But what makes something original? Is it the orchestration? Or is a new vocal simply enough? And does originality always equal quality?
David Cook has been getting a lot of praise this season on American Idol for his "original takes" on some class songs. Lionel Richie's "Hello." The Beatles "Eleanor Rigby." Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean." Randy Jackson said his performances were "hot." Simon Cowell called him "brave," saying that David has a great chance of winning the whole thing.
The problem is, David Cook's "original takes" on these songs are anything but original. He copied Incubus' version of "Hello" (also copied by Guster). "Eleanor Rigby" was Doxology's version. And Chris Cornell did the same version of "Billie Jean" that put David Cook on top last night. Sure, Ryan Seacrest may have mentioned that it was Cornell's version before David Cook performed last night, but to many people out there, that's not enough.
Cook isn't the first Idol contestant to find himself in troubled waters after seemingly taking credit for an original take on a song. Look back at Chris Daughtry, who in Season Five blew the audience away with his take on Johnny Cash's "I Walk the Line." Daughtry was the star of the show that night, but the next night, he was apologizing to the audience for taking credit for a version he clearly lifted from "one of his favorite bands of all time," Live. Chris Daughtry also scored in Season Five with the Red Hot Chili Peppers' version of Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground."
Now, we know Chris Daughtry wasn't really hurt by those copied performances. Despite coming in fourth place during Idol's fifth season, he has gone on to score massive adoration and success with his band, Daughtry. The thing is, Chris Daughtry wasn't an original voice. He was a refreshing voice in the American Idol pool - a separate among a group of Whitney wannabes and sub-par pop performers. He was the first "male rocker" to actually have the pipes and attitude to match his style. He wasn't Constantine. He wasn't Ace Young. He was actually talented.
Which is probably why David Cook's time on Idol invokes a little deja vu. We've seen it happen before. We're not really surprised. Does this all mean that David Cook is not talented? I don't think so. The guy can sing. He can play. Does it mean that he's not original? Yeah, it does. But is that a bad thing?
Britney Spears is not original. Beyonce Knowles is not original. Justin Timberlake is not original. Maroon 5, Feist, 50 Cent, Rihanna, Kanye West - they're all inspired versions of something that has come before them. But they entertain(ed) us. They introduced a style to a whole new generation of people. Even though David Cook may be copying other performers, he's not the first and won't be the last.
One could even argue that David Cook did something Incubus, Doxolgy, and Chris Cornell couldn't do: made their voices heard. He's taking their versions of these classic songs and bringing them into our popular conscious. It's not about style or thought, it's about value. And right now, I think David Cook is bringing value to Idol. Whether that remains, however, is up to you.
Comments
Michael Slezak 03/28/08
Nicely put, former (and future) Idolatry guest! I think Cook is just taking heat now because he's established himself as the current front-runner. No one complained when Carly covered Celine Dion's version of "I Drove All Night," though I doubt rock hipsters would be as eager to defend Ms. Dion!
Nialle 03/28/08
I agree with Michael. The only people to get slack for covering covers are "rock" contestants-- Daughtry, Blake Lewis, etc. David Archuleta butchered a Stevie Wonder version of "We Can Work It Out" and he gave credit to Wonder for the arrangement just like Cook gave credit to Chris Cornell. But yet, he doesn't get any backlash for that.
I think it's because the judges are less familiar with rock music and other rock covers and to them, it's something new and orginal that they've never heard. Simon, Randy, & Paula need to be more familiar with ROCK! :)
Melissa 03/30/08
I was a guest on Idolatry this week talking about this very issue. (Thanks again, Michael & Dave!) I do think David Cook???s ???Billie Jean??? performance was absolutely ???brave??? and ???original,??? if you consider that most Idol contestants stick to singing popular versions of popular songs. David Cook made the risky decision to take on a largely unknown and nearly unrecognizable version of a beloved pop song. And if he wouldn???t have sung the bejeezus out of that song, it could have been a complete and utter disaster.
Also, I think it's beyond outrageous that David Cook is getting slammed for doing covers of other people???s arrangements. Other than Blake Lewis, I can???t think of any Idol contestants who did their own arrangements. The whole American Idol machine does not lend itself to originality, not only because the contestants aren't allowed to sing their own compositions (thank God!), but because of the demands placed on them. Each week, they have to choose a new song, learn the song, record a long version for iTunes, practice with the band, shoot a Ford commercial, and be stripped of their dignity to learn those awful group numbers. Not to mention photo shoots, interviews, and being trotted out on the red carpet for whatever project Fox is pimping that week. I think that is American Idol???s biggest flaw. We choose our winner based on how well they perform other people???s work, but in the end we can only imagine what their own work is going to sound like. So when someone like Katherine McPhee releases her first single, we???re suddenly surprised to hear her singing breathlessly over a drum machine. It???s just not what we thought we were going to get when she was wowing us with ???Somewhere Over the Rainbow.???
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