The Time Of My Life

This man can sing! Looking forward to a FULL ALBUM!!! Have to admit the winning songs on Idol are normally a little on the cheesy side BUT he makes this one into something special.

So I will concede that this song is a little cheesy but I think it is better than most Idol coronation songs especially last years' winning song. Anyway, I think he did what he could with it. He even claims to really like the song which I find hard to believe but I will take the man's word for it. I can't wait for his album to come out. Yes it will probably have this song on it but it will probably have some others that are phenomenal. I still say that his voice is awesome and that I like this song but I don't love it. I think people are supporting him, not the song itself.

As far as this studio recording of the song goes, it seems to lack a little of the passion of his performance at the Idol finale (of course, the excitement of that moment would be hard to duplicate). I'm also not a fan of the backup singers the producers are addicted to throwing in everywhere, which greatly ups the "cheese" factor that everyone is commenting on.

And although he has said that he "genuinely likes it" - and it *is* catchy and extremely upbeat - it's not what he's best at or probably wants to be known for. Thus, I'm kind of sad for David Cook that this is his first big song, since it really isn't a great one and he had no choice in the matter.

But aside from all that, Cook does have a brilliant voice. In case you're in doubt after previewing this clip, check out his live or studio Idol performances of "Music of the Night", "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", "Innocent", "Always Be My Baby" or "Eleanor Rigby", just to name a few of my personal favorites. They can all be found on YouTube, as can his Idol finale performance, if nowhere else. I'm excited to hear what his future will bring us...

(Note to TPTB: Could you possibly have found a photo of David that makes him look LESS like he's having the time of his life?!? Jeez.) ;-)

I expected much better from David Cook, especially considering he beat out the real American Idol David Archuleta. Cook is much better than this; this is horrible. David Archuleta's recordings blow these out of the water. Not impressive at all and I mean the singing, not the song. I actually don't mind the song; it's the singing. Most of the songs on Cook's pre-Idol album are miles better than this.

When it comes down to it, all of the contestants who have won or participated in American Idol just haven't really came out with knockout songs that stand out in the way that artists Carrie Underwood and Clay Aiken have shown to deliver. Last years' victor, Jordin Sparks hasn't really shined that feeling on her songs No Air and Tattoo. That also just has shown with the latest winner David Cook. While his victory was a stunner, he just hasn;t shown that he could deliver a great song with Time Of My Life. The feeling of the song just feels a bit cheesy. I just hope he doesn't fall to the curse of the fallout of Idols' and their record sales in the ways that Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard and Katherine McPhee have showed, after they were dropped by their labels. Hopefully David needs to find the right material, and maybe when his debut comes out he will. He has a good heart, but needs better songs.

Song: C-