe wrong, I don’t think it matters what Cook says. People are gonna dissect everything he says and does. If he said he wanted to put out an album that was just good to him, or just an ok album, everybody would be on him for that. So he says he wants to put out a great album, and he still gets knocked. I for one will be there to get that “great” album in november.

Edit: post your opinion on the subject, not on the motives of your fellow posters.

He said he wanted it to be important. He never said he wanted it to be the White Album.

He said he wanted it to be important. He never said he wanted it to be the White Album.

From Rolling Stone in September:
“I don’t know what the expectations are”, Cook says, “But I want to put out a Joshua Tree or a White album.”

For someone who’s been trying to pull the humble routine, he sure comes off as arrogant.

I like David, but I don’t see any hotness in him.

He is one beautiful man. I am glad he shooting for the stars, I don’t find it arrogant but I knew some would. I think he wants to make a meaningful album and that is what he means by important. For myself a good album will do but if he hits his goal I am not going to complain. May I say again WOW he is easy on the eyes.

OMG. I almost didn’t post this video, because I knew it would probably devolve into a super lame fan war.

I’m going to be watching this thread. Angry, baiting posts will be edited or deleted. I’ll also be editing or deleting posts from finger-wagging David Cook fans. Leave the modding to me please. If you haven’t already, I suggest you read the guidelines:

http://mjsbigblog.com/?page_id=1172

I think Cook has enough of a challenge just to finish this album in the short period of time he has without worrying about setting the world on fire. But this is his first major-label album, and I can understand his high hopes and ambitions. Aiming high doesn’t make him an arrogant asshole.

I little naive, maybe…

Well, when he asked his fans to name the album that was my vote, self-titled as David Cook.

“For someone whoà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s been trying to pull the humble routine, he sure comes off as arrogant.”

I think there is nothing arrogant about David Cook. Poor guy can’t win for losing.

I get what David is saying by *important*. Why does that make him full of himself?

Why are you full of yourself if you want to make music that will actually mean something instead of *ooh baby shake your booty*?

Frankly I admire David for wanting to make some lasting music instead of the crap that is out there on the radio today. Will he have those types of songs on the cd? I don’t know, but I do have enough faith in David to know he will put out some great music and I am sure I will have some favorite songs among them. Songs that year’s on down the road I will listen to over and over.

Will they cure cancer and make peace all over the world? No, but that is not what he is saying either.

Huh? I don’t see how David saying his goal is for his record to be important, coming off as arrogant. Isn’t it just like saying “I want to become a successful doctor” or “I want to own a big house someday”? Is it arrogance now to have goals? David WANTS to put out an important record. He didn’t say his record IS important. I think it’s pretty commendable that he’s striving towards something productive. So, he wants his record to mean something. I don’t see anything wrong with that.

Good news, folks! David Cook will be interviewed by Woody and Jim on 107.5 The River tomorrow, Monday morning. Looks like the LO promotion is finally starting to pick up.

David is uber earnest. I like that about him but I know it can come across as Self-important to other people. To each his own and all that.

But I don’t think he’s self important. If you know what I mean. I just think he’s young, ambitious and maybe a little naive. And that’s all right with me. He’ll learn. (LOL I’m not much older than him. I don’t know why I always feel protective of him like that)

From what I have seen from him, I think that if he fails to meet his goal, he will be the first person to beat himself up.

From Rolling Stone in September
à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t know what the expectations areà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ , Cook says, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“But I want to put out a Joshua Tree or a White album.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ 

For someone whoà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s been trying to pull the humble routine, he sure comes off as arrogant

Hmm, I forgot about that. My take on that is like I said above, it’s a goal. If you don’t dream big, what’s the use in dreaming? LOL. I think I’ve heard that before… Is that arrogance? Maybe. But that’s one interpretation. As others have said, it’s aspiring for something bigger. But I’m biased, and beauty in the eye of the beholder and all that. I’m a writer, and my dream is to write “A Farewell to Arms” or “somewhere i have never travelled.” Even if I have a feeling that my talent can only come up with probably a good romance novel, I’m going to push myself into writing a masterpiece. If I fuck up along the way to a Pulitzer Prize, then I tried my best.

I understand what David means when he says important.

edit: keep your opinons on the subject, not on your fellow posters.

I think all of the songs DC wrote had meaning and ended up being important to somebody somewhere. I can’t think of any song that he wrote that was about “shaking your booty” or anything trivial. He wants to create music with meaningful lyrics that some listeners will find important.

I’m not seeing the arrogance either and I actually admire his honesty. Having confidence or big aspirations seems like a great quality. Nothing wrong with shooting for a White album. (and wasn’t he laughing when he made that Rolling Stones comment…it seems like people are taking that statement out of context ). Maybe I just have very high expectations for him, so the “important” comment just made sense to me.

Somehow, and I maybe wrong, I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t think it matters what Cook says. People are gonna dissect everything he says and does.

True, but the fact that even his non-fans spend this much time discussing him is a huge complement! Boring he is not.

I canà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t think of any song that he wrote that was about à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“shaking your bootyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  or anything trivial.

An that’s my point. :smile_wp: David is wanting to record and/or write something that is more than say example only: “I like big butts and I can not lie”. I’ll admit to liking parts of Baby Got Back because it’s catchy, but really meaningful? Nope.

Somehow, and I maybe wrong, I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t think it matters what Cook says. People are gonna dissect everything he says and does.

Another reminder:

Please keep your opinions focused on the subject. If you disagree with someone say so and explain why, but please don’t analyze their motives, criticize opinions, or complain about posters being critical of Cook

(For some reason this weekend I’m having flashbacks to a story from my childhood about three fraternally-related goats and a bridge….)

I will say that I hope DC doesn’t throw around the “important” label when he’s interviewing with “actual music” persons, publications, or outlets. Because that would come across as pretentious from a newbie, especially one who got his start the way he did.

edit: please stay on topic. Random stuff goes in the headlines thread

David has always been so careful and considerate in his words. This is the second time he has stated his goal so boldly. It is not a slip of the tongue. It is deliberate. He is wise enough to know how these words are an ammunition to those who just wait to tear into him. There are those who would consider his revelation as worthy of ridicule. I see it as an act of great courage. The man has balls.

Incidentally, Beyonce who has expressed a desire to be a lasting icon not just a successful singer but also win an Oscar, change the world has been derided for her ambition too. To my mind, anyone who strives for excellence and has the honesty and courage to stand by it, deserves admiration.

I am really glad that David Cook is aiming for to make something an album that might be considered “important”, it means that LO might not be representative of his new album – “important” would mean to me a new sound, something that haven’t been done before and may become influential, LO is not “new” (it harks back to the 80s and earlier), and unlikely to be influential. Perhaps he might fail, we’ll never know until we hear it, but it’s always good to aim high.

