Archuleta 'Knocks Out' Cook

The battle of the Davids produced a clear winner for the "Idol" judges -- and unfortunately for rock crooner Cook, baby-faced Archuleta outsang him in a focused and commanding shot at the AI title. The evening consisted of three rounds of songs chosen by the producers, judges and singers themselves -- and Simon declared Archuleta the winner of all three. The final round had Archuleta and Cook singing songs of their own choosing; Archuleta chose his well-tested version of John Lennon's "Imagine," while Cook opted for a somber version of Collective Soul's "The World I Know." Cook's song choice drew criticism from the notoriously harsh Simon, who suggested it was the wrong song for this point in the competition -- but Mr. Mean had heaps of praise for young Archuleta, saying, "You came out here tonight to win, and what we have witnessed is a knockout." Judge Randy Jackson agreed, saying to Archie, "You are so good tonight -- you are exactly what this show is about." The judges all but crowned ... (link)