David Cook Appears on "Saturday Night Live"

David Cook, the winner of "American Idol" Season 7, appeared on "Saturday Night Live" on November 1, and sang two songs from his forthcoming major label debut album, "David Cook," which is set to hit stores on November 18. Cook sang his latest single, "Light On," and the first track on the album, "Declaration." The two songs showcase some of Cook's wide range, something he used to great effect on "American Idol" and probably had more than a little to do with his victory over the talented but seemingly one-dimensional David Archuleta.

"Light On" was co-written by Chris Cornell and Brian Howe. The Brian Howe influence in the song is evident in its flow and melody. Howe sang lead for Bad Company on hits "Holy Water," "If You Needed Somebody," and "How About That" after Paul Rogers (now singing lead for Queen) left the band in the early 1980's. Still, there is that definite Chris Cornell sound to the song as well, one that points more to his solo material than anything he did with his two bands. Cook makes the song his own with his vocal power, pushing away the strained, strangled whine of Cornell and the smooth upbeat of Howe to get to his unique gruff sound.

According to Marketwatch.com, the release of "Light On" in September was followed by the launch of a new interactive iPhone application. A ligher appears on the screen with a touch of the application. As the single plays, the flame burns. Touch the screen, the flame burns out and the song fades. The application also has links to download the new single and/or pre-order the new album via the iTunes Store and to David Cook's personal website DavidCookOfficial.com.

AmericanIdol.com reports that AOL Music's pop news site, PopEater.com, premiered Cook's "Light On" in September and received over 1 million plays in just the first few days after release.

"Declaration," the second song Cook played on SNL, is a different kind of song altogether. An affirming piece, it is more of a rocker. Like all good and great performers, David Cook slips from one song to another without a problem. He proved on "American Idol" he can sing anything and make any song uniquely his own. He also has presence, that singular confident ability that some performers have that sets them apart from the pretenders, the karaoke wannabes, and those that just do not have "it" when they get up on stage.

Wal-Mart will premiere David Cook's first performances from the new album on November 15 on their music site, Soundcheck.

There are 12 previously unreleased tracks on the new album. "Time Of My Life," the winning "American Idol" anthem that Cook took to No. 1 on Billboard's Hot Contemporary Tracks chart, will also appear on the album as a bonus track. "David Cook" will be released exactly one week after "American Idol" runner-upDavid Archuleta's self-titled debut album is released, keeping the two in that seemingly neverending battle of the Davids.

The two will have plenty of "American Idol" company on the charts as well. "American Idol" alumni Jennifer Hudson, Carrie Underwood, Jordin Sparks,Clay Aiken, Kellie Pickler, Bucky Covington and Daughtry are all currently on the charts.

"Light On" is currently at No. 49 on Billboard's Pop 100 chart, having peaked at No. 24. It's highest position thus far has been No. 8 on the Hot Digital Songs chart.

And David Cook could not have picked a better time to perform on "Saturday Night Live," which is seeing its best ratings in over a decade, primarily due to the Tina Fey/ Sarah Palin sketches.

Sources:

Newsok.com

"Saturday Night Live," NBC Television

Billboard.com

AmericanIdol.com

DavidCookOfficial.com

Freep.com

Marketwatch.com