Let’s hope it’s not so much of a “Joshua Tree” (don’t like that), rather more of a “White Album”.

My take on “important” is that he wants to go for themes a little higher than oooh, baby, I want you so bad and you won’t give me the time of day. Not that there’s anything wrong with oooh, baby, I want you so bad and you won’t give me the time of day, and I betcha there are a few of those on the album, anyway. But when he got to choose what he really wanted to sing on AI, he went for “Innocent” and “The World I Know,” both of which aim a little higher than the crotchal area of the human body. And that’s where I think “Light On” was supposed to be a bridge, since it’s both a lovey song AND something a bit more universal, maybe (talking meaning here, not execution), since it seems to resonate well with soldiers or firemen or policemen or people with a mission.

I just saw a play (beautifully written) where the heroine (the writer and narrator) kept saying this was a “theatrical exploration with universal themes” and it was meant to be funny and self-deprecating, even though it did have universal themes. That’s what Cook’s “important” means to me, that’s he’s going for something he hopes will be universal as well as personal, and he’s perfectly prepared to not make that lofty goal, but he wants us to know he has it.

So, for me, “important” is more about theme than possible success.

Oh, and he looks really cute in the video. :wink_ee:

I am really glad that David Cook is aiming for to make something an album that might be considered à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“importantà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ , it means that LO might not be representative of his new album – à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“importantà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  would mean to me a new sound, something that havenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t been done before and may become influential,

Cook has two forces working against him with this first album 1) Time constraints 2) Commercial considerations.

From David, I’m hoping for a solid album that does not suck. Really, nothing more than that. Even Kellie Pickler said in a recent interview that her first album wasn’t up to her standards, that there were songs on it she’d never put on an album today.

Years ago, when I taught poetry, we used to discuss a particular figure of speech called “synecdoche,” in which a part of a thing stands in for a whole. Sometimes in a poem or a story you get this one moment which is small in itself, but kind of serves as a shorthand recap of this whole larger theme that is going on.

That’s what this (and all recent) David Cook threads are turning into.

(What’s that? Pretentious you say? I like a little pretention in my coffee)

This one tiny moment in an ET clip, and our discussion of it, revisits what is finally the ultimate storyline of David Cook.

To his critics, voiced by the enigmatic frenemy that was Simon Cowell, his biggest vulnerability is a quality they call “smug, arrogant, pompous” (am I forgetting any synonyms?). Whereas those who praise him (sometimes the *same* person) use terms like “brave, daring, original, unpredictable.” When Simon was feeling generous he used the word “proud.”

For someone like me who’s caught up in Cook’s story, seeing the way that ambitious quality is leavened with so much apparent good-humor, self-deprecation and good will, it’s hard to understand those observers who see only negatives in the dude.

But there’s no denying that quality is *there*. It’s a matter of whether you find it lovable, or otherwise.

Would he be easier to watch, would there be fewer moments of Awkward! and Oh No He Dihnt! and WTF! if he weren’t so *like that*. Sure. But I don’t necessarily need easier in my cultural passions?

Is that quality–of stubborn venturesomeness–going to go away? I don’t think so. It would be like trying to yank out the guy’s liver:painful, messy and he wouldn’t function very well without it.

(Carpe Noctem – Dap!)

Cook has two forces working against him with this first album 1) Time constraints 2) Commercial considerations.

Couldn’t agree more with that statement. They want him to put out an album they feel will sell and make them money ASAP. He’s under contract and though he might have some say in the type of music he puts out, it’s hard to overcome those that hold all the cards and call most of the shots.

From Rolling Stone in September:
à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t know what the expectations areà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ , Cook says, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“But I want to put out a Joshua Tree or a White album.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ 

And I think the article said that then he chuckled. I never know if he’s 100% serious or not. I think he sometimes is picking on himself and his earnestness. I like that word to describe him, “earnest,” it fits. He’s made 5 or 6 albums already, 2 by himself for the most part. Personally, I don’t find him arrogant or pompous, never have. I see him as a man who knows what he wants, knows himself, and is confident in his abilities. He also seems confident in his ability to learn new things, which he did quickly during AI and I’ll bet continues to do at breakneck speed. I think of this quote from him quite often in relation to the new album, from a Rolling Stone article also:

I don’t want to make a Chris Daughtry record, I want to make a David Cook record. I feel like I know who I am.

And I want more, more David Cook. I don’t know personally exactly what he meant by saying that he wants to make an “important” album. My first reaction was he meant important to HIM and perhaps his fans. Then I thought something similar to other comments here – he wants meaningful lyrics and subject matter for his album. If you listen to any of his original music, he doesn’t write “oh babeeeeeeee shake your booty baby baby baby oh yeah” songs. At least I can’t think of one, although I have not listened to every song on every album.

Yeah sometimes I just quit reading everything and quit commenting for awhile because the bottom line is YMMV. :wallbash_tb:

I don’t dissect every word anyone else says. I think about it while I’m reading or talking, then I move on. I’m sure it affects me and my opinions, but I still have to move on. I like him, I like his music, I like his writing, I like most everything about him and I’ll buy his new album. Not everyone does or will, I know that. I said a long time ago on a fansite “How beautiful is this man?” And I made a new friend because she loved that I said that! Well, I think he’s lovely. :wub_tb:

IMO you have to put him mention à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¾importantà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  in the context that it must à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“meet my expectations. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“ And there me are back to Davidà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“ It is about progression.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ 

à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t know what the expectations areà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ , Cook says, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“But I want to put out a Joshua Tree or a White album.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ 

This albums has been in the first place a progression for the artists.
And every one know it, so they are a good example.

Hey–If you don’t dream big, what’s the use in dreaming??

Go David Cook. He’s putting his album together right now–when you’re in the throes of the actual project, it’s important to have lofty goals to provide drive and vision. Of course he wants an important album. Me too–and I’m not a recording artist. Wouldn’t that be awesome? To make an important album that lives on for decades? In 2040, the kids in dorms are discovering the first Cook album, like some of us discovered Abbey Road or Sounds of Silence a few decades after those were released. It’s a great goal.

Paula–regarding the hotness–I don’t see it like a lot of others either, but I’d date him based solely on his personality. I just think he’s smart, witty, quick, charming. I think his charismatic personality (and good looks–don’t get me wrong–he’s good looking and all) is going to help sell the music.

I really think “important” really is lyrics with meaning that people can relate to and connect with and not just your run of the mill stuff such as “oh babeeeeeeee shake your booty baby baby baby oh yeahà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  songs.” I think more than anything David Cook has to connect with his songs and they have to mean something. As far as the “rock” genre, there really isn’t anything new under the sun. Anyone can put out a “shake your booty” type of song but that’s not Cook’s style and rock is rock no matter how you slice and dice it.

Listening to Light On, I immediately connected with it personally. Having been a military spouse for 20 years made me connect with it so it became personal. I think Cook wants people to connect with his songs and that’s what makes it “important.”

A couple of things. One thing that I find interesting is that he has made sure to say that he thinks that his expectations (e.g., wanting the record to be important, not just good) are higher than everyone else’s. So, he’s not saying that everyone thinks that I’m the greatest artist in the world and expect a masterpiece from me on November 18th. But that’s the goal that I have for myself.

Second, I suspect that many artists have internal hopes or goals of creating something that is a real moment, that touches a lot of people and becomes a part of our culture. I’m not saying that some recording artists aren’t thinking, my only goal is to pop this baby out and sell some units, but I’m guessing that a lot of artists who really love music and have been touched by the records put out by other artists dream of having that same effect on the music world. They want people to pick up their record and love it and be inspired by it.

Maybe it is wise on the part of an artist not to express those goals aloud, but I have to wonder: how many recording artists who lacked that internal goal, that self-made pressure to create something important and lasting, have ever done so? I’m not saying that it’s impossible without that internal goal, but I bet that it’s a heckuva lot less likely.

One more reminder:

I am deleting posts that stray from the subject. We aren’t getting into a finger-pointing discussion of “this site” and the posters who post here. PLEASE STICK TO THE SUBJECT OF THIS POST. Or, I’m shutting down comments here.

I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t dissect every word anyone else says. I think about it while Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m reading or talking, then I move on. Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m sure it affects me and my opinions, but I still have to move on. I like him, I like his music, I like his writing, I like most everything about him and Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll buy his new album. Not everyone does or will, I know that.

kathrynTX, I am the same way. I like pretty much everything about DC and will buy his album and any future albums he makes. Why? Because he’s David Cook!! and I think he’s a brilliant artist! I haven’t disliked one of his songs yet, and I don’t see that happening anytime in the future.

I like pretty much everything about DC and will buy his album and any future albums he makes. Why? Because heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s David Cook!! and I think heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s a brilliant artist! I havenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t disliked one of his songs yet, and I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t see that happening anytime in the future.

Ditto for me. I think Cook is brillant and I personally have never been so addicted to anyone’s music for a long time. In fact, I hardly listened to music anymore and rarely played a CD or tuned into a radio station other than talk radio. Now I listen to music again because Cook has awakened my interest again not because it’s something to listen to, but because I prefer to listen to music I can connect to and has meaing. Cook chooses his songs with meaning that listeners can connect to. I am definitely past the stage of “shake your booty….” type of songs.

So I watched the video twice and read all of these comments (and I’m actually afraid to make a comment for fear it might be edited!).

First of all, there are several moments when he’s looking especially swoon-worthy, including two looks he gives at :29 and :30.

Second, “panties anchored down with massage oil?” Does that mean that they were soaked in massage oil or a bottle of massage oil was somehow attached to the panties? I think I dwelt on figuring that out and completely ignored most of the video after that.

Finally, I think when he says “important,” yeah, it may be that he’s overly ambitious, but I interpret it as important to HIM. He knows what the time constraints are. He knows about the commercial aspect. If he doesn’t know all that then I have serious concerns about his mental health. But because he realizes that these two things might get in his way, he’s still holding on to the idea that it’s his first album and he doesn’t want to look back and think that that first album was crappy or frivolous in any way. It might not be the best thing he’ll do, but it shouldn’t be something he regrets either.

1.) Jess, your pink panties will live on and on and on. Dare I say that she made an impression! Heeeeeee….

2.) David Cook, if you only knew….

I used to think Cook was arrogant during the show, but since I saw him after AI in interviews with DA and interacting with him, I changed my mind. I actually see some insecurity in him, which is not a bad thing. I think that even though he is good with words, I wouldn’t be surprised if he just said that word “important” because it just came out and didn’t expect it was going to be analyzed by everyone.

Yeah, I think Simon did DC a huge disservice by painting him as arrogant. I don’t know. Maybe it wasn’t a disservice. David learned to keep his excitement to himself after that.

I cannot wait until this album is released, I am very excited.

Finally, I think when he says à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“important,à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  yeah, it may be that heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s overly ambitious, but I interpret it as important to HIM. He knows what the time constraints are. He knows about the commercial aspect. If he doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t know all that then I have serious concerns about his mental health. But because he realizes that these two things might get in his way, heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s still holding on to the idea that ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s his first album and he doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t want to look back and think that that first album was crappy or frivolous in any way. It might not be the best thing heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll do, but it shouldnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t be something he regrets either.

No disagreement from me. David has said many times that he’s his harshest critic – so if he’s satisfied, it’s all good.

I think Cook is brillant and I personally have never been so addicted to anyoneà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s music for a long time. In fact, I hardly listened to music anymore and rarely played a CD or tuned into a radio station other than talk radio. Now I listen to music again because Cook has awakened my interest again not because ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s something to listen to, but because I prefer to listen to music I can connect to and has meaing. Cook chooses his songs with meaning that listeners can connect to.

I don’t know how to quote, but this was from Rheinharv. I could have written this myself. Actually, I’ve never been addicted to anyone’s music at ALL, until David Cook came along. I laughed at friends who could play the same music over and over.

My $.02 on this is that he never claimed it WOULD be important or a White Album, but that’s what he’s striving for. I’m thrilled he has that desire for it. I think he is probably knocking himself out trying. I sense he feels beholden to his fans and wants to give them his best. I see no arrogance in any of this.

As a side note, I’ve noticed that at times, he seems to gently yank people’s chains, though I don’t think that’s the case with these statements.

When Cook appears on a nationally syndicated television show and says “I don’t want this album to be just good, or great. I want it to be important.” Well, unfortunately that does make him sound pretentious and self absorbed. That kind of talk mostly works against a new artist. Especially with someone who bears the title “American Idol”. I don’t think I have ever heard any of the legendary musicians actually say the words “I want my work to be important.” That is a given. Every artist wants their work to be “great” and “important”. Cook should follow the lead of the established greats who have come before him, make good music, put it out there and see what happens.

I love seeing new video of DC.
As for the “important” comment, IMO, that is nitpicking. It is rather irrelevant anyway. It could be the greatest album of all time and if RCA does as much to promote it as they have LO, only a handful of people will know it exists.

How could a song that got over one million views on AOL be known to only a handful of people? I’m pretty sure Cook will be seen on many national TV shows and and people will be aware of his album. Then they can determine if it’s great or not. Brewster, I think you nailed my problem with the comment. In the end, it’s no big deal. He seems to be liked by the media and gets pretty positive coverage overall.

All I wanna say is I bet MJ is hesitant before putting anything up about David Cook after all the posts she gets from them LOL

I think his publicist needs to put out a statement on what he meant about making an “important” album. :happy_tb: It could very well go back to this, which he said in the same news clip: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“If I meet my expectations, then Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll exceed everybody elseà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ 

That kind of talk mostly works against a new artist.

That is the main problem
the point ov view
I dà ¶n’t think he and most of his fans, see him that way.
He has worked years to get here and has worked on more albums than a lot artist of his age, now in the charts.
He has now the ressources, work with people he always wanted to work with, why shouldn’t he want it to be important.

He has worked years to get here and has worked on more albums than a lot artist of his age, now in the charts.
He has now the ressources, work with people he always wanted to work with, why shouldnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t he want it to be important.

Yup!

And BTW, him saying that? This makes me anticipate the album even more!!

I’m hoping for the best, be preparing for the worst….

You know for me, nothing David Cook says is blah blah blah. I really miss him. I miss the tour. I miss Season 7 and seeing him a couple of times a week in my living room. I am really eager to hear anything he has to say. I can’t tell you how much I am looking forward to his new CD. He wants it to be something important. It will be important to me simply because he is the one singing.

Now I listen to music again because Cook has awakened my interest again not because ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s something to listen to, but because I prefer to listen to music I can connect to and has meaing. Cook chooses his songs with meaning that listeners can connect to. I am definitely past the stage of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“shake your bootyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ ¦.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  type of songs.

Yep me too! The last time I listened to an album like I’ve listened to David Cook’s music was when Damn the Torpedoes came out. I listened to it every day for months. I connected with those songs and love every song still. I fell asleep listening to DTT, and now I’m doing that again, for the first time since that record came out. I’m glad David wants his first major-label record to be “important.” I hope that he really does have the highest expectations for himself. Now I just have to comment on this:

How could a song that got over one million views on AOL be known to only a handful of people?

Actually, it got over 1,000,000 PLAYS. I know I just put it on and let it play more than once, at work and at home. This doesn’t mean over a million different people listened to it. Just like the fact that he got over 54 million votes on AI doesn’t mean 54 million people voted for him. I voted for him over 1,000 times that final night, and I know I’m not the only one who did something like that. Obviously, I’m a huge fan. But not everyone is or will be. Oh well. I can’t wait for the new ablum. I am beyond excited about it. And about the possibility of a David Cook tour some time in 2009. Can’t wait can’t wait can’t wait! YAY David! Just do it. Leave it on the stage. Leave it on the record, man.

Like to give my 2-cent worth of opinion – I agreed that the remark (should be unscripted and not PR-generated) from David Cook about his upcoming album could be interpret as being too arrogant and could could create intense pressure (for himself) and huge expectations (for his fans and general public). IMHO, he should stay steer clear of ‘sentimentalizing’ or ‘personlizing’ his public statement about his works from now onwardsfor he is no longer competing in the AI’s arena where raw emotions run high all the time. He should just stay professional and let the music critics/buying public/and all decide – whether his new album is ‘good’, ‘great’ or ‘important’.

I think his publicist needs to put out a statement on what he meant about making an à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“importantà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  album. It could very well go back to this, which he said in the same news clip: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“If I meet my expectations, then Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll exceed everybody elseà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ 

I think CNN & Fox & NBC & CBS & ABC etc should all do a Special Breaking News report on it. :dry_tb:

I hope David doesn’t stop speaking his mind. What we see is what we get. He doesn’t know how to be anyone other than who he is, to say what he says and do what he does. I think, anyway. I don’t know him personally. But I think he is beyond ready to let the public, his fans, his non-fans, his critics, his supporters, the music industry, everybody do whatever they’re all gonna do when his album comes out. He can’t tell anyone what to do, after all. The only person he can control is himself. He’s done what he wanted to do, he signed on the AI dotted line, he’s moving forward now. I bet he’s ready for whatever comes next. And I hope he doesn’t change for publicity’s sake or professionalism’s sake or for sales’ sake or for anything or anyone but David Cook. If I like him, I like him and I’m gonna buy his music and go see him LIVE (can’t wait!). If other people don’t like him, they won’t. I don’t know if he can, or should even try to, change people’s minds at this point. He’s been doing this for 10 years. I don’t know, I think if he keeps it up, he’s gonna be famous some day…might even make a good album, maybe even an important one. LOL!

Hmm. It may be a good, radio friendly pop-rock album, but important? He should know if he’s already done most of it. “Light On” is okay, but not great or important. This sounds like typical hype to me. No biggie.

“Light On” is currently No. 52 in iTunes overall and No. 17 in Pop Category……..who is buying Disturbia?

There is so much discussion about David Cook saying he wants to make an important album, which I find rather amusing. I’m one that has difficulty sometimes finding the right words to accurately express my opinions on things, so I looked up the word “important” in the Webster dictionary.

As you all well know, there can be several different meanings to a word. Some are more appropriate in certain contexts than others. The first two definitions in my Webster dictionary are: of consequence, memorable. Now I see nothing wrong in saying that he wants his album to be memorable or of consequence. If he didn’t want it to be memorable, I would be worried. However, YMMV.

Now if you choose to use another definition which would treat his comments less favorably, that is your right. I have found that people are either pessimists or optimists. But generally, I prefer to take a person’s comments in the best possible light. I guess I’m an optimist. It makes for a much more pleasant day! :innocent2_tb:

I think CNN & Fox & NBC & CBS & ABC etc should all do a Special Breaking News report on it.

It would be difficult since the media doesn’t know or care that he has a single debut. I haven’t seen much press but plenty of ads and emails.

It would be difficult since the media doesn’t know or care that he has a single debut.

Lisa was being sarcastic, methinks. Levity is a good thing.

I think CNN & Fox & NBC & CBS & ABC etc should all do a Special Breaking News report on it.

LOL!! I’ve always loved a dry sense of humor.

I could be wrong, Daniely, but I get a whiff of some lovely sarcasm from Lisa. Given that traditional media does not spend a lot of time talking about singles put out by recording artists, but does tend to spend a lot of time talking about issues like economic collapses and presidential races, I can’t say that I’m particularly surprised that Light On has not exactly been front-page news.

I think his publicist needs to put out a statement on what he meant about making an à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“importantà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  album. It could very well go back to this, which he said in the same news clip: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“If I meet my expectations, then Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll exceed everybody elseà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ 

I think CNN & Fox & NBC & CBS & ABC etc should all do a Special Breaking News report on it.

Loverly!!!! :lol_tb:

Lisa was being sarcastic, methinks. Levity is a good thing.

Yes I was :biggrin_wp:

wordnerdarchie FTW!

ShariG said,

“You know for me, nothing David Cook says is blah blah blah. I really miss him. I miss the tour. I miss Season 7 and seeing him a couple of times a week in my living room. I am really eager to hear anything he has to say. I canà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t tell you how much I am looking forward to his new CD. He wants it to be something important. It will be important to me simply because he is the one singing.”

I bet Cook is thrilled to have fans like you who have unconditional love for him and whatever he does. I feel the exact same way about DA, and I love your “definition” of important.

I was just commenting about Elliott over in another thread and how anxious we all were (speaking collectively of his fans) about whether he would get an album and whether it would be decent and how happy I am that it all turned out so well for him. And then I realized, I bought his cd, and he had a huge hit with Wait For You, but I don’t really like any of the other songs all that much. Maybe Movin’ On. I have a feeling Cook’s album will be the same, that I will find a song or two I really love and feel kinda blah about the rest. (Even on my favorite album of all time, Carole King’s Tapestry, I have always hated Smackwater Jack and I’m only a little fond of “Tapestry” itself as a song. I also always skipped I Feel the Earth Move because my album was warped and it skipped really badly on that song and I got used to setting my needle on the second song. Yeah, I know that makes no sense to people who grew up in a post-record world.)

Anyway, I think the trick (for his management) is finding the single that will be loved by the most possible people and hanging the album’s hat (if it had a hat to hang) on that. I don’t know how many chances you get for a hotapalooza single, but I do think DC has enough good will built up from Idol that he will get a few chances and some serious benefit of doubt. I wasn’t really that worried about Elliott and I’m not that worried about Cook. Sometimes you have to have a little faith in people. :smile_wp: (That’s a quote from a Woody Allen movie, not an exhortation or anything.)

I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t know how many chances you get for a hotapalooza single, but I do think DC has enough good will built up from Idol that he will get a few chances and some serious benefit of doubt.

Unfortunately, for an AI winner, the number of chances is usually one. LO is not doing well on itunes (although it has followed an almost identical trajectory as Fall Out Boy’s “I Don’t Care”), radio seems to have utterly rejected it and the promo outside of the existing fan base (or Idol watchers in general) has been disturbingly slight. One million streams on AOL doesn’t equate to one million listeners. That would be like saying the 12 million vote difference in the finale accounted for 12 million people. It doesn’t quite work that way. YMMV on what is going on with the single: public dislike/indifference, radio programmers’ dislike/indifference, lack of payola, or a poor promotional job on behalf of the never known for good promo RCA.
Radio interviews begin tomorrow and one would think that they would be aiming to kick things off in a major market. New York? LA? Nope. The first interview is in…..Nashville. OK then. The crack marketing team must have two members: one to lift up the rug and the other to grab the broom.
Yes, there will be the obligatory TV appearances (pointless though they may be) and a video at the end of the month (hopefully the budget for it will be more than the cost of my lunch). But, really, these things are mere formalities. I don’t think RCA/19 is going to waste a lot of money when they have made it rather obvious that they don’t think Cook can recoup their investment. I can think of no other explanation for the way this has been managed (or not).
For whatever reason (and, as always, YMMV), Cook is tanking out of the gate and there isn’t much his fans (myself included) can do about that. I would be surprised if he has a deal with RCA this time next year (again, nothing can be done about it) but even if 19/RCA doesn’t want him, they have to release this album and I have never really expected anything more than that.

You know the add on date for the song is starting today. There are many radio stations who have the song but will not add it till today. Also many of those who have added Light On, have taken off Time of My Life of their playlist. In most radio formats where TOML is being played, it is ranked quite high and is still in heavy rotation.

I think rumors of demise of Light On and particularly David Cook’s career are grossly exaggerated. RCA got him Rob Cavallo, allowed him to get his buddies in the band, let him collaborate with his musical heroes. Perhaps the reason he is not out and about it because he is so heavily involved in making of the record. He is doing a lot more than singing the songs. He wrote them, he arranged them, he is probably playing guitar on them. How many Rock albums are made in as short a time that he has had ? He is also putting together brand new band. I am sure learning to play the songs, develop chemistry for the performances, takes time.

I did not want to invoke his name but really did anyone see Daughtry out and about till his album dropped ?

Sky is still up there Thank You ! David is doing fine and I expect will do marvellously well by the time this year ends.

I did not want to invoke his name but really did anyone see Daughtry out and about till his album dropped ?

Sure, by people from this very site. Two years ago on this very day, they were playing the Viper Room with his band new band (a few posters from MJs went). A few days later, he sang at baseball game and was giving interviews to MTV/Access/etc. They started doing radio interviews around October 25th. The lead-off single debuted on October 26th.

No, my memory is not that good. I used MJ’s wayback machine because I did remember he was out and about in October (just not what he was up to).

Realistically, these guys have got to finish recording soon if they want to make their release dates. They need to do post production and it takes a couple of weeks to produce and ship them. I seem to recall the label wants the artist to be finished primary recording at least 6 weeks prior to the release date. I expect that most of the press will be done in the two or three week period around their album release dates.

From David’s interview with WXXL 106.7 in Orlando (via the WN Home):

One of the last tracks they recorded features just his vocals, strings, and piano. The project mixes “heavy” and “delicate.”

Shooting a video for “Light On” at end of this week.

I swear, from certain concerned people, there seems to be a constant refrain that DC is flopping or tanking or whatever is the term du jour, along with concerns that RCA has already decided not to support him and has penciled in a date to drop him from the label. I still say that that is contrary to the evidence—that DC’s radio play is slowly growing, such that he is within striking distance of Top 50 on both HAC and Top 40, despite the fact that each format is still spinning ToML quite a bit, and that with the new rounds of radio interviews starting this week and more media to follow, LO will be getting more visibility, which will likely mean more sales, and at a minimum, should lead to more buzz going into the record, which seems to be RCA’s primary concern.

edit: see below

ETA: We must have cross-posted, Gwendolyn, but ah, that sounds lovely.

edit: Please read the guidelines.

No finger-wagging or lecturing your fellow posters, please.

Alrighty then…………..Ditto FolkFan

Reminder:

Please be careful how you respond to negative posts. Disagree with, but don’t finger-wag, lecture, mock or give psychological advice to fellow posters. I’ll be editing and deleting posts that don’t follow the guidelines. And if you haven’t already, I suggest reading them, because I have been known to ban posters who are chronic abusers. Thank you.

This link may be posted elsewhere, but it seems relevant to this ongoing discussion.

Great interview with Dave on Boston’s own Kiss 108, Matty in the Morning.

http://kiss108.com/pages/Matty.html

There’s some sort of inflammatory language being used in this thread (eg “public dislike/indifference, radio programmersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ dislike/indifference” of Cook) so as a palate cleanser, you might want to check this funpiece out.

Tons of info about David and his new band, a mix of his Tulsa bandmates and new guys who auditioned, a good discussion of song writer Emily Shackleton who penned “Dream Big,” and you know,
. . . the usual disheartening DJ remarks such as ‘we all love you here” and “you seem like a great guy” and “I was just talking about you last week.” :laughing_tb:

Also, Ryan Seacrest’s butt is made fun of.

Whoopsy! Edited to fix the Radio station name.

The bit about Seacrest’s apple-bottomed jeans is awesome, am I right?

Great interview with Dave on Bostonà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s own Mix 106, Matty in the Morning.

That’s Kiss 108 Maturin! . I’ll be posting the headlines thread in a minute. Let’s move the topic over there, because it is off-topic in this thread. Also, it might be hard to continue the discussion once the thread is closed (which I am contemplating doing at this point).

For whatever reason (and, as always, YMMV), Cook is tanking out of the gate and there isnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t much his fans (myself included) can do about that. I would be surprised if he has a deal with RCA this time next year (again, nothing can be done about it) but even if 19/RCA doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t want him, they have to release this album and I have never really expected anything more than that.

I 100% disagree with this statement. I really believe that DC’s single will be like TOML and have a long and steady run on Billboard and that once the new album is out he may have several on the chart.

Also, Ryan Seacrestà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s butt is made fun of.

Oh gosh! I went and found a picture of Apple Bottom jeans. LOL!!!

Awesome, the band’s all here: Neal (guitar) & Andy (keyboard & rhythm guitar), of course, Kyle (drummer), and Joey (bass).

Self-titled album, according to David.

I don’t know how something tanks or flops when it hasn’t even been given a chance to do so. To have this in the morgue before it’s really even been born, to me, is a disservice. I’ve heard him on two (Boston and Nashville) radio stations this morning. As usual he is charming, charismatic, funny and real. Hell, the DJ in Nashville said he thinks he has a mancrush on David. Wayne Ishman, a very well thought of video director, is on board. The Blender article was so made of win. There will be an article in the upcoming Rolling Stone. Rob Cavallo was enough to put any angsty thought I may have had at one time aside. I’m not going to start now. I have faith that RCA didn’t get to where they are by not knowing what they are doing. This man has huge potential and I just have to trust that they know what they are doing to try to maximize that potential.

A funny aside, after I listened to the Boston podcast, I clicked on one where Ryan Secrest called in right after the finale. The two of them were talking about how wrong TOML was for David. Ryan said that they’d maybe even let him record a different song for his single….who’d a thunk it.

The All New David Cook Thread From Hell Special Glossary

“tanking out of the gate” = doing just fine
“rejected by radio” = building up airplay
“pointless, obligatory, formalities” = Cook is in ur radio, chattin up ur djs
“radio programmers dislike” = big wet kiss

See, I fixed the thread!

My first time being edited. Sigh. I thought I was just spreading good feelings and random positivity. Ah, well.

Anyhow, during one of the radio interviews today, DC revealed some information about the video which will be taped soon. They hired Wayne Isham to direct, who has directed Motley Crue, Metallica, Britney Spears, Avenged Sevenfold, and Gavin DeGraw among others. So, probably cost a bit more than a boxed lunch.

Awww, I miss Matty in the Morning. I have so much more appreciation for him and Ramiro (the Freakin Puerto Rican – ha) now that I have to listen to sucky Cincinnati radio DJs. Boo!

Back OTT, I am not touching that “important” thing with a ten foot pole. It’s not worth it. I knew that was going to be trouble as soon as I heard it come out of his mouth! lol.

As much as I love David, he is pale as hell in this video. Pale is not hot to me. Cookie needs some foundation.

Interesting discussion– I feel all shallow now, cuz I saw the clip and was so busy zoning in on the DC hotness (YMMV), those WTF!mannequins, and the interviewer’s unnecessary hands all over him that I completely missed the controversial “important record” part. Personally, I like what he said, and found nothing arrogant about it, but even though I see how it could be (mis?)interpreted as such by some folks who are more… detail-oriented, I honestly don’t think the rest of mainstream media is going to pounce on him for his choice of that one word in a super-short clip on ET, a clip that played on a weekend, no less. I don’t at all agree with sherryw’s concerns above about RCA’s plan to ditch DC, but I will say that my main worry these days is not so much negative press for DC, but lack of press in general. I will keep trusting RCA knows what it’s doing for now, but still, I hope he finishes recording soon (without compromising quality, of course), and starts showing up more, and soon!

Davidà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s interview with WXXL 106.7 in Orlando

Baah, is it posted yet? Link, please?

maturin I love your attitude! :kiss_tb:

maturin, you can fix anything. Reminds me of when our cat died when my brother was like 4 years old. He put the cat in a box and put it on the workbench for Daddy to fix when he got home from work because Daddy can fix anything. I do believe you could have fixed that cat, maturin.

My first time being edited. Sigh. I thought I was just spreading good feelings and random positivity. Ah, well.

Maybe some folks don’t want to be positive. And here at mjsbigblog, they have the right to be negative without advice or admonishment from fellow posters.

Having said that, I know you meant well, so it’s all good.

Tanking out of the gate. Let’s see Jordin’s coronation song was the worst selling, worst charting, then she released Tattoo and sold 33,000 the first week. For as much as those first week sales sucked that little song went on to sell over a million downloads. I consider Jordin’s initial chart performance “tanking out of the gate” far more than David is right now and she seems to be doing fine and her record deal is in place last I checked. I think I’ll wait a couple of more months to decide if he’s a huge failure who RCA is ready to kick to the curb.

I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t know how something tanks or flops when it hasnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t even been given a chance to do so.

I don’t know either, gingerly. It seems awfully premature to me. Neither 19 nor RCA want DC to fail. They are going to do everything in their power to help him succeed. He’s not going to be shafted when it comes to promotion. Now, all of those things can’t guarantee that Light On will become a hit single but even if this song doesn’t catch on with the general public, they can always move on to the next single at some point. They are not going to give up on Cook that easily.

Oh my sweet David. You simply must know that people are going to lose their minds when you say things like that. And yet you continue to say them. Good for you!!!

ozarka, thank you for posting that Nashville radio interview! He sounds wonderful and hopeful.

My 2 thoughts on the topic at hand: First, my take on the important comments from David means he wants to make an album people will want to keep listening to long after the initial excitement and hype has worn off. Will people keep going back to it years down the road? I think its entirely possible since his previous work has already made a huge impact with a lot of his fans, we’ll see if any new fans feel the same way. I really don’t think David is prognosticating changing the music industry or inventing a new era/genre/style like some of the “important” yardstick albums have in the past. Nobody can predict albums of historical significance, not even the greats could have predicted it. So for David to say he wants his album to have lasting potential makes a lot of sense to me. Second, David always gives this answer in context to a question about living up to expectations, not some random statement he’s trying to work in. I have a feeling that while he is genuine in delivering this answer that its also kind of a way to answer the question without leaving any room for follow ups.

I don’t see much comparison with Jordin and Cook. No one had any expectations for her and many people thought her runner up would smash her in sales. This isn’t the chart thread but LO slide down iTunes its second week may mean the new single is not connecting. So while I think he’ll be fine and am certainly not pessimistic about his career, I think the new single is off to a disappointing start. Just my opinion and again if I’m wrong, great. I’m pretty positive that RCA will do everything it possibly can to make him a hit though.

I am new to AI this season, so I am not up to why things happened a certain way for earlier idol contestants. Someone above mentioned Daughtry and how he did. I wonder if things were easier for Daughtry than Cook because of expectations. Obviously, people expect a lot out of the winner and given that Daughtry has had a lot of success, they are comparing Cook to him. I expect Daughtry didn’t have as much to live up to.

I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t see much comparison with Jordin and Cook. No one had any expectations for her and many people thought her runner up would smash her in sales. ….. So while I think heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll be fine and am certainly not pessimistic about his career, I think the new single is off to a disappointing start.

So even though Cook sold 3x as many singles as Jordin in his first week, it’s still a disappointment because you expected much more of Cook than Jordin? Considering how talented Jordin is and how many hits she now has under her belt, I would argue that Cook’s future is therefore very, very encouraging. You might have high expectations for him, as a lot of us do, but he’s still relatively unknown. I’m inclined to give this single some time. How much do you want to bet that Cook is very happy with selling 109K?

So even though Cook sold 3x as many singles as Jordin in his first week, ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s still a disappointment because you expected much more of Cook than Jordin?

I’m definitely not saying 109K is a disappointment for DC, but I totally get what jpfan is saying– it’s not all that useful to compare DC with Jordin because to say DC was a much more popular winner than Jordin is almost an understatement. Jordin was viewed as a winner by default because she was a better singer than Blake, and more marketable than Melinda. She didn’t paint a very distinct picture of herself as an artist on the show, and I think mostly did well when she was standing still and singing a ballad. IIRC, I think she did poorly when she tried some faster pace / contemporary songs, and was bottom two/three at least once. Meanwhile, DC won against an extremely popular runner-up, burst onto the Hot 100 breaking all sorts of records by iTunes sales alone, and in general, consistently showed off a modern, commercial sound on the various weekly theme nights. Clearly, expectations for DC are way, way higher than they ever were for Jordin. But I agree with you that the verdict’s not out yet for LO– I personally think it’ll prove to do quite well.

Eh, no hand wringing from me. Yeah, Light On may be not getting the super aggressive push from RCA and the almost guaranteed insta-success that comes with it. But I’ve come to the point where I’m kinda zen about the fact he’s not going to be marketed the way Jive marketed Jordin and Archie. I think he has a lot of goodwill out there and in general people who remember him from AI want him to do well, and as long as his album is visible in the stores he’ll be okay and at least get a nice little jumpstart to his career. And if it’s a pretty good record, word of mouth should do the rest. So RCA focusing their energy on surrounding Cook with the type of artists he’d like to work with rather than a lot of big time marketing isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

As for the “important” soundbyte, there’s a huge difference between saying “My album is/will be important” and “I want my album to be important.” The former means he’s making assumptions and is a tad arrogant, the latter, which is what he did say, just indicates how seriously he’s taking this opportunity. Good for him. There’s no AI caveat that says you have to approach the rest of your career like you are a reality tv persona who got lucky, even if that’s how it started out. And you know, even if he said the former, I’d be cool with it. I like a little confidence and swagger, and Cook has always tempered that kind of thing with a self depricating midwestern family values vibe.

It occurred to me that possibly what appears to some to be a lack of promotion might be a very deliberate strategy to distance him from all things Idol, in order to reboot his image for the rock world. This may be one reason he did not claim the normal winner’s expected ‘perks’ of first single, first album, first video, etc. Rock does not look kindly on AI, to put it mildly.

The rock world is the world they have to conquer. It is a different world, wherein albums are emphasized over and above singles, for instance. The norms are different in every way.

I could be totally off base, but it’s worth considering. In any case, I continue to believe the strategy is simply different, not wrong or bad. I believe he will do great. It may take a few weeks for the adds date, radio spots, etc. to affect sales, but I believe the time will come.

It occurred to me that possibly what appears to some to be a lack of promotion might be a very deliberate strategy to distance him from all things Idol, in order to reboot his image for the rock world. This may be one reason he did not claim the normal winnerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s expected à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹perksà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ of first single, first album, first video, etc. Rock does not look kindly on AI, to put it mildly.

Very wise thoughts Indy. I think you just might be on to something with that line of thinking.

It occurred to me that possibly what appears to some to be a lack of promotion might be a very deliberate strategy to distance him from all things Idol, in order to reboot his image for the rock world. This may be one reason he did not claim the normal winnerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s expected à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹perksà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ of first single, first album, first video, etc. Rock does not look kindly on AI, to put it mildly.

This would be a plausible scenario if any of his upcoming radio interviews were with rock stations, but they aren’t. They are with Top 40 and HAC. It isn’t like it can’t be done. This is the exact same label and management that got Chris Daughtry on the Bob and Tom Show (a nationally syndicated morning show on rock radio, and, btw, they are hilarious). It doesn’t appear to be that they are making some sort of effort to establish “cred” in the rock world. They just seem to be dismissing him as “the other David” and somehow less worthy of promo, IMO.

Go boyfriend!!! State your dreams, hopes and aspirations LOUD and PROUD!
I know what you mean. :cool_wp:

Eff me he looks so damn good at 1:07/1:08.

Now..back to catching up….

I don’t know if the time contraints really affect an album…if the music is good, well it’s good. Van Morrison recorded Astral Weeks in one week!!!! Can’t think of too many albums which is as brilliant as this.

