'American Idol' crowns David Cook the winner

David Cook has won "American Idol." I hope for his sake that the win is a blessing, not a curse.

Cook is undoubtedly talented, but the mainstream career that the "Idol" machine will attempt to impose on him could be a disaster. But Cook has a strong will and a real creative vision, as his history on the show has proved. Let's hope he's able to use that will to fight the machine and define himself as an artist.

Certainly Cook is by far the more winning personality. David Archuleta has a good voice, but he consistently failed to connect emotionally with the material he chose or was given.

It's hard not to feel extremely sorry for Archuleta, not just because the loss is no doubt disappointing to him. But can you imagine the reaction of Archuleta's interfering stage father? I hope for the young man's sake that Archuleta one day gets the chance to become a real artist some day, not just a fearful singing puppet.

Cook's performances on Tuesday's "Idol" were criticized by some, including judge Simon Cowell. They certainly weren't being a pandering, transparent plea for votes, as Archuleta's songs were. Cook sang songs that suited him and that he connected to; as he has all season, he zigged when the conventional wisdom said he should have zagged.

As the Tribune's rock critic, Greg Kot, wrote in his assessment of the "Idol" finish, Cook's Tuesday performance of Collective Soul's "The World I Know" "was exactly the type of performance 'Idol' despises: subtle, almost wistful, sung by a guy with a guitar. In contrast, the 17-year-old Archuleta blasted his way through songs by John Lennon and Elton John like his voice was a bazooka."

But Cook's independent streak may have just won him the title; what a pleasant surprise that earnest artistry won out over "Idol's" usual histrionics. Cook said in a recent interview with TV Guide that his brother's battle with cancer had put the "Idol" competition in perspective – he wanted to win but he had a constant reminder of what was truly important.

Thanks to that welcome perspective on the "Idol" hoopla, this gravelly voiced former bartender could be on his way to a real career. I'm certainly intrigued to see what he does next.