In 'Idol' bout, 'Archie' declared knockout winner
But even true believers doubted that Cook could prevail over sweet-faced, big-voiced teenager David Archuleta when the talent contest wraps Wednesday night.
"I hope to be surprised by the results, but I don't think I will be," said 20-year-old Mariana Uribe after attending Tuesday's show.
Lourdes Uribe, her 23-year-old sister and fellow Cook fan, said the rocker didn't go "as mainstream as he could have" with Collective Soul's "The World I Know" as his final performance.
Archuleta, by contrast, showed his silky talent off to perfection on crowd-pleasers including John Lennon's "Imagine," which he reprised from earlier in the season.
Cook said he has no regrets and wouldn't have approached the night any other way.
"If I had to choose between playing a song that not a whole lot of people know that I could get behind, or the opposite, I'll choose the lesser-known every time," Cook told The Associated Press backstage.
In round one, Cook and Archuleta received great reviews — Cook for his version of U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," and Archuleta for Elton John's "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me." But Cowell declared Archuleta the winner, a theme that would be repeated.
The songwriting winner will be revealed Wednesday, when the "Idol" champ performs it.
Archuleta, 17, of Murray, Utah, said he wasn't expecting to be singing that tune — despite the judges' overwhelming praise.
"I just feel like I accomplished what I needed to do. If Cook wins, that's so great for him he's such an amazing performer and he's proved he also deserves the title of 'American Idol," Archuleta said.
But the judges weren't so restrained. Randy Jackson exclaimed to Archuleta, "Dude, you are so good tonight. You are exactly what this show is about." And Cowell told the teenager: "You came out here tonight to win, and what we have witnessed is a knockout."
"American Idol" reveled in the mano-a-mano contest after a string of boy vs. girl finales. Michael Buffer ("Let's get ready to rumble!") introduced the singers, who came bounding out in boxing robes and gloves, and sportscaster Jim Lampley dispensed words of wisdom — in the form of boxing analogies — throughout the show.
Recent comments
I knew the result the moment Simon winked at Cook during the comments...
Jennifer | May 21, 2008 at 8:47 p.m.
It seemed like Cook didn't try very hard last night. I like...
anonymous | May 21, 2008 at 5:29 p.m.
I hope Archie wins. David Cook is not that good.
Anonymous | May 21, 2008 at 4:18 p.m.