I think only those of us in the AI bubble will lay heavy weight on his choice of the word “important”. Your average listener is not going to pay that much attention to the word choice….or just take it in stride.

There are two importnt messages in that clip…one is he looks so damn good and sounds intelligent, and two: the album drops Nove. 18th!!!!

I do wish it would be called something other than David Cook.

I was still rooting for “Optimistic to a Fault!”

I don’t know where to post this, but I haven’t seen any mention or review of “Light On” on Billboard and Rolling Stone in the past 2 weeks.

Someone posted that RS gave LO 3 stars, I checked and it’s not true, RS usually reviews albums, and only rates singles, but LO hasn’t been rated or mentioned.

“Crush” had a review on Billboard as soon as it was released, then a lot of news blurbs on Rolling Stone, including one which can be viewed as an unofficial “review”, whereas LO has none til now, 2 weeks after its release.

In regard of “distance Cook from all things Idol”, I think that the best way isn’t forsake his promotion, but drive those promotion to the more suitable direction, ie Rock stations, mainstream music magazines… I don’t know how to put it but LO being marketed in CHR/HAC is not the way to gain any rock credibility. IMO RS is that direction if he really wants to strive as a credible rocker. So nothing about LO on RS and Rock stations yet really concerns me.

To jd1111

This was posted on DCO. I hope the person doesn’t mind me usingit here:

I received Issue #31 in yesterday’s mail. Here is the review:

Light On
(3 stars)

‘For the American Idol’s power ballad on Red Bull, co-writer Chris Cornell- whose own “Billy Jean” cover served as a model for Cook’s victory performance- tosses some “Black Hole Sun”- style arpeggios under the verses. Cook summons all of his throaty passion, turning out a performance Simon might call “commercially viable.” ‘ -C.G.

Yes, the Rolling Stone review came out in paper, but not on the web. Hits Daily Double also reported that there would be a Rolling Stone article coming out before the record was released.

Sherryw, there has been a Blender article and will be a Rolling Stone article. His date for adds on rock is not until today, and he’s been getting some test spins on rock according to the quickcut data. And we don’t know what interviews, etc., he may have coming up. It seems pretty clear that they are ramping up the media. They also just hired a highly respected video director with a lot of experience in the rock world to handle the video.

All of which is to say that I agree with IndyMuse and don’t agree that RCA (who doesn’t have David A in its fold) AND 19M (who doesn’t have David A in its fold) are supporting David C (whom they do have in their folds) and aren’t treating him as “the other David,” which would make no sense for either of them. It makes sense that they are selecting media and other opportunities that, sure, will open doors for him at HAC and Top 40, where he’s already had some good success, but will also increase or at least maintain his credibility with rock.

The Blender article (with really funny pics) was really good. I had hoped that MJ would post it here.

It doesn’t make any sense to me that RCA would hang “the other David” out to dry…what purpose would that serve…just doesn’t even approach logic or good business sense.

RCA is hadling “the other David” just fine.

Still wish the album would at least be called The David Cook Band. Just David Cook is too much like DA’s title…different names of course! LOL

It occurred to me that possibly what appears to some to be a lack of promotion might be a very deliberate strategy to distance him from all things Idol, in order to reboot his image for the rock world. This may be one reason he did not claim the normal winnerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s expected à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹perksà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ of first single, first album, first video, etc.

I don’t know. I really don’t think there has been any lack of promotion. It might not be coming fast enough for some of the fans, but the promotion is going to pick up considerably over the next few weeks. It’s already starting.

I don’t think it’s possible to distance Cook from Idol this quickly considering that he just won a few months ago. There are always going to be some rock music snobs who’ll look down on Cook because he’s a product of American Idol, but who cares? As long as he’s moving units, it’s all good. Rock “cred” can come later, if at all.

This may be one reason he did not claim the normal winnerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s expected à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹perksà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ of first single, first album, first video, etc.

The video hasn’t even been shot yet and the album is more than a month away. Maybe I’m nuts but I fail to see how we can know what perks he is or isn’t getting when things like that haven’t even happened yet. As for the video, he’s got a top notch director so I tend to think that actually is a good thing. If you want to see how cheap RCA can be when it comes to videos take a look at Clay’s last couple of “videos” that didn’t even have a director.

The song impacted this week. Are we supposed to see every single radio interview they have planned in a span of 2 days? The HDD blurb said “tons of press on deck” and “multiple TV appearances in November”.

edit: DON’T LECTURE YOUR FELLOW POSTERS! I’m going to start putting people into moderation soon…

I wanted to clarify that I think RCA is doing fine with David, with promotion appropriate to their different strategy of emphasizing the album to come as opposed to his single. Somehow I guess I came across as implying that they were not doing right by him. That was not my intent. I am in the optimistic camp. I am not among the some I referred to above who see a lack of promotion.

I am not concerned about him yielding the firsts of video, song (excluding TOML), and album, which have already happened or are scheduled, as I don’t think they are needed for his success. I did not mean to imply that he had given up any other perks than these except maybe the Macy’s Parade, also for his own good. Keep in mind, as FolkFan pointed out, the Davids are under different management altogether. They are vying for largely different audiences, with only some overlap.

I do see the Blender article and Rolling Stone review as part of a repositioning which I agree will take some time. I think he’s going for HAC and AC and Top 40 out of necessity, and as a bridge. That’s where TOML has played, and he has fans over there. He may even find the AI title still useful over there. It’s got to be pretty tricky to go after rock fans without losing too many pop fans. Inevitably, he will lose some. However, I am on the optimistic side and am waiting for things to take off. I think he’s in good hands, with more evidence of that coming in every day. I am excited for the upcoming video in particular, as it sounds like they are taking pains to make it good. This has been a great week with lots of visibility for him in general.

Thanks for the info.

About the album name, at least it’s better to be “David Cook” than just “Cook”. I’m fine with self-titled album, but I’m somewhat disappointed because if it’s not self-titled I believe he’d have many ideas for its name, all cool and quirky.

Reminder:

Don’t lecture your fellow posters. It pains me to see posters have to clarify their statements due to finger-wagging fans. That’s not the way we roll around here. Respect your fellow poster’s opinions, please.

If you’re feeling angry, step away from the computer for awhile. This is going to be a long Idol record season, and I will be putting folks into moderation who don’t follow the guidelines.

Two questions:

Isn’t it pretty normal to self title your first major album?

Is it surprising to anyone else that on itunes, Cook is labeled pop and not rock?

Is it surprising to anyone else that on itunes, Cook is labeled pop and not rock?

Daughtry is also labeled as pop, so no, I am not surprised.