In the biggest upset in American Idol history, 25-year-old ex-bartender David Cook — who regularly strapped on an electric guitar to offer emo-ish takes on Lionel Richie's "Hello" and the Beatles' "Day Tripper" — easily beat 17-year-old crooner David Archuleta during the May 21st finale of American Idol, nabbing 56 percent of the more than 90 million votes cast. "I wasn't surprised Cook won, but that's because I get to see all the results each week," says the show's creator, Simon Fuller, whose 19 Entertainment will guide Cook's post-Idol career. "I don't want to tempt fate, but I think David's name will enter the list of great talents discovered by Idol."

Though many have predicted that Cook could follow in the footsteps of Idol hitmaker Chris Daughtry, some industry insiders suggest he'll have a hard time demonstrating credibility as a rock artist. "He's more middle-of-the-road than Daughtry was," says Mike Tierney, program director at New York's K-Rock. "I think they'll go straight to Top 40 with his single, and once you go schmaltzy, you can never go back." The day after the competition wrapped, Cook's debut single, "The Time of My Life," was the top-selling track on iTunes, followed by three of his performances, which included a cover of U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking for."

In the coming weeks, Cook — who loves the Used and Jimmy Eat World — will hit the studio to begin work on his full-length debut, which will be out this fall on RCA. "I'm looking forward to having as many resources at my disposal as I'll need," says Cook, who played and recorded in local bands pre-Idol. "I never necessarily saw this as my path, but sometimes these things have a weird way of working themselves out."

[From Issue 1054 — June 12, 2008